Genesis 1:1 - In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

This verse describes the essential Source of the physical dimension. The Supreme Being is the Ultimate Source.

As for the word "heavens," this is derived from the Hebrew word שָׁמַיִם (shamayim). According to Gesenius' Hebrew Lexicon, this word refers to the sky or visible heavens, including the stars and galaxies. In other words, Genesis is a discussion of the creation and purpose of the physical dimension - which includes numerous galaxies, universes and planets.

This verse also solves the riddle of what scientists refer to as the singularity problem.

What is the big bang theory and the singularity problem?

The singularity problem, quite simply, is the notion that scientists cannot figure out what existed prior to the theoretical initial blast of creation now termed the big bang.

The big bang theory has been supposedly validated by one primary observation: That the collection of various galaxies and their components appear to be expanding outward into space. This is called the "inflationary principle," which arose from the "Hubble Constant," named after the famed astronomer.

The hypothesis is that if the galaxies and their components are all expanding, they must have originally arose from a single point or event.

Even the physicists and cosmologists who have assumably accepted the big bang and inflationary theories still argue about them. A February 2017 article in the Scientific American journal highlighted this argument. Written by three physicists, one who had been one of the original architects of the inflation theory, the article argues that these theories are still debatable. Data streamed back from a satellite named Planck seems to contradict at least some elements of the inflation theory:

"If anything, the Planck data disfavored the simplex inflation models and exacerbated long-standing foundational problems with the theory, providing new reasons to consider competing ideas about the origin and evolution of the universe."

In other words, despite their prestigious titles and theories, these physicists that portend they have figured out how the universe was created simply do not know. They are guessing.

Yet for the virtue of science, let's elaborate on the big bang theory: Assuming such a single big bang did occur, what made it occur?

In any explosion - or any event for that matter - the laws of the physical universe tell us that there must exist the elements to produce that event. In other words, every event - and every thing in the physical universe - has a source. This we have learned from scientific observation and many decades of research.

Science, as promulgated by scientists now and in the past, must abide by certain laws of logic. This means that no matter how abstract, a scientific theory must abide by fundamental and observable realities.

Therefore, for the supposed big bang theory to be a scientific theory, it must abide by the universal rule of the physical world: That every event must have an elementary source.

For this reason, scientists have been meticulously listing the atomic elements that must have existed prior to the big bang in order for the explosion to have taken place.

But then they arrive at a dilemma - the singularity problem: Where did these elements come from? And where did the atomic energy come from that caused such a great explosion?

What about the theory of everything?

This continues to baffle scientists, providing the grist for so many imaginative theories about what existed prior to the big bang. Theories have ranged from string theories to various wave and energy theories, to the famous "theory of everything."

However, at the end of all of these theories, scientists find the same dilemma: What caused these? What elements, power or energy produced them?

Furthermore, as we look at the eventual assembly of the various beautifully organized structures of the physical universe, be they galaxies, solar systems, planets, oceans, mountains, plants, fish, animals and humans - and their continued evolution driven by a magnificent spiral-shape molecule that looks strikingly like a galaxy, called DNA - we must arrive at the conclusion that whatever was before such a creation event must also have had the potential to produce all of this arranged complexity.

In addition, we must also scientifically accept that all of the personalities among the organisms we see around us - every human and every animal and any other living organism - must also have arisen from something. What was the source of all of these personalities? What is the source of life? What is the source of love? What is the source of individuality? What is the source of desire? What is the source of the fear of death?

Certainly, if we were all simply physical machines, there would be no fear of death. We would all look forward to merging back into matter, as opposed to struggling for survival.

All of these elements, which all came into being, add to the singularity problem. Where did the capability for matter to produce all of this come from? The big bang theorists simply have no logical explanation.

What is the Original Cause?

This first verse in Genesis provides the answer. God - the Original Being from a dimension of another substance - the spiritual dimension - brought the energy and the elements together to produce the physical universe.

This is the only valid scientific conclusion that can be made. Why? Because first of all, the only valid source of the 'singularity' must be from another dimension. Since "something" cannot come from "nothing," and a beginning indicates a period of "nothing," the only valid source of the "something" must be a transmutation from another dimension.

Secondly, in order for the physical universe to have the capabilities it has: such as spiraling galaxies, gravity, DNA, atoms, molecules and so on, there must be an organizing source. Something must have provided an organizing principle.

An organizing principle requires what? Purpose: A purpose for the organization. Something that is organized infers there is a purpose for the organization. This requires an organizer with purpose.

Thirdly, life must originate from a living substance. Matter cannot become life. We can see this clearly. A living organism desires survival. A dead piece of matter does not. This means there is a difference between the two. So how did life come into being? Since living organisms struggle against the laws of the physical universe - notably that every organism dies - then the life element within living organisms must not be physical. If they were, then there would be no struggle with death. Every organism would happily accept death as a merging back to matter if life came from matter.

The struggle against death, and the very nature of the evolution of species indicates quite the opposite. Organisms struggle to stay alive - and evolve in order to stay alive - because the element of life is not a physical element.

The Source of life also has another important difference: Regarding the element of time. The physical dimension and all the physical elements are affected by time, but not the Source of life. The Source of life, the Supreme Being, is not governed by time. There is no beginning nor an end to the Supreme Being. The Supreme Being created time, so He is not subjected to it. Since the Supreme Being created the element of time, He is in control of it.

This answers the question that some raise: Who created God? Because having a beginning requires a function of the element of time, and because God created time, there is no beginning to God.

And the spiritual dimension - the dimension of the Supreme Being - is also not subject to the element of time. This is an eternal dimension, and those children of God who reside there are also eternal.

The element of time was created by the Supreme Being specifically to monitor and maintain the physical dimension.

The reality is that the Eternal Supreme Being produced the physical dimension - along with time and its innumerable universes - and impregnated it with life.

This is the only scientific conclusion that maintains the laws of nature.

And He isn’t only the Creator of this particular universe. He is the Creator of countless universes. This is evidenced by the word שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) being plural.

What is the plurality of creation?

Speaking of plural, the original Hebrew utilizes the word, אֱלֹהִים ('elohiym), which is translated to "God" in Genesis 1:1 and some of the verses following. Yet, strictly speaking, this word 'elohiym - or Elohim - is in the plural sense.

Some have opined that this means the ancient Hebrew was referencing multiple "gods." This would not be correct. Rather, the word is described as "plural intensive" which has a singular meaning referencing the God of gods, or the Great God, or the God of all. It also can reference the fact that the Supreme Being can have multiple sides and forms He may present Himself to us.

Consider, for example, that a man can be a father to his children, a loving spouse to his wife, and a tough boss to those he supervises at work. If even a simple man can have several sides depending upon the relationship, consider such an ability in the Supreme Being. The Supreme Being has such abilities to the superior degree. In other words, He can have one type of relationship with one person and another type of relationship with another person.

Such is the basis for personal relationships. Consider that along with the heavens and the earth, the Supreme Being also created living beings, and inherent in each of these living beings is the ability to have personal relationships. Every living being on this planet enjoys personal relationships, with family members, friends and so on.

If the Supreme Being can create living beings with inherent personal relationships, then we know that the Supreme Being can also have inherent within Himself, the ability to enjoy personal relationships as well.

The Creator must have within Himself what is created. Therefore, we can understand that the Supreme Being is not only a person (because He created persons), but the Supreme Being can also enjoy individual personal relationships with those persons He created.

Consider another translation for this verse in Chapter One of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 1:5 - God called the light "day," and the darkness He called "night." ...

God called the light "day," and the darkness He called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning--the first day. (Genesis 1:5)

Where did time come from?

The intent of this verse is not that the Supreme Being was going around naming things. Rather, this verse is communicating that via the differentiation between darkness from light, the Supreme Being created time.

The separation of light and darkness creates periodicity. Periodicity produces rotation, and it is the rotation of periodicity that produces the element of time. Without periodicity, there is no pacing. No alternation. Once God set into motion the element of time by separating light from darkness, He could now establish the pacing of time.

This might be compared to building a clock. When a clock-maker builds a clock, he produces gears that are a particular size. He fits these gears together in such a way that they counterbalance each other. This counterbalanced gearing produces tension, and the tension, together with the size of the gears, makes the gears turn at a certain period. This period is the pacing of the clock.

Now once the clock is built, the clockmaker can then wind up the clock and set the clock. This is being described in this verse.

God put time into motion early in the creation because He set up the physical universe to be governed by time. There is a beginning and an end to everything in the physical universe. Everything has time attached to it. This is because the physical universe - and all of the elements here - are changing with time. Every event and structure is transitory, and therefore, temporary.

