Old Testament Reading: Genesis 2:4-17

“These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’” (Genesis 2:4–17, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Revelation 21:22-22:5

“And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.” (Revelation 21:22–22:5, ESV)

Introduction

What made the garden in Eden paradise? Was it the scenery? Was it the climate? Was it the lush tress or the savory food? Now I do not doubt for a moment that the garden in Eden was a very beautiful and pleasant place, but it was not the place that made Eden paradise. Instead, Eden was a paradise to the first man and woman because there they enjoyed the presence of God. In Eden Adam and Eve lived in right relationship to God. In Eden Adam and Eve enjoyed communion with the God who made them. There was no sin in that place. There was no suffering. In Eden there was no death (at least not human death). And in Eden there was God. God was present with the first man and woman. He walked with them and they with him. They were at peace. It was God’s presence in Eden combined with the absence of sin, suffering and death that made the garden in Eden a paradise for the first man and woman. Man was made in the image of God in order to commune with God, and in Eden that communion was thoroughly enjoyed.

Remember that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earthly realm was at first without form and void and darkness was over the face of the deep. In six days time God formed the earthly realm into a place suitable for human habitation. And after the earth was fully formed God made man and gave him “dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth”. The man and woman were “blessed” by God. They were to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it…” (Genesis 1:28, ESV). This was the story of Genesis 1.

But note this: the man and the woman were not to live independent from God. They were not to live autonomously, but were to go on living in continual dependence upon the God who made them. Man was made to know his Maker. Man was made to commune with his God. Man was to live for the glory of God and to enjoy him forever. While this truth is not clearly established in the creation narrative of Genesis 1, it is clearly established in Genesis 2.

In Genesis 1 it is the transcendence of God that is emphasized. In Genesis 1 it is the distinction between Creator and creature that comes to the fore. But in Genesis 2:4ff. we learn that the same God who in the beginning created the heavens and earth is the God who relates to man. Elohim is Yahweh Elohim. He is the covenant making and covenant keeping God. God Almighty is relational. Not only did he create the earth to be a place for human habitation, he also planted a garden to function as a sanctuary where the man and woman he made would enjoy his presence. This is the story of Genesis 2. It is here we learn that God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into him the breath of life. Likewise God formed the woman from man. God planted a garden in Eden. He placed the man there and entered into a covenantal relationship with him.

Friends, the garden in Eden was more than a garden, for God’s presence was there. God walked with Adam and Eve in that garden paradise. The garden in Eden was a temple, or sanctuary.

How do we know?

First, by paying careful attention to the description of the garden in the narrative of Genesis 2 & 3.

The context of Genesis 3:8-9 is negative, for in that passage God is found confronting man in his rebellion, but it proves the point that is being made. There we read, “And they [Adam and Eve] heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden” (Genesis 3:8–9, ESV). Here in Genesis 3:8-9 “God walking” in the garden and “the presence of God” brought terror to the man and the woman, but that was because of their sin. When they were upright and holy God’s walking and God’s presence amongst them were purely pleasant to the man and woman, for then they stood in a right relationship to God.

When suggesting that the garden was a temple I suppose we should ask the question, what makes a temple a temple? Is it not the presence of God that sets the place off as unique and distinct from all other places? A temple is that place where God is present in pronounced way. A temple is a place where man may approach God to commune with him. The garden in Eden was such a place.

Someone might say, but isn’t God omnipresent? Isn’t he all places at all times? Indeed he is! There is nowhere you may go to escape the presence of God. This is what the Psalmist is reflecting upon in Psalm 139 when he says, “If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me” (Psalm 139:8–10, ESV). When I speak of God’s presence as the distinguishing characteristic of a temple I am of course saying that God is present within his temple is a unique and potent way.

Though it be true that God is everywhere present, he was present in Eden in a pronounced way. There man enjoyed communion with the God who made him. There in that place something of the glory of God was manifest.

God’s “walking” in the garden, his “presence” in that place and his communion with the man and the women all indicate that the garden in Eden was more than a lush garden, but was in fact a temple or sanctuary where man beheld the glory of the Lord.

How do we know that Eden was a temple? First, by paying careful attention to the description of the garden in the narrative of Genesis 2 & 3.

Secondly, we learn that Eden was a temple when we compare it to the temple that Israel built according to the command of God.

This, in my opinion, is where the matter is settled. Israel, as you know, was instructed to build a portable tabernacle, and later a permanent temple, according to instructions given to Moses by God. And what was the purpose of the tabernacle and temple of Israel? Was it not to show that Israel was God’s chosen people? Was it not to show that God was present with them in a unique way? Was it not to show that God was in covenant with Israel and did commune with them?

This is indeed what Leviticus 26:11-12 teaches. There God speaks to Israel saying, “I will make my dwelling among you… And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people” (Leviticus 26:11–12, ESV). The reader should immediately think of Eden when reading Leviticus 26. In Eden God dwelt with Adam and Eve. God was present in the garden with them. He walked amongst the first man and woman in that place. And now, so many years after the fall of Adam, God speaks to Israel, whom he just redeemed from Egypt, saying “I will make my dwelling among you… And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people”. And where did God in fact dwell within Israel? He dwelt within the tabernacle and temple that Israel built according to the command of God.

