What follows here is what I anticipate will be an ever increasing collection of questions that I get on the Genesis Decoded teaching. I am posting this FAQ along with the videos to encourage dialogue and discussion and record the results of said endeavors for the benefit of all. Here is just an initial sampling of the questions I have gotten that require a little analysis or clarification on the existing Genesis Decoded material... 1) On the matter of Pre-Adamic races or peoples, did they ever die? And if they did, how does this square with Romans 5:12-13?
First, lets quote the Scripture: (Rom 5:12) As by means of one man, sin entered into the world; and, by means of sin, death; and so death passed upon all the sons of men inasmuch as they all have sinned:(Rom 5:13) For until Torah, sin, although it was in the world, was not accounted sin because there was no Torah.
So it is beyond doubt I think that this one man is Adam, not the male and female in Genesis 1. This is confirmed in the next line:
(Rom 5:14) Your death reigned from Adam until Moshe, even over those who had not sinned after the likeness of the transgression of the command by Adam who was the type of him that was to come.
The phrase your death reigned from Adam to Moshe sets the boundaries for death by sin all the way back to Adam for us, because no human on the earth after Noah is or can ever be descended from the children of Elohim in Genesis 1. The PRESENT tense used by Paul is basically talking to us, who are all from the second lineage of humanity; for US all sin and death came from Adam.
In terms of whether the first people in Genesis 1 were immortal and/or sinless, that matter can neither be proved nor disproved. I can only suggest that Adam and Eve were definitely immortal prior to their sinning which brought about death.
On the other hand, the Tree of Life that gave that immortality does not seem to have existed prior to the Garden of Eden, so we cant be certain here.
However, if it is in fact the case that, like Adam and Eve, the people in Genesis 1 retained immortality for a time and did not die, that would be because they did not sin. I should also point out that, just because there could have been races of peoples before Adam in no way invalidates the idea that Adam and Eve sinned and fell first or that tAdam and Eves sin was the first to be judged and punished by Elohim, which Paul is strongly implying in Romans 5 if not stating outright as a determined fact.
Therefore, as long as sin and death come into the world from Adam and Eve first, there is no 2 | P a g e
inherent contradiction between what Paul says and there being people before Adam. We also have to look at the possibility that death may be referencing something very specialized beyond the general definition.
This is what I mean: Is it possible that cells, microbes, plants, animals and even the people created in Genesis 1 have a finite lifespan? Of course it is. However, the better question might be if their actual deathsassuming they did in fact diewere linked as a matter of direct and exclusive causality, i.e. that the sin itself was the only factor that caused their death, prior to Adam and Eve.
In other words, is it possible a grace period or a probationary period was extended to the first group of humans but then revoked for the second group? If so, again, Adam and Eve can still be said to have brought sin causing death into the world for the first time.
Either that is the case, or the people in Genesis 1 did not die until they inherited Adams sin through intermarriage with Adams daughters, as per Genesis 6:1-4, and the evidence that such an act would bring sin causing death apart from normal death is that the offspring of that coupling were called fallen ones or Nephilim in Hebrew.
As a result, from my perspective at least, I do not see any rules regarding original sin from Adam and Eve being broken on the sole basis in a prima facea non-starter kind of way, simply because other people preceded Adam, for which I believe the Torah text offers ample evidence of.
I therefore conclude that Pauls own limiting statement, Adam to Moshe in Romans 5:14 firmly fixes the occasion of sin causing death to the man named Adam, and that the people in Genesis 1 simply fell later, sometime before the flood, during which, all of the latter and nearly all of the former group perish for their sins.
2) If the people in Genesis 1 are separate and prior to Adams lineage, why is it only those Genesis 1 people are called very good? Does this mean that Adam and his descendants, who are not called this, were bad?
No, not at all and heres why: If my reading of the Hebrew is correct, the people in Genesis 1 are a more basic model than the people in Genesis 2, because only the latter group is breathed into by Elohim from the dust of the ground and I think it is more than likely that such a difference should be perceived as an advantage.
As a result, everything that applied to the people in Genesis 1, including being very good, must also apply even more so to the people in Genesis 2.
At a more fundamental level however, the consistent definition of goodness or righteousness is keeping from sin, which Adam and Eve clearly were doing prior to eating 3 | P a g e
the forbidden fruit! Therefore, by direct mention, they started off perfectly righteous and therefore very good.
3) Where does it specifically say that the people in Genesis 2 are, like the people in Genesis 1, also made in the image of Elohim? Also, where is the true demarcation of which people (G-1 or G-2) are listed in Genesis 5:1-3?
In Genesis 5:1, it seems likely that the Hebrew is pointing to Adam, which is to say MANKIND, as applying to BOTH groups who are after all human. In particular, and I am literally still revising my own translation on this point, the general descriptor of MANKIND can be categorized in three ways when we break it down into classifications: 1) Male and Female, 2) Man and Woman, 3) People in Genesis 1 and the People in Genesis 2.
