There is a theme that runs through the Bible like a golden thread, and that is the message of God’s salvation. This collection of 66 books, written over a period of more than 1,400 years, is held together by a single concern: God loves the world He made, and He has a plan to save His human creatures from sin, suffering, and death.

The story begins in earnest at Genesis 2:4. The phrase “This is the account of . . .” is important in Genesis. It tells us that a new part of the book has started. It will be used 10 more times in Genesis to highlight the stories of some prominent people—Adam (5:1), Noah (6:9), the sons of Noah (10:1), Shem (11:10), Terah (11:27), Ishmael (25:12), Isaac (25:19), Esau (36:1, 9), and Jacob (37:2).

Genesis 1 and 2 have confused people at times. Don’t they give us two very different—even contradictory—creation accounts? Not at all: a careful reading will show that while Genesis 1 presents a wide, cosmic perspective of the whole universe, Genesis 2 zooms in for a closer look at the situation on the ground, especially at God’s personal and intimate dealings with mankind. Genesis 2 is special also because it gives us the only glimpse of human life before the entrance of sin into the world.

Verses 5–6 describe the earth at its earliest stage, when its conditions were not yet suitable for life. The word “shrub” refers to plant species that grow in arid land. “Plant” refers to those species, whether wild or cultivated, that can be consumed by people (Genesis 1:11–12). These two words in conjunction show that God and human beings have complementary roles in making the earth habitable: the Lord God sends the “rain”, while people cultivate and “work the ground” (v. 5; see also Acts 14:17).

Genesis 2:7 is a brief and moving account of the creation of the first man. God forms the man from the “dust of the ground” like a potter fashioning a vessel. This same phrase is used to describe the way God creates the animals (v. 19), which reflects our lowly proximity to the animal kingdom. But the very next statement highlights the exaltation of mankind when it says that God “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life”. Here we have a picture of unique intimacy, with God personally imparting the kiss of life.

God honours and exalts His lowly human creatures—that truth made King David sing for joy. As the king reflected on God’s vast creation in Psalm 8:4–5, he praised God, saying:

What is mankind that you are mindful of them,
  human beings that you care for them?
You have made them a little lower than the angels
  and crowned them with glory and honour.