A Monotonous Cycle Revisited, Part 1

Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you don’t understand these things? Jesus said to Nicodemus.  I tell you the solemn truth, we speak about what we know and testify about what we have seen, but you people do not accept our testimony.  If I have told you people about earthly things and you don’t believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?[1]

I’ve hinted at how Jesus’ teaching informs my understanding of the Old Testament.  Here I intend to get explicit about these earthly things.  Though I will do my best to make these essays interesting, the very repetitiveness of the subject matter may seem like A Monotonous Cycle.

Here is the general introduction (Genesis 1:26-30 Tanakh):

And G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) said: ‘Let us make man (ʼâdâm, אדם) in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth’.  And G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) created man (ʼâdâm, האדם) in His own image, in the image of G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) created He him; male and female created He them.  And G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) blessed them; and G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) said unto them: ‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that creepeth upon the earth’ [Table].

And G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) said: ‘Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed–to you it shall be for food; and to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is a living soul, I have given every green herb for food’ And it was so.

Here is a more detailed account of the involvement of yehôvâh ʼĕlôhı̂ym, corresponding to the Word (λόγος) in the opening chapter of John’s Gospel narrative (Genesis 2:4-9 Tanakh):

These are the generations of the heaven and of the earth when they were created, in the day that HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) made earth and heaven.  No shrub of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet sprung up; for HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man (ʼâdâm, ואדם) to till the ground; but there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.  Then HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) formed man (ʼâdâm, האדם) of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man (ʼâdâm, האדם) became a living soul.

And HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) planted a garden eastward, in Eden; and there He put the man (ʼâdâm, האדם) whom He had formed.  And out of the ground made HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

The Hebrew word translated good was טוב (ṭôb).  The light was טוב (ṭôb).  The dry land amidst the gathering together of the waters was טוב (ṭôb).  The grass the earth brought forth herb yielding seed after its kind, and tree bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after its kind[2] was טוב (ṭôb).  The lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night[3] were טוב (ṭôb).  The great sea-monsters, and every living creature that creepeth, wherewith the waters swarmed, after its kind, and every winged fowl after its kind[4] were טוב (ṭôb).  The beast of the earth after its kind, and the cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the ground after its kind[5] were טוב (ṭôb).  In fact, every thing that He [ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים] had made[6] was טוב (ṭôb).

The Hebrew word translated evil was ורע (râʽâh) and this is its first occurrence.  In other words, ורע (râʽâh) is as yet unknown.  The story continued (Genesis 2:15-17 Tanakh):

And HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) took the man (ʼâdâm, האדם), and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.  And HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) commanded the man (ʼâdâm, האדם), saying: ‘Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat [Table]; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die’ [Table]

Thus the one and only law was given.  Paul, after he was born from above and led by the Holy Spirit, wrote to others like him in Rome: For no one is declared righteous before him by the works of the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.[7]  As David had prayed: Hear my prayer, O LORD (yehôvâh, יהוה), give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness [Table].  And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified [Table].[8]  The story continued (Genesis 2:18-3:5 Tanakh):

And HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) said: ‘It is not good (ṭôb, טוב) that the man (ʼâdâm, האדם) should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him.’  And out of the ground HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto the man (ʼâdâm, האדם) to see what he would call them; and whatsoever the man (ʼâdâm, האדם) would call every living creature, that was to be the name thereof.  And the man (ʼâdâm, האדם) gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam (ʼâdâm, ולאדם) there was not found a help meet for him.

And HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man (ʼâdâm, האדם), and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the place with flesh instead thereof.  And the rib, which HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) had taken from the man (ʼâdâm, האדם), made He a woman, and brought her unto the man (ʼâdâm, האדם).  And the man (ʼâdâm, האדם) said: ‘This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.’

Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh [Table].  And they were both naked, the man (ʼâdâm, האדם) and his wife, and were not ashamed.

Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) had made.  And he said unto the woman: ‘Yea, hath G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) said: Ye shall not eat of any tree of the garden?’

And the woman said unto the serpent: ‘Of the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) hath said: Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.’

And the serpent said unto the woman: ‘Ye shall not surely die [Table]; for G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, כאלהים), knowing good and evil’ [Table].

