Advancing the Revelation of Truth
To Create, To Make, To Form.
In the Bible book of Genesis God uses these words to describe his actions. It is important that we attempt to distinguish between their meanings in order to understand what is in God’s mind when He uses the original Hebrew words. They relate to many different activities.
We will note the God given meanings in three ways:
A. The Godly meaning of the symbol of each Hebrew letter of the word, which taken together indicate its meaning.
B. Using God’s numerology where each Hebrew letter is represented by a number. These numbers are then summated, the total of which is factorised. The Godly meaning of these factors further enlightens His meaning of the word.
Having first gained this essential foundation from God’s Word, it is followed by
C. the meaning researched by the genius, H.W.F.Gesenius recorded in his Hebrew/Chaldee Lexicon.
TO CREATE arB
A. Hebrew letters: alef / reish / beit [Strong 1254] an ox / a head / a house
an ox,…….strength and power
a head,…..an outflowing source
a house….God’s desire to make for Himself a dwelling place.
B. 1, 200, 2. = 203 = 7 x 29
[7] Spiritual perfection, completeness. A weapon, The Sword of The Spirit.
[29] expectation of judgement. the number of departure.
C. Of the four meanings of this verb which are drawn from their contexts, No: 2 relates to God’s actions in Genesis. Gesenius defines its meaning as follows: to create, to produce, to make smooth, to polish, hence to fashion, to create. Used of the heaven and the earth, Gen 1:1; of men, Gen 1:27, 5:1,2, 6:7; specially Israel, Isaiah 43:1,15, Jer 31:22. Isaiah 65:18: ‘Behold I create Jerusalem and cause her to rejoice’. As to the passage Gen 2:3 [which God created and made] should be explained: ’He produced by making’. i.e. He made by producing something new, e.g. …..for The Lord hath created a new thing in the earth, a woman shall compass a man‘. [Jer 32:22] But if The Lord make a new thing and the earth open her mouth and swallow them up…..’ [Num 16:30] Something created produced by God, specially, new, unheard of. hayrB [Strong’s 1278.]
Commenting thus: TO CREATE arB
When God creates, He is expressing the power and strength which flows from Him. He is also telling us that His perpetual purpose is to build a home for Himself. He will not be thwarted in this purpose which will be perfectly completed and defended by His intelligent expression. Even so, following His assessment of this created work, He will leave it aside and take up a new dwelling.
TO MAKE hcu
A. Hebrew letters: hei / shin / ayin [Strong 6213] to take, / a tooth / an eye
to take,…...from the secret and loving giver, as Joseph gave seed to Abraham
a tooth,…...power of decomposition and entropy. The flame [Divine Revelation]
bound to the coal [Divine Essence].
an eye…….the eyes of God in control of the yearly cycle over the land.
B. 5, 300, 70. = 375 = 5 x 5 x 5 x 3.
[5] emphasised...Divine favour made perfect in weakness. grace and favour
[3] solid, real, substantial, entire. divine fullness, completeness, or perfection
C. Because this is a generally used word, Gesenius takes three full columns to define its meaning. Studying these three columns will enable us to perceive the essential features. [1] To labour, to work about anything…...to work upon anything…….to work in gold and silver. [2] To make, to produce by labour, specially to manufacture, to fabricate, e.g. a ship [Gen 8:6]. bricks [Exodus5:16], to make miracles [Psalm 78:4, 12]. When God acts by making or doing anything, it is real, complete, and divinely perfect.
Commenting thus: TO MAKE hcu
When God acts by making or doing anything, it is real, complete, and divinely perfect. Its working out is overseen by Him. Our attention is drawn to the fact that this favour is secret and does not depend upon the merit of the receiver of that favour. It is however non-permanent, suffering from the entropy of this created earth.
TO FORM rxy
A. Hebrew letters: reish / tzadik / yud [Strong 3335] a head / Life by faith / a closed hand.
a head,…….…..beginning, poverty, humility. The beginning of wisdom is the fear of God
Life by faith,…...in the Transcendent light of God, the ultimate source of creation, and faith
in the very essence of God, the ultimate source of the revelation of Torah.
The greatest joy in one’s service of God
a closed hand…The origin from which God works with infinite potential. The secret of this
point is the power of the Infinite to contain finite phenomena within Himself
and express them to apparent external reality.
B. 200, 90, 10. = 300 = 3 x 10 x 10.
[3] solid, real, substantial, entire. divine fullness, completeness, or perfection.
[10] ordinal perfection, deed or work, judgement of the law.
C. To form, to fashion as the potter does the clay. Also: to form in the mind using the imagination. Often predetermined.
