"THE CREATION PARABLE" - A PARABLE OF MOSES
“THE CREATION PARABLE”
…and the Scripture became tohu va’vohu
A radical retelling of Genesis 1
BQM
KRIS S. CARRARA
The Bible Question Man
“I just have a few questions…”
“Freely share this PDF with anyone hungry for truth.”
© 2025 Kris S. Carrara. All rights reserved.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VpMJa-hrZjkAAG-TU116cRdGu8ZiLjco/view?usp=sharing
b’reshiyth
For many years I read Genesis 1 the same way you probably did - as a science report about the birth of the universe. I was wrong.
This does not deny that Yehovah created the universe. Moses is simply not talking about that here. In Genesis 1 Moses is describing the creation of Israel, using the language of creation to tell the story of the Exodus.
b’reshiyth: The very first word of Scripture is not Hebrew for “Once upon a time...”
“Every English Bible begins with the traditional translation, ‘In the beginning…’
and that tradition is the BIG LIE.”
b’reshiyth does not mean “In the beginning.”
It means “As firstfruits of…”
It is an unfinished sentence.
It is a deliberate “what comes next?”.
Moses wrote the biblical equivalent of
“as the firstfruits of WHAT?”
And then he spent 34 verses weaving the Exodus he had just lived through into the seven-day pattern Israel already knew by heart.
With the one single word, b’reshiyth, Moses is signaling to the reader across 3,400 years and declaring:
Metaphor Incoming!
This book is what happens when we allow b’reshiyth to do its job.
Welcome to the truth hidden in plain sight since the day the Red Sea collapsed on Pharaoh’s army.
This is the truth. Freedom is my benchmark.
GENESIS 1
DAY 1
1:1 as firstfruits, elohim created the heaven and the earth
Yehovah reached down and offered the very best of Himself, the first and finest portion, to a man taken from the dust of the ground.
That is the first act of creation.
Not galaxies.
A gift.
Typically firstfruits are from man to Yehovah. Here, it reverses, and Yehovah brings His best to man.
1:2 the earth became tohu and bohu
darkness on the face of the deep
ruach of elohim hovered against the face of the waters
When Moses stepped onto the scene, the descendants of Adam were slaves in Egypt.
The darkness of the Egyptian Empire, built on the backs of Hebrew slaves, swallowed everything.
Four hundred years of Egyptian slavery, and the prophecy of Yehovah began to hover over Egypt.
1:3 elohim said hayah light hayah light
Yehovah said, become light! became light!
Yehovah elevated Moses to GENERAL over His army of slaves!
Yehovah appeared to Moses in a burning bush.
The bush burned with fire yet was not consumed.
Yehovah verifies the affliction of his people under the Egyptian taskmasters.
Yehovah commissions Moses to become His light in Egypt.
Moses became the light of Yehovah to His people.
MOSES, BECOME LIGHT!
MOSES BECAME LIGHT!
Who is this Elohim who speaks in Genesis 1?
The same One who stepped into the burning bush and declared:
“I AM Yehovah.” (Exodus 3:14–15)
The same One who told Israel at the Red Sea:
“Yehovah is His name.” (Exodus 15:3)
The same One who thundered from Sinai:
“I am Yehovah, Elohim who brought you out of Egypt.” (Exodus 20:2)
Genesis 1 never hides the name.
It simply waits until Exodus to unveil it.
But from the first verse,
it has always been Yehovah.
1:4 and elohim saw the light that it was good
and elohim separated the light from the darkness
light = good, truth, freedom
darkness = evil, slavery
Yehovah determines what is good
Salvation belongs to Yehovah - He will bring His people from the darkness into light - from slaves in Egypt, to free men in the land of promise!
Yehovah drew the line in the sand between light and darkness.
The darkness grew darker: Pharaoh increased the burden on Israel, demanding that they produce bricks without straw.
Light is good.
Freedom is the benchmark for truth.
Truth sets free.
Be certain that the light that is in you is not darkness! If the light in you is darkness, then how great is that darkness!!
1:5 And Elohim called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.
As sure as there will be day and night, there will be good and evil. This is a reality of creation!
As sure as there will be a sunrise and a sunset, there will be good and evil.
Thus was the first day of the creation of Israel.