We should remember that Moses was the one who wrote Genesis, but he also wrote Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. These five books, which are commonly called the Pentateuch, were delivered to Israel, and through Israel to us. They are meant to be read together. We come to understand what the garden in Eden was, not only by reading Genesis 2 and 3, but the Pentateuch as a whole (as well as the rest of scripture, as we shall see).

The Pentateuch tells a story. These books from Moses told a story to ancient Israel, and they tell us a story today. And what is the story? Adam and Eve enjoyed communion with God in the garden. Adam sinned and was cast out. But God is gracious! He has determined to redeem a people for his own possession. He has made a way for man to have a right relationship with him.

The tabernacle and temple of Old Covenant Israel were to be understood in this way. They were constructed according to the command of God given to Moses in order to function as a picture of the original creation and the original garden in Eden, which was itself a temple or sanctuary for God.

Though I am not comfortable with all of Meredith Kline’s ideas about Genesis 1 and 2, I do believe he gets this right when he says, “God produced in Eden a microcosmic version of his cosmic sanctuary. The garden planted there was holy ground with guardianship of its sanctity committed in turn to men and to cherubim. It was the temple-garden of God, the place chosen by the Glory-Spirit who hovered over creation from the beginning to be the focal site of his throne-presence among men… Eden had the character of a holy tabernacle, a microcosmic house of God. And since it lory was God himself who, present in his theophanic Glory, constituted the Edenic temple, man in the Garden of God could quite literally confess that Yahweh was his refuge and refuge and the Most High was his habitation” “(Kline, Images of the Spirit, pp. 35-37).

This is right, I think. Eden was made to function as a microcosm of the whole cosmos, which itself was created as a sanctuary for God (heaven is my throne and the earth y footstool), and Israel’s tabernacle and temple was created to function as a miniature version of the cosmos and of Eden. The massage “preached” by the tabernacle of Israel was that access to God the Creator may still be had! Why? Because God the Creator is also God the Redeemer. He may be approached by his people, but now not without the shedding of blood, given the fact of sin.

It becomes clear that Eden was a temple when we compare it with the temple that Israel built according to the command of God. The temple of Old Covenant Israel was designed to function as a picture in miniature of the whole cosmos and of Eden. All three – the cosmos, the garden in Eden, and Israel’s tabernacle – were temples constructed to “house” God’s presence to facilitate communion between God and man.

Did you know that when God gave Moses the instructions for the building of the tabernacle they were delivered to him in a series of seven speeches beginning in Exodus 25:1 and concluding in Exodus 27:19. Think about that for moment. When God created the heavens and earth he did so in seven days. When God commanded Moses to create the tabernacle he delivered the command in seven stages.

Also, did you know that there are similarities between the conclusion of the creation week and the conclusion of the construction of the tabernacle. On day seven of creation God entered into rest. And after God finished instructing Moses concerning the construction of the tabernacle the Sabbath command was reiterated (see Exodus 31:17). In fact, when the creation of the tabernacle was complete the presence of the Lord “settled [or rested] on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle” (Exodus 40:35, ESV). Clearly the creation of the cosmos and the creation of the tabernacle parallel one another.

And what do we see when we consider the actual construction of the tabernacle and temple? We see that the building was designed to function as a picture, or as a miniature model, of the heavens and earth and of God’s original temple in Eden.

The tent itself represented the heavens that God stretched out at the beginning of creation. The veil which separated the holy place from the holy of holies represented the firmament which was created on day two of creation. The large bronze lavers which were crafted to hold water used for cleansing represented the seas which were formed on day three of creation. The lamp stand symbolizes the luminaries that were created on day four. The winged cherubim which decorated the temple correspond to the bird that were created on day five. And the consecration of the high priest corresponds to the creation of man on day six. On day seven of creation God finished his work, ceased from it and blessed it. When the tabernacle was finished, the people ceased from their labor and Moses blessed it.

Exodus 39:32 and 43: “Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was finished, and the people of Israel did according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses; so they did… And Moses saw all the work, and behold, they had done it; as the Lord had commanded, so had they done it. Then Moses blessed them.” (Exodus 39:32, 43, ESV)

What I am saying is that when one compares the tabernacle that Israel built according to the command of God with creation in general, and the garden in particular, it becomes clear that the tabernacle was to function as a miniature version of creation with the garden being symbolized by the holy of holies.

Many other comparisons could be made if we had the time. Consider the river that flowed out of Eden and the many prophesies that speak of a river flowing from the temple of God. Consider the precious stones that are mentioned in Genesis 2 and the fact that these precious stones were used in the temple of Israel for the worship of God. Consider also how images of angels adorned Israel’s tabernacle – two guarded the ark of the covenant in the most holy place, and the curtains had cherubim embroidered on them – and how angels were tasked with guarding the entrance to the garden in Eden after man’s fall into sin. Clearly, the worshipper would have felt as if he were walking through the cosmos and towards Eden as he walked through the tabernacle of Israel. When he came to the menorah he would have been reminded of the tree of life.

If Israel’s tabernacle and temple were designed to rind the worshipper of the cosmos in general and of Eden in particular then what message did this convey? would not the message have been, the cosmos and Eden were designed to be a sanctuary where man would commune with God. Man fell and was cast out, but God has been gracious. A way to communion with God is still available.