Commenting thus: TO FORM rxy
When God forms a work He tells us that the ideas spring from the very source of His humility working out to external reality. This origin is the power of the infinite to contain finite phenomena. This wisdom should produce a deep respect for God. It is the origin from which God works with infinite potential. This forming is solid, real, complete and perfect and is the basis of His expression, from which by faith, is the great joy in a Christian’s Godly service. In the process of forming, God designs and develops by thought and imagination.
References to these three Hebrew words in the Book of Genesis
Whilst considering the meanings of these three ’action’ words of God in the book of Genesis, care should be taken to note their differences.
Genesis [to create] arB
1:1, In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
1:21, And God created great whales and every living creature that moveth
1:27, 1:27, 1:27, So God created man in His image, in the image of God created He him. Male and female created He them.
2:3 He had rested from all His work which God created and made. [He produced by making, i.e. He Generated]
2:4, These are the generations of the heaven and the earth when they were created
5:1, In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made He him
5:2, 5:2, Male and female created He them…...and called their name [made by producing something new],
6:7, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth.
Genesis [to make or do] hcu
1:7, And God made the firmament.
1:16, And God made two great lights.
1:25, And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind
2:3 He had rested from all His work which God created and made
3:7, and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
3:21, And unto Adam also and to his wife did The Lord God make coats of skins
5.1, In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made He him
6:22, Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.
7:5, And Noah did according unto all that The Lord God commanded him.
18:25, Shall not the judge of all the earth do right?
19:3, he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat
20:9, Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him: ‘What hast thou done unto us ?’
21:1, And The Lord did unto Sarah as He had spoken.
21:8, And the child grew and was weaned, And Abraham made a great feast...
26:30, And he made them a feast and they did eat and drink
27:31 And he also had made savoury meat
Genesis [to form clay or the imagination]. rxy
2:7, And The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground.
2:8, There He put the man whom He had formed.
2:19 And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field
6:5, every imagination of the thoughts of his heart only evil all the day.
8:21, because the thought of the heart of man is evil from his youth.
Deut 31:21 for I know the imagination of Israel which they go about
Isaiah 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose thought is stayed on Thee
Notes
Genesis 1:1, In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Any thing that God does is perfect. Before this act of God, no such thing existed. At that time it was unique. It was created in power which flowed out from God Himself. His plan is to make it His own dwelling place. Like anything that God does, it was perfect, all parts were needed with no extras. It is the source from which His expression, The Word of God, would go forth in the expectation of judgement.
That perfect creation of the earth became imperfect, desolated and waste. Why was this? The earth and its contents were destroyed by God because of the rebellious act of Satan opposing the will of God.. [See By Grace No: 12]. From that point onwards in chapter one, God tells of His acts during the six days of creation and forming
If we now look at God’s work described in chapter two of Genesis, He tells us that in the day that The Lord God made the earth and the heavens and every plant of the field before it was in the earth and every herb of the field before it grew…...What day was that? Looking back to chapter one we find that after God had caused the dry land to appear on the THIRD day He tells us that the earth brought forth grass and herb yielding seed. We must therefore conclude that God’s action described on that day in chapter two immediately preceded the bringing forth of grass and herb yielding seed on the THIRD day. It was on that THIRD day then that God formed Adam from the dust of the earth.
This timing of God’s acts is confirmed when we recognise that every fowl of the air was formed from the dust of the earth in Gen 2:19 but the formed Adam was given dominion over them in Gen chapter one verse 26.
Thus God first formed The Adam on the third day [Gen 2:7] and later on the sixth day ‘created He him’ [Gen 1:27].God created man in His image, in the image of God created He him. Male and female created He them
When God formed Adam, He imagined or designed him using the elements in the soil of the earth as a potter would mould clay. The design was clear in God’s mind, predetermined. The character of this action was without pride but through the design, expressed God’s wisdom and faith. This action of God may not have been unique as is His acts of creation. The forming has infinite potential and is expressed in apparent external reality. The design is perfect but is subject to law and order.
In Genesis chapter 1,
Only six things were created: [1] The Heavens and [2] the earth, [3] The 5th day, Great whales, [4] The 5th day, every living creature, [5] The 5th day, every winged fowl [6] The 6th day, The Adam, male and female giving them dominion over the fowl of the air.
Nothing was formed,
but He made: [1] the firmament, [2] Two great lights, [3] beasts of the earth and [4] cattle.
In Genesis chapter two verse 4 to 25…..God’s actions on the third day.
God did not create anything.
He formed [1] The Adam and [2] every beast of the field and [3] every fowl of the air.
He made [1] the woman from the ‘rib’ of The Adam.
From the full meaning of the Hebrew verb ‘create’, it can be understood that the statement: ‘the six days of creation’ is incorrect. The heavens and the earth were not created during that first week, [see By Grace No:12] which leaves only the creative acts on the fifth day of the week [items 3-5 above] and sixth day of the week [items 6 above].