DAY 2
1:6 And Elohim said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
1:7 And Elohim made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
1:8 And Elohim called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
On the second day Yehovah became the firmament, the unyielding barrier between two seas:
the waters above - Egypt and her armies
the waters below - the children of Israel
Ten times He stood in the gap.
Ten times He drew the line:
“This far and no farther.”
Goshen untouched while flies swarmed Pharaoh.
Israel’s cattle alive while Egypt’s dropped dead.
Darkness you can feel, but Goshen had light.
This day is not declared “good.”
Yehovah takes no pleasure in crushing Egypt.
He only does it to make a way where there was no way.
Thus was the second day of the creation of Israel.
DAY 3
1:9 And Elohim said, Let the waters under the heavens be collected to one place, and let the dry land appear. And it was so.
1:10 And Elohim called the dry land, Earth. And He called the collection of the waters, Seas. And Elohim saw that it was good.
1:11 And Elohim said, Let the earth sprout tender sprouts, the plant seeding seed, the fruit tree producing fruit according to its kind, whichever seed is in it on the earth. And it was so.
1:12 And the earth bore tender sprouts, the plant seeding seed according to its kind, and the fruit tree producing fruit according to its kind, whichever seed is in it. And Elohim saw that it was good.
1:13 And there was evening, and there was morning, the third day.
On the third day the Red Sea split.
Israel walked on dry ground while Pharaoh drowned.
Three days later they cried for bread.
The earth obeyed: manna fell—seed and fruit from heaven itself.
Elohim looked at His freed people
standing on land that swallowed their chains,
eating bread that needed no Egyptian oven,
and declared: “It is good.”
Thus was the third day of the creation of Israel.
In the first three days, Yehovah brought forth His people from the chaos of Egypt, separated them from the nations, and gave them new life on dry ground.
The first three days of the parable reveal His work of redemption.
The next four reveal His purpose for His people - light, order, relationship and rest.
DAY 4
1:14 and elohim said let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years
1:15 and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth and it was so
1:16 and elohim made two great lights the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night he made the stars also
1:17 and elohim set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth
1:18 and to rule over the day and over the night and to divide the light from the darkness and elohim saw that it was good
1:19 and there was evening and there was morning the fourth day
On the fourth day Yehovah hung three lights
in the firmament He had become:
Greater Light: the Ten Words, carved by His finger (Ex 31:18).
Lesser Light: judges and priests, reflecting the Ten (Ex 18:22).
Stars: the feasts, eternal memories in the sky (Ex 23:14-16).
Even Joseph saw it coming:
“…the sun, moon and eleven stars bowed to me.” (Gen 37:9)
Now the covenant rules the calendar,
the nation shines as priests,
and darkness has nowhere left to hide.
Thus was the fourth day of the creation of Israel.
DAY 5
20 and elohim said let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven
21 and elohim created great whales and every living creature that moveth which the waters brought forth abundantly after their kind and every winged fowl after his kind and elohim saw that it was good
22 and elohim blessed them saying be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas and let fowl multiply in the earth
23 and there was evening and there was morning the fifth day
Listen.
For four hundred thirty years Pharaoh tried to stop the multiplying.
He murdered your babies in the Nile because Israel was swarming in Egypt’s dark waters (Exodus 1:7).
He could not stop the swarming.
On the fifth day Yehovah turns the tables on Pharaoh.
The very multiplying that terrified Pharaoh is now the blessing of Yehovah.
The swarming ones are no longer drowning in Egypt’s waters;
they are released, blessed, and commissioned to fly free under the open heaven.
What Pharaoh feared most has become the battle plan of Yehovah:
a nation too numerous to count,
flying above every earthly power,
filling the whole earth with the image of Yehovah.
The great whale that once swallowed Israel, now lies at the bottom of the Red Sea!
And the very first Word that Yehovah will drive into their freed hearts is this:
“I am Yehovah, Elohim who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Do not become the face of another elohim.”
Never become what you escaped. Never make slaves as you were enslaved. You are Mine, and you will act like it.
Thus was the fifth day of the creation of Israel.
DAY 6
24 And Elohim said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kind: and it was so.
25 And Elohim made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creepeth upon the ground after its kind: and Elohim saw that it was good.
