Watch the video presentation on YouTube at: Genesis 1-2, Moses 2-3, Abraham 4-5
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THE CREATION-AN ACT OF LOVE
ICEBREAKER
I remember, a number of years ago, when the BBC put out their new nature documentary series called Planet Earth. Maybe you’ve seen it. It’s been around for a while now. And I remember being just transfixed by it. I'd never seen a nature documentary so well done, so beautifully filmed and it made me realize just how amazing and beautiful our planet is. It was truly inspiring. So to begin a discussion of the creation, I will often show my class a quick trailer for the program that shows off some of the wonders of our planet. Before we begin, I ask, “What does our planet reveal about our Heavenly Father?”
Link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUp_P2g8sAc
DISCUSSION
One of the greatest truths that I feel the creation teaches me is that there is a God. What greater evidence do we have of the existence of a higher power than the world and the universe around us? How can we look out and consider all that order and beauty and doubt that there is intelligence behind it all? As we consider the laws of nature, mathematics, chemistry, biology, astronomy, or the miracle of our own bodies and minds—how can we doubt that there is something behind all that order? My own sense of reason and rationality says tells me this. Alma made this very point in defending his faith to Korihor. He said:
“all things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth, and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form do witness that there is a Supreme Creator.”
(Alma 30:44)
So, I’m sorry atheists, but I just don’t believe that you can have all that order out there, all that creation without there being a creator behind it all. I actually feel that it takes more faith to believe that this world and our existence was a cosmic accident than it does to believe in God. It would be like me expecting a puzzle to fit itself together just by shaking the box. No matter how long or hard I shook that box, that puzzle is never going to arrange itself.
Another truth the creation teaches me about God is that he must love us very deeply to give us a world like this... Love requires an object to love. In Moses chapter 1 we learned that God has created worlds without number. God’s love is infinite, and that’s why he creates infinitely. Do you remember singing that song in primary? Whenever I hear the song of a bird, or look at the blue, blue sky, whenever I feel the rain on my face or touch a velvet rose, what’s the title and conclusion of that song? I know Heavenly Father loves me. The creation was an act of deep love. And you know, he didn't really have to make the world the way he did. He could have made it monochromatic, mundane, uniform, or bleak, and still tested our obedience and given us a mortal experience. But instead he gave us grandeur, and artistry, and beauty. I know that I feel that love when I spend time in God’s creations.
Another conclusion I come to after watching that is I that God must love color and diversity. He loves variety. There is power and fragility, the majestic and the minute, large animals, and tiny insects. He created life in the sea, the air, the forests, the mountains, the ice and snow, everywhere. He has filled our world with life and creation.
SEARCH
What we find in Genesis, Moses, and Abraham is an account of the creation of our earth, and there’s something I want to show you before we start digging into the text. Start in Genesis chapter 1 and note how many verses you find there. 31 right. Now put a pencil, or a bookmark, or something in that page and open up to Moses chapter 2. How many verses do you see there? 31 again. Now put a marker in that chapter and go to Abraham 4. How many verses? 31. So what we have in these three chapters are 3 different versions of the same story and each verse coincides with the verse in the other two. But the wording in each varies and teaches us from a little bit of a different perspective. Now as we study these accounts of the creation, I tend to focus more on the Moses and Abraham versions of the text. They’re going to be a bit more accurate and purer than the Genesis version since they were both translated or received directly by an inspired prophet without having gone through many hands of translation through the ages. The Book of Abraham version is going to be our oldest account and the closest to the actual creation itself. And the Book of Abraham certainly has the most unique material. The Moses account tends to be more poetic in nature, and the Abraham account more clear, but both valuable in their own way. Be sure to keep something that marks the location of the three chapters because a lot of the insight we learn about the creation comes by comparing the accounts. So be prepared to flip pages back and forth as we go.
The purpose of our study will be to answer some fundamental questions about the creation. We’ll answer WHO? HOW LONG? HOW? And WHAT?
WHO?
The first question is Who? Who created the earth?
The answer to that is a little different in each version. Let’s take a look at each.
Who is doing the creating in Genesis 1:1? God is doing the creating.
