Old Testament Commentary - Genesis 1

by Don R. Hender


In the beginning God, the opening phrase of the book of Genesis does seem to anounce that all begins with the existence of God. It pronounces that God does irrevocalbly exist and IS. When God first appears and speaks to Moses, it is from the burning bush, and he pronouces, I AM, I AM THAT I AM, which has reference to Him being the 'Living God' or 'He that does exist'. Leaving the matter of distinguishing between the Father and the Son, as the Son does represent and essentially is the Father by the mediation of that divine investiture bestowed upon Him by the Father, we will speak of the One God, the God of the Universe, the God of Creation, the anointed God of this Second Estate, which is marked by time as opposed to eternity which is not. Therefore he is He who was from the beginning of 'this time' of 'this second estate' even the very Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, standing at the portholes of eternity from all eternity to all eternity, He who we know as Jehovah, Jesus Christ, our Creator of this Second Estate, our Mediator, our Advocate with the Father, our Intercessor between this estate and heaven, even our one true God who being anointed by the Father is our ministering God, there being none else given whereby men of this estate may be saved.

This declaration of 'God' further implies that this 'God' is the one and only true God, and there is no other God before Him Who Is, at least as far as the second estate of this world of existence is concerned. This God of this second estate creation is our God and there is no other God but him who does minister unto us. While this seems contradictory to some when one considered the relationship between the Father and the Son, it is not contradictory in terms of who it is, who is the God who does minister unto this creation, unto this second estate, unto this temporal mortality, and that is only one God, even Jehovah; for only those who pertain unto it do mininster to it (D&C 130:5). How this plays out between the existence of the Father and the Son and even the Holy Ghost will be further explained as we consider the essence of the Godhead and how it does operate out of necessity and function to bring about the immortality and eternal life of man.

We seem to have two major sources concerning the creation account. One account is given to us by Moses and the other account by Abraham. Both of these first hand accounts is contained in the Pearl of Great Price. The Book of Moses is there presented, it being set forth as a part of Joseph Smith's inspired or revealed translation of the Bible. That direct revelation account is usually compared directly with the Genesis account, but what Moses received directly from the mouth of Jehovah with Jehovah speaking in the 'first person' 'I', as recorded in the Book of Moses by Joseph Smith seems not to be exactly what Moses would later record as a part of his 'historical' account of the creation as part of his first book. What Moses records in there in Hebrew, according to the Hebrew text, seems to be more in line with the historical account of Abraham which was with translated by inspiration by Joseph Smith. A more complete comparison of the Creation from the perspective of these 'three' sources, Moses' direct from the mouth of Jehovah account, Abraham's historical record, and Moses' parallel historical record of the creation may be accessed by clicking here.

Scriptural Text [& Editorial]
Commentary & Explanation
Footnotes ~ References ~ JST
             CHAPTER 1              

God creates this earth and its heaven and all forms of life in six days—Creative acts of each day set forth—God creates man, both male and female, in his own image—Man given dominion over all things, and commanded to multiply and fill the earth.

"Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God, I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are." ~ 3 Nephi 9:15
God, Jehovah as directed by God the Father of Spirits, creates this earth and its heavens according to the 6 day pattern. Putting it in its current status and place. The six days, are 6 'creative periods of time' or days of God. The length of these 'days' become insignificant from God's perspective of the 'eternal now' of eternity. The 'Man of Holiness' and the 'Son of Man', the 'Gods' create man in their image, Christ who is Jehovah after the image of his spirit body, which is also in the image of the Father; head, shoulders, knees and toes; eyes, ears, mouth and nose. He created Man and gave him dominion over the earth. God also establish the divine order of marriage and a commandment that is still enforce to multiply and 'replenish' or 'fill' the earth. Jehovah, Jesus Christ, is the Ministering God of this heaven and earth of the second estate. As the Firstborn Spirit Son of the Father, he was sellected, anointed and consecrated by the Father to act in the stead and in the name of the Father by divine investiture. By the power of that appointment, and under the direction of the Father, was all things made by him. Only those of this estate do minister unto it (D&C 130:5), thus our Celestial Father ordained His Son as our Ministering God and Saving Redeemer as our Advocate God of this Second Estate, our Mediator and Intercessor with the Father in our behalf pertaining to Time.
To make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ ~ Ephesians 3:9
*
  'elohiym'
[the Gods]
 