Thirdly, we know that the garden in Eden was a temple when we observe how the new heavens and earth are described at the end of the book of Revelation.

Remember that the new heavens and new earth which will be ushered in at Christ’s return are described in at the end of the book of Revelation as a temple: “And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Revelation 21:22–27, ESV)

Notice that a river of life is seen flowing from the throne of God in Revelation 22:1, just as a river is said to have flowed from Eden in Genesis 2: “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb” (Revelation 22:1, ESV).

And remember that the tree of life is said to be in the new heavens and earth: “through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” (Revelation 22:2, ESV)

Clearly we are to remember Eden when see a depiction of the the new heavens and earth in Revelation 21 and 22. The new heavens and earth will be a return to Eden, sort of.

The garden in Eden was a temple, but clearly it was not the eschatological temple, for there are some very important difference between Eden and the new heavens and earth.

One, there is no tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the new heavens and earth.

Two, the who earth is described as Eden in the new heavens and earth.

Three, it is the glory of God and the lamb that will fill that place.

If the new heaven and earth are described as a sanctuary where God and man commune with one another, and if the new heavens and earth are described in Edenic terms, then Eden must have been a sanctuary also .

Fourthly, by we understand that Eden was a temple when we recognize that the theme of “temple” runs throughout the pages of Holy Scripture from beginning to end.

The earth was created to function as a sanctuary for God. Eden was the first holy of holies. When man fell access to the holy of holies was denied. Cherubim were set to guard the entrance. The story of redemption which follows can be described in terms of God reestablishing and making permanent and sure mans enjoyment of the garden sanctuary of God.

The patriarchs build alters to worship God. This they did amongst trees and on mountains. These were temples in miniature. Israel build the tabernacle under Moses and the temple under Solomon. Here God walked amongst his people. Here the people enjoyed his presence. When the Christ came the temple of stone was declared by him to be desolate. Now, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the one who has faith in Christ is said to be the temple of the Holy Spirit: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20, ESV). The church is the temple of God under the New Covenant: “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:16–17, ESV). When Christ returns all of creation will be temple, for the glory of God and of Christ will fill all.

This was God’s design from the beginning. The cosmos were created to function as a sanctuary where man would enjoy the presence of God forever and ever.

Application

You were made to know God. You were made to commune with him. You were made to live enveloped by his presence and to bask in his glory.

Do you know God? Are you at peace with God? I do not mean, do you feel at peace with God. But are you? Are you in a right relationship to God?

It is only possible through faith in Christ. He accomplished what Adam failed to do. He opened the way into the eschatological Eden.

If you are in Christ, do you realize that you are God’s temple?

You are God’s temple personally. Are you living holy?

We are God’s temple collectively. Are we living holy?

Old Testament Reading: Genesis 2:4-17

“These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’” (Genesis 2:4–17, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Romans 5:12-21

“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 5:12–21, ESV)

Introduction 

In the previous sermon I made five general, big picture observations concerning Genesis 2:4-25. The five observations were these:

1. Genesis 2:4 marks the beginning of a new section of the book of Genesis. The phrase, “these are the generations of…” marks the transition from one section to another in the book of Genesis. 
2. The creation account of Genesis 2 does not compete with the creation account of Genesis 1, but complements it, providing a different perspective and emphasis. In Genesis 1 God is the transcendent and all powerful Creator of heaven and earth. In Genesis 2 God is near to his people and hands on.
3. The focus of Genesis 2:4-25 is God entering into covenant with the man that he had made.
4. In Genesis 2 we have a record of God creating the holy of holies of the cosmic temple. 
5. Adam’s task, with Eve as his helpmate, was to function as a priest in this temple, to guard and to keep it, working towards its universal expansion. 

Points three through five of last weeks sermon are very important concepts and they deserve greater attention, and so in this sermon and in the next two we will return to those three points to flesh them out more thoroughly. Today we will focus on the covenant of works that was made with Adam in the garden, next Sunday we will focus upon the garden as a temple or sanctuary, and in two Lord’s Days we will return to the idea of Adam as a priest in the garden of God, Lord willing.

What do we mean when we say that God entered into a covenant of works with Adam in the garden? Answering this question will be the focus of the sermon today. 

A covenant is simply an agreement. 

When speaking of a covenant made between God and man we must say that it is a “divinely-sanctioned commitment or relationship” (Barcellos, Getting the Garden Right, 56). Notice that it is God who initiates and established covenants with man. Man has no right to say to God, “here will be the nature and terms of our relationship”, but God certainly has the right to say this man, for God is the Creator and we the creature. In the pages of holy Scripture we find a number of covenant established between God and man. All of them were initiated and established by God. It is God who condescends to enter into covenant with man. 

It should also be noticed that these covenants made between God and man (and there are many) are always for the betterment of mankind. God establishes covenants with his people in order to advance or better their estate. Divinely established covenants, to quote Nehemiah Cox, involve “a declaration of [God’s] sovereign pleasure concerning the benefits he will bestow on [his people], the communion they will have with him, and the way and means by which this will be enjoyed.” God has always related to his people by way of covenant. It is the covenant which establishes and defines God’s relationship with his people. 