The reason I make such a suggestion, is that the text implies this the use of the Hebrew word bara (creating from nothing) which applies to the people of Genesis 1 and asah (made from pre-existing material but altered in final form), which applies to the people in Genesis 2.
On the other hand, there are times when this general tendency can be overridden, but my belief is that when the people in Genesis 1 are also called asah it is due to two specific reasons that explain the exception:
1) Asah has a stronger sense of completion than bara does and it can be argued that the template for group G-1 was applied to group G-2, in which case G-2 represents the more complete version of humanity even though G-1 people are also fully human, sentient, intelligent and are capable of interbreeding with G-2 people.
2) While the G-1 people are a brand new creationnever before doneand created out of nothing which justifies the use of bara, they are conformed to a pre-existent template or image, which is of course the image of Elohim. Therefore bara references these peoples lack of existence prior to Genesis 1:26 but asah references the modelling of these unprecedented beings to the image of Elohim which gave them their initial form and intellect.
If this description above is acceptable, we need to proceed to the next part, 5:2. If not, my suggestion is to review the chart The Three Uses of Adam and see the direct Hebrew wording and context, then let me know if there are any questions. Meanwhile, lets move on to 5:2 while still including 5:1 and the footnotes that go with them: 4 | P a g e
5:1 This is the book of the generations of the species of human beings in the time He created Mankind. He made him 1 in the image of Elohim, 2a male and female [beings named Zakar and Niqevah] 2 . 2b He created them and blessed them and named them (all) Mankind.
This type of parsing is, admittedly, extremely exacting and cutting it fine, but nevertheless I believe the following level of precision is necessary:
This is the book of the generations of the species of human beings
As there are creations of heaven and creations of earth, so are there creations of human groups. The word toldot means records of generations and is applied to lineages of Adam, Cain, Seth, Noah and so on, all through Genesis.
However, in 2:4 this same word appears with respect to heavens and earth, making each of those things a plurality of creations as well. This is confirmed in the Onkelos Targum for Genesis 1:1 (in the beginnings/eternities, Elohim created the heavens and the earth), as was explained in the PowerPoint.
In addition, it is a critical point to me that the use of the singular YOM in Genesis 2:4 refers to an overall creation interval, i.e. inclusive of and yet also beyond the six days given in Genesis 1, with the understanding that the G-1 group was already made asah in the sense of final confirmation to the image of Elohim (1:29), as it was for all other things made on days 1 through 6.
It is also important to note there is a difference between a leading asah and an ending asah. In the case of male and female, the leading asah is there to explain their unprecedented creation is patterned to that pre-existing image of Elohim. Then, in 1:29 we get the ending asah that denotes final accomplishment, not just of this first form of humans but also all the plants, animals and everything else created thus far before the Shabbat when Abba YHWH rests.
By contrast, as Genesis 2 progresses, bara is nowhere to be found. Instead 2:6 and 8 tells us Adam was yatzar, from the word for potter therefore implying sculpture from pre-existing clay. The creation of Eve from Adams ribs uses asah in 2:18 when Abba YHWH
1 Made him (masculine singular) actually can include the female as well because they are both named Adam (Mankind), The use of a term like Mankind is a compound singularity in Hebrew and English (much like how the one true El is called Elohim, the plural form, and yet the pronouns and verbs around the plural word are always singular. It is an iron clad rule: Nouns and verbs in Hebrew must match both gender and number, singular to singular and plural to plural. Deuteronomy 6:4 proves that Elohim IS ONE, that is, singular. 2 Because both the male and the female are named Mankind/humanity, it is reasonable to posit the idea that such a term was their collective name; therefore Zakar and Niqevah in this same context are their individual names and not merely adjectives. The names give birth to the adjectives. 5 | P a g e
promises to make a helpmate for Adam, and in 2:22 when Eve is actually made it is called banah, which literally means fashion, fabricate or build.
Then in 2:19, it is said Abba YHWH formed, again from YATZAR, to sculpt from a pre- existing material, various animals and birds. Although such creatures are also mentioned in Genesis 1:20-22, the let there be language surrounding them speaks to a BARA, creation out of nothing, for them, because there is no reason to say Let there be if whatever it is, it is already there! Therefore, the YATZAR birds and animals that Adam names are SECOND GENERATION derived from the originals that came before. This data also proves significant time passed between Day 6 and Days 7-8. And of course since there is no let there be language here, no BARA is evident.
So too here, getting back to 5:1, the singular YOM is used again as it was in 2:4, also encompassing both human groups being created, formed and so on. In short, 5:1 applies to BOTH GROUPS, just as 1:29 applies to all things made on Day 6 and earlier, and so Adam and Eve are ALSO created in Elohims image, a fact I will confirm with other Scripture in a moment. For now, lets look at the next part:
in the time He created Mankind.
When we understand the fact that bara and asah are both part of an overall creative process, first out of nothing and then sculpted, conformed to a template and sculpted, then we understand this Mankind is not just one set (G-1 OR G-2) but ALL sets (G-1 PLUS G-2), but the separate stages/groups are referenced by these same distinct Hebrew terms.
