From the very first chapter of Genesis (1:1) and up until 11, the Bible seems to tell us about how humans have kept on disappointing the Lord and how we have not been able to meet His expectations on the world he created for us. The first sin of Genesis reflects the first mistake, of many, that human beings will make in the land of God; Adam and Eve ate from the tree they weren’t supposed to eat from, but were later punished and given a second chance. Similar to this, after Cain’s jealousy leads him to kill Abel, mankind is given a second chance with the birth of a third son Seth.
Genesis 5 outlines the immortal generations that follow Cain and Seth and it is inevitable to see how after generations it is a member of Seth’s line, Noah, who will be given a second chance to purify mankind and warn humans about their corrupt behavior. During this time, the image of women has shifted to that of a trophy, and directly related to this, wars and violence between neighboring tribes arise.
It therefore makes sense that Genesis 6-9 portrays story on how a cleanse of the earth for ‘a new world order’ is ‘necessary and fitting’. God made man in his image and likeness and it looks like at that time, Noah was the only one that represents this statement. He was ‘divinely favored’ for his ‘righteousness and his simplicity and for walking with God’, and it is this that humanity should mimic and look like and provide hope for the future. Overall, God shows mercy with Adam and Eve but after so much desire to possess women and the corrupt and violent behavior of men, destroying the world seems like the best option from the eyes of the creator.
Hi Carlota, I agree with you when you say that Noah was spared because he was the only creation that God made that was actually in his likeness. However, I wanted to ask you, why do you think that all of God’s other creations had to be destroyed (plants, animals, ect) even though it was Adam and Eve who became corrupted. Also, what do you think would have happened had God not destroyed all of his creations and instead just left them to be?
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Hi Odera, I think that destroying all other creations was a way to re-start, purify and cleanse the world completely giving the whole creation as a whole a second chance; Adam and Eve were the ones who became corrupt, but what about the snake? and what about all other things that could have been corrupted during this in-between period? Also, in response to your second question, I think that this was something that eventually had to happen, as if He hadn’t intervened, the growth in level of corruption would have been exponential.
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Hi Carlota,
I really agree with your belief about how the corruption and violence of men, especially with regard to women, cause a fall from grace with God. Kass discusses the corruption of beauty a lot, and what I think it comes down to is that man continually tries to be like God, which angers God and causes destruction and sin. It’s evident in Genesis 3 with the fruit of the Tree of Good and Evil, it’s evident in Genesis 11 with the Tower of Babel, and it’s evident in Genesis 5 with the longevity of human life. Do you think the corruption of humanity includes the human-like desire to be immortal and God-like?
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Hi Luke, YES! I THINK IT DOES! Not only because we can see it in Gen 3, but I think this is also present in Genesis 11 where the Tower symbolizes the attempt to reach to heaven and therefore the ‘godly’ and immortal quality of those like God in the sky.
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Hi Carlota,
I agree with your findings in both readings. However, I don’t agree with the fact that Adam and Eve were shown mercy. Especially with Eve having painful childbirths, which didn’t exist before, that was something I saw as the exact opposite. Can you please tell me what you thought was merciful about God’s punishment to Adam and Eve?
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Hi! What I think was merciful was the fact that he told them that eating from the tree of knowledge would bring death and despite this, He did not make Eve and Adam die, but instead punished them
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