The Punisher

God, or “LORD”, as he was called by Adams contemporaries in Genesis, is a figure responsible for much of what happens in the early times of our existence. He makes the earth in the first place, but he is also its ultimate devastator. He creates Adam at first and then from his rib he makes Eve, and they in time are responsible for all their descendants, who anger God. They become violent and destroying, and the “LORD” decides to punish all except for a few who have won his liking. “And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch (Genesis 6, line 13-14).” He shows his anger through this act, but by warning a few to save themselves he ensures the preservation of the creatures he created and loves in the world he made for them. This shows that God in the bible is not at all harmless, and that he does have some “preference” for those who follow what he expects from people.

In Genesis they mention “seven” many times to describe various different quantities. It took seven days for the creation of the earth, only seven days after god warned Noah did the flood begin, “and the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat (Genesis 8).” As we know, seven is considered as the holy number, at least for those who follow the bible. This creates a certain pattern because when even descendants come in sevens, we get the idea that everything is meant to be done in perfect groups of seven, which might not be exactly the meaning of this repetition. The Bible has many interesting ways of organizing and explaining things through the same patterns, and we see lots of repetition occurring in the different lines of Genesis. This is probably some method to make it sound rhythmic when read aloud, or maybe to let the message sink into the public.

“The tree of knowledge” mentioned carries a connection with Greek mythology, where the same tree of knowledge gives the same consequences, which shows that Greeks share many biblical beliefs. Another comparison we can make is the fact of the flood. In Egyptian, Nordic, Greek and various other mythologies we see a flood appear maybe as a symbol for punishment and chaos. The bible has many similarities with mythology and ancient beliefs because it has a similar origin, and therefore it shares many common characteristics.