THE CREATION

LET’S GET SERIOUS

After that last tidbit of thought, I hope you have decided that God’s way is as good a way as any other man has devised, and that the Bible is a record we have of what has taken place in the past and a glimpse of what will happen in the future. With that in mind, let’s take a serious look at Genesis, chapter 1: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. 3 And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."

In the process of creation, and it is a process, possibilities are formed in our minds. These possibilities may be bits and pieces of thought randomly passing through our consciousness with little relationship one to another; in other words, "without form and void." You see, at first, there is nothing, and from nothing something appears; in this case, "the heaven and the earth." The third ingredient of the creation was "water" and that is because ALL physical THINGS with life contain a certain amount of "water."

"3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day."

God now begins to ‘speak’ into being the various things He wants in His creation. Of course, there is a "method to His madness" (so to speak), after all, He knew what the sequence of creation should be so as to provide for the next creation. Note that the first day began in the evening, since it was out of darkness that the ‘day’ was called forth. Hence we have the lunar calendar of the Jews. This fact is crucial later in enterpeting some very important events far into the future.

"6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day."

Here is a great mystery, in that the waters are divided, some being gathered onto the earth, (the earth was completely covered in water, verse 3; we will see, again, in the next verses that the water completely covered the earth); and some being collected above a ‘firmament’ which God called ‘Heaven.’ Later in the Bible, we learn that there are as many as seven ‘Heavens,’ so the one being talked about here seems to be the immediate atmosphere around the earth. This is supported by the fact that God opened this firmament at the time of the flood. The fact that the entire earth was surrounded by the atmosphere with a layer of water above it to filter the light from the sun would have given the entire earth a greenhouse effect, allowing for extreme longevity of animal life and a profusion of vegetation. This would also explain the reason for no rain being known about, and the earth being watered by a ‘mist’ which came up from the ground, duplicating the watering cycle of a modern greenhouse. Here, the stage is set for the various creations added to the earth later to survive for very long periods of time.

"9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. 11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 13 And the evening and the morning were the third day."

On this day, God causes the oceans to be formed, and land appears; no doubt, bringing about the water cycle wherein water from the oceans filtered through the ground, and found ways out through the surface, making streams and rivers. The land is instructed to bring forth the vegetation, obviously, in distinct families of plants since they are specifically mentioned by groups. How ALL the different species come into existence is not delineated. No doubt the simple process of cross-pollination played a large part. The innumerable possible combinations of the reproductive process (even as we know it) would allow for everything here. Don’t panic, we’re not talking evolution, which requires incalculable chance: the simple reproductive process will suffice."

Verse 14 gives us the first indication that “days and years” are delineated (as we conceive them). The “length” of those days and years is a matter of debate which we will not take up here; other than to say: Since we now know for a fact that the universe is growing larger, meaning that the heavenly bodies are getting farther and farther apart; isn’t it very likely that a “day”, one 360 degree turn of our earth, could have been shorter than now, and that one “year” would have been correspondingly shorter? I’m surprised that scientists have not considered this fact when discussing the “firmament” which was placed above the earth and covered with water. Such a creation would have, in all likelihood, have to have been put in place to protect the earth from the sun’s rays, considering that the earth would have been MUCH CLOSER TO THE SUN THEN, than now; or even at the time of the flood!! If this is close to true, then the earth had to have moved quite a distance away from the sun to allow for its destruction in the days of Noah!!

Take note, also, that the heavenly bodies were placed in the heavens for “signs and seasons”. The proliferation of certain vegetation requires “seasons”, and for agriculture to be practiced efficiently, “signs and seasons” are a prerequisite.

"20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. 21 And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. 23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day."

THIS DAY IS A HEYDAY FOR THE EVOLUTIONISTS!! Unfortunately, they do not connect St. John 1 with Genesis 1!! The MEANS of creation was, and always will be in God's hand. Animals' bodies contain SO MUCH WATER THAT, WERE WE TO BE DEHYDRATED COMPLETELY (AS IN CREMATION), very little remains. In fact, we would weigh less than 1% of our live weight, and fill a space only 10-15% of our live volume!! Is it any wonder that God began by creating the creatures of the seas and skies first? I think not.

