Pete Enns continued his series on creation in the Old Testament as cosmic battle for the BioLogos Foundation. The latest is titled Adam is Israel. Enns writes
But there is another way. Maybe Israel’s history happened first, and the Adam story was written to reflect that history. In other words, the Adam story is really an Israel story placed in primeval time. It is not a story of human origins but of Israel’s origins.
Everyone has to decide for themselves which of these readings of Genesis has more “explanatory power.” I (and other biblical scholars) come down on the second option for a number of reasons, some having to do with Genesis itself while others concern other issues in the Bible.
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In recent years it has become increasingly common for theologians to focus their attention on the sphere in which redemption occurs. The Temple motif from the Garden of Eden to the Heavenly City–New Jerusalem–is traced out in such noteworthy works as O. Palmer Robertson’s Christ of the Prophets, and Understanding the Land of the Bible; T. Desmond Alexander’s From Paradise to the Promised Land, and From Eden to the New Jerusalem; William J. Dumbrell’s Covenant and Creation; G.K. Beale’s The Temple and the Church’s Mission, John Fesko’s Last Things First, and Meredith Kline’s Kingdom Prologue. The question that now must be asked is whether or not the work of these men can be further developed and deepened for our benefit.
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When discussions concerning Biblical Theology arise, it is unusual for Matthew Henry to be mentioned as a model of this grand theological discipline. As a young believer I would often rush home from a Worship service and read Matthew Henry on the particular passage preached that Lord’s Day morning. On one occasion I distinctly remember finding a biblical theological gem in regard to Christ sweating great drops of blood in the Garden of Gethsemane. Henry noted:
That, in this agony, his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. Sweat came in with sin, and was a branch of the curse (Gen. 3:19). And therefore, when Christ was made sin and a curse for us, he underwent a grievous sweat, that in the sweat of his face we might eat bread, and that he might sanctify and sweeten all our trials to us.
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We’re full into March and every baseball fan knows what time of year it is. Furthermore, this is an especially wonderful time of year for true Cub fans. We have especially elevated spirits and look forward to another potential championship year. And it’s been especially feverish for that last few. The 2003 season had a significant impact on the mind of those who frequent Wrigley Field. Now we have "real" hope. We have a front office willing to spend money to bring a championship to the North Side of Chicago for the first time since 1908. We have a fighting chance to reverse the curse. We’ve all heard that phrase with the 2004 Boston Red Sox and the 2005 Chicago White Sox (I’m getting sick) World Series wins. The Cubs have won the division two years in a row, and the delusional Wrigley Faithful are looking forward to another season.
As amazing as a Chicago Cubs "curse" reversal would be, what about the curse of the Fall? We all live under the curse of corruption and death due to the failure to be obedient under the covenant of works. What does the Bible say about reversing the curse? Actually, Scripture is very forthright in demonstrating how God will reverse the effects of the fall in the new heavens and new earth.
The blessing and curses of the covenant are spelled out in Deuteronomy 28. Interestingly, the picture of the new heavens and new earth in Isaiah 65 are very similar, though they show the reversal of the curses. This blessing to the people of God is rooted in Genesis 3:15 and later in Genesis 12 with the promise to Abraham. At the heart of the blessing of Abraham is the receiving of the Holy Spirit. Considered in terms of a prophetic perspective, we get a strong indication of the deep connection between Acts 2 and Genesis 12. What takes place in Genesis 12 is in redemptive response to the Babel confusion of Genesis 11. So what takes place in the day of Pentecost as the people hear others speaking an intelligible gospel in their own language is the eschatological initiation of the reversal of the confusion. We have an eschatological advance on God reversing the curse.
The context for this passage is the great promise of God. Yes, the context for any and all given passages of Scripture is the promise and the promises of God. But here we have in mind the promise of Genesis 3:15. Adam and Eve deserve death. And so does the serpent. But God does not destroy them here. No, he offers a promise. A promise of a seed, an offspring. Eve will have a child! But this is no ordinary child, no mere human being. This child is special, for he – we are told – will avenge their blood upon the tempter. He will be attacked, to be sure, by the tempter’s seed. But in that act of temptation, and in that attack in which the child of Eve will have his heel bitten, he will raise up that very same heel and use it to crush the head of the serpent’s child.
So, God blesses Adam and Eve with at least two children, as we see in the first half of chapter 4. But these two brothers do not work out well. There is sibling rivalry here: Cain rose up against his brother Abel and slew him. Killed him in cold blood. Read the rest of this entry »
