We continue in our systematic reading of the whole Bible by discussing one of the pivotal moments in human history: the Fall. What happens after the Fall is tragic, but God embraces his world and begins the process of salvation.
Listen to the audio and follow the notes (below.) Hope this is a blessing to you. - KM
Chapter 4 - The Fallout from the “Fall”
(Genesis 4-11)
“Theologians
have long debated the exact repercussions of Adam and Eve’s choice to eat from
the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (see Chapter 3). Did their
disobedience set a bad example that the rest of humanity has followed ever
since? Or did something irreparable
happen to human nature that now makes us
rebellious toward God (the ultimate authority figure) and alienated toward one
another? ”
** The Bible is quite clear about this so-called
debate. See: Romans 5:12-19
The Main Points:
1.
Sin entered the world through Adam’s
disobedience. (v.
12)
2.
Because of Adam’s sin, the whole world is corrupted,
especially mankind. (v. 13, 15b, 17)
3.
BUT!...just as all of mankind was infected by
sin through Adam’s disobedience, through Jesus any person can be saved.
a.
Note: The Bible does not teach that all of
humanity IS saved…just that anyone CAN be saved by trusting Jesus.
b.
Note 2: This means that every person is a
CREATION of God, but only those who trust in the One who affords “justification
that brings life” (v. 18) will be the CHILDREN of God.
Note: Before we go on, a common question is, “Did everyone
come from Adam and Eve?”
·
The Bible explicitly says that Adam and Eve were
the first two people created.
·
However, the Bible does NOT explicitly say
whether God also created other people or if all humans come from Adam and
Eve. So, there seems to be two options…
o
First, if all humans come from Adam and Eve,
then Cain’s wife is also his sister since Adam and Eve had many other children
(Genesis
5:3,4) – but creating an incest scenario…
o
OR…second, there is a possibility that God
populated the earth, following the Adam/Eve model, after Adam and Eve left the
Garden.
·
Why would there need to be more humans? Since a consequence of the Fall is that
humans need to work the land, and since it would take a lot more people to care
for the earth, then God could have created other people groups on earth from
whom Cain eventually met his wife.
Point: Remember…the
purpose of the Bible is to explain God’s work in the history regarding how he
saved his creation, specifically humankind, from the consequences of the Fall
(i.e., sin). If other lineages are not
specifically germane to the salvation story (as other specific things in
creation were not mentioned – we discussed the “dinosaurs” last week), then
there is no need to waste the space to discuss them even though they existed.
** In dealing with the “Fallout of the Fall”, there are
Consequences.
Consequence 1 – Fallout on the Self
·
Last week we covered how Adam’s and Eve’s sin of
disobedience resulted in their separation from God, the personal toil their sin
would take (Adam’s in having to work for a living and Eve in the pain of
childbirth), and ultimately their ejection from the Garden.
·
But on a very personal note, Paul says it best
when it comes to the “Fallout on the Self” – See Romans 3:9-12, 23
The First Sibling Rivalry: Cain and
Abel
Consequence 2 - Fallout on the Family
Family Impact – Example 1 - Cain and Abel: the sons of
Adam and Eve (Genesis 4)
·
Cain is a farmer, Abel a herder.
·
Issues arose when both brothers offered a gift
to the Lord.
·
Cain’s gift…
o
“an” offering from the fruit of the ground (Genesis 4:3)
·
Abel’s gift…
o
the “firstling” of his flock, and the fat
portions (Genesis
4:4)
·
God considered Abel’s gift more highly than
Cain’s because Abel offered the first-fruits of his labor, Cain offered the
leftovers.
** So, Cain murders Abel, and God confronts Cain who asks
the infamous question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9)
** The Impact of the Murder
1.
Abel is dead. Adam and Eve lose their son.
2.
The ground is tainted/spoiled with Abel’s blood.
3.
God curses Cain. (Genesis 4:11)
4.
Similar to Adam and Eve’s curse, the consequence
of sin is having a harder life. In this
case, Cain would need to work even harder, as a farmer, because of the tainted
soil. (Genesis
4:12)
5.
God shows mercy (Genesis 4:15)
6.
Cain moves away from Adam and Eve…they lose
their son, again. (Genesis 4:16)
Note: In reference to
the textbook’s speculation that Cain married one of his relatives (pp. 94-95),
refer back to the question of, “Are all people descendants of Adam and
Eve?” Or could God have created others
and placed them on earth. The textbook’s
conclusion of “incest” is simplistic, though many Jewish/Christian teachers
agree.
Family Impact – Example 2 – Ham, Japheth and Shem (Genesis 9:19-27)
·
One of Noah’s sons, Ham, disrespects his father.
·
After Noah and the family plant a vineyard, one
night Noah drank too much and fell asleep naked. Ham witnessed his father’s nakedness, but did
nothing to honor his father (i.e.: by covering him)
·
Ham shared what he saw with his brothers – Shem
(from whose name we get the word, Semitic
and from whose lineage Abraham is
born) and Japheth (whose people eventually inhabit the coastal region of
Israel; i.e.: the Philistines) – who promptly did what Ham should have
done...they covered their father to save his dignity.
o
And Ham not only disrespects his father by not
covering him, but he foments division within the family by trying to coopt his
brothers vis a vis his lack of honoring Noah.
