From Adam and Israel to the Church

A Biblical Theology of the People of God

Benjamin L. Gladd

• Publisher: IVP Academic
• Year: 2019
• Print ISBN: 9780830855438
• eBook ISBN: 9780830855445
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Theology

Biblical Foundations Award Finalist

What does it mean to be created in God's image? How has the fall affected this image? Who are the people of God?

Addressing these core questions about spiritual identity, From Adam and Israel to the Church examines the nature of the people of God from Genesis to Revelation through the lens of being created and formed in God's image. Benjamin Gladd argues that living out God's image means serving as prophets, priests, and kings, and he explains how God's people function in these roles throughout Scripture—from Adam and Eve to the nation of Israel, from Jesus to the church. The consistent call of the people of God is to serve as God's image-bearers in the world.

This first volume in Essential Studies in Biblical Theology lays a foundation for subsequent volumes, introducing key biblical-theological themes such as temple, king, priest, prophet, creation, and redemption.

About the Series

Essential Studies in Biblical Theology (ESBT), edited by Benjamin L. Gladd and L. Michael Morales, explore the central or  essential themes of the Bible's grand storyline. Taking cues from Genesis 1–3, authors trace the presence of these themes throughout the entire sweep of redemptive history. Written for students, church leaders, and laypeople, the ESBT offers an accessible yet rich introduction to biblical theology.

Chapter One

THE CREATION OF ADAM

IT WAS WEDNESDAY, December 2, 2009, and I was teaching Greek 101 to a group of undergrad students at Wheaton College. My phone rang. While I typically do not keep my phone on while I teach, this time was different. My wife was nine months pregnant with our first, and she was ready to pop. “I think it’s happening!” she exclaimed. I darted off, picked her up, and drove to the hospital in record time. Fast-forward twelve hours, and it was game time. My wife and I had taken a Lamaze class together and had heard countless stories from our friends, but nothing prepared us for the real thing. It was three in the morning, and I was about to meet Judah Benjamin for the first time.

His hair was dark brown, and his baby skin was tan. He had his mother’s dark brown eyes, but there was no doubt about it—he was my son. Growing up, we look up to our parents to determine our resemblances. But when we have children, we look down. For the first time in my life, someone was in my “image” and “likeness” at some level.

For us to understand what it means to be part of the people of God, we must begin with the creation of Adam and Eve in the divine image. This project begins with the creation of the cosmos and humanity’s role within it. The task before us in this chapter is straightforward: sketch the nature of Adam and Eve’s being created in the divine image and how the first couple relates to God and the world around them. What does it mean that Adam and Eve are in God’s likeness, and what are his expectations for them? As we will discover below, humanity is fashioned to dwell in God’s presence and tasked with the responsibility to bring his glory to the ends of the earth.

THE COSMOS AS GOD’S TEMPLE

A careful reading of Genesis 1–2 reveals God creating a vast cosmic temple, wherein he dwells and sovereignly rules. Parallels between the creation account in Genesis 1–2 and the construction of the tabernacle in the book of Exodus are many, and several scholars argue that God is indeed fashioning a cosmic temple in Genesis 1–2.1 Elsewhere in the Old Testament, the cosmos is compared to Israel’s temple:

He built his sanctuary like the heights,

like the earth that he established forever. (Psalm 78:69;

cf. 1 Chronicles 28:2; Isaiah 66:1-2)

Moshe Weinfeld, for example, astutely juxtaposes God creating the cosmos and Moses establishing the tabernacle, as shown in table 1.1.2

The parallels between these two accounts are difficult to ignore, especially when we consider them in light of the Pentateuch’s unity. Exodus is meant to be read in light of Genesis 1–3.

Even the layout of Israel’s temple symbolically depicts the order of the cosmos. The outer courtyard of the temple contained the washbasin and the altar, symbolizing the sea and the land (1 Kings 7:23-25; Ezekiel 43:14-16). Moving a step closer to God’s presence, the second section of the temple, or the holy place, symbolized the visible heavens and was lined with gold, containing the altar of incense (1 Kings 6:20), the bread of the Presence resting on a table (1 Kings 7:48), and ten lampstands fashioned out of gold (1 Kings 7:49). The final and most sacred section of the temple was the holy of holies, which symbolized the invisible heavens, where God dwells. This partition, separated by an embroidered curtain, was also lined with gold and housed the ark of the covenant. Above the ark, two cherubim faced one another, symbolizing the throne of God in heaven, which is also surrounded by cherubim (Psalm 80:1; 99:1; cf. Isaiah 6). In summary, the connections between the cosmos and Israel’s temple are overwhelming. Michael Morales rightly concludes, “The cosmos was understood as a large temple and the temple as a small cosmos.”3

GENESIS 1–2	EXODUS 39–40
“God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31)	“Moses inspected the work and saw that they had done it just as the LORD had commanded.” (Exodus 39:43)
“Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.” (Genesis 2:1)	“So all the work on the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, was completed.” (Exodus 39:32)
“By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing.” (Genesis 2:2)	“And so Moses finished the work.” (Exodus 40:33)
“Then God blessed the seventh day.” (Genesis 2:3)	“So Moses blessed them.” (Exodus 39:43)
“Then God . . . made it holy.” (Genesis 2:3)	“Anoint the tabernacle and everything in it; consecrate it and all its furnishings.” (Exodus 40:9)

Table 1.1

Israel’s tabernacle and temple are just models of something greater—the entire cosmos. The earthly temple corresponds to something greater—the cosmic temple over which God rules. As an illustration, my kids and I enjoy playing with Legos, and one of our favorite sets is the Millennium Falcon. This thousand-piece set includes all sorts of details that are found in the Star Wars films, even a detailed hyperdrive system! Not for a second, though, do my kids and I believe that the Lego set is the real Millennium Falcon. It’s just a model.

