Just some different shots I’ve been trying out. I really like Rina’s pic with the profile. Micah’s shot I need to work on 🙂 We are slowly healing around here, but at least we’re healing. Micah came down with a bad cold and pink eye on Saturday. And I had a plugged duct that turned into Mastitis by the end of the day as well. But we’re both doing much better now 🙂 Thank You Lord.
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I’ve been reading through a book called “The Pentateuch as Narrative” by John Sailhamer and it is amazing. The whole idea is that the first five books of the Bible (also known as the Pentateuch) were written to be read (and reread) as one continuous story and as such have themes, words, phrases, ideas… continuing through it and even building on top of each other so each word/phrase has importance.
For instance – in Genesis 1 a line that is repeated over and over again is… “and God saw that it was good.” What could the author be trying to teach you from this sentence and why repeat it? From the very beginning the reader is suppose to recognize the fact that God knows what is good. You could even say that since only God is saying these things are good it’s God alone who knows what is good. Well, good for what or for whom?
In Gen 2:18 God says “it is not good for man to be alone…” Here we see that not only does God know what is good, He also knows what isn’t good. And He knows what’s good and not good for man. You could even extend it and say God alone knows what is good for mankind/humanity.
So, why the need to repeat this phrase over and over again? One time would be sufficient right? Perhaps the author just wanted to use up space on the scrolls. Or maybe he liked the way it sounded. Or, maybe one reason is that the author wants it to be glaringly clear – picture in flashing neon lights – GOD ALONE KNOWS WHAT IS GOOD FOR MANKIND…
Let’s Continue…
Now, when God puts man into the garden his responsibility is basically to trust that God will provide whatever he needs. Gen 2:15 can also be translated “And God placed man in the garden to WORSHIP and OBEY.” Who is man to worship – God alone, the One who knows what is and isn’t good for man, the One who just created him. What is man to obey? The next verse gives the answer “and the LORD God commanded the man (about the trees)…”
At this point Adam has no responsibilities except to worship God and obey Him. The relationship is wide open and the directions simple. Trust Me, Adam, I know what you need. I’ll take care of you. You were created to depend on Me, to worship Me, to need Me. So just relax and enjoy the ride, My son, I’ve got everything covered.
So, how does man handle this? … to be continued…