THE ARCHETYPES OF PATRIARCHY
PARADISE
Introduction
The 20th century has repudiated "the old ways" and embraced "modernism." I was drawn to the Catholic Worker Movement because its co-founder, Peter Maurin, questioned the worship of the creature instead of
the Creator, and the urge to mass destruction which logically follows.
Regard for the Soil
Andrew Nelson Lytle says:
"The escape from Industrialism
is not Socialism
or in Sovietism.
The answer lies
in a return to a society
where agriculture is practiced
by most of the people.
It is in fact impossible
for any culture
to be sound and healthy
without a proper respect
and proper regard
for the soil,
no matter
how many urban dwellers
think that their food
comes from groceries
and delicatessens
or their milk from tin cans.
This ignorance
does not release them
from a final dependence
upon the farm."
The Catholic Worker
stands for co-operativism
against capitalism.
The Catholic Worker
stands for personalism
against Socialism.
The Catholic Worker
stands for leadership
against dictatorship.
The Catholic Worker
stands for agrarianism
against industrialism.
The Catholic Worker
stands for decentralism
against totalitarianism.
Up to Catholics
Ralph Adams Cram says:
"What I propose is that Catholics
should take up
this back-to-the-land problem
and put it into operation.
Why Catholics?
Because they realize
more clearly than any others
the shortcomings
of the old capitalist
industrial system.
They, better than others,
see the threat
that impends.
They alone understand
that while the family
is the primary social unity,
the community comes next.
And there is
no sound
and righteous
and enduring community
where all its members
are not substantially
of one mind
in matters of the spirit --
that is to say,
of religion."
The future of the Church
is on the land,
not in the city;
for a child
is an asset
on the land
and a liability
in the city.
Read The Church and the Land
by Father Vincent McNabb, O.P.
The Garden and the Sewer
There are two accounts of the Creation and Purpose of Man competing
for your loyalty. One says a loving, personal God created Man and placed
him in a beautiful Garden. The other says that man is the random mutation
of genetic material, emerging without purpose and without meaning from a
"primordial soup" of chemicals and energy.
Several centuries ago, the first story was more generally believed. It
was never "proven" wrong, but the second story had certain advantages. In
the first story, the Creator told man that he had certain responsibilities. He
had to work in the Garden, and he had to pay due respect to the Creator.
In the second story, man gets to kill anyone who gets in his way ("survival
of the fittest") and there is no God to tell man he can't lie, steal, or take
sexual control over others. A lot of people like the benefits of this story.
This second story has led to the murder of over 200 million people in
the 20th century alone. But we still believe that this is the only "realistic"
way to live life.
The original Garden had the following characteristics.
Fellowship in the Presence of God
Springing forth like rivers of water
Flowing from a mountain plateau
Producing abundant vegetation
Decorated with precious
jewels
The Life of Man was characterized by the following:
A Mandate to Exercise Dominion
over a Fruitful Garden
gaining Knowledge
in Harmony with Nature
enjoying the Freedom to Glorify
God
in a Family-centered life
lasting many healthy years
as Stewards over the creation
Planted Securely on the Land.
The Rebellion of Man
All of the beauty and promise of the Garden were not enough, however. Nor is it today. We want what the Tempter promised: "To be as
gods" (Genesis 3:5). No matter what is promised in return, it is
difficult for us to submit; to admit that our Creator is the Potter
and we are His vessels; that God is our Sovereign-Lord and we are His
vassals.1 When it comes to worship, "it is better to receive than it is to
give," we believe. When man determined to be his own god, to "know
good and evil" as the Ultimate Arbiter of right and wrong,2 to rely on his
own mind and power instead of God, he reversed the shalom-
order of the earth, and in place of Blessing, man received Cursing:
Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou ear
of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring
forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the
sweat of thy brow 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. (Genesis 3:17-19)
From agricultural surplus and Blessing to scarcity and Cursing.
From harmony and synergism to conflict and competition.
Man's rejection of God and his desire "to be his own god" is a death
wish: a suicidal urge to mass destruction. "He that sins against Me
wrongs his own soul; everyone that hates Me loves
death" (Proverbs 8:36).3
In general, each of the characteristic Blessings of the Garden and of
Man's Life in the Garden are reversed as man rebels against the Lordship
of the Creator. We see the anti-parallels:
Instead of water Thirst
Instead of the Mountain a desert Valley
Instead of the Botanical Garden a Wilderness
Instead of Precious Stones Clay, wood, stubble, asphalt
Instead of God's Presence Separation, "Hell on earth," alienation
The Life and Nature of Man are also ruined by Man's rebellion
Instead of Dominion Man Neanderthal Man
Instead of a Garden "The Concrete Jungle"
Instead of Knowledge Mythology
Instead of Harmony with Nature Conflict, Pollution
Instead of Freedom to
Enjoy and Glorify God Economic Scarcity
Instead of The Family "Singles," "Careerism "
Instead of Long life-spans Sickness, Death
Instead of Unmolested stewardship over land Serfdom, slavery
Instead of Stability Wandering
The beautiful and pleasant provisions God had supplied man in the
Garden were rejected. Man decided God's provision was inadequate. God
had clothed man in His own Glory, but man wanted to clothe himself in
robes of his own glory and power (Genesis 3:7; Romans 3:23). In his
rebellion, man twisted, marred, perverted, and disfigured his glorious
image. The earth, over which man was placed, and which was to be
groomed into God's Garden-Temple, became a wilderness of thorns, thistles, sweat, pollution, and death (Genesis 3:17-19; Isaiah 24:1-6; Romans
5:12). Man was banished from the Garden, and this naked nomad was
forbidden again to enter it (Genesis 3:24).
But God's dealings with man do not stop here. God promises
salvation to man.
What is "salvation?"
Quite a few people seem to want it; some of them claim to have it.
Those who don't want it probably know more about what it is than many
who claim to have it. Webster (1828 edition) limited the definition to, "The
redemption of man from the bondage of sin and liability to eternal death,
and the conferring on him everlasting happiness." Ask the average
churchman from what it is that Jesus came to save
His People (cf. Matthew 1:21). The most likely answer: "from hell." But
the Hebrew word we translate "salvation" means much more than many
realize. Strong's Concordance (#3444) tells us that "salvation"
contains the thought of victory, prosperity, health, and
welfare. It also conveys the thought of being placed in a wide, open
space.4 We almost get the impression that salvation has something to do
with this present world!
Such is indeed the case. When we engage in "Biblical Theology"
(studying God's progressive revelation of salvation from Genesis to Revelation) we find that the Bible builds on the foundations laid in Genesis. In
particular, the themes set forth in the Garden of Eden are returned to again
and again by later writers. In this essay, we will set forth these themes,
and show very briefly how the prophets and the New Testament writers
amplified them. We will find that the Garden is a central theme in the
Bible. Salvation, in Biblical terms, means
the restoration of God's Image-bearers to our original
purpose5 and the entire planet to Eden-like conditions.
The Ecology of the Kingdom of God
Let's consider that statement for a moment: "The Garden is a
central theme in the Bible." That sounds fairly preposterous at first.
One theologian has written a book entitled Major Bible
Themes. It contains such themes as "The Trinity," "The Holy
Spirit," "The Covenants," "The Angels," "The Church," and "The Second
Coming." This will surprise you: no "Gardens." How many times do you
think the word "Eden" or "Garden" occurs in the Bible? More important,
how often would you guess the concept of the Garden is found
in Scripture? How about allusions to Edenic life which we as
industrialized urban dwellers do not even pick up.6 Let it be clear: this
Essay on Salvation as a Garden does not seek to be a collection
of trivia, like the interesting but useless facts found in the middle of the big
family Bible. The Garden is a central Bible theme placed there
by the Holy Spirit to help us understand God's Covenant, His Law, the
Kingdom, and the Blessings of His Salvation.
Salvation and Human Purpose
A Definition of Salvation and Synopsis of this Essay
If we begin with the creation of the first human beings in the Garden of
Eden and then proceed through the rest of Scripture, we will see that
"Salvation" entails the restoration of Man to his original
purpose. From the very beginning of the Bible
the Purpose and Life of Man,
Man's Rebellion and Captivity to Sin, and
the Ultimate Redemption Beautification of the World
are set forth. By briefly surveying these themes we can summarize the
argument of this essay and suggest a neglected aspect of "Salvation."
The Purpose and Life of Man
Why did God create man? What was he created to do? One aspect of
the answer is in Genesis 1:26-28: "To be fruitful and multiply, and
replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over every living
thing that moveth upon the earth." Man was created "in the
image of God" in order to accomplish this tremendous task. And as
he is working, man, the Image and Likeness of the Creator, can have
friendship with this same Creator, enjoying His Presence.
Man is therefore not a cosmic fluke, a random collection of chemicals.
He is created by God in His image, and given the task of
dominion. He is a steward, entrusted with the
entire planet and all the life therein. Man is to be over the
creation under God.
This is an extremely important concept. The homeless, oppressed and
depressed people of our land need to hear this. They do not care when an
evangelist tells them that they need to be "saved" or even that they
can be "saved;" they do not believe that they are worth saving.
The State schools have taught them that they are mere animals; the accidental mutated descendants of primordial sludge.7
The human being is a beautiful and glorious being. And his task is no
mere make-work job. Man was created in a Garden, with the basic
command to dress, cultivate, and guard the land (Genesis 2:15). Meaningful work was given to man in the pre-Fall Garden of Eden
(Cult: Genesis 1:26; Culture: Genesis 1:28; 2:12;
2:19); food was plentiful but required harvesting (Cultivation:
Genesis 1:29; 2:5; 2:9; 2:15; 2:16). He is to have dominion over the
whole earth. Adam and Eve and their children were to extend the blessings
of the Garden over the entire globe.
Man's Redemption
The Prophet Micah spoke to a nation that was about ready to experience total fragmentation because they believed the second story. But he
brought "Good News." God would bring salvation to man, if man would
admit that God is God, and Man is not.
The Mountain of the House of the LORD
Will be Established as the Chief of the mountains
And each of them will sit under his Vine and under his
Fig Tree
With no one to make them afraid
Micah 4:1,4
Our all-controlling God can turn even our rebellion into His Glory.
Adam sold his descendants (and his environment) to the slave-traders of
the Dark. Satan thought to rob man of his God-given destiny, but God
promises to buy us back, so that we may become His slaves, in this way to
deliver (save) man from Satan's machinations. On the day that God pronounced judgment upon man and the earth, He pronounced a greater
judgment upon the Serpent, declaring that the Coming Redeemer would
crush him (Genesis 3:15). In the first Essays in this Series we have seen
how this Redemption unfolds into Cosmic Reconciliation.