The Hebrew 'Elohim' or 'Elohiym' is the word used in the original Hebrew text of the Bible throughout Genesis chapter 1. It is a 'plural' form of the name of God (Eloh or elowahh) having the 'im' or 'iym' plural ending, yet in the King James Bible, as per the traditional Christian prefered concept of the 'trinity' being 'three in one' and as per the more commonly accepted Jewish preference, it is translated as 'God', singular. Generally the Jewish preference is to not adhere to there being more than one God or a Begotten Son of God. However a correct translation is consistently used in the Book of Abraham as it is given by modern revelation through Joseph Smith that should be 'Gods', plural. Thus the Gods worked together in the Creative process, though the assigned position of 'immediate' Creator was primarily set upon the Son, Jehovah, the Word, by whose hand all things were created as set forth and directed by the Father. There is an obvious allusion to the fact that the 'elohiym' of the Hebrew Bible should have been plural all along when in verse 26 it states the proper conversational phrase among those 'creative gods' as being 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:'. This would tend to confirm that it was the Gods, at least God the Father and God the Son, who jointly and in consultation one with the other, did order the creative process. Interestinly enough, the LDS Temple Holy Convocation or Ceremony does support this concept as well in respect to the creation.

Further, the Apostle John in his Gospel does also set forth this relationship between the Father and the Son, the Son being referred to as the 'Word' in John's verses. 'In the beginning was the Word [Jesus Christ or Jehovah], and the Word [Jesus or Jehovah] was with God [The Father], and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God [The Father].' Here John establishes that it was God the Father and God the Son which stood together one with the other from the beginning. It further points out that the Father did anoint, ordain and/or appoint the God the Son to perform the acts of creation as it states referring to the Word or the Son: 'All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.' And then in verse 14 John adds this testimony, 'And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld him glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.'

At this point it ought to be set forth that we as Latter Day Saints do also worship the 'One True God'. That is, insomuch as the Father did anoint his Son Jehovah as 'Creator, Redeemer and the Administering God' of this 'Earthly Estate', we do hold that Jesus Christ is the one true God that we do worship. And according to his instructions we do pray to the Father in His Name, the name of Jesus Christ. And it is through the advocacy and mediation of our Jesus Christ-Jehovah our 'One True God' in respect to this 'second estate', that we are saved. He has 'redeemed us' from the fall of Adam, and He, Jesus Christ-Jehovah, does represent us in the cause of that atonement before the Father, giving all glory to the Father, and standing before Him for us as the one and only true way into God's Kingdom in the eternal life to come.

  1 IN the abeginninga bGod [the Gods - the anointed and empowered Jehovah under the direction of God the Father of Spirits, Elohim]* bcreated [orgainized] the dheaven and the earthb.

Order of Creation 
There were two primary entities who performed the creation. There was the one who directed and one who put the direction into action. God the Father 'is the only supreme govenor, and independent being, in whom all fulness and perfection dwells; who is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omnicient; without beginning of days or end of life; . . . he is the Father of lights: In him the principle of faith dwells independently, and he is the object in whom the faith of all other rational and accountable beings centers, for life and salvation (Lectures 2:2). The Father selected his firstborn son in spirit to be his vicarious representative giving him his power and authority to minister to this second estate 'as', 'for' and 'in behalf of' of the Father.

As taught, none 'minister to this earth but those who belong or have belonged to it.'(D&C 130:5) This earth was not created by the hand of the Son, Jehovah, as directed by the Father, until after the Son's election, appointment and ordination by the Father. The Father is not of this earth, while the Son who was the first spirit born of the Father is of this earth, this 'second estate'. The Father was already a Celestial being of glorified and independent embodied exalted being of flesh and bone while we with the Son were still yet spirits, not having yet passed through the second estate of mortality whereby we were to obtain our embodiment, experience and maturation advancement into immortality and eternal life. Thus the Son was selected by the Father to minister unto this earth as the Father, in behalf of the Father being given that divine investiture and power of attorney to govern as though he was the Father in all things.

Abraham 3:24, 27

"And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell; . . . And the Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one answered like unto the Son of Man: Here am I, send me. And another answered and said: Here am I, send me. And the Lord said: I will send the first."

 1a In the beginning Between the eternity of the Preexistence and the eternity of Immortality and Eternal Life comes this 'Second Estate'. In the beginning of this Second Estate, God created the heaven and the earth. He was that 'beginning'. He is that Alpha, the beginning of this mortal existence which spans between the two eternities of premortal and antemortal existence. Our 'mortality' is so sandwiched between the eternities, our God is from eternity to eternity.


 2a God created the heaven and the earth In both the Hebrew and in the account of Abraham, the name of God being used would seem to be the plural, Gods or Elohim. Elohim is one use is the name by which we address God the Father. In another use it is plural or 'Gods'. Either frame of reference is correct. God or the Gods did create the heaven and the earth. God the Father is the director and God the Son was the producer, the active force by whose hand the were directly created. As explained under the 'Order of Creation' and the topic of 'Our God' there is a partnership between the Father and Son whereby they act together in unity of direction and ministration as the Father to man of this second estate. Thus to the question did God the Father or did Jehovah create this earth? The answer is a resounding 'Yes'.

