What is the correct view on genesis

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Andrew Kind

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Some people say that genesis is meant to be taken literally others say metaphorically, who's right?
 

Enoch111

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Some people say that genesis is meant to be taken literally others say metaphorically, who's right?
God says that everything in Genesis should be taken LITERALLY, unless He shows us that something is a symbol or metaphor (e.g. Joseph's dreams). At the same time, there are numerous things which are literally true, yet can also be interpreted as types of Christ, e.g. Adam and Joseph.
 

101G

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Romans 1:19 "Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.

Romans 1:20 "For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse".

Genesis is real, but to understand spiritual concepts, as said, symbolism, metaphorically use of speech, and simile ect... are used to express Gods thoughts or actions. for example. God don't have phyical "hands", "eyes", ears", or "feet", ect....... we use these in term as anthropomorphism in describing God actions and functions.

with that said, I suggest you read the bible with the "Holy Ghost" who will teach you in ALL THINGS.

I highly Recommend him to teach you.

only one thing,
James 1:5 "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

James 1:6 "But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

James 1:7 "For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.

James 1:8 "A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

James 1:9 "Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted:

just be serious when you seek him to teach you.

Be blessed in the Christ, Jesus Yeshua.
 
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Jane_Doe22

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DON'T GIVE ME THAT CRAP JUST ANSWER MY QUESTION
Andrew, asking God is not "crap" in a Christian's mind. Rather, each person's relationship with God (including asking Him questions) is the foundation of what it is to be a Christian. We short-sighted mortals could argue all life long about who's interpretation is correct (to your question and many others), but it's fruitless. Truth does not come from us short-sighted mortals and us arguing only gets to endless "he-say-she-said" stupidity. To truly know Truth, one must go to the source of all Truth: God.
 

Deborah_

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Some people say that genesis is meant to be taken literally others say metaphorically, who's right?

There isn't a simple answer to that question. Genesis is a complex book with different sections. It contains stories and genealogies. It was also written a very long time ago, when people had a very different concept of 'history' to ours, and no concept of science at all.

The easiest parts of Genesis to interpret are the stories of Abraham's family. These are true "family history", and should be taken 'literally'.

The genealogies are trickier, because we are used to 'family trees' that are complete and detailed. But family trees in ancient times were concerned only with descent - i.e. who were your paternal ancestors? So they are not necessarily complete (check out Jesus' genealogy in Matthew 1 - several generations are omitted with no explanation or apology), and can't be used (for example) for dating any of the stories.

We can, however, date Abraham (to around 2000 BC) from what we know of ancient cultures at that time.

The really tricky part of Genesis is the first 11 chapters (before Abraham). These stories have a very different 'feel' from the family histories; there is far less detail and relatively little conversation, for example - yet God speaks frequently, and at some length. How 'literally' to interpret them is highly contentious. They are certainly true, but are probably simplified and told in a way that makes them memorable, rather than being historically 'accurate'.

God says that everything in Genesis should be taken LITERALLY

Where does God say this?
 

Enoch111

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Where does God say this?
Right at the beginning. Genesis 1:1. If we are to believe God and Christ in any matter, particularly our salvation, then we must start off by literally believing this: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth, which corresponds to John 1:1-3.

There are all kinds of creation legends and creation fables in every culture and religion, and none of them present the truth. Here's the Hindu version:
In Sanathana Dharma (“Hinduism”), the concept of the creation of the cosmos goes as follows: Originally the universe was in the shape of an egg, referred to as “Brahma Anda” (Brahma means “universe” and Anda means “egg”). Then the Goddess manifested herself. She is referred to as “Maatha” (“mother”) and “Adi Shakthi” (Adi means “first” and Shakthi means “energy” and “strength” put together). She created a trinity of masculine, named “Brahma,” “Vishnu” and “Maheshwara” (or “Shiva”)...

Ever since the evolutionists came into existence, many people who do not believe the Bible believe those who claim that mankind originated in Africa. National Geographic is a huge promoter of evolutionism, so we should not be surprised at this nonsense:
Modern Humans Came Out of Africa, "Definitive" Study Says
We are solely children of Africa—with no Neandertals or island-dwelling "hobbits" in our family tree, according to a new study.

...The new data support the single origin, or "out of Africa" theory for anatomically modern humans, which says that these early humans colonized the planet after spreading out of the continent some 50,000 years ago.

Modern Humans Came Out of Africa, "Definitive" Study Says


All of the above are in opposition to the Bible, which is the Word of God. But there are plain statements of fact in Genesis throughout, with very few metaphorical allusions or symbolism.

Some people are even confused enough to imagine that Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 are two separate creation accounts, when what we really have is an overview in chapter 1 and a focus on mankind and man's relationship to creation in chapter 2.

Because the Torah has been taken to be the very words of God since its inception, and Genesis is the first book of the Torah, it is God who makes it crystal clear the Genesis is to be taken literally, and that there are no legends, fables, and embellishments in it, as opposed to all other religions or world views.
 