26 And Elohim said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
27 And Elohim created man in his own image, in the image of Elohim created he him; male and female created he them.
28 And Elohim blessed them: and Elohim said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
29 And Elohim said, Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food:
30 and to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, [I have given] every green herb for food: and it was so.
31 And Elohim saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Wild animals, cattle, snakes, spiders….
Elohim made them all.
Good.
“Only the strong survive.”
That is the law of the beast.
Egypt lived by that law.
They slaughtered your sons.
They worked you like oxen.
They told you you were nothing.
But on the sixth day I looked at you and thundered:
“YOU ARE NOT ANIMALS!”
I pulled you from the mud of Egypt
and shaped you in My own image –
the same face-to-face friendship I have with Moses,
the same Father-Son love I will one day show in Yehoshua.
And I carved that image on stone with ten blazing words
that turn beasts back into men:
Honor father and mother.
Do not murder.
Do not commit adultery.
Do not steal.
Do not bear false witness.
Do not covet.
Live these Words and you prove to the nations
that you are no longer slaves of the beast,
but sons and daughters of Yehovah.
Thus was the sixth day of the creation of Israel.
Question:
Why do the translators rip the seventh day away from the other six and start a new chapter? That break makes no sense. Is this part of the same big lie?
The true break - the real new beginning - comes at Genesis 2:4:
“These are the generations of the heavens and the earth…”
Everything until that verse is still the seven-day parable.
Now watch what happens on the seventh day.
DAY 7
1 And the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2 And on the seventh day Elohim finished his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And Elohim blessed the seventh day, and hallowed it; because that in it he rested from all his work which Elohim had created and made.
Watch the Torah finish the victory shout with the exact same three hammer blows:
Exodus 40:33
“And Moses finished the work.”
The glory-cloud descends.
The Tabernacle is complete. Yehovah is dwelling among men again!
The host of Yehovah is mustered under the pillar of fire.
The army is set apart as holy forever.
And the very next command that thunders from glory is:
Deuteronomy 1:6-8
“You have stayed at this mountain long enough.
Rise up.
Take your journey.
I have set the land before you.
Go in and possess it!”
Six days I broke Pharaoh and forged My nation.
On the seventh day I finished the work,
mustered My host,
blessed the seventh day and set My army apart as holy forever.
The war against Egypt is over.
The war to fill the earth with My image has just begun.
Creation is complete.
My army is ready.
Now go take the planet.
That is the real seventh-day climax.
Not a lullaby.
A BATTLE CRY
GO!
TAKE THE LAND I PROMISED ABRAHAM, ISAAC, AND JACOB.
IN MY NAME.
IN OUR IMAGE.
SET THE NATIONS FREE!
Rest is not collapse, it is readiness. The work of Yehovah is complete, now the mission begins.
And there stood two old spies—
Caleb and Joshua—
stronger than ever,
ready to take their land.
I can already hear the trumpets blast.
I can already see the walls of Jericho falling.
Thus was the seventh day of the creation of Israel.
Overall Flow
Day 1: Light breaks the darkness
Day 2: Separation from Egypt
Day 3: Red Sea and manna
Day 4: Covenant lights
Day 5: Pharaoh’s nightmare drowned, Israel’s swarm blessed
Day 6: “YOU ARE NOT ANIMALS!” — the image carved in stone
Day 7: “Creation complete. Army ready. Caleb and Joshua are coming for Jericho.”
You’ve Got To Read This
I am not a Hebrew scholar, and you don’t need to be one either. I am a structural engineer who fell in love with Scripture and learned to read it the same way I approached every design: slowly, carefully, and with tools that anyone can use. My approach is simple—let Scripture interpret Scripture.
The Hebrew observations in this book are basic and easily verified.
hayah can mean become.
reshiyth appears fifty-one times with a consistent sense.
elohim takes singular verbs throughout Genesis 1.
None of this requires advanced linguistic training; it required a concordance, patience, and the willingness to let the text speak.
My argument does not stand on my expertise. It stands (or falls) on whether Scripture supports this reading when Scripture is allowed to interpret Scripture. I trust you to test every claim against the text, and to follow the evidence wherever it leads.
“In the beginning, I had a question..."
“What if the first 34 verses of scripture is a parable?”
I am persuaded:
“Scripture Is The History Of The Salvation Of Man”.