What is the purpose of time?

Time is set up to allow for learning. Time allows lessons to be learned. Because of the transitory, changing nature of the physical world - driven by time - we are allowed to learn one lesson after another. We might compare this to setting up a school with the first grade followed by the second grade, followed by the third grade and so on. The setting up of the grades is established so that the child can graduate from learning one set of lessons to being ready to learn the next. Time is set up so that following the learning of one lesson comes the next lesson to learn. This allows us to evolve.

In other words, God created the physical universe as a school or rehabilitation center.

Time is part of the physical universe, but it is not an element of the spiritual world. This is illustrated here, as God created time. God is not subject to time, as He created time.

Our minds have a problem with the concept that there is a place where there is no time. That is because our minds are physical. Our minds are recording devices, and they only record what they have been exposed to by the senses. Thus our minds only have the experience of an environment governed by time.

Those scientists that analyze the singularity problem, and others who are also probing the source of everything, often ask this question:

Who or what created God?

This question assumes the element of time. It assumes that God had a beginning. The question is born from a mind that has only experienced an environment governed by time. A mind that has only experienced that things have a beginning and an end.

There is no time in the spiritual world. God does not have a beginning. God is eternal, and His spiritual world is eternal. Neither God nor His spiritual world is governed by time.

This is evidenced by these verses that God set time in motion. He first separated light from darkness (Gen. 1:4) and thus created periodicity. Then He established the first day by putting that periodicity into motion.

The spiritual realm, in contrast, is a place of perpetual light. The spiritual world is eternally illuminated by God's light. There is also no time in the spiritual world. God is not governed by time. He created time to establish a basis for our rehabilitation.

Let's use an example. Let's say that a substance abuse rehabilitation center has a twelve-step program for its patients. Every patient must undertake actions to achieve each step, and after finishing the twelfth step they get to leave the rehabilitation center.

Where did the twelve steps come from? They were developed by the doctors who set up the rehabilitation center. The twelve steps do not exist outside the rehabilitation center: They are specifically designed to progress the rehabilitation center patients toward their being able to re-enter normal society.

This is a similar situation with time. God established time in order to set up the progression for our evolution process - our process of rehabilitation.

Consider another translation for this verse in Chapter One of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 1:14-19 - And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate ...

And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. God made two great lights - the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning - the fourth day. (Genesis 1:14-19)

What is electromagnetism?

Here we find the Supreme Being has produced an intertwining of light, time and the electromagnetic elements that allow planets to rotate around the sun; and solar systems that rotate around each galaxy center.

Remember again that this is a simplified version of creation that allows the human mind and sensual experience to relate with the concept that everything around us has been created by a Supreme Being.

For those who consider themselves scientists who might scoff at such a simplistic version of creation, we ask what would be the result if the explanation of creation discussed black holes and galaxies and the so many other elements of nature that humankind had never heard of? Would this create any more understanding of the central lesson - that everything was created by a Supreme Being?

Even today, though physicists now theorize that the center of each galaxy is a black hole, no one has ever seen a black hole and there is no absolute proof they exist. How do they know the center of the galaxy is a black hole, then? The answer is that the black hole is the only thing they have been able to imagine that will fit the holes in their observations and equations.

But what if the scripture discussed scientific elements never seen before? What if Genesis discussed the many, many elements that scientists have yet to discover? These elements, would, of course, be too small for the eye and modern microscopes to see, and/or too far away for our telescopes or radioscopes to pick up. Would scientists then assume those elements existed, and suddenly trust that God must have created the universe since they have never heard of those elements?

No. How do we know this? Because the scriptures already describe elements beyond our senses, and this doesn't seem to make much difference: the scriptures describe the existence of a Supreme Being Who has the ability to create the entire physical universe, and a transcendental universe of another dimension, outside the physical dimension. And this doesn't seem to make much difference to many modern scientists. They still want to deny the existence of God.

Why can't our instruments find God?

This is despite the fact that modern scientists keep looking deeper and deeper, smaller and smaller, and further and further away for the precise element that is God. Scientists are looking for that element that provides the key to the structure and creation of the universe. They keep looking for that particle that holds matter together on the most fundamental level. They are, in fact, looking for God.

It is so obvious that modern physicists are looking for God that in 1993, Leon Lederman, Ph.D. coined the hypothetical particle determined in particle accelerator studies the "God Particle." This particle, also called the Higgs Boson particle, has never been seen or otherwise observed directly. It is only something that would fit their calculations. It has remained, according to these scientists, "elusive."

Okay, so let's get this straight. First, modern science has rejected the concept that a Supreme Being exists, even though the existence of a Supreme Being is the only element that can perfectly provide a clear and logical Source for all the material elements, as well as the source for all the living elements (personality, the desire to survive, intelligence, etc.).

Instead and in lieu of this most obvious choice, theoretical physicists insist on an imaginary and elusive particle they call the "God particle" that supposedly fits their equations. So this elusive particle must be the key element that is the source of everything?

Does this make any sense? Is it also the source of life? How can it be the source of life if it is not in itself alive?

Furthermore, this elusive "God particle" is being portrayed by science as having no intelligence and no purpose for existence. It is like all their other theories including quarks, strings, and theories of everything: Objects of their imaginations. They are lifeless creations of their minds. They are no more real than a bedtime story made up to put a child to sleep.

And these theoretical physicists like to accuse scripture of being without proof? What kind of proof do they have that their theories of accidental, random creation are true?

Even though the existence of a Supreme Being would fulfill all their mathematical equations and calculations (evidenced by naming the Higgs Boson particle the "God Particle"), these theoretical scientists prefer their imaginary theories. Why? Because these theories give these individual scientists the means to continue to ignore God's existence.

If they can ignore God's existence, they don't have to worship anyone other than themselves. They don't have to glorify anyone other than themselves and their colleagues. They can seek their own glory and their own fame as they achieve the acclaim and admiration of others for coming up with the most profound 'theory of everything.'

Why? Because this is our disease. This is why we are here in this physical universe in the first place: Because we wanted to get away from God. We want to ignore God. Why? Because we would rather be God than serve God.

If God exists, why can't we see Him?

The first part of the answer is that God is not like a mountain or a rock. He is not an inanimate object: God is alive. He is a Person. God is the Supreme Person. He is a living being, with intelligence, emotions, feelings, individuality, and purpose, Who comes from a dimension transcendental to this physical dimension.

The second part of the answer is that just because God isn't seen with the physical eyes doesn't mean He doesn't exist. It is like two children playing in a park down the street from their houses, and one asking the other: "If your parents exist, why can't I see them?"

Obviously, we cannot see God because our senses, on their own, do not have the ability to see God. They are equipped to see only a small range of physical structures, made of molecules that light reflects off and through with particular colors. Scientists also accept this, as they propose that quarks exist even though we cannot see a quark.

So our real question should be: Why are our eyes not equipped to see God?

Put in a better way: Why is God not allowing us to see Him?

Our physical bodies were designed to be in ignorance about God's existence. This is part of God's design. There is a purpose for this.

Each of us is temporarily occupying a gross physical body designed for certain tasks: navigating a physical world replete with a host of lessons and learning experiences. We can each look at our lives and realize that we are each going through a unique set of learning experiences through the years. And through each of the learning experiences, we are met up with a set of choices about what direction we want to go from here.

During this learning environment, God is unseen. This is because, first of all, each of us rejected God at one point or another in our existence. Thus, we have landed in these temporary physical bodies that cannot see Him. So we got our wish. Like an angry teenager who runs away from home, we are each now seemingly independent of God. We can now pretend that each of us is the center of the universe - even though it is obvious we are not.

Is there another world?

There is a dimension that is transcendental to this one. It is the world of love and loving service. In that world, everyone loves and serves the Supreme Being and the Supreme Being's associates. But a few of us decided we were too good for that. We decided we wanted to be served. We wanted to be the center. We wanted to be the subject of worship and admiration. In other words, we got greedy. We got selfish. And it is this self-centeredness that plays out amongst our earthly society – as we can see all around us in the greed, violence, and struggles for power taking place throughout this world.

Now we are here, seemingly independent of God. We can each now choose whether we want to accept that someone greater than me exists. Can there be a God? Someone greater than me? We must choose. And go through our various lessons. This is also why we are here: To rehabilitate. If we choose to learn and evolve, and come to accept that God exists, then we can evolve and grow closer to Him, and maybe return to the spiritual world.

And this is precisely why God is invisible to our eyes at the moment. If His existence was obvious, we would not have the choice to accept Him or not.

