Job descriptions of God in Genesis 2

By mmayer
Genesis 2

This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.

Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground – trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

10 A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. 14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.’

18 The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.’

19 Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.

But for Adam no suitable helper was found. 21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

23 The man said,

‘This is now bone of my bones
    and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called “woman”,
    for she was taken out of man.’

24 That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

25 Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.

Here are some of the things we named during the sermon time on Sunday, as we looked at the actions of God.

Forming the man from the dust of the ground: potter, artist.

Breathing into his nostrils the breath of life: paramedic, lifesaver.

Planted a garden: landscape designer.

Placed the man there, put the man in the garden to work it and take care of it: manager, human resources head.

Made all kinds of trees grow from the ground: agronomist, plant breeder, gardener.

Commanded the man to eat from any of the trees, but not the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Leader, teacher, policy designer.

‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable helper.’ Matchmaker. Parent. Dating service operator.

He formed out of the ground all the wild animals and brought them to the man. Experimenter, ecologist, veterinarian.

No suitable helped was found. Psychologist.

Caused the man to fall into a deep sleep. Anaesthetist.

Took one of the man’s ribs and closed it up with flesh. Surgeon.

Made a woman from the rib. Medical technologist. Reconstructive surgeon.

Brought her to the man. Proud parent.

There are so many different jobs that God does, to make this creation, and to bring us into community. Those jobs are still being carried out, by people like us, in varied ways. We each have our ways in which we make things, take care of creation, and serve other people.

Allow that richness to work in your life.

Let the richness of God also be at work in your life. Take time to enjoy creation. Take time to be in awe of what is all around you. Go to your special places. If you can’t physically get there, recall the memories.

Treasure the ways that you care for and serve the earth – from your gardening or farming, dealing with rubbish and waste, local land care, recycling or other practices.

Pastor Michael Mayer

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