genesis 1-2

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Gen 1:1

In the beginning GOD – He is the origin of everything else.

The Hebrew for “God” is Elohiym. Elohiym, “the true God,” Strong’s H430, is the plural of Strong’s H433, elowahh, “any god, a false god,” which is the emphatic of Strong’s H410, el, “god, god like, mighty one, hero.” El is the shortened form of Strong’s H352, ayil, “ram, capitals (of columns), noble, strong tree,” which is itself derived from the three- letter root, Strong’s H193 uwl, “to roll, strength, power, preeminence, leader, belly, abdomen.”

In order to arrive at a word which can even come close to adequately describing the Being whose preeminence, greatness, might, and glory is indescribable, the word for strength, preeminence, nobility, and leadership first has to be made emphatic, then that result has to be magnified (made plural or multiplied).

The three- letter root of Elohiym is aleph – vav – lamed, the ox head (strength, power, leader) + the nail or tent peg (add, secure, hook) + the shepherd’s staff (teach, yoke, to, bind). The story told by this three- letter root is of the Shepherd added to the Sovereign! The shepherd leads, guides, teaches, provides for, gathers, keeps, takes care of, and guards his flock with his staff. Right away in the very first verse of Genesis, God reveals of Himself that yes, He is awesome in His creative wisdom and great might and power – but it is not arbitrary might or tyrannical power; it is intrinsically secured to the heart of the Good Shepherd!

Genesis 1 and 2 provide two creation accounts from two different perspectives:

Genesis 1 is from the perspective of Elohiym; the detail is on the creative process of each day. The name of God in this chapter is Elohiym.

Genesis 2 is from the perspective of Adam; the detail is on the man and what concerns the man. The name of God in this chapter is LORD God, YHVH Elohiym. YHVH or Yehovah, is the personal name of God. Its Hebrew three- letter root is the verb to be, so it means, I AM (I was, I am, I will be), the Self Existent, Eternal, and Unchangeable (since He can never be other than He is).

For further study: Make a note of all of the actions (the verbs) that God takes in these two chapters. How do these actions reveal His character and nature? Then find the seven things pronounced good, the one thing pronounced not good, the three blessings, and the one commandment. There is not a single idle word or even letter in Scripture. What do these specific pronouncements teach us?

Finding Messiah: Yeshua (Jesus) is the Word who was in the beginning with God, by which all created things were made (Joh 1:1-3). He is the Good Shepherd (Joh 10:10). He is our Sabbath Rest (Mat 11:28-30)!

For further reading:
Genesis 1:1 – Truths hidden within in the Aleph-Bet
Create – Hebrew word study
Light – Hebrew word study (and more detailed)
Six Literal Days
Linguistics, Genesis, and Evolution
Does Genesis 1:1-2 refer to the first day?
Do Genesis 1 and 2 contradict each other?
Life – Hebrew word study
Genesis 2:17 – You shall surely die