"24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. 25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good."

Once again, we are faced with the "creation" of 'families' of animals, i.e. horses, cattle (probably including cows, goats, sheep, camels, etc. since this whole group is called 'cattle' throughout the old testament), dogs, cats, elephants, and so on. Again, the variables inherant in the reproductive process of animals would allow for the appearance (and disappearance) of various SPECIES. THIS IS NOT THE EVOLUTIONISTS' VIEW OF CREATION!!

"26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. 29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. 30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. 31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day."

Here is that fateful, sixth day. Note first that the animals of the earth were brought into being before Man was introduced. Also, at this point, I would like to point out that Genesis, chapter 2 does not follow this chapter chronologically; but PARALLELS it in time. So before we discuss the creation and formation of Man, here is Genesis, chapter 2 for you to use as a companion study to this chapter. We will get into MAN shortly.

GENESIS 2
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. 3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

4 These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens,"
(I separated this verse because this is the first instance of its use several times in the old testament. When the words "these are the generations of" are used, whatever follows is something that has ALREADY TAKEN PLACE. [See Genesis 5:1,2] Also, when one of the patricarchs died, these words would introduce their geneology, which, of course, would already have been born. Also, a "generation" is considered a much longer time span than "one week".)

"5 And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. 6 But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. 7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. 8 And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9 And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
10 And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. 11 The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; 12 And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. 13 And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. 14 And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. 15 And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 18 And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him. 19 And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. 20 And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found a help meet for him. 21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 22 And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. 24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. 25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed."

Now, let's look at the creation and the formation of Man and Woman. Particular attention is directed to Genesis 1: 26 - 31 and Genesis 2: 7,8 and 21 - 24. Again, in the creation process, we first have the 'concept', i.e. "let us make Man in our image and likeness". Along with the concept of the particular creation, there is also a purpose given, i.e., "Be fruitful, and multiply and replenish the earth, and subdue it". (Remember this phrase for a later comment!) Now, the actual actions necessary for Man's creation is given in Genesis 2: 7,8: "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed." There is a HUGE difference between a living "soul" and a living "creature". Man does NOT POSSESS A SOUL; he IS A SOUL. If we delve into the Levitical priesthood and their concept of "SOUL" in Leviticus, we find their concept was one of the total identity of Man. And, at death, that identity became divided between the "body" and "spirit". In the resurrection, the "spirit", which "returned to God who gave it" would be united with a different body with the personality characteristics (at least to some degree) of the person on earth.

Next, we find the account of the formation of Woman in Genesis 2: 21 - 23. This account is straightforward and the necessity of the methods are clearly given in earlier verses.

Then, we have the institution of the Man/Woman relationship, verse 24. At this point, we want it to suffice to say that this relationship is a 'horizontal' relationship between one Man and one Woman which God instituted to exemplify the 'vertical' relationship of Man/God. The / is used because 'Man to God' allows for some separation, AND THAT IS NEVER GOD'S INTENTION!! (We will pick up on this relationship in a future study.)

Now, let's GO BACK to an earlier scripture and comment. Genesis 1:28: "Be fruitful, and multiply and replenish the earth, and subdue it". A ways back in this study of the creation, I mentioned that the time which was spent in the Garden of Eden could have been thousands of years. Consider the necessity for the Garden of Eden. God does NOTHING WITHOUT REASON. The Garden might, very well, have been a santurary for Man until the first part of God's plan could be accomplished!! REMEMBER IT WAS A PLACE 'IN PARTICULAR' WHERE GOD, HIMSELF, COULD COME AND HAVE FELLOWSHIP WITH ADAM AND EVE !!

Remember the "cave men" mentioned earlier. Consider this: The fallen angels were already 'in possession' of the earth. Satan (and his companions), who KNOW the WORD OF GOD, could very well have dominated beings SIMILAR to man, trying to forestall His CREATION OF MAN IN GOD'S image!! (Not as unlikely as we might think.) AND, if this was so, God COULD NOT have been exposed to them (because of their sin). God's command to "replenish the earth, and subdue it" COULD BE an indication of the situation just presented. Also, we know that Adam and Eve did have offspring other than CAIN and ABEL while in the Garden, otherwise CAIN would have had to marry one of these other creatures. This is highly unlikely as the angels could not procreate and "the Sons of God" in chapter 6 of Genesis were, because of this fact, descendents of Adam and Eve. The demise of the "cave men" were a direct result of Adam and Eve, and their descendents, doing exactly as directed by God. Any of them not removed before the flood, were surely eliminated at that time.

