Over the next several weeks I’m going to be offering an extended Bible Quiz. Find out what you already know and what you don’t know about what the Bible says.
Here’s today’s question:
Genesis tells us that God created the world in six days. So what day were Adam and Eve created on?
Perhaps you answered “the sixth day” because you remember that according to Genesis 1, on the sixth day, God made humans – male and female – in the image of the Deity as the finishing touch on creation. But the story telling the days of God’s creation is not the same story as the one featuring Adam and Eve. Rather, the Adam and Eve account follows in Genesis 2.
Some of the details describing the order of God’s creation differ in this second version, and the perspective has changed from God’s point of view to that of the humans. Still it is compatible with the first story in that it emphasizes that God created the world to be good. In addition, it complements the first rendition where God focuses on making humans male and female for the purpose of reproduction. In the Adam and Eve version, God has designed the man and woman to be companions to each other. (For a deeper discussion comparing this pair of creation stories check out my blog of October 4.)
The most important take away from this confusion over the two creation accounts is that the Bible often tells a story more than once. Why, you might ask? The Bible is not a textbook; primarily it is a collection of stories. By giving us, the readers, more than one version to chew on, the Bible forces us to evaluate and contemplate the meaning and implications of what it is telling us. In the case of creation, it’s up to us to figure out what God’s point is in making the world. Try reading Genesis 1-2 and see what you think.
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