We do have an analogy available to us. It is the analogy of the marriage covenant. The relationship that exists between a husband and wife is wonderful and rich, but it is established and maintained by a covenant. The husband and wife enter into an agreement with one another. They covenant together when they say, “I take you to be my wedded spouse, and I do promise and covenant before God and these witnesses to be your loving and faithful spouse in sickness and in health  in plenty and in want, in joy and in sorrow, as long as we both shall live.” It is a covenant which establishes and maintains the marriage relationship. It should be recognized that God entering into covenant with man, and God instituting the marriage relationship are set side by side in Genesis 2. This, of course, is intentional. For the marriage relationship was created to function as an image of Christ’s relationship to the church. The covenant of marriage made between man and woman is a picture of the divinely sanctioned covenant made between God and his people. 

A covenant is an agreement. When speaking of a covenant made between God and man we must say that it is a “divinely-sanctioned commitment or relationship” (Barcellos, Getting the Garden Right, 56).

There are many covenants found in the pages of holy scripture. In due time we will consider the Noahic covenant, the Abrahamic, the Mosaic, and the Davidic. But two covenants are of supreme importance, for they are the root and fruit of the others that have just been mentioned. 

These covenants – the Noahic, Abrahamic, Mosaic, and Davidic – pointed forward to and prepared the way for the covenant of grace ratified in Christ’s blood. We call the covenant of grace “the new covenant”. Remember how Christ said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:25, ESV). The new covenant, which is the covent of grace, is the fruit, as it were, of all the covenants which proceeded it. They all pointed forward to and prepared the way for the covenant of grace ratified by Christ. 

But there is another very important covenant which might be called the root or foundation of all the others. It is called the covenant or works, or the covenant of obedience, or the covenant of creation, or the covenant of life. Sometimes it is called the Adamic covenant, for it was made with Adam in the garden and required his personal, “entire, exact, and perpetual obedience” and promised life upon the keeping of it (see Second London Baptist Confession, ch 19, para 1). 

When I say that the covenant of works is the root of he other covenants I mean that it is the foundation. All of the other biblical covenants flow from it. Indeed, you cannot correctly understand the covenants made with Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David if you do not first understand the covenant of works made with Adam in the garden. In fact, the new covenant, which is the covent of grace, of which you and I are partakers if we are in Christ, would not be possible without their first being a covenant of works made with Adam in the garden. The covenant of works is the root of all other bibleof the covenant of grace. 

Another way to say this is, if you want to understand the Bible – if you want to understand your sin and your natural guilt before God – if you want to comprehend what it is that Christ actually accomplished for you, then you had better pay attention to the covenant that was made with Adam in the garden.

We have defined a covenant between God and man generally as a “divinely-sanctioned commitment or relationship”. This general definition fits all of the covenants that God has entered into with man. But let us now define the covenant of works specifically. Again, I appreciate the words of my friend, Dr. Rich Barcellos, who defines the covenant of works as, “that divinely sanctioned commitment or relationship God imposed upon Adam, who was a sinless representative of mankind…, an image-bearing son of God, conditioned upon his obedience, with a penalty for disobedience, all for the bettering of man’s estate” (Barcellos, Getting the Garden Right, 57).

Let us think about this definition for a moment and consider in light Genesis. 

First, the covenant of works was a divinely sanctioned commitment or relationship [that] God imposed upon Adam.

This relationship was not Adam’s idea, but God’s. Before God Adam had no rights. He had no right to say, here will be the nature and term of our relationship, for Adam was the creature and God Creator. This distinction between Creator and creature was firmly established in Genesis 1. Man did not make God, but God made man. Man, therefore, by virtue of his creation stood obligated before his Maker to worship and serve him always. The fact of creation itself established this relation. No specific covenant was needed. But God did graciously enter into a covenant with the man. The covenant of works was a “divinely sanctioned commitment or relationship [that] God imposed upon Adam”.

This is should not be difficult to see in the narrative of Genesis 1 and 2. God made man. God blessed man. God commanded man, male and female, to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion…” (Genesis 1:28, ESV). The same is true in chapter 2. The LORD God made man and then establishes the terms of their relationship. 

This might seem like a strange point to emphasize given it’s simplicity. You might be saying to yourself, “Okay, we get it. God is God and man is man. God has the right to initiate and to establish the terms of the relationship. Move on already!” But herein lies the difference between true and biblical religion and that which is man made. Herein lies the difference between the child of God and the rebel still in his sin. The chid of God says, “yes, God has the right and I will submit to him!” The rebel says, “I will decide for myself and go my own way.”

The covenant of works was a divinely sanctioned commitment or relationship [that] God imposed upon Adam.   

Secondly, the covenant of works was made with Adam who was a sinless representative of mankind, an image-bearing son of God.

Notice that the covenant was made with Adam. The woman, who name was Eve, had not been created when “the Lord God took the man [Adam] and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die’” (Genesis 2:15–17, ESV). The covenant was made with Adam, and not Eve.

Notice that Adam was at first sinless. Everything that God had made was good, indeed very good. Adam was made upright. To quote our confession, “God… endued the will of man with that natural liberty and power of acting upon choice, that it is neither forced, nor by any necessity of nature determined to do good or evil.” Adam was free. “In his state of innocency, [he] had freedom and power to will and to do that which was good and well-pleasing to God, but yet was unstable, so that he might fall from it” (2LBC 9.1, 2). God entered into a covenant of works or obedience with Adam and “endued him with power and ability to keep it” (2LBC 19.1). Adam was sinless. He was good and upright in the beginning. 

