GOD CREATED THE GARDEN OF EDEN

Genesis 2:4-17, Key Verse 2:16, 17

1. Describe the condition of the earth before God created the Garden of Eden (4-6). How did God create man (7)? What is the uniqueness of man?
2. What did God do for man (8)? Describe its physical environment (9-14) and its spiritual environment (16, 17). Why did God put man in the garden (15)? What does this passage show about God? About man?
3. What command did God give man concerning the two trees in the middle of the garden (16, 17)? What does the phrase "You are free to eat any tree in the garden" show us about God and man? Why did God give this command?

GOD CREATED THE GARDEN OF EDEN

Genesis 2:4-17, Key Verse 16, 17

“And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.’”

Last Sunday in the previous passage, we learned about God’s creation of man. We were created in God’s image, so holy and righteous, so majestic and beautiful. We were the representatives of God Himself. We also learned that we must be rulers and conquerors in the world. It is God’s command and at the same time, God’s blessing. Because of this blessing, we now know what to do with our life, and how to live our life. Now, in Genesis chapter 2, we see the detailed account of God’s creation of man. The author spends this chapter to show how much God loved the man. May God help us to know your love for us today!

Part I: God created the Garden of Eden (2:4-15)

First, God formed the man from the dust of the ground. Genesis chapter 1 is the introduction to God’s creation of the world. Now in Genesis chapter 2: 4a, the author sums up God’s creation of the world, saying, “This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created.” The world was not made by accident; its existence is not the result of natural process, but the product of God’s specific plan and wisdom and power. Genesis chapter 2, then, is the special article to the creation of man. 

Look at verses 4b through 6. “When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens- and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground, ⁶ but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground.” At that time, the earth was barren because no shrub or plants sprang up yet. The phrases, “no shrub had yet appeared,” and “no plant had yet sprung up,” suggest that they were there, but certain conditions were missing that the grass and other plants did not spring up on the ground. Instead, mist came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. The whole earth must have been very foggy or misty. 

It was right before God created the man. The earth was waiting for its hero to come and take care of them. It was like waiting for our Bible students to show up for our 1:1 Bible study. How did God create the man? Look at verse 7. “The Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” God took some dirt from the ground, and molded it into a shape, like a potter or like an artist molding a sculpture, maybe, six feet tall, 180 lbs, two hands, 10 fingers, two feet, and a big brain. Thus, he formed the man from the dust of the ground, but it was not a living being yet, but just a lifeless body. 

When a man dies, his body is still there, and the man God formed from the dust of the ground was like this dead body. Then, God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and it became a living being. As God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, his heart began to beat, and the blood circulated. The air filled his lungs, and the man began to breathe. The man, suddenly opened his eyes, and sat up and looked around. Maybe, he bowed to God and said, “Hello, Lord! Who are you, and who am I?” Man was the masterpiece of God’s creation, the glory of God. But God made this man from the dust of the ground. 

The Hebrew word for “man” is “Adam”, and its original meaning is ground or dirt. By ourselves, we are dirt, nothing to brag about like dead bodies, but with God and in God, we become glorious and powerful. We should always remember that man's life is from the spirit not from the flesh. Moses said in Deuteronomy 8:3, “He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.” Especially Jesus said in John 6:63, "The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life." Here we learn that we, human beings, are different from animals because our life is from the spirit of God.

Second, God planted the Garden of Eden. Look at verse 8. “Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed.” After creating the man, He chose a certain area on earth, and made it beautiful and gave it to the man as his special gift. While the rest of the earth was all barren, the Garden of Eden was a special place. The Garden of Eden was very beautiful--full of all kinds of trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. Traditionally, princes and kings lived in beautiful palaces, such as the Summer Palace of Peter the Great in St. Petersburg. But God’s garden put all man-made palaces to shame. The Garden of Eden was roofed by the stars of the sky, sparkling like diamonds in the firmament. 

Read verses 9-14. The air was filled with a sweet aroma—ahhhh--like the scent of a pine forest in the cool of the morning. And a beautiful river flowed through the garden, winding its way over smooth rocks and making majestic waterfalls and a deep small lake, perfect for Adam to go diving in. The water was cool and refreshing--as clear as crystal. God also made all kinds of beautiful trees grow out of the ground-tall trees, short trees, skinny trees, fat trees, banana trees, Christmas trees—all kinds of trees. These trees produced fruit that was both pleasing to the eye and good for food such as apples, oranges, strawberries, and grapes.

When Adam looked at the juicy fruits before his eyes, his mouth watered, so he gathered all the fruits together and made a giant fruit salad--it was so delicious and fully satisfying. After enjoying the fruit salad, Adam lay down on the soft, green grass and took a nap under the sun, but he didn't get sunburned, and the bugs didn't bother him at all. The garden was the most beautiful, comfortable, and abundant place on earth. The word, “Eden” means “Delight.” In the Garden of Eden, Adam could enjoy his life to the full; indeed, it was the Garden of Delight. God made Adam’s life delightful. In this Garden, Adam ruled as a king, assigned by God. To other creatures, the Garden of Eden must have been the place of their dreams. Probably, the hope of all the creatures on earth was to travel to the east, visit this Garden, and attend the king’s dinner. 

Why did God put the man there in the Garden? Look at verse 15. “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” Surprisingly, God did not put Adam in the Garden of Eden to lie back drinking beers all day long. God did not put Adam in the Garden to enjoy his video games all day long. Instead, God put Adam in charge of the garden so that he would work it and take care of it. God’s desire for man is very clear. God wanted man to take care of the perfect Garden of Eden so that the man might live his life happily ever after. God provided all things he needed for his life and happiness, and now man’s duty was to maintain things properly so as to enjoy God’s blessing continually. God made man wonderfully and fearfully in his image. 