Let's not limit the ability of God in the creation process or the ability of the FIRST ADAM to fulfill, to some extent, the responsibilities given him by God!! Our fallen bodies (of which our mind is part) simply prevents us from seeing ALL THAT GOD REALLY IS!! As Paul, the Apostle says, "we see thru a glass darkly.."

LET'S TAKE TIME TO LOOK CLOSER

This may seem somewhat redundant, but there is a 'method to my madness' because ALL THIS IS MOST IMPORTANT.

In the very first verses of our account of the creation, we're told that God created the heavens and the earth. And then we are told that the earth was without form and was void.

Let's consider the fact that God may very well have concentrated His first energies to the creation of the heavens and any beings, which we know from later scripture, that He did create, namely, the angels. And the possibilities are endless when you consider the power and ingenuity of an all-powerful God. So while all this was in progress, the earth could very well have been going thru untold changes, thru untold eons of time; as we know time. I have no problem with the geological age of the earth as our scientists proclaim. I do have a problem with the age of 'real' human beings, as they state. (That's another time)

And, since we have mentioned them, the angels may well have been the first conscious beings created for whatever purposes they were created. Scripture tells us that they were specifically to worship God, but there are indications that angels were to be responsible for vast areas of the heavens.

Our scientists have confirmed that 'creation', as it pertains to the heavens or universe (which we know is a very small part of the heavens) is much more vast than mankind has ever considered before. Not only that, but it is in the process of growing larger and larger. So I really think that we can leave the mechanics of these vast, unknown regions of the heavens in the hands of God, and/or the process He instituted upon their creation.

The angels, to get back to them for a minute, being conscious beings, were given the freedom of choice. As the scriptures indicate, some of the angels chose to rebel against their Creator, and exalt themselves. Really, it is much like a child who chooses to do as he pleases regardless of the parents' position of authority. We can easily see why our society has degenerated thru child-like disobedience to their parents. When this happened in heaven, God needed a place to exile the disobedient ones, and He began to concentrate His efforts on our earth.

His purposes in 'organizing' the earth were two-fold. First, He needed a place for the disobedient angels. Second, He needed a place where He could create a being which would ultimately choose to be obedient to its Creator; and in return, be glorified by the Creator, showing the disobedient angels that He really knew what He was doing by giving these beings consciousness and the freedom of choice to begin with. God's love for the creation would be the ultimate expression of His being.

Now, just a short word about choice: There are two kinds of choices; free choice and free moral choice.

'Free choice' is based solely upon the whims and desires of the being making the choice. This is the kind of choice which abortionists use, or any others which make such choices (and they are quite evidently, abundant). It is the kind of choices our children are being taught in schools and institutes of learning to make. It is the choice the angels made in rebelling against God. The tale of their fall, and its consequences should be an indication of the seriousness of not considering the rest of creation, and our place within creation, which brings us to...

'Free moral choice', on the other hand, requires that WE TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CONSEQUENCES of our choices. That means that if I am a young girl who chooses to have an abortion, I must take responsibility for the demise of life which was initiated when I became pregnant. That means that if I point a gun at another's head and pull the trigger, I am responsible for the demise of life over which I should have no control whatsoever since that life came from our Creator and is strictly HIS. In other words, God created life, and that life is in Him, and that life is His; and whatever we do, WE DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT TO WILLFULLY TERMINATE LIFE.

But it goes beyond that. Free moral choice requires us to 'actively' CARE for the other life God has created, even if it is thru the process of reproduction which He instituted to start with: And by CARING, He means that the total welfare of other creatures, and creations, is in our hands as far as we are able to interact with them. Man, in general, has chosen to disregard that responsibility, and do only that which promotes the individual, in direct opposition to the intentions of our Creator.