And notice that Adam was a representative of all mankind. Had Adam succeeded all would have enjoyed life. When Adam fell all fell in him. You and I were born in sin because we were born in Adam. We descended from him by birth. He was our federal head and representative. 

No teaching in all of scripture is more clear than this. 

The narrative of Genesis confirms that Adam was the federal head and representative of all humanity. Adam and Eve were barred from the garden and all of their descendents were born outside the garden. They were born in sin, they themselves sinned, and they, like Adam died. 

This is also the explicit teaching of holy scripture. The Psalmist said, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me” (Psalm 51:5, ESV). Paul, in Ephesians 2 says that  we all are “by nature children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:3, ESV). And Paul developes this idea most thoroughly in Romans 5 in the passage that was read earlier, saying, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—” (Romans 5:12, ESV). 

The clear teaching of scripture is that the covenant of works was made with Adam who was a sinless representative of mankind.

Does this bother you, Christian?

This principle is woven into our everyday experience. The decisions of others impact us.  

Your salvation in Christ depends upon this principle too! Just as Adam is the federal head of all humanity, Christ is the federal head of the elect, of al who have faith in him. Just as Adam’s is inputed to all who are in him, so too Christ’s righteousness is imputed to all who are in him.   

Thirdly, the covenant of works made with Adam was conditioned upon his obedience, with a penalty for disobedience. 

What was Adam’s obligation in the covent of works? The answer is that Adam was to obey God.

What was Adam to do? Remember that Adam, having been made in the image of God and having been blessed by God, was to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Genesis 1:27–28, ESV).

Adam was to fill the earth with God’s image. He was to subdue the earth. He was to rule and reign on earth a God’s vicegerent. He was explained the kingdom of God to the ends of the earth. 

In Genesis 2 we learned that God planted a garden in Eden and placed the man who had created there. The whole earth, therefore, was not garden, but rather a garden was planted in a place called Eden. Outside the garden there was wild, unformed, uncultivated land. Adam’s task was to expand the garden to the ends of the earth. He was to imitate his Maker in bringing order and form to those places that were without form and void.    

Notice the mention of the four rivers in verses 10-14. It is a rather unexpected emphasis in the narrative of Genesis 2. Two of the rivers are known to us, and two are mysterious, but the meaning seems to be that these rivers emanated out to the four corners of the earth so that man might have all that he needed to expand God’s garden to the ends of the earth through cultivation. 

This is was Adam was to do while living in “entire, exact, and perpetual obedience” to God. 

Clearly, Adam was placed under probation or a time of testing. 

The tree of the knowledge of good and evil was a tree of testing. The tree would show if Adam had remained loyal to God. By abstaining Adam would prove himself faithful. By partaking Adam would prove himself a rebel – a breaker of the convent of works, which was a covenant requiring “entire, exact, and perpetual obedience”.  

Fourthly, the covenant of works made with Adam was for the bettering of man’s condition.

In Genesis 2:9 we read, “And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (Genesis 2:9, ESV).

The presence of the tree of life in the garden indicates that Adam had a higher form of life offered t him by God. Adam was already alive. Adam was alive in paradise. But he was prone to fall. Adam, being under a time of testing, had not yet attained the glory of God. He was to pass the test, eat of the tree of life, and enter into glory. 

Brothers and sisters, Adam never ate of it. Adam sinned and fell short of the glory of God. And now it might be said that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23, ESV).

But do you see that the covenant of works made with Adam for the bettering of man’s condition. Adam, by keeping the covenant, was to advance to a higher form of life, not only for himself, but for all his posterity whom he represented. 

Application

Friends, do you see that where Adam failed, Christ succeeded?

Christ kept the covent of works. Christ remained obedient to God to the end. His obedience was “entire, exact, and perpetual”.  

Adam was the son of God by virtue of his creation, but Christ, being the eternal son of God entered into glory when he kept the covent of works. And this he did, not only for himself, but for all the elect as he functioned as their federal head or representative. 

Listen to the prayer of Jesus for his disciples recoded for us in John 17. Jesus “lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word” (John 17:1–6, ESV).

Jesus kept God’s word. He finished his work. 

Jesus was qualified, therefore, to enter into glory – into that higher form of life offered to Adam in the garden. 

Jesus entered in, not alone, but as a representative for others. He earned salvation for “all whom [the Father had] given him.”

Are you in Adam or are you in Christ? 

Are you under he covenant of works or the covenant of grace?

To be under the covenant of works means death, for “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23, ESV).

To be under the covent of grace means life – eternal life, “for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23, ESV).

