If you are looking for the beginning of this study you can start HERE with the brief introduction. At the bottom of that introduction will be the links to each section of the study guide as it becomes available. For this study the English Standard Version is the translation that is being utilized and you can read it online HERE or pick up the copy of your choice from Amazon or your local book store. I find THIS EDITION to be useful for deep study and annotation.
Grammar Questions: (The Information of the Text)
How does the Scripture describe the state of the earth when God first made it? (1:1-2)
What did God create on Day 1? (1:3-5)
What did God create on Day 2? (1:6-8)
What did God create on Day 3? (1:9-13)
What did God create on Day 4? (1:14-19)
What did God create on Day 5? (1:20-23)
What did God create on Day 6? (1:24-31)
What is unique about Man that makes him different from the animals? (1:27)
How many sexes did God create for mankind? (1:27)
What commands does God give to man? (28-30)
What two things does the Scripture say God did on Day 7? (2:1-3)
What two trees are placed “in the midst of the garden?” (2:9)
What purpose does God give to man in the Garden of Eden? (2:15)
What does God say will happen if Adam eats of the forbidden tree? (2:16-17)
Logic Questions: (The Interpretation of the Text)
What does it mean for the earth to be “without form and void?” (1:2)
What does it mean for God to separate light from the darkness? (1:4)
What are some words and phrases which are repeated in the text of Genesis 1 and why might that repetition be important?
What differences do you notice about what God creates in Days 1-3 versus what he makes in Days 4-6? (Gen. 1)
What is the relationship between Day 1 & 4, Day 2 & 5, and Day 3 & 6? (Gen. 1)
How is the way God creates Man different from how he creates everything else? What might this communicate to the reader/hearer of God’s word? (2:7)
Why does God bring all the animals to Adam before making him a wife? (2:18-25)
How does God define marriage in this text? (2:21-25)
Rhetoric Questions: (The Analysis of the Text)
Genesis 1-2 tells us that mankind is made in the image of God (Latin: imago dei). How should this knowledge affect us practically? What issue in human life and society should this idea impact?
God calls all that he made “good” and in the end he calls it “very good.” What does it mean for something to be good?
In Gen 2:9 the Scriptures describe the trees that God made as “pleasant to the sight.” Why does beauty matter?
In Genesis 2:15 God gives Adam work to accomplish. How important is work to our daily human life? Is it all bad or drudgery or is their satisfaction in work?
Who gets to decide what marriage is? Why?
Theological Analysis: (Scripture Interprets Scripture)
Read John 1:1-5, 14, Colossians 1:15-20, and then read Hebrews 1. In light of these passages, how is Jesus involved with the work of Creation?
Virtues/Vices/Great Ideas: (Find them in the Text)
Light vs. Darkness; Love; Wisdom
Westminster Confession & Shorter Catechism:
Q1, Q9, Q10, Q11, Q12