But, in regards to us, it all began when God decided to create MAN. Since He had already created the most beautiful of creations in Lucifer (as the Bible tells us); in order to create a more beautiful creature, God HAD TO CREATE MAN IN HIS OWN IMAGE AND LIKENESS. Note that each angel was a specific creation of God because He did not give them the ability to procreate. (THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT, AS WE WILL SEE IN LATER SCRIPTURE STUDY.)

Just as we cannot have any idea of the total wonder of heaven or the total magnificence of God in His glory, we can have no idea of the beauty and glory given this creation, MAN. This creation was the highest pinnacle of God's glory and power. But, along with that beauty and glory came responsibility, as indicated by scripture. And it was that 'responsibility' which ultimately led to the downfall of MAN. Had the choice MAN made had always been a 'free moral choice', he would have forever been what God had created him to be.

BUT MAN MADE A FREE CHOICE VOID OF ANY RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS THEIR CREATOR. So now, we cannot see that glorious being God originally created when we look at our fellow man. THAT WAS THE CONSEQUENCE OF a single FREE CHOICE.

But, in the meantime, our scriptures gives us an account of the life of MAN, in all his beauty and glory. This was the time MAN spent in the Garden of Eden. As you read this account in the third and fourth chapters of Genisis, please note that there is NO TIME FRAME given for its duration.

I believe MAN could have lived for thousands of years in the Garden before that fateful choice. And, should MAN have lived there for a long period of time and followed God's instruction to "multiply and replenish the earth", then there was, on this earth, a host of beings with the beauty and glory of the original creation. These beings would have been considered "Sons of God" since they were, at that time, totally obedient to their Creator. (KEEP THIS IN MIND FOR LATER REFERENCE) So long as MAN was obedient to God, TIME, as we know it did not exist. (Genesis 6:2-4 states: "That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. 3 And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be a hundred and twenty years. 4 There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bore children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown." The ONLY REFERENCE TO "FALLEN ANGELS" in this scripture is the "giants" (v.4), which is literally 'nephilim', meaning "bully, tyrant, or giant"; and that phrase is only a statement with NO CONNECTIONS with the activity of man. These were the beings, I believe, which had to be "subdued" (Gen 1:28). Romans 5:14 states: "Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come." (My underline for emphasis.)

TIME is a product of death. Only when faced with death does TIME matter at all. It is only then that we count our age, which is from birth to death. TIME is God's taskmaster to keep us in our place as His creations. There is a limit to God's grace; and it is limited to the time which we have, individually, on this earth. It is available upon birth and available until death closes the door on our ability to make a 'free moral choice' to be obedient to Him. (Those that are incapable of making a choice are, I believe, under God's grace, period) But, those of us who are capable of 'free moral choice' are faced with the end of our life here on this earth.
The wages of disobedience is death. PERIOD.

Anyway, let's consider that the earth was populated with some very beautiful and glorious beings during the habitation of the Garden. Let's consider that these beings migrated away from their home (simply because of lack of room if for no other reason) and thus, inhabitated a large area of the earth. Rember that the earth's environment was distinctly different from that of today because of the 'firmament' in the heaven which provided a greenhouse effect for the survival of vegetation and animal life. The variation of temperature would have been minimal over the entire earth. Life would have been truly idyllic.

But, MAN made that fateful mistake, and we will pick up on that at the beginning of chapter five of Genesis.

THINK ABOUT THIS!

THE TRANSITION FROM ORIGINAL STATE TO OUR PRESENT STATE

GENESIS 4: "And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bore Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord. 2 And she again bore his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. 4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. 6 And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. 8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. 9 And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper? 10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. 11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; 12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. 13 And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. 15 And the Lord said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. 16 And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden. 17 And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bore Enoch: and he built a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch. 18 And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begot Mehujael: and Mehujael begot Methusael: and Methusael begot Lamech. 19 And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah. 20 And Adah bore Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. 21 And his brother’s name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. 22 And Zillah, she also bore Tubalcain, an instructor of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah. 23 And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt. 24 If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold. 25 And Adam knew his wife again; and she bore a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. 26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the Lord."