Again the singular YOM must be talking about the completion of the creation process of ALL human groups because it does not show up UNTIL Adam and Eve are about to be made, hence, again, the reading in the TIME. Next
He made him in the image of Elohim, 2a male and female [beings named Zakar and Niqevah]
As the accompanying footnote to the first part of this sentence explained above, the him here technically incudes her, because in this instance we are told that both male and female are COLLECTIVELY named Mankind. The terms for male and female then represent their individual names, from which the adjectives were later derived. There is a symmetry and a logic to this, as it makes sense to give the GENERAL classification name first, and then the individual names of that same overall classification. Next
2b He created them and blessed them and named them (all) Mankind. 6 | P a g e
In other words, G-1 and G-2, as we have been discussing are here ALL called part of Mankind. If that were not the case, then G-1 and G-2 groups could not inter-breed, as they clearly did in Genesis 6:1-4.
And this brings us to the final piece, the other Scriptures showing that Adam, specifically the man with that name, is also made in the image of Elohim
Whoever sheds Adams blood, by Mankind his blood is shed, for in the image of Elohim has He made Adam. (Genesis 9:6Matara) The word Adam appears three times, but in the first and last occurrences of that word it is ha-adam, which refers to THE man, which in turn was intended for the one individual who BECOMES named Adam. This configuration of ha-adam appears all over Genesis 2 and 3, and then more rarely once Adam receives his official name and gain the status of ISH (husband). But for the last occurrence, we know only eight people survived the Flood, among whom exist NONE from the people in Genesis 1. As a result, Adams blood (last occurrence) is completely appropriate and precisely accurate, since thats the only blood line left. The second or middle reference, rendered as Mankind is simply due to the fact that more than one individual is intended here. Otherwise we are saying only one man can ever shed blood as an avengerclearly NOT the case in Torahand especially problematic if that one manthe historical Adamis long dead, which he is by the time of the Flood. The same idea holds with this last Scripture quote: (Jas 3:8) But the tongue has no one been able to tame: it is an evil thing, unruly and full of deadly poison. (Jas 3:9) For with it, we bless Master YHWH and Father; and with it we curse men who were made in the image of Elohim: (Jas 3:10) and from the same mouth issues forth curses and blessings. My Brothers, these things should not be.
Again, since only the line of Adam through Seth survived the FloodNoah is a descendant of Sethall the people in Genesis 1 were extinct long before Yaakovs day in the apostolic age. Therefore, Adams PERSONAL line was made in the image of Elohim, which proves Adam was too. 4) The uses of BARA and ASAH do not seem to me to be as consistent as you suppose Andrew, in the sense that I do not see how BARA only applies to the alleged Genesis 1 group and ASAH only to the Genesis 2 group. There seem to be exceptions to the extent that a separate process cannot be posited. Your thoughts on this issue please? My answer to this question is below, in a study called Lining Up Bara and Asah. As will become apparent when going through this material, the main process is to just look at the 7 | P a g e
references in Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 FIRST, and all the places these words appear and deal with those. Only then can we go to other places (Genesis 5 and elsewhere) to see what descriptors apply to whom. For those who do not believe in pre-Adamites, this may seem I grant a bit artificial, in that it can be argued perhaps that I am assuming a separate process in advance of proving it. However, this was simply the way I used something akin to the order of operations for a math equation, taking the outer parentheses first, and so on. If we do not establish the root patterns from the earliest places in the Scripture, then the inferences for the later references will not make sense, I believe. In any case, I offer the following study for all of your analysis and consideration: Lining up Bara and Asah I. Man created (bara): In these instances I believe we see Genesis 1 people who are created from nothing (1:27), something utterly unique. Sometimes the man and woman are collectively called Adam (Man), like in 5:2-b, and in 6:7 it seems clear man (Adam) is meant as a classification for a group. In that case, I think it is possible for Adam in 6:7 to be referring to BOTH groups of men, that G-1 and G-2 men are are intended. Deuteronomy 4:32 goes back to the beginning, from the time the first people were made. Isaiah 45:12 indicates the earth was made (asot) and man as created upon itof course the earth was made before the G-1 humans were. This stage of creation was completed for all that was done on days 1 through 6. 27 Elohim created man in His own image, in the image of Elohim He created him; (Gen 1:27-a AGR)
(Gen 1:27-a WTT)
This is the book of the generations of man in the day when Elohim created man, (Gen 5:1 a: AGR)
(Gen 5:1-a WTT)
And He blessed them and named them Man (Adam) in the day when they were created. (Gen 5:2-b-AGR) 8 | P a g e
(Gen 5:2-b WTT)
Yahweh said, "I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky (Gen 6:7 AGR)
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(Gen 6:7 WTT)
32 "Indeed, ask now concerning the former days which were before you, since the day that Elohim created man on the earth, and inquire from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything been done like this great thing, or has anything been heard like it? (Deu 4:32 AGR)
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(Deu 4:32 WTT)
12 "It is I who made the earth, and created man upon it. I stretched out the heavens with My hands And I 1 ordained c all their host. (Isa 45:12 NAU) 12
(Isa 45:12 WTT)
II. Man is made (asot) or formed (yatzar) according to the template of the image of Elohim. Again the CREATION was unprecedented but it was then FORMED to that image for both groups (Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 people). Other synonyms are also included here.
