The society of Moses when he penned Genesis came out of Sumerian culture and beliefs. Sumerians believed that the physical realm had always existed. There was no beginning of the universe. Creation was simply the aftermath of an epic clash betweens the gods who were contained in the physical universe. They were immortal and had special powers, but were still limited to being a part of the physical world. Sumerian theology was based on the “Wheel of life and the hub of death.”
In contrast, Genesis one teaches that we have a God who existed before time; the God who stands outside the physical realm, and created the universe from nothing. The cosmic God is not limited to space and time as all the other gods were.
The God of Gen 1:1 is cosmic god, who is not contained at all, rather, the entire cosmos is contained with in Him. He is an infinitely powerful God beyond our understanding and yet is deeply interested and involved in each of our lives. Humans have not been abandoned, or forgotten by God, rather they are a part of his creation… Elