The last part of the creation story begins in the middle of the sixth season. Here, God states his intentions for humanity. Without the overburden of unbiblical perfection theology, the ancient text matches the evidence.
Genesis 1
26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” 27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them (NIV).
Throughout the centuries, believers have interpreted the word “us” in several ways (verse 26), but many of today’s Christians say it shows the Trinity. However, the poet would not have believed this; neither would any other writer of the Bible, including the apostles. Such an interpretation rejects the prophets’ understanding of the basic nature of God and nullifies their constant plea for the people to worship one God only. If they were wrong on this topic, we should question their ability to tell us anything spiritual.
However, Genesis 1 gives us another explanation. The poem emphasizes only two groups: 1) God and 2) everything else. Poetically, the use of the word “us” lets God engage the only other “character” mentioned in the poem: the universe. God used evolution to sculpt creation, including all life. Here, he summoned the universe, including the evolving life on Earth, as a partner to make something unique.
The “likeness” or “image” of God” does not mean God’s appearance is human. The prophets insisted that worshiping a human-like image was idolatry. They worshiped an invisible God who was different from anything they could imagine.
God creates human-kind, which continues the generalization of life forms. These were not two people. Also, this word does not require Homo sapiens as the only interpretation. God created us in the same way as all the other animals. Human-kind includes our lineage through the not-quite-human, not-at-all-human, and not-even-mammal. It reaches back to mineral, the stars that gave us carbon atoms, and returns to the initial singularity that produced everything. Creation is one, as its Creator is one.
God made humanity, which requires both male and female. This creation story does not present a hierarchy. They are what they are, part of the creation, and yet God calls them unique. He chose these animals to become his image. However, this passage does not say how that was done. We must wait for that story. Once the change happened, then all the other almost-human lineages became extinct—every one of them. Only we remain. Humanity is one, as our Creator is one.
Paleontology and genetics show human lineage changed quicker than any of our nearest relatives, the great apes. Something happened and kept happening in our lineage. No evidence shows what that might have been, but it happened about the time our forebearers started making tools and sewing clothes. That time is the same “season” described in the garden story.
To be continued:
