Genesis 2

Is this the same God?

Welcome to the Daily Bible Chapter. My name is James Leroy Wilson and I invite you to join me as we discover new insights and new perspectives from a very old book.

Read Genesis 2 from your preferred translation. Mine is Young’s Literal Translation (YLT) because it preserves the present-tense of the original Hebrew.

The first three verses of Genesis 2 seem to complete what was written in Genesis 1.(One can’t help but notice that the 7-day creation process is what we call a week.) In verse 4 comes a seemingly different story of the creation of man by “Jehovah God.” Other translations, completed by committees of scholars, typically say “LORD God” with Lord in all capitals.

“Jehovah” was, at the time the YLT was published in 1862, in common usage for the four-consonant word YHWH of Hebrew. “Yahweh” is now more commonly used than Jehovah, but most translations now say the LORD.

In any case, I found it striking that Chapter 1 through the third verse of Chapter 2 mentions “God,” then suddenly in verse 4 the name “Jehovah God” begins appearing. It’s commonly translated “the LORD God.” But because in our culture “Lord” and “God” are often used interchangeably, it’s easy to overlook that “the LORD God” is never mentioned in Genesis 1. The difference is more noticeable if you’re reading a…