Now go to Moses chapter 2:1 Who is included in the creation process here? You have Jesus Christ here included as well. “by mine Only Begotten I created these things”. So both the Father AND the son are creating this world. Another nice touch is from then on throughout the chapter he adds the more personal I to each phrase. And I, God said: Let there be light.
But then, who is doing the creating in Abraham 4:1? Here it’s always “They, the Gods”, that are doing the creating. Now who are these “Gods” that are being referred to here? Well remember our study of Abraham 3 last week? It ended with a great counsel of an innumerable host of heaven being portrayed. Amongst that group were many of the noble and great ones. “The God’s” refers to this group of noble and great pre-mortal souls. It’s interesting that he refers to them already as Gods, thought they really hadn’t reached their full potential at that point. But I believe it’s a reference to their divine nature as children of heavenly parents. Children of gods. Gods in embryo, as we all are.
So which is it? Who created the earth? Was it God, Jesus Christ, or the Gods? My answer: Yes. All are correct. Just as with building a building. The architect may get the credit for creating the building without doing the actual building, but the general contractor and the actual construction workers are also a huge part of the building process. All could be considered creators.
When we consider all three accounts, we learn that the creation was one large group effort. It wasn’t just God waving his hand like magic and matter organizing itself. He had his Son, and his noble and great ones involved in the process. Now I don’t know who all is included in the noble and great ones, but I sometimes like to have my students consider that they may have been a part of that group. Haven’t we been often told that latter-day members of the church have been held in reserve for a special purpose in the last days? Were we all a part of that group? I’d like to think so. At the risk of sounding self-important, I sometimes wonder if I could have been a part of that process. And if I was, I like to think that maybe I was part of the mountain design committee, or the red rock canyon committee since I love those kind places so much. It’s kind of fun to ask your students what things on the earth they feel they perhaps could have been a part of. Some might say the beach committee, the waterfall committee, the horse committee, or the dog committee, and so on. And I think it’s wonderful that our Heavenly Father allowed at least a portion of his children to be included in the creation of this world that we find ourselves on. Yes, he is the owner, the designer, and the power behind it all, but he includes us in his works. Remember, WE are his work and his glory.
HOW LONG?
This is a question I get a lot. How long did it really take to create the earth? Did it really take just 7 days? Scientists and geologists will shake their heads in ridicule at that idea. Their research indicates that the earth is actually billions of years old. Who’s got it right? Genesis or science. Well, both the Genesis and the Moses versions use the same word to describe the time frame of each division of creation. What’s the unit of time used in the Moses version? Look at the end of Moses 2:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, and 31. The word is day. The earth was created in 6 days, with God resting on the 7th in chapter 3. But what does that mean? Does that mean the earth was created in 6, 24-hour time periods as we measure them? Or are we talking about a day to God which if we interpret literally from Abraham 3 (that we studied last week) is 1000 years with man, therefore the earth was created in 7000 years. Even then, geologic evidence would conclude otherwise—that this earth is much older than the Bible suggests. If we are to take it literally. And therein lies the issue. Maybe we sometimes back ourselves into a corner or force ourselves to defend difficult positions when God never really intended us to. Can I believe in the Bible and God and also believe that the earth is billions of years old? Sure. I think so.
Something very important that we need to keep in mind as we study Genesis is that what we have here is not a journalistic, historical, or scientific treatment of the creation. It’s written in what we’d call mytho-poetic language. This is poetry or symbolic writing. We shouldn’t read Genesis like a newspaper or a textbook. It’s designed to appeal more to our right brain than to our left brain and to illicit an emotional response, not an intellectual one.
And speaking to that point, just look at the word Abraham uses to describe the length of the creation. He doesn’t use the word “day”. What word does he use?
Take a look in Abraham 4:8, 13, 19, 23, and 31.
The word is “time”. The second time, the third time, the fourth time. So in Abraham, the earth is created in 6 different time periods. And remember that Abraham’s version is the oldest.
Next question:
HOW?