Let's compare this to a situation we see in typical relationships. While this analogy isn't complete, it will serve the purpose. Let's say a wife begins realizing that her husband no longer treasures their relationship. He is taking their relationship for granted and begins flirting with other women and carrying on as though he doesn't care for her. So she says enough is enough and tells him they need to separate for a while to see if he really wants to be married to her.

So they separate. How do they separate? Do they just move into adjacent rooms? No. One of them moves out of the house so that they do not see each other for a while. For a period of time, they have no contact. Why?

The period of no contact allows the man the ability to independently choose whether he wants to be with his wife. Not having her around gives him the freedom to choose. If every time he turned around she was there, this would hardly give the man the ability to make a clear choice.

This is sort of what the Supreme Being has done. Each of us is intimately connected to God. Once we rejected Him, He sent us off to be on our own, gave us a virtual world and temporary physical bodies to dwell within temporarily; in order to give us the choice of whether we wanted to be with Him or not. That is the purpose of the physical world.

Consider another translation for these verses in Chapter One of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 1:31 - God saw all that He had made, and it was very good...

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning - the sixth day. (Genesis 1:31)

According to this translation, the physical world was created in six days. It also implies that God didn't realize what He had made until He took a look at it. As if God doesn't know what He is doing when He does it.

Is that six human days?

The Hebrew word יום (yowm) being translated to “days” within Genesis can mean “day” or “time” or “year.” It can also mean a “general time period” according to the lexicon.

A day to a human is basically one rotation of the sun around the planet. What is a day to God? As Albert Einstein described in his famous Theory of Relativity, time is relative to the observer of that time, and the observer's position is relative to whichever moving object the observer is positioned on.

However, God is above and beyond time and physical space, and He controls these elements. God's universe is the spiritual dimension, where time does not exist. Time is a specification of the physical world, because the physical world is a temporary manifestation: The physical world has a beginning and an end, while God does not have a beginning or an end.

God is ageless. This is why depictions of God as an old man with a long flowing beard - as da Vinci pictured Him - are incorrect. God is the most beautiful, ever-youthful being. He never gets old, and He never dies.

Is God limited by time?

God is never subject to or limited by time or space.

Scientific evidence has shown that the creative process of the physical universe took millions if not billions of human years.

This indicates that a "day" with respect to God's creative efforts is a relative expression. A "day" in this respect could be 100 million years. It could be 250 million years or a billion years long.

It doesn't really matter. The meaning of Genesis is that the creative process of assembling the physical universe was a gradual, stepped process governed by God. God didn't just say "poof" and the whole thing was done. As Genesis clearly states, He created the elements first, which included the elements of earth, water, gas, heat, space and time. Then He created light. Then He created living organisms, from the simplest first. Living organisms were programmed in such a way that as they "multiplied," they evolved. This was built into their genetic code, just as a software program is coded into a computer.

We know from archaeological research that this process of evolution did not take place in six human days. It took place over millions of years. The other elements of the physical universe are a lot older. We know this too. Are we to disregard science?

The only conclusion is that the "day" being discussed here is allegorical. Consider who the audience is. Consider just how little humans know about the physical universe even now. Now consider how little humans knew about the universe thousands of years ago, as the knowledge of Genesis was handed down from teacher to student over many generations. This was handed down first through oral tradition before it was finally put into written form.

Is Genesis allegorical or literal?

The information in Genesis is allegorical and it has always been understood as allegorical by those humbly passing it down. What does allegorical mean? Allegorical means that the information given in the text contains symbolic elements that provide a broader understanding.

Let's say, for example, that a mother has to answer her child who is asking why daddy has to leave every morning. Will she tell the child that Daddy is a stock analyst who studies the stock market and the financials of different companies and writes reports for the investment bank he works for? The child will be lost at the word "stock."

The mother will most definitely simplify the situation, and tell the child that daddy is going to a big building so he can bring home some money for their family to buy food. Or something like that. The mother will use a big dose of allegory as she tries to describe where daddy is going in a way the child will understand.

Genesis is the same way. Its language was aimed at an audience that was very simple and lived basic lives that revolved around survival and the basic necessities. These folks had little understanding of solar systems, galaxies, black holes, red stars and so on. They had no idea what a bacteria was. They did not know what a cell was.

So the intended audience of Genesis could be categorized as less technically educated than modern humans, but they were wiser in many other ways. Their ability to understand the allegorical nature of Genesis was obviously stronger, however.

In other words, they didn't argue about whether God really created the physical universe in six human days or not. Do we see Moses debating with his students about this? No.

The central meaning of Genesis is that the physical universe was not an accidental event. It was a programmed event. It was planned. It was designed. The complexity of DNA alone should tell us that. Scientists have been calculating the chances that the complexity of DNA alone could have taken place by chance. The number is gigantic. It is about one chance out of 3 with about three thousand zeros behind the three. The chance is so small that it is practically no chance at all.

Is the universe chaotic?

Furthermore, we can see around us that this universe is not chaotic. A chaotic, random universe would not display connected events. One event would not cause another event. Yet we see in this universe that every event is connected to another event. This scientific observation is often termed "cause and effect." For every effect, there is a cause. This means that the universe is not chaotic or random. It means that nothing in the universe takes place randomly, because every event that has taken place is connected to its cause.

If all events are connected to causes, this not only means there is no chaos and no randomness. It also means that there is a design to the physical universe. It means that there was an original cause, and that original cause began the process with a design and purpose. That Original Cause is God.

And since the physical universe is complete with living beings - individual personalities - we know that the Original Cause also must contain an original personality. In other words, God is a Person. He is not a vague force. He is not a particle. He is a Person with a will and objectives.

The physical universe displays functionality and design. This functionality serves to teach us. Throughout our lives, we are presented with consequences to our decisions and actions. Every act has a consequence. Why? To teach us.

Such a universe designed to teach through consequences could only come from a Person with the intention to teach.

And what is the subject that the world's consequences serve to teach us? It teaches us about how we treat others: It teaches us about love. Why? Because God created the physical world as a place of rehabilitation. A place where we could re-develop something we lost:

Our relationship of love and loving service with Him.

Consider another translation for this verse in Chapter One of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 2:7 - The LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into ...

The LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7)

What is the 'breath of life'?

While this verse indicates the difference between the physical body and the living being within (the “breath of life”) the verse is not discussing the creation of the species of man/humanity.

The use of these terms serves two purposes: To illustrate the difference between the physical body and the spirit-person within; and utilize this fact allegorically to describe the appearance of the living being – the spirit-person – within the spiritual realm.

Remember that the first chapter of Genesis already discussed the creation of the physical universe and all the species, including man, within the six “day” period.

This description is not a redundancy. It is another discussion: It is the discussion of how each of us, the living beings or living souls, are parts and parcels of God. Each of us spirit-persons is God’s children.

The Hebrew verse here is:
וַיִּיצֶר֩ יְהוָ֨ה אֱלֹהִ֜ים אֶת־ הָֽאָדָ֗ם עָפָר֙ מִן־ הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה וַיִּפַּ֥ח בְּאַפָּ֖יו נִשְׁמַ֣ת חַיִּ֑ים וַֽיְהִ֥י הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ חַיָּֽה׃.

While this verse has been construed to say that God created man from the dust of the earth and breathed life into the man, this translation is incorrect.

The key to the verse’s meaning is in the first Hebrew words and the last Hebrew words:

The first words are הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ חַיָּֽה׃. These indicate that the Supreme Being formed or fashioned something.

The last words in the verse are חַיָּֽה׃ לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ. These indicate “living soul” (King James translation) or “living being” (this New International Version translation). These are also consistent with the lexicon.

We must remember that this discussion is steeped in allegory and symbolism. Consider, for example, a verse later in this discussion (Genesis 2:21-22), where God made woman from the ribs of the man. Is this not a clear sign of allegory and symbolism?

Going back to this verse (Genesis 2:7), נָפַח (naphach) אַף (aph) is being translated to “breathed into his nostrils” and נְשָׁמָה (nĕshamah) חַי (chay) is being translated to “breath of life.” Is this really what this means?

While there is little argument for the translation of “breathed into him,” the “breath of life,” נְשָׁמָה (nĕshamah) can be translated to ‘breath,’ but also to ‘spirit’ or even ‘God’s spirit.’ We are talking about, in other words, the living spirit coming from God’s spirit.

So God breathed the living spirit into Adam’s nose?

Again, this is steeped in allegory, as well as symbolism.

‘Breath of life’ here illustrates that our essence is spirit: a reflection of God’s spirit. In other words, we are each a part and parcel of God. We are not God, but God created us from Himself, as separated living individuals. We thus are made of God’s essence.

‘Breathed into his nostrils’ is simply a symbolic way to communicate how we were created by God with God’s spirit.

Just consider what happens when a person is given CPR after drowning. Should we breathe into their lungs, the air from our lungs becomes utilized by their body in order to give them oxygen? Our breath is thus infused into their body. This is an allegorical way of describing the fact that each of us is infused with God’s spirit. We are ‘cut from the same cloth’ so to speak.

Is God creating humans or souls here?

The beginning and the ending of this verse clearly indicate that it is describing God’s creation of the living being or soul - the spirit-person.

Now is this living being the same as the physical body? The translation of this verse seems to indicate this. However, we know this is not true.

How do we know this is not true?

The living being (or soul) is of a spiritual substance, while the physical body is a temporary physical substance. The physical body is a temporary vehicle for the living being, or soul. This can be proven scientifically. Consider just a few reasons we can clearly establish this:

1) When the physical body dies, the life leaves, yet all the physical elements (all the body parts, organs, cells, molecules, blood, lymph and so on) are all still there in the dead body. Nothing physical is missing.

2) Clinical death research has established that the living being can leave the body, rise up above it, and observe the events surrounding their former body even though the body lies there unconscious.

3) Clinical death research has also established that the living being can leave the room where the body lies and observe events occurring outside the hospital, such as what a relative might be doing, even at a distant location.

4) Many have experienced leaving their body (called out-of-body experiences) and observing remote things without a clinical death (when someone legally dies in the hospital).

5) When there is no living being present in the body after death, the body begins to decompose.

6) We tend to deny the aging of our bodies. No one feels we are old, even though we might have an old body on.

7) Most cells are replaced within a few years, and all of the molecules making up the body are recycled within five years. This means that we are functionally wearing a different body every five years. It might be compared to a waterfall, where the water in the waterfall is always changing.

These points and many others confirm that we are separate from our physical bodies. We might lose an arm, a leg or even have a heart replaced, but we are the same person inside.

Noting these facts, we can now understand this verse a little differently. Yes, this verse is describing how God created living beings. But did He create them out of the “dust of the ground,” as many have translated and interpreted?

Is Adam literally the first man on earth?

The Hebrew word אֲדָמָה (adamah) which is being translated to “ground” is related to the word אָדָם (adam). אָדָם (adam) can be translated to ‘man, human being, mankind’ as well as Adam, symbolically the first man. And אֲדָמָה (adamah) can refer to the earth or ground, or it can refer to a particular ‘land, territory or country.’

In other words, אָדָם (adam) can refer to the individual, and אֲדָמָה (adamah) can refer to the world where that individual comes from.

Let’s break down the symbolism of the verse in its entirety:

‘Adam’ here symbolizes the independent living beings created by God to exchange love with Him. Each of us is a living being, and each of us was created by God to exchange a particular type of relationship with Him. However, God also gave each of us the freedom to love Him or not. More on this later.

What does 'dust and ground' refer to?

‘Dust’ and ‘ground’ אֲדָמָה (adamah) thus symbolize the spiritual essence and spiritual territory that we each are made of and come from. We are each spiritual beings, and we are made of spiritual ‘dust’ from the spiritual dimension.

We must understand that these are spiritual concepts being communicated to those who have forgotten our spiritual identity, and only have material concepts to compare to. Thus, allegory and symbolism are required.

Let’s consider an example. Let’s say that we fly on a plane to a tropical island where the natives have never seen an airplane – and they didn’t see our airplane land. They come to us and ask us: How did we arrive on their island? Because they have never seen an airplane we cannot explain it to them. So instead, we say that we flew on a giant bird and arrived on the other side of the island. We might say this because we know they have seen many birds so they can relate to the concept of a big bird.

Note that some might say that it is misleading for the visitors to say they flew on a giant bird because there are certainly many differences between a bird and an airplane. However, under the circumstances, this was the only way to communicate with any clarity that the visitors flew in because this was all the natives could relate to.

In the same way, this description of how God created us living beings must compare the process to something the audience could relate to. It may seem inaccurate to those who have scientific minds today. But this would relate perfectly to those who heard this symbolic story of Adam and Eve through the oral tradition thousands of years ago.

Can this verse be translated differently?

As we will see in the coming verses, this allegorical story of Adam and Eve also serves to try to describe a place of another dimension – the spiritual world – for those whose physical minds could not conceive of such a place. It is specifically for this reason that this verse and story has been questionably translated and as a result, misinterpreted.

Those who do not realize their true identity as spiritual and their origin as coming from the spiritual dimension has no right to be attempting to translate or interpret this text. They are simply wandering in the dark, trying to guess what these ancient spiritual teachers were describing.

The bottom line is that this verse describes that each of us was created by God in the spiritual realm from Himself. He ‘breathed’ His life into us to make us independent living beings that indeed reflect Himself. We each carry God’s essence, yet not God’s completeness. We are humbly made of God, but we are not God. We are God’s independent associates, created by Him to exchange a relationship of loving service with Him – should we choose to, because real love also requires freedom.

Consider another translation of these verses in Chapter Two of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 2:8 - Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east in Eden ...

Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there He put the man He had formed. (Genesis 2:8)

This verse has been incorrectly translated by those who misunderstand the subject being discussed. And as a result, many have been searching the planet for this place referred to as “Eden.”

What is the 'Garden in the east' that God 'planted'?

The word “planted” here is taken from the Hebrew נָטַע (nata), which can mean ‘to plant,’ but also to ‘fasten, fix, establish.’

“A garden” is translated from the Hebrew גַּן (gan) which can mean ‘garden,’ ‘enclosure,’ or ‘enclosed garden.’

“In the east” is being derived from מִן (min) and קֶדֶם (qedem). מִן means ‘from, out of, on account of, off, on the side of, since, above, than, so that not, more than’ according to the lexicon. And קֶדֶם can be translated to ‘east,’ but also to ‘antiquity, front, that which is before,’ or ‘aforetime.’

So while those who are fixed upon the assumption that this discussion relates to a physical man and woman (“Adam and Eve”) and a place on this planet, there is an entirely different and more appropriate translation to be derived from this Hebrew phrase:

“Established” is a more appropriate translation of נָטַע. While “garden” is acceptable for גַּן, “enclosure” should not be ignored.

מִן and קֶדֶם are more accurately describing, instead of a direction like the “east,” to a time before antiquity: A period before we existed within these physical bodies.

What is being allegorically described is God establishing a place for us – spiritual beings – in the spiritual world after He had created each of us. The “garden” is an enclosed space or section within the spiritual realm. This is the place where our spiritual selves dwelled prior to our fall to the physical world. This fact is confirmed by the words מִן and קֶדֶם, which refer to a time and place prior to our physical existence.

In other words, Eden is a section of the spiritual world.

Who is Adam?

While the Hebrew word אָדָם (adam) is being translated to “man,” this reference, as clarified in the previous verse, describes the living being – the spirit-person. This entity has also been called the soul - although many mislabel the soul as some sort of organ - as in, "my soul."

But really, each of us is the soul.

Beneath each temporary physical body dwells a unique and individual living being. This is the personality within the physical body, who lives before and after the death of the body.

This is confirmed scientifically. Our physical body is always recycling molecules and atoms. When we look at a picture of our physical body when it was a baby, we are looking at a different body than the one we have on now. Science has established that all the molecules and atoms are different, and most of the cells in the baby body have died and been replaced by new cells. We are thus effectively changing bodies constantly. Like a waterfall that flows with different water every minute.

So when we look at that baby body, and then in the mirror at our physical body now, neither one is our real identity. We are the driver of the physical body. Just as a person sits down in a car and drives a car away, we are seated within this body and are now driving the body.

The question now becomes, why are we in these temporary bodies, and where did we come from?

These questions are answered, allegorically, in this discussion of “Adam and Eve.” First, in this verse, it describes a beautiful section in the spiritual realm where, after He formed us from Himself, He placed us. This doesn't necessarily mean we all were put in the same section either, as the spiritual realm has many domains: “In my Father’s house are many rooms.” (John 14:2)

What is this verse saying?

This verse and the rest of this discussion in Genesis is not a complete description of the spiritual world. Just as Jesus had in his statement about “many rooms,” this verse uses allegory and symbolism.

This description is meant for a particular audience. This is an introduction to the concept that there is another world – the spiritual realm – beyond this one, where God dwells and where we dwelled prior to our existence within these physical bodies.

We might compare the use of allegory and symbolism here to how an adult might describe a complex task – like their occupation – to a young child. They would drastically simplify things so the child would get the main thrust, but many details are left out and/or massively simplified.

In the same way, the main thrust of the spiritual environment is described here: We were each formed by God and placed in a particular section within the spiritual world. Thus it is clear that we owe our existence to God. He is in every respect our Creator, but also our Best Friend and Soul Mate.

Just consider if you were God, and you could create anything. What would you create? You would likely create someone to share your life with, right? A playmate and companion, right? Now if you wanted to have a real relationship with that person you wouldn’t create a robot that would mindlessly do anything you wanted. You would create a person with some freedom. You would give that person the freedom to like you or not, right? You would have to if you wanted to exchange a real relationship with them.

In other words, we were made to be with God, but we are also given the freedom to choose between having a relationship with Him or not. This is because God created us to exchange a loving relationship with Him. And love requires freedom. We cannot be forced to love someone. We have to be given complete freedom in order to truly love someone.

What about love?

Love is the basis for our existence. Why should this be surprising? Each of us is constantly searching for real love. From the moment we are born into these bodies, we seek someone to love who will truly love us. We seek love by trying to gain people’s attention. We seek love by trying to find a mate. We seek love as we strive for power and authority. In all these efforts, our focus is love. Even the most powerful, wealthy and famous people are seeking love, despite all the attention people give them, and all their power and wealth.

This means that not only is love what we need the most: We cannot find true love within the physical world.

This is because our true love is God. God is that perfect person we are seeking. God is that perfect soul mate we are looking for. God is that best friend who will never abandon us. God is that person who will always protect us. In other words, it is God we seek as we search for true love.

Love is part of our essence because we were made for love. We were formed by God to exchange a loving relationship with Him. We might compare this to how we might make anything with a purpose. Say we manufacture a refrigerator. The refrigerator is made specifically to keep our food cold. That is its purpose. It is designed for that purpose. So it does this pretty well. The fridge won’t drive us around like our cars will, but it will keep our food good and cold.

In the same way, love is so important to us because God made us for the purpose of love. This is why relationships are so important to us. Everyone needs relationships because we were made for loving relationships.

We were created by God to share a loving relationship with Him and His associates within the spiritual realm, and this is what is being described in this discussion in Genesis.

Consider another translation of this verse in Chapter Two of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 2:10-14 - A river watering the garden flowed from Eden ...

A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Asshur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. (Genesis 2:10-14)

Are these the same rivers we find on earth?

Sectarian Bible interpreters have assumed that because these verses name some rivers that are known as existing on earth. To them, this means Eden is a physical place on the planet earth.

But the key to this description is the beginning: “A river watering the garden flowed from Eden.” In other words, the river within Eden was the source of these rivers: “from there it was separated into four headwaters.”

A headwater is the beginning of a particular river. This is considered the source of the river. Since the river flowing from Eden is the source of the headwaters of these four great rivers, we are not talking about a physical location on the planet, because there is not a single physical location on the planet where these mighty rivers (most of which still flow mightily) can be found originating from.

Since there is no physical location where these four rivers diverge from existing on this planet, we can know that this discussion is not describing Eden as a physical location on the planet. Rather, this is a discussion of the transcendental realm. The water (“river”) of the transcendental realm is the source of these mighty rivers from a deeper context.

The context is the spiritual meaning given to these four mighty rivers and their representation of the transcendental world. Why would the source of these rivers be represented as the transcendental world?

While water is a physical element, the nature of water represents part of the nature of the transcendental world.

What does the water symbolize?

Water is a humble element. Water softly seeps between rocks and soils and moves downward. Water is soft to the touch and can be penetrated easily. Water supplies life to all living organisms, and is pervasive within the body. Water is also strong and durable, and its motion can gradually wear away even the hardest of elements, such as rock.

By nature, the spirit-persons within the transcendental world are like water, in that they are soft and humble. They are giving and permissive. They also seek the lowest point because they are humble.

Water is also purifying. It is cleansing both inside the body and outside. It carries away dirt, debris and microorganisms. As such, water has been utilized in religious ceremony for many centuries, for its purifying nature.

The spiritual world is pure. It is a place where there is no greed, no suffering, no envy and no hatred. It is full of love and kindness. In this way, the spiritual dimension is also purifying to those of us living within this hate-filled, envy-filled, hellish physical world. Water thus symbolizes the purifying nature of the spiritual world.

This purifying giver of life (water) and the rivers that form from water has long represented the transcendental world for these reasons and more. The mighty rivers of water that have flowed through the Middle East and Asia have thus been considered sacred, and many peoples and cultures have considered their waters sacred because the nature of these waters has their ultimate source from the Supreme Giver of Life, God.

We can also see water’s practical side, as we find that water was the central element during the creation of the physical universe (the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (Genesis 1:2)). Where did these waters come from? They came from God, and God’s transcendental world.

Thus, this description of Eden’s river as the source of the headwaters of these mighty rivers is allegorical, symbolic and practical at the same time. We can also see that there is a pragmatic message behind this description. The meaning is that from this place “Eden” – the spiritual world – comes purity, humility, love, and life itself.

Where is Eden?

Eden is the spiritual realm. This is where each of us is from. We are not these temporary physical bodies – which get diseased, get old, and eventually, die and decompose. Each of us is a living spirit-person. We are eternal. We do not die when the body dies. We lived before this body was born, and we will live after it is dead.

This is a scientific reality. The body is constantly being recycled with new atoms, molecules, and cells. The body is not a permanent structure no more than is a waterfall whose waters are constantly changing. When we look at a picture of our body when it was a baby, we are looking at a different body than the one we have one now. All the atoms are different and all the molecules are different, and the cells are new. So what is the permanent person that I describe as “me”?

This is the spiritual living being. And where does that spiritual living being come from then? Each of us comes from Eden – the spiritual world – a place that is transcendental to the physical world. This is the reason for this description of Eden as the source for these mighty rivers. What is trying to be conveyed here is that we and everything around us have originated from the headwaters of the spiritual realm – the Supreme Being.

Consider another translation of these verses in Chapter Two of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 2:15 - The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden to work it and take care of it.

Many Biblical interpreters and translators have breezed right over this verse without understanding what is being described. The incorrect assumption is that what is being described is a place on earth, and this has blurred and veiled the real meaning of Genesis as a whole, including this verse.

Where is this 'Garden'?

Let’s clarify the location being described here. The word “garden” is being translated from the Hebrew word גַּן (gan), which also refers to an enclosed garden or section.

The ancient use of the word ‘gan’ would typically include being enclosed within a barrier that prevented robbers or animals from coming and stealing food from the garden. Many archaeological digs have confirmed the use of enclosed gardens during ancient times. The application here is that the garden was protected. It was a safe place, in other words: An enclosed section.

The word “Eden” is translated from the Hebrew עֵדֶן (`eden), which is described in the lexicon as being ‘the first habitat of man; site unknown.’ The root of this word means ‘luxury, dainty, delight, finery’ and ‘pleasure’ according to the lexicon.

So how does this root meaning of Eden connect with the application of a protected or enclosed garden or section where “man” was placed? Many have concluded that what is being described is a “pleasant country in Asia” where this garden supposedly was and the first humans were supposedly placed.

This is not only pure speculation: It is simply incorrect.

The key to the true location being described here is the Hebrew word עָבַד (`abad), which is being translated into the English phrase “to work it.” Others have translated this word to “cultivate” as they imagine Adam being sent to the garden of Eden to become – what else – a gardener!

However, the correct translation within this context for the Hebrew word עָבַד (`abad) is, as taken from the Hebrew lexicon, to serve, and more specifically, to lovingly serve God.

For example, this word was used by Joshua when he made this statement (the bolded phrase is derived from the Hebrew word עָבַד (`abad)):

“But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to obey His commands, to hold fast to Him and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul.” (Joshua 22:5)

This correct translation of עָבַד (`abad) provides us with a true context of this place being described as the Garden of Eden. Eden is derived from the root word ‘pleasure’ and ‘delight’ because what is being described is the spiritual world.

This is the place where each of us comes from. This is the place where we lovingly serve our Best Friend and Companion, the Supreme Being. And we derive complete fulfillment and true pleasure from this loving service to God.

Was Adam a gardener?

This ‘section’ or ‘garden’ is a part or location within God’s spiritual world. As Jesus described in John 14:2, “In my Father’s house are many rooms.” So what is being described here in Genesis is one of those rooms – or sections – of the spiritual world.

Finally, we find at the end of this verse, the Hebrew word שָׁמַר (shamar) which is being translated to the English phrase “take care of it.” The assumption with this translation is that God plunked down Adam into a garden to take care of it. So God created Adam to be His gardener?

