And in v. 2 the "was" = "existed" cannot be linguistically twisted to mean "became" = "the result of a process"?? Worth pondering on -- eh?
Arghh! Sorry friend, I thought I HAD replied to you! Let me do so now.
“Your entire note makes Genesis verse 1 a lie.
If Genesis verse 1 is a lie, the account of creation is a lie.”
Could you expand on this please? I THINK I know what you mean, but want to be 100% sure. I am not quite sure how my post makes Genesis 1 a lie. It points out some interesting congruences between the Word and reality as we see it.
I like your phrasing of the alternatives - by man came death or by death came man - elegant.
But, respectfully, it is not an either/or proposition to me. I firmly believe it is both. Skipping Adam for a second - he is, by definition, a special case - Where did you come from. Or I?
Not the flesh and bone part, any reasonably aware 7 year old knows that, but the part of you that IS you? The bit that both sees and can create beauty, loves without lust, and can wrap itself in the Lord like the child of a loving parent is wrapped in a blanket?
All the good bits, in other words. The bits that seperate you from the beasts of the field. Again, this is more a topic for Genesis 2, but I owe you for failing to respond to you earlier.