Was Adam a Literate?

Could Adam Read And Write?

Q. I think you mentioned in one of your articles that there is evidence that Adam could read and write and that possibly he even wrote books that Moses read and used to write the first five books of the Bible. I would love to know the evidences for this. What do we have that shows both Adam’s ability to read and to write, and what evidences are there also for his writings influencing Moses? Thanks as usual for your wisdom and heart. I read your emails daily.

A. The first appearance of the Hebrew word for book is in Genesis 5, in reference to Adam. But beginning in Genesis 2:4 we have Adam’s account of the Creation (chapter 1 being God’s version). The doubt about Adam’s ability to read and write stems from the foolish claim that man evolved from monkeys. According to the Bible Adam was created in the image of God. Do we question whether God could read and write?

Sumerian Cuneiform writing dates back about 5000 years and discoveries in Egypt and Pakistan are even older. Since Adam was born about 6000 years ago and lived for 930 years, this would place archeological evidence of writing within his lifetime. I believe the evidence of Scripture shows that man could read and write from the beginning.

I think it also makes sense that Moses had written documents from which he compiled the Book of Genesis. It contains the accounts of Adam (Gen. 5:1), Noah (Gen 6:9), Shem (Gen 11:10), Terah (Gen. 11:27), Ishmael (Gen 25:12), Isaac (Gen 25:19), Esau (Gen. 26) and Jacob (Gen. 37). The other four books of the Torah contain events that occurred during the lifetime of Moses and are eye witness accounts.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Yahweh?

Where Does The Name Come From?

Q. What is the meaning of Yahweh or where does it come from?

A. It was against the law for the Jews to speak or write the Lord’s name except for one day each year when they spoke it 7 times in a Temple ceremony called Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. When they wrote His name they used 4 initials to represent it. They were translated into English as JHVH. The King James translators put LORD, all in caps, where the initials appeared. Somewhere along the way vowels from Elohim,which means God, and Adonai, which means Lord, were added to the initials forming Jehovah. Later it was determined that in the Hebrew language the four initials are pronounced Yodh, He, Waw, and He. Because of this some say Yahweh is more accurate. But the truth is no one alive today knows God’s actual name. After the Temple was destroyed the Yom Kippur ceremony changed and they no longer spoke it. Scholars estimate it was eventually lost to the memory of man in about 300 AD. Today Jesus is the name above all names (Phil. 2:9-11).

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Are having multiple wives God's will in OT?

Why Polygamy And Then Monogamy?

Q. Why do you think God permitted David and Solomon and the other Kings to have so many wives – was it to build the Nation of Israel faster? Why so many wives permitted in the OT and one wife and one husband in the NT? Thanks for any insights or possible answers to this.

A. I don’t believe God ever officially authorized plural marriage. As early as Genesis 2:25 He spoke of man and wife in the singular and said the two would become one. How does a man become one with multiple wives? And If he wanted to accelerate the population growth, why didn’t He give Adam multiple wives? Or how about Noah and his sons? He missed two great opportunities if that was the goal. I think it’s more likely that polygamy was a practice that emerged from the pagan world and was man’s doing, not God’s.

In the explanation the Lord had Paul give on marriage as a model of the relationship between Christ and the Church (Ephes. 5:25-33), we see His true perspective on the subject.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

When did the times of the Gentiles begin?

The Times Of The Gentiles

Q. Why do you and many others refer to the beginning of the Times of the Gentiles as starting with Nebuchadnezzar instead of earlier when the Assyrians conquered northern Israel? Why isn’t that part of the reigning and trampling of Gentiles?

A. When the Assyrians conquered the Northern Kingdom, it was meant by God to be a warning to the South. Ezekiel explained this in his story of the two adulterous sisters (Ezekiel 23). Earlier, all the believers had moved to the southern Kingdom in protest against the North’s apostasy ( 2 Chron. 11:16), and Judah, as the south was called, was still a powerful representative of God’s Kingdom on Earth. But when God sent Nebuchadnezzar to conquer Judah for failing to heed the warning, the Kingdom ceased to exist.

