Why do Christians deny the blatant contradiction between Genesis 1 & 2?

Question

Surprisingly, I only found out how blatant this contradiction is after looking at well over 100 contradictions and the Christian responses. Most can be cleared up with a good response, but this is one of the few that seem to have no good responses. To make things worse, the contradiction lies in the same book!

Genesis 1 says that animals were created on the 5th day, and man on the 6th.
Genesis 2 CLEARLY states that God realised Adam needed company after he had been created and so 'FORMED ALL THE BEASTS FROM THE EARTH, AND BROUGHT THEM TO ADAM'. If you read the whole chapter you will clearly see that animals were created after man.

Here is a Christian response too: http://www.lookinguntojesus.net/ata20010812.htm

It does not give any good arguments against this contradiction. And seems to completely overlook the clear statements of ch.2. Even if chapter 2 is meant more to give a detailed account of the creation of man instead of chronological order of creation, it states as clear as day, that animals were formed by God after Adam so that he could have help/company.

So why deny this contradiction?

Answer 1

I don't know about the King James version, but NIV says the following, starting at Genesis 2:18:



{{{The Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."



Now the Lord god had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whenever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field.



But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.}}}



So while Genesis 2 does state that God realized Adam needed company, it does not state that he formed all the beasts after realizing this fact. Instead, it says, "Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air." Notice how it uses two time indicators, present and past. Notice how it says that God "had formed" the beasts and birds from the ground, not that he was currently in the process of forming them after making Adam. So it mentions how he had already made the beasts and birds. Starting the sentence with "Now" doesn't necessarily mean that the deed was done at that moment, but instead that at that very moment, "now," he had already made them, kind of like how we use the word "now" colloquially today. Now now, remember that I made the beasts of the earth. (for instance)



Overall, there is no explicit contradiction; instead, it is a fuzzy thing where it could more easily be seen as a consistency. It goes on to complete the context, that the woman is what the man actually needed to be completed, not the beasts or birds.

Answer 2

The guy who made that website is an idiot.



You should actually read what it says more carefully. The problem many atheists have is they find what they think is a contradiction and they triumphantly close their Bibles.



Genesis 1 tells that Adam was created. Genesis 2 gives a few more details. When God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden, he made animals for Adam to name. God didn't create all of the tigers, elephants, and so on, but just one of each so Adam could see it and name it. Otherwise Adam would have had to run all over the world looking for all of the animals.

Answer 3

Different Viewpoints

15 Sometimes the Bible writers wrote about the same event from different viewpoints, or they presented their accounts in different ways. When these differences are taken into consideration, further apparent contradictions are easy to resolve. An example of this is in Numbers 35:14, where Moses speaks of the territory east of the Jordan as “on this side of the Jordan.” Joshua, however, speaking of land to the east of the Jordan, called it “the other side of the Jordan.” (Joshua 22:4) Which is correct?

16 In fact, both are correct. According to the account in Numbers, the Israelites had not yet crossed the Jordan River into the Promised Land, so to them east of the Jordan was “this side.” But Joshua had already crossed the Jordan. He was now, physically, west of the river, in the land of Canaan. So east of the Jordan was, for him, “the other side.”

17 Additionally, the way a narrative is constructed can lead to an apparent contradiction. At Genesis 1:24-26, the Bible indicates that the animals were created before man. But at Genesis 2:7, 19, 20, it seems to say that man was created before the animals. Why the discrepancy? Because the two accounts of the creation discuss it from two different viewpoints. The first describes the creation of the heavens and the earth and everything in them. (Genesis 1:1–2:4) The second concentrates on the creation of the human race and its fall into sin.—Genesis 2:5–4:26.

18 The first account is constructed chronologically, divided into six consecutive “days.” The second is written in order of topical importance. After a short prologue, it logically goes straight to the creation of Adam, since he and his family are the subject of what follows. (Genesis 2:7) Other information is then introduced as needed. We learn that after his creation Adam was to live in a garden in Eden. So the planting of the garden of Eden is now mentioned. (Genesis 2:8, 9, 15) Jehovah tells Adam to name “every wild beast of the field and every flying creature of the heavens.” Now, then, is the time to mention that “Jehovah God was forming from the ground” all these creatures, although their creation began long before Adam appeared on the scene.—Genesis 2:19; 1:20, 24, 26.

Answer 4

In Gen 2, God making the Animals is not the first time. God seen that adam was alone and needed a 'Help meet' Then God formed out of the earth every beast, and out of the air every fowl and BROUGHT them to Adam TO SEE WHAT HE WOULD NAME THEM. This was done to show Adam that all the animals had a mate. Also to show adam that God did indeed create everything so satan could not lie to him.



When Adam seen that he was alone, then God put him in a deep sleep and created woman out of his rib. So both are correct and not contradiction.