How was the earth created? That’s a big question isn’t it. Well, take note of the verbs that are used to describe how the Lord created the earth. I’m sure we’re all familiar with that famous phrase from Genesis, which is repeated in Moses, “Let there be light, and there was light”. It almost sounds like he just waves his hand, and it magically appears. With some help from the Doctrine and Covenants, I read that “let there be light” just a bit differently. If you studied with me last year, you might remember that there were some celestial synonyms that we can use interchangeably. Remember Doctrine and Covenants 93:36? “The glory of God is intelligence, or in other words, light and truth”. So when God says, “let there be light”, I don’t think he’s saying, “Ok, I need to be able to see what I’m doing here, so let’s make a light source” (he doesn’t create the sun and moon until the third day anyway) but “let there be intelligence, let there be truth, let there be life, let there be law” or any other number of celestial synonyms that you could insert there.
Other words in Moses and Genesis used to describe the creation are created, made, or set.
2:1, 3,7, 17
But look at the following verses in Abraham and take note of the verbs used here. What do you see?
4:1, 4, 7, 10, 11, 13, 18, 21, 26. 5:2, 3
Organized, formed, comprehended, ordered, pronounced, prepared, numbered, watched, plan, took counsel, said among themselves, concluded, decisions, counseled among themselves. Wow! What great words!
What do they suggest about the creation?
Well, it’s a bit of a different visualization or view of the creation. This was not just a creation of something out of nothing or a wave of God’s arm. The creation was the result of concentrated thought, council, and planning. This was a joint effort of many individuals working together, making decisions, and coming to conclusions. There was order behind the creation. Like authors writing, painters painting, or architects designing.
WHAT?
Let’s take a look at another truth about the creation. The next question is “what”, as in, what kind of an earth has God created? What word or words does He use to describe it? In Moses 2, the Lord says something about the earth at the end of each creative period. What is it?
Moses 2:4, :10, :12, :18, :21, and :25.
He says that it is “good”. All things which he has made are “good”.
And then, it’s a little different at the end of the creation. What does he say in Moses 2:31?
He says that “all things which I had made were VERY good.”
We’ll take a look at the Abraham version in just a minute, but let’s dig deep on this idea for a moment.
God’s conclusion was that the earth is very good. Now let’s take that a step further. I believe there are some actions implied in that. The earth is very good, therefore what?
How would you complete that thought? To get your students to seriously ponder that question, you could give them the following brief handout activity. Have them ponder how they would fill out the rest of that sentence. Because the earth is very good, I should ___________________. You could then call on some of them to share how they completed that sentence and use them as a springboard to have a discussion about those truths.
And there are numerous ways we could conclude that sentence. How would you complete it?
BECAUSE THE EARTH IS GOOD, I SHOULD ENJOY IT AND BE GRATEFUL FOR IT
A couple of thoughts. One, we should enjoy it, spend time in it, and be grateful for it. There is something good about spending time in and appreciating our Lord’s creations. It’s good for our bodies and it’s good for our spirits. And you don’t have to convince me of this. If you’ve spent any time with me in these lessons, you know that I love the outdoors and I try to spend a lot of time in them. There is something divine in the world around us that you can sense when you leave behind the world of the man-made and immerse yourself in the world of God. I know that I feel closer to God when I climb a mountain peak, stand below a waterfall, or explore the canyons of Southern Utah. I feel I’ve seen his hand as I’ve visited the National Parks-Yosemite, Glacier, the Grand Canyon, Zion, Arches, the Tetons, and Yellowstone. In my world travels, I’ve been able to see the majestic Alps, the forests of Siberia, the jagged peaks of Guilin in China, the fjords of Norway, and the jungles of Central America. And then just stop to consider the animals and the plants. Such diversity, and color, and imagination in their appearance and ability. In our home, we have a little black miniature schnauzer named Winston that my kids just love to death. He brings joy to our home and inspires love in our hearts. Something that can bring such love to a human heart had to be created with love. Yes, it’s true that we can see the divine in things that man has created as well. Humankind has made some pretty impressive things with their God-given talents and intelligence, but it’s hard to match the scale and beauty and complexity of the world around us. It is good! Very good! Hopefully our hearts are filled with gratitude for the beauties and the bounties of this world. And as I love the creations, it helps me to love the Creator! Remember the first great commandment. “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all they heart, might, mind, and strength” (Mark 12:30). Loving what he has created can be a big part of that.
