The Bible has two bookends in Genesis and Revelation. Have you ever heard that before? And before I get into what they are, you need to keep in mind that Moses wrote the book of Genesis thousands of years before the Apostle John wrote the book of Revelation. Also, the order of the Bible wasn’t finalized until much later.
So, the first bookend is presented in chapter 2 of Genesis. In this chapter the setting of the Garden of Eden is described along with Adam naming the animals, and God preparing a counterpart for Adam. Embedded deeper in this chapter is the mention of some seemingly arbitrary items like the tree of life, a river, gold, bdellium, onyx stone, and a rib that God used to build into Eve. Hmmm, what is God getting at here?
First, I want to make it clear that I never could have put all these items together in a way that makes sense even though I have been reading the Bible for over forty years. That’s the main reason I enjoy reading the Life-Studies which are the printed form of the messages that Witness Lee gave from 1974-1995. Anyway, I read Genesis Life-Study #12 on this chapter a few weeks ago, and Witness Lee said the contents of this chapter might seem simple, but actually they’re quite meaningful.
He said that all the items mentioned in Genesis chapter 2 are meaningful because they give us a picture of God’s eternal purpose. Early in this chapter we see God bringing Adam to the center of the garden and showing him two trees. One tree God called the tree of life and the other the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Don’t you find it interesting that God doesn’t give Adam a long speech on how to live a proper human life that would please Him, but instead God just warns Adam that if he ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil he would die.
Probably many people have gotten confused here because when Eve ate the fruit of this tree, she didn’t keel over and die. Instead she took that fruit to Adam, and he ate of it, too and there's no mention of their death. So obviously what God is talking about here is spiritual death. We can see that clearly in Ephesians 2:1 because Paul mentions there that before our salvation our spirits were dead in sins and trespasses. So figuratively eating that fruit deadened Adam and Eve’s spirit, which by the way was such a big deal that God had to send His Son to die for our sins.
After describing these trees, Moses writes about the river flowing through the garden of Eden. In that river Moses mentions three outstanding elements—gold, bdellium, and onyx stone. I would never have seen this but in this Life-Study, brother Lee says that each of these elements represent something about the Triune God! Because gold cannot burn or tarnish and is of great value, theologians say that gold represents the Father. I never heard of bdellium before, but it’s a pearl-like resin from a plant that represents the Son. And onyx stone represents an element that has been transformed by heat and pressure which shows the transforming work of the Spirit in our lives. That is definitely worth a wow!
At the end of Genesis chapter two we see Adam naming all the animals and then God putting Adam to sleep so He could make a helpmeet for him. It’s interesting that God doesn’t take clay like when He made Adam, but instead God opens up Adam’s stomach and takes out one of his ribs and from that the Bible uses an unusual expression, it says “God built a woman.” The Life-Study brings all this together when it sys if Genesis 2 is a picture of God’s purpose, then this woman built out of Adam’s rib represents the church built with Christ’s life to be His counterpart. All of these items in chapter two wouldn’t make much sense alone.
So now it’s time to look at the bookend in the book of Revelation. Open up your Bible to Revelation 21 and read it again in light of all the symbolism from Genesis 2 that this Life-Study unfolds so beautifully. In Revelation 21 you read about a river with the tree of life growing in it and also about a city called the New Jerusalem. And if you look carefully and get ready to go wow again--you will see that this city is built with none other than gold, pearls (like bdellium), and precious stones! Revelation opens up by telling us that it is a book of signs. The description of his city is not something physical but symbolic of God’s work in His redeemed people to transform them into --drum roll please and another wow-- the bride of the Lamb!
So, with the help of these two bookends God is showing us a picture of His heart’s desire. I was so touched to learn through my reading of the Life-Studies that throughout all the centuries God has been working to transform His redeemed people into the New Jerusalem, His bride. Below you can see a link to listen to the Life-Study of the Bible and also some posts I did several years ago when I was reading through this particular Life-Study. You can read any of these Life-Studies for free.
You can also listen to live excerpts from these messages on Genesis on Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee.
Other Posts on the Life-Study of Genesis:
From the Life-Study of Genesis - What is the Focus of the Bible?
What Happened Between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2?
Why Did God Create Man in Genesis 1:26?
Why Did God Create Man With 3 Parts in Genesis 2:7?
Why Did God Put Man in Front of the Two Trees in Genesis 2?
Seeing God's Purpose of Life & Building in the Book of Genesis
What is the Story Behind the Story of Cain & Abel?
What Did Enosh Learn to Do in Genesis 4:26?
How Did Enoch Escape Death in Genesis 5:24?
Why Did Noah Need to Find Grace in Genesis 6:8?
What Does the Rainbow Symbolize in Genesis 9:13?
How Did God Call Abraham in Genesis 12:1?
How Did God Fulfill the Birth of Isaac in Genesis 12:7?
What Does the Marriage of Isaac & Rebekah Show in Genesis 24?
How Does the Story of Jacob Show God's Selection in Genesis 25?
Why Did Jacob Dream About a Ladder in Genesis 28:12?
Seeing Our Spiritual Journey in the Lives of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, & Joseph
Why Did Jacob Call the Two Altars in Genesis 33 & 35 By Different Names?
How Do the Stories of Jacob & Joseph Mirror God's Purpose in Genesis 1:26?
How Did Joseph's Dreams Really Get Fulfilled in Genesis 41?
How Did the Lord Shepherd Jacob in Genesis 45:18?