The Redemption of Man in The Dominion of Christ
Micah speaks of "the last days." He means the final days of the Old
Covenant, during which a New Covenant was made. This theme is so
important, and so neglected by most Christians today, that the next Essay
in this series is devoted entirely to this concept. We will see that "the
Son of God appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of
the devil (I John 3:8). But if we study the Edenic narrative we
discover much more. Christ came as the Second Adam, in
order to undo the damage brought about by the first Adam (I
Corinthians 15:22,45; Romans 5:15-19). God had breathed into Adam the
breath ( = Spirit) of Life, but Adam's rebellion
brought death into the world. In Salvation, Christ again breathes into His
People the Spirit of Life (John 20:22) -- Eternal Life -- which sets us free
from the curse of sin and death (Romans 8:2), and which will ultimately
result in the restoration of the entire creation (Romans 8:19-21). In Christ
we are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17), because we have
been re-created in God's image (Ephesians 4:24; Colossians
3:10), and clothed again with the Glory of God (Genesis 3:10-11; 2 Chronicles 6:41; Psalm 132:9,16; 1 Peter 2:9; Isaiah 61:10; 2 Corinthians 5:3; Revelation 3:18; 16:15; Romans 8:29-30; 2 Corinthians 3:18;
Philippians 3:20-21). And this time, the Image of God is secure, because
our standing is in Christ Who can never fall. In Him we have
Life Eternal.
In Essay Number Three we will see that the scope of the spread of the
Gospel is world-wide; in the Second Adam all nations will be Blessed. To
understand the progress of God's people, however, it is necessary to
understand the terms of the Covenant in which they operate. The terms of
the Covenant are spelled out in God's Word, where the requirements of
Covenant citizenship are spelled out (His Law) along with the promises of
God, which are promises of "Garden-Blessing" for obedience, and promises of "Wilderness-Cursing" for disobedience. The Second Adam, through
the Holy Spirit, re-creates us. As a new creature in Christ, Redeemed man
can again turn to God's purpose and mandate without fear of condemnation. The Holy Spirit empowers him in his Great Commission to cover the
earth with the blessings of the Garden.
The Redemption of Man and The Obedience of Faith
In Essay Number Four we will see how Christ the King returns us to
God's Law and commissions us to make disciples of all nations (Matthew
28:18-20 + Matthew 5:17-20). This commission forces us to inquire as to
the character of Covenant Law as a blueprint for the reconstruction of a
fallen world.
In Ways We Can See: The Garden in the Principles of Covenant Obedience Anyone who reads the Statutes of the Older
Testament can see that the most compelling feature of Biblical Law and its
place in Christian redemption is the required movement away from exploitative commercial industrialism and toward personal service in an agrarian
context. Even the unbelieving "experts" in the universities and seminaries
see this, and they ridicule the Bible as "backward," "primitive," and
"mythological." The Law of God, in its condemnation of interest, fractional reserve banking, militaristic arms buildups, shoddy workmanship,
would, if followed, drive us "Back to the Land!" Urban theologians, with
their salaries tied to the militaristic State universities and their investments
in industrialism, are appalled that anyone would suggest we obey God's
Law in the 20th century. Further, Biblical guidelines concerning rest,
contentment, and its commands to honor the family, care for the poor, and
work with our hands, work to create a personalist, communitarian society,
free of credentials and tenure.
In Essay Five we will see saw how the "Survival of the Fittest" mentality is forthrightly condemned in Biblical Law, especially as it finds itself
manifested in manipulative commerce and militaristic industrialism. Our
passage from Micah is only one of many which speaks of our converting
our "swords into plowshares." The Bible very clearly holds out the ideal of
a life of peace, service toward others, and harmony with nature. We are to
work with our hands to give to the weak (Ephesians 4:28). Evolutionists,
defending the modern world of chaos and competition, and "progress" only
for the powerful, have attacked the Bible as being "primitive" precisely
because it does not agree with this modern spirit.
In Essay Six we will see how the Bible asserts the Centrality of the
Family, its ability to help others grow and realize their potential as God's
Image-bearers. We saw how obedience to God's Word would bring decentralization and end domination by "Big Brother" (or, increasingly, "Big
Mother").
Tragically, a rigorously Biblical, distinctively Christ-like world-and-life
view is not making its presence felt in our day because many Christians
have attempted to dispute the evolutionists' assessment of the Scriptures.
Believing the "gospel" of Empire's evangelists, but still defending the
Bible, wanting the Bible to appear "relevant," "up-to-date," "scientific,"
and in harmony with our "modern" world8, they assure the evolutionists
that the Bible really does "have all the answers," i.e., can show us how to
live prosperously in an exploitative, industrialist Empire.
But we must agree with the Universities of Empire in this respect: The
Bible does in fact have an agrarian, Garden mentality, not a commercial-empire mentality. The Bible does indeed stand opposed to impersonal,
cheap industrialism and the modern merchandizing spirit. But we defend
this "primitive" perspective; we yearn for the day of the "Vine & Fig
Tree." The unrestrained lust for material "advancement" at the expense of
the development of the Image of God in others is anti-Christian.
Call it "primitive" and "anti-progress."
Call it "unscientific."
Or...call it "salvation" in the face of a violent,
selfish world hurtling toward mass self-destruction. Even more than the
"Bible-believers," we believe the Bible is the answer.
Obedience to God's Covenant Law will put us in a Garden. Disobedience is the mark of Cain, who seeks to build a city-fortress away from
God and His Garden.
In Ways We Can't See: The Garden as Motivating
Force Attached to God's Covenant are promises that are
intended to motivate the believer to obedience. God promises His Blessings
upon obedience, and His Cursings upon disobedience.9
As if it were not enough that the Law itself commands us to move back
toward Edenic life and away from the City of Cain, if we are obedient to
God's Law we will be rewarded with Edenic culture! Even if
our conclusions as to the agrarian stipulations of Biblical Law
are mistaken, the agrarian sanctions attached to the Law to
motivate us are clear: God's Blessings toward the obedient are the Blessings of the Garden. Conversely, if we are disobedient, God explicitly
promises the Cursings of wilderness conditions, and captivity in the City of
Babylon, the anti-Garden.
In order to keep the size of this essay manageable, we shall simply
refer the reader to two parallel sections of Scripture. These chapters contain the Blessings and Cursings of the Covenant. If the reader will simply
read them, it will become evident that agricultural prosperity is inescapable; it will "overtake" the obedient. The elimination of such peaceful
conditions is the Curse of disobedience. All of this is very clearly stated in
Deuteronomy 28 and Leviticus 26. Take a moment now and read these two
important chapters. Think about them carefully, keeping in mind their
pivotal place in the scheme of Covenant Law, and ask yourself whether
God moves His people toward the Garden or toward the City of Man.
That these chapters are to be taken literally -- very literally -- is seen in
the fact that throughout the history of redemption, these chapters have very
literally come to pass, most notably upon Israel. As we survey the history
of God's work on Earth, we see movement toward Eden in times of God's
Grace and Blessing, and movement toward the wilderness in times of
God's testing and judgment. In our day we can expect the same. Rebellion
brings these curses and takes man farther away from the conditions he first
experienced in the Garden of Eden. Conversely, obedience brings man
closer to Eden.
The Blessings of Deuteronomy 28
1. Set thee on high above all peoples of the earth.
2. Blessed in the city (v. 3)
3. Blessed in the fields (v. 3)
4. Blessed children (v. 4)
5. Blessed crops (v. 4)
6. Blessed livestock (v. 4)
7. Blessed graineries (v. 5)
8. Blessed bakeries (v. 5)
9. Successful business (v. 6)
10. Peaceful International relations (v. 7)
11. Abundance in the barns (v. 8)
12. Success in every activity (v. 8)
13. Enemies at peace with us (v. 10)
14. Abundant goods (v. 11)
15. Abundant children (v. 11)
16. Abundant cattle (v. 11)
17. Lots to eat (v. 11)
18. His good treasure (v. 12)
19. Adequate rain (v. 12)
20. Business success (v. 12)
21. Debts paid (v. 12)
22. Investments (v. 12)
23. Respect (v. 13)
The Biblical History of Redemption
In a very real sense, (increasingly so as the Gospel covers the world)
God has always put His People "the Garden." For example, the land of
Egypt is described in Genesis 13:10 as being "like the Garden of the
LORD" -- and when the Covenant People went there to live, they were
given the area of Goshen, which was the best in all Egypt
(Genesis 45:18; 47:5-6,11,27). In this Edenic condition they were
fruitful and multiplied (Exodus 1:7, the same
expression as in God's command to the first couple in the Garden). The
Promised land is described as a land where much of the curse has been
reversed: it was "as the Garden of Eden" (Joel 2:3) and
"flowing with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8), as we might
expect.
When the Old Testament prophets foretold the coming of the Christ and
the blessings He would bring, they often spoke in the language of Edenic
restoration. Isaiah wrote:
For the LORD shall comfort Zion: He will comfort all her
waste places; and He will make her wilderness like Eden,
and her desert like the Garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody (Isaiah 51:3).
Ezekiel spoke in the same way:
Thus saith the Lord GOD: In the day that I shall have
cleansed you from all your iniquities I will also cause you to dwell
in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded. And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight
of all that passed by. And they shall say, This land that was
desolate is become like the Garden of Eden; and the waste
and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited (Ezekiel 36:33-35).
A Definition of Salvation
Salvation, therefore, restores man to his original position and
purpose, and guarantees that man's original mandate -- to exercise dominion under God over the whole earth -- will be fulfilled. Ultimately, Biblical
Salvation will reverse the Curse; it brings back Edenic conditions, repairs
personal and social relationships, and blesses every facet of created life.
The whole earth is being saved, and transformed into the Garden of God.
"For the whole earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as
the waters cover the sea" (Isaiah 11:9).
When the evangelist told you "God loves you and has a wonderful plan
for your life" you didn't think he meant this, did you! You
may think that this outlook -- this Vine & Fig Tree vision -- is
different. It may be. The question is, is it Scriptural? Is this
what the prophets and other writers of Scripture had in mind (2 Peter
1:21)? Does Biblical Salvation really have anything to do with a
Garden, much less the return of the entire planet to Edenic
conditions?
A Minority View
This brief survey may not have convinced you that the Garden is a
central theme of the Biblical doctrine of Salvation. That is
understandable. The theologians have surely not emphasized it. The TV
preachers don't preach this Gospel. But there are many important themes
in the Bible that have been neglected by the churchmen. We have already
seen five of them in the first five essays in the Vine & Fig Tree
series of seven:
The Kingship of Christ,
The Predestined Prosperity of the Gospel,
The Blessedness of Biblical Law,
The Centrality of the Family,
and what we called
"The Anti-Polis Imperative,"
by which we referred to the requirement of peace and decentralization
achieved through the Application of God's Word to the Political and
Economic Affairs of Man. Each one an important theme. Each one ignored. Not an impressive record.
What follows is frosting on the cake: a survey of how Edenic themes
and the concept of Edenic restoration show themselves in the Scriptures.
Your insights are greatly desired and we hope you'll share them with us
even as we are now sharing with you.
(1) But it's not like we sacrifice something we value when we agree to
worship an idol. The Garden, prosperity, health, and wholeness are beautiful
only to the one who loves the Creator. The one who rejects God has already
brainwashed himself into believing that God's gifts are worthless and undesirable; he has already heard the call of the propgandists to reject the peace and
purity of the Garden and pursue the violence and filth of the Empire (Luke
4:5-6).
(2) This is the real meaning of the phrase "to know good and
evil" (Genesis 3:5). The force of the Hebrew is "to determine for yourself
what constitutes good and what constitutes evil." kuiper
(3) Bibliographic references: Rush, Guilt and Pity, Reik,
Masochism in Modern Man, etc.