7 Then Yahweh Elohim formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. 8 Yahweh Elohim planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed. (Gen 2:7-8 NAU)
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8
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(Gen 2:6-8 WTT)
Animals are formed in 2:19, because their originators were CREATED in Genesis 1:21-25. They were made after their kind (1:21,25) which speaks to their ability to reproduce. The subsequent generations of these animals, based on their original ancestors, are considered FORMED (YATZAR).
In 2:22 another formed word is usedBANAHusually translated as FASHIONED, related to Eve being constructed out of Adams rib. It is therefore a synonym for YATZAR and ASAH, in that it denotes construction from pre-existing material. This word BANAH is continuously used throughout Tanakh to denote building, shaping.
Job 33:6 uses QARATS, similar to YATZAR in the phrase I was formed out of clay.
Psalm 94:9- He FORMED (YATZAR) the eye, dry land is formed YATZAR again, in Psalm 95:5.
Many other references, like Jeremiah 1:5, indicate one can be FORMED in the womb, because this is not CREATION but reproduction AFTER THEIR KINDS. This is why the Genesis 1 people were CREATED, they had not reproduced yet. (More on the after their kinds rule later.)
And the phrase male formed; female formed never appears in Scripture. Again, this is because they were CREATED.
III. Male (and female) created (bara) male and female He created them. (Gen 1:27 NAU)
He created them male and female (Gen 5:2-a NAU)
(Gen 5:2 WTT)
IV. Male (and female) made (asah) in the image of Elohim
26 Then Elohim said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." (Gen 1:26 NAU)
(Man is plural but includes the female as it is for THEM. The making from His image, again, is ASAH. 10 | P a g e
26
27
(Gen 1:26-27 WTT)
V. The after their kind/after their species ruleonce a Bara being reproduces on his own, as opposed to being made directly by Abba YHWHall future generations are Asah. In these cases the phrase Let there be implies a BARA, a creation out of nothing, because if it was already there, there would be no reason to command it into existence. However, after Let there bebarathe earth brings forth (yatza). The phrase is LMINAHU (literally, towards their kinds/species)
11 Then Elohim said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit after their kind 4 with seed in them"; and it was so. 12
The earth brought forth vegetation plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, after their kind (species); and Elohim saw that it was good. (Gen 1:11-12 NAU)
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12
(Gen 1:10-12 WTT)
Next we see the word BARA, standing in as a synonym for Let there be and this is also sometimes just Let:
21 Elohim created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and Elohim saw that it was good. (Gen 1:21 NAU)
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(Gen 1:21 WTT)
For this next series, note that the first generations of plants and animals are BARA in Genesis 1, but after they reproduce after their kind they are FORMED in Genesis 2: This already applies to bird, sea monsters and moving creatures (above), but the descriptions of that process continue: 11 | P a g e
So for example, 1:22 gives the command be fruitful and multiply and 1:23 says and it was so.
24 Then Elohim said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after 1 their kind"; and it was so.
Once again, Let there be or just Letthe BARA statementprecedes the earth bringing forth (yatza). Same thing happens throughout the rest of chapter 1. Let is part of the conjugation of the verbs like bring forth to the effect of may bring forth the earth.
25 Elohim made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and Elohim saw that it was good. (Gen 1:24-25 NAU)
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25
(Gen 1:23-25 WTT)
Continuing
20 "Of the birds after their kind, and of the animals after their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive. (Gen 6:20 NAU)
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(Gen 6:20 WTT)
14 they and every beast after its kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, all sorts of birds. 15 So they went into the ark to Noah, a by twos of all flesh in which was the breath of life. (Gen 7:14-15 NAU)
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(Gen 7:13-15 WTT)
VI. Genesis 2 creations are not after their kind when they are initially made any more than the Genesis 1 people were. And also the Genesis 1 people preceded the Genesis 2 people, setting up the template for the latter group. 12 | P a g e
However, after they are FORMED and then reproduce on their own, those offspring are after their kind. In their initial pre-reproducing state, they are still FORMED, like man, out of the dust of the ground.
But here is what Genesis 2 says about these creaturesnoting that NOWHERE in Genesis 2 is the phrase after their kind because the SPECIES were set in Genesis 1, so the next generations, those that reproduced on their own power, are FORMED. Starting in 2:2-3, ASAH indicates the work on days 1-6 was FINISHED, i.e. that all animals and man had produced after their kinds. Lets see this in action with the FORMED animals who were already after their original kinds from the kinds in Genesis 1:
7 Then Yahweh Elohim formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. 8 Yahweh Elohim planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed. (Gen 2:7-8 NAU)
The dust is used to SCULPT Adam and Eve is FASHIONED from Adam (BANAH). This is the same as making a form according to the image of Elohim.