If a man makes a wedding cake and it is unlike any other, can the baker not make another one? If he makes another one, that does not mean that the time of origin is contradictory, i just means he made ANOTHER ONE, and that is what we see in Genises 1 and 2.



Just because our world and society doesnt agree with the Bible doesnt mean it isnt true. When everyone thought the world was flat, the Bible said it was a sphere; when everyone thought, the earth sat on animals, the Bible said it hangs in a vast of nothingness. did that make it a contadiction then, or was human science flawed.



There are no contradictions in the Bible, and if it appears so, whether it be mathematical, or logical, we just need our human knowledge to catch up to it

Answer 5

Chapter 2 is not a chronological account as per chapter 1.



The word 'formed' is past tense and though it was stated after mention of Adam it does not mean that they were created after Adam was created.



The following is a brief chronological overview from the bible.



GOD AND JESUS EXIST ETERNALLY.



John 1

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2 He was with God in the beginning.

3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.



GOD CREATED THE UNIVERSE (INCLUDING EARTH) THROUGH JESUS CHRIST IN A BEAUTIFUL CONDITION



Genesis 1

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.



WHICH CAUSED THE ANGELS TO SHOUT FOR JOY



Job 38

4 Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation?

7 while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?



BUT IT DID NOT STAY THAT WAY BECAUSE



Revelation 12:7

...there was war in heaven.



WHICH CAUSED THE EARTH TO BECOME



Genesis 1

2 Now the earth was [became] formless (TOHU) and empty... (TOHU - in confusion)



GOD DID NOT CREATE IT THAT WAY BECAUSE



1 Corinthians 14:33

For God is NOT the author of confusion...



SO WHEN YOU READ



Genesis 1

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.



BILLIONS OF YEARS PASSED, THEN GOD SAID



2 NOW the earth was formless and empty



AND HE PROCEEDED TO CLEAN IT UP FOR MANKIND, STARTING WITH ADAM AND EVE



THE BIBLE HAS THE INFORMATION, BUT WE NEED TO STUDY TO FIND IT



Isaiah 28

9 "Who is it he is trying to teach?...

10 For it is:

...A LITTLE HERE, A LITTLE THERE."



The 'days' of creation were not 24 hour days.



On the sixth 'day' God created all the animals - livestock and wild animals, then created Adam.



God then told Adam to name all the animals and birds.



Genesis 2

20 So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field.



Genesis 2

20 But for Adam no suitable helper was found.



So God created Eve.



Genesis 2:23

And the man said:

This one, AT LAST, is bone of my bone,

and flesh of my flesh;

this one will be called woman,

for she was taken from man.



Genesis 1

31 And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.



How could Adam have been created, say, in the morning, named all those animals and birds by, say, teatime and been desperate for a partner all in 24 hours?



ALSO:



Genesis 2

8 Now the LORD God had PLANTED A GARDEN in the east, in Eden; and there he PUT THE MAN he had formed.

9 And the LORD God MADE all kinds of TREES GROW out of the ground—TREES that were pleasing to the eye and good for food.



God planted the garden, put Adam there and made the trees grow BEFORE he created Eve.



So - no literal 24 hour days.

Answer 6

Please read the account again.............its says that aquatic souls and flying creatures were created on day 5. Land animals were created on day 6.



Verse 25 And God proceeded to make the wild beast of the earth according to its kind and the domestic animal according to its kind and every moving animal of the ground according to its kind. And God got to see that [it was] good.

26 And God went on to say: “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness





The scripture is very clear that Man was made after the land animals and land animals were made after sea creatures and birds



The scriptures state the Eve was made for Adam to have company

There is no contradiction



Edit: what a cheeky comment. Calling someone an idiot is not condusive to teaching them about the truth - please ignore that persons comment

Answer 7

You are obviously becoming a believer or you would have never gone to so much trouble to read and think about verses in the bible. An Atheist doesn't even bother about any of that sort of rubbish.

Answer 8

Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind



Genesis 2 states that God made creaters in water and birds, not animals...

Answer 9

genesis 1 tells the chronological order of daily events and genesis 2 is simply an examined look of day 6.



here's a more in depth explanation of it. read it if you're serious in finding out why Genesis 1 and 2 don't contradict one another.



http://www.tektonics.org/jedp/creationtwo.html

Answer 10

Gen 2:19 does NOT say that God created them all over again you idiot!

They were ALREADY created in Gen 1:20-25 BEFORE man.

God just reestablished that man, created in the image of God, had the RESPONSIBILITY, as vice-regent with God........to name them all.



GROW UP!

Answer 11

I gave up reasoning with Christians a long time ago. It turns out the eleventh commandment is "Thou shalt be unreasonably stubborn in the face of fact"

Answer 12

a true Christian isn't concerned with the Old Testament



a true Christian only refers to the Four Gospels for the words of Jesus



and not to The Torah for the words of ancient Hebrew folklorists

Answer 13

WELCOME to Christianity