Let’s consider this carefully. Why would God, the Supreme Being, Who has so much power that He created the entire universe – containing billions and billions of galaxies including our own – need Adam to take care of a little garden somewhere in Asia? Are we saying that God cannot take care of His own gardens when He can maintain an entire universe?

This is a preposterous allusion: That God somehow needed Adam to take care of His garden.

The reality is that the Hebrew word שָׁמַר (shamar) means, according to the lexicon, to ‘observe, take heed, beware, protect, celebrate, keep’ and ‘treasure up (in memory)’. Thus, the sum and substance of this word is, 'to care for.'

This verse is not referring to caring for a garden – it is referring to loving and caring for God.

Yes, it is allegory, used throughout the Scriptures to reserve meaning for those who are serious about God.

It is one thing to lovingly serve God, but it is yet another to care for the Supreme Being. Caring for someone introduces another principle: A loving relationship.

When a person cares for another, they do not simply like the person: They look out for the person they love. They care for them. If someone threatens the one we love, we intercede. We protect them. This is part and parcel of love. It means there is a relationship.

While the Supreme Person does not need protection, He allows His loving servants to serve Him and care for Him in the spiritual world. It is an exchange of a loving relationship.

Where is God located?

In the spiritual world, God is present personally. It is not as though God is some sort of vague force or booming voice. God has spiritual form and personality (and He is not an old man with a long gray beard as imagined by many). The Supreme Being has feelings, emotions, likes, and dislikes. While God is a person He is still the Supreme Person. He is the best at everything and the creator of all. Yet He still relates personally with each and every one of us.

God created each of us to exchange a unique relationship with Him. He is thus our Soul Mate. He is the Person we each look for throughout our lives as we look for mates, friends and family members. We are always looking for that perfect friend, mate or family member, but never finding it here in the physical world. This is because our perfect Beloved is God, and our personal relationship with Him lies within the spiritual dimension.

This means that the spiritual world is filled with activity and variety. It is a place of complete happiness and pleasure. It is that place that John Lennon was imagining. The reason why John and the rest of us all look for this place is because it exists. This is where each of us is from. This is our original home: Eden.

Here in this physical world, our physical bodies are not ourselves. They are temporary vehicles we drive around for a while, and then they die and decompose. Within these bodies resides our true selves: Our spiritual selves. Our spiritual selves were born in Eden.

The phrase “the man” in this verse is being translated from the Hebrew אָדָם (‘adam). While the word can be translated to the allegorical first man, “Adam,” this Hebrew word אָדָם can also be translated to mean, according to the lexicon, ‘human being’ and ‘mankind.’ What is being described allegorically is the spirit-person: the living being.

It is important to understand the context of the event being described. The first chapter of Genesis already described the creation of the physical world, where the water, earth, sky and so on were created, and the plants, the fish, the beasts, and humankind were all created and populated the earth (“be fruitful and multiply”). Are we saying that this description was not enough? That now Genesis has to describe the creation of man within the physical world a second time, but this time changing it to occur within a garden in Asia, and the first man as a gardener? No. Genesis does not have to re-state God’s creation of the physical world. And there is absolutely no foundation for the ‘garden of Eden’ being in Asia.

What is being described here, in allegorical terms, is the creation and placement of each of us as spirit-persons within a location in the spiritual world. The ‘garden’ or ‘section’ of Eden is a protected section of God’s spiritual world: It is our original home.

This is confirmed by later verses in Genesis that describe God walking through Eden. Jesus described God as “Our Father in heaven” because the spiritual realm is characterized by God’s personal presence.

Each of us was created by God and placed into a designated section of God’s spiritual dimension where we could each exercise our unique loving relationship with the Supreme Being. Caring for God within our natural relationship with God is what gives us true happiness. This is why this location is being described as Eden, meaning a place of ‘pleasure’ and ‘delight.’

We can see that we are each by nature loving servants when we experience pleasure from engaging in the loving service of our spouse and family members as we care for them. We can see that this caring drives people to do so many things on behalf of their families. This is our real nature: We are caring, loving servants. The problem occurs, however, when the bodies of our family members die or otherwise leave us. We become heartbroken. This is because we were created to care for God and His children within the spiritual world – Eden. This is why Moses and Jesus both taught that love for God was the most important commandment:

“Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” (Deuteronomy 6:5, Mark 12:30)

Consider another translation of this Genesis verse in Chapter Two of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 2:20-22 - So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts ...

So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. (Genesis 2:20-22)

Did woman literally come from Adam's rib?

This verse, along with Genesis 2:19, have been widely misunderstood. Despite this, their allegorical, symbolic meaning can still be derived from the English assuming the context of the discussion is understood.

In other words, this is not a description of the creation of the first woman from the rib of the first man, as has often been portrayed by paid sectarian interpreters.

As mentioned previously, there are two contextual issues to remember about this section of Genesis. The first is that what is being discussed is the spiritual dimension, the creation of the spiritual living beings, and (later) how each of us fell from the spiritual dimension into the physical world.

The second issue to remember is that the spiritual world cannot be seen by the physical eyes. Nor can it be perceived by the physical mind - a memory bank of sensory events of the physical world. This makes the spiritual dimension a bit difficult to describe. Therefore, Genesis is full of symbolism and allegory. Jesus also used symbolism when describing the spiritual world:

"In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you." (John 14:2)

We can see here that Jesus is comparing the spiritual dimension - the dimension where the Supreme Being is the center of love and activity - to a house that has many rooms. Both the use of "house" and "rooms" are allegorical and symbolic. Jesus is obviously describing that the spiritual dimension has many different sections or territories, much like our universe has many planets or our planet has many countries and environments.

Now, through allegory and symbolism, Genesis is discussing the concept of community within the spiritual dimension. God created living beings to enjoy a loving relationship with Him. He did not just produce one living being. He produced a community of living beings, who were all connected and related to each other. This describes us: God's children of related living beings.

These verses describe just how we are all connected to each other.

Are we not all family?

The Hebrew word translated to "Adam" or "the man" here is אָדָם ('adam), which can mean, according to the Hebrew lexicon, 'man, human being, man, mankind' As the context of this discussion is the spiritual realm being described allegorically, אָדָם is describing the spiritual living being - the occupants of the spiritual realm outside of God and His expansions.

The word "helper" is derived from the Hebrew word עֵזֶר ('ezer), meaning, according to the lexicon, 'help, succour'. "Succour" means to give assistance to. The better translation in this context would thus be to lovingly serve.

Remember from Genesis 2:15 we found that Adam - representing the living beings - was not put in Eden to become Eden's gardener. His purpose was to serve and care for God. This is the purpose of all living beings. Each of us was created to care for God. Each of us was created to be God's loving servant and exchange a unique relationship with Him. This is confirmed throughout the books of the Bible, inclusive of Moses’ teachings. Consider one of Moses' clear statements to his students:

"And now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear [revere] the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deut. 10:12)

Now the creation of a "helper" to the symbolic Adam is being described. Let’s delve further into this description and its meaning.

First God causes the symbolic Adam to fall into a deep sleep. “Deep sleep” is being translated from תַּרְדֵּמָה (tardemah) which means either ‘sleep’ or ‘trance’ according to the lexicon. What was this “sleep” or “trance”?

Then it states, “while he was sleeping.” This is taken from יָשַׁן (yashen) which means to be ‘asleep’ and ‘to remain a long time’ according to the lexicon.

What is sleep anyway? Sleep is a state of illusion or trance, as one focuses upon dreaming instead of the waking world. Now we could figure that Adam fell into a conventional sleep as we know it. But does God operate on people when they sleep? Don't be ridiculous.

Rather, God – who can influence our consciousness – simply encourages a particular consciousness among the living beings of the spiritual dimension: A consciousness of mutual love.

What does Adam's rib symbolize?

This encouraging of consciousness is very practical. Consider what happens at a concert. Here, the band is able to create a mood or consciousness among the audience by playing a certain type of music or speaking to the audience in a certain way. Skilled speakers and politicians can also do this, as they select words and speaking mannerisms that influence their audience's consciousness one way or another.

So while the spiritual living beings created by God – symbolized by Adam – are in this loving state of consciousness influenced by God, God takes a part of symbolic Adam to create the symbolic Eve. What is this part?

The word “rib” is being translated from the Hebrew word צֵלָע (tsela), which can mean 'side,' 'rib' or 'beam' according to the lexicon. The 'beam' usage is taken from shipbuilding, where a ship is made of beams that make up the central structure of the ship. The beams of a ship, in order words, give the ship its stability. Its beams give the ship its strength and foundation. "Side" and "rib" also convey this concept, as these are critical structural components of the body or any structure. What is being conveyed is a core element of composition: A critical part.