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(Gen 2:7-8 WTT)
19 Out of the ground Yahweh Elohim formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every beast of the field, but for 2 Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him. (Gen 2:19-20 NAU)
This detail, that these groups of animals are formed out of the ground is not what happens to the animals in Genesis 1 which are simply brought into existence by Let/let there be. Indeed the let there be is implied here, because without Abba YHWHs permission allowing such to occur, no formation can happen. Nothing is created WITHOUT His approval letting there be (Isaiah 45:5-12).
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20
(Gen 2:18-20 WTT)
VII. When FORMED beings have something NEW added to them, they are re- created or a new creation. Here I am responding to some pushback I get on this idea: 13 | P a g e
Psa_102:18 Let this be recorded for a generation to come, so that a people yet unborn (bara) may praise Yahweh:
AGR: Hebrew word bara (creating from nothing) which applies to the people of Genesis 1 and asah (made from pre-existing material but altered in final form), which applies to the people in Genesis 2.
Pushback: So then, will the unborn people (i.e. yet to be bara) in Psa 102:18 be created out of nothing, or will they be made from pre-existing material? The answer is the latter: childbirth comes from the combination of seed and egg in the mothers body. This then should be asah according to AGRs rule above, but the rule is broken because the unborn people are called bara (created from nothing).
My response: The rule is not broken at all. The people in Genesis 1 were created from nothingno sperm, no egg, no DNA. If a person is UNBORN, they have YET to be created and therefore ARE NOTHING (see Psalm 139:16), yet predicted to be something and therefore BARA.
However, once a sperm has fertilized an egg, that is SOMETHING and now the FORMING process happens:
9 He who planted the ear, does He not hear? He who formed the eye, does He not see? (Psa 94:9 NAU)
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(Psa 94:9 WTT)
5 The sea is His, for it was He who made it, And His hands formed the dry land. (Psa 95:5 NAU)
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(Psa 95:5 WTT)
13 For You formed (qanah, same as asah) my inward parts; You wove (sakak, in conjugated form as sokani, but also same as asah) me in my mother's womb. 14 I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made (asah, in conjugated 14 | P a g e
form as maiseika); Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. (Psa 139:13-14 NAU)
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(Psa 139:12-14 WTT)
Ecclesiastes 11:5 implies formed but the word is not there. But here is where what is FORMED (for we are FORMED in the womb) becomes a new BARA, and the same with the universe:
17 "For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former things will not be remembered or come to 1 mind. (Isa 65:17 NAU)
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(Isa 65:16-17 WTT)
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17 Whoever therefore is in the Mashiyach is a new creature: old things have passed away; 2 Corinthians 5:17
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71For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything, but a new creation (is what is something). Galatians 6:15
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71For we are His creation who are created in Y'shua the Mashiyach for good works which Elohim has before prepared for us to walk in. Ephesians 2:10
This is because when we receive the Ruach ha Kodesh, we are CREATED all over again, even though we were previously FORMED. The addition of the Ruach makes us totally new, as if we were back in Genesis 1.
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And finally, a corollary to what we just saw, in other cases, we may take things that are completed in and of themselvesas asah denotes completion as wellbut we rearrange them into a CREATED group. Even though the individual items were already made, their collective presentation is counted as a NEW creation (bara):
Isa 41:18 I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. Isa 41:19 I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive; I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane and the pine together, Isa 41:20 so that all may see and know, all may consider and understand, that the hand of Yahweh has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created (bara) it.
I think it is (hopefully) clear that the earth was completed or made certainly by the end of Genesis 1. That being said, one can still FORM things ON the earth, and when deserts become grasslands or mountains become valleys, the end product is BARA, because that feature in that place did not exist before.
VIII. Recapping what we have seen thus far
1) Bara and Asah (and asahs synonyms yatzar, qarats, banah, qanah and sakak, etc.), while sharing some vague umbrella term commonality, are not interchangeable terms. The common ground times are when, like in Psalm 104:26, we know something was already created with His permission (let there becompare to Genesis 1:20-21) and the purpose for its final FORMATION is given in another place. See also: Jeremiah 33:2.
2) In every other case, bara is speaking to something that had never appeared before, whereas asah and company is speaking to re-arranging something that had pre- existing elements into another form, or to having a bara creation shaped to something pre-existing. Even when things were created and formed before, if something is added that makes it new, it is called BARA.
3) Bara speaks to the condition of a created being before it reproduces offspring on its own. But once it does reproduce on its own after its kind, all future offspring from it are Asah. Our origins are Bara; our iteration as being for example the 1,000 th generation from that Bara make us Asah. This explains Jeremiah 1:5 before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, and similar statements in the Psalms.
4) Items that pre-existed (like the dust that made Adam) turn a new creation into ASAH; likewise other things which are fully created and made individually, can 16 | P a g e
be combined into a new image/collage that never existed before in all its details, hence BARA.
