There Is a Garden Named Delight
Made to Flourish
A guided reading of Genesis 2:4–25 and Psalm 139:1–18.
Welcome
Last Session Review
S.O.A.P. Framework
- S — Scripture: Read a passage of Scripture.
- O — Observation: Identify the context and what stood out to you. Write down what you observed about the passage, perhaps a key verse, or the main subject, and consider why it was written. What does this tell you about God? About the Bible?
- A — Application: What does this passage mean for your own life? How can you apply it?
- P — Prayer: Pray over what you have learned and ask God to help you apply it to your life.
The Creation Order
- God is the Maker and Sustainer of creation.
- Humanity is the imago Dei, the image of God.
- Humanity stewards creation.
Imago Dei: identity and vocation are inseparable.
Opening Question
- What are the similarities and differences between the two creation accounts in Genesis 1 & 2?
Opening story
Being Human in God’s World
“Who am I?” is not a modern question.
- Socrates famously stated: “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Thinkers have been pondering the identity and purpose of humanity for thousands of years.
- Our value systems change as we grow, because we gradually realize what is truly essential to being human. Our value systems reflect what we build our identities upon:
- Possessions say you are what you have.
- Experiences say you are what you do.
- Relationships allow “who we are” to define “who I am.”
- “I think, therefore I am.” Descartes: you are what you think.
- “My weight is my love. Wherever I am carried, my love is carrying me.” Augustine: you are what you love. Love orients our being.
- One aspect people don’t think about very often: you are your stories. Every season and every stage of life is a new chapter.
- The Bible presents us with the story of God and His people, from creation to the new creation. Let the Bible—the true story of the whole world—tell us who God is and who we are.
Discuss
- What do you tend to build your identity upon (possessions, experiences, relationships, thoughts, loves)?
- Where are you from? Where are you in the story? Where are you going?
Scripture
Key Passages
Genesis 2:4–25
These are the records of the heavens and the earth, concerning their creation. At the time that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, no shrub of the field had yet grown on the land, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not made it rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground. But mist would come up from the earth and water all the ground. Then the Lord God formed the man out of the dust from the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being.
The Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he placed the man he had formed.
Continue to read Genesis 2:4–25
The Lord God caused to grow out of the ground every tree pleasing in appearance and good for food, including the tree of life in the middle of the garden, as well as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
A river went out from Eden to water the garden. From there it divided and became the source of four rivers. The name of the first is Pishon, which flows through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. Gold from that land is pure; bdellium and onyx are also there. The name of the second river is Gihon, which flows through the entire land of Cush. The name of the third river is Tigris, which runs east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
The Lord God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden to work it and watch over it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree of the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die.” Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper corresponding to him.” The Lord God formed out of the ground every wild animal and every bird of the sky, and brought each to the man to see what he would call it. And whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the sky, and to every wild animal; but for the man no helper was found corresponding to him. So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to come over the man, and he slept. God took one of his ribs and closed the flesh at that place. Then the Lord God made the rib he had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man. And the man said:
This one, at last, is bone of my bone
and flesh of my flesh;
this one will be called “woman,”
for she was taken from man.This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh. Both the man and his wife were naked, yet felt no shame.
Psalm 139:1–18
Lord, you have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I stand up;
you understand my thoughts from far away.
You observe my travels and my rest;
you are aware of all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue,
you know all about it, Lord.
You have encircled me;
you have placed your hand on me.
Continue to read Psalm 139:1–18
This wondrous knowledge is beyond me.
It is lofty; I am unable to reach it.Where can I go to escape your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
If I fly on the wings of the dawn
and settle down on the western horizon,
even there your hand will lead me;
your right hand will hold on to me.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me,
and the light around me will be night”—
even the darkness is not dark to you.
The night shines like the day;
darkness and light are alike to you.For it was you who created my inward parts;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I will praise you
because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.
Your works are wondrous,
and I know this very well.
My bones were not hidden from you
when I was made in secret,
when I was formed in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw me when I was formless;
all my days were written in your book and planned
before a single one of them began.God, how precious your thoughts are to me;
how vast their sum is!