Old Testament Reading: Genesis 2:4-25

“These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’ Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.’ Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him. So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.’ Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.” (Genesis 2:4–25, ESV)

Introduction 

It has been my custom, whenever we come to a new section in a book that we are studying, be it the Gospel of John, the book of Revelation, or Genesis, to devote one sermon to the new section in order to make general, “big picture” observations, before moving through the section more methodically in subsequent sermons. I think it is important that we do this. Many of the errors that are made in the interpretation of the Bible are made when people loose sight of the context of a particular passage. And when I say “context” I do not only mean the sentences and paragraphs  that come before and after the passage under consideration, but also passages place within the book, and the books place within the whole of scripture. Critical to the proper interpretation of the Bible is this principle: scripture interprets scripture. So if we are to have any chance of interpreting Genesis 2:4-25 correctly we must pay careful attention, not only to the words, sentences and paragraphs found there, but also its context, both immediate and canonical. What does the rest of scripture say that might help us in understanding this passage correctly? That is an important question to ask. 

I’m afraid that when people read Genesis 2:4 and following many assume it is myth. They think they are handling a folktale – a fictional story with moral principles imbedded within. And I fear that others, though they might rightly believe that Genesis 2:4 and following is true and historical, assume that it is nothing more than a simple and direct retelling of the creation of the first man and woman. God made the man, he made the woman, and they were farmers. Genesis 2, in their interpretation, simply tells the facts. But the truth is found somewhere in-between these two extremes – neither is Genesis 2 myth (what it is says actually happened), nor is it a bare and plainly factual account of the creation of man. Instead, in Genesis 2 we find true history recounted in a literally style that beautifully rich, complex, and illuminating. 

How do we know that Genesis 2 is more than just a bare, factual account of the creation of man?  Well, by examining the passage itself, and by paying careful attention to the rest of scripture concerning the way that it interprets the text. 

A careful consideration of the passage itself reveals that there is structure to it. I will not linger here very long lest I bore you with too many details, but it should be noticed that Genesis 2:4 through to the end of chapters 3 make up a unit. Here we are told all about the first man and woman and their relationship to God while in the garden that was in Eden. This section (2:4-3:24) is made up of seven parts, and these seven parts form a chiasm, so that part 1 (2:5-17 – narrative – God the sole actor, man present but passive) corresponds to part 7 (3:22-24 – narrative – God the sole actor, man passive), part 2 (2:18-25 – narrative – God main actor, man minor role, woman and animals passive) to part 6 (3:14-21 – narrative – God main actor, man minor role, woman and snake passive), part 3 (3:1-5 – dialogue – snake and woman)  to part 5 (3:9-13 – dialogue – God, man and woman), with part 4 taking center stage (3:6-8 – narrative, man and woman) (See Wenham, World Biblical Commentary, p. 50). And what do we find in Genesis 3:6-8 (which is at the point or center of the chiasm)? It is this passage:

“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths. And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.” (Genesis 3:6–8, ESV)

Clearly, Genesis 2 is more than bare, simple and factual account of the creation of man. Instead it is a beautifully rich and complex piece of literature which communicates truth to us – not only the bare facts, but the deeper truths which lie behind those bare facts. 

When we consider how the rest of the scriptures view Genesis 2 we will find that there are are many things of great importance contained within this text that are only briefly mentioned or alluded to. These truths are deposited in seed form in Genesis 2, if you will. As we read on in the pages of holy scripture we will watch those seeds develop into full grown trees. This is what I mean when I say that the story of Genesis 2 is rich. It is a story that little children can understand. At the same time it is a story so packed full of meaning that the Christian can spend a lifetime pondering and applying its truths.

Today I have five general observations to make concerning Genesis 2:4-25. I should warn you ahead of time that points 3, 4 and 5 are very important – they are very significant concepts theologically – and yet I will rush through them today, providing very little support from the scriptures. Rest assured that we will return to these points in the weeks to come to flesh them out more carefully, Lord willing. I wish only to introduce you to these truths today.

Five general observations concerning Genesis 2:4-25:

First, notice that 2:4 marks the beginning of a new section of the book of Genesis. There we read, “These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens” (Genesis 2:4, ESV). 

The phrase, “these are the generations of…”, is very important in the book of Genesis. This phrase, “these are the generations of…” (or something very close to it),  is found 10 times in the book of Genesis and it marks the transition of one section of the book to another.

The book of Genesis is made up of 10 parts, not including the prologue or introduction of Genesis 1:1-2:3 which we have already covered. The phrase, “these are the generations of…”, appears in 2:4 – “These are the generations of the heavens and the earth…”, 5:1 – “This is the book of the generations of Adam…”, 6:9 – “These are the generations of Noah…”, 10:1 – “These are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth…”, 11:10 – “These are the generations of Shem…”, 11:27 – “Now these are the generations of Terah…”, 25:12 – “These are the generations of Ishmael…”, 25:19 – “These are the generations of Isaac…”, 36:1 – “These are the generations of Esau (that is, Edom)…”, and 37:2 – “These are the generations of Jacob.”

Notice that in each instance the phrase, “these are the generations of” functions as a heading to the section that follows. In every instance but the one we are considering today it is the name of some historical person that is listed after the phrase. “These are the generations of… Adam, Noah, Terah”, etc. What follows is either a genealogy or a block of narrative concerning the descendants of that individual.  These are the people who came from so and so, or, these are the people that so and so produced. That is the idea. 

Here in 2:4 it is not a person who is named, but two things – “These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens” (Genesis 2:4, ESV). And what is described to us in the narrative that follows except that which heaven and earth generate? God, who’s throne is in heaven, forms and fashions or causes the earth to bring forth certain things. The earth gave birth to, if you will, plants, animals and man by the creative hand of the God of heaven. 