Eve, in fact, knew nothing but good (ṭôb, טוב).  But though she was visited routinely by yehôvâh ʼĕlôhı̂ym, who spoke with her face to face, she did not know Him.  The story continues (Genesis 3:6-8 Tanakh):

And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat; and she gave also unto her husband with her, and he did eat.  And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig-leaves together, and made themselves girdles [Table].  And they heard the voice of HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) walking in the garden toward the cool of the day; and the man (ʼâdâm, האדם) and his wife hid themselves from the presence of HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) G-d (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) amongst the trees of the garden.

So they learned the meaning of ורע (râʽâh): to mistrust yehôvâh so as to disregard his word.  And He afflicted thee, and suffered thee to hunger, Moses told Israel, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that He might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every thing that proceedeth out of the mouth of HaShem (yehôvâh, יהוה) doth man live.[9]  So then, just as sin entered the world through one man[10] Paul wrote.

To conclude with the moral of this story, I’ve made a table interspersing Jesus’ teaching to Nicodemus with Paul’s teaching on the first and last Adam.

Jesus answered, “I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

John 3:5 (NET) Table

So also it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living person”;

1 Corinthians 15:45a (NET)

What is born of the flesh is flesh,

John 3:6a (NET)

the last Adam [e.g., Jesus] became a life-giving spirit.

1 Corinthians 15:45b (NET)

and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.

John 3:6b (NET)

However, the spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and then the spiritual.  The first man is from the earth, made of dust; the second man is[11] from heaven.

1 Corinthians 15:46, 47 (NET)

Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must all be born from above.’

John 3:7 (NET)

Like the one made of dust, so too are those made of dust, and like the one from heaven, so too those who are heavenly.

1 Corinthians 15:48 (NET)

The wind blows wherever it will, and you hear the sound it makes, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going.  So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

John 3:8 (NET)

And just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, let us also bear[12] the image of the man of heaven.

1 Corinthians 15:49 (NET)

Now this is what I am saying, brothers and sisters: Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.[13]

Tables comparing 1 Corinthians 15:47 and 15:49 in the NET and KJV follow.

1 Corinthians 15:47 (NET) 1 Corinthians 15:47 (KJV)
The first man is from the earth, made of dust; the second man is from heaven. The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
NET Parallel Greek Stephanus Textus Receptus Byzantine Majority Text
ὁ πρῶτος ἄνθρωπος ἐκ γῆς χοϊκός, ὁ δεύτερος ἄνθρωπος ἐξ οὐρανοῦ ο πρωτος ανθρωπος εκ γης χοικος ο δευτερος ανθρωπος ο κυριος εξ ουρανου ο πρωτος ανθρωπος εκ γης χοικος ο δευτερος ανθρωπος ο κυριος εξ ουρανου
1 Corinthians 15:49 (NET) 1 Corinthians 15:49 (KJV)
And just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, let us also bear the image of the man of heaven. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
NET Parallel Greek Stephanus Textus Receptus Byzantine Majority Text
καὶ καθὼς ἐφορέσαμεν τὴν εἰκόνα τοῦ χοϊκοῦ, |φορέσωμεν| καὶ τὴν εἰκόνα τοῦ ἐπουρανίου και καθως εφορεσαμεν την εικονα του χοικου φορεσομεν και την εικονα του επουρανιου και καθως εφορεσαμεν την εικονα του χοικου φορεσωμεν και την εικονα του επουρανιου

[1] John 3:10-12 (NET) Table

[2] Genesis 1:12 (Tanakh)

[3] Genesis 1:14 (Tanakh)

[4] Genesis 1:21 (Tanakh)

[5] Genesis 1:25 (Tanakh)

[6] Genesis 1:31a (Tanakh)

[7] Romans 3:20 (NET)

[8] Psalm 143:1, 2 (Tanakh)

[9] Deuteronomy 8:3 (Tanakh) Table

[10] Romans 5:12 (NET)

[11] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had ο κυριος (KJV: the Lord) here.  The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

[12] The NET parallel Greek text and Byzantine Majority Text had φορέσωμεν in the subjunctive mood here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and NA28 had φορεσομεν in the indicative mood (KJV: we shallbear).

[13] 1 Corinthians 15:50 (NET) Table