If I counted them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand;
when I wake up, I am still with you.
Bible Study Tool: Word Study
Look up the original word behind an English word (e.g., Blue Letter Bible (opens in a new tab)), find its Strong’s number, and see how it is used elsewhere in Scripture.
We are looking into 6 Hebrew words in this session:
| English | Strong’s number | Hebrew | What to notice |
|---|---|---|---|
| God | H430 (opens in a new tab) | elohim | The all-powerful Creator (Genesis 1) |
| Lord | H3068 (opens in a new tab) | Yahweh | God’s personal covenant name (Genesis 2) |
| Man | H120 (opens in a new tab) | adam | Human, humanity; also the first man’s name |
| Ground | H127 (opens in a new tab) | adamah | Ground, soil, earth—the source of adam |
| Eden | H5731 (opens in a new tab) | eden | Pleasure, delight |
| Eve | H2332 (opens in a new tab) | havah | Sounds like “life” or “living” |
Explore
Observation What does the text say?
Read Genesis 2:4–25 slowly. As a group, capture what you notice.
- Names: How is God named here, compared to Genesis 1? What does that suggest?
- Place: What is missing from the land in 2:5? What does God plant, and what is in it?
- People: How is the man formed? How is the woman formed? What are the first human words?
- Purpose: What is the man placed in the garden to do (2:15)?
- Emphasis: Where does the narrative slow down? Where is the first “not good”?
Notes
- The land begins as a wilderness: no rain from above, no human to work the ground below (2:5).
- God forms the adam from the adamah and breathes the breath of life into him (2:7).
- God plants a garden in Eden—“Delight”—and places the man there to work it and watch over it (2:8, 15).
- God says, “It is not good for the man to be alone” (2:18).
- The first human words in the Bible are poetry (2:23).
Teaching
Dive Deeper What does it mean?
Genesis 1 told us that we were made. Genesis 2 shows us what we were made for: to flourish.
1. The Garden of Delight Genesis 2:4–8, 15
Just as Genesis 1 depicts God creating order out of chaos, in Genesis 2, God planted a garden out of wilderness.
- Two angles, one God: Elohim is the all-powerful Creator, and Yahweh is the all-loving Father. He is the good and beautiful God, and He is writing a good and beautiful story.
- Garden out of wilderness: “Shrub of the field” and “plant of the field” likely point to cultivated land that needs both rain and a farmer. The flourishing of the earth is designed as a partnership between heaven (rain) and earth (human work).
- Dust and breath: God formed the adam from the adamah—the “earthling” from the “earth”—like a potter shaping clay (yatsar; Jeremiah 18:4), and breathed into him the breath of life. Dust keeps us humble; breath gives us dignity. Forget the dust, and we become proud; forget the breath, and we despair.
- A garden named Delight: Eden means “pleasure” or “delight.” God named the land and the garden delight, where “human” and “life” can go hand in hand, thrive in union with their Creator, and in harmony with the created world.
- Work as worship: God placed the man in the garden “to work it and watch over it” (2:15). Avad (work/serve) and shamar (watch over/keep) later describe the priests and Levites serving and guarding the tabernacle (Numbers 3:7–8; 8:26). Eden is pictured as the first sanctuary; Adam is both gardener and priest.
Discuss
- Which lens do you default to—God as all-powerful Creator or all-loving Father?
- Where in your life does it feel like wilderness right now? What would it look like to invite God to cultivate that place?
- How do you usually think about work—as burden, identity, or calling? What “small piece of ground” has God entrusted you to cultivate and keep?
2. Made to Belong Genesis 2:18–25
It was not good for the earth to be uninhabitable, and it was also not good for man to be alone.
- The first “not good”: “It is not good for the man to be alone” (2:18) comes before sin enters the story. Nothing is broken in Adam, yet God says something is missing: we were made for communion.
- Ezer kenegdo: Ezer (helper) is most often used of God Himself (Psalm 121:1–2)—not someone lesser, but someone who brings strength. Kenegdo (corresponding to him): a face-to-face counterpart—not above, not below, but beside.