GENESIS 5: "This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him; 2 Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created. 3 And Adam lived a hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:"

Let's take a close look at what is happening here: Chapter 4 follows immediately after Chapter 3, wherein Adam and Eve transgressed the law of God, and were banished from the Garden of Eden. Also, it is only fallen man who can 'know' their wife because in the original created state, Adam and Eve lived in innocence, i.e. there was no carnal knowledge (lust) involved.

The support for the idea that there were children born in the Garden of Eden are: (1) God told Eve that He would increase the pain of childbearing as part of her judgment. If she had never borne children, this would mean nothing to her. (2) We are told that Cain knew his wife, who would have already been born since she would have had to have been of childbearing age already. Here is an interesting note: Cain and Abel were apparently born immediately after the banishment from the Garden since he and his brother, Abel, were identified by their respective occupations (which they would not have had to perform had they still been in the Garden). However, their status was such that God was able to come into Abel's and Cain's presence (even after the fall of his father, Adam). And then, ANOTHER SON WAS BORN:

SETH: What to do about him? Chapter 4, verse 25 would lead us to assume that he was born immediately after Cain and Abel. However, let's go to Chapter 5, verse 3, and we find that it was 130 years later. Not only that, he was not born in the image and likeness of God; rather the image and likeness of disobedient Adam!! This is very important, as we will see in Chapter 6. Chapter 5: 1-3 specifically gives us the transition from Man (Adam and Eve) as they were created by God to modern Man (in the image and likeness of the disobedient Man).

Note in Chapter 4 that the descendents of CAIN are the ones to whom advances in civilization are attributed, not the descendents of SETH.

THE PROGRESSION OF MAN

GENESIS 6:1 “And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, 2 That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. 3 And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be a hundred and twenty years. 4 There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bore children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. 5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

If you remember, in the beginning of Chapter 5, when Cain and Abel were born, Eve made the statement "I have gotten a man (lower case 'M'), not upper case as before in the earlier accounts of the creation. Here again is that specific word 'man' (not upper case 'M'') used in reference to 'fallen man'. Also note that verses 1 & 2 constitute one sentence, not seperate ideas.

THE SONS OF GOD: In this instance, the use of this term has been controversial since who knows when? However, a definitive study of this phrase and its use throughout the Bible reveals one basic truth about its meaning: "The Sons of God" always refers to a specific creation of God, of which there are two to which it refers; angels and Man (Upper case). We are more alike than you may think...but, never the same.

First, the angels were EACH ONE SPECIFICALLY CREATED. There are a definite number to the angels, or when Lucifer fell and 1/3 of the others followed him, God could simply have created more to replace them. Or, had they had the ability to procreate, their numbers would have been replenished (and the number of fallen angels would have increased upon the earth).

"The Sons of God" is used in the book of Job (which is the oldest book in the Bible) as a direct reference to the angels, since Satan is numbered among them.

Instead, He created Man (upper case 'M'). In reference to man, until the New Testament, this phrase is seldom used (here and in the psalms). To get the basic meaning of this phrase as it pertains to man, we need look no further than John 1:12,13: “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” Note that these two verses are two distinct ideas that are so closely connected that they cannot be seperated by a period; that means that one cannot stand without the other. We are being told that if we accept Jesus, the Christ, we will be empowered to become Sons of God. This lets us know that in the resurrection, we will again become like the originally created Adam and Eve, with one ability taken away; the ability to procreate. Jesus told the Sadducees that we would be "as the angels: Mark 12:24,25: “And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the Scriptures, neither the power of God? 25 For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven.”

The Sons of God in our beginning scripture have to be Men (since they can procreate), and UNFALLEN MEN (since they are Sons of God). The only Men at this time in history that fulfill BOTH of these requirements are the descendents of Adam and Eve, born before the Fall. This might require some to take a leap of faith, but I believe it to be a very short leap, if any.

Let's remember that the time of the habitation of the Garden is not given in any scriptures, and it could have been thousands of years or 100 years. I'm sure Adam and Eve did, at least partially, fulfill that command to "replenish the earth."

GIANTS: This term is "nephilim" in the older transcripts. It generally means: bully, tyrant, or giant. Some translators render it "fallen men"; which is at odds with the majority of scholars. There is really no evidence for this term to refer to men, in general. Again, this phrase is a statement about the conditions on earth.