(4) Exodus 3:8; Judges 18:10; 2 Samuel 22:20,37; 1 Chronicles 4:40;
Nehemiah 9:35; Psalm 18:19,36; 31:8; 118:5; 119:45; Isaiah 30:23; 54:2;
Hosea 4:16.
(5) Our "Dominion Mandate" is sometimes called "the Cultural Mandate"
to signify its comprehensive scope and to distinguish a Godly stewardship from an unGodly domination of the creation. It is found
in Genesis 1:26-28
Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our
likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds
of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping
thing that creeps on the earth." {27} So God created man in His
own image; in the image of God He created him; male and
female He created them. {28} Then God blessed them, and God said to
them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every
living thing that moves on the earth."
(6) in our very superficial study of the Scriptures
(7) What a surprise. Who would have thought that the Empire of Secular
Humanism would have an interest in creating an atomistic sand-heap of depersonalized subjects existing without meaning, masses which are easier to control
by the State, which attempts to predestine them as cannon-fodder for the
Empire.
(8) a world of unparalled violence and materialism.
(9) This is an extremely important concept, basic to a Christian philosophy
of history and law. It is discussed throughout the writings of the Christian
Reconstructionists. For an overview, see "The Promises of Law," in
R.J.Rushdoony, Institutes of Biblical Law, Nutley, NJ: The Craig
Press, 1973, pp. 651-669.
A Survey of Edenic Themes in Scripture
Once again, here are the characteristics of Edenic Life that we are
going to trace through Scripture:
The original Garden had the following prominent characteristics.
Fellowship in the Presence of God
Springing forth like rivers of water
Flowing from a mountain plateau
Producing abundant vegetation
Decorated with precious
jewels
The Life of Man was characterized by the following:
A Mandate to Exercise Dominion
over a Fruitful Garden
gaining Knowledge
in Harmony with Nature
enjoying the Freedom to Glorify
God
in a Family-centered life
lasting many healthy years
as Stewards over the creation
Planted Securely on the Land.
The Presence of God
A Calvinist Catechism of the 1640's asked, "What is the Chief End of
Man?" and answered, "The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy
Him forever." A modern catechism might answer, "Man's chief end is to
gain his own self-esteem (glory) and enjoy himself forever." But if God is
the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe, our focus must be on God, not
ourselves. The most important feature of the Garden of Eden was God's
Presence. From the first day of creation, when the Spirit fluttered over the
waters, to the frightening Coming of God in judgment (Genesis 3:8),
God's Presence was in the Garden. We do well to examine His Presence;
God's Presence with His People is the very heart of the Gospel (Isaiah
7:14), and we shall see the wonderful promises for the earth as God's
special Presence is manifested.
"In the beginning God created the Heaven and the Earth".
What, then, did God do in verses 6-8? We are faced with at least two
"heavens," one visible and the other invisible (cf. 2 Corinthians 12:2). The
invisible heaven is the throne of God (Nehemiah 9:5ff.; Psalm 103:19f.;
Psalm 148:1-4; Colossians 1:16). This makes it clear that the entire uni-
verse was designed to be God's temple. The heavens are His Throne and
the Earth His footstool (Isaiah 66:1).10
The Spirit of Garden-Creation
Then we read this remarkable statement:
And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was
upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved (or,
fluttered) upon the face of the
waters (Genesis 1:2).
Our understanding of the nature and function of the Spirit in Genesis
1:2 is informed by Moses' comments in another passage, Deuteronomy
32:10-11. There we are told that God's Presence with Israel in the wilder-
ness, the Glory-Cloud, is the same Spirit Who hovered over the infant
creation. The action of the Glory-Cloud is that of fluttering,
the same word as in Genesis 1:2, and the only other time Moses uses the
word. The wilderness is called a "waste," the same word translated
"without form" in Genesis 1:2, and, again, the only other time Moses uses
the word.11
The description of the Glory-Cloud as fluttering or
hovering over Israel with outspread wings is appropriate not
only because of the protective function the Spirit had, but because of the
composition of this Divine Cloud. When the Prophet Ezekiel penetrates the
thick cloud in his vision, the Cloud is seen to be alive with the winged
seraphim and cherubim. The sound of the coming
of the Cloud is the sound of wings (Ezekiel 1:24; 10:5).
The theologians call this Cloud a "theophany," meaning a visible
manifestation of God, in this case, the enthroned Presence of God with His
People. The Old Testament often uses the term Spirit as a
synonym for the Cloud, ascribing the same functions to both
(Nehemiah 9:19-20; Isaiah 4:4-5; Joel 2:28-31; Haggai 2:5).
The Spirit-Cloud of Genesis 1-3 is a miniature of the invisible heavens,
a coming forth of the Lord of Glory out of invisibility into a special earth-
oriented manifestation. His purpose is that of Covenant Creation and (in
3:8) Judgment. It is the Royal Temple; Spirit-directed, propelled by the
winged angels, moving with the speed of light to execute the sentence of
the King.
Given the information in the Creation and Exodus accounts, we can see
that the Glory-Cloud of Genesis 1:2 was a model of the invisible throne of
God, and its purpose was to create a "micro-cosmic" replica of the cos-
mos-temple of God. The Spirit's Presence in the Garden made Eden the
Garden-Temple of God.
Not surprisingly, within this Garden, the Spirit works to create man as
a dwelling place for the Royal Image of God. Man is also the Temple of
God, for God dwells there.
The Spirit of Judgment
In Salvation, God comes to us, and we are invited into God's Presence,
returned to His Garden-Temple. But the Presence of God in the Garden is
also provoked by the Fall of Man:
"And they heard the voice of the LORD God traversing in
the Garden as the Spirit of the Day12: and Adam and
his wife hid themselves from the Presence of the
LORD. . ." (Genesis 3:8).
Was their hiding prompted by an acknowledgement of their sin? Not
likely, as the narrative goes on to show. They were afraid of the thun-
derous, awesome voice of the LORD. Ezekiel report the
frightening sound of wheels and wings that he calls the "Voice of the
LORD" (Ezekiel 1:24; 3:13); the roar of the Cloud-Chariot of the
LORD, coming in judgments that convulse creation and confound the kings
of the nations (Psalms 18:10-15; 68:33; 104:3,7). The Spirit's work here is
that of judgment (cp. Isaiah 28:5-6; 4:4-6; Psalm 139:7,12).
Likewise, in the Exodus of God's People from the Empire of Egypt, the
Spirit-Cloud was a Spirit of judgment and of burning; judg-
ment of God's enemies, but blessing and protection for His People. This
parallels the two-edged nature of the Covenant: Blessings and Salvation for
the obedient, Cursing for the faithless. Isaiah reflects on the Exodus and
comforts us with the promise that Judgment promises to purge the faith-
less, who, after being humbled, seek the Presence of the Lord (Isaiah 4:4-
6). Even judgment works for blessing.
Thus, the writer to the Hebrews explains our presence in the New
Jerusalem as one that moves us to reverence and Godly fear (Hebrews
12:22-29). God's shaking of the kingdoms of man is no light-hearted af-
fair. We may rejoice in His judgment of the unGodly, but we must also
fear (2 Corinthians 13:5; 1 Corinthians 10:12). This fear will move us to
reconciliation through judgment: Paul speaks of the New Creation emerg-
ing from the activity of those carrying on a "Ministry of Reconciliation" (2
Corinthians 5:17 + 18-19). But reconciliation presupposes meta-
noia, or "repentance," which in turn presupposes judgment. Recon-
ciliation without judgment is a false reconciliation which glosses over the
injustices. True harmony occurs when wrongdoing is squarely faced and
metanoia takes place. In each of our lives the propaganda of
Empire has taken root and bears the fruits of injustice. When judgment
takes place, the temple is cleansed, the weeds are cleared, and Edenifica-
tion takes place (1 Peter 4:17; Matthew 21:12-13; 3:10; Revelation 21:5-
8).
The wonderful, encouraging blessings of the world-wide Prosperity of
the Gospel and the Restoration of the cosmos does not come about through
our inactivity, nor without the removal of those who resist the extension of
Christ's Kingdom. Those who wish to build their own kingdom, thus
"earning" their own "salvation," must face the sobering reality of the Spirit
of Judgment. We too must be moved -- to service, care, and a conciliatory
spirit -- by the awesome majesty of the Glory-Spirit in His work of Re-
Creation, and the Judgment that accompanies it.
The Spirit of Re-Creation
Man's rebellion continually worked against God's direction. His rebel-
lion was destructive of God's command to perfect the Garden and subdue
the whole Earth.
After the sin of man occasioned the destruction of the world at the time
of Noah, the Spirit was again there to pass over the earth and separate the
land from the water (Genesis 8:1) and bring His people to a sabbath rest
(Genesis 8:4), where the Garden-Mandate is again given (Genesis 8:15 -
9:7; cf. 1:26-28). A rainbow is set in the Cloud, which is always visible to
God (Ezekiel 1:24; Revelation 4:3).
At the time of the Exodus, the Spirit again works toward re-creation.
We have already seen how the Glory-Cloud, the Chariot-Throne of God,
hovered over the People of God, giving them tokens of the New Garden-
Creation even while in the wilderness (see section on Precious Stones, for
example). But the most dramatic token of the New Creation was the taber-
nacle, under the Mountain where the Glory-Cloud spoke with Moses.
God's Spirit was His Presence with His People and was both truly
present and symbolized by the Tabernacle and the Temple. Those who
read those portions of Scripture that describe the construction of the
Tabernacle and Temple (and how few they be!) begin to see that the
Tabernacle, which was itself a picture of an Edenic Land, was also filled
with the Presence of God in the Glory-Cloud (Exodus 40:34-38; cf. 2
Chronicles 5:13-14). Throughout the history of Redemption, God is pres-
ent with His people, re-creating the conditions of the Garden.
God revealed His Presence to His people in the Cloud of Glory. The
Cloud functioned as temporary, chariot-like throne-room by which He
made His Presence known to His people. The Cloud was filled with
innumerable angels (Deuteronomy 33:2; Psalm 68:17), and thus was a
revelation of the invisible Heaven, where God is seated on His throne of
glory, surrounded by His Heavenly Court, and Council (Exodus 24:9-15;
Isaiah 6:1-4), and from which He spoke to Moses (Exodus 33:9; Psalm
99:7).
When the Tabernacle was completed, the Spirit-Cloud entered it and
filled it with the Glory of God (Exodus 40:34-38; cf. 2 Chronicles 5:13-
14). Moses, misunderstood by many in our day, was surely understood by
his Hebrew readers to be saying that God's saving of His people
through the Exodus was a re-creation of the Garden.
God's re-creation of His People in order to bring them into fellowship
with Him in the Holy Mountain was witnessed by the same manifestation
of His Creative Presence as at the original Creation, when the Spirit glo-
riously arched His canopy over the land.
There are many more parallels. The Spirit brings light (Genesis 1:3;
Exodus 14:21; John 1:3-5). He leads His People to the sabbath-rest in the
Promised Land, the New Eden (Genesis 2:2-3; Deuteronomy 12:9-10,
Psalm 95:11, where the land is called a rest). Perhaps the
reader can think of more parallels.