BECAUSE THE EARTH IS GOOD, WE SHOULD TAKE GOOD CARE OF IT
Another application: Since the earth is good, what should we do with it? I think there’s an implied action there. Take good care of it. One of the first commandments that God gives man is to “have dominion” over the earth. He says that in verse 26.
Let them have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
Dominion here means to take care of, not dominate or exploit. This is the practical application of the poem of creation. We are more apt to take especial care of things that we see as being good—as being of great value.
You may remember what the Lord revealed to Joseph Smith in Doctrine and Covenants 59 about this dominion or stewardship that we have over the earth. He said:
18 Yea, all things which come of the earth, in the season thereof, are made for the benefit and the use of man, both to please the eye and to gladden the heart;
19 Yea, for food and for raiment, for taste and for smell, to strengthen the body and to enliven the soul.
20 And it pleaseth God that he hath given all these things unto man; for unto this end were they made to be used, with judgment, not to excess, neither by extortion.
There is a balance suggested by these verses. God made things on this earth for mankind to use. For our benefit. The earth was made for man, not man for the earth. So we’re meant to use the materials and creations for our benefit and use. However, we also believe in a God that not only created things for food and raiment and for the necessities of life, but also some things were created just to please our eyes and to gladden our hearts—to strengthen our bodies and enliven our souls. If we destroy or abuse or take these things for granted, we will be held accountable for it. We need to strive to be good stewards of this earth. That doesn’t mean that we need to chain ourselves to trees to stop logging or become a strict vegetarian. However, we do need to keep in mind the principle of judgment and seek to avoid excess, and to be careful not to extort or exploit the goodness of this earth. We should try to find the balance between the use and the protection of the earth and its resources.
THE EARTH IS GOOD BECAUSE IT OBEYS, I SHOULD ALSO OBEY
Before we move on from the idea of the goodness of the earth, we need to take a look at Abraham’s version of the same principle. God says something a little different at the end of each creative period than in the books of Genesis and Moses.
Take a look at what he says at the end of verses 4:10, :12, :18, :21, :25 in Abraham. The phrase here isn’t, “and the Lord saw that it was good” but what? It’s “and the Gods saw that they were obeyed”. And then in verse :31, it’s not “and behold, all things which I had made were very good” but “and behold, they shall be very obedient”.
So, we’re getting a clue here as to what made the earth good or the reason why God would say that it was good. It was good because, those that created it, did as he commanded it to be done. The principle, it’s good to obey. It hearkens back to the lesson we had last week from Abraham 3. The creation is a continuation of that thought. Let’s not separate chapter 4 from chapter 3. Remember the great purpose of our mortality:
“And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them” (Abraham 3:25)
It is good for us to obey the will and command of our Father and his Son, Jesus Christ
TRUTH
Well, let’s review some of the truths the creation has taught us:
Doctrinally speaking we’ve learned:
· The earth was created by God, Jesus Christ, and the noble and great ones.
· The world was created in seven separate time periods.
More personally speaking we’ve learned:
· The creation is evidence of the reality of God and the plan.
· The world is good; therefore, we should enjoy it and be grateful for it.
· The world is good; therefore, we should take good care of it.
· The creation teaches me that it is good to obey.
LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES
Which of these truths has had the greatest impact on you today?
Have your students write their answer to that question in their journals or have them share with the class.
CONCLUSION
No doubt that this world is an amazing place. There’s more beauty to explore and see on this planet than anyone could ever hope to experience in a lifetime. I’ve recently gotten into canyoneering, and I’ve quickly come to realize that there are more technical canyons to see on this earth than I could ever aspire to explore. There are more beautiful mountain peaks to climb than can ever be climbed. More miles of trail through beautiful landscapes than can ever be walked. Similarly, there’s more to learn about biology, astronomy, geology, anatomy, chemistry, or physics than can ever be understood in a lifetime. The Lord has given us so much on this little blue planet in our solar system. We are a privileged planet and a privileged people to have been given the opportunity to live here for at least a short time of its existence. The creation is miraculous evidence of something greater out there—a purpose, an intelligence, a glory far beyond anything our mortal minds can comprehend. As I said earlier, one of the pillars of my testimony lies in what I observe in the world around me.
