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b-hebrew - Re: Gen 2:17: Dying thou shalt die

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  • From: "George Athas" <gathas AT globalfreeway.com.au>
  • To: "Biblical Hebrew" <b-hebrew AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re: Gen 2:17: Dying thou shalt die
  • Date: Sat, 26 Aug 2000 10:49:50 +1000


I'm with Jim on this one. Remember that despite the multiple narriaives in
Genesis, we are
now dealing with a single narrative. In Gen 1, the ordered configuration of
creation looks
something like this:

God
-----
Humanity: Male & Female
---------------------------
Animals
---------------------------
Environment


In Gen 3, we see a complete reversal. A vegetable ("Environment") becomes the
object of
desire when the snake ("Animals") tells the woman what to do, who then leads
her husband,
who want to usurp the place of God by attaining godhood themselves.

The "death" of Gen 3 seems to be the curse of living outside the garden in an
uncooperative environment. Blessing is now accompanied by curse. Life is now
accompanied
by death, and humanity is destined to die a slow death in hard labour. If
God curses
humanity to death at the end of Gen 3, I can't see how the snake was telling
the truth by
saying that humans wouldn't die.

Best regards,
GEORGE ATHAS
- Anglican Chaplaincy, UNSW;
- Southern Cross College,
Sydney, Australia
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