Later Nebuchadnezzar dreamed of a giant statue. Daniel said that it represented four earthly kingdoms, and that as King of Babylon Nebuchadnezzar was the head of gold. Daniel said as far as God was concerned, Nebuchadnezzar was king of the whole Earth, the first gentile to be so designated (Daniel 2:37-38). Then Daniel spoke of three other earthly kingdoms that would follow his. We know them as Persia, Greece and Rome. Based on this dream, scholars have begun the times of the Gentiles with Babylon. From that time on the world’s powers have all been gentile kingdoms, and will continue to be until the 2nd Coming.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Is it right to use the picture of Jesus on a website?

Image Or Idol

Q. Re the picture of the hooded (”shepherd”?) on your home page: is that supposed to be Jesus Christ? I’m sure we don’tneed to have an IMAGE of our Savior. Perhaps the Ten Commandments even forbids it …? I tend to associate images with the worship in the Roman church. I look forward to your response as I count the issue as important.

A. Here’s what the commandment says.

“You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them for I the Lord your God am a jealous God.” (Exodus 20:4-5)

God Himself ordained that images of cherubim be made for the mercy seat (Ex. 25:18 & 2 Chron. 3:10) and woven into the veil in the tabernacle. (Ex. 26:31) There were images of palm trees (2 Chron. 3:5) and pomegranates (2 Chron. 3:16) through out the Temple. The bronze laver rested on the back of cast images of 12 bulls (2 Chron. 4:3-5) There were images of almond blossoms and flowers carved into the menorah (Ex. 37:17-24)

These were all carved (graven) images and likenesses, but since none of them was worshiped as an idol they were not violations of the commandment.

The artist’s rendering of the Lord on our site is not an idol either. We do not bow down to worship it. It’s a picture. If images themselves were forbidden, then every book, photograph, drawing, painting, movie, video, TV show, etc, etc, ever made would be a violation of the commandment. It’s when the image becomes an idol and you bow down to worship it that you’ve violated the commandment.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Why?

Why Didn’t Moses Go Into The Promised Land?

Q. Why didn’t Moses get to go into the promised land? I heard a minister say God told him that he would go with Moses into the promised land and Moses declined to go without the children of Israel.

A. Moses was denied entrance into the Promised Land because he disobeyed God. (Numbers 20:1-12) The first time the Israelites needed water, the Lord told Moses to strike a large rock and water came forth (Exodus 17:1-7). The second time He told Moses to speak to the rock. But Moses was angry and yelled at the people and then struck the rock again, twice, and again water came out. So what was the problem?

The water was a foreshadowing of the Holy Spirit that the Lord promised to all who believe (John 7:37-39) and the rock was a model of Christ, who had to be struck (crucified) before the Spirit could be given. But after His death one only needed to ask to receive the Spirit. By striking the rock the second time Moses was violating the lesson the Lord was trying to teach us. Jesus only had to die once for us to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. After that all we have to do is ask to receive Him (Matt. 7:7-8) So this was more than a single act of disobedience on the part of Moses. It was in effect a denial of the sufficiency of the Lord’s death.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Names of God

Question: "What are the different names of God and what do they mean?"

Answer: Each of the many names of God describes a different aspect of His many-faceted character. Here are some of the better known names of God in the Bible:

EL, ELOAH: God "mighty, strong, prominent" (Genesis 7:1; Isaiah 9:6) – Etymologically, El appears to mean power, as in “I have the power to harm you” (Genesis 31:29). El is associated with other qualities, such as integrity (Numbers 23:19), jealousy (Deuteronomy 5:9), and compassion (Nehemiah 9:31), but the root idea of might remains.

ELOHIM: God “Creator, Mighty and Strong” (Genesis 17:7; Jeremiah 31:33) – The plural form of Eloah, which is accommodating of the doctrine of the Trinity. From the Bible’s first sentence, the superlative nature of God’s power is evident as God (Elohim) speaks the world into existence (Genesis 1:1).

EL SHADDAI: “God Almighty,” “The Mighty One of Jacob” (Genesis 49:24; Psalm 132:2,5) – Speaks to God’s ultimate power over all.

ADONAI: “Lord” (Genesis 15:2; Judges 6:15) – Used in place of YHWH, which was thought by the Jews to be too sacred to be uttered by sinful men. In the Old Testament, YHWH is more often used in God’s dealings with His people, while Adonai is used more when He deals with the Gentiles.

YHWH / YAHWEH / JEHOVAH: “LORD” (Deuteronomy 6:4; Daniel 9:14) – Strictly speaking, the only proper name for God. Translated in English Bibles “LORD” (all capitals) to distinguish it from Adonai “Lord.” The revelation of the name is first given to Moses “I Am who I Am” (Exodus 3:14). This name specifies an immediacy, a presence. Yahweh is present, accessible, near to those who call on Him for deliverance (Psalm 107:13), forgiveness (Psalm 25:11) and guidance (Psalm 31:3).

