Jeremy Brown's Bible Commentary - Genesis
Genesis Preface
Genesis is the book of the beginning of God's relationship with humankind. This book was written by different authors, preserved on stone tablets, passed onto Moses, Moses transcribed Genesis from stone to scroll for the people of Israel, and Israel preserved the Genesis book for the world. God literally wrote by His own hand from 1:1 to 2:4a similarly to how he wrote the 10 commandments in rock for Moses. Adam wrote 2:4b to 5:1a. Noah wrote 5:1b to 6:9a. Shem, Ham, and Japheth wrote 6:9b to 10:1a. Shem specifically wrote 10:1b to 11:10a. Terah wrote 11:10b to 11:27a. Isaac wrote 11:27b to 25:19a. Ishmael through Isaac wrote 25:12 to 25:18. Jacob wrote 25:19b to 37:2a. Esau through Jacob wrote 36:1 to 36:43. Jacob's 12 sons wrote 37:2b to Exodus 1:6. These eyewitness records are counted to be accurate in every detail. Thus, the Genesis account is an historical account, not an allegory. Moses was simply the compiler of the book.
Note: This is not intended to be a new Bible translation. It's a commentary.
Before time, God (Father, Word, and Spirit) created the angels from nothing. Since Genesis is the record of human history with God, it does not mention the creation of angels. This is why I have inserted the idea that angels were created before time and the universe.
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) created time then created Heaven, the universe, outerspace, and Earth from nothing. This is obviously where God began instituting the laws of physics. However, it would seem that not all laws were insituted in entirety yet. 1:1
The Earth was just a sphere of elements and compounds, contained no life, and darkness covered everything. The Holy Spirit began moving over Earth's surface water. 1:2
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) spoke all lightwaves into existence. 1:3
After God (Father, Word, and Spirit) created lightwaves, He saw that it was good. Light apparently dominated every part of the universe and everything was lit up. So, God (Father, Word, and Spirit) divided light from darkness. 1:4
God named light "day" and named darkness "night." According to Jews, the day begins around 6pm. So, the night and morning passed and completed the first day. God (Father, Word, and Spirit), not a stellar body, is the source of light at this point in time. 1:5
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) spoke Earth's atmosphere and sky into existence and created a special canopy around Earth. It is no longer in existence today. Josephus spoke of this in Antiquities of the Jews book 1 chapter 1. This special canopy filtered dangerous lightwaves that now reach the surface. The canopy had many other benefits as well. The sky separated the water from the clouds and canopy. 1:6
So, God (Father, Word, and Spirit) made the atmosphere, sky, and canopy. 1:7
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) named the atmosphere, sky, and canopy "heavens." This of course isn't Heaven where God has His throne. "Heavens" is another name for outerspace too. Night and day passed, completing day 2. 1:8
Water covered every part of the planet. So, God (Father, Word, and Spirit) made dry land to rise up, creating a massive continent called Pangaea. 1:9
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) named dry land "earth" and large bodies of water "seas," and was pleased. 1:10
God spoke all plants into existence and gave them the ability to reproduce. 1:11
Plants with the ability to reproduce grew up out of the ground and God (Father, Word, and Spirit) was pleased. 1:12
Night and day passed completing day 3. Note that God (Father, Word, and Spirit) is the light in the universe at this time. Plants are sustained by Him. 1:13
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) spoke the sun, moon, planets, galaxies, and stars into existence. He (God) made it so that these sky lights could help humans keep track of time. 1:14
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) made the sun, moon, and stars to shine on earth. This event was instantaneous. Either He (God) forced the light from the stars to speed up to reach us or He created light on the way from the stars. Keep in mind that God (Father, Word, and Spirit) was in the process of establishing the laws of physics during the creation week and He (God) exists outside of the confines of time and the universe making it possible for Him to override and manipulate natural and spiritual law. 1:15
So, God (Father, Word, and Spirit) made the sun to shine on Earth during daytime as it rotates and the moon to reflect the light of the sun on Earth during the night. 1:16
And so, God made the sun, moon, and stars shine their light on the Earth. 1:17
God made the sun to shine during the daytime and the moon and stars to show up in the night sky. He (God) was pleased. 1:18
Night and day passed completing day 4. 1:19
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) spoke all life in Earth's waters and all birds into existence. 1:20
So, God (Father, Word, and Spirit) created all life in Earth's waters and all birds. He (God) was pleased. 1:21
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) told all sea life and birds to have lots of offspring and populate water and land. 1:22
Evening and morning passed completing day 5. 1:23
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) spoke all land animals into existence from Earth's soil. 1:24
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) created all land animals and was pleased. 1:25
The Father, Word, and Spirit decided to create a human in their own mental, emotional, and spiritual image and decided to give humans rulership of Earth and all animals. Humans are the created offspring of God (Father, Word, Spirit). 1:26
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) created male and female humans as a mental, emotional, and spiritual reflection of Himself. 1:27
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) blessed the first male and female humans and told them to have lots of children, fill the Earth with their descendants, and conquer and take care of the land, seas, plants, and animals. 1:28
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) told the humans that that they could eat any of the fruits and vegetables from the plants He (God) had given them. 1:29
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) said that all the animals can eat any fruits and vegetables too. 1:30
God (Father, Word, and Spirit) was pleased with everything He made and day 6 ended. 1:31
So, God finished creating stars, planets, Earth, and everything in the universe. 2:1
God didn’t create anything on the seventh day and took a rest. 2:2
God blessed day 7 because He took a rest from creating on that day. 2:3
So, this is the history of how God created the Earth and universe. 2:4a
This completes the section of Genesis literally written by God firsthand.