I’d like to end with this little snippet that I once found in a Sherlock Holmes story, of all places, that caught my attention. This character that is considered the great detective, a manifestation of man’s deductive powers and reasoning, makes an interesting observation while holding a rose in his hand. He says to Watson:
'There is nothing in which deduction is so necessary as in religion,' said Holmes, leaning with his back against the shutters... 'Our highest assurance of the goodness of [God] seems to me to rest in the flowers. All other things, our powers, our desires, our food, are really necessary for our existence in the first instance. But this rose is an extra. Its smell and its color are an embellishment of life, not a condition of it. It is only goodness which gives extras, and so I say again that we have much to hope from the flowers.'"
Well, just like Sherlock Homes, may the creation give you hope as well.
MALE AND FEMALE CREATED HE THEM
ICEBREAKER
For an icebreaker to this next section I like to introduce it with a brainstorming activity. I might remind them of a conversation that Christ had with Peter in Caesarea Philippi. He asked:
13 . . .Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
14 And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
See, Jesus was wanting them to draw a contrast between the views of the world and their views. In other words, it doesn’t matter what the world thinks. What matters is what is true. What do you say about it? We can use that same line of questioning with anything we believe in in the church. What do men say about the Book of Mormon, about Joseph Smith, about living prophets, about tithing? But what do you say? Let’s do that little exercise with the topic of marriage.
So, what are some of the things you hear the world say about marriage?
Some possible answer you might hear:
Why get married at all? It’s too hard and likely to fail
Just living together is ok. There’s no need to add the commitment of marriage.
Sexual intimacy before marriage is ok.
Marriage between those of the same gender is acceptable.
A casual attitude towards divorce.
Then you ask: But what do you say? We say, “marriage is fundamental to God’s plan”. We say, “sexual intimacy is only to be shared between husband and wife”. We say, “marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God”. We say, “marriage is sacred and should be honored and valued.”
We say a lot of different things from the world when it comes to the topic of marriage.
SEARCH-HANDOUT
For a brief activity, to help your students draw a connection between what is taught about marriage here in the Garden of Eden and what the prophets continue to teach us to this day, have them try this matching activity. Their job is to match the verse with the phrase from the family proclamation that best corresponds to the teaching in that verse. Adam and Eve are meant to be representative of all of us on this earth. Without going into detail, those of you that have received your temple endowment understand that principle perfectly. So let’s see how this oldest of revelations from a prophet coincides with one of our most recent revelations from a prophet. This is yet another evidence that God’s principles and doctrines don’t change. And just a note, we’ll stay in the book of Moses for this activity.
Moses 2:27
27 And I, God, created man in mine own image, in the image of mine Only Begotten created I him; male and female created I them.
The answer is D.
All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.
I believe this verse can teach us a number of doctrinal truths. We know that God created men and women in his image. We look like our heavenly parents in form and substance. This suggests the eternal nature of gender and the marriage relationship. It’s also part of the reason why we oppose gay marriage and gender transitioning. The way God created Adam and Eve and how he placed them together in what we could consider the first marriage is a model of his plan and purpose for all of us. The fact that we were created in his image also suggests our potential for godhood. You see this in the animal kingdom. Puppies grow up to become dogs like their parents. Kittens grow up to be cats like their parents. Lambs grow up to be sheep like their parents. Children of God grow up to be like their heavenly parents—gods themselves.
Moses 2:28
28 And I, God, blessed them, and said unto them: Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
The match: F
We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force.
We know that marriage, having children, and family are essential to the realization of God’s plan. It is a means for God to provide bodies for his spirit children, giving them a chance to experience mortality. To neglect or minimize or avoid that purpose is, I believe, displeasing to God.
Moses 3:7
7 And I, the Lord God, formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul, the first flesh upon the earth, the first man also; nevertheless, all things were before created; but spiritually were they created and made according to my word.
The answer is: A
In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshiped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize his or her divine destiny as an heir of eternal life.
We know that our existence did not begin when we were conceived or born. God created all things spiritually before he created them naturally.
Moses 3:18
18 And I, the Lord God, said unto mine Only Begotten, that it was not good that the man should be alone; wherefore, I will make an help meet for him.
The match here is: C
Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children.