Scripture is not a textbook on astronomy or geology.
Scripture is not a scientific manual for how molecules and planets formed.
Scripture is the unfolding story of redemption, the history of the salvation that Yehovah is offering to man. This salvation came through a bloodline found in the genealogy of the first Adam. This genealogy ends with Yehoshua, the Last Adam, whose very name means “Yehovah is salvation”.
The genealogies are not filler, they are the backbone of the salvation narrative.
Hebrew and Greek words can carry a variety of definitions. When we approach the study of Scripture as The History Of The Salvation Of Man, we do not restrict, but clarify the meaning of words. When we understand that Scripture is the history of salvation through a bloodline, the meanings of Hebrew and Greek words actually narrow and from this point of view come into focus. We are not asking “what could a word mean in any ancient text?”, but rather “what meaning does a word carry in this history of salvation narrative, at this point in the story?” The History of Salvation framework provides a built-in boundary for translation and interpretation. I am often asked if I believe that the bible is infallible. My answer is “Scripture, when translated correctly and interpreted properly, is the most reliable source of truth I have found.” My benchmark for truth is freedom: Does an interpretation set free or bind? Does it allow men to flourish or prohibit growth? Does it create space for change? Scripture itself validates this benchmark, ’you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’”
Scripture employs multiple literary tools and figures of speech to communicate this salvation history: parable, allegory, typology, pattern, prophetic narrative, symbolic history, mnemonic devices, and structured accounts, to name a few. The reader’s task is to determine which tool the author is using in each portion of Scripture. Is Moses using allegory here? Typology? A mnemonic pattern? What tool did the author employ to communicate the truth he witnessed?
To me it seems futile to view the first 34 verses of Genesis as a scientific explanation. Can physical creation be repeated? How can the evidence be tested scientifically? Turning the first 34 verses of Scripture into a “scientific debate” is fundamentally flawed, it is not testable, not repeatable, and is therefore neither scientific fact nor science.
The 35th verse of Genesis begins a genealogical narrative: These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that Yehovah Elohim made earth and heaven. And Genesis 5:1 declares, “This is the book of the generations of Adam.” The genealogy, the documented bloodline, begins in chapter 5. So what are chapters 1 through 4? What precedes “the book of the generations”?
If Scripture is the history of salvation through a bloodline, then what is Genesis 1 actually describing?
Seekers have been reading Genesis 1:1–2:3 the same way for centuries. Generation after generation has approached these thirty-four verses as a scientific account of how Yehovah created the physical universe, the cosmos, the planets, the stars, the earth beneath our feet.
But what if we’ve been reading it incorrectly?
So I asked myself: What did Moses actually observe?
Why Would Moses Teach in Parables?
How could Moses teach millions of people to remember what Yehovah did for them?
Exodus 12:37 records that 600,000 men left Egypt-not counting women and children. The total population was over 2 million people. Moses commanded this multitude in Deuteronomy 4:9: “Only take heed to yourself, and keep your soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons.”
Israel was an uneducated people which emerged from 400 years of slavery. They were laborers, not scholars. They had no written texts, no formal education system. But they were deeply familiar with oral tradition-they had preserved stories of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph for generations through the spoken word alone. Moses himself likely received these oral traditions from his mother Jochebed before she handed him over to Pharaoh’s daughter.
So how could an illiterate, oral culture of millions remember complex historical events and teach them to future generations? With a method they were already familiar with: oral teaching through memorable structure.
The seven day pattern in the first 34 verses of Genesis-with its rhythm, repetition, and predictable phrases (”and Elohim said... and it was so... and it was evening and morning”)-functions as a mnemonic device. The structure helps Israel remember the sequence of their deliverance: liberation from slavery, separation from Egypt, the giving of the law at Sinai, the establishment of relationship with Yehovah.
Moses gave them a mnemonic device, a parable they could hear, remember, repeat, and teach their children and grandchildren. Not because the events were not real, but because millions of people needed a way to retain what had actually happened to them.
How then can Moses teach millions? Through his parable of creation!
In summary, I am trying to make a crucial distinction that’s often missed in biblical interpretation debates. Let me clarify:
I am not suggesting that the creation account is fictional or merely symbolic. Rather, I am arguing that Genesis 1:1-2:3 is literally a parable - meaning it is genuinely and intentionally using imagery and metaphor to communicate real truth.
