Creation Account
Introduction
If you've read Genesis chapter 1, and then Genesis chapter 2, you might have some questions, such as why is man created in chapter 1, and then he is created again in chapter 2. You may also notice the animals are created before man in chapter 1, but after man in chapter 2. I'd like to try to explain to you what is happening here.
Retelling
First, please notice Genesis 1 begins with "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" and ends with "And so the heavens and the earth were completed". Genesis 2 begins with "This is the account of the heavens and earth when they were created". Based on this we can see that Genesis 2 will be a retelling of Genesis 1. It should not contradict Genesis 1, and the order of things that are created in 2 should reflect what was said in 1. We can also see when Genesis 2 starts that the earth, the land, and seeds in the ground already exist.
But why retell what was already said? Genesis 2 is going to add more details, such as the idea that man was created to cultivate the earth and that the animals were to be helpers for man, as well as the entire creation of Eden which was not mentioned in 1.
Shrubs and Plants
When Genesis 2 mentions plants in the earth that have not sprouted (Genesis 2:5), we need to connect this to Genesis 1, Day 3, when God created seeds, and then the earth produced vegetation (Genesis 1:11-12). As you can see in Genesis 2, it adds more detail to Day 3 by mentioning God "had not sent rain upon the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground" (Genesis 2:5). Since Genesis 2 moves on to describe God creating man (Genesis 2:7), if we are to match our Genesis 1 timeline, we should understand that we are moving past Day 4, 5, and the start of 6, right up to Genesis 1:27 when the retelling of man's creation happens and more information is given, such as the use of dust from the ground. The reason Day 4, 5, and some of 6 are left out of Genesis 2's retelling is because there is no new information to share. In a sense, most of Genesis 2's timeline between the creation of man and woman is all contained in Genesis 1:27: "male and female He created them".
Garden of Eden
Between God creating man, and then creating woman in Genesis 1, we learn about Him making the Garden of Eden and placing man there (Genesis 2:8). God then creates "every tree to grow that is pleasing to the sight and good for food" (Genesis 2:9) as well as the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. How do we know He is not covering all of the earth with "every tree"? Because God had already covered the earth before He created man. He is now creating and filling only the Garden of Eden. He also fills the garden with "every animal and bird" in Genesis 2:19, and they are brought before man to name. Remember though that before God filled Eden with animals, He had already covered the earth with fish, birds, and livestock.
| Genesis 1 (from Genesis 1:1 to Genesis 2:3) | Genesis 2 (from Genesis 2:4 on) | |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Heavens and earth, day and night (Genesis 1:1-5) | Heavens and earth (Genesis 2:4) |
| Day 2 | Expanse in the waters, separating clouds from ocean (Genesis 1:6-8) | |
| Day 3 | Dry land and seeds (Genesis 1:9-11) | Plant seeds (Genesis 2:5) |
| Vegetation (Genesis 1:12) | Mist waters the whole surface (Genesis 2:6) | |
| Day 4 | Sun, moon, and stars (Genesis 1:14-19) | |
| Day 5 | Fish and birds (Genesis 1:20-23) | |
| Day 6 | Livestock, insects (Genesis 1:24-25) | |
| Man and woman (Genesis 1:26-27) | Man created from dust (Genesis 2:7) | |
| God planted Eden (Genesis 2:8) | ||
| Trees grow in Eden (along with tree of life and tree of the knowledge of good and evil) (Genesis 2:9) | ||
| Rivers are named (Genesis 2:10-14) | ||
| Animals formed from ground and brought before man to name (Genesis 2:19-20) | ||
| Woman created (Genesis 2:21-23) | ||
| Day 7 | God rests (Genesis 2:1-3) |
Conclusion
When reading Genesis 1, we can see a sweeping narrative talking about the creation of all things set to a timeline of days. In Genesis 2, we learn about God needing man to cultivate the ground, God creating a special garden called Eden, bringing the man animal helpers to name, and then creating woman out of man's rib. These extra details not only fill in some of Genesis 1, they also set us up for what happens later in the garden, in Genesis 3.