Our Alpha and Omega 
As one studies the scriptures, they come to know that Jehovah who is Jesus Christ stands as our Alpha and Omega, our beginning and end. He is the first and the last. He was the firstborn son of the Father in the spirit. He it is who begins our second estate beginning with the creation of the heaven and the earth. He stands at that start of the one side represented by that coridor of mirrored images in the sealing rooms of the temple which visually represents the preexistent eternity. And he it is that also stands next to the beginning of the other side of the room at that other visual coridor of mirrored images which represents the eternity of immortality and eternal life. He is the beginning and end of this second estate. He is that Alpha and Omega which stands from all eternity to all eternity, from the one eternity of our past to the next eternity of our future. Thus he spans the eternities. He it is that is over all things pertaining to this mortality, this second estate. Under the direction and by the appointment of the Father, so does he so minister unto man.
 1a TG Time
   b Mosiah 4:2; Mormon 9:11
      D&C 14:9; D&C 76:24 (20-24);
      Moses 2:1; Abr. 4:1
   c HEB 'bara' shaped, fashioned,
      created; is used only and
      always divine, see Abr. 4:1,
      organized formed.
      TG Creation; TG God, Creator
   d D&C 121:4;
      Moses 1:37 (36-38);
      Moses 2:1; Abr. 4:1;
      TG Astronomy, Heaven
      TG Nature, Earth

Our God 
We believe in one God, the one true God of Heaven and Earth. This God has been given to us as Jehovah. Yet the ministry and administration of Jehovah is an administration and ministry conducted under a partnership of an administrative Godhead consisting of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit and the Son does convey the glory to the Father.

In that joint partnership of the Order of Creation, the Father directs the Son and the Son does perform the acts of ministration to this Earth in the capacity of vicarious performance as though he is the Father having been called, elected, ordained and anointed by the Father to so perform and act as the Father, for the Father, and in behalf of the Father. Due to this vicarious performance, the Son Jehovah is called by the names of the Father, is addressed as the Father and speaks and performs as the Father being that mediator and advocate between the Celestial realm of the Father and the second estate mortal realm in which we currently dwell. Further Jehovah aslo is and performs the redeeming role of the Son in all things pertaining to this earth in providing for the salvation of man. In Jehovah is Salvation and he was so named by the Father as Jesus Christ (Moses 7:50, Philipians 2:9-11, Zechariah 3), that is Yehoshua, Jehovah Salvation, the anointed of God, the Messiah, even the Christ.

Fall and Redemption 
The fall would separate man from the presence of God and place a vail of forgetfulness over the minds of men of this estate. God the Father would remain in the Celestial realm of eternity and His appointed, anointed and empowered Firstborn son Jehovah would minister, standing in the stead of the Father in all things. All those of His children pertaining to this second estate at some time would depart the preexistence realm to come down to the mortal earth and then they would be redeemed by the ministration of Jehovah who is Jesus Christ. The facilitaion of the Holy Ghost was the communication link between man and God—heaven and earth, between the eternal realm of God the Father and the fallen second estate of man.

A Patern and/or Order of Creation

WHEN Jehovah as the God of the Old Testament did speak to Moses, revealing to him the order of this creation, He spake unto Moses primarily from the perspective of 'this earth' (see Moses 33-40). And as it states, 'as one earth shall pass away, and the heavens thereof even so shall another come,' . . . for 'worlds without number has God created; and He created them for His own purpose;' . . . and that purpose is summed up in that the Lord's 'work and glory is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man'. Thus we need not suppose that this earth was the first earth to be created and organized to the end of the Lord's purpose, nor are we to suppose that it is the last. Thus when God gave to Moses and Abraham and others before them the 'patern' and 'order' of this earth's creation, it was after that 'patern' and 'order' which WAS, IS and forever SHALL BE, the proper 'PATERN' and 'ORDER' of creation.

The Father states that by the hand of his Son, he did create all things and that without Him, the Son, was nothing created that was created. In this, Jehovah, the first born Son of God in the spirit and the Only Begotten Son of God in the flesh, stands at the beginning of all creation as the Alpha, the beginning of all things pertaining to the work and glory of bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of man, the spirit children of the Father who did keep their first estate.