Look at verse 7: “…then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” Verse 9: “And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food.” Verse 19: “Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.” “These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens” (Genesis 2:4, ESV).

Secondly, notice that the creation account of Genesis 2 does not in any way compete with the creation account of chapter 1, but complements it, providing a different perspective and emphasis. 

It has already been established that in the beginning God created the heavenly realm and the earthly realm. Over the course of six days God brought the earthly realm into a form suitable for human habitation. At first “the earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep”, but God did not leave it as such, for God created the world to be inhabited. In six days time God formed and fashioned the earth creating, first of all, realms and then filling those realms with rulers or creature kings. 

Light was separated from darkness on day one. The sun moon and stars were created on day four to govern the day and night. 

The sky and seas were created on day two when God separated the waters from the waters. On day five the seas and the sky were filled with fish and birds to have dominion over those realms. 

On day three the dry land was formed. Listen carefully to Genesis 1:9-13, and pay special attention to the emphasis that is placed upon the vegetation that God made to spring up from the dry land. This will become significant as we consider the creation account of Genesis 2. 

 “And God said, ‘Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. And God said, ‘Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.’ And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.” (Genesis 1:9–13, ESV)

On day six God created the land animals and man to have dominion over the earth – indeed, man was created to have dominion over all that God had made. Listen carefully to Genesis 1:24-31. Again, pay special attention to the emphasis placed upon the vegetation that God had provided for man and beast to eat. 

“And God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.’ And it was so. And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’ And God said, ‘Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.’” (Genesis 1:24–31, ESV)

By the end of Genesis we are convinced that God is God Most High. He is the Creator of heaven and earth. Everything that is has come from his hand. And man, being made in the image of God, is king on earth. He is not king as God is King, for God is his Maker and Provider, but he is to rule as a king under God’s supreme authority. God provided for man’s every need. He prepared a place for him. He provided food to sustain him. King Adam was to “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 

Genesis 2 does not present a contrary account of creation to the one found in chapter 1, but a complementary account. The emphasis go Genesis 2 is different to the emphasis of chapter 1. Both are true. 

Notice that the creation accounts of Genesis 1 and 2 begin with problems. 

In Genesis 1 we are told that the earth was at first without, form, void and dark. The solution was for God to form and fashion the earth into a place suitable for human habitation. 

Genesis 2 begins with a different problem. The earth was not suitable for human habitation because there were no plants. Verse 5 takes us back to the time “When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up…” In other words, Genesis 2:5 takes us back to the beginning of day three. The dry land had been formed, but there was no vegetation. There was no “bush of the field in the land”, which means that there were no plants growing naturally in the wild. Neither had any “small plant of the field… sprung up”, which means that there were no cultivated plants either. 

And why the lack of plants, both wild and cultivated? Two reason are stated in verse 5. One, “the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land” and two, “there was no man to work the ground”. Wild plants are able to grow when there is rain, and cultivated plants are able to grow when man is there till the soil, irrigate and cultivate. The absence of rain and the absence of man meant no vegetation – only barren earth. The earth was not suitable for human habitation. 

And what was the solution this problem? Two things: God sent rain and God created man to till the ground. Verse 6: “and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” (Genesis 2:6–7, ESV)

There was no vegetation, wild or cultivated, because of lack of rain and man. Solution: God caused it to rain (I think that is the best interpretation of the phrase “a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground”, and God created man.

Notice that in verse 8 we are told that “the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed.” In verse 15 we are told “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.”

Days 3 and 6 of the creation week are emphasized in Genesis 2 and are viewed from a different perspective. Here I am simply making the point that the creation account of Genesis 2 does not in any way compete with the creation account of chapter 1, but complements it, providing a different perspective and emphasis.

This leads us to point three. Notice that the focus of Genesis 2:4-25 is God entering into covenant with the man that he had made. 

In Genesis 1 it is clear that man owes worship and service God by virtue of his creation. God is Creator. Man is creation. Therefore man is live in submission to his God to worship and serve him always. In Genesis 1 we learn that God offed rest to man should he faithfully accomplish the work that God had assigned to him. But in Genesis 2 a covenant is made. An agreement is made between God and man. The punishment of failing to follow through on the agreement is communicated. And a sign or sacrament is given. 

What is the agreement? Adam was to walk faithfully before God He was to fulfill his mission of filling the earth with the garden of God and with faithful descendants. God had abundantly provided for all of mans needs. He could eat from any of the trees of the garden with the exception of one. Adam was to abstain from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In time, he was to eat from the tree of life. In short, what was Adam to do? He was to walk in humble and faithful submission to his Maker. He was to complete his task living perpetually in depend on and in obedience to the God who made him. What was the symbol or sacrament given to Adam? What was the visible thing that would show forth the hidden realities of Adams heart? The tree of life, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And what would be the consequence of failing to keep his end of the agreement? In the day that Adam ate of it he would surely die (Genesis 2:17, ESV).

The word covenant does not appear in Genesis 2, but the elements of a covenant are there. Also, if we consider what the rest of the scriptures say about Genesis 2, it is clear that Adam, functioning as a representative for all of mankind, entered into a covenant of works with God in the garden (see Genesis 6:18, Hosea 6:7 and Romans 5:12-19).

