The story of Eve and Adam is probably familiar to absolutely everyone. It is also well known that their relationship developed in the Garden of Eden, from which the first people were expelled for the fall. But why and how did the Creator create the first people? What was his material? Not everyone is ready to answer these questions. Not everyone can imagine exactly how, in what order God created this world, although many have heard that it happened in a few days.
Meanwhile, the story of the creation of the world and the first people is described in detail at the very beginning of the Bible, in the book of Genesis. The description is easy to understand. For those who still find it difficult to perceive the biblical syllable for some reason, the "Children's Bible" will come in handy, on the pages of which the contents of the book of Genesis are presented in a fascinating and simple way.
What makes the Bible story unique?
ModernPeople perceive this description in different ways. Some read it like a fantasy novel or a beautiful fairy tale. Others treat the book as a historical source, “catching” from the lines what could correspond to reality, albeit distorted by human fantasies and perception. Still others take what is written literally, and sincerely believe that all things arose exactly as described in the book of Genesis.
But the uniqueness of the biblical story is not at all in the fact that everyone who reads "Genesis" understands the creation of man and all things in his own way. The description of the origin of the world, given in the first chapters of the Bible, is fundamentally different from various mythical stories that tell about the same thing. As a rule, myths, sagas, legends pay much attention to the history of the appearance of gods and their relationships, and the creation of people and the world in them goes by the wayside, and in some it is completely absent.
In the biblical version of the origin of all things, there is not a single word about how God appeared. According to this book, he was originally, always existed. And it was he who created everything else, including the Earth and people.
How long did the world come into being? Feature of creation description
God created everything in six days. Many theologians see this as the primary reason why Christians should not do work, chores around the house, or work in any other way on the seventh day of the week.
What is curious, according to the biblical text, the stars, including the Sun, were created only on the fourth day of creation. Exactly the descriptionthe fourth day is the main argument of opponents of the biblical history of the emergence of the world in disputes with supporters of this version.
Priests and theologians, in principle, do not see any discrepancies between the story from the book of Genesis and scientific theories of the emergence of life. The fact that the stars appeared on the fourth day, they explain very simply. The book of Genesis is not a documentary chronicle, but a spiritual work. Of course, the Earth and everything that is on it is given the first place in the description, since it is on it that a person lives. That is, from a spiritual position, the Earth is much more important than the Sun and other celestial bodies, and that is why the description of their creation is described secondarily.
Indeed, the fourth day, in which God is engaged in the creation of the luminaries, divides the history of creation into two parts. Until that day, inanimate matter was created. The planet itself. But after the fourth day, God took up the direct creation of life. If we perceive the book of Genesis as an ordinary literary work, then placing the stage of creating auxiliary elements, in this case the heavenly bodies, in the middle of the story is a simple artistic device.
What did God create everything from?
Everyone who is interested in God's creation of the world and man sooner or later comes up with the question of what served as material for this. The universe, including the earthly world, God created from the void. The Creator did not use any materials other than his own thoughts and forces. "From nothing" - so it is written in the book of Genesis.
Althoughthe creation of the world and man is often seen as a single process that was completed with the advent of people, the very method of creation described in the Bible is different. The world that surrounds people was created from the void. But to create people, the Creator used the material basis.
So. The creation of man by God took place on the sixth day, and earthly dust served as the material for the creation of Adam's body. As many theologians believe, the description of the creation of Adam tells that there are two principles in man - divine and natural. The fact that he was created from earthly dust speaks of the natural side of nature, and the fact that the Creator breathed life into man speaks of the divine side. Thus came the contact with the Holy Spirit. That is, the human soul appeared. The Creator created Eve from Adam's rib.
What does the description of the creation of humans symbolize?
Some theologians see the creation of the first people as a symbolic reflection of the world order and the significance of the constituent elements. The fact that Eve was created from a part of Adam's body determines the place of a woman next to a man, the need to obey him and take care of his house, food, offspring, household and so on. Adam, on the one hand, is according to the stable verbal expression "the crown of creation", but on the other hand, he is only a part of the world, and created last.
Also, the creation of man, which continued with the creation of a pair for him from his own flesh, symbolizes the dual unity of human nature. But in this case we are not talking about a combination of naturaland divine beginnings. It's about how humans weren't made to be alone. Each of them has a complementary "half", when combined with which the creation of man and the whole world as a whole is completed. That is, only by finding a mate, people are able to feel harmony and peace, to be imbued with God's plan.
How did the first people begin to live?
Many people who are far from religion and are familiar with biblical history only by hearsay or references in works of art wonder why the story of Adam and Eve is never treated as a story of love. Indeed, in the Garden of Eden, where God placed Adam after completing the creation of man and the entire universe as a whole, there was no place for marital relationships.
Moreover, the Creator provided the first man with an occupation, that is, Adam did not just hang around the Paradise. In modern terms, he worked in the Garden of Eden. His duties, according to biblical texts, included the following:
- tillage;
- caring for plants and protecting the entire garden as a whole;
- selecting names for every bird and beast that God created.
Eve didn't mess around either. According to the biblical story, she was Adam's helper in all his affairs. The Bible does not speak of any feelings between them.
Where was the Garden of Eden?
The creation of man according to the Bible ends with his settlement in the Garden of Eden. Of course, many people who get acquainted with this story becomecurious where this place was.
In the story itself, of course, geographical coordinates are not spelled out. But the description of the area is very clear and very detailed, full of details. Scholars of biblical texts claim that they are talking about an area in the region of the Middle East, located between the great rivers Euphrates and Tigris.
But archaeologists to date have found nothing that could be the remains of the Garden of Eden.
Why did people leave Eden?
The myths about the creation of man in every culture often tell about any violations by people of the rules established by the gods. In this sense, the biblical story is not unique; it also talks about the neglect of the rules established by the Creator for staying in the Garden of Eden.
Being in Eden, the first people knew no sin. Often this postulate is understood as the absence of physical intimacy. However, it is not only about sex, but also about sin in general, as a concept. That is, they were unaware of anger, greed, anger, envy and other vicious properties of human nature. The first people did not know the need, hunger, cold, disease and death.
The Creator allowed them to eat fruits from any tree in the garden, except for one. It was called the Tree of Knowledge or Good and Evil. It was this ban that was violated. And a direct consequence of the neglect of the rule established by the Creator was the fall, due to which people were expelled from the Garden of Eden.
Why did people violate the Creator's prohibition?
Biblical creation of man and all thingsraises many questions. But the description of the causes of the fall of the first people causes them even more. Even those who have never taken the Bible in their hands know that the serpent-tempter, who seduced Eve with sweet speeches and persuaded her to taste the forbidden fruit, is to blame for the violation of the rules of the Creator by people.
This biblical story has given the world more catchphrases, proverbs and sayings than any other part of the book. That is why almost everyone is familiar with this chapter of the story, at least in general terms or by hearsay.
How did the temptation come about?
People with an inquisitive mind often have questions about why God placed a tree in the garden, the fruits of which could not be touched? After all, if this tree did not exist, there would be no reason for temptation. Another common question is the expression of interest in how the Serpent got into the Garden of Eden, because he practically personifies the image of original evil. And the most important question that causes difficulty even among theologians - how, not knowing sin in principle, not knowing a single impious thought or emotion, Eve succumbed to persuasion?
The serpent, according to the Bible, was more cunning than all other creatures created by the Creator. That is, God also created him, like other birds and animals. It is quite possible that the Serpent was the first to taste the forbidden fruits, many researchers of biblical texts adhere to this version. They argue the theory with the arguments that the Serpent cites in a conversation with Eve. However, direct phrases talking about this in the bookno.
There is no explanation in the text why the Creator placed the forbidden tree in the garden. Theologians believe that this chapter symbolizes that temptation is always near a person, it is constantly encountered on the path of life. And, if a person succumbs to temptation, then nothing terrible, at first glance, happens to him, he does not get sick, does not die. But after temptation inevitably comes the turn of the fall, because of which a person loses something extremely important.
The description of the temptation itself is rather short. It comes down to a dialogue between the Serpent and Eve. Initially, the woman refuses the offer to taste the fruits, explaining that God forbade doing this, and if the rule is broken, then death will come. The serpent, however, objects, arguing that Eve will not die, but will know the unknown, will be able to distinguish between good and evil, and will gain an understanding of the nature of the world. The result of this conversation is the fruition.
What was the true cause of the fall? Why is the Serpent acting as the tempter?
What is very curious, neither the Creator nor the Serpent lied to the first people. God said that after eating the fruit, death would come. But he did not promise her in the form of instant punishment for breaking the rules. Death is one of the consequences of being expelled from Eden. The serpent also never lied about the consequences of eating the fruit.
Thus, in this plot, both the Serpent and God act as a kind of "poles" between which a choice should be made. Neither of them force people to do anything. Violation of divine prohibition and howthe consequence, the loss of Eden is the voluntary choice of Eve and Adam, the manifestation of their free will. And it is this quality of human nature, combined with curiosity, that is the true cause of the fall.
Why is Eve tempted by the Serpent, and no other earthly creature? The answer to this question lies in the peculiarities of Jewish culture. The snake for the Jews was a symbol of paganism, it personified everything that opposed monotheism and served as a source of evil. It is quite logical that the Serpent symbolized the original evil on the pages of the Bible.