But in his mercy, the Lord did give unto Moses, Abraham and others the order of creation concerning this earth which does touch lightly upon the creation of all things, the 'heavens and the earth, and does center more precisely the order of creation or organization of this earth for the purpose of bring upon it those so assigned as to be of Adam and Adams posterity. Since our God Jehovah is from all eternity to all eternity and without beginning of days, he does span from before the foundation of this earth and its 'creation' after that proper order of creation as applied to all such worlds which are so ordered to bring to pass that great and grand purpose of God. And in reading and understanding the order of this earth's creatiion we may percieve and come to understand that 'order of creation' by which all such worlds are ordered, organized, and ordained unto this grand purpose of God, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

Now that the elements are eternal, we must need to suppose that those which do make up this earth where in existence long before the specific order of creation for the purpose of the work of Adam and his posterity. What such 'past' ions of history and time wraught upon the elements of this earth is not given to our understanding by the record revealed by God to such as Moses, Abraham and others. The science of man does attempt to explore such with its ideas and precepts of men, but that is left to man's 'contrived' dissections and not to God's truth. Thus whatever such scientific investigation seems to tend to disclose, must be tempered by the fact that immediately prior to God's preparing this earth for the use of Adam and Adam's posterity, it was at that point in time the 'earth was without proper ordered form for the life of man and totally void of it (Gensis 1:2) and it was at that time initially empty and desolate (Abraham 4:2). As to any prior use or prior history of the earth before the time of Adam and the Lord's order of creation of it for our use since the days of Adam is on the one hand of a highly speculative nature though science who finds 'order' out of 'chaos' has it own theories which it attempts to tie to those who in truth some solely and directly from Adam and the Lord's creation to being creatures out of chaos and happenstance, which in truth the logic of reason and all probablility does factually exempt from even being the case. And though some scientists are honest enough to recognize that the guidance of intelligent order in all reality does preclude the existence of life and the DNA molecule which they determine governs it, they are not so readily willing to ascribe it to God, but rather to some 'intelligent ordering of it' beyond their perception, yet not needfully of some suppreme being such as God Is.

'Day'—'Age'—'Duration'—'Time' One

  2 And the earth was without aform, and voida; and bdarkness was upon the face of the deep. And the cSpirit of God [for Jehovah was yet but a being of Spirit] [the Gods]* dmoved upon the face of the watersb.
  3 And God [the Gods]* asaid, Let there be blight: and there was lighta.
  4 And God [the Gods]* saw the light, that it was agood: and God [the Gods]* divided the light from the darkness.
  5 And God [the Gods]* called the light aDay, and the bdarkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the cfirst dday.

Orbit Only? 
There is a direct relation between temperature and distance a planet is from its sun which is tempered by atmospheric conditions. Earth at the time of its Biblical 'creation' or 'organization' was void, empty and desolate much like the planet mars. The first day of planetary organization seems to be to adjust a planet's orbit to being within limits of proper distance relative to its orbit about the sun, its light, energy and heating source.

Like our moon, for a planetary object to 'orbit' or revolve about a larger body, there is little or no need for it to spin or rotate upon its axis. We never see the opposite side of our moon for the reason of the moon's limited rotational spin as it goes through its phases from full moon to a new moon over the course of its orbit about the earth with its one side always towards us and its other side always away.

Considered the moon's orbit when thinking of the earth's orbital condition it was placed in on that first 'day'. It had no proper regulated rotation spin corresponding to seasons as we now know them. The first item of business was to place the earth in an orbit about the sun that would prepare it for the purposes of the Lord of placing life including man upon it, the second estate. The precise rotaional spin in relation to a 365 days per yearly orbit about the sun was yet needed. This first 'evening and morning' yet without a 'proper' rotating spin, would have a night and a day about the sun of an unknown length depending upon such rotationary spin if any that the earth then had at the time of its newly designed orbit. On the '4th day of creation', the earth would be caused to spin upon its axis in its more precisely designed rotation, yeilding the times and seasons of months and days over the course of each of earth's orbits per its yearly course about the sun with its summer and winter salstice as we understand them today.

The degree of scientific and mathmatical expertise and learning that enables man to place satellites in perpetual orbit about the earth should give some appreciation of this first day's creative work though it is dwafted in comparison.