The metaphor of God filling His tabernacle with His Spirit is found
throughout Scripture. The reason that the Word -- Who was with God "in
the beginning" (John 1:1-18) -- tabernacled among us (John 1:14), was
ultimately so that God's Temple, the Church, would be re-admitted to
Eden13 and filled with the Glory-Spirit (Exodus 40:34; Numbers 9:5; Joel
2:28-31; Acts 2:1-4,16-21). The Church is now God's Garden-Temple,
restored to God's original mandate: to have dominion over the earth and
expand the Garden until it covers the whole world. God's desire is for His
Temple to bring all nations to His Holy Mountain, making all His Earth-
footstool His Garden (Isaiah 60:13; Ezekiel 43:8-9; Psalm 110:1 + Acts
2:34-36). In remaking us in His Image, God has given us His Presence. He
has taken up residence in His Temple, and has promised to be with us as
we fulfill His mandate to the ends of the earth (Matthew 28:18-20).
Let us then look at some Edenic characteristics, and see how God has
predestined them to be restored to the Creation.
Water
The wonderful themes of Grace revealed in Scripture often originate in
very earthy facts of life. Or, looking at it another way, many facts of life
have been Created by a Predestinating God to help us understand His
Eternal Plan.14
Early in the Edenic narrative in Genesis, we are told some facts which
we might think are just "trivia." One of them is in Genesis 2:10
And a river went out of Eden to water the Garden; and from
thence it was parted and became into four heads. (See also
2:11-14.)
Eden, as the source of water for the earth, was the source of blessing
for all life, dispensing the foundation of health, prosperity, and welfare for
all God's creatures.
As a radical fundamentalist, I take this passage literally; I
am convinced that out of Eden sprang four rivers of water. So what?
Everyone is agreed that, with enough water, we could make our homes
and cities into a Garden. Southern California spends billions of dollars to
turn its desert into a more friendly desert. If there were billions more
dollars and more water up north (or less Northerners to complain) Los
Angeles would be America's garden spot. It would seem that people like
gardens more than deserts. Given a choice, we would prefer the garden
effects of water than the wilderness effects of uninterrupted concrete. The
Word of God15 is the source of this view of water.
The New Bible Dictionary does what any Bible student
could do, by looking at the Scriptural references to water, and determining
its teaching. In general, here is what we find:
Frequently water is symbolical of God's blessing and of
spiritual refreshment, as in Ps. 23:2; Is. 32:2, 35:6,7, 41:18,
etc., and the longing for it indicates spiritual need (Pss. 42:1,
63:1, Amos 8:11). In Ezekiel's vision of God's house (47:1-
11) the waters that poured out from under the threshold repre-
sented the unrestricted flow of Yahweh's blessings upon His
people (cf. Zc. 14:8). Jeremiah describes Yahweh as
"the fountain of living waters" (2:13, 17:13), a
phrase that is echoed in Jn. 7:38 of the Holy Spirit. In the
New Testament water is connected with eternal life as the
supreme blessing that God gives (Jn. 4:14; Rev. 7:17; 21:6,
22:1,17). . . .
The Bible describes a predestinating God Who reveals Himself by using
water as a symbol of life and the Holy Spirit. Was this because man is
absolutely dependent upon water for life and prosperity, or was water
made the basic substance of life so that we might be taught something
about the Spirit? Of course, the Lord could have created man and the Earth
without water and thus without a dependence upon water. He could have
created man in a Garden that didn't need watering. But He didn't. He put
man in a Garden from which originated rivers of water that watered the
whole earth. And this rather obvious and simple geographical fact is pointed out to us by the Spirit in the Scriptures. How you respond to these facts
may depend on whether you feel God engages in trivial pursuit, or governs
all things according to His Providence.16
In the ceremonial laws water is very basic. As a symbol of the Holy
Spirit, it teaches us our need to be cleansed from sin. And so these laws
teach us that the blessing of abundant water does not come apart from the
righteousness of the Spirit.
But water really is a source of growth and really
does help cleanse our bodies from impurities. Man does not live by
water alone, but if he walks in the Spirit, he shall have the blessings of
abundant water (Matthew 4:4 + Exodus 23:25).
Consider the possibility that water is a symbol of blessing
and refreshment through the Holy Spirit because God wants us to experi-
ence the literal blessings of abundant water.
Israel was to be the means of bringing the blessings of the Garden of
Eden to the whole world: Scripture goes out of its way to portray this
Great Commission symbolically when it tells us17 of Israel camping at
Elim. We are told there were twelve wells of water (the twelve
tribes of Israel). We are also told there were seventy palm
trees. Why seventy? Clearly the twelve wells were to
water the trees; what did the seventy refer to?
The number seventy comes up often in Scripture, and most often it
refers to the original reference to seventy in the Book of Genesis. In chapt-
er 10 we have the Catalogue of Nations, descendants of Noah from which
all present nations have derived. The twelve tribes of Israel are to spread
the River of Life to the seventy nations (Exodus 15:27;
Numbers 33:9). God's people are this nation of priests (I Peter 2:9,
Exodus 19:5,6), wells of water chosen to bring the water of the Gospel to
a world of trees dried by sin and the Curse. The time when the Feast of
Tabernacles18 will become a reality is here said to be certain: God's people
will fly the Gospel banner and the whole earth will become the Garden
(Isaiah 11:9; Daniel 2:35), filled with Blessing and security, with no need
for walled cities (Leviticus 23:3-6; Isaiah 65:17:25; Ezekiel 34:25-29).
It would seem that the water that flowed from the Holy Mountain was
both literally and symbolically necessary for the life of man, and an abun-
dance of water symbolizes and literally effects a return to Garden condi-
tions. When God pours out His mercy on a people, He sends them the
River of Life, which is both the Spirit and literal water. Water from rain
and other sources is sent by God in abundance to those who walk in His
Ways (Leviticus 26:3-4; Deuteronomy 11:13-14; Isaiah 30:23; Zechariah
10:1). Famine and dryness are also sent by God upon those who trust in
the water projects of Empire (1 Kings 18; Deuteronomy 11:17; 28:24; 1
Kings 8:35; 2 Chronicles 7:13; Jeremiah 3:3; Amos 4:7; Zechariah
14:17).19
The prophets use water to describe the blessings of Salvation and the
coming Restoration through the Gospel. In the individual believer, Salva-
tion is a well of water springing up into eternal life (John 4:14); but just as
the rivers of Eden were fed by a multitude of springs (Genesis
2:6 NIV) the water of life becomes a river of living water,
flowing out from the Church to all the world (John 7:37-39; Ezekiel 47:1-
12; Zechariah 14:8), healing and restoring the whole earth, so that the
desert lands become transformed into a Garden (Isaiah 32:13-17; 35:12).
As the Spirit is poured out, "Israel shall blossom and
bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit" (Isaiah 27:6). The
Spirit is poured out "That they may see . . . that the Holy One of
Israel hath created it" (see Isaiah 41:18-20).
property rights/ disputes over water
vapor canopy in Eden: Greenhouse effect destroys
industrialism
water and judgment (Matt 5:45; Romans 12:20; Noah)
Rivers of Empire
The Mountain of the LORD
In Micah's prophecy (4:1-5), which forms the foundation for the
Vine & Fig Tree series of essays, mention is made of
"The Mountain of the Lord." What is this mountain? We
would suggest that it seems to be a reference to the Garden of Eden. Let's
look at the geography of Garden and see if this isn't the case.
Four great rivers which watered the earth derived from the one river in
the original Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:10-14). A little reflection puts
Eden on a "Mountain."20 After all, if water flows downhill
and Eden watered the whole earth, it must have been on an elevated pla-
teau. When God speaks to Satan (the evil angel who was behind the politi-
cal head of the Empire-City of Tyre [see Daniel 10:13, 20], He says:
"Thou hast been in Eden, the Garden of God . . . the Holy
Mountain of God" (Ezekiel 28:13-14).
The fact that Eden was the original "Holy Mountain," from which
flowed rivers of water, which we recognize as symbolic of the Holy Spirit,
explains the significance of God's continuing choice of
mountains as sites for His redemptive acts and revelations.
Perhaps the most notable is the Gracious Revelation of His Presence, His
Covenant, and His Law on Mt. Sinai. One work of the Spirit is the Law of
God (Romans 7:14) which has all the attributes of the Spirit Himself
(Romans 7:12). We are not surprised to find that coming from the Pres-
ence of God is the Law of God, and that this Presence was made known on
a mountain (Exodus 24:16). The people were forbidden to approach the
holy mountain on pain of death (Exodus 19:12; cf. Genesis 3:24). But
Moses, the mediator of the Old Covenant (Galatians 3:19), the priests, and
the seventy elders of the people were allowed to meet God on the mountain
(after making an atoning sacrifice), and there they ate and drank commun-
ion before the Lord (Exodus 24:1-11).
Consider this abbreviated list of other ways God's Grace originated
from a mountain:
?The substitutionary atonement in place of Abraham's son took
place on Mount Moriah (Genesis 22:2).
?It was also on Mount Moriah that David saw the Angel of the
LORD ready to destroy Jerusalem. David built an altar there and
made atonement through sacrifice (I Chronicles 21:15-17).
?Solomon built the temple on Mount Moriah (2 Chronicles 3:1).
?It was on the Mount of Carmel that God brought His straying
people back to Himself through sacrifice in the days of Elijah; from
the Mount the ungodly Garden-intruders were taken and destroyed
(I Kings 18; interestingly, "Carmel" is a Hebrew term for
Garden-land, Plantation, and/or Orchard).
?Again, on Mt. Sinai, (also called Horeb) God revealed His saving
Presence to Elijah, and recommissioned him as His messenger to
the nations (I Kings 19)
?In His first major sermon, the Mediator of the New Covenant
delivered His Law, again, from a mountain (Matthew 5:1).
?His official appointment of His apostles was made on a mountain
(Mark 3:13-19).
?He was transfigured before His disciples in a blinding revelation of
His Glory on a mountain (Matthew 17:1-2; called "the holy moun-
tain" in 2 Peter 1:16-1821).
?On a mountain He gave His final announcement of judgment upon
the faithless Covenant people (Matthew 24:3). After the Last
Supper, the Lord ascended a mountain with His disciples, and
proceeded from there to a Garden, where as the Last Adam He
prevailed over temptation (Matthew 26:30,36; cf. Luke 4:5-8).
?Finally, He commanded His disciples to meet Him on a mountain,
where He commissioned them to disciple the nations with the
Gospel, and promised to send the Holy Spirit; and from there He
ascended into the Cloud (Matthew 28:16-20; Acts 1:1-19).
You can expand this list by simply looking up "mountain" in your
concordance. You will begin to suspect that in redemption God is calling
us to return to Eden: We have access to the Holy Mountain of the
LORD through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. We have come to the
Mount (Hebrews 12:22), and as we boldly approach the Holy Place
(Hebrews 10:19), we are granted by God's grace to partake again of the
Tree of Life (Revelation 2:7). Christ has built His People as a City on a
Mountain, to give Light to the world (Matthew 5:14), and the Scripture
promises that the nations will come to the Light on that Mountain (Isaiah
51:4-8; 60:3).
Our text from Micah emphasizes the movement of the nations toward
the Mountain of God:
And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the
Mountain of the LORD's House shall be established in the top of
the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and all
nations shall flow unto it (Isaiah 2:2; cf. Isaiah 11:9; 25:6-
9; 56:3-8; 65:25; Micah 4:1-4).