·
Upon awakening, Noah discovers Ham’s disrespect,
becomes angry, and curses his own son’s (Ham’s) family – “Cursed be Canaan; lowest
of slaves shall he be to his brothers.” (Genesis 9:25)
o
This curse is expressed on Ham’s son,
Canaan…from whom, later, the Canaanites were established.
o
It is the Canaanites who became Israel’s biggest
threat when Israel was reclaiming the Promised Land after Egypt.
o
The Canaanites are also still around in Jesus
day…remember the Good Samaritan story?
Samarians are Canaanites.
Point: The Consequence of Sin on the Family is
pronounced: Jealousy, Anger,
Competition, Destruction, Loss…yet Grace is still offered.
Interlude: Why the Genealogies of Genesis 5?
·
To establish the family lineage – knowing one’s
“place” in the world (textbook)?
·
To establish the line of salvation through the
covenants that God is establishing…a line that takes us through Jesus
Christ? This is more reasonable given
God’s purpose in the Bible.
Trivia 1: Note the
ages of the early settlers…they are OLD! In Genesis 5:27, the oldest surviving human listed
in the Bible is mentioned: Methuselah – 969 years old when he died.
Trivia 2: Who are the
“Nephilim”? (Genesis 6:1-4)
…it depends on how you interpret – “the sons of God” (Genesis 6:2)
Option 1 - Could they be angels impregnating human females… a la the Titans of Greek mythology?
Option 2 – Or…are they humans who were faithful men serving
God.
** Well, the Bible says there is only One Son of God – Jesus (See John 3:18, where John calls Jesus the only
Son of God)…so that rules out Option 1.
Conclusion: Option 2
makes more sense and is consistent with the whole of Scripture…that anyone who
trust the Lord for salvation and follows his ways will be known as a
Son/Daughter of God
See Galatians 4:1-7
Consequence 3 - Fallout on the Environment/Community
** Now the history of creation, the Fall, redemption and
salvation continue in the lives of Noah and his family, and the resulting Flood
(Genesis 6-9)
Note: Other cultures
have a “Flood” story from their histories, too. Other ancient cultures include
the Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Egyptians, Italians, Chinese, Indian
(Asian), Cherokee, Papago (Mexico), and Hawaiian, to name few.
The Key Verses
(Genesis 6:5-8):
The Lord
saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every
inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The Lord was grieved that he had made man on
the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. So the Lord said, “I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from
the face of the earth – men and animals, and creatures that move along the
ground, and birds of the air – for I am grieved that I have made them.” But
Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
** The Story in a Nutshell:
·
It rains for 40 days and nights
·
Noah and his family are saved from the Flood
because Noah was righteous with God, blameless in his day (Genesis 6:9)
·
Noah and his family build an Ark in obedience to
God’s directive. The Ark is as long as 1.5 football fields, 75 feet wide, and
as high as a four-story building.
·
They fill the Ark with seven pairs of every
clean animal and one pair of every kind of unclean animal (Genesis 7:1-5)
o
Note: this is an interesting description
because, technically, since there is no Law at this time, there are no “clean”
or “unclean” animals. Here we see Moses’ likely influence over the Noah
account.
·
They also fill the Ark with food.
·
The Flood
came…everything died except the occupants of the Ark. This is a consequence of
sin…that the whole creation suffers as a result of the sin of humanity.
·
Noah, his family, and all of the animals are in
the Ark for more than a year. The Ark
eventually rests on Mount Ararat (Modern-day Turkish/Armenian mountains) – Genesis 8:4
·
After the third test-bird confirms that it is
safe to disembark, all of the occupants of the Ark reestablish life on dry
ground, animals and humans alike.
·
The ground is once again “pure”, so it can be
worked by Noah and his family.
Essentially, God reveals his grace and continues his commitment to his
own salvation plan.
·
Then God establishes a new covenant with Noah.
After Judgment comes Redemption - The Noahic Covenant
** The one thing God asks Noah and his family to do: Start anew (Genesis 8:15-17)
** But Noah gave God a gift: An Altar (Genesis 8:20).
·
In response to Noah’s faithful gift, God offers
a new promise via a covenant…the Noahic Covenant.
** God promises to never destroy the earth again by way of
Flood. (Genesis
8:20-21, 9:8-11)
·
The Rainbow is a visible sign of the
Covenant. (Genesis 9:12)
** Also, God blesses Noah and his family, commissioning them
back into the world with his blessing (Genesis 9:1-7)
·
“Be fruitful and multiply”
·
Exercise dominion over the earth
·
Do not murder (must have been a common practice)
Consequence 4 - Fallout on the “World”
·
Eventually, Shem, Ham and Japheth’s descendants
settled together in Shinar (modern Iraq, Babylon in latter Biblical days)
·
They built a city named, Babel, and a tower
there in order to glorify themselves and in direct disobedience to God’s
command to scatter and repopulate. (Genesis 11:4)
·
God will not allow them to be so blatantly
disobedient, so he “confuses” (Hebrew: babel) them by mixing their tongues so
they could not understand each other.
(By the way, this is the origin of
our English word, “babbling” – to ramble on and on without making sense.)
·
Interestingly, the Babylonians (later in
history) in their language, Akkadian, spun the word, “babel” to mean something
positive – “gateway of god.”
Isn’t it sad how humans twist God’s word to
say what they want in order to justify their desires or make themselves look
good or feel better.
You
might say this is Consequence 5 of the Fallout from the Fall – Twisting
God’s Word…sounds so much like the original problem that led to the Fall, the
serpent saying, “Did God really say…?”
** This chapter ends with another genealogy – introducing us
to and setting us up for the narrative on Abraham.
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