 2a the earth was without form, and void As to what 'form' the earth was or was 'not' in can be speculated. Certainly it was 'void' of the desired existence of 'man' in the image and order of God. Whether this meant man had never been upon the earth over its ions of existence may be wondered upon. But prior to the preparation for and placement of Adam on earth, it was empty and desolate. It had become void or had never been occupied by the race of intelligent being who were those of us who are the spirit children of God, made in His image and of His order.
Today man searches other planets to ascertain if life has ever been upon them. Purhaps it has and perhaps it has not. Certainly these lifeless dead planets are without the proper form to currently sustain life and are viod of it, just as the earth was just prior to the Lord's 'creation' or 'organization' of it for that very purpose of placing mankind upon it.
 2b the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters This is the translation we have as preserved and given to us in Genesis. Abraham 4:2 states, "the Spirit of the Gods was brooding upon the face of the waters." We know that by and through the hand of Jehovah, God the Father of Spirits did cause all things to be created. The concept of there being 'Gods' is not exactly foriegn to the Hebrew text of Genesis. In the Hebrew text the word which has been preferred by the translated to be rendered God, is in fact 'Elohim'. Elohim is a compound word made upon of Elo, Eli, or Eloh which does translate to 'God' and the ending of 'im' or 'him' which is a plural ending which is used to make Hebrew words into their plural form just as adding an 's' to the end of English words tends to change them into their plural form. Thus in the simpilist terms, 'Elohim' should be translated as Gods.
But due to various facts in that the corruption of Hebrew thought prefers in many circles to deny in the first place that there was or is to be a literal 'Son' of God as a Messiah, and that even if there was, he would not be considered by them as being God, as they worship but one God, the one true God. Traditional Christianity for similar reasons also prefers to translate Elohim singular as God rather than Gods, as their concept is that thier is but one God, living in three identities but solely in one being. That is their concept of the 'trinity' which we understand to be the 'Godhead'.
We know God the Father, Jesus Christ as God the Son and the Holy Ghost also as being of the status of God and these three to be three distinct beings and thus we find no problem with the concept of Gods, plural being involved in the creation as indicated in the Hebrew text and also in the Book of Abraham. Further each of these three God's are Gods of Spirit, though God the Father is also an exalted God whose spirit is housed in a body of flesh and bone as is now also Jehovah's as the resurrected Jesus Christ. Thus the concept of the spririt of these Gods meditating in contemplation and planning together relative to the creation of the earth posses no problem and is entirely an understandable sequence of events realtive to the ordering of this earth for the occupation of Adam and we as his posterity.
 3a Let there be light, and there was light The source of light for life and planetary existence is a 'tempered' star which radiates it light, energy and heat to the planets which orbit about it. To set up a viable planetary orbit there is the need for two objects, The smaller planet in it size and mass and the larger celestial object about which it is to orbit, its sun.
 2a Abr. 4:2
   b TG Darkness, Physical
   c TG God, Spirit of
   d Moses 2:2; Abr. 4:2
 3a Ps. 33:9
   b TG Light
 4a Alma 32:35; Moses 2:4;
      Abr. 4:4
 5a Moro. 7:15; TG Time
   b TG Darkness, Physical
   c TG Time
   c Moses 2:5; Abr. 4:5

Man's Ways and God's Ways 
When considering what God performed even during the course of this first day of earth's current creation, man with his own very limited abilities by comparison, ought to marvel at the power and ability of God. Man can shoot rockets into space and so calculate and order things so that processes of achieving proper 'orbits' for precise particular purposes have been mastered. God can order such things as planets into just such precise orbits about 'suns' or 'stars' to form an orbiting solar system with an earth so precisely set to enable the conditions of life to inhabit what was a void, empty and desolate planet. We don't know how God does that grander work of manuvering and placing of plantary bodies. We often speculate that the earth has gone through time of the extinction of life upon it, but just how one manuvers a dead planet back into a life producing orbital condition once such has been disturbed is certainly beyond man total comprehension.

We can only consider that we are able to do some similar orbital manuvers with items much less in size. And from that which we can do, we can merely begin to understand and apreciate that which God does do in the creative processes which he does perform.

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." ~ Isaiah 55:8-9

Often man and his wisdom contrives and dissects an understanding according to the intelligence or man. And they conclude many things from their experimental trials and error producing their theories which they present to the world as fact. But man's scratchings upon the surface of the knowledge of the universe which God has created and is the master thereof, are but an infants first learnings compared to the all knowing intelligence of God who has been from everlasting to everlasting. How it is that man's pride in his infinitely small learning attempts to define what God is and God is not, mocks the mastery of the order of the universe and the creation of life from the designer of the DNA molecule and not as one who merely marvels at its organized masterful complexity.

So how is it that man who is so totally dependant upon his life giving environment within which he may live is so bold to define that God who has provided it for him to anounce that that God is dead and all which has been so intricatley designed and ordered is but an astronoical imossibilty of fact resulting out of mathematical zero probabilities to even exist?

'Day'—'Age'—'Duration'—'Time' Two

  6 ¶ And God [the Gods]* said, Let there be a afirmamenta in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
  7 And God [the Gods]* made the firmament, and divided the awaters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
  8 And God [the Gods]* called the firmament aHeaven. And the evening and the morning were the second bday.

