The Creation Account in Genesis 2 Is Not a Parable

As you read this section, keep in mind that the New Testament is not merely a history book, it's meant to change us to become more and more like Jesus. When we read any passages in the New Testament, our goal should be to discern what God wants us to believe and do so that we can be obedient to Him.

In my article called The Creation Account in Genesis 1 Is a Parable I showed that the first Creation account (Genesis 1) is a parable that teaches these facts:

God created everything in this physical universe.
God created everything in six days and rested on the seventh day, which might or might not be 24-hour days. This pattern is very significant throughout the Bible, and the wording for each day ("there was evening, and there was morning") is not necessarily intended to describe literal 24-hour days because it's a very significant pattern throughout end-times Bible prophecies.
Humans are the very pinnacle of God's creation.

Here's the second Creation account (Genesis 2):

"This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the LORD God made the earth and the heavens. Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. The LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground - trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die." 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 wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals. 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 then 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. The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh. Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame." (Genesis 2:4-25)

All of the highlighted parts in the above passage are mentioned elsewhere in the Bible as in these examples:

"By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return." Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living". (Genesis 3:19-20)

"Then Abraham spoke up again: "Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes"" (Genesis 18:27)

"But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and cried out, "O God, the God who gives breath to all living things, will you be angry with the entire assembly when only one man sins?"" (Numbers 16:22)

"May the LORD, the God who gives breath to all living things, appoint someone over this community" (Numbers 27:16)

"It was Hezekiah who blocked the upper outlet of the Gihon spring and channeled the water down to the west side of the City of David. He succeeded in everything he undertook." (2 Chronicles 32:30)

"Afterward he rebuilt the outer wall of the City of David, west of the Gihon spring in the valley, as far as the entrance of the Fish Gate and encircling the hill of Ophel; he also made it much higher. He stationed military commanders in all the fortified cities in Judah." (2 Chronicles 33:14)

"Remember that you molded me like clay. Will you now turn me to dust again?" (Job 10:9)

"In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind." (Job 12:10)

"as long as I have life within me, the breath of God in my nostrils" (Job 27:3)

"But it is the spirit in a person, the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding." (Job 32:8)

"The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life." (Job 33:4)

"If it were his intention and he withdrew his spirit and breath, all humanity would perish together and mankind would return to the dust." (Job 34:14-15)

"You turn people back to dust, saying, "Return to dust, you mortals."" (Psalms 90:3)

"When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust." (Psalms 104:29)

"All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return." (Ecclesiastes 3:20)

"Remember him - before the silver cord is severed, and the golden bowl is broken; before the pitcher is shattered at the spring, and the wheel broken at the well, and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it." (Ecclesiastes 12:6-7)

"This is what God the LORD says - the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out, who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it" (Isaiah 42:5)

"The LORD will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins; he will make her deserts like Eden, her wastelands like the garden of the LORD. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of singing." (Isaiah 51:3)

"The word of the LORD came to me: "Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: carnelian, chrysolite and emerald, topaz, onyx and jasper, lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones."'"" (Ezekiel 28:11-14)

"The cedars in the garden of God could not rival it, nor could the junipers equal its boughs, nor could the plane trees compare with its branches - no tree in the garden of God could match its beauty. I made it beautiful with abundant branches, the envy of all the trees of Eden in the garden of God." (Ezekiel 31:8-9)

"They will say, "This land that was laid waste has become like the garden of Eden; the cities that were lying in ruins, desolate and destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited."" (Ezekiel 36:35)

"This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life." (Ezekiel 37:5)

"Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.'" So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet - a vast army." (Ezekiel 37:9-10)

"On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was standing on the bank of the great river, the Tigris" (Daniel 10:4)

"Before them fire devours, behind them a flame blazes. Before them the land is like the garden of Eden, behind them, a desert waste - nothing escapes them." (Joel 2:3)

"Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?" "Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate."" (Matthew 19:3-6)

"Some Pharisees came and tested him by asking, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" "What did Moses command you?" he replied. They said, "Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and send her away." "It was because your hearts were hard that Moses wrote you this law," Jesus replied. "But at the beginning of creation God 'made them male and female.' 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.' So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate."" (Mark 10:2-9)

"On the evening of that first day of the week [Resurrection Sunday], when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit."" (John 20:19-22)

"When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. "Sovereign Lord," they said, "you made the heavens and the earth and the sea, and everything in them."" (Acts 4:24)

"Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them." (Acts 14:15)

"And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else." (Acts 17:25)

"Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man [because Adam disobeyed God's command in the Garden of Eden], and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned - To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone's account where there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come. But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man [Adam], how much more did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man's sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ! Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 5:12-21, words added in square brackets)

"Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, "The two will become one flesh."" (1 Corinthians 6:16)

"A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; neither was man created for woman, but woman for man." (1 Corinthians 11:7-9)

"For since death came through a man [because Adam disobeyed God's command in the Garden of Eden], the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15:21-22, words added in square brackets)

"So it is written: "The first man Adam became a living being"; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven. As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man." (1 Corinthians 15:45-49)

"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." (Ephesians 5:31)

"For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner." (1 Timothy 2:13-14)

"He also says, "In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands."" (Hebrews 1:10)

"But they deliberately forget that long ago by God's word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water." (2 Peter 3:5)

"Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." (Revelation 2:7)

"It said to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates."" (Revelation 9:14)

"Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them. Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city - which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt - where also their Lord was crucified. For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial. The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth. But after the three and a half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them." (Revelation 11:7-11)

"The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East." (Revelation 16:12)

"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations." (Revelation 22:1-2)

"Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city." (Revelation 22:12-14)

"And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll." (Revelation 22:19)

Since so many passages throughout the Bible (as in the above examples) are based on, or support and confirm, the second Creation account in Genesis 2:4-25 (above), the only reasonable conclusion we can make is that the second Creation account is not meant to be taken as a parable, an allegory, or anything other than actual, literal facts. The second Creation account in Genesis 2 directly contradicts the first Creation account in Genesis 1 (see my article called The Creation Account in Genesis 1 Is a Parable), and therefore the first Creation account is not meant to be taken as actual, literal facts.

The first Creation account (Genesis 1) is meant to be taken as a parable.
The second Creation account (Genesis 2) is meant to be taken as actual, literal facts.

The second Creation account in Genesis 2, as well as Genesis chapters 3 through 5, don't have the same feel as the historical accounts of Noah in Genesis 6 through 9, Abraham in Genesis 12 through 25, and Abraham's children and other descendants in Genesis 25 through 50. The reason is that the truths in those early chapters of Genesis are written in a way that enabled God to deliberately place a mind-boggling amount of hidden or encoded information in those early chapters (much more than He encrypted into the rest of the Torah). For more on these Torah Codes or Bible Codes, see my article called The Torah Codes Are Real.

Adam was formed 6,000 years ago, and the scriptural evidence is described in my article called End-Times Prophecies Are Coming to Pass Right before Our Eyes (see sign #21).