- Naming the animals: God shares His creative authority, and lets Adam feel the longing before answering it.
- A poem echoed: Before God declared His creative work “very good,” the Author of Life composed a poem over humanity: “…he created him in the image of God; he created them male and female” (Genesis 1:27). This song was echoed by His image-bearer: “This one, at last, is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh…” The garden is full of delight.
- Naked, yet no shame: Not only the absence of clothes, but the absence of fear—nothing to hide from God, each other, or themselves. Fully known and fully loved.
Discuss
- Why do you think God let Adam name the animals before creating the woman?
- Where do you experience the “not good” of being alone? Where do you experience true belonging?
- In what ways do you “manage your image” before others?
Devotional
Psalm 139:1–18
Read Psalm 139:1–18 slowly, out loud or in silence. Let the psalm turn what we studied into prayer.
“Lord, you have searched me and known me.” (Psalm 139:1)
- Psalm 139 reads like Genesis 2 told from the inside: the God who formed Adam from the dust knit you together in your mother’s womb (139:13).
- “I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.” (139:14)
- There is no place you can go—not the heavens, not Sheol, not the darkness—where His presence will not find you (139:7–12).
- “When I wake up, I am still with you.” (139:18) Before you belong to anyone else, you belong to Him.
Reflect
- Which verse in Psalm 139 stands out to you the most? Why?
- Is being fully known by God a threat or a home to you right now?
Locate the story
Inhabit the Story How does this connect to the whole Bible?
The good and beautiful God is writing a good and beautiful story.
- Formed: Humanity is dust and breath—humble creatures carrying the life of God.
- Placed: God planted a garden out of wilderness and named it Delight.
- Called: Humans work and watch over the garden as partners and priests.
- Belonging: We are made for communion—with God, one another, and creation.
- Invited: The Sower came out to sow the seed into your heart, and then He invited you to His garden from the beginning. The story of Planted. is just getting started.
Bridge forward
Why don’t we feel like we live in the garden of delight anymore? What happened next? How did Adam and Eve lose their paradise? Every story has twists and turns, and we know that’s not the end of the story.
Respond
Worship & Prayer
Song: A Thousand Shores — Citizens
Watch A Thousand Shores on YouTube ↗ (opens in a new tab)
“A Thousand Shores” words and music by Leslie Jordan, Jack Mooring, and Zach Bolen. © 2022 Integrity Music. CCLI Song # 7201512.
Prayer Prompts
- Thank God for knowing you fully and loving you still.
- Thank God for the breath in your lungs and the life He has given.
- Confess where you have built your identity on something other than Him.
- Ask God to make you a faithful gardener of what He has entrusted to you.
Carry it forward
Homework & Book Club
Homework
There is a lullaby effect that happens when a story becomes so familiar that we stop reading it carefully. We recognize the story, already know what we think it means, and our minds glide over details that would seem strange, disturbing, or important if we encountered them for the first time.
- Read Genesis 3 as though you had never heard it before. What would seem strange? What questions would you ask?
- Notice how much interpretation has already been inserted before we have even opened the text. There is no “apple.” The serpent is never explicitly called Satan in Genesis 3. The text doesn’t simply say Eve wandered off and independently sinned while Adam was absent; Genesis 3:6 says she gave the fruit to her husband “who was with her.” Even the common phrase “the Fall” is a theological description rather than Genesis’s own vocabulary.
- Don’t let familiarity replace curiosity.
Reflection
Take a few minutes in silence, then share (as you’re comfortable):
- What story have you been letting define “who I am”?
- Where do you need to remember that you are dust—and where do you need to remember that you carry God’s breath?
- What is one concrete way you can “work and keep” what God has entrusted to you this week (home, work, relationships, body, time)?
- Who is someone you can move toward this week, so that they are not alone?
Recommended Reading
Garden City: Work, Rest, and the Art of Being Human by John Mark Comer
Next week → Session 3: East of Eden
Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.