How does Matthew 19:4 relate to the creation account in Genesis? Matthew 19:4 in the Berean Standard Bible “Jesus answered, ‘Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator “made them male and female” ?’” Immediate Gospel Context Jesus is replying to Pharisees who are testing Him on divorce (Matthew 19:3-9). Rather than beginning with Moses’ concession in Deuteronomy 24, He reaches back to the very first chapters of Scripture, asserting that the divine design for marriage is rooted “from the beginning.” Genesis Passages Jesus Quotes and Combines • Genesis 1:27 : “So God created man in His own image…male and female He created them.” • Genesis 2:24 (BSB, cited in Matthew 19:5): “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.” By weaving these two texts together, Jesus treats both the broad creative act (Genesis 1) and the detailed relational narrative (Genesis 2) as one harmonious account—historical, authoritative, and complementary. Historical Adam and Eve Affirmed Jesus’ argument depends on a literal first couple. A merely symbolic Adam and Eve would undercut His ethical point. Later New Testament writers mirror this (Romans 5:12-19; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22, 45). Early Christian theologians—from Clement of Rome to Augustine—likewise read Genesis historically. Theological Implications of “From the Beginning” 1. God’s design for marriage is creational, not cultural. 2. Male–female distinction is intrinsic to humanity’s very creation. 3. The “one flesh” union flows out of that design. 4. Any post-Fall legislation (e.g., Deuteronomy 24) is remedial, never ideal. Chronological Considerations Ussher’s chronology places the creation of Adam and Eve c. 4004 BC, highlighting that, biblically, “the beginning” is measured in thousands, not millions, of years. Jesus’ phrase matches that young-earth framework: humanity appears at the dawn of creation, not after eons of hominid prehistory. Second-Temple Jewish Reading of Genesis Philo, Josephus, Jubilees, and the Qumran community treat Adam and Eve, one-flesh marriage, and creation ex nihilo as historical realities. Jesus’ hermeneutic fits His contemporaries’ high view of Genesis. Archaeological Corroboration of Early Genesis 1. Mesopotamian flood layers (e.g., at Shuruppak) fit Genesis’ flood chronology, indirectly supporting an early Adamic timeline. 2. The Ebla tablets (c. 2300 BC) document a creation-to-flood chronology strikingly parallel to Genesis 1–11. 3. The Ketef Hinnom silver amulets (7th-century BC) quote Numbers 6 and presuppose a Torah already long revered, undermining late-date theories. Ethical and Practical Ramifications Because Jesus anchors marriage ethics to creation, contemporary matters—divorce, sexual identity, same-sex unions—are settled not by majority vote but by original design. “What therefore God has joined together, let man not separate” (Matthew 19:6). Consistent Biblical Testimony • Old Testament: Genesis 1–2; Malachi 2:15. • Gospels: Matthew 19; Mark 10. • Epistles: Ephesians 5:31-32; 1 Timothy 2:13. Across roughly 1,500 years of composition, Scripture speaks with a unified voice on creation and marriage—an internal coherence unmatched in ancient literature. Christ’s Resurrection Seals the Authority of His Words The minimal-facts approach verifies Jesus rose bodily; witnesses (1 Corinthians 15:3-8), enemy attestation, and empty tomb consensus mean His teachings carry divine imprimatur. The risen Lord’s endorsement of Genesis finalizes the case. Summary Matthew 19:4 deliberately grounds Jesus’ marriage ethic in the historical, literal creation of male and female recorded in Genesis 1–2. It affirms a real Adam and Eve, an intentional binary design, a young earth timeline, and an authoritative, self-consistent Scripture. All subsequent theological, ethical, and scientific considerations radiate from that foundational truth. |
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