From the Dust of the Earth?

Scripture reference- Gen. 2:7 The Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.




God formed man from the dust of the earth? Should we believe this statement literally or was the author of Genesis speaking figuratively?

I never really questioned the statement, but I suppose since it’s in the Bible, someone has questioned it at one time.

I personally believe this statement to be a literal fact, one that God proved to my husband and I, in a personal and yet powerful demonstration.

On October 25, 2002 (The day my stillborn daughter was born), my husband Gary followed a nurse as she carried the baby to an infant crib. They then proceeded to give her a sponge bath. Once the baby was clean, they dressed her in a diaper, and the burial clothes I had picked out for her to wear to her funeral.

The nurse then wrapped her up in some blankets and walked toward me holding the baby. She asked me if I wanted to see and hold her.

Reluctant at first (because I knew she had already passed away), I agreed to go ahead and hold her.

As the nurse placed the baby in my arms, my first response was one of relief. The baby was beautiful in my eyes. Her face fully formed with two eyes, a nose and mouth. She appeared to be sleeping with her eyes closed, and a look of peace covered her entire body.

As I lied in the hospital bed studying the newborn’s face, Gary walked over to me and whispered, “Did you smell her?” “No,” I answered. Puzzled he would ask such a question at this time. As I bent over to give her a kiss on the cheek, an unbelievably potent scent coming from her body consumed the air between us. I was shocked and inspired by the smell of her body.

The smell of her body was that of freshly tilled soil from the earth. If you have ever been on a farm or in someone’s yard when they are tilling the land for their crops, then you should have a good idea of the scent I am referring.

As I pondered what I was experiencing, I couldn’t help but remember the words in Genesis how it says that God formed man from the dust of the earth.

My conclusion: Everyone is made in the image of God, but if we don’t have the breath of God passing through our bodies, we are just dirt. I also believe we can safely trust Him to be speaking the truth with every single word that proceeds from His mouth.

By Renae Patterson