5) There is no inherent contradiction between the way these terms are applied to separated human groups. The OVERALL mechanism in Genesis 1 people is BARA and the OVERALL mechanism in Genesis 2 is ASAH. However, for both groups, other aspects of their creationwhich are still different details and mechanismthe predominant term is joined by the minority term to paint a fuller picture. This is why G-1 people are BARA, but FORMED or CONFORMED to the pre-existent Image of Elohim and why G-2 people are FORMED from dust, and MADE in the Image of Elohim, yet still CREATED as the progenitors of their species.
6) So while it is perhaps a bit overly simplistic to say ONLY term 1 applies to group 1 and ONLY term 2 applies to term 2, the preponderance of each groups PRIMARY term still presents I believe powerful proof of the separated creations.
Conclusions This analysis leads to revised translations for two key areas: Genesis 1:26-27 and Genesis 5:1-2:
Genesis 1:26-27:
Then Elohim said: Let us make humans in Our image and after Our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.
Elohim created Mankind in His image. In the image of Elohim He created him, male and female, He created them. (Revised Translation, Genesis 1:26-27)
Please note: Adam is here a proper name of both the male and the female, and this is confirmed in Genesis 5:1-2. In 1:26 Adam means humans; but 1:27 is talking about a wider classification, hence Mankind.
Genesis 5:1-2
These are the generations of Mankind, in the time when Elohim created Mankind. He made him in the image of Elohim. He created them male and female, and He blessed them and named them Adam (humanity). (Revised Translation, Genesis 5:1-2)
The Adam statements here are intended to be plural as it is revealed that Elohim CREATED THEM and BLESSED THEM, synching with Genesis 1:26-27 let THEM rule.
Also, the MALE and FEMALE (not the MAN and WOMAN) are collectively named Adam, bringing up the possibility that their actual individual names are Male and Female (Zakar and Niqevah)and those terms are never used in Genesis 2 about Adam and Eve. 17 | P a g e
But if some think this idea is brand new and has no ancient support, that is not true. In reading through Philo, the Jewish historian never identifies Adam as being made on Day 6, but only refers to male and female made on Day 6:
This devotion of the inferior animals to man, God also at the beginning of the creation bestowed on the sixth day upon man, after he had created him in his own image; for the scripture saith, "And God made man; in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and said, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth; and be ye lords over it, and be ye rulers of the fishes, and of the flying fowls, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth." (Questions and Answers on Genesis, 2:56)
The three places that man appears in this quote, none are rendered as ADAM in Greek, but following the Septuagint translation ANTHROPOS. So Adam is nowhere on day 6 here. However, in the case of Josephus, he is far more direct about this matterand puts Adam and Eve after the seventh day:
33 Accordingly Moses says, ``That in just six days the world, and all that is therein, was made; and that the seventh day was a rest, and a release from the labour of such operations;''--where it is that we celebrate a rest from our labors on that day, and call it the Sabbath; which word denotes rest in the Hebrew tongue. 34 Moreover, Moses, after the seventh day was over begins to talk philosophically; and concerning the formation of man, says thus: ``That God took dust from the ground, and formed man, and inserted in him a spirit and a soul.'' This man was called Adam, which in the Hebrew tongue signifies one that is Red, because he was formed out of red earth, compounded together; for of that kind is virgin and true earth. (Antiquities, 1:33-34)
However, William Whiston seems to have mistranslated here a bit.. He says Mosesbegins to talk philosophically concerning the formation of man. The Greek reads:
34
(Ant 1:34 JOS)
Literal word order: And also and PHYSIOLOGICALLY Moshe after the Sabbath rules on regarding the formation of man saying so that Elohim created man thus...
So this is not a philosophical discussion on how man was formed. It is a PHYSIOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION that this manAdamwas formed AFTER the Sabbath! By putting any creation after the Sabbath, Josephus is admitting to an 8 th day of creation, and I have a final thought on why that should be 8 days, including the day of rest, between group 1 and group 2:
After describing MALE and FEMALE in Genesis 1, these terms become almost exclusively confined to animals, like those Noah gathers on the earth. However, there is one notable exception:
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(Gen 17:10) This is My covenant which you guard between Me and you, and your seed after you: Every male child ( ) among you is to be circumcised. (Gen 17:11) And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall become a sign of the covenant between Me and you.(Gen 17:12) And a son of eight days is circumcised by you, every male child ( )in your generations, he who is born in your house or bought with silver from any foreigner who is not of your seed. The Scriptures 1998
Here the word ZAKAR, which also means remember is used for a ritual meant to REMEMBER the covenant, and the 8 days from birth to circumcision is a MEMORY of the 8 days from first creation, then Shabbat and then Adam and Eve made after Shabbat.
This may also be why the two most important feasts, Passover-Feast of Unleavened Bread and Feast of Tabernacles each take place over 8 Hebrew days, it could be a double witness to the full 8 days of the total creation of the universe, the earth and the full array of humans populating it.