YAHWEH-JIREH: "The Lord will Provide" (Genesis 22:14) – The name memorialized by Abraham when God provided the ram to be sacrificed in place of Isaac.

YAHWEH-RAPHA: "The Lord Who Heals" (Exodus 15:26) – “I am Jehovah who heals you” both in body and soul. In body, by preserving from diseases, and by curing them when afflicted with them and in soul, by pardoning their iniquities.

YAHWEH-NISSI: "The Lord Our Banner" (Exodus 17:15), where banner is understood to be a rallying place. This name commemorates the desert victory over the Amalekites in Exodus 17.

YAHWEH-M'KADDESH: "The Lord Who Sanctifies, Makes Holy" (Leviticus 20:8; Ezekiel 37:28) – God makes it clear that He alone, not the law, could cleanse His people and make them holy.

YAHWEH-SHALOM: "The Lord Our Peace" (Judges 6:24) – The name given by Gideon to the altar he built after the Angel of the Lord assured him he would not die as he thought he would after seeing Him.

YAHWEH-ELOHIM: "LORD God" (Genesis 2:4; Psalm 59:5) – Combination of God’s unique name YHWH and the generic “Lord,” signifying that He is the Lord of Lords.

YAHWEH-TSIDKENU: "The Lord Our Righteousness” (Jeremiah 33:16) – As with YHWH-M’Kaddesh, it is God alone who provides righteousness to man, ultimately in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, who became sin for us “that we might become the Righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

YAHWEH-ROHI: "The Lord Our Shepherd" (Psalm 23:1) – After David pondered his relationship as a shepherd to his sheep, he realized that was exactly the relationship God had with him, and so he declares “Yahweh-Rohi is my Shepherd. I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1).

YAHWEH-SHAMMAH: "The Lord is There” (Ezekiel 48:35) – The name ascribed to Jerusalem and the Temple there, indicating that the once departed glory of the Lord (Ezekiel 8—11) had returned (Ezekiel 44:1-4).

YAHWEH-SABAOTH: "The Lord of Hosts" (Isaiah 1:24; Psalm 46:7) – “Hosts” means hordes, both of angels and of men. He is Lord of the host of heaven, and of the inhabitants of the earth, of Jews and Gentiles, of rich and poor, master and slave. The name is expressive of the majesty, power, and authority of God and shows that he is able to accomplish what he determines to do.

EL ELYON: “Most High" (Deuteronomy 26:19) – Derived from the Hebrew root for “go up” or “ascend,” so the implication is of that which is the very highest. El Elyon denotes exaltation and speaks of absolute right to lordship.

EL ROI: "God of Seeing" (Genesis 16:13) – The name ascribed to God by Hagar, alone and desperate in the wilderness after being driven out by Sarah (Genesis 16:1-14), when she met the Angel of the Lord and realized she had seen God Himself in a theophany. She realized that El Roi saw her in her distress and testified that He is a God who lives and sees all.

EL-OLAM: "Everlasting God" (Psalm 90:1-3) – God’s nature is without beginning or end, free from all constraints of time and contains within Himself the very cause of time itself. “From everlasting to everlasting, You are God.”

EL-GIBHOR: “Mighty God” (Isaiah 9:6) – The name describing the Messiah, Christ Jesus, in this prophetic portion of Isaiah. As a powerful and mighty warrior, the Messiah, the Mighty God, will accomplish the destruction of God’s enemies and rule with a rod of iron (Revelation 19:15).

Recommended Resource: Knowing God by J.I. Packer.

Website: www.GotQuestions.org

God's Command to Noah

Was Noah Given Contradictory Instructions?

Q. I was flying back from Chicago a few days ago, and I had the pleasure of sitting next to a geologist/palentologist. I was curious about all the articles he was reading and we got into a very civilized conversation, and I asked some very pointed questions regarding his scientific methods. It turned out that he was very much a worshiper of science and an atheist. I kept the conversation light, curious, and respectful he did the same. Every time I mentioned the Word of God, or what God has done, and will do, he spouted that God contradicts Himself through out a document written by man with no scientific proof.

His one focused contradiction was in Gensis 6:19-21, and 7:2-3. My response to this was that God was giving specific requirements for certain animals clean/unclean. And yet he still says its contradictory.

So my question to you, what is God actually telling Noah to do in regards to the animals to be stored in the Ark?

A. In Genesis 6:19-21 God told Noah that 2 of every kind of animal would come to him to be saved from the coming flood. In Genesis 7:2-3 He further instructed Noah to take 7 of each kind of clean animal as well as 2 of the unclean ones. Your unbelieving friend sees a contradiction because he wants a reason to doubt. You and I see no contradiction because we understand that God was simply clarifying His instructions so that enough sacrificial animals would be included. Therefore it’s not the statements themselves, but our perception of them that’s different.

As is the case with unbelievers, your friend missed the real question that the comparison between the two passages is meant to raise. And that is, how did Noah know the difference between “clean” and “unclean” animals? The Levitical system was still over 1000 years in the future. The answer is that the idea of innocent blood being shed for the remission of sin had to have been introduced immediately after the fall to protect fallen man from dying in his sins. It was only formalized at Mt. Sinai.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Bible Questions

Why Did God Go To Sodom And Gomorrah?

Mr. Kelley,

Thanks as always for your time and teaching.

Q. I have a question about Psalm 33 and Genesis 18. In Psalm 33 it states that God sees all of mankind from Heaven. He is able to view and know every man and woman’s thoughts, feelings, etc. There are a number of other places that say as much as well, this is just the one I remembered the Book and chapter for.

In Genesis 18:20-21 He says that He is going down to look at Sodom and Gomorrah to see if the sin and wickedness is as bad as the outcry that has reached Him.

Why? Why would He need to go and see in person when He can see from Heaven?

A. You’re right. God knows and sees everything, so there has to be another reason for His visit. While He used the situation in Sodom and Gomorrah to explain His sudden appearance on the road by Abraham’s home, several important things happened while He was there. First there was the promise of a son for Abraham and Sarah. Then there was the institution of the fellowship meal, a tradition that continues in the Middle East to this day. And finally there was the fact that for the sake of the righteous, God will withhold judgment of the wicked.

All three of these are important to us today. Isaac was called the child of the promise, who was supernaturally born, and later became a model of the Lord’s sacrifice for us (Genesis 22). Jesus used the tradition of the fellowship meal to explain that the Church consists of sinners who are saved by Grace, not because of their meritorious behavior (Matt. 13:33) And in removing Lot from Sodom before destroying it, God created a model of the Rapture of the Church, which has to be removed removed from the time and place of judgment ahead of time. (Luke 17:28-29)

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

The Father's iniquity

Visiting The Iniquity Of The Fathers Upon The Children

Q. Re: Exodus 34:5-7. Could you explain what it means about God visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon their children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and fourth generation?

A. First of all let’s clarify that He’s speaking only of the guilty. In Exodus 20:6 He said He shows His love to 1000 generations of those who love Him. I think He’s referring to the huge impact fathers have on forming the beliefs of their children. Social scientists call this environmental conditioning. It’s the process by which children learn to emulate the habits and attitudes of the role models around them. Our most influential role model for good or evil is our earthly father. Some even believe the sin nature is passed through the father only, which is why Jesus could have a human mother but not possess a sin nature.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Bible's Mysterious Questions

Joseph’s Dreams

Q. I have a question about Genesis 37:9-10. Joseph has a dream that his brothers and father and mother will bow down to him. Later on when Joseph is in Egypt it appears that his mother did not come to bow down to Joseph because she died. What can this moon be referring to and how was it fulfilled?

A. Joseph had two dreams in Genesis 37. When the brothers bowed down before Joseph (Genesis 42:6) they were fulfilling his first dream of the 12 sheaves of wheat (Genesis 37:5-8). Notice how Jacob was guessing at the meaning of the second dream (Genesis 37:9-10), not really interpreting it.

From Rev. 12:1-6 we see that in the second dream, the woman (Rachael) is a type of Israel giving birth to the Messiah (represented in the dream by Joseph) who will rule the nations with an iron hand. Before Him every knee will bow.

Some have counted over 100 instances in the life of Joseph where he serves as a type of the Messiah. In fact, the Essenes, who believed in two Messiahs, named the first one Messiah son of Joseph.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Old Testament Salvation

How Were People Saved Before The Law?

