The Creation of Adam Genesis 2:5-7

I can envision the Lord rising from his chair of rest. He is silently and suddenly preparing to create man. Notice how verses 5-6 describe the world before Adam’s unexpected birth. There is no plant or herb in the field. It had not rained, and there was no man to till or farm the ground. The reader has no clue that God is about to start a chain of creative events. Many times, God moves and works in very sudden and unexpected ways. I am reminded of the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2. I am not going to describe that event but in a similar way, the creation of Adam was sudden and unexpected. Notice what happened in these 2 verses.

A mist came up from the earth and watered the ground. And the Lord formed man from the dust of the ground. It is a well-known fact that we as humans are made of a significant amount of water. We need it to survive. The Lord formed Adam with the right amount of water to dirt ratio. Then He breathed into Him the breath of life. This description fits with the first chapter of Genesis, where God created man in His image. The Lord shaped and fashioned Adam with such precision and definition. He then very intimately breathed life into Adam’s lungs. Even though he had given life to all living things, it was a man who had the very breath of God. This happened so fast. God must have moved at the speed of light.
Shortly after this, the Lord planted a garden in Eden and placed Adam in the garden. This is where Adam would learn many life lessons from the Lord. These lessons would help him later, take care of the Garden, and survive after leaving the Garden. Adam passed his knowledge about farming and life to his children. And the world today is still reaping the benefits of this farmer’s wisdom. There also were some miraculous and beautiful things God did and Adam saw in the Garden. These things reveal a beautiful picture of the power of God and the beauty of the Garden. Let’s take a closer look.

The Miracle And Blessing of Trees Genesis 2:8–9
Almost immediately, after bringing Adam into the Garden, the Lord caused the trees to grow from the ground. Notice how the verses are connected by that conjunction AND. Thus I believe this was the first miracle witnessed by a man who had just been placed in the Garden. There are three things about the trees that I would like to mention. First, there are two important trees mentioned in the middle of the Garden. This included the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The latter will become a major part of the storyline and plot. See Genesis 2:9. We will get to that a little later. Second, notice how all the trees in Genesis 2:9 came forth miraculously. This is in contrast to the Garden that God planted, which needed to take some time to grow. The trees grew immediately to sustain Adam’s life while waiting for the first harvest. The Lord could have made the Garden grow like the trees, but He decided to let nature take its course in the Garden.

This reminds me of a great spiritual truth. God sometimes operates in instantaneous and miraculous ways. But at other times He lets nature take its course. Many, but not all, of the miracles we receive today happen over a progression of time. However, this does not take away from the miraculous things that He does. Either way, we should trust that God is good. And that He has a great plan for our lives. He has given us so many precious promises because of Christ.
Third, trees have been a source of great blessing to the world today. As I look around my house today, there is not much that does not have some form of wood in it. All houses are filled with many things that come from trees. For example, walls, cabinets, drawers, bookcases, paper products, and more. Trees also provided man with sweet and juicy fruit to eat, and continue to enhance the beauty of Creation. They are a great blessing to the world today. I especially like the shade of trees on a hot day. Whenever I think my life is bad, I go look at the trees and the beautiful things that fill them, like animals and leaves. A walk through nature, sometimes, is what I need to make life a little more bearable.

A Beautiful And Significant River Genesis 2:10-14
Verse 10 describes a river that flowed around the Garden. It is also connected to four significant river heads. Before God planted the Garden in Eden, a mist came up from the ground to water the earth. Now there is a great river with sub rivers that are helping to water the garden and the earth. Rivers today connect land to the ocean. This was a tremendous blessing for the garden as well as the world. There is no mention of rivers in Genesis 1. Thus, by creating the Garden and its rivers, the Lord was blessing the world. He provided a much need source of water for those who later would move inland as the world started to grow.

More About The Rivers
The author describes these rivers in great detail. His description makes scholars wonder if the Garden of Eden can be found. The first river, Pison, encompassed the land of Havilah. This land is described as having gold, bdellium, onyx, and other precious gemstones. Some scholars believe Havilah to be near modern-day Arabia, where gold has been found. [1]
The second river referred to as Gihon encompassed the land of Cush. Scholars today equate this with modern-day Ethiopia. But the exact location of this river cannot be completely identified.