What is being described here is that a core element is being taken from one living being to create another. Are we really saying that some of us (notably those in female bodies) were originally created from ribs? Certainly not. This has no scientific or biological basis whatsoever.

In fact, what is being described has nothing to do with the physical bodies of men and women. These physical bodies are all temporary. They provide a vehicle for the spiritual living being for a few years, and after the living being leaves, the body begins to decompose. In other words, the spiritual living being has nothing to do with the sex of the physical body.

In the spiritual world, each of us has a spiritual form based on our unique relationship with God. In the spiritual dimension, God is the dominator and we are all dominated living beings. There is no room for male chauvinism in the spiritual world because the Supreme Being is always Supreme. But God's rule is benevolent. He is ever-loving and forgiving.

What Genesis is describing is the creation of community among the living beings of the spiritual world. Adam symbolizes each of us, but Eve symbolizes how we are all connected. We were each created directly by God to exchange a unique loving relationship with Him. But each of us also has a part of each other within us - making us each relatives - and each other's helpers. This is what the rib symbolizes: that we are all connected, part of the same spiritual family.

Why is our spiritual family so important?

This part we share is a piece of the main element of our composition: Our tendency to love and serve. We each were created with the natural tendency to lovingly care for and serve God. But this same element also relates to our spiritual relatives: we were also designed to lovingly care for each other in relation to our care for God.

This is why Jesus quoted Moses' teaching:

"And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" (Matt. 22:39)

after his most important teaching:

"'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment." (Matt. 22:37-38)

"Like it" is derived from the Greek ὅμοιος (homoios), which means to be 'similar' or to 'resemble' something else. In other words, loving our spiritual relatives is inseparable from our love for God. If we care for and love God, we'll automatically care for and love our spiritual relatives, God's children.

This is because we are related to each other in the most intimate fashion.

We see a glimpse of this in the physical world, as we often feel an intimate bond with our physical brothers and sisters. Because we have a common bond of caring for our mother and father, we often feel intimate with our brothers and sisters. However, these relationships of the physical body are temporary. Once our various relatives' bodies die, and then our body dies, those physical relationships cease. We may still share a relationship with those spiritual persons, but after the death of our bodies, they are no more related to us than any other living being is.

In the spiritual world, we are feeling related with every living being - our true relatives. When we are loving God with all our heart and soul, we are loving others intimately as relatives that share a common Beloved - the Supreme Being.

This is why even the most wealthy person in the physical world is still empty even with all their wealth, yet they will gain a glimpse of real joy by serving others with their wealth.

This is the hidden meaning within this symbolic, allegorical discussion of Adam, Eve and the so-called rib: We each share a part of each other - that part is our tendency to love and serve. This is the key to the kingdom of God: Loving service.

But truly loving and serving others is incomplete without understanding who we are. We are not physical bodies. We are the spiritual living beings within these temporary physical bodies. Therefore, our love and loving service must be connected to and reflect our spiritual loving relationship and loving service to the Supreme Person, God.

Consider another translation of these verses in Chapter Two of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 3:8 - Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as He was walking ...

Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. (Genesis 3:8)

This verse confirms that the Eden being discussed in Genesis is not a physical place on planet Earth: Eden symbolizes the spiritual world.

Is God a personal God?

This verse also indicates that the Supreme Being is not some kind of vague force or amalgamation: Rather, God is a Person. He is an individual being, complete with a personality, desires, wishes, intentions and relationships. This is why each of us also has an individual personality, desires, wishes, intentions and relationships.

Why would God create something that He Himself doesn't have? If we can have personal relationships, certainly God can too. If we can have our own individuality, so can God. In fact, the reason why each of us has these unique personalities and relationships is because God has them.

This was communicated clearly by God:

"Let Us make man in Our image... (Genesis 1:26-27)

The spiritual world is that location where the Supreme Being is present personally. The Supreme Being walks the spiritual world surrounded by His associates and His loving servants who care for Him and play with Him.

The Supreme Being enjoys the various relationships of the spiritual world. Here He enjoys so many pastimes involving His loving relationships with His associates and loving servants. In fact, within the depths of the spiritual world, God's associates and loving servants do not realize that God is the Supreme Being: They simply love Him as their dear-most friend, companion, beloved and so on - whatever their unique relationship with Him may be.

Many have stated that "God is love" but what does this actually mean?

The fact is, God loves. God loves to love and loves being loved. God is absorbed in love because love is wrapped around caring for those He loves - each of us.

Didn't God have a relationship with Adam and Eve?

So in this verse of Genesis, God is walking through the symbolic garden. Why? This verse assumes that God would normally meet up with the symbolic Adam and Eve as He was walking through the garden. How do we know this?

they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden

This indicates that normally God would meet up with them. What would they do once they met up? Naturally, they would exchange some type of relationship. This confirms that the living beings and the Supreme Being exchange loving relationships within the spiritual world.

Remember that this event discussed in Genesis is an allegorical tale rich in symbolism - discussed with earlier verses. Adam symbolizes each individual person created by God, Eve symbolizes the community of the spiritual world, the serpent symbolizes our potential to desire to be like God, the fruit represents self-centeredness, the tree of life represents love for God, and the tree of knowledge of pleasure and pain (correct translation - not 'good and evil') represents our freedom to not love God - after all, love requires freedom.

Then there are the other trees of the symbolic garden of Eden:

And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground--trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. (Genesis 2:9)

As discussed earlier, these various other trees represent the various relationships that occur within the spiritual dimension.

Now we find that the symbolic Adam and Eve are hiding from God by hiding in these trees. What does this mean? Could someone really hide from someone like God behind some trees?

What is being communicated here is that once the symbolic Adam and Eve became self-centered - they ate the 'forbidden fruit - they then felt self-conscious about their nakedness. This represents them being uncomfortable with their pure state of being God's loving servants. Once they became self-centered, they had to cover themselves up - by assuming false identities.

Why did they hide from God?

Think about this. Once they became self-centered, they were no longer comfortable with their pure state of being loving servants. Then they hid from God.

This is what we are all doing as we seek the false enjoyment of the physical world within these temporary physical bodies and false identities: We are each hiding from God.

It is not as though God cannot see us, however. God is the Supreme Being, and He knows each of us intimately. We cannot really hide from Him.

But we can hide from Him virtually by trying to ignore Him.

This is what we do in the physical world. We wrap ourselves up in our temporary physical identities and the relationships related to them - first as babies, then as children, then as teenagers, then as college kids, then as a young married family, then as middle-aged professional parents, then as elderly grandparents. In each stage, we identify with the physical body and those relationships around us in such a way that allows us to ignore God. This is God's design, and this is equivalent to hiding behind some of the other trees - hiding behind other types of relationships, in other words.

Isn't this story is about each of us?

The symbolism involved in Adam and Eve hiding from God describes both our past and our current state, along with our future choices. The depth of this symbolic story is well beyond the ability of our minds to completely grasp. It is a spiritual lesson - a lesson that we can continue to learn from as it awakens from within our hearts.

The lesson of Eden discusses our past because it shows us how each of us fell from the spiritual world and our loving relationship with the Supreme Being. It shows how we had the choice between loving and caring for Him or becoming self-centered. And once we became self-centered, we began our journey out - we fell, in other words - from the spiritual world into this physical dimension.

And at the same time, every day, each of us makes the choice made by the symbolic Adam and Eve. Over and over, we choose between our self-centered desires and what we know is right - what God communicates to us deep from within: The Supreme Being wants us back. He wants us to return to His loving arms. But we have to choose to return to Him. That choice, by His design, is put in front of us each and every day and at every moment.

Consider another translation of this verse in Chapter Three of the New Book of Genesis.

Genesis 3:23 - So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden ...

So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. (Genesis 3:23)

Is the Garden of Eden on earth?

This verse has been misconstrued Sectarian professional clerics have interpreted this section of Genesis to be describing a location on the planet earth - the "Garden of Eden" - and Adam and Eve as being the first humans on the planet.

This misunderstanding has created many imaginative and speculative journeys to find the location of the Garden of Eden somewhere in the Middle East. Others have suggested that its location is in Asia. Millions of dollars of tithings have been wasted on these hunts, to no avail. They have also performed archaeological digs in hopes of finding the bones of Adam and Eve, again to no avail.

The reason no one has found the Garden of Eden on the planet is that the Garden of Eden was never on the planet. And the reason they find no evidence of Adam and Eve is because they didn't exist as portrayed.