The key insight is that I am seeking for the “literal meaning” of the text as it was intended, which in this case appears to be parabolic rather than scientific. The text is literally a parable, not literally a scientific account.
This approach respects the authority of the text while recognizing its literary form. I am not trying to diminish Scripture by calling it a parable - as I explicitly stated: “Does parable diminish the truth of Scripture? No! Parable is the genius of Scripture!”
The goal is to discover what Moses actually witnessed and intended to communicate through this carefully structured account. I am suggesting that when Genesis 1 is approached as a scientific explanation of cosmic origins, its literal purpose, which was to teach an oral culture about their formation as a people, might be missed.
This perspective allows me to honor both the text itself and its purpose without forcing it to answer questions it was not designed to address. The literal meaning, in this view, is found by understanding the parable as it was intended to function - as a teaching tool about the formation of Israel rather than as a scientific treatise about cosmic formation.
I am often asked if I believe that Scripture is infallible? My answer is this:
“Scripture, when translated properly and interpreted correctly, is the most reliable source of truth I have discovered. “The words of Yehovah are pure words. As silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times!” If I am to build my life on the truth of Scripture, then that foundation of truth must be capable of surviving the crucible of my mind.”
Verse 35: Another Creation?
The 35th verse of Genesis signals a shift in literary form but uses the information and language revealed in the parable of the first 34 verses. The Genesis creation parable establishes both the vocabulary and the method that will be used throughout Scripture. Since the word of Yehovah is a lamp unto our feet, and a light unto our path, does it not make sense to rightly define the words He chose to employ?
The first 34 verses give us the beginning of a glossary of terms: elohim, heaven and earth, light and darkness, waters and land, the firmament-and these are just from the opening verses. The glossary continues building throughout all 34 verses. Verse 35 introduces the creator: Yehovah. What if these terms recur throughout Scripture with consistent meaning? Moses shows from the beginning that Scripture employs parables, figures of speech, metaphor, and symbolic language to reveal truth. This is not an exception. This is how truth is revealed to those seeking. Yet this same method blinds those who refuse to seek. Parable reveals to the willing and conceals from the resistant.
The 35th verse declares: “These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that Yehovah Elohim made earth and heaven.”
This verse, while not part of the parable, employs the understanding found in it. Yehovah and Adam were in a relationship. This is how it began. “Heaven and earth” continues to mean a relationship throughout scripture. The word “generations” marks a transition to genealogical history-the history of the salvation of man through the bloodline flowing from that relationship.
The first 34 verses stand as Moses’ eyewitness parable-establishing the vocabulary and method that will be used throughout the rest of scripture. Then the 35th verse shifts: “These are the generations...”
From this point forward, Moses compiles oral traditions, genealogies, and received narratives. These accounts-Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah, the Tower of Babel-are historical events. Moses did not witness them personally, but he faithfully recorded what was passed down through the generations.
And even within these historical accounts, Scripture continues to employ figures of speech, metaphor, and symbolic language. History and parable are not opposites. Moses can record true events while using literary devices to reveal deeper meaning. The question is not whether something happened, but how Moses chose to communicate what happened-and why.
Does parable diminish the truth of Scripture? No! Parable is the genius of Scripture!
So I see it like this:
Genesis 1 is the parable Moses saw with his own eyes.
Genesis 1-2:3 Moses wrote the first 34 verses of scripture, in parable, of his eyewitness account of the creation of the nation of Israel.
Genesis 2:4 - 50 Moses faithfully recorded the oral history of the descendants of Adam. Narrowing that history primarily through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Moses wrote them word for word, figures of speech and all. No less true. Just true the way Israel remembered it.
Exodus then records the eyewitness experience.
No less true.
Just true the way Israel remembered it.
Now go back to Day 1.
What if that’s how it all begins?
This interpretive framework recontextualizes Genesis 1 as Moses's eyewitness account of Israel's formation during the Exodus rather than a cosmological creation account.
