Bible study: Genesis 2-The second creation story

Genesis 2 presents us with another account of creation. It highlights specifically how humans (male and female) were created. After God created everything and then finally man (male), he built a garden and put the man there. The man (male) was lonely so God gave him all the animals as companions, but he was still lonely. So God made the man (male) fall into a deep sleep and took a rib from him and made a companion. When God brought the companion to the man (male) he called her woman, for she came from his bones.

Now the Garden f Eden is where humanity began. It was a beautiful garden from all accounts. Scholars and other passionate individuals have been searching for remnants of this garden but to no avail. Could it be the second/new Jerusalem that awaits us after death? Could it be the paradise where we will be reunited with God face to face? Think about it. In the beginning we had all rights and privileges to this Garden. But when we sinned, popularly known as the Fall of humanity by our first parents, Adam and Eve, we lost that privilege and was barred from this paradise. Humanity struggled continuously after that and continuous to struggle. But then God gave to us his Son who brought with him salvation, the pathway of reconciliation with God. It is this pathway that will grant us entry back into Eden to strolls in the afternoon with God.

Now the Garden of Eden had two trees: the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Their fruit were forbidden to eat. Our first parents with the help of the serpent ate from one of the Tree, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Why that Tree? Before they ate the fruit they were in right relations with God. They had no sin. But upon eating the fruit, scriptures says that their eyes were opened. What does that mean? Were they blind? In a sense yes, they were blind to sin. They did not participate in sin. But upon eating the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, they now were open to the enticement of sin. And oh yes, sin is enticing. By eating the fruit they allowed sin into the world. The Tree is called the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. This is important as it is what tells us of our free will. We are to use our free will to choose between good and evil.

After God found out that they ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, he put them out of the Garden and secured the Tree of Life. God feared that the humans would have also taken from the Tree of Life and in his words live forever. So God made a Tree with fruits that make you choose good and bad and he made a Tree with fruits that made you live forever. Though God barred humans from the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden, he still, because he loves us so much, gave us access to the Tree of Life in the form of his Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus in the Gospel of John says, “I am the way, the truth and life, no one comes to the Father, except through me.” Again he will explicitly say, “I am the Bread (fruit/food) of Life, anyone who eats of me will live forever.” See how our lives come full circle? What a great God we have.

Throughout the Garden of Eden there was a river and it divided into four main streams. These streams are:

1. Pishon which flowed around all the country of Havilah where there is gold, and the gold of that country is good; bidellium and onyx stone as well
2. Gihon which flowed around all the land of Cush
3. Tigris which flowed to the east of Assyria, and
4. Euphrates