Genesis Chapter 1 Comparison

As the introduction of the Bible, Genesis explains the creation of the world and the following stories of the generation of Adam and Eve, the first man and woman. Using priestly narrative voice is common in the text; however, there is non-priestly narrative version text that comes after and obtains different descriptions from the priestly narrative version. Both chapter 1 and 2 are the whole processes of the creation of the world, but chapter 1 uses priestly narrative voice and chapter 2 uses non-priestly narrative voice. In chapter 1, the creation is so abstract because many things including sky are created after the God says something that follows his will. For example, there is an abstract description of plants: “God said, ‘Let the earth grow grass, plants yielding

However, the abstraction is pretty obvious here. First, it doesn’t explain how those fruits are grown, which people at that time should understand how to grow a plant or they had starved to death already. Second, it is too brief to all of the plants because not all of the plants bear fruit with their seeds such as potato and carrot. Generally, chapter 1 is giving an outline of how this world is created. In chapter 2, it becomes more detailed in describing how the world is made since it is non-priestly narrative version. In non-priestly narrative version, the existence of many existing things in reality such as the four rivers and human are fully described. In this chapter, the God is really creating something instead of realizing his thoughts. In line 5 and 6, it talks about the growth of the plant:” no shrub of the field being yet on the earth and no plant of the field yet sprouted, for the LORD GOD had not caused rain to fall on the earth and there was no human to till the soil.” In these lines, we may understand the fact that plants need water and till to grow, which is an interpretation of the existence of real