The Garden of Eden: A Paradise Created - Bible Study of Genesis Chapter 2

Genesis chapter 2 provides a more detailed account of the creation story, focusing on the creation of Adam and Eve, the Garden of Eden, and the relationship between God and humanity.

 

This chapter discusses:

God - our creator

Adam - the man God created from dust of the ground

Eve - made from a rib taken from man

Verses 1-3: Day 7 - God rested and made the 7th day holy

Verses 4-7: How God created man

Verses 8-17: The Garden of Eden - two trees (tree of life & tree of knowledge)

The location of the garden by naming of the rivers: the rivers Piston, Gironde, Tigris & Euphrates. Two rivers still exist in ancient Mesopotamia which is now known as Iraq.

Verses 18-25: Up to this point God names everything but now has man naming the animals. God made woman for companionship. Man & woman were naked and not ashamed. 

God created the union between man and woman in this chapter. I believe marriage was designed in this chapter by God. It is not a man-made institution but instead designed by God.

God Changes Things

                         And He changes the times and the seasons; Daniel 2:21a

The story of Joseph is such an encouragement to me when life doesn't make sense. I think about when his brothers threw him into a pit to kill him and then sold him into slavery. Then his encounter with Potiphar's wife and getting thrown into prison. There were so many things that happened to Joseph that were so terribly wrong and yet he never  let the circumstances change his trust in God. Joseph trusted that God's hand was upon him and moved forward every day doing whatever needed to be done. Many years later God blessed him by making him 2nd in command to the great nation of Egypt. He was reunited with his brothers and everything changed.

There are many stories in the Bible that show us that God uses the good and the bad for his purpose. We can't always trust in the circumstances of our life but we can always trust God. It should give us hope that no matter what difficulty we may have that God has His purpose and His plan for us too. We can trust Him to make everything right no matter how impossible it may seem and no matter how much we have messed it up.

God can take our hopeless circumstance that we are facing today and make it  our blessing for tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. He brought us life from death 2000 years ago....

 This picture was taken at the Historical Fernandina Beach on January 2014.

I Am Asking “Why” Too!

 written February 8, 2011: 

I walk around with all the "WHY" questions like everyone else
and stay unsettled in the not knowing just how it all goes...
there are days I am strong and the WHY's are just there
then the days that my grief is just centered around all
the "WHY's" that are hanging around....

Amazing I get anything done trying to solve this mystery of
life and yet we all go along without knowing just "WHY" and
everyone works and everyone plays ~ even though we all
struggle with all the daily questions of "WHY"~I don't know!

Yes, I don't know "WHY" today or any day but have learned
that by faith to just trust that the God that I serve doesn't
need me to know the answers right now but one day we will and
then we may be glad we didn't know - just sayin' it could be
so.....just my theory I know.....

WHY do you ask, do I believe such a thing and I have to
reply with the same as before, I don't know but I do.
I trust and by faith live without the question of "WHY"
being answered today.....hope you do too.....

"WHY?" Because I care about you..........by Donella

When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. Isaiah 43:2

 

This picture was taken on one of my walks on the beach 2007.