The covenant of works established in Genesis 2 was, to quote Geerhardus Vos, “nothing but an embodiment of the Sabbatical principle [established in Genesis 1]. Had its probation been successful, then the sacramental Sabbath would have passed over into the reality it typified, and the entire subsequent course of the history of the [human] race would have been radically different” (Biblical Theology, 140).     

That the emphasis of Genesis 2 is God in covenant with man can also be seen in the change of names used for God. In Genesis 1 the name for God used is Elohim (simply “God” in English). But beginning with 2:4 the name used for God is Yahweh Elohim (“LORD God” in our English translation. Elohim is a generic name for God. It is fitting to the emphasis of Genesis 1 – God the creator of all things seen and unseen. But Yahweh is the personal covenantal name for God. Yahweh is the God of Israel. He is the God who is near. He is the God who makes and keeps covenants. He is the God who breathed into Adam the breath of life, and formed Eve from the side of man.

Genesis 2 has as its focus Yahweh Elohim entering into covenant with the man that he made. 

Four, notice that while in Genesis 1 we find a record of God creating the earth to function as a temple in which his glory would dwell, in Genesis 2 we have a record of God creating the holy of holies of this cosmic temple. 

This is a massively important concept and one that will take some time to develop and prove. This I will do in the weeks to come if the Lord permits. But I wish to simply put the idea before you this morning. 

The earth was created to be filled with the glory of God. The earth was created to be a place where man would commune with God. Read the end of the book of Revelation again to see that it is true. When God planted the garden in Eden and paced the man there it was to function as the most holy place in God’s cosmic temple. 

I am not saying that there was a temple made of stone in Eden, but that the garden itself was a temple or sanctuary where God’s glory dwelt and where man was able to commune with the God who made him. 

This all becomes very clear when we consider the tabernacle and later the temple of Israel and compare it to Eden. In brief, Israel’s tabernacle and temple were miniature replicas of the cosmos. And the holy of holies in the tabernacle and temple were crafted to remind the worshipper of Eden. This will have to be proven at another time. 

For now, consider that  God is said to have “walked in the garden” (Genesis 3:8). God’s presence was there. It was a sanctuary where man and God enjoyed communion. And consider that the same language is used to describe the temple. To Israel God said, “I will make my dwelling [tabernacle] among you, and my soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people” (Leviticus 26:11–12, ESV).

The garden that God planted in Eden was a temple or sanctuary.

Five, notice that Adam’s task, with Eve as his helpmate, was to function as a priest in this temple, to guard and to keep it, working towards its universal expansion. 

Listen to verse 15: “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it” (Genesis 2:15, ESV). It would be a mistake to assume that when God commanded Adam to “work and keep” the garden he was calling him to simply be a farmer. In fact when these verbs appear together in other passage, the context is priestly. Listen to work of the priests and Levites of the temple as described in Numbers 18:2ff. To Arron it was said, “And with you bring your brothers also, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may join you and minister to you while you and your sons with you are before the tent of the testimony. They shall keep guard over you and over the whole tent, but shall not come near to the vessels of the sanctuary or to the altar lest they, and you, die. They shall join you and keep guard over the tent of meeting for all the service of the tent, and no outsider shall come near you. And you shall keep guard over the sanctuary and over the altar, that there may never again be wrath on the people of Israel.” (Numbers 18:2–5, ESV)

Adam was not simply a farmer in the garden which God planted in Eden – he was a priest. His task was to promote the worship of God. His task was to work in the garden and to keep it. He was to preserve it as holy. He was to drive away all intruders. 

In fact, when all is considered, Adam was a prophet, priest and king in the garden. He was to have king like dominion over all creation under God’s authority, he was to promote the worship of God as a priest, preserving the sanctity of the garden sanctuary, and he was to proclaim God’s law as a prophet, urging other to obey it also. 

Conclusion 

When Genesis 2 is understood in this way then we are ready to adequately comprehend the rest of scripture. When Adam sinned, he broke the covenant of works. When Adam sinned he brought upon himself, as well as all of his descendants (including you and me) the curse of the covenant. Adam and Eve were expelled, not just from a beautiful and lush garden, but from the sanctuary of God and from his presence. When Adam allowed the serpent to deceive he failed, not as a farmer, but as a priest. He failed to defend the temple of God from all intruders. He failed to preserve its sanctity. Israel’s temple was a replica in miniature of the cosmos and of the garden of Eden. It communicated that a way to communion with God was still open, by God’s grace. When the Christ appeared, he came as the second Adam, the Prophet, Priest and King. He, through his perfect obedience, entered into the most holy place, clearing the way for all who have faith in him. And what did he secure? The new heavens and new earth in which righteousness dwell. When Christ returns to judge the living and the dead and to make all things new all will become holy of holies. All who are in Christ will enjoy the presence of God forevermore. 

Are you in Christ, friend? Or are you in Adam?  Christ is the perfect and faithful high priest, whereas Adam is the failed priest. Christ is able to bring us to God. In Adam there is only judgement and death.

Are you under the covenant of works, or are you under the covenant of grace?

Do you long for the new heavens and earth in which righteousness dwells?