The First Days of Creation

TWO PANELS BY SIR EDWARD BURNE-JONES, A

LEADER IN RECENT ENGLISH ART, DIED 1898.

"And the evening and the morning were the first day."-Gen., 1, 5.

T

HE appearance of light upon the earth is the great central fact marking the first of the six days of the creation. The Bible does not say that light was itself created at this time; and elsewhere we are told that God Himself is Light. But it was on this first day that the light began to penetrate the dense masses of cloud by which the earth was shrouded. The difference between light and darkness, between day and night, began for the first time to be dimly visible upon the face of the revolving globe. A measure of time could thus be established. "And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night." These were significant names; for in Hebrew the word day means the time of warmth, of shining, the night means the time of howling, of uncertainty. So also the day was arranged as it was by the ancient Hebrews, the evening first, which means the period of mingling light and dark; and then the morning, the hour of "looking forth."

During the second day the chaotic world took form. The enfolding gases continued to lessen. They divided, and were separated into clouds, were raised above earth's surface as the "firmament," our surrounding atmosphere, the sky. "And the evening and the morning were the second day."

GENESIS III-THE CURSE

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7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig-leaves together, and made themselves

aprons.

8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?

10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?

12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

13 And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

14 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:

15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow' shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;

18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;

19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

20 And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.

21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.

22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

1 The Revised Version changes "sorrow" to "toil."

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GENESIS IV- THE FIRST DEATH

23 Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.

24 So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

Chapter 4

1 The birth, trade, and religion of Cain and Abel. 8 The murder of Abel. 11 The curse of Cain. 17 Enoch the first city. 19 Lamech and his two wives. 25 The birth of Seth, 26 and Enos.

ND Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare
Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.

2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.

4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?

7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.1

8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

9 And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?

10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.

11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;

12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. 13 And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear.

14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me.

15 And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.

1 Revised Version, "And unto thee shall be its desire, but do thou rule over it."