And the day will come when God's Kingdom, His Holy Mountain, will
fill the whole earth (Daniel 2:34-35, 44-45), as God's original mandate is
fulfilled by the seed of the woman, the Last Adam.
A Garden Eastward in Eden
Although we commonly use the terms Eden and
Garden of Eden synonymously (as the Bible occasionally does
also), Genesis 2:8 tells us that the Garden was planted by God on the
east side of the area known as Eden -- a land which originally
lay to the north of Palestine (cf. Psalm 48:2; Isaiah 14:13;
Ezekiel 28:14). When man lost fellowship with God and was driven out of
the Garden, he evidently went out from the east side, since that
was where God stationed the cherubim who guarded the Garden from
intruders (Genesis 3:24). Apparently, the Godly tended to stay near the
eastern entrance of the Garden for some time -- perhaps bringing their
sacrifices to the "gate" -- for when Cain fled from "the Presence of
the LORD," he headed for parts farther east (Genesis
4:16), away from God and Godly people.
The geographical fact that Eden was on the North of Palestine, with the
Garden entrance on the east side of Eden, is the basis for later Biblical
teachings. Ezekiel's vision of the universal triumph of the Gospel shows
the healing River of Life flowing out from the doors of the restored
Temple ( = the Church, Ephesians 2:19-22) toward the east
(Ezekiel 47:1-12); and, as a precursor of the day when the wealth of all the
nations would be brought into the household of God (Isaiah 60:4-16;
Haggai 2:6-9; Psalm 72:10-11; Revelation 21:24-26), the birth of the King
of kings was honored by wise men bringing gifts from the east
(Matthew 2:1-2,11). This explains certain aspects of the Tabernacle.
Entrance to the Garden-Kingdom of God is symbolized in the design of the
Tabernacle, the entrance being on the east side (Exodus 27:13-
16), thus teaching that to enter God's Presence through Redemption is a
gracious re-admittance to Eden.
The Botanical Garden
Of course, when most people think of Eden, they don't think of a
Mountain. (But then, when most people think of Salvation, they don't think
of the Garden of Eden!) When we think of Eden, we think of every kind of
beautiful and fruitbearing tree, which God had planted in the Garden
(Genesis 2:9). Before the Fall, food was plentiful. The Garden was a place
of Blessing and Refreshment.
In the pedagogical (or "ceremonial") law,22 the Israelites were taught
to see an Eden/Redemption relationship. One example is in the botanical
character of the Tabernacle. The lampstand in the Tabernacle was actually
a stylized tree, decked with artificial bulbs and flowers, all
made of pure gold (Exodus 37:17-24). The Temple also was
richly furnished with Edenic symbolism: the cedar walls displayed carvings
of gourds, flowers, palm trees and cherubim, overlaid with gold (I Kings
6:15-36; cf. the vision of the restored Temple [Church] in Ezekiel 41:28-
20). The Ark of the Covenant contained not only the Law but Aaron's rod
which was miraculously covered with buds, blossoms, and almonds
(Hebrews 9:4).
The Holy Spirit's record of the historical unfolding of redemption
points us to a restored Garden by continually pointing out that Godly men
live near trees (Genesis 18:4,8; 30:37; Judges 3:13; 4:5; I
Kings 19:5; John 1:48; and see in a modern translation Genesis 12:6;
13:18; 14:13; Judges 4:11). In none of these passages is the mention of
trees an "essential" detail of the story; were we writing it, we would have
left the trees out. But God wants us to get a vision: His people
live in the midst of abundance, surrounded by the blessings of the Garden
as they are restored in Salvation. And as you read the Bible (as
opposed to "studying" it, by reading only the verses found in a theology
text) you begin to get this perspective. When you think of
Biblical Salvation, words that should come to mind are trees, plant-
ing, and fruit. In singing about God's deliverance of His People into
the new Eden, Moses said, "Thou shalt bring them in, and
plant them in the Mountain of thine
inheritance" (Exodus 15:17). The Godly man is "like a
tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his
season; his leaf shall not whither; and whatsoever his doeth shall
prosper" (Psalm 1:3; cf. Jeremiah 17:7-8). The Covenant People
are "as gardens by the river's side, as the trees of lign aloes
which the LORD hath planted, and as cedar trees beside the
waters" (Numbers 24:6).
You begin to think differently when you actually
read the Bible every day (and not merely read
about it). Only by reading the Bible and absorbing
its thought pattern can you appreciate the meaning of "Vine & Fig Tree."
When Israel is Blessed, we find every man sitting under his own vine and
fig tree (I Kings 4:25), and the same is prophesied of all men who will live
under the Blessings of the Messiah, when all nations shall flow to the
Mountain of the LORD (Micah 4:1-4; Zechariah 3:10). As the Gospel runs
like a river to all parts of the earth, the Spirit heals and restores the whole
earth, so that even the desert lands become transformed into a Garden
(Isaiah 32:13-17; 35:12). As the Spirit is poured out,
"Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with
fruit" (Isaiah 27:6).
Precious Stones in the Garden
The Pishon river, originating in Eden, traversed "the land of
Havilah, where there is gold; and the gold of that land is good; there is
bdellium and the onyx stone"(Genesis 2:11-12). If you have ever
read the entire chapter of Genesis 2, you may have noticed how out of
place these verses seem to us. We don't think about gold very much
(especially when thinking about money) and we don't connect the unfallen
Earth with precious stones and minerals. Perhaps we should start making
such a connection. Other Bible passages speak of Eden the same way.
When God speaks to the king of Tyre, he speaks to a satanic figure whose
political ambition is that of Satan. Thus, He speaks to him as if to Satan
himself (cp. Matthew 16:23). Notice the reference to the gems in the
Garden:
Thou hast been in Eden the Garden of God; every precious
stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz and the diamond, the
beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the
carbuncle, and gold (Ezekiel 28:13).
The ground of the Garden seems to have been fairly littered with jewels
of all sorts: "Thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the
stones of fire" -- perhaps a reference to their fiery, radiant ap-
pearance (Ezekiel 28:14). The abundance of precious metal and gems is
surely to be regarded as a blessing; fellowship with God in Eden meant
being surrounded with beauty.
This geological fact is used to teach us in the ceremonial law. In addi-
tion to the gold used to symbolize the garden, there are many
references to Edenic conditions in the precious stones used in the ceremon-
ial fixtures. On his shoulders, the High Priest was to wear two
onyx stones as "stones of memorial" (Exodus 25:7; 28:9-12).
A memorial of what? The only mention of the onyx
prior to Exodus is Genesis 2:12, a very conspicuous mention in the Garden
of Eden. God apparently wanted His people to remember the
blessing of the Garden. The High Priest -- a man symbolizing the restora-
tion of the Image of God in man -- serves as a reminder to the people that
in saving them God was restoring them to Eden.
The Stones mentioned in Genesis 2 re-appear in Scripture in the most
remarkable ways. The serious student of the Bible knows these references
have been put there for a purpose.
After the Children of Israel were freed from Egypt, they had to cross
the wilderness to get to the promised land of abundance. God's provision
of manna can be seen to be a reminder of Eden, past and fu-
ture. As the Israelites were passing through the land of Havilah (cf. Gene-
sis 2:11-12), Moses points this out, by telling us that manna -- a food
which was plentiful, good-tasting, easy-to-find, like food in the Garden --
was the color of bdellium, which we remember from Genesis
2, the only other occurrence of the word. We know, therefore, that bdelli-
um is white, since we are told elsewhere that manna is white (Exodus
16:31). This helps us to understand the message of our Lord to the Church
in the Book of Revelation, where Edenic imagery is used to describe Salvation (in chapters 2-3) and the promise is made, "To him that over-
cometh23 will I give to eat of the hidden manna,
and will give him a white stone..." (Revelation 2:17).
Insignificant in isolation, these references are part of a significant
theme. Salvation is the return to the Garden.
In their prophecies of the coming Messiah and His blessings, the Old
Testament prophets concentrated on this Edenic imagery of jewels, describ-
ing Salvation in terms of God's adorning of his people with precious
stones:
Behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colors, and lay thy
foundations with sapphires. And I will make thy windows of
agates, and all thy borders of pleasant stones (Isaiah 54:11-
12). The abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee,
the wealth of the nations shall come unto thee. . . . They shall
bring gold and incense; and they shall show forth the praises of the
LORD. . . . Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of
Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their
gold with them, unto the Name of the LORD thy God, and to the
Holy One of Israel, because He hath glorified thee. . . . Therefore
thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor
night; that men may bring unto thee the wealth of the nations, and
that their kings may be brought (Isaiah 60:5-6,9,11).
The whole city of God is a dazzling, brilliant display of precious stones
(Revelation 21:18-21); gold is as plentiful as asphalt (v. 21). Precious
stones and metals, by their brilliance and heaviness, are symbols of the
Glory of God Himself. And yet their very abundance renders them next-to-
worthless, especially in the very Presence of God. There is no hoarding in
the New Jerusalem; God is with us.
The Nature and Purpose of Man
Having looked at the characteristics of the Garden and seen how they
are to be re-created on the Earth, let us now look at the characteristics of
the Nature and Purpose of Man and elaborate on the themes set forth
below:
A Mandate to Exercise Dominion
over a Fruitful Garden
gaining Knowledge
in Harmony with Nature
enjoying the Freedom to Glorify God
in a Family-centered life
lasting many healthy years
as Stewards over the creation
Planted Securely on the Land.
Dominion
We have already looked at man's purpose, which some have called
"The Dominion Mandate." Man was to be over the creation, under the
Lord. He was to use his creative, aesthetic, intellectual, and physical abili-
ties -- abilities which are unique to man, distinguishing him from the
animals -- to enhance the beauty of God's creation, and, ultimately, extend
the Garden over all of Eden and the Earth. The Shorter Catechism spells it
out nicely: "Man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him for ever."
Man was given a Great Commission to spread the Garden over all the
Earth (Genesis 1:26-28).In Christ, however, man's dominion has been
restored (Psalm 8:5-8; Hebrews 2:6-9). The Garden-Mandate would be
fulfilled by Christ (Psalm 72:8) through His people. Disobedience brings
man under the dominion of nature and other men (e.g., Leviticus 26:17),
but the Spirit indwells the Church so that they might be obedient and
spread the Gospel over all the earth (Romans 8:4; Matthew 28:-18-20).
/
Dominion = Domination
= shepherding24
(harmony, reconciliation,
developing Image of God,
community25
[For each of the following sub-'s, show how
failure to experience wholistic salvation brings
interpersonal disputes
causes tension
fosters hasty, citified responses to problems
de-personalizes life
desensitizes
stagnates
dwarfs personal growth
ability to make mature decisions,
responses to people
(10) Following Meredith Kline's seminal work, Images of the
Spirit (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1980), David Chilton writes,
The Garden of Eden thus served as a Tabernacle-Temple, a small replica
of God's larger Temple and Palace in which the "heavens" are His
throne and the "earth" is His footstool (Gen. 1:1; Isa. 66:1) -- the invis-
ible heavens together with the visible universe amking up His great
cosmic Temple. Close attention to the architecture of the Tabernacle and
the Temple wil reveal that they were modeled as copies, not only of the
Garden of Eden, but of the Original heavenly Temple: the Cloud-
Canopy (cf. Heb. 8:5; 9:11,23-24).