In fact, this section of Genesis is not describing God's creation of the physical universe. The creation of the physical universe together with the human species is clearly and adequately described in the first chapter of Genesis, which began with:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)

and ended with:

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. (Genesis 2:1)

Between these verses the creation of humanity and all the other species of life is described:

God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. (Genesis 1:25-27)

So why would Genesis describe two different scenarios for the creation of humanity? Because there aren't two different scenarios. God's creation of the physical universe is made clear in the first chapter of Genesis.

Does this mean the Garden of Eden doesn't exist?

However, this doesn't mean there is no Garden of Eden.

The reality is, this depiction of the Garden of Eden and Adam and Eve, together with the talking, walking serpent and the tree of life and the tree of knowledge, is an allegorical parable describing how each of us fell from the spiritual realm down to the physical world.

This is confirmed by the wording of the first part of Genesis 3:22:

So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden....

The word "banished" is being translated from the Hebrew שלח (shalach), which means to be 'to send away' or 'to let go' according to the lexicon. It can also be described as 'to let loose,' 'to cast out,' 'to dismiss,' or 'to be divorced.'

So is "banished" the right word to use? "Banished" sounds like losing a country club membership or something. It doesn't communicate the event accurately: God is casting Adam (us) out of the spiritual realm. God kicked us out, in other words.

So where is God casting us out of? The Hebrew being translated to Garden of Eden as עדן גן (gan 'Eden). גן refers to an enclosure, a space protected by adequate barriers; and Eden refers to a location of pleasure.

Notice that the depiction of the Garden of Eden does not describe any kind of walls or fortress around this enclosed Garden. If Eden were on the earth, these walls would have to be pretty big to be enclosed. And in order to be cast out, there must be something to be cast out of.

These problems illustrate that the Garden of Eden was never on the earth. Rather, Garden of Eden is a section of the spiritual realm. And the word Eden is associated with 'pleasure' because the spiritual world is pleasurable. In the spiritual realm we experience the ultimate pleasure.

What is the 'tree of life' in Eden?

This is being symbolized in the story by the "Tree of Life," located in the "middle" of the Garden. The "Tree of Life" represents love for God. This is the core of the spiritual realm. It is love for God that gives us complete fulfillment and the ultimate pleasure.

Just consider how we all search for true love with so much intensity. Even if we have wealth, prestige and fame, we still pine for true love. Most of us focus our love upon our family members, friends and spouses. But still this is not enough. Most people keep on searching for love, whether it is a new lover, friend or respect (as we want others to love and appreciate us). We perpetually seek that perfect person who will love us unconditionally: that special someone we can give our heart to and care for.

In other words, we are engineered for love. We are all about love. Our most popular songs are about love. Our most popular movies are love stories.

But we are typically frustrated with the love found within the physical realm. It just doesn't do it for us. This is why there are so many divorces and breakups. This is why kids leave home. This is why people get depressed. This is why people feel lonely, even when surrounded by people.

The love in the physical world doesn't work for us. Why? Because the inhabitants of this physical world are just like us - they were also cast out of the spiritual world.

Yes, we've all been thrown out of the spiritual world. Why? Because we became envious of God. We wanted to be like God. We wanted what the Supreme Being has. The Supreme Being has power, fame, glory, beauty, all the attention, and many other attributes. We wanted all that. We got jealous.

We were each created to love and care for God in our own unique way. But with this, He also gave us the freedom to love Him or not - because love requires freedom. This explains the two symbolic trees of the "Garden." We can either eat from the "Tree of Life" - love of God - or we can eat from the "tree of self-centered pleasure and pain". In other words, we can either love God and act in such a way to give God pleasure, or we can become self-centered and seek our own pleasure - and experience its consequence, pain.

How were we thrown out of the spiritual realm?

Were we just cast off into space? No. We were pushed into these physical bodies. We, the spiritual living beings, were each forced to take on a particular temporary physical body within this virtual physical domain, the physical universe.

We could compare this to how a person might get forced into an automobile. Let's say a big person stuffs us into the driver's seat of a car. Because there isn't much else to do in the driver's seat of a car, we start the car and begin driving it. Because cars were built for streets and highways, we find ourselves within an environment of streets and highways. That is akin to finding ourselves stuffed within a physical body born within the physical environment.

Now let's say the car was specially designed by a very smart engineer to be so functional that once we began driving it, we began to identify with it. We forget who we were before we got stuffed into the car, and because the car is so functional, after some time we lose the ability to walk on our own. We become completely dependent upon the car, and forget who we were before we got in the car.

This is our situation with these physical bodies. The verse just before this one says:

The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. (Genesis 3:21)

What are the "garments of skin"? They symbolize our physical bodies. God designed these physical bodies for us to occupy. Then he cast us out of the spiritual realm and into these physical bodies.

This leads us to the real meaning of the rest of this verse, 'to work the ground from which he had been taken.'

The Hebrew word עבד (`abad) means to 'cultivate' or 'work,' but it also means 'to serve', or more complete, 'to serve as subjects'.

The Hebrew word אדמה ('adamah) can refer to 'ground,' but also 'land, territory, country,' or the 'whole inhabited earth.' In other words, the physical world.

The Hebrew word אשר ('asher) is a conjunction or pronoun participle that serves to connect, either with 'which,' 'who,' 'that which,' 'that,' 'when,' 'since,' 'as,' or the conditional use of 'if.' Here it is translated as "from which," but this is speculatively assuming that Adam came from what is being described here as "the ground." This would be a contradiction, because God is throwing Adam out. How could Adam be made of the stuff that he is being thrown out into?

The key to the meaning of this last section of the verse comes from the meaning of the Hebrew לקח (laqach) which is assumed to mean "taken from." This, however, is an incorrect usage of the word, as לקח means to be 'taken' in the sense of being 'taken by,' 'taken away,' or to be 'carried off by' something. It has been used to describe how a man might take or snatch away a wife. It is also used to describe being taken away or captured by something.

Thus, the translation of this verse would not be, 'to work the ground from which he had been taken.' Rather, it should be something like:

'to toil with the physical body and be captured by the physical world.'

Yes, we are indeed each captured by the physical world. We are trapped within these physical bodies, and forced to work hard to keep it alive and safe. We have to work to feed the body, keep it warm or cool, and keep it healthy. This means we have to defend our body from danger caused by the physical environment or others - be they other humans, animals, insects or microorganisms. It is not easy to keep the body alive and safe. We have to toil at it.

How did we get captured by the physical world?

We have become enamored with the world. We identify with our physical body, and our physical family, house, car, job, community, country and so on. We strive to gain the acceptance of others, and we strive to achieve fleeting sensations of pleasure, amid a constant battle against discomfort, sickness, aging, stress, pain and death.

Even though everything dissolves at the time of death, we are still captured by this world. Even though we will lose our house, money, house, fame, family, friends, position, country and physical identity at the time of death, we are still captivated by them. Even though everyone around us is dying, we live as though we will never die. How did we become captured?

This physical world captured us because it facilitates our learning and growing. In order to learn and grow, we must be captured here, and we must forget our eternal nature. If we always knew this world was temporary, then we wouldn't learn as much here.

It is similar to how medical research will be designed to be "double-blinded." Being double-blinded means that neither the researchers nor the subjects know which subject was given the treatment or a placebo - a sugar pill or fake treatment. That blindedness allows the study to really test whether the treatment works. Otherwise, if they knew they were taking the medicine, many would convince themselves that they feel better - which is called psychosomatic.

Being trapped here in this world means forgetting who we are and where we have come from. This allows us to think we are the bodies, and as a result become tested as to the various challenges that the physical world presents to us.

And those who reach for scripture are trying to find a way out of this world - to grow beyond it.

The very purpose of this verse (and scripture in general) is to teach us that this world is not our home. God teaches within scripture that the physical world is a temporary place, and our true identity and natural position is as one of His loving servitors in the spiritual realm.

Scripture is trying to teach us that this is where we will find real happiness - not within this temporary physical place surrounded by greed, envy and self-centeredness.

It is sad, this misinterpretation of this beautiful and magical text of Genesis into English. This wonderful text that describes, with prose and elegant symbolism, how we each rejected being one of God's loving servitors by becoming envious of Him, and subsequently fell from the spiritual realm into the physical world and these temporary physical bodies.

The saddest element is that these misinterpretations hide the true message being communicated through the text: That the Supreme Being wants us to come home to Him. He wants us back. He doesn't want us to selfishly suffer any longer within this world of greed and envy. He wants us to return to His loving arms. This is why Jesus, Moses and other messengers from God gave this clear instruction:

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment." (Matt. 22:37-38)

Consider another translation of this verse in Chapter Three of the New Book of Genesis.