And, God gave man hands with lively fingers capable of the most delicate accuracy work. God also gave man a big brain so that he could think, organize, and solve all kinds of difficult problems. Man cannot be happy unless he has something meaningful to do with all the talents God has given him. One talented man in his late thirties is a doctor. He is successful, goes to church faithfully and he is very sincere. But, all the time he worries and wonders, "What should I do?" Man cannot be happy unless he has a mission which he can live and even die for. Putting Adam in charge of the garden was God's gift of mission, giving Adam's life deep meaning and purpose. This mission was from God, and it was for Adam’s own happiness. 

People think that God wants to utilize them for his purpose, but that’s not true. Frankly speaking, what can we, humans, do for God? He is all powerful and all sufficient, and he does not need our help. On the contrary, it is God who does everything for our happiness, and for our happiness, he gave us the Garden of Eden as his special gift to live a delightful life. And it is for our happiness God gives us his mission because only in serving God’s mission with all our strength and talents, we can be truly happy and find the meaning of our life. Look at Nathan’s bright face. He went out fishing at COD with Jeremy and met one sheep, Andy, and began to study the Bible. Those who serve God’s mission are happy because true happiness comes from God. Because of God’s deep concern for our happiness, he even sent his only Son Jesus to die on the cross. And later, he will invite us to the kingdom of heaven so that we can be happy forever. 

Part II: Adam’s Bible (16-17) 

Look at verses 16, 17. “And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.’” This command is known as “Adam's Bible.” In giving this command, God reveals his Father's love for man. Firstly, God said, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;" With the words, "You are free," God confirmed man's free will. God is the Almighty God, the Sovereign Lord of the universe. 

But, he did not force his will upon man. Instead, God restricted his own sovereignty and gave man free will to choose for himself what he will do and what he will not do. Why did God do this? God did this because He loves mankind deeply, as a Father loves his children, and, he wants his children to love him sincerely of their own free will. I am happy when my daughters love me faithfully of their own free will. These days robots can cook “Ramen Noodles” and serve men with coffee. Some robots can speak a few words. But robots cannot love because they only do as they are programmed. However, God confirmed man's free will, saying, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;" 

After confirming man's free will, God said, "but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." God wanted him to enjoy His blessing all the time, and not die, so he gave this command. There was no death yet, but if Adam did something he ought not to do, he would surely die. He should not do that. Now in this command, God showed him what would cause him to die, by saying, “When you eat of it, you will surely die.” God commanded not to eat, so eating this fruit meant to ignore God’s authority, and it would be rebellion. Not eating does not require any practical struggle, but eating requires a willful decision, so, it would be real rebellion against God. Such rebellion against God would cause man to die. 

Because of this, Adam could see very clearly what he ought not to, and his spiritual struggle became very concrete. So, what did Adam do? Probably, he placed a wooden fence around the tree, and put up a big sign, “Do not eat any fruit from this tree.” And he would engrave God’s word on a rock in front of the tree. This way, Adam would struggle to obey God’s command, and he would be happy with God. By obeying God’s command, his love for God and thanks for God’s blessings would be practical. Surely, he would be happy with God when he had the word of God in his heart. He could remember God as the creator of his garden whenever he saw this forbidden tree and gave thanks to God. 

Yes! God created everything in order, and everything was good when things worked according to his plan and purpose. Fish have a place to live, and everything is okay when fish live in the water. Eagles have their own unique functions with their big wings flying in the sky, and a place to live. But human beings are different because we are to challenge and conquer all three dimensions of the world, the sky, the ocean, and the land. Then, where are we to live in? The environment God assigned for humans is spiritual environment that is above all others and under God’s authority. As long as we remain in this spiritual order, we are happy, and we are free to do anything. But if we go beyond this spiritual order, we will surely die. 

How much did God want the man to keep this spiritual order and live happily ever after? If Adam needed anything else, God would be more than willing to give whatever he needed because he loved the man. How much God wanted the man to remain as a glorious ruler in God’s image forever! So God gave this command for Adam’s protection and guideline. We give many good commands to our children; if they accept and obey them, they will grow and come to enjoy beautiful things, and their life will be very great. But if they do not accept those commands and disobey them, their parents’ hearts will be broken looking at their children’s chaotic state. 

Many people these days have a negative view of God's commands. They think that God wants to take away their fun and that if they accept God’s commands and obey them absolutely, they will lose their freedom, and their life will be restricted. Instead of accepting God’s command and keeping it absolutely, they take it relatively, in their convenience, so as to do what they desire to do, saying, “I don’t think that’s what God meant,” or “That’s an Old Testament Law.” They think that they are free, but in reality they are slaves to their sinful desires, slaves to their small citizen’s dream, and slaves to their worldly dream. Only when man has God's commands, can he be truly free. God’s command is not restricting, but God gives us his commands to give us a truly blessed life. 

God knows what is best for us, and His commands lead us to a really beautiful, fulfilling and fruitful life. Jesus said in John 12:50, “I know that his command leads to eternal life.” Jesus also said in John 8:31 and 32: "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." Thank God for giving us the Bible, which teaches us what to do and what not to do, setting us free to live for the glory of God. May God use us to bring his word to many lost college students, so that they, too, may be set free to enjoy life with their Father in heaven.

*Conclusion: Through today’s passage, we learned about God’s deep concern for mankind. His desire is not to use us for his purpose, but to bless us for our own happiness. Out of his deep concern for our happiness, he gave us the Garden of Eden, and his command. Only if we live according to his desire and purpose, then, we will truly enjoy our lives, and we will be happy. Let’s trust in God that he has deep concern for our happiness, and by faith, obey his commands. This is the way of true happiness. May God bless our Genesis Bible study continually!