I think the key there is in the word “help meet”. This title suggests that responsibility of loving and caring for each other. We’ll talk more about that title in a moment.
Moses 3:21-22
21 And I, the Lord God, caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam; and he slept, and I took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in the stead thereof;
22 And the rib which I, the Lord God, had taken from man, made I a woman, and brought her unto the man.
This is probably the hardest match to make here without having talked about it beforehand. But there is a figurative meaning in the idea of woman being created from the rib of man.
That idea is best expressed in letter E.
In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners.
We’ll talk a little more about that idea a little later in the lesson as well.
Finally,
Moses 3:24
24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh.
The answer is: B
Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. This is really what I believe Moses chapter 3 can most effectively teach us—vital truths about the divine nature of marriage. God instituted and performed the first marriage of mankind. Adam and Eve. When we examine that relationship between Adam and Eve, we can see how God intends marriage to be for all of us.
MARRIAGE MESSAGES
Now let’s take a closer look at some of these phrases in Moses 3 and discuss what they can teach us about marriage. You could display these following phrases and ask your students if they have any thoughts, questions, or insights regarding them.
It is not good that man should be alone
I will make an help meet for him.
And the rib which I, the Lord God, had taken from man, made I a woman, and brought her unto the man.
This I know now is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh;
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife;
They shall be one flesh.
Here’s a few of my thoughts that might help you as a teacher in discussing these phrases.
Moses 3:18
It is not good that man should be alone
And let me start this by saying something in general about the Book of Genesis, or Moses which is more complete version of what we find in Genesis. It’s a book that contains the first lessons of mortality. And one of those first lessons is that it is not good that man should be alone. God does not intend us to experience our mortal lives without help or companionship. We need people and are not meant to be islands. We are social creatures. No wonder God sent us to this earth as families. No wonder we ward and branch families. No wonder we have friendships, and immediate and extended family communities. We are not meant to be alone. Now among all those wonderful relationships that we can have, there is one that stands out above the rest—the one that takes the highest priority. What was the first relationship that was created on this earth? It was a marriage; it was a husband and wife. Marriage is the highest form of togetherness that we can have. When Adam and Eve are created, it’s not so much the creation of man, or woman, as much as it is the creation of a marriage. Our heavenly parents highest aspiration for us as their children is for us to become like them and as we learned in Doctrine and Covenants 131 that in order to obtain the highest degree of the Celestial Kingdom, a person must enter into the new and everlasting covenant of marriage. It is not good for a person to be alone for eternity. God intends us to ascend into godhood together. Now whether that blessing or that union occurs in this life or the next, all righteous people will have the opportunity to create that kind of bond and relationship. That phrase need not make those that are single feel uncomfortable or less than those that are married. I just believe it’s a statement emphasizing the fact that we all need other people in our lives and that exaltation is a joint effort.
Moses 3:18
I will make an help meet for him.
Before you actually look at what it says in the scriptures, you’ve probably heard of Eve referred to as a help meet for Adam. A very interesting phrase. But how is that term worded? How is it spelled? Here are five different options. Which is the correct one?
Help mate
Help meat
Help meet
Helpmeet
Helpmete
Now go into the scriptures and see if you got it right. The answer is C. Two words, help meet. Now I believe that’s significant. That term does not mean that a wife’s only purpose in life is to help her husband—that she was created for him and not vice versa or that she’s a servant; a subordinate. That’s not it at all. What might help is if we just define those two words. That can give us a good sense of what God intends for our marriage relationships to be.
Help, in this case, is translated from a Hebrew root word that means to surround, to protect, to aid, to provide strength or assistance (New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, p. 87). I know it’s stereotypical to think of the man as the protector of the household, but a wife also protects and surrounds and aids her husband. Wives and mothers can surround all within their homes with peace and love and protect them from the temptations and influence of the world. The world “help” then shows us how crucial a contribution women make to their marriages, families, and the world in general. And to be honest, men need a lot of help don’t they! But so do women. The sexes complement each other.
Some synonyms for “meet” in this context would be: equal to, suitable for, worthy, competent, necessary, fulfilling. Eve was all of those things to Adam and he to her. She was equal to him in worth, value, and potential. She was suitable for him—a worthy, necessary, and cherished companion. She was competent and her contribution fulfilling. The word “meet” also suggests that they would complete each other—that neither of them could consider themselves whole without the other.
