Images of God in Genesis
God created everything in the universe. His bliss, many graces and great signs surround us. Heaven, the Earth, space and stars are such great creations. After God fashioned the universe, he decided to create humanity. He ordered them to worship Him and to follow His commands, but some of them fell from His grace because of their disobedience. He sent prophets to guide them, but the people did not believe or heed the prophets’ words. There are specific stories in Genesis about people who either choose to obey or to disobey God’s commands, including Adam and Eve, Noah in the time of the flood, Abraham, Isaac, and Joseph and his brothers. All of these stories serve as examples of how God deals with those who disobey his rules and rewards those who are faithful.
God makes it clear with his words, directly or through His prophets, what the right and wrong paths are for humanity to follow. The most renowned example of what happens when people disobey is in the story of Adam and Eve. Upon finishing the construction of the universe, God realized something was missing, so he created humanity in His own image. He created Adam from the clay of the earth to keep him company and to take care of the world. God realized that Adam needed a companion as well, so He took one of Adam’s ribs and fashioned Eve from this part of Adam. Together, they lived in the beautiful Garden of Eden. God told Adam and Eve that they could eat, touch, and use anything they wanted in the garden except for the fruit of one tree standing in the center of the garden. He warned them that there would be unfortunate consequences if the ate the fruit of that tree. However, a serpent deceived Eve with clever words and convinced her she should eat the fruit of the forbidden tree. Eve shared the fruit with Adam. Because of their disobedience, God banished them from Eden. Throughout Adam and Eve’s time in Eden, God appeared to walk along side them and converse with them, but once they left the Garden he no longer kept such close company with them. God’s image in this story shows us that there are always dire consequences to our actions when we disobey God’s commands.
Good and evil people populate the Earth; God rewards and punishes each, as their actions deserve. Centuries after the death of Adam, some people began worshipping idols other than that of God. God spoke to Noah, who as God’s prophet was to lead the people back to the proper worship of God, but many people did not listen to Noah. This angered God, who decided to send a great flood to destroy the disbelievers. However, God was compassionate with the people who listened to Noah. He commanded Noah to build an ark to save those who believed and two of each species of animal. Life would continue with the believers who worshiped one God, for He was beneficent in protecting the righteous human.
God’s requirement as humanity’s creator is that they must follow his commands, and He tested his people to be sure of their obedience. In one instance, Abraham had a son, Isaac, with his wife, Hagar. To test Abraham’s obedience, he asked Abraham to offer Isaac’s life in sacrifice to God. This made Abraham very sad because he did not want to lose his son, but he took Isaac to the place where God ordered him to make the sacrifice. Just as Abraham was about to kill Isaac, a sound came from the heavens telling him, “Do not raise your hand against the boy; do not touch him. Now I know that you are a God-fearing man. You have not withheld from me your son, your only son” (Hebrew Scriptures: Genesis, 150). Abraham passed God’s test. God rewarded him by sending him a ram to slaughter instead. This story shows us that God has compassion for those who obey His commands.
Jealousy is an emotion that leads people to try to harm the successful person they envy. The brothers of Joseph were envious of him because their father was loved Joseph more than his other sons. In revenge, the brothers sold Joseph as a slave to a group of people coming from Egypt. God knew that Joseph’s faith in God was true, and so he aided him through his trials. One day, the Egyptian Pharaoh had two dreams that no one could interpret. A servant of the Pharaoh brought Joseph to the Pharaoh’s court, and the Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have heard it said that you can understand and interpret dreams,” and Joseph answered, “Not I, but God, will answer for Pharaoh’s welfare” (Hebrew Scriptures: Genesis, 155). The Pharaoh was so pleased with the accuracy of Joseph’s interpretation with God’s assistance that he elevated his status to be his personal advisor, and Joseph profited immensely. In spite of his brothers’ envy, this story shows us that Joseph’s true faith in God gained him compassion and assistance from God. It shows that the obedient and faithful man is the one who gains.
In conclusion, in this world there are admirable and awesome creatures whose presence is evidence of God, the great creator of all things. God created all of this with love so that we may find the faith to worship Him and be deserving of His love. The stories found in Genesis demonstrate that from the very first generations of people on Earth, God treated His faithful with compassion and justice.
