The Discovery of Genesis (18 page)

“God” in the original Hebrew of Genesis is
Elohim
, a plural term used for the multiple aspects or personalities of God. These are more clearly developed in the New Testament as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). “The Word [that] became flesh and dwelt among us” is obviously a reference to the Son, Jesus.

Very early, in the second verse of Genesis 1, as the creative activity on our earth was begun, the agent in all this tremendous work during the first momentous week is identified: “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the
Spirit of God
was moving over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2). Let us examine closely the word for
Spirit
, which has compacted into its strokes much information about the three members of the Godhead, and especially the assignment of the Holy Spirit. This character is made up of three smaller units:
, and
. Each will be considered in turn with a more complete dissection.

Let us first examine
. The horizontal stroke at the top of the figure, because of its position, represents
heaven
and indicates where the Spirit came from. The second horizontal stroke
means
cover.
The remaining portion of the figure, as expected, is
water
. (This radical is usually written as
or
, but an ancient form is
).
is therefore an exact picture of Genesis 1: 2, “the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters,” which describes the first descent of God’s Spirit to this earth. The entire radical
, a second form being
, means
rain.
This is also significant symbolism for the theologian.
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