Genesis 1 Vs Genesis

When discussing the J, E, and P texts of the Old Testament, it is pertinent to understand and analyze the first two chapters of Genesis. Once biblical scholars and critics began piecing the Bible together, and studying the manuscripts, they noticed some strange features, particularly in Genesis that didn’t quite match up together, Genesis 1:1-2:3 and Genesis 2:4-3:23. The first difference between these two segments in Genesis would be the introduction into the creation story. Genesis chapter 1, verse 1 begins with the fluent and well known, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters"

Genesis 1:1 through Genesis 2:3 is written in poetry and beginning in Genesis 2:4 is written in prose. The first passages do not necessarily focus on rhyme, more rhythm. The writer for these verses more than likely had intended the text to be sung as hymns. These verses are metered and also contain some parallelism or repetition. An example of this would be in Genesis 1:5 and Genesis 1:8, “....And there was evening and there was morning, the ____ day.” These same words are repeated multiple times throughout the first creation

Genesis 1:24-27 reads, “And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kind…..” Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness….” So God created man in his own image.” Whereas, in Genesis 2:7 and 2:19, the creation of animals does not occur until after the creation of man; “Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them.” In this same passage, animals are only seen as company for Adam, instead of another piece of the world’s design. The reader can continue to find many differences in these few verses, along with the order that man and woman were created. The first creation story implies that Eve was created at the same time as Adam, however the second creation story explains that Eve was created after Adam, actually from him. Another difference would be