 6a Let there be a firmament The atmospheric firmament or expanse of a world's immediate heavens is a blanket of protection and life giving elements and processes. We are beginning to understand all that these various levels of atmosphere and ozone protection does provide. In one since, this firmament contains the very elements which yields the breath of life, oxygen. And along with the cycling of the waters of the earth from evaporation to condensation and rains across the surface of the earth, certainly this was a required next step in the pattern of creation for a world to pass through in order to prepare it for life and man.  6a HEB expanse.;
       Moses 2:6-8; Abr. 4:6-8
       Fac. 2, Fig. 4
 7a Ps. 148:4 (3-5)
 8a TG Heaven
   b Abr. 4:8

'Day'—'Age'—'Duration'—'Time' Three

  9 ¶ And God [the Gods]* said, Let the awaters under the heaven be gathered together unto aone place, and let the dry land appeara: and it was so.
  10 And God [the Gods]* called the dry land aEarth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God [the Gods]* saw that it was good.
  11 And God [the Gods]* said, Let the earth bring forth agrass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
  12 And the earth abrought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his akind: and God [the Gods]* saw that it was good.
  13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.

 9a let the dry lands appear The cyclic nature of the earth's surface which yield more than just a murky water covered surface consists of various seismic elements from volcanoes to earth quakes and the motion of plate tectonics. For the use of man, the 'dry lands' had to be thrown up out of the deep with elevations which do cycle the elements in conjunction with the cycles of the waters and its rains.

Seed After Its Kind 
Though there is an adaptive evolution natural to life which seeks to adapt and live, the striking evidence is that the DNA structures of each form of life is so packaged in its DNA molecule to enable each to reproduce after its own kind. The 'seed' is a common DNA packaging provision provided by the hand of God for a vast majority of such plant life to so reproduce. And though there are other such processes also provided, it is this example which sets forth God intent that each is to reproduce after its own kind according to how He did set them forth and establish them to be.
   9a TG Earth, Dividing of
     b Moses 2:9; Abr. 4:9
 10a Moses 1:29
 11a Moses 2:11-12; Abr. 4:11-12
 12a D&C 88:25
     b Alma 32:31 (28-34);
        Moses 2:12 (11-12); TG Order

Plants Before Animals 
Though there are some plants which feed upon animals and benefit from such animal supplied nutriants, it seems plain to see that before the placement of animals and beasts upon the earth that an abundance of plant life needed to be logically and sequencially provided in the creative logcial process.

'Day'—'Age'—'Duration'—'Time' Four

  14 ¶ And God [the Gods]* said, Let there be alights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for bsigns, and for cseasons, and for days, and years:
  15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
  16 And God [the Gods]* made two great lights; the agreater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the bstars also.
  17 And God [the Gods]* set them in the afirmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,
  18 And to rule over the aday and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God [the Gods]* saw that it was good.
  19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

The Lights, Signs and Seasns 
Only with a strong scientific understanding of astonomy and a comprehension of the manufacturing logica process can one comprehend what God proceeded to do on the fourth day. With the tilting of the earth's axis and the rotational spin placed in its precise motion, could the lights of the heavens, the sun, the moon and the stars be seen it their times and seasons to give order to earth's life processes. The tides of the seas governed by the order of the moon, the constilations of the stars of the skies giving difinition to the months and seasons of the year and the solstice of the sun from winter to summer on its yearly course; only then could the life on earth be so regimented with the daily light, heat and energy of the sun with its various levels of intensity causing the cycles of life and governing the lives of each of the God designed plants, herbs and trees day by day, season upon season, year in and year out. And thus the earth was so logically prepared according to the pattern and design of creation, that great and grand 'PERT' chart of the Almighty. And the next phase and stage had it foundation laid for it to next begin.
 14a Ps. 104:19; D&C 67:9;
        TG Astronomy
     b D&C 29:14; TG Signs;
        TG Symbolism
     c TG Order
 16a D&C 76:71 (70-71);
        D&C 88:45; Moses 2:16;
        Abr. 4:16
     b Abr. 3:2; TG Astronomy
 17a D&C 76:109;
 18a Jer. 31:35

God's Greenhouse 
With all established and for formed, created and organized, earth; God's Greenhouse, was prepared. With the earth's orbital revolution so positioned about the sun, the life giving atmospheric firmament and it elements and processes set forth, and the land divided from the waters and seas and so planted with the seeds of life, the Lord turned to providing for the seasons.

The axial rotation with its axial tilt was set. The 'march of the seasons' was placed in motion with its winter and summer solstice and the vernal and autumnal equinox. Thus the work of the forth time was that which did bring forth life. The rays of the sun over the cyclic days with the rains of the firmament and its thermosphere, mesosphere, stratosphere and troposphere compostions along with it ionosphere and ozonosphere atmospheric functions in the seasons thereof did bring forth within the Greenhouse of God, plant life in abundance.