And I don’t think this is a one-way street. Adam was to be a help meet to Eve as well. Together, they could provide each other strength, help each other, protect each other. Their worth and agency in the relationship is equal, though different. They fulfill and complete each other.
Moses 3:21-22
21 And I, the Lord God, caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam; and he slept, and I took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in the stead thereof;
22 And the rib which I, the Lord God, had taken from man, made I a woman, and brought her unto the man.
So what do we do with this rib idea?
I remember having a Sunday School teacher tell me that men actually do have one less rib on one side of their body than the other and he had us feel our rib cages to prove it. And I have to admit, that I was so convinced that this would true that I swore I could feel the difference. Now that I’m a little older and wiser, I’ve discovered that that is in fact completely anatomically false. Men do not have one less rib on side of their bodies. But why the rib? Are we to take that literally? God reached into Adam and pulled out one of his ribs and made a woman out of it? That’s a little strange, don’t’ you think?
Well, Spencer W. Kimball clearly taught:
“The story of the rib, of course, is figurative.”
(Blessings and Responsibilities of Womanhood, p. 71)
Remember what I said earlier about Genesis being poetry. Don’t read it as a historical narrative, but as poetry. These are images that are given to help us understand marriage. So now the question becomes, “What does that teach us figuratively about the relationship between men and women?”
President George Albert Smith had something to say about that. He taught the following:
“In showing this relationship, by a symbolic representation, God didn’t say that woman was to be taken from a bone in the man’s head that she should rule over him, nor from a bone in his foot that she should be trampled under his feet, but from a bone in his side to symbolize that she was to stand by his side, to be his companion, his equal, and his help meet in all their lives together”.
George Albert Smith (quoted by President Harold B. Lee, Ye Are the Light of the World, 284)
So the rib symbolizes that woman stands next to man-reiterating that idea of equal to, competent, and worthy. It’s also a representation of companionship. Husbands and wives are to stand side by side, locking arms and facing the challenges of mortality together, facing the same direction.
And women, if that idea of woman being taken out of man seems depreciative or belittling in some way, keep this in mind. That’s the only time in this earth’s history, where a woman was taken out of man to begin her life. Every other person in history has been taken out of woman in their creation—at their birth. So yes, here woman came first from man, but from then on, man would be always taken out of woman.
The next phrase adds to that idea.
Moses 3:23
23 And Adam said: This I know now is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of man.
President Harold B. Lee has suggested that the words of verse 23 “were very likely the words spoken by Adam reciting the vows of the first marriage upon this earth” (Harold B. Lee, Decisions for Successful Living, p. 125). I think it’s significant that this moment takes place immediately after Adam has been brought all the animals of the earth and has given them names. That came first. Why? I think it was to emphasize by contrast this moment with Eve. When he sees HER and gives her a name and calls here bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh, he is recognizing three ways in which this creation was different from all the others. First, he’s saying, she is my species, she is my kind. This is not a giraffe, or an eagle, or a horse. She is like me. So no, dogs, are not man’s best friend. Woman is. But this relationship is even more than that. We sometimes use the expression, “my own flesh and blood”. When we say that, we mean a member of our own family. Eve was now a part of his family. In fact, that’s even shown in the traditional practice of a wife legally taking on the family name of her husband. When I married Allesha, she became a part of my family. And I became a part of hers. We became united in that profound bond not only in practice but in name also. But this relationship is even closer than that. The circle goes one tighter than that. To call Eve, “bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh, was to say that she was now a part of him, and he, her. We are one. We are the same person. This union between them was to be that close, that intimate, and that personal. It suggests deep commitment and unity. Bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.
That idea is expanded on in our next phrase:
Moses 3:24
24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh.