5) I watched through your series on Genesis Decoded, and was blown away, but I have a couple of questions:? You made special mention of the fact that they are not breathed into as Adam is- so do they qualify as humans? And also, having established the cyclical time principle from Noah and applying it to the days of creation, would it be possible that a similar technique is simply being used here? And following the thought that creation was really day 1, 4, 2, 5, 3, 6, how would the birds be able to live if there is no land for them to nest and reproduce on, especially if the period between these days is 8000 years or more? Hope to hear from you soon! Heres my answer for these great questions!
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Double Witness Theory and the True Sequence of Creative Days A Genesis Decoded Spotlight Feature This font indicates a thematic match. Theme Witness #1 Witness #2 Light (Days 1 &4)
This reading is from The Scriptures 1998 edition. I am allowing the reading the first day to stand even though it actually reads a one day because the phrase in Genesis 1:1 In the beginning tells us this is the first day even through it is not called that in the Hebrew.
As we read through the two witnesses here, it is possible to perceive the accounts as either independent versions of the same event, which is to say that days 1-3 are account #1 and days 4-6 are account #2, but essentially the same things happen at the same time on each; or one can view equally valid a large pattern that would put the days in this thematic order: 1,4,2,5,3,6 and 7.
However, because the issues of sequence end at the close of the 5 th day, the start of the 6 th
day resumes proper order, so we cannot infer male and female creation on day 3. Rather the plants and vegetation are confined to day 3 (sequentially after the creation of life in the waters) and then are followed by the later development of life on (Gen 1:1) In the beginning Elohim created the heavens and the earth.
(Gen 1:2) And the earth came to be 1 formless and empty, and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of Elohim was moving on the face of the waters. Footnote: 1 Or the earth became.
(Gen 1:3) And Elohim said, Let light come to be, and light came to be.
(Gen 1:4) And Elohim saw the light, that it was good. And Elohim separated the light from the darkness.
(Gen 1:5) And Elohim called the light day and the darkness He called night. And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, the first day.
(Gen 1:14) And Elohim said, Let lights come to be in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and appointed times, and for days and years,
(Gen 1:15) and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth. And it came to be so.
(Gen 1:16) And Elohim made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night, and the stars.
(Gen 1:17) And Elohim set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth,
(Gen 1:18) and to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And Elohim saw 20 | P a g e
land.
that it was good.
(Gen 1:19) And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, the fourth day. Water (Days 2 & 5)
However, thematic order is not chronological order. Although we know days 1,6 and 7 are in their proper places and that days 2,3,4 and 5 are not put in their actual sequence, that doesnt mean the thematic order is the true sequence of the days.
In this pairing of days 2 & 5 relating to the same theme, the sequence is neither traditional (2,3,4,5) nor thematic (2,5,3,6) because the land has not been created yet (day 3) for the birds to fly to and live! So, if thematic order was actual order, the birds are made (day 5), then life in the waters teems (day 3) and then millennia or longer later there is finally land! So thematic order is not the true sequence either. (Gen 1:6) And Elohim said, Let an expanse come to be in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.
(Gen 1:7) And Elohim made the expanse, and separated the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse. And it came to be so.
(Gen 1:8) And Elohim called the expanse heavens. And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, the second day.
(Gen 1:20) And Elohim said, Let the waters teem with shoals of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth on the face of the expanse of the heavens.
(Gen 1:21) And Elohim created great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters teemed, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And Elohim saw that it was good.
(Gen 1:22) And Elohim blessed them, saying, Bear fruit and increase, and fill the waters in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.
(Gen 1:23) And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, the fifth day. Land (Days 3 & 6)
The question is sometimes asked if the creation of male and female in Genesis 1 could also be thought of as a double witness of the same event, the creation of man and woman in Genesis 2?
As I currently understand things, the answer is no, because there are hard time cues that would usually go (Gen 1:9) And Elohim said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear. And it came to be so.
(Gen 1:10) And Elohim called the dry land earth, and the collection of the waters He called seas. And Elohim saw that it was good.
(Gen 1:11) And Elohim said, (Gen 1:24) And Elohim said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: livestock and creeping creatures and beasts of the earth, according to its kind. And it came to be so.
(Gen 1:25) And Elohim made the beast of the earth according to its kind, livestock according to its kind, and all that creep on 21 | P a g e
against the idea of a cyclical event here.
By hard time cues I mean that it is the sixth day which is followed by the seventh day, meaning there is no doubt that these are the last two positions are fixed, and that their order is day 6 is followed in sequence by day 7, and that at the end of day 7 there is another fixed time cue:
(Gen 2:1) Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their array.
(Gen 2:2) And on the seventh day Elohim completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made.
(Gen 2:3) And Elohim blessed the seventh day and set it apart, because on it He rested from all His work which Elohim in creating had made.
(Gen 2:4) These are the births of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that Elohim made earth and heavens.
So, since the creation cycle (days 1-6) was completed and then followed by the rest (day 7), the mention of another creative time or YOM is pointing to an 8 th day when there was no man/Adam to Let the earth bring forth grass, the plant that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth. And it came to be so.
(Gen 1:12) And the earth brought forth grass, the plant that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And Elohim saw that it was good.
