Garden of Eden Bible Story

From the Open Files of: NW Synod of Wisconsin Resource Center, (715) 833-1153 Contributed by: Pastor Deanna Wildermuth, St. Luke's Lutheran Church, Bellevue, WA This file is available in Rich Text Format version for editing

Garden of Eden And the Lord god planted a garden in eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. Genesis 2:8 The story of creation in Genesis 1 is a grand, sweeping tale. The creation story in chapter 2 is more concerned with the human element of creation. Some think they were/are two separate accounts. Others believe that the second is a deepening and particularization of the creation story. Genesis chapters 2 and 3, a simple story, a love story gone awry. (much of these thoughts are taken from God and the Rhetoric of Sexuality by Phyllis Trible). 3 short scenes, four major characters, single location and single time. Easy movement of plot, definite turning point, straightforward narration, brief dialogue, simple vocabulary builds on repetition. This simple story bears the weight of the sins of the world! Simple, but not neat and tidy. Well known, yet not understood. A story of life and death. What do you ‘know’ about this story? How do you understand it? Life – unity, fulfillment, harmony, delight Death – discord, strife, hostility, danger, disintegration: breaking of harmonious limits Four Characters – divine, human, plant, and animal Scene one – development of life (2:7-24) 2:7-8 earth creature, life from God (as John 20:22), Eden = delight/enjoyment 2:9-17 plants, earth creature and plants share common ground, nourishment of water and care from humanity=responsibility, till and keep = serve (respect, reverence, worship) and protect, work is a part of life, choice as a part of life= freedom to be responsible (obey command), human dominion is limited, permission and prohibition unite to preserve life. 2:18-20 animals - naming and dominion, wholeness vs. isolation, results in companion (mutuality and equality) 2:21-24 earth creature is passive-God creates again, first speech of human, first indication of gender, woman as the one man moves toward; where man finds fulfillment. . . notice he is described with mother and father, she stands alone Scene two = disobedience (2:25 – 3:7) (opens and closes with ‘both’ and ‘naked’) man and woman are dependent on God and given responsibility, serpent ruled by human, verbs plural, problem with human obedience (life) and disobedience (death), man is silent/passive (yet present), lawlessness/disobedience comes in two forms=active and passive, life (as intended) becomes a problem to be fixed Scene three = disintegration of life (3:8-24) 3:8-13 trial, man questioned ‘I’ statements, first afraid (source of fear = nakedness), first-betray woman, second-blame God, third-confess. Woman speaks for self, blame serpent, then confess 3:14-19 judgment, corruption of intended creation 3:20-24 the aftermath, relationships in disarray, god cares and provides, availability of tree of life now not promising, God’s intent for life has been corrupted and living forever would be hell!

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