For more on the "Cloud-Canopy," see below. Kline shows that even man
himself is a replica of the Temple.
vern: Universe = House
Kline: Garden = Temple
(11) See more below, under "Spirit of Re-Creation."
(12) The popular translation, "in the cool of the day," misses the
element of judgment which is clear in the context. God comes in judgment, as
in "The Day of the Lord," a phrase quite familiar to students of the Scripture
as a time of judgment, when God's voice is thunderous and men hide them-
selves: precisely what we see in the text.
(13) See below on the Feast of Tabernacles.
(14) (Or, to really confuse things, when we speak of "the hand
of the LORD" are we speaking "anthropomorphically" [literally, "in the shape
of man"] or when we speak of man's "hand" are we speaking "theo-
morphically"? Did God choose to describe his love for us as "adoption"
because man is known to adopt, or do we adopt an unloved child as we are
more like our Heavenly Father [I John 4:19]?).
(15) which is known in the heart of every human being (Romans 1:18-23;
2:15).
(16) "Trivia" is a relative term of judgment. We consider certain facts or
themes "trivial" if they are not as "real, "practical," or "important." Thus,
someone might suggest that the fact that Eden was an elevated plateau is "trivi-
al" compared to the current trend in Money Market interest rates. Ironically,
the Biblical prophets would say such facts are even less than "trivi-
al."
(17) twice -- Exodus 15:27 and Numbers 33:9.
(18) see the "Agriculture" section, below.
(19) Matthew 5:45 does not speak of the lavish gifts of water to the faithful
which restores Edenic conditions, but only of token gifts to those outside the
Household of Faith (cf. Matthew 15:27).
(20) Not Mt. Everest; when the King James Version uses the word "moun-
tain" we need not picture those upon it as wearing oxygen masks and spiked
shoes (compare Luke 9:28 and 37).
(21) Is Peter nuts? Has he been reading too much Vine & Fig
Tree propaganda? Why is he bringing the concept of the Holy
Mountain into the New Testament? Doesn't he know what the "Holy
Mountain" is? [see Psalm 48:1-2; 87:1; Isaiah 11:9; 27:;13; 30:29; 56:7;
57:13; 65:11,25; 66:20; Jeremiah 31:23; 20:40; Ezekiel 28:14; 43:12; Daniel
9:16,20; 11:45; Joel 2:1; 3:17; Obadiah 16-17; Zephaniah 3:11; Zechariah
8:3; Revelation 21:10; John 4:20-21; Hebrews 12:22; Revelation 14:1).
(22) See Essay Three of the Vine & Fig Tree series, which
discusses Biblical Law in more detail.
(23) To "overcome" is to experience radical metanoia (repent-
ance) and repudiation of Empire.
(24) Kittel
(25) In the Garden there was no need for reconcilia-
tion; man could begin to develop in terms of harmony.
Now, healing must precede dominion.
Agriculture
Basic to life in a Garden is Agriculture. It is also basic to man's nature.
Genesis 2:15 is a very descriptive verse:
And the LORD God took the man (lit.,
Adam) and put (lit., rested)
him into the Garden of Eden to dress it (cultivate,
labor, worship, till [v. 5],) and keep it (guard, hedge,
preserve; ch. 3:24).
Man cannot escape Agriculture. No man lives without food, and with-
out working for it (2 Thessalonians 3:10). In the Garden, into which God
placed man, food was plentiful (Genesis 2:8-9) and the task of harvesting
was not a burden. The climate was perfectly suited for a bounteous harvest
(ch. 2:5-6). Man's task beyond harvesting was to beautify (ch. 2:15) and
expand the Garden (Genesis 1:26-28).
Edenic symbolism was very present in the feasts of Israel, as they
celebrated the bounty of God's provision and enjoyed the fullness of life
and prosperity under the Covenant. This is particularly true of the Feast of
Tabernacles (or "Ingathering," in Exodus 23:16). In this feast they were
required to leave their homes and live for seven days in "tabernacles" or
booths, made entirely of "the boughs of goodly trees, branches of
palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook"
(Leviticus 23:40). Israel usually dwelled in walled cities, as a protection
against their enemies; yet, at the very time of prosperity (the end of the
harvest) -- when attack would seem most likely -- God ordered them to
leave the security of their homes and journey to Jerusalem, to live in
unprotected booths made of leafy boughs! God promised, of course, that
He would keep the heathen from attacking during the festivals (Exodus
34:23-24), and Israel had to trust in His Strength.
The feast was a very obvious reminder of life in Eden, when walled
cities were unnecessary; and it looked forward to the day when the nations
would beat their swords into plowshares (Micah 4:3) and the world would
be re-created into Eden.
World-wide Agriculture
In Essay Number Two of the Vine & Fig Tree series, we
examined the prophecies which speak of the world-wide prosperity of the
Gospel, when all kingdoms surrender their authority to Christ the King,
becoming part of His Kingdom. It is difficult to imagine the world-wide
blessings of Edenic restoration without keeping a faithful eye on God's
great evangelistic promises. The Feast of Tabernacles did just that. In
addition to speaking of the elimination of city-fortresses and a return to
Garden-communities, mention is made of the great future out-pouring of
God's grace upon all nations. During the feast 70 bulls were sacrificed.
Why 70? Because the number of the original nations of the earth, from
which all subsequent nations are derived, was 70 (Genesis 10). The feast
celebrated the Ingathering of all nations to God's Kingdom, thus atonement
was made for all.
The contrast between man's efforts to protect himself through a for-
tress-city and his willingness to trust God in a more agrarian setting was
illustrated in the Feast of Tabernacles. The Israelites literally forgot that
this Feast was in the Bible until the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, when it
was finally observed (Nehemiah 8:13-18).
Since understanding comes through obedience (Psalm 119:98-100; John
7:17), it was at this time that they finally understood its purpose. The
prophets informed Israel that this was a symbolic prophetic adumbration of
the conversion of all nations. On the last day of this feast (Haggai 2:1) God
said "I will shake all nations, and the wealth of all nations shall
come; and I will fill this House [the Temple] with
Glory" (Haggai 2:7). About this same time, Zechariah prophesied
about the meaning of the feast in terms of the sanctification of all areas of
life by all nations (Zechariah 14:14-21).
During the celebration of this feast hundreds of years later, Christ
Himself further expounded the meaning: it signifies the outpouring of the
Spirit upon the restored believer, so that the Church becomes a channel of
restoration to the whole world (John 7:37-39; cp. Ezekiel 47:1-12).
As the Gospel is carried to the ends of the Earth and the Spirit poured
out (Acts 2:16ff.), God's Presence is manifested and the
Garden restored. With the whole world converted, men can abandon their
militaristic industrialism and return to a life of peace (Isaiah 2:4, Micah
4:4), as the Feast of Booths taught.
Science
Science, or, literally, knowledge, was also a task of man, who was
given the opportunity to study the animals and to name them. Naming is a
kind of Dominion, and this act of classifying was appropriate for man,
God's image-bearer, even as God's Dominion was seen in the naming of
the Day (Genesis 1:5), Heaven (1:8), and the Earth (1:10).
Before the Fall, man's acts would bring the sinless Garden to perfection
(Genesis 2:15; 1:26-28), and as food was plentiful, his main task was
knowledge of God and His Creation (Genesis 2:19). But after the Fall,
man's knowledge of God is mainly preservative, keeping the
effects of sin from multiplying, and restorative, reversing the
effects of sin so that God may Bless and Heal. The Garden of God is not
isolated. We cannot closet ourselves into a garden and neglect to minister
to those who suffer the effects of sin in the City of Man. To do so is neith-
er Spiritual nor does it increase our knowledge of God (Jeremiah 22:15-
16).
But neither is Biblical Dominion compatible with modern "science" or
"knowledge" (I Timothy 6:20). What we have said throughout this Essay
should make clear that the Garden-Blessings of Salvation are not achieve-
ments of Man, they are the gift of God. Faith's sister is Content-
ment (I Timothy 6:6-8). Godliness, in the form of acts of restora-
tion, brings the security of life on God's Mountain (Matthew 6:33), not the
credentials and awards we might receive from the City of Tinsel and Glit-
ter. "Justification is by Grace through Faith alone."
The prophet Jeremiah speaks of knowledge:
Shalt thou reign, because thou closest thyself in
cedar? did not thy father eat and drink, and do judgment and jus-
tice, and then it was well with him? {16}
He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was
well with him: was not this to know me?
saith the LORD. Jeremiah 22:15-16
In stark contrast to knowledge through contentment and mercy is
modern "science." For modern man, "knowledge is power."
"Science" is based primarily on greed, not service. In the
Bible, true "knowledge" is knowing how to serve God and
others according to His Law. Knowledge which is used to bring glory to
ourselves "puffs up" (I Corinthians 8:1) and leads to conflict: as Sartre
said, If I am God, then my neighbor26 is the Devil. Modern justifications
for the so-called "free market" implicitly admit that the modern entrepre-
neur's heart may be gangrenous with greed, but insist that his success is
possible only if he is "serving" the consumer. Modern idolatrous guilt-
ridden American pagans are easily manipulated and can be conned into
buying the stupidest of products. But Biblical service is not in cultivating
his greed or in catering to a man's lusts. Peter warns us that we be not
"served" in this manner (2 Peter 2:3).
It is interesting to note that "civilization" is usually the result of the
efforts of unbelievers (cf. Genesis 4:21-22). While God often gives this
wealth to believers (Proverbs 13:22; Psalm 105:44;) it is clear that their
"progress" is attributable to their lack of moral restraint, or as the "free-
market" economist might call it, "risk taking" (Proverbs 28:8; cf. Luke
16:8). There is tension between the advancing City of Progress and the
stable Garden of Traditional Values.
Humanism: The Worship of Man / The Worship of "Science"
We are beginning to see the effects of man's perverted quest for self-
sufficiency in the agricultural realm: pesticides have destroyed many spe-
cies of the wildlife over which man is commanded to have dominion;
ambitious water projects, funded through State deficits which, by inflating
the money supply, re-distribute wealth from the poor to the friends of the
State, are beginning to show their long-term deleterious effects; depletion
of the soil has been the basis for predictions of coming food shortfalls;
government mis-management of crops has resulted in oppressive shortages
and surpluses which destroy the few remaining Family farms. Agricultural
abundance is the plain promise of God for obedience (Deuteronomy 28:1-
14). But the State has centralized control of agriculture in an attempt to
gain "salvation by works." It has been a miserable failure, as it was in
ancient Babylon and her sister Empires.
This stands in total contrast to Godly Dominion, or Godly Science.
Rather than destroying the environment, man is called to beautify it.
Rather than working autonomously for agricultural surplus, man is called
to know its Source and enjoy it. "Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to
enjoy Him forever." (Westminster Shorter Catechism, Q. 1) True Science
is rooted in the Garden.
What passes for "technology" in the Empire of Man is merely manipu-
lation: gimmicks with few Godly uses, sold to the gullible rich, to friends
of the State, and too often, to the poor. Such "technology" would never be
purchased by any contented, hard-working saint if there were no persua-
sive advertisements rooted in envy, covetousness, and the desire to be
worshiped by one's peers. "Keeping up with the Joneses" is the religion of
the Garden-hater. "Adult toys" are his sacraments.