B

brakelite

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Genesis is real, but to understand spiritual concepts, as said, symbolism, metaphorically use of speech, and simile ect... are used to express Gods thoughts or actions. for example. God don't have phyical "hands", "eyes", ears", or "feet", ect....... we use these in term as anthropomorphism in describing God actions and functions.
And yet John saw Him sitting upon a throne, and Jesus said the angels behold His face.
 

Deborah_

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Right at the beginning. Genesis 1:1. If we are to believe God and Christ in any matter, particularly our salvation, then we must start off by literally believing this: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth, which corresponds to John 1:1-3.

There are all kinds of creation legends and creation fables in every culture and religion, and none of them present the truth. Here's the Hindu version:
In Sanathana Dharma (“Hinduism”), the concept of the creation of the cosmos goes as follows: Originally the universe was in the shape of an egg, referred to as “Brahma Anda” (Brahma means “universe” and Anda means “egg”). Then the Goddess manifested herself. She is referred to as “Maatha” (“mother”) and “Adi Shakthi” (Adi means “first” and Shakthi means “energy” and “strength” put together). She created a trinity of masculine, named “Brahma,” “Vishnu” and “Maheshwara” (or “Shiva”)...

Ever since the evolutionists came into existence, many people who do not believe the Bible believe those who claim that mankind originated in Africa. National Geographic is a huge promoter of evolutionism, so we should not be surprised at this nonsense:
Modern Humans Came Out of Africa, "Definitive" Study Says
We are solely children of Africa—with no Neandertals or island-dwelling "hobbits" in our family tree, according to a new study.

...The new data support the single origin, or "out of Africa" theory for anatomically modern humans, which says that these early humans colonized the planet after spreading out of the continent some 50,000 years ago.

Modern Humans Came Out of Africa, "Definitive" Study Says


All of the above are in opposition to the Bible, which is the Word of God. But there are plain statements of fact in Genesis throughout, with very few metaphorical allusions or symbolism.

Some people are even confused enough to imagine that Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 are two separate creation accounts, when what we really have is an overview in chapter 1 and a focus on mankind and man's relationship to creation in chapter 2.

Because the Torah has been taken to be the very words of God since its inception, and Genesis is the first book of the Torah, it is God who makes it crystal clear the Genesis is to be taken literally, and that there are no legends, fables, and embellishments in it, as opposed to all other religions or world views.

But I can't see anything in Genesis 1:1 that commands us to "take it literally". One can be utterly convinced that God created everything in the universe, and yet still regard the creation account in Genesis 1 as poetic rather than historically literal. And when I say 'poetic', I do not mean 'legend' or 'fable'. There are many ways of presenting truth, and bare literalism is only one of them.
 

101G

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And yet John saw Him sitting upon a throne, and Jesus said the angels behold His face.
GINOLJC, to all.
what was the features in his face? also John saw him standing , Revelation 1:10-19 and the description was "like" not is. and in chapter 4,
Revelation 4:2 "And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.

Revelation 4:3 "And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.

but keep your breeches on, because,
Revelation 22:3 "And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:

Revelation 22:4 "And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.

until then we don't know what he look like,
1 John 3:2 "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Amen.
 
B

brakelite

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But I can't see anything in Genesis 1:1 that commands us to "take it literally". One can be utterly convinced that God created everything in the universe, and yet still regard the creation account in Genesis 1 as poetic rather than historically literal. And when I say 'poetic', I do not mean 'legend' or 'fable'. There are many ways of presenting truth, and bare literalism is only one of them.
Once you start doubting creation where do you stop. If Moses was only writing allegorically in Genesis 1, then there is no reason to accept as literal the flood, Sodom, the life of Abraham and his offspring, the trials of Joseph....
 
B

brakelite

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GINOLJC, to all.
what was the features in his face? also John saw him standing , Revelation 1:10-19 and the description was "like" not is. and in chapter 4,
Revelation 4:2 "And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.

Revelation 4:3 "And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.

but keep your breeches on, because,
Revelation 22:3 "And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:

Revelation 22:4 "And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.

until then we don't know what he look like,
1 John 3:2 "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Amen.
We were created in their image, and in their likeness. No reason to reject the physical aspect of likeness.
 

stunnedbygrace

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Some people say that genesis is meant to be taken literally others say metaphorically, who's right?

a literal world that we literally live on was made.

Metaphorical? I say no.

spiritual and eternal meaning behind/in addition to the literal meaning? I say yes.

for instance, it describes the making of the sun and moon. Literal. But there is a light spoken of days B EFORE the creation of sun and moon. The beginning of John tells us who this light is.I guess that could be considered a metaphor...Jesus is light...But I see it more as...hmm, difficult to put in words.
 

101G

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We were created in their image, and in their likeness. No reason to reject the physical aspect of likeness.
no reason to accept it either.

and as for created in his image, is not face nor body features that are the image. the Image of God is "ANOTHER" which means "Adam". look up the word Adam or man H120 אָדָם 'adam (aw-dawm') n-m. and see how the KJV can translate it as.... get back with me ok.