Verse 24 suggests that marriage is THE most important relationship that mortals can have with each other. It’s greater than friendship, it’s greater than brotherhood or sisterhood, it’s even greater than parenthood. A man must leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife, and she to him. If he has to choose between the two, it’s wife that should win that one. Now, those relationships are crucial and significant in their own right. But if we’re placing things in a hierarchy. Marriage is THE prime relationship of eternity. I remember when I was a child, and we sang families can be together forever, in my mind I pictured me, and my brothers and sisters living with our parents in a home in heaven. But as I got older, I realized that that picture didn’t make much sense. Because when I was married and had my own children, how would that work? And then my children, one day will be married and have their own children. So when we sing “families can be together forever”, we are really talking about the eternal nature of marriage. Now of course, parent-child relationships can continue for the eternities as well and we will have sociality with friends and family there too. But I doubt it will be the kind of situation that I pictured as a child. Therefore, shall a man leave his father and his mother, because the marriage relationship takes precedence over even the parent child relationship. Then, to “cleave” is an interesting word. Some synonyms for cleave are “to abide fast to, to follow close or hard after, to be joined, or to stick”. Marriage partners need to stick close to their spouses and abide fast to them, and none else. So when we get married, we must both leave and cleave. A lot of troubled marriages are the result from one or both partners not being able to do both of those two things. Some can leave, but they struggle to cleave, while others cleave but struggle to leave (the influence of their parents that is). Remember to do both when your get married. We’ll talk more about how Adam and Eve demonstrate that truth next week when we discuss the fall but just keep in mind that when it came time for Adam to choose between either staying in the Garden of Eden in the presence of his heavenly father and mother, or to cleave unto Eve, and go with her into the lone and dreary world, which did he choose?
One other quick insight on becoming “one flesh”. One of the greatest manifestations of that truth, to me, is expressed through children. Children are literally a living expression of that truth. Both the husband and the wife contribute to the creation of a child, and they create one from two. When I look at my sons or my daughter, I can see a part of me in them. You can see physical similarities between them and me. But I can also see a part of my wife in them. People might say, “He has his father’s hair, but his mother’s eyes”. That’s because we have become one flesh in our offspring. So when I look into the faces of my children, I am reminded of that special bond and unity that I share with my wife.
Our final phrase:
Moses 3:25
25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
Sometimes for just a little bit of shock value, I like to tell my students that when you get married, that it’s best to start naked, and to stay naked your entire marriage. Now, be sure to judge and weigh the maturity of your audience before you share this one. And, for heaven’s sakes, bear with me here, and let me explain what I mean by that. Please don’t tune out.
Nakedness in the scriptures is a common figurative symbol. Nakedness and shame or guilt often go hand in hand in the standard works (See Ezekiel 23:39, or 2 Corinthians 5:3, or Revelation 16:15 for some examples of this). To be naked in front of someone is to be fully exposed to their judgment. You can’t hide anything from them. That’s the kind of relationship that I believe God wants to exist between husbands and wives. That they hide nothing from each other—that they are not ashamed in front of them—that they fully allow the other to see and know who they are and what is in their hearts. We don’t want to have anything in our lives, our past, or our thoughts that we would be ashamed for the other to discover. We’re an open book to them. We don’t have to do things in the shadows, or cover our steps, or hide our actions. We want to stand symbolically naked and unashamed in their eyes always. Now that doesn’t mean that we’re not going to make mistakes or have things from our past that we may not be proud of. But remember what the word atonement means. In Hebrew, it means “to cover”. Our sins and transgressions can be covered by the power of the atonement and allow us to still live as one with our spouses, naked and not ashamed.
TRUTH
I think we could boil the truth of this portion of the lesson down into one simple statement that we find in the Family Proclamation: Marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God.
LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES
What truth that we’ve learned about marriage here can help you most at this point in your life?
And that question can apply to everybody. Whether you’re young or old, married, single, widowed, or divorced. We all have things we can do to prepare ourselves to have strong, cohesive, and fulfilling eternal marriages.
CONCLUSION
I’d like to conclude by expressing my gratitude for my own marriage, my own Eve. She is my help meet, my rib, bone of bone, and flesh of my flesh. The greatest, most important day of my life was the day that I knelt at an altar in the Salt Lake temple, took Allesha Hilton’s hands in mine, and made a covenant to her, and she to me. My life has never been the same since. I can't imagine my life any other way. I believe in and am grateful for the idea and the principle of marriage. It is a divinely ordained institution. From Adam and Eve to now, and into the eternities.
