Some may have no idea what this chapter is about, with “sons of God” marrying “daughters of men” and the “Nephilim.” Some may also have some profound, over-the-top notions about the meaning of this chapter, but if you read this chapter in the context of the previous chapters, the fanciful and salacious interpretations fall by the wayside.
Each one of the patriarchs listed here are listed for a reason: to show us where Noah came from. Each one of the these patriarchs had other sons and daughters besides those mentioned here, but God singles out these particular men to teach a specific lesson.
Cain’s offering was not rejected because it was the wrong offering. It was rejected because of the condition of Cain’s heart. God warns Cain that he has let sin into his heart and his house. God instructs Cain that he is to rule over sin not to allow the sin to rule over him, but the sin in Cain’s heart was too pleasurable to him.
What kind of woman was Eve? She was just as smart as Adam. God says through Paul that Adam was the one who sinned, but it was Eve who was deceived. She was created to be Adam’s opposite. She was created to be an intelligent, hard-working woman.
Adam and Eve made a terrible mistake. Was Eve’s mistake greater than Adam’s? No, Adam’s mistake was greater than hers. For those who have more knowledge, when they sin, they will be “beaten with many stripes.”
God gives us free will and the option of choosing the good, which leads to righteousness and eternal life, or the bad, which leads to evil and eternal death.
God gave Adam several profound responsibilities: tending the Garden of Eden; naming the animals and choosing between the Tree of Life v. the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Bad.
Adam made the wrong choice. All of us as Adam’s heirs also have a similar choice to make. God gives each of us us free will to choose the good, which leads to righteousness and eternal life or we can choose the bad which leads to evil and eternal death.
The last two things God created was the Shabbat/Sabbath and the Garden of Eden. God did not create the Shabbat because He was exhausted or tired. Rather, He wanted to set aside a day for mankind to have a special time with Him. Also some are confused about the creation narratives of Gen. 1 and Gen. 2 but a careful reading of each shows us that Gen. 2 focuses specifically on the creation of mankind and the special Garden called Eden that was made by God as mankind’s primary residence.
Genesis 1 tells us that God did not create the earth and the heavens above for His own comfort, He created it for ours. The primary purpose of creation was for the use of mankind — His Image upon the Earth. God said it was good and He took pleasure in His creation, particularly its culmination in creating mankind with His own hands. God will fulfill His pleasure and it will be complete.