Militarism is also an important component of modern "technology."
Were it not for Statist Imperialism and the lust for power that characterizes
the modern industrial-financial statesman, much of the West's "economic
growth" would not have occurred. Statist jingoism encourages "patriotic"
participation in the democratic-industrial dream of John Dewey and the
Secular Humanists at the expense of Christian missionary concern for
Third World nations. Contentment brings peace; man in rebellion prefers
salvation by war. We explored this aspect of "science" in Essay Five of
The Meaning of Vine & Fig Tree series.
To buttress the power of the State and its military-industrial extensions,
Gospel knowledge must be replaced by mythology. Because
the modern commercial spirit runs counter to Biblical Knowledge and
Dominion, it must attack the Bible and silence its message. It is no coinci-
dence that the rise of the Modern State and its sister, the "Industrial Revo-
lution," demanded the philosophical justifications that were provided by
men like Kant, and which culminated in the evolutionary hosannas occa-
sioned by Charles Darwin.
Among all of the modern statist myths of "progress," "science"
"economic growth," "success," "peace through strength,"27 and "fulfill-
ment," the greatest is the obvious attempt to replace the Garden of Eden
and the Biblical History of Salvation: "Evolution."
Evolution is, of course, no new idea, dating back to ancient pagan
Empires like Egypt and Babylon. Nor was the "Industrial Revolution" a
unique or sudden event. Both are outgrowths of a rebellion against the true
knowledge of God, which is suppressed by continuing in a greedy pursuit
of pleasure and luxury. Paul spoke of this war against knowledge in
Romans 1. There the unrighteous, who are "covetous" and
"full of envy" (1:29) "exchange the glory of the uncor-
ruptible God into an image like to corruptible man and to birds and four-
footed beasts, and creeping things" (Romans 1:23). Paul says that
sexual immorality is one symptom of this lust for power. America's Uni-
versity-credentialed homosexuals28 are those "God gave up to un-
cleanness through the lusts of their own bodies. . . " (1:24). We
shouldn't be surprised if, when the evolutionists tire of incest and child
pornography, they turn to the animals.
Evolutionism, an enemy of Garden-knowledge and the Blessings of
Salvation, leads us to consider the Godly man's relationship with the
animals.
Harmony and Balance
The scientific task described above was accomplished as man lived in
harmony with the animals. The Animals were not afraid of man and man
had no reason to fear the animals.
In Eden, before the Fall, there was no death (Romans 5:12). Animals
were not "wild," and Adam was able to study and name the animals with-
out fear (Genesis 2:19-20). But man's rebellion resulted in terrible changes
throughout the earth. The nature of animals was altered, so that they
became a threat to the peace and safety of man. Nature had cruel dominion
over man, and man could not exercise benevolent dominion over nature.
In Christ, however, man's dominion has been restored (Psalm 8:5-8;
Hebrews 2:6-9). Thus when God saved His people, this effect of the Curse
began to be reversed. He led them through a dangerous wilderness, pro-
tecting them from the snakes and scorpions (Deuteronomy 8:15), and He
promised that their life in the Promised land would be Eden-like in its
freedom from the ravages of wild animals: "And I will give peace in
the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid; and I will
rid evil beasts out of the land" (Leviticus 26:6). In fact, this is why
God did not allow Israel to exterminate the Canaanites all at once: the
heathen served as a buffer between the Covenant People and the wild
animals (Exodus 23:29-30; Deuteronomy 7:22).29
On the other hand, God warned that the Curse would reappear if the
people turned away from His Law: "I will also send wild beasts
among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle,
and make you few in number" (Leviticus 26:22; cf. Numbers 21:6;
Deuteronomy 28:26; 2 Kings 2:24; 17:25; Ezekiel 5:17; 14:15; 32:4;
Revelation 6:8).
When the Prophets foretold the coming Salvation in Christ, they de-
scribed it in the same terms of Edenic Blessing as spoken of in the Law:
"And I will make a Covenant of Peace with them, and will cause the
evil beasts to cease out of the land; and they shall dwell safely in the
wilderness and sleep in the woods" (Ezekiel 34:25). "No lion
shall be there nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be
found there; but the redeemed shall walk there" (Isaiah 35:9). In
fact, the Prophets go so far as to say that through the Gospel's permeation
of the world the wild nature of the animals will be transformed into its
original Edenic condition:
The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard
shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the
fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and
the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and
the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play
on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on
the cockatrice's den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my
Holy Mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the
LORD as the waters cover the sea (Isaiah 11:6-9; cf.
65:25).
Throughout the Bible, almost like a fairy-tale, the Restoration of Edenic
Conditions is spoken of30 as the Blessing God wants to give to those who
believe His promises and obey His Word. But in our day, "The Edenifica-
tion of the Earth" is not a trendy theological phrase. Those who claim to
believe the Bible read modern "scientific" concepts of "progress" and
industrialization into the Bible, because they don't really want its promises
to be fulfilled. They would rather be friends to the rich and powerful than
servants of the poor and uninfluential. (The rest of the population [unbe-
lievers] have already abandoned to Bible entirely, and don't care about
Eden at all.)
At present we can look around us and see the evolutionists and those
who resist a God-governed Garden encouraging God's judg-
ment. We may expect "natural disasters" in the form of "animal kingdom
disturbances."31 Unquestionably, Gospel progress is not straight-line, and it
may be hard to believe the wondrous promises of Isaiah are actually being
fulfilled. But we must remember to "walk by faith, not by
sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7). If our reaction to these "natural events"
is anger and bitterness because our agenda of progress has been disturbed,
we then lash out at others. This conflict provokes further disharmony with
nature, which can make us more angry, bringing more conflict, disharmo-
ny, and a downward cycle into cultural self-destruction (Proverbs 8:38)
Freedom to Enjoy God and His Handiwork
Man had abundant freedom in the midst of these responsibilities. When
food is plentiful, the climate favorable, and the animals non-predatory,
man is freed to develop his aesthetic, intellectual, emotional, and sensual
capacities. Little time was spent in search of sustenance. Man had much
time for investigating and beautifying his environment. "Man's chief end,"
as the catechism speaks of it, is more easily fulfilled in such Garden-like
conditions: "to glorify God and enjoy Him forever."
The first Adam was created to be a Godly master of the creation; God's
vicegerent over the earth.
The High Priest was a living symbol of man fully restored to the
Garden. His breastplate was covered with gold and precious stones
(Exodus 28:38), and the hem of his robe was ringed with pomegranates
and golden bells (Exodus 28:33-35).
His forehead was covered with a gold plate, on which was
engraved, HOLINESS TO THE LORD (Exodus 28:38), as a
symbolic removal of the Curse on Adam's brow (cf. Genesis 3:17-19).
As another symbol of freedom from the Curse, the robe itself was made
of linen (Exodus 28:6), for while they were ministering, the
priests were forbidden to wear any wool at all: "No wool shall come
upon them. . . . They shall not gird themselves with anything that
causeth sweat" (Ezekiel 44:17-18). In Genesis 3:18-19, sweat
is an aspect of fallen man's labor under death and the Curse; the priest, as
Restored Man, was to wear the light material of linen to show the removal
of the Curse in salvation.
The ceremonial law expressed this movement away from sweat and
death in other ways as well. The Old Testament prohibition against wear-
ing a mixture of wool and linen (Leviticus 19:19; Deuterono-
my 22:11) has confused many. It was not a prohibition against mingled
materials in general; the prohibition is against acts which debase
life by mixing it with death (Deuteronomy 12:23;
14:21; 20:19-20). The material here has a specific relationship to
sweat, which speaks of death and the Curse (cf. Jude 23).
Linen, on the other hand, speaks of the righteous standing of the man who
has chosen life in Christ (Deuteronomy 30:15-20) and has been freed from
the Curse (Revelation 19:8).32
It is noteworthy that the Garden was again a place of temptation, this
time for the Second Adam in the Garden of Gethsemane (John 18; Luke
22:40-46; Hebrews 12:4). Notice also the presence of sweat.
The bloody sweat of Jesus could not have been seen by an observer
anywhere but upon the brow, which brings to mind Genesis 3:19. His
crown of thorns33 does the same (Genesis 3:18). Popular commentator
Arthur Pink, in his exposition of John, draws some of the parallels and
contrasts:
The entrance of Christ into the Garden at once reminds us of
Eden. The contrasts between them are indeed most striking. In
Eden all was delightful; in Gethsemane, all was terrible. In Eden,
Adam and Eve parlayed with Satan; in Gethsemane, the last Adam
sought the face of His Father. In Eden, Adam sinned; in Gethse-
mane, the Saviour suffered. In Eden Adam fell; in Gethsemane,
the Redeemer conquered. The conflict in Eden took place by day;
the conflict in Gethsemane was waged at night. In the one Adam
fell before Satan; in the other, the soldiers fell before Christ. In
Eden the race was lost; in Gethsemane Christ announced, "Of
them which Thou gavest me have I lost none" (John 18:9). In
Eden, Adam took the fruit from Eve's hand; in Gethsemane,
Christ received the cup from His Father's hand. In Eden, Adam
hid himself; in Gethsemane, Christ boldly showed Himself. In
Eden, God sought Adam; in Gethsemane, the last Adam sought
God. From Eden Adam was driven; from Gethsemane Christ was
"led." In Eden the "sword" was drawn (Gen. 3:24); in Gethsemane
the "sword" was sheathed (John 18:11).
"Limits to Growth" vs. Julian Simon
work, technology, freedom
Abundance v. "scarcity,"
natural resources -- Reisman
Free Energy -- Tesla
Myth of Overpopulation -- Rushdoony
Harmony of Interests -- Bastiat, Mises
Peter Maurin: "Easier to be good"
inherit (judge in) the Kingdom
Mat 6:33; 1 Cor 6:9
The Family
"It is not good that the man should be alone. I will make an
aiding partner for him" (Genesis 2:18).
From the beginning, the Family was integral to God's purposes for
man, and man was incomplete by himself. "Happiness is being single" we
read on the license plate holders of lonely sun-drenched Southern Califor-
nians, those whom one writer has called "naked nomads," those whose
families were a wilderness, and not a Garden. The modern
mythologist/prophet wishes "they could all be California girls," while
anorexia and suicide among that demographic segment continues to rise.
It's a lie.
In the Garden, conflict between the sexes was absent. Confusion bet-
ween femininity and masculinity, the distorted tendencies of romanticism
and machismo on the one hand, and liberation and irresponsibility on the
other, were not present in the Garden, as man and woman are described as
complementary partners.
The prophets often set forth the promises of the New Covenant and of
God's Blessing in general in terms of the restoration of the Family (Psalms
113:9 and 128:3-4). Noteworthy is the Edenic parallelism in Psalm 68:6:
God setteth the solitary in families...but the rebellious
dwell in a dry land.