Another important detail found in Genesis 1 is the creation of lights. On day one, God creates light (Genesis 1:3), whereas on day four God fills the heavens with lights: “And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night’ ” (Genesis 1:14). The word “lights” here in the creation narrative is noteworthy, as the same term is applied to the lampstand in Israel’s tabernacle: “the lampstand that is for light with its accessories, lamps and oil for the light” (Exodus 35:14; cf. Exodus 39:37; Numbers 4:9). The lampstand in the tabernacle and Israel’s temple illuminated the holy place, symbolizing God’s presence among his people. The lights strewn about the cosmos function as cultic luminaries that burn brightly throughout God’s cosmic temple. In this vein, the seven lights affixed to the lampstand in Israel’s temple probably symbolized the seven lights of the visible sky (sun, moon, and five planets).4 These lights “mark sacred times, and days and years” (Genesis 1:14). Creation follows a fixed calendar that calls to mind God’s purpose in creating all things. That is, the lights set the rhythm of the created order, so that all of creation may be oriented toward God and reminded to worship him.5

When God finished creating the cosmos, he rested from the creative process, but this resting is unlike our modern conception of rest. I often associate resting with watching football with my kids on Sunday afternoons, but resting in the Old Testament is quite different. God resting after six days entails his climactic enthronement as King over the cosmos (Genesis 2:2; cf. 2 Chronicles 6:41; Isaiah 66:1). Perhaps an illustration would help here. One of my favorite hobbies is woodworking on the weekends. I enjoy working with wood—measuring (twice!), cutting, sanding, and finishing. Some time ago, I built a table for our dining room. To use the language of Genesis 1, in six days I created the table, and on the seventh day, I “rested,” when I moved the table inside my house and dined on it. God resting on the Sabbath occurs when he executes his sovereign rule over his creation.

So why did God graciously construct a cosmic temple? Why does the creation of the cosmos parallel the construction of the tabernacle? Simply put, God built a cosmic house to occupy. Much like an individual constructing a large estate on a plot of land, where the owner desires to move in and manage the property, God desires to rule the created order and fill it with his resplendent presence. Quite simply, the universe is designed to house the veritable glory of God.

EDEN AS A TEMPLE

An additional detail we glean from Genesis 1–2 is the depiction of Eden as a sanctuary resting on a mountain. Though God dwells in all his fullness in the invisible heavens, his presence has partially descended in the Garden of Eden. Just as Israel’s temple comprises three tiers, so also does the earth.

Eden is the center of God’s activity on the earth, where God dwells and gives Adam and Eve his law and instructs them how they are to honor him. Much like Sinai, Eden ought to be understood as a mountain that houses God’s glory. Genesis 2:10-14 adds several seemingly odd details about the flow of water: “A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon. . . . The name of the second river is the Gihon. . . . The name of the third river is the Tigris. . . . And the fourth river is the Euphrates.”

Living in the South, we deal with severe storms and heavy rains on a regular basis. Without fail, water pools at the bottom of my front yard, and I suddenly find myself owning waterfront property! Water only flows in a downward direction. So one aspect of these seemingly incidental details about flowing water in Genesis 2:10-14 is that Eden is situated on a mountain. Mountains in the Old Testament and the ancient world are often associated with the presence of a deity (e.g., Isaiah 2:2; 65:9; Micah 4:1-4).

In Genesis 3:8, the bit about God’s “walking” in the garden is akin to God’s walking in Israel’s midst in Leviticus 26:12, a clear reference to the tabernacle (cf. Deuteronomy 23:14). The prophet Ezekiel even calls Eden “the garden of God . . . the holy mount of God” (Ezekiel 28:13-14). Two trees stand in the middle of the garden—the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:9). Partaking of the tree of life appears to have sustained Adam and Eve’s existence. Meanwhile, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil may have been the place of judgment where Adam and Eve were to act on behalf of God and judge all unclean things, casting them out of the garden.6

The point is clear enough. Adam and Eve enjoyed God’s presence in Eden. The closer the couple remained toward the center of the created order, the nearer they were to God and his life-giving presence. God’s glory is at the center of the created order. His glory sustains and nourishes all living things. This insight about Eden being the holy of holies on the earth demonstrates two important points: God ultimately wants to dwell with the created order in all his fullness, and Adam and Eve will play a critical role in accomplishing that goal.

THE CREATION O...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication Page
• Contents
• Series Preface
• Author’s Preface
• Abbreviations
• Introduction
• 1 The Creation of Adam
• 2 Fall and Restoration
• 3 Israel’s Creation and Fall
• 4 Israel’s Restoration in the “Latter Days”
• 5 Jesus as King
• 6 Jesus as Priest
• 7 Jesus as Prophet
• 8 The Church as Kings
• 9 The Church as Priests
• 10 The Church as Prophets
• 11 The Church in the New Creation
• 12 Concluding Practical Reflections
• Author Index
• Scripture Index
• Notes
• Praise for From Adam and Israel to the Church
• About the Author
• More Titles from InterVarsity Press
• Copyright