Wednesday 27 September 2023

Psalm 125

Background

The final creation day, partly described in verses 24-25, concludes with the creation of human beings. The account is longer than that for the other acts of creation due to several additions. The final verse (v. 31) also differs from the earlier days in the fact that the creation is described as 'very good' rather than just 'good', which we should interpret more as an indication of how God assessed creation in its entirety with all its relationships, rather than humans being better than the other creatures God had made.

 Nevertheless, one of the significant declarations of God regarding humans is their 'dominion' (vs 26, 28) over other creatures, a command which is given at the same time as the command to have children and 'fill the earth'. There is also a statement that seeds and fruits have been provided for human diet (although humans will be redefined as omnivores after the Flood, Genesis 9:1-7).

Christian commentators see the use of the plural 'us' and 'our' to describe God in verse 26 as an indication of God’s community in oneness which would eventually, and in the light of things Jesus said, lead to the doctrine of God as Trinity. The more unambiguous statement about the nature of God implicit in verse 27, quoted above these notes, is that God has the nature of both male and female and that is why God’s desire to create us in the divine image leads to the two genders of humans.

A key question concerns in what sense humans are the 'image' of God. As at several earlier points in this chapter, we may be dealing with a deliberate attempt to refute ancient thinking where, both in Egypt and Mesopotamia, royalty and those of high rank might be called 'the image of God', implying that their status gave them some measure of divinity. In contrast the biblical understanding is that all humans alike have much of the nature of God within them. The addition of 'likeness' to 'image' in v. 26 (but not v. 28) may be intended to make clear that we are not talking about identity but a vaguer similarity.

To Ponder:

• Why do you suppose humans do not get a whole creation day of their own, but share it with other land creatures?
• 'Dominion' over other creatures has sometimes been taken as giving a right to abuse or plunder for human benefit. How would you argue against that conclusion?
• The translation of v. 27 above seems self-contradictory. If the image of God is male and female we ought not speak of God using 'he' and 'his'. Can you suggest how verse 27 might be rewritten in a gender-neutral way without using the word 'God' five times in one short sentence?

Prayer

Dear Lord, help us to truly value your image in the way we treat ourselves, and in the way we regard and treat every human being. Amen.