Family Blessings were spoken of by Isaiah (54:1ff.) and begin to see
their fulfillment at the advent of Jesus Christ (Galatians 4:27) who, as we
saw in Essay Four, overturned tyrannical institutions that preyed on Fa-
milies in Spiritual bondage. Empowered by the Spirit, Families are now
equipped to be God's ministers (I Corinthians 16:15-16), extending hospi-
tality (Romans 12:13) and thereby extending the Kingdom of Christ. The
strengthening of the Family was the strengthening of the Church of Christ;
the institutional overseers required by a Spiritless people under the Old
Covenant (Galatians 4:1-5) are replaced by Families being restored to
Edenic strength and vitality (Acts 5:42; 20:20; Romans 16:5; I Corinthians
16:19; Colossians 4:15; Philemon 2). Although these institutions will
continue to persecute the Family (Acts 8:3), God's Grace is stronger, and
the promises of God apply to them and their families as well (Acts 2;39;
10:2; 16:31-34; 21:5).
In the "last days" of the Old Covenant, the Christian Passover (cf.
Exodus 12:21-27) returned the Family to the diet of the Garden (Acts 2:46;
Zechariah 9:11).
As we attempted to demonstrate in Essay Number Four of the
Vine & Fig Tree series, the Family is God's central institution.
All of life is to be channeled and reconstructed through the Family. The
Family is being destroyed in our day, however, and we are powerless to
stop the destruction unless we eagerly anticipate the restoration of Edenic
conditions throughout the Earth through the expanding reign of King Jesus.
Let us examine Economics and the Family.
Edenic Economics
The importance of economics is seen the fact that over 75% of our
waking hours are spent earning, spending, saving, or in some other way
dealing with money or monetary matters. The word "economics" comes
from a compound Greek word (oikonomia) which in turn
comes from two words, oikos ("home") and nomos
("law") and means "administration of a home." Economics is thus the
domain of the Family (not the State). Failure to believe God's promises of
Edenic restoration lead to unBiblical economics.
Property, a very Biblical goal, is seldom seen as a
Family-centered concern, but as a "me-centered" ambition,
something which "I need now." Instead of something one
desires for one's posterity (children, grandchildren, etc.), property is
something that must be possessed now, by any means. Many ostensibly
"Bible-believing" Christians will even violate God's Law concerning debt
(Romans 13:8; Proverbs 22:7) and money (obtaining funds through Frac-
tionally-Reserved banking and debasement of the currency) in order to
have "dominion" over "property." Such short-sighted thinking puts a
family's estate in the coffers of the bank (through outrageous interest
payments), enslaves the family (Proverbs 22:7; I Corinthians 7:23), mort-
gages the future (James 4:13-14), debases the currency (Leviticus 19:35-
36), and does not obtain true title to the property, as it rests ultimately in
the bank or other institutional lackey of the State (I Kings 21:3).
Inheritance is a myth. Incredible inflation caused
largely by the credit expansion demanded by families (even some "chris-
tian" families) for cars and homes destroys the value of any savings or
estate left to the Family heirs. What has not already been stolen by the
parents from the kids through mortgage-generated inflation will be taken
by the State through inheritance taxes. No one really cares about inherit-
ance taxes (condemned by Scripture: Ezekiel 46:18; 45:8-10) because they
won't be around then anyway. We are outrageously present-oriented. The
Biblical Family has been divorced from economics, because economics has
been taken out of the Garden.
But we are worse than present-oriented. We are anti-life. Our selfish
desires cause us to engage in worse forms of oppression and violence. The
"career mother" will not only dump her children in an institutional
setting,34 but the "career" mentality is accompanied by an unspeakable rate
of pre-natal murder and infanticide. Untold thousands are killed to per-
petuate corporate serfdom or a "career" of (at best) dubious value. The
Scriptures speak often of unrighteous currency, debt, covetousness, and the
charging of interest as leading to or even equated with violence and
bloodshed.35
No one is born by autonomously; all are born into a family. That home
is either a broken home or a Godly home. The Godly home is dedicated to
mending the torn fabric of life in homes ripped apart by unjust money and
violent, seductive advertising. The Christian home is a community center,
an oasis, a place of healing hospitality. But short-sighted, covetous families
ignore the widow and the orphan in their pursuit of self and wealth.
Immorality and violence run rampant while "Christians" pursue "security"
and the showplace home (Jeremiah 5:27-29; 22:3,13-17; Ezekiel 7:23-24;
Amos 6:3-6; Haggai 1:4-9). Wealth which is dedicated to the autonomous
self and not to the future of the Family and Christ's Kingdom is rooted in
violence, and sent Christ to the cross (Isaiah 53:9; Micah 6:12).
But it is impossible to withstand the culture around us if we do not have
a vision of the Edenic Family, obedient to God's Law, serving others and
aiding the weak. Without a future-orientation we spend our inheritance and
mortgage our future, consume for ourselves, killing our children, and even
killing ourselves (Proverbs 8:36; 21:25-26). It cannot go on. We must
believe the promises of God. We must obey the Word of God. We are
saved by hope (Romans 8:24).
Longevity
There is every reason to believe that man in the Garden could have
lived without fear of death. Even before the cataclysmic changes that took
place during the world-wide flood and re-creation at the time of Noah, men
were living centuries before dying.
If we are committed to obeying God's Law and returning our family to
the Garden, God promises to bless us with increased life (Exodus 20:12;
Ephesians 6:1-3). The Prophets spoke of the effects of the Gospel in restor-
ing health and long life-spans. Of course, the word "Salvation" means
"health" and "wholeness" (Matthew 9:21-22 with Ephesians 2:8; same
word). Thus Isaiah speaks of the New Creation, where people grieve over
infant deaths when one dies a hundred years old:
For Behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the
former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. There shall
be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not
filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the
sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed. (Isaiah
65:17,20).
That this prophecy speaks of the present age is seen in the fact that in
the "New Heavens and New Earth," people do in fact die, which runs
contrary to the "premillennialist" view of the New Age. Even now, as
more people are saved from the lies of the demonic City, the New Creation
comes into being and the Curse is progressively forgotten (2 Corinthians
5:17).
We eat of the Tree of Life (Matthew 26:28) on the Mountain of the
LORD (Revelation 21:10; 22:2).36
Land and Family Stewardship
When God created Adam He placed him into a land, and
gave him dominion over it. Land is basic to dominion. A man without land
is a slave to those who possess it. The Biblical ideal is for every Family to
own property, that is, to be stewards over the Vine & Fig Tree and beauti-
fy the Garden for our Lord.
Slavery and theft of property are the acts of unbelief and tyranny (I
Kings 21). It brings God's judgment (2 Kings 9:21-26). Economic stability
and security are marks of Edenic prosperity. As the Gospel goes forth, and
the knowledge of the Lord covers the earth, God's Judgment will be
overshadowed by His Blessing.
The whole thrust of the Old Testament was summed up literally and
symbolically in the promise of an inheritance of land. The
concept of the "Promised Land"37 was both a picture of the King of kings,
Who would hold title to the entire planet and entrust it to His stewards, as
well as a tangible token of Edenic Property.
In the New Testament, the whole Earth is our inheritance and our
dominion under Christ is having a global extension (Hebrews 1:4; 2:6-
9).38 As we defend the rights of Naboths and overcome the persecution by
Jezebels occasioned by our righteousness, God will restore property, secur-
ity and a peace the mortgage-enslaved serfs of the world's rat race cannot
know (Mark 10:29-30, John 14:27, 16:33).
Salvation is God's reversal of the Curse. God returns His People to
Eden, food is plentiful, culture and worship are possible. Man exercises
Godly dominion again.
When you think of Biblical Salvation, words that should come to mind
are trees, planting, and fruit. In singing about God's deliver-
ance of His People into the new Eden, Moses said, "Thou shalt bring
them in, and plant them in the Mountain of thine
inheritance" (Exodus 15:17). The Godly man is "like a
tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his
season; his leaf shall not whither; and whatsoever his doeth shall
prosper" (Psalm 1:3; cf. Jeremiah 17:7-8). The Covenant People
are "as gardens by the river's side, as the trees of lign aloes
which the LORD hath planted, and as cedar trees beside the
waters" (Numbers 24:6).
All of this speaks of secure property,39 where
"each of them shall sit under his
vine and under his fig tree."
Is Peter nuts? Has he been reading too much Vine & Fig
Tree propaganda? Why is he bringing the concept of the Holy
Mountain into the New Testament? Doesn't he know what the "Holy
Mountain" is? [see Psalm 48:1-2; 87:1; Isaiah 11:9; 27:;13; 30:29; 56:7;
57:13; 65:11,25; 66:20; Jeremiah 31:23; 20:40; Ezekiel 28:14; 43:12;
Daniel 9:16,20; 11:45; Joel 2:1; 3:17; Obadiah 16-17; Zephaniah 3:11;
Zechariah 8:3; Revelation 21:10; John 4:20-21; Hebrews 12:22; Revela-
tion 14:1).
(26) who is also trying to "be as god" (Genesis 3:5)
(27) a variation of the "survival of the fittest" mythos
(28) Despite claims of "discrimination," homosexuals have the highest
income levels of any population group (nearly $60,000/yr).
(29) earthfirst!ers deny that people serve these Covenantal purposes. They
appear to feel that the planet would be better off without human beings.
(30) On those rare occasions when someone has challenged the "Vine & Fig
Tree" motif as being a "heretical innovation," or "adding to Scripture," and
then (here's the rare part) proceeded systemmatically to read the
Bible from cover to cover, they have inevitably been surprised to find how
often Edenic concepts recur; even the very phrase "Vine and Fig Tree."
(31) The "killer bees" were a popular example of this in the late 70's/early
80's.
(32) insert here:
work, technology, freedom
Abundance v. "scarcity," natural resources
Free Energy, Myth of Overpopulation
(33) Insert here: Connection to Politics Jud 9
(34) (proven inferior to the home by every educational study; increasingly
suspect in an age of Satanism and gross [and escalating] child pornography)
(35) Ezekiel 18:7-9, 13,16-18; 22:7,12-13,25,27-29; 28:16,18; 45:9-10;
Amos 3:9-10; 3:15 - 4:1; 8:5-6; Micah 2:2; 3:1-3,10-11; 6:10-12; Nahum
3:1,4,16; Habakkuk passim; Malachi 2:16; 3:5; Psalm 72:14 (+
LXX); Proverbs 1:11,13,16.
(36) whole section: see paper
(37) A parcel of land was promised to Abraham as a place where "the seed
of the woman" (Genesis 3:15) could multiply and eventually produce a Mes-
siah, the Savior of the World (Genesis 12:7; 13:15; 15:18; 17:8; 22:17-18;
Hebrews 2:16). The land functioned as a kind of geographical incubator for
the genetic line leading to Christ (Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38). In the New
Covenant, neither the land nor the raising of seed (Genesis 3:15; 16:2; 19:32;
38:8ff.; Leviticus 12; 15:16-32) has any prophetic or moral importance, the
Seed having come (Galatians 3:16; 1 Timothy 3:2; Luke 20:35; Galatians
3:19). Christians, as the true heirs of Abraham (Galatians 3:7,9,14,28-29;
Romans 4:13,16; 9:8; 1 Peter 1:23), are promised the entire world (Matthew
28:18-20; Acts 1:8; see Thesis #93 in our Anarcho-Communitarian polemic,
"95 Theses on the State").
(38) Rush quote: see revised "booths"
(39) Property and Anarchism -- Ellickson, Order
Without Law