'Day'—'Age'—'Duration'—'Time' Five

  20 And God [the Gods]* said, Let the awaters bbring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
  21 And God created agreat whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God [the Gods]* saw that it was good.
  22 And God [the Gods]* blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and amultiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.
  23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.
 20a D&C 61:14 (14-17)
     b HEB swarm with swarms of living
        creatures (souls)
     c 2 Ne. 2:15;
        D&C 49:19 (18-19)
 21a HEB great sea-monsters.;
        Ether 2:24; Ether 6:10;
        Moses 2:21; Abr. 4:21
 22a D&C 45:58;
        D&C 132:63 (55-56, 63);
        Moses 2:22; Abr. 4:22

'Day'—'Age'—'Duration'—'Time' Six

  24 ¶ And God [the Gods]* said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his akind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
  25 And God [the Gods]* made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God [the Gods]* saw that it was good.

 24a TG Order

  26 ¶ And God [the Gods]* said, Let aus bmake cman in our dimage, after our elikenessa: and let them have fdominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
  27 So God [the Gods]* created man in his [their]* own aimage, in the image of God [the Gods]* created he [they]* him; male and bfemale created he [they]* them.
  28 And God [the Gods]* blessed them, and God [the Gods]* said unto them, Be afruitful, and bmultiply, and creplenish the deartha, and subdue it: and have edominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.  


Jehovah, Our Ministering God

 26a Let us make man in our image, after our likeness Now who is the 'us' which infers plurality, that being more than one? When Jehovah, who is the same as Jesus Christ, appeared unto the brother of Jared, He told him that it was he, Jesus Christ, who created man in the image of the body of his spirit, which he then appeared to the brother of Jared (Ether 3:14-16). And we also understand that it was in the image of God the Father of Spirits, though He had a glorified celestial body of flesh and bone as tangible as mans. And we therefore have learned that the spirit which is housed in this temporal physical body is in the same shape and form, that is the housing is formed to fit and house the spirit: head, shoulders, knees and toes; eyes, ears, mouth and nose. The 'us' therefore are both the Father of Spirits and Jehovah the Son who we also know as Jesus Christ. And it is in the form and image of 'their' bodies, spirit and tangible, in which we are created.

God the Father of Spirits
 28a multiply, and reblenish [fill] the earth God commanded the man and the woman, that they together were to multiply and fill the earth. Now God has never recended that commandment and it is still in full force today that men and women are to join together to raise up families of children unto the Lord their God to multiply and replenish the earth. It is foriegn and against the commandments of God not to so comply, for the man not to be joined to the woman and the woman not to joined to the man. It violates the very plan and order of God. Neither is the man without the woman, or the woman without the man in the Lord. And this was and is from the very beginning, and it is after the order of heaven and the order of God. To violate this is to stand in violation of God and God's commandments for man. And to this end will those who purposefully violate this relationship suffer the warth of God for the evil which they have done.
 26a Abr. 4:27 (26-31);
       Abr. 5:7; TG Godhead;
       TG Jesus Christ, Creator
    b TG Creation
    c TG Adam;
       TG Man, Pysical Creation of
   d Mosiah 7:27; Ether 3:15 (14-17);
       D&C 20:18 (17-18);
       Moses 1:6 (6-13, 16);
       Moses 2:26 (26-29);
       Moses 6:9 (8-10);
       Abr. 4:26 (26-31)
    e Gen. 5:3
    f Prov. 12:10; D&C 49:19 (18-21);
       D&C 76:111 (110-112);
       D&C 121:37 (34-36);
       Moses 2:26 (26-28);
       Abr. 4:26 (26-28);
       TG Man, Potential to Become
       Like Heavenly Father
 27a TG God, Body of—Corporeal
       Nature
    b TG Woman
 28a TG Children
    b TG Birth Control;
       TG Marriage, Fatherhood
       TG Marriage, Motherhood
    c HEB fill; see same word in v.22.;
       1 Ne. 17:36
    d TG Earth, Purpose of
    e Gen. 9:2 (1-6)

  29 ¶ And God [the Gods]* said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for ameat.
  30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for ameat: and it was so.
  31 And God [the Gods]* saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very agood. And the evening and the morning were the bsixth day.
 29a HEB food.;
       Moses 2:29-30; Abr. 4:29-30;
       TG Food; TG Word of Wisdom;
 30a HEB food
 31a 1 Tim. 4:4; Moro. 7:12;
       D&C 59:17 (16-20);
       Moses 2:31; TG Body, Sanctity of
    b Ex. 31:17; Mosiah 13:19;
       Moses 2:31; Abr. 4:31

Creation's Pattern of Intelligent Organized Order

THERE is a logical order or pattern of design by which the creation process does proceed. After the initial creative event which sets forth the heavens of the universe each world which God does establish and organize to meet His purpose, work and glory, follows six stage creative process. This six stage recipe or design of creation is given in the Book of Moses, the Book of Abraham and the Book of Genesis. The planetary matter which is to be organized into a world for God's purposes, regardless of its previous state, proceeds through this six phase creative process which processes the planetary matter into a realm of existence upon which man may be placed.