If this is correct, potential ramifications include:
Theological/Interpretive:
Resolves science-faith tensions - Eliminates apparent conflicts between Genesis 1 and scientific cosmology by recognizing they address different subjects entirely
Reframes "creation debates" - Makes young-earth vs. old-earth discussions largely irrelevant to the text's actual purpose
Validates parabolic interpretation - Affirms that Scripture intentionally uses literary devices without diminishing its truth or authority
Shifts focus to redemption - Centers Scripture on salvation history rather than cosmic origins
Literary/Historical:
Explains the structure - The seven-day pattern becomes a mnemonic device for an oral culture to remember their deliverance sequence
Clarifies vocabulary - Terms like "heaven and earth," "light and darkness," "waters" gain consistent meaning throughout Scripture as relational/spiritual concepts
Resolves chronological oddities - Issues like light before sun, or vegetation before luminaries, make sense as metaphorical sequence
Practical:
Changes teaching approach - Would fundamentally alter how Genesis is taught in religious education
Affects apologetics - Requires completely different defensive strategies regarding biblical reliability
Impacts translation - Suggests alternative renderings of key Hebrew terms based on covenantal rather than cosmological context
The benchmark for truth is compelling: "Does it set free or bind?" If this interpretation makes Scripture more internally consistent and removes unnecessary barriers to faith without compromising core theological truths, that's worth serious consideration.
How could this be missed??
Yehoshua dealt with the same thing
Mat 5:21 Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: Mat 5:22 but I say unto you, that every one who is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgment; and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council; and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of the hell of fire.
Mat 5:27 Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt not commit adultery: Mat 5:28 but I say unto you, that every one that looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Mat 5:31 It was said also, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: Mat 5:32 but I say unto you, that every one that putteth away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, maketh her an adulteress: and whosoever shall marry her when she is put away committeth adultery
Mat 5:33 Again, ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: Mat 5:34 but I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by the heaven, for it is the throne of Elohim; Mat 5:35 nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
Mat 5:38 Ye have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: Mat 5:39 but I say unto you, Resist not him that is evil: but whosoever smiteth thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
Mat 5:43 Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy:
Mat 5:44 but I say unto you, Love your enemies, and pray for them that persecute you;
Mat 5:45 that ye may be sons of your Father who is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the unjust.
Mat 5:48 Ye therefore shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. ........REFERRING TO INTERPRETING THE SCRIPTURE!!
The parallel is undeniable:
"You have heard it said... but I say" = "You've been reading it literally... but here's what it actually means"
Yehoshua wasn't contradicting the Law-he was restoring its intended meaning that had been flattened by surface-level interpretation.
The pattern:
They heard: "Don't murder" (action-focused, external compliance) Yehoshua revealed: It's about the heart-anger, contempt, reconciliation
They heard: "Don't commit adultery" (physical act) Yehoshua revealed: It's about thought life, self-control, inner purity
They heard: "Eye for eye" (legal principle for courts) Yehoshua revealed: Personal relationships require mercy, not retaliation
What Yehoshua was confronting: Exactly what I have identified: people treating Scripture as a rulebook for external behavior rather than understanding its deeper purpose.
The Pharisees had become experts at the letter while missing the spirit. They could:
Count steps on Sabbath
Calculate tithe percentages
Debate handwashing rituals
But they completely missed that the Law was about:
Freedom (not slavery to regulations)
Heart transformation (not performance)
Relationship with Yehovah (not religious achievement)
Yehoshua's "you have heard... but I say" is not new revelation, it is recovering the original intent.
Just like what I am saying: "You've heard Genesis 1 is cosmic creation... but look what Moses actually witnessed."
Matthew 5:48 clinches it: "Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect"
The word "perfect" (teleios) = complete, mature, reaching intended purpose
Yehoshua is saying: "Interpret the Law the way it was meant to be interpreted: see its complete meaning, not just surface commands."
If Yehoshua had to correct centuries of misinterpretation of clear commands like "don't murder," why is it surprising that Genesis 1, a parable designed for an oral culture, would also be misread once separated from its original context?
The real question becomes: If Yehoshua trusted his hearers to understand that the Law had deeper meanings than what "they had heard," can't we trust that Genesis might too?
Yehoshua himself is the precedent for recovering original intent that tradition had buried.
BQM
Kris S. Carrara
The Bible Question Man
“I just have a few questions…”
Freely share this book with anyone hungry for truth.
© 2025 Kris S. Carrara
Comments
Post a Comment