Q. My father and I agree with dispensationalism and recently were discussing how those born before the Law were saved. For example: Adam and Eve. We understand that they had a personal relationship with God, having physically walked with Him, there would be little doubt to His existence. We know that when they first sinned they basically “confessed” to God and God then killed an animal, representing the first sacrifice.

My question would be: Is this how they were allowed into Heaven? That they “knew” Him and believed in their hearts even though the Law wasn’t written yet? Or is there a better way of understanding their salvation? Could you offer passages that we might read in reference to this?

A. The writer to the Hebrews explained that the Old Testament sacrifices were shadows of the good thing to come. (Hebr. 10:1-14) That means they represented the once for all time sacrifice that Jesus would make. From the earliest days of man God had told the people that He would send them a redeemer (Gen 3:15) The animal sacrifices they offered only helped people to the extent that they were offered in faith that this redeemer would one day take their sins away. Long before the Law came Abel, Noah, Abraham and others offered sacrifices to the Lord in faith of the coming Redeemer.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Abraham

Were Abram, Nahor, And Haran Triplets?

I’m going through an exercise of charting the offspring of Adam by the dates of births and deaths provided in Genesis. The Scripture says that after 70 years, Terah had his 3 sons. Were Abram, Nahor, and Haran triplets, or is this verse saying that all three boys were born during those 70 years?

This continues to be a fun exercise. Never realized the huge overlap of generations. For example, Terah is the 9th generation from Noah, and Noah was alive for much of Terah’s life. I wonder if they had family reunions!

A. I believe the intent of the passage is that all three were born after Terah had reached age 70, but they weren’t all born at the same time. By the way, here’s a link to a similar study I did. You can use it to compare notes if you like. Let me know if you come up with any differences.

http://www.gracethrufaith.com/ikvot/from-adam-to-abraham

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com

Gospel in Genesis

From Adam to Abraham

The Gospel in Genesis 5

A Bible Study by Jack Kelley

(Read for background)

The Bible doesn’t speak of great human achievement coming from the line of Seth as it does from Cain’s line. But if you do some home work in the geneology of Genesis 5 you discover a profound achievement from God’s perspective that demonstrates the faithfulness of Seth’s descendants. On our way to this discovery let’s also look at an interesting time line I’ve developed to demonstrate the ease with which pre-flood knowledge and experience could have been made available to those who came after.

We’ll assume Adam was born in Year One and use Biblical life spans.

Name	Born	Died	Name Means
Adam	1	930	Man
Seth	130	1042	Appointed
Enosh	235	1140	Mortal (Lived 905 years. Only 821 when Noah was born)
Kenan	325	1235	Sorrow
Mahalel	395	1290	The Blessed God
Jared	460	1422	Shall come down
Enoch	622	987	Teaching (By tradition Adam, Seth and Enoch named the stars, putting the gospel story in the 12 constellations of the Mazzoroth … later perverted in the signs of the Zodiac)
Methusaleh	687	1656	His death shall bring (The flood came the year He died)
Lamech	874	1651	Despairing (56 years old when Adam died)
Noah	1056	2006	Rest (Still around when Abraham was born)

These 10 names contain the Gospel message.

“Man is appointed mortal sorrow. But the blessed God shall come down teaching that His death shall bring the despairing rest.”

I have not found any equivalent message hidden in the names of Cain’s descendants. They focused on the things of this world while Seth’s line was concerned with the things of God even to the extent of naming their sons.

Let’s continue.

Name	Born	Died
Shem	1557	2157	(out lived 8 of the next 9 generations including Abraham)
Arphaxad	1657	2095
Shelah	1692	2125
Eber	1722	2186	(Some see the origin of “Hebrew” in this name)
Peleg	1756	1995	(Earth was divided into continents during his life)
Reu	1786	2018
Serug	1818	2048
Nahor	1848	1996
Terah	1877	2082
Abraham	1947	2122	(First man to be called a Hebrew. 59 years old when Noah died)

If Adam related his eye witness account to his grandson Enosh, and Enosh repeated it to Noah, Noah could have taught it to Abraham. Could God have arranged this? Shem was also alive during all of Abraham’s life. Some believe Shem appeared in Genesis 14:18 as Melchizedek. At issue is whether Melchizedek (King of Righteousness) is a name or a title. Some also suggest Shem as the architect of the Great Pyramid in Egypt.

Website: www.gracethrufaith.com