• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Recent Issues
      • July/August 2022July/August 2022
      • May/June 2022May/June 2022
      • March/April 2022March/April 2022
      • January/February 2022January/February 2022
      • November/December 2021November/December 2021
      • September/October 2021September/October 2021
      • More…
  • Authors
      • Stuart OlyottStuart Olyott
      • Tony BrownTony Brown
      • Katie HadleyKatie Hadley
      • Wayne ProbertWayne Probert
      • Ceri DouglassCeri Douglass
      • Kerry OrchardKerry Orchard
      • Tom OlsonTom Olson
      • John SnyderJohn Snyder
      • Randy AlcornRandy Alcorn
      • Hugh DavisHugh Davis
      • More…
  • Sections
      • Bible
      • Church
      • Comment
      • Faith
      • History
      • Life
      • Mission
      • My story
      • Prayer
      • Remembering
      • Reviews
      • Theology
  • Subscribe

Eden

Part 1 of the The Bible in 8 words series

Jonny RaineJonny Raine2 minute readJanuary/February 2018, page 26

The Bible in 8 words

  • Eden (1)
  • Expectation (2)
  • Exodus (3)
  • Empire (4)
  • Exile (5)
  • Emmanuel (6)
  • Ecclesia (7)
  • Eternity (8)

Every book needs a strong opening. God’s perfect book starts, ‘In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.’ And so the week of creation follows — the first three days separating to create spaces, the second three days filling those spaces, followed by one day of rest. God looks at it all: it’s good, very good.

At the peak of this creation, he places humankind as man and woman. God places them in this perfect temple-garden where he is able to dwell with them. Having invested his own image within them, he instructs them to continue his work of ruling his creation under his authority according to his ways. As they multiply and fill the earth, so they are to take God’s rule with them.

But it doesn’t go well. In the snake, the Devil brings temptation to the woman. They were given one restriction so that they could demonstrate a willing submission to God. They were not to eat from the tree that would bring awareness of good and evil. Instead, they could eat from the tree that brought life forever. But by questioning God’s word and his goodness, the woman and man ate the fruit.

From that point onwards, the world was corrupted. A curse came upon the whole of creation, bringing pain and sadness, burdensome toil and conflict, even death. All this because, as humankind, we rebelled against our good God and decided we knew better than the One who knows all. And yet in this, God promised to crush the evil work of the snake in the descendant of the woman who would be hurt in the process.

As the man and woman, Adam and Eve, were banished from the garden and from God’s presence, so they were restricted from eating the fruit that brought life. Sin has reigned in humankind ever since and death has been the consequence.

This rebellion of sin is inescapable, as demonstrated by Adam and Eve’s descendants. In cold blood their firstborn son, Abel, is murdered by their jealous secondborn son, Cain. Furthermore, one of Cain’s descendants follows in his footsteps by seeking revenge in murder as well.

Their third-born, Seth, heads the family tree. Though each descendant carries the image of God by being made in their father’s image, yet they also carry with them the poison of sin and its fruit of death. Each descendant dies, leaving the world crying out for an answer, for the one who will crush the snake’s descendant.

Humankind gets so bad that God brings judgement in a global flood. He plans to wipe out all people, including all the animals, yet he deems to save one man and his family out of his loving kindness. Noah is told to make a boat big enough for all the animals and his family. As Noah responds in faith, so he is saved, and through him, humanity is saved.

When he comes out of the ark, although God sets a promise in place never to judge the world by flood water again, Noah demonstrates that he has carried the corruption of sin within him on the boat. He drinks the wine he makes, gets drunk and lies naked in his tent. What’s worse, his son sees him, and brings further shame to his father and curse upon himself, demonstrating that he has inherited sin’s curse.

As people multiply again, they fail to fill the earth, instead gathering together to build a city and a tower in defiance of God and to become their own gods. As God comes down to see their puny tower he confuses their languages, forcing them outwards to fill the earth as they multiply.

And we’re left wondering, with such a great beginning that all went so wrong, what hope is there for humankind if sin is so inescapable? Where is the one who will crush the snake’s descendant and stop the rule of death through sin?

Next in this series: Expectation »

Found this helpful? Like, share or tweet

Want more like this? Get the latest articles direct by email every week:

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Your personal details are safe. We won’t spam you, or pass your details onto anyone else. You can unsubscribe at any time.

About the author

Jonny Raine
Jonny Raine is the pastor of Pontrhydyrun Baptist Church in Cwmbran and the editor of the Evangelical Magazine.

Read next

Expectation
by Jonny Raine (part 2 of The Bible in 8 words)
4 likes
Exodus
by Jonny Raine (part 3 of The Bible in 8 words)
4 likes
Empire
by Jonny Raine (part 4 of The Bible in 8 words)
1 like
Exile
by Jonny Raine (part 5 of The Bible in 8 words)
1 like
Emmanuel
by Jonny Raine (part 6 of The Bible in 8 words)
5 likes
Ecclesia
by Jonny Raine (part 7 of The Bible in 8 words)
Eternity
by Jonny Raine (part 8 of The Bible in 8 words)
6 likes
We Need To Talk About The Money
by Jonny Raine (part 1 of The 'M' Word)

Primary Sidebar

Like us on Facebook

Evangelical Magazine

Latest issue

Other popular articles

  • What is ‘praying in the Spirit’ and how do we pray in this way? by Stuart Olyott
    97 likes
  • Golgotha - Why was Jesus crucified outside the city? by Mark Barnes
    32 likes
  • Exiles In Our Own Country by John Stevens
  • Until we meet again by Alun Ebenezer
    182 likes
  • Sharing Jesus with Mormon Missionaries by Tony Brown
    48 likes
  • Sharing Jesus with a Jehovah’s Witness by Tony Brown
    107 likes
  • Everyday Mission by Katie Hadley
  • Door-to-door with a difference by Sheila Stephen
    18 likes
  • How to secure your church's online Zoom meeting by Mark Barnes
    26 likes
  • Why was Jesus baptised in the River Jordan? by Mark Barnes
    76 likes

The Evangelical Magazine is published by the Evangelical Movement of Wales.
Waterton Cross Business Park, South Road, Bridgend CF31 3UL.
Registered charity number 222407. View our privacy policy.