Genesis 2:4b begins a recap of the creation written by Adam.
Back in time, God created the universe. This is how it all started. 2:4b
This book even lists what happened before and after when God made plants grow. God did something special before rain used to fall. This special thing occurred even before humans were on Earth. 2:5
There were massive amounts of underground water under all land. God caused this water to come up from under the ground as a mist and fog to water the plants. This would have been one of the major sources of water for the world flood. 2:6
God made Adam out of dirt and gave him life and a soul by breathing into him. 2:7
God planted a garden (10 miles from Tabriz, Iran; northeast of Teheran) in the land called Eden (the land between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba (originally a river called Gihon), Mediterranean Sea, central Saudi Arabia, southern Turkey, Persian Gulf, to the Zagros Mt. Ranges) in the eastern part of Eden. God put Adam in the garden of Eden. See writings by Archaeologist David Rohl. Source 1, 2. Some say that the garden's location is somewhere beneath the Persian Gulf. Several Jews and Christians believe that the garden was where Jerusalem now sits and the tree of life sat on the spot Christ was crucified. Others say that all remnants of the garden were destroyed by the flood. 2:8
God made ever type of attractive tree that bears fruit grow in the garden. The tree of life was planted in the center of the garden. The tree of life would no doubt have been loaded with everything the human body needs (nutirents, antioxidants, flavonoids, etc.). The tree of knowledge of the difference between good and evil was also planted in the garden. 2:9
A river from Eden watered the garden. Four other rivers were connected to it. 2:10
The first river is Pishon River (a dried up river bed cutting across the middle of Saudi Arabia). The land of Havilah (Saudi Arabia) is known for its gold. Remember this is a preflood world inwhere gold may have been abundant there at the time. 2:11
Havilah is known for its gold, tree resin, and onyx stones. 2:12
The second river is the Gihon (where the gulf of Aqaba and Red Sea are now). It went around the whole land of Ethiopia (land of Cush, Kush, Nubia, Kerma). Classical writer say that Cushites have lived in Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Asia and Europe over the years. The Book of Jasher mentions Great Sea Gihon which most think is referring to the Atalantic Ocean. If the river surrounded the entire land as the Atlantic, then Ethiopia here means all of Africa. Remember that continental drift and the world flood have changed the global landscape. Ethiopia or Cush seems to have been a people that were widespread. They began along the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and spanned to Iraq, Arabia, Africa, and Western India. I seriously doubt that Ethiopia here is present day Ethiopia. I think that at the time this was written, it was referring to an area very close to the present day Gulf of Aqqaba. 2:13
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Adam and Eve wore no clothing and it didn't bother them. 2:25
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Adam and Eve had sex. Adam got Eve pregnant then she gave birth to Cain. Eve said that God allowed her to have Cain. 4:1
Adam and Eve had sex. Adam got Eve pregnant and she gave birth to Abel. Abel was a shepherd and Cain was a farmer. 4:2
Later, Cain brought a fruit and vegetable offering to God on an altar. 4:3
Abel brought the best of his sheep as an offering to God. God accepted Abel's offering because it was his best and because Abel's heart was right toward God. 4:4
God did not accept Cain's offering because Cain did not give his best and Cain's heart was not right toward God. Cain became angry, unhappy, and separated from God. You could see unhappiness on Cain's face. 4:5
God asked Cain why he was an gry and unhappy. 4:6
God told Cain that his offering would have been accepted if it had been his best and had been given in the right attitute and with the right motive. God told him that if he doesn't give his best with the right attitute and right motive then he is sinning. God told Cain that he would be consumed with sin after such an act but that it is Cain's decision to give into sin or not. 4:7
Cain and Abel talked about this. Later, Cain killed Abel in a field. 4:8
God asked Cain where Abel was. Cain asked God if he was his brother's babysitter. 4:9
God asked Cain what he had done and said that Abel's blood is on the ground. 4:10
God told Cain that he is cursed on the earth. 4:11
God told Cain that he wouldn't be able to grow anymore plants and that he would always be a criminal on the run. 4:12
Cain told God that the punishment was too much for him to handle. 4:13
Cain told God that he drove him away from his fields into a cave, that he would never see God's face again, and would always be an outcast on the run. 4:13
God said that whoever kills Cain will be punished seven times as bad. God put a mark on Cain so that anyone who finds him won't kill him. There is speculation as to what the mark was. Being made black wouldn't be it because blacks have historically been mistreated. If Cain had been given a horrible marking on his body or had been made very ugly, this would have made him a target because people destroy what they dislike, fear, and hate. I think the mark was that God made him very big and very handsome. People don't mess with an attractive giant of a man. They flock around them. 4:15
Cain then walked away from God and lived and travelled East of Eden in Nod. 4:16
Jeremy Brown 2007