Yet, the third and fourth rivers are large and well-known. The Hiddekel is associated with the Tigris. And the river Euphrates retains its name even today. The place where these rivers intersect gives scholars many clues to the location of Eden. But the exact location is still a Divine mystery.[2]
In conclusion, I wonder, if Adam and the Lord had time to take a tour along these beautiful rivers and lands. The description does seem very precise. One thing is for sure. Knowledge about the location of these rivers would be crucial to man’s survival. Especially when he is driven from the Garden of Eden and in need of water.

The First Conversation Between God And Man Genesis 2:15-25

After God added the finishing touches of the trees and rivers, the day arrived for Adam to do the job the Lord had prepared for him. The Lord had to talk to Adam before He brought the animals to him. It should be noted that the Lord and Adam were conversant, which is an indication that God taught Adam to speak. The God of Heaven and giver of all wisdom imparted a great blessing to Adam and humanity when he gave him the ability to speak and communicate.

God the Creator had two important things to tell Adam and his descendants. Here is an important summary of their monumental conversation. Adam, I need you to pay attention. There is a tree in the middle of the Garden. The Lord pointed to the specific tree called the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Do not eat from this tree or you will die. DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR!!! This tree is off-limits. Adam knew the severe implications of the Lord’s tone. He knew that he did not want to die. This was a simple WARNING given for the protection of his life. Kids have to know they can’t eat certain foods, and Adam needed to listen to God’s wisdom. God did not want Adam to know evil or the taste of physical or spiritual death. This was the first ground rule.

The second ground rule did not take place until Adam got his wife, which will be discussed shortly. This ground rule was a revelation given to Adam about his wife. It was basic knowledge about the relationship of a husband and a wife that came from the mouth of Adam but was revealed to him by God. A man and a woman would leave their father and mother to become one husband and wife, and thus one family. These basic instructions about family and life would play a crucial role later as the major dramatic events of our story unfold. Adam’s descendants would violate these principles in the Garden. They would have no value for a man’s life and the family structure. Had they listened to God earlier in both these instances, life in the world would have been extremely better for them. And the story of Noah and the Flood would have never happened. It is the same for us today when we do not listen to the simple WARNINGS and instructions of God’s Word. As we move forward in our discussion of Adam, he and God are looking for a suitable helper and companion.

A Suitable Companion Genesis 2:15-25
God brought the animals to Adam to see what he would name them because He cared and valued what Adam had to say. They searched high and low, but could not find a suitable helper for him. Adam did at least find some cattle out of the deal, who later would be a big help in the farming industry. Of course, you can understand why this disappointed Adam. There wasn’t anyone he could identify with. The Lord who saw his sad face said, “it is not good for man to be alone”. Shortly after this, the Lord caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep. The Lord took a rib from Adam and made the woman.
Adam was very pleased because this was bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh. The woman brought great joy to Adam. God gave him a helper during the day, and someone to comfort him at night. Of course, these things go both ways, and we should help each other. I could not imagine my life without the wife He blessed me with. She helped me through many hard times. We sometimes clash, but doesn’t everyone? So honey here is my tribute to you. Thanks, I love you and appreciate all you do for our family. You definitely are a blessing and make my life better.

One Big Happy Family
Notice how the man and woman were, what I call, one big happy family. The happiness of the family is dear to the heart of God. That is why He gave us His laws related to family and marriage. It was not to restrict us and make us miserable. But He wanted us to have good, strong families which would help us in life.

There is an interesting pattern throughout our story of Adam’s descendants. It is a pattern of how sin attacks and devalues the entire family structure. In Genesis 3 the relationship between the husband and his wife is tested. Genesis 4 describes two brothers whose fight ends in death. In Genesis 9 a son disgraces his father and loses the blessing God has for him and his family. Between Genesis 4 and 9 Man would have no regard for marriage or human life, and it continued to get worse. All these things greatly affected family life and its happiness. Listening to what God has to say about our families is a key component of happiness in our families. As we turn the page, let’s look at what happened to Adam and Eve to disrupt their happiness. You may know the story, but I hope you will understand it in a better way.

Sources
[1] Gleason L. Archer, Jr., Zondervan’s New International Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1982), 69-70.

[2] John H. Sailhamer, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary with New International Version Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers Vol 2. Frank E. Gaebelein editor (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1990), 42-43.