(Gen 1:13) And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, the third day.
the earth according to its kind. And Elohim saw that it was good.
(Gen 1:26) And Elohim said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the livestock, and over all the earth and over all the creeping creatures that creep on the earth.
(Gen 1:27) And Elohim created the man in His image, in the image of Elohim He created him male and female He created them.
(Gen 1:28) And Elohim blessed them, and Elohim said to them, Bear fruit and increase, and fill the earth and subdue it, and rule over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over all creatures moving on the earth.
(Gen 1:29) And Elohim said, See, I have given you every plant that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed, to you it is for food.
(Gen 1:30) And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to every creeping creature on the earth, in which there is life, every green plant is for food. And it came to be so.
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work the field, meaning the area of land in Eden, which was not watered and enclosed prior to the 7 th day. Therefore, these markers indicate a separation in linear time, between the people in Genesis 1 and the people in Genesis 2.
(Gen 1:31) And Elohim saw all that He had made, and see, it was very good. And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, the sixth day.
But this now brings up another question: If neither traditional nor thematic ordering is the real sequence, what is? The answer is here, with the evening and morning day __ and numerical citations taken out for the sake of clarity. Please read this through and see if it makes sense because I believe this is why the actual order is: 1,4,2,3,5,6,7,8! Day 1: In the beginning Elohim created the heavens and the earth. And the earth came to be formless and empty, and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of Elohim was moving on the face of the waters. And Elohim said, Let light come to be, and light came to be.
And Elohim saw the light, that it was good. And Elohim separated the light from the darkness. And Elohim called the light day and the darkness He called night.
Day 2: And Elohim said, Let lights come to be in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and appointed times, and for days and years, and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth. And it came to be so.
And Elohim made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night, and the stars. And Elohim set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And Elohim saw that it was good.
Day 3:
And Elohim said, Let an expanse come to be in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters. And Elohim made the expanse, and separated the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse. And it came to be so. And Elohim called the expanse heavens.
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Day 4:
And Elohim said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear. And it came to be so. And Elohim called the dry land earth, and the collection of the waters He called seas. And Elohim saw that it was good.
And Elohim said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the plant that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth. And it came to be so. And the earth brought forth grass, the plant that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And Elohim saw that it was good.
Day 5:
And Elohim said, Let the waters teem with shoals of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth on the face of the expanse of the heavens.
And Elohim created great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters teemed, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And Elohim saw that it was good.
And Elohim blessed them, saying, Bear fruit and increase, and fill the waters in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.
Day 6:
And Elohim said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: livestock and creeping creatures and beasts of the earth, according to its kind. And it came to be so.
And Elohim made the beast of the earth according to its kind, livestock according to its kind, and all that creep on the earth according to its kind. And Elohim saw that it was good.
And Elohim said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the livestock, and over all the earth and over all the creeping creatures that creep on the earth. And Elohim created the man in His image, in the image of Elohim He created him male and female He created them.
And Elohim blessed them, and Elohim said to them, Bear fruit and increase, and fill the earth and subdue it, and rule over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over all creatures moving on the earth.
And Elohim said, See, I have given you every plant that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed, to you it is for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to every creeping creature on the earth, in which there is life, every green plant is for food. And it came to be so. And Elohim saw all that He had made, and see, it was very good.
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Day 7:
Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their array. And on the seventh day Elohim completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And Elohim blessed the seventh day and set it apart, because on it He rested from all His work which Elohim in creating had made. These are the births of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that Elohim made earth and heavens.
Day 8:
Now no shrub of the field was yet on the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for Elohim had not sent rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground, but a mist went up from the earth and watered the entire surface of the ground.
And Elohim formed the man out of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils breath of life. And the man became a living being. And Elohim planted a garden in den, to the east, and there He put the man whom He had formed.
And out of the ground Elohim made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, with the tree of life in the midst of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
And a river went out of den to water the garden, and from there it divided and became four riverheads. The name of the first is Pishon, it is the one surrounding the entire land of Hawilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good. Bdellium is there, and the shoham stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon, it is the one surrounding the entire land of Kush. And the name of the third river is Hiddeqel, it is the one which goes toward the east of Ashshur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
And Elohim took the man and put him in the garden of den to work it and to guard it. And Elohim commanded the man, saying, Eat of every tree of the garden, but do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for in the day that you eat of it you shall certainly die.
And Elohim said, It is not good for the man to be alone, I am going to make a helper for him, as his counterpart. And from the ground Elohim formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all livestock, and to the birds of the heavens, and to every beast of the field. But for the man there was not found a helper for him, as his counterpart.
So Elohim caused a deep sleep to fall on the man, and he slept. And He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. And the rib which Elohim had taken from the man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.
And the man said, This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. This one is called woman, because she was taken out of man. For this cause a man shall leave his father and 25 | P a g e
mother, and cleave to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, yet they were not ashamed.
Do you have any other questions on the Genesis Decoded material? If so please ask, so I can add your perspective and my answer to this important discussion! Todah and Shalom! Andrew Gabriel Roth First edition: October 29, 2014