It is, however, important to observe that Adam was called first as the one whose position of leadership made him responsible for the act ( 3:9 ). He seems to eat what he is offered without objection ( 3:6 ). Was Eve selected because she would in some way be easier to deceive? Or was the more difficult subject taken first? It is noteworthy that no special efforts to persuade Adam are recorded. The most intelligent animal confronted humankind under whose feet he had been placed ( Gen 1:28 3:1 ). This is a far different scenario from the sexual escapades of Enki (= "lord of the earth") in the Sumerian garden story. They would become one flesh ( Gen 2:18-24 ). The one who would make his life complete came from his own rib. His inspection of the animal kingdom revealed no suitable helper. The first lesson Adam learned was that his work was too big to do alone. (Note that Hebrews brought before the king are renamed in Dan 1:7 ). Included in ancient ideas of naming would also be sovereignty over the item named. God brought him all the animals to see what he would call them. God wished to spare Adam from pain and death but at the same time left him freedom of choice for options beyond the sphere of his provision.Īdam was not only a laborer but a thinker. The forbidden tree contained the option of experiencing the opposite of what comes from the hand of God. The Hebrew word for "know" includes the idea of knowing by experience. He was warned about the tree of knowledge of good and evil (2:17). Man was furnished with every pleasant, nourishing experience God could provide. Man was not created to be waited on but to join God in preserving and propagating creation. Adam was not placed there to be a vegetable but to grow them. Meaningful, productive activity was always part of paradise. Unlike the Sumerian garden story of Enki and Ninhursag, there was no gardener working for Adam. Man was placed into this beauty to "work it and take care of it" ( Gen 2:15 ). He could clearly see that all good and perfect gifts come from the Lord God. His first sight may have been God planting a garden for him. He awoke to a barren landscape ( Gen 2:5-7 ). No shrub or cultivated plant had yet grown where Adam was created. God did not appoint death for Adam and keep life exclusively for himself as in the Gilgameth epic. He was not created to relieve Gods of tedious labor but to reflect God's care of the world of nature. Adam is not laden with the task of building temples and cities. There is nothing about autocratic king ship lowered from heaven. Many elements present in Mesopotamian creation stories like Enuma Elish are absent. The words "subdue, " "rule, " "under his feet" ( Gen 1:28 Psalm 8:6 ) suggest kingship over nature but not over his fellow man. (Rabbis speculated the glory of Adam's heel outshone the sun.) He was commissioned as a vassal king to rule over God's creation. These words describe vivid intimacy between God and man not shared by animals.Īdam was made a little lower than "angels" (or "God") at his creation and "crowned with glory and honor" ( Psalm 8:5 ). Into this earthen vessel God breathed the breath of life ( Gen 2:7 ). The word "formed" suggests the careful work of a potter making an exquisite art-piece. Rabbis believed it came from all over the earth so no one could say, "My father is greater than yours."
The country from which the dust was taken is not specified. It is important that Adam is identified with humankind rather than any particular nationality. Word play between "Adam" and "ground" ( adama ) is unmistakable. This may reflect the red soil from which he was made.Īdam was formed from the ground ( Gen 2:7 ). The color red lies behind the Hebrew root adam. God himself gave this appellation to Adam and Eve ( Gen 5:1-2 ). "Adam" is both the proper name of the first human and a designation for humankind. Bible Dictionaries - Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Adam Adam
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