In the beginning the heavens were created and all the matter in its heavenly order was spread forth, including the plantary matter of this earth. The Book of Moses tells us the 'worlds without number' have been created by God. Since God spoke to Moses more particularly in respect to this earth, the broader and grander creation of all the heavens was briefly mentioned. And then God spoke to Moses presenting the more particular six phase ordering of this earth which was according to the pattern by which other worlds without number were also so prepared. In Genesis it speaks as this six phase ordering as occuring according to 'six days' of creation. And since we are told that in comparative time, a 1,000 years are as but one day unto the Lord. That may be more of a 'perspective' comparision to given some slight comprehension to what God's time is in respect to eternity. But as the Book of Abraham also sets forth, there are six distinct phases of time according to which a 'world', in particular this earth, is evolved from whatever immediately prior state it happened to be in to arrive at a properly inhabitable state prepared for the use of man.

We are told the this immediately prior state in which our earth was in, was that it 'was without any proper inhabitable form and void, empty and desolate of life'. It is further stated that darkness reigned upon the face of the deep. Whereupon the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters which would effect the beginning of the six phases of creation.

    Six Phases or Periods of Creation

    1 ~ God said, 'Let there be light.' And he divided the light from the darkness. And the light was called Day and the darkness was called Night. This would entail setting forth the immediate solar system and placing the earth into proper orientation and motion in order to properly function as a world upon which man might be placed.

    2 ~ Then God said, 'Let there be a firmament, an expanse in the midst of the waters and Let it divide the waters.' This firmament or atmosphere and the earth's 'sprinkling system' or the system by which clouds containing water moister might rise above and rain down upon the earth and waters below was placed to operation according to is cyclic order. And this expanse above was called heaven.

    3 ~ Then God caused that all the waters below the heavens be gathered together and He made the earth or land to come up dry. And so they were ordered that plant life from seed might come forth, the grass and the trees and the herbs according to their various seed and kind.

    4 ~ With the earth placed in its proper place or orbit to support the proper ranges of heat and light, and with the atmosphere and hydrosystem ordered and working and the land and sea divided with seed placed in to earth to bring forth plantes, the next order of business was to fine tune the slant and spin of the earth which would yield the seasons which could and would be recognized by the constelation of the stars, and recognized by the operations of the moon and the sun with its summer and winter equanox. And so there might be order to the times, seasons, days and years of the earth it it cyclic orders that the plants might properly thrive year after year.

    5 ~ With the earth in a proper life supportive orbit about its sun for light and darkenss, with the atmosphere and hydrosystem ordered and working, with the dry land and seas separated and planted and the earth's rotation set up form the season and years according to the astonomy of the stars, moon and sun that the plant life might thrive, it was next time to bring forth the moving creatures.

    And God prepared the waters to bring forh abundantly the moving creatures that have life; and the fowl that flies above the earth in the open expanse of heaven.

    6 ~ With the waters prepared to bring forth life and the fowls of the air, God then proceeded to bring forth the appropriae living creatures after their kind as ordered by each one's DNA patterns, the cattle and creeping things; the beasts of the earth. Then within this process came the question, was 'man found upon the earth?' And man had not developed and come forth upon the earth at this time and during this creation and so it was that God did proceed to form man after his own image, that he might place his spirit children into that so prepared and designed tabernacle of flesh and bone. So the Gods created man in their own image, in the image of the Gods created they them, both male and female.

To what use and purpose the world had been placed prior to the creation for the placement of Adam and those spirit children of God here so assigned is not a part of the Biblical record. What is understood from it is that this earth had become, if it had housed life prior to the Biblical creation, a death planet, empty, desolate and void of life as suited by the existence of man and the purposes of God. Science speakes of life ending catostrophic events in earth's past history. But what intelligence proceeded to made such order out of such desolate extinction that is capable of bring life, even restoring life to such a desolate, empty and void form? That is the power of God and the creative process of the pattern of the six phases of creation, bring a dead planet to life. That is the Genesis process of life.

Order does not evolve out of chaos. Order is bred of intelligence and the all knowingness of God who is capable of setting out the DNA molecule with the design and program of life after a world has been so ordered, organized, prepared and 'created' that it might sustain such life when placed upon it.


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