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Download file to see previous pages Cursed is the ground because of you, through painful toil, you will eat of it, all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field.by the sweat of your brow, you will eat your food, until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken ;for dust you are and dust you will return’(NIV BibleGen. 3:15). In addition, when God issues a curse upon Eve, the implications apply to all women, according to the Bible. Eve is told that she will always have pain during childbirth and this is true for all women today. To the woman he said ‘I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing, with pain you will give birth to children’ (NIV Bible, Gen. 3:16). Therefore, Adam and Eve are used to represent the community, that is, men and women respectively. Dichotomies in Genesis (Bible) According to an online dictionary (dictionary.com), the word ‘dichotomies’ is the plural of the word dichotomy. The noun ‘Dichotomies’ is defined as ‘division into two parts or classifications, especially when they are sharply distinguished or opposed’ (Dichotomy, par 1). Loosely translated, dichotomies refer to differences in things or individuals which are mostly in opposing sides. In the Bible, specifically in Genesis, there exist dichotomies about a few individuals mentioned in the chapters one to four. Cain and Abel The first dichotomies exist with regard to Cain and Abel. As mentioned in Genesis, both were the sons of Adam and Eve hence they come from the same family. However, major differences exist between them in terms of character and their occupations. While Abel kept animals (flocks), Cain was a farmer, described in the chapter as ‘Cain worked the soil’ (NIV Bible, Gen. 4:2). Both would offer sacrifices to God but in different ways, which brings out the contrast in their characters. Abel selected the best from his flock for sacrifice which pleased God. On the other hand, Cain’s sacrifices were ordinary fruits from his produce. Because of this, God showed Abel more favour than He showed Cain. This made Cain angry and jealous of his younger brother, and he killed him. Now Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘let’s go out to the field.’ And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him (NIV Bible, Gen. 4:8) The above dichotomy is used to express the differences between the two people. In addition, it is used to express how different character traits lead people to different actions. For example, Cain’s jealousy leads him to commit murder. The dichotomy above is also used to express consequences that face a community due to their actions. When Cain kills Abel, God becomes very angry with Cain and curses him. The LORD said, ‘what have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.’(NIV Bible Gen. 4 .10) From the above, we see the consequences of people’s actions. Cain is cursed because of his action of killing his brother while God avenges Abel because he was selfless in his sacrifice and because he was not jealous of his brother Cain in any way. Jabal and Jubal The other dichotomy expressed in ...Download file to see next pagesRead More