This week’s session will wrap up our “Case for Creation” class series (our next class will be “A Case for the Old Testament”). In this final session we will look at evidence for the Tower of Babel and how the Biblical narrative of Human dispersion accounts for what we should see as only one race today, the human race made in God’s image. The physical differences within our race is really only “skin deep” and biology supports this. Imagine what our world would be like if we all loved one another, as the family of humans made in our Father God’s image, as He loves us!

Check out this week’s class presentation:

Overview notes from the presentation:

Where did the races, multiplicity of languages and cultures come from?

4th Major Historical Event: The Tower of Babel

Genesis Chapter 11

“Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

(God speaking) “Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other. So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth and they stopped building the city.”

Genesis 11:1, 4, 7-8 (NIV)

• The people had disobeyed God’s command to fill the earth after the Flood so God confused their languages
• When languages are confused the intention and purpose of the people can become confused as well
• Humankind began to spread out among the continents with those of similar language (and probably other similarities knowing human tendencies)
• Through isolation, adaptations and similarity in the DNA, people groups and cultures developed
• Genetic drift would be the result of populations spreading out and isolating from other populations

What do we know about genetic drift and adaptations today?

• Modern biology gives us new insights to the characteristics and traits of living things based on their DNA
• The DNA contains chromosomes that contain genes in pairs called alleles
• Each parent gives one allele to their offspring for every trait and characteristic, thus the combination of possibilities in offspring is abundant
• Genetic drift happens when there is a change in the frequency of an existing gene variant in a population due to random sampling of organisms, and this can result in the elimination of certain traits as well as the predominance of others (certain characteristics will become dominant, others will disappear from the gene pool)

Characteristics and traits are observed in two ways: (Note – this is a simplified version of “beginner genetics”)

1. Phenotype: The physical appearance
2. Genotype: The pair of genes that are carried by a person that code for a specific trait. Each person carries a pair of gene alleles but only one from each parent is passed on to an offspring.

For example:

• Dark skin = Dominant genes will always produce this physical appearance and dominant covers up recessive gene alleles when paired with them
• Light skin = Produced by recessive genes (a person with only one recessive allele is a carrier)—to get the physical appearance they must have received both parents’ recessive gene alleles
• Variations in brown skin = Heterozygous genes—this is a person who has both dominant and recessive gene alleles but the physical appearance will usually be dark (this can include incomplete dominance that allows for variations)

Current understanding of DNA gives us insight to skin color differences (and other traits) based on dominant and recessive genes.      

Biology quiz: What phenotype (appearance) and genotype (genes) did Adam and Eve have?

Answer: In order to have children with the possibility of all skin colors they had to be middle brown (phenotype) with heterozygous genotypes:

• All combinations of skin color; eye color; tall/short; curly/straight hair; ear shape; nose shape; etc., are possible with parents who are both heterozygous.
• Adam and Eve would have been heterozygous for all traits (Noah and his wife would have been as well)

In Biology, gene alleles in the DNA are assigned letters. For example, let’s assign dark hair with an A and therefore light hair would be a. Let’s assign dark eyes with B and light eyes with b.

A=dominant trait      a=recessive trait

B=dominant trait      b=recessive trait

Note: Dominant traits will always show in the phenotype (the physical appearance). Recessive traits can be carried and will only show when the offspring gets both recessive gene alleles from their parents.

If Adam and Eve are heterozygous in both traits, they will carry both gene alleles in their genotype, but their phenotype (physical appearance) will display the dominant trait of dark or middle brown:

Adam=AaBb    Eve=AaBb

There are only three possible parent types, and Adam and Eve would have to be in category 3:

1.  AABB = Dominant (can only have AABB children who will have the dark traits displayed in the phenotype)

            Mom               Dad                 Kids

            AABB      +     AABB    =       AABB

2.  aabb = Recessive (can only have aabb children who will have the light traits displayed in the phenotype)

            Mom               Dad                 Kids

            aabb       +       aabb       =       aabb

3.  AaBb = Heterozygous (can have all combinations)

            Mom               Dad                 Kids

            AaBb     +       AaBb     =       AABB/aabb/AaBb

Note: Again, this is a simplified explanation of complicated genetics and DNA coding from an introductory Biology course.

Introduction to The Patriarchs and the beginning of the Nation of Israel

As we move into “A Case for the Old Testament” it is important to understand that there will be many “major historical players” along the way. The focus is on the “Promised Seed” from Genesis 3:15. These “players” are in the lineage of Jesus and carry the “Promised Seed.” This is the most important “big picture” idea, because it is Jesus who is the “Scarlet Thread” we will see throughout the Old Testament in many ways, and it is Satan, who is always trying to crush the Seed throughout the narratives.

4th Major Historical Player: Shem, son of Noah

5th Major Historical Player: Abraham, the 7th generation great-grandson of Shem

3rd Major Theological Event:
The Abrahamic Covenant

As we end this study it is important to see where God is taking the “Scarlet Thread” and the “Covenant Promise” which He will now unfold to Abraham.

It includes three things:

1. Land (the Promised Land of Israel where every important event will take place)
2. Nation (Israel—the people group that would carry the Scarlet Thread)
3. Blessing (the Messiah, Jesus)

Genesis 12:1-3 (NASB)

Now the Lord said to Abram, go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you; and I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”

Abrahamic Covenant unfolds…

• This Covenant Promise will be passed down, and reaffirmed by God, to Abraham’s son Isaac, then to his son Jacob (who is renamed Israel by God), then on to the twelve tribes (sons) of Israel, specifically through the tribe of Judah.
• Later on, we find this Covenant expanded as it is given to the Nation of Israel through Moses in the form of the Law.
• About 500 years later the Covenant is specified through the Royal line of David (who is from the tribe of Judah).
• Many of the prophets, over several hundred years, proclaim and predict specific events and times in which the Messiah, Jesus, would appear to fulfill the promises of God given in all the Old Testament Covenants.
• Jesus is the promised “New Covenant” because He fulfills all the requirements of the Old Testament Covenants and the hundreds of prophecies therein (He is the Seed that crushes Satan’s head)!

Jesus is truly the “Scarlet Thread of the Bible”

“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill”

Matthew 5:17 (NASB)

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.”

 John 14:6 (NASB)

Going Deeper

To get a better understanding of Genesis chapters 1-11 watch the introduction to the documentary series “Is Genesis History” with Tour Guide Dr. Del Tacket, Author of “The Truth Project.” On YouTube the documentary is broken up into various topical segments with some only 10 to 20 minutes and a few around an hour or so (you can also get it on DVD). It will review a lot of what we covered in more detail, and with great visuals and actual locations. It is done at a level everyone can enjoy (not just for the science minded)!

Exploring Is Genesis History? Changing Our Perspective – Introduction (12:21)

Reflection

Background: Shem’s name is where the term “Semite” comes from, and Eber is thought to be where the term “Hebrew” comes from (Hebrew is also a term that refers to a wanderer). Discuss: Who are Terah, Abram, Nahor, Haran, Sarai, Milcah and Lot and how are they related (11:10-26)? Share if you know anything about these people from past studies you’ve done?

6.  Where did Abram and his family come from and where did they end up settling (11:31)?

7.  Application: Why are the genealogies (like those in Genesis 5, 10 and 11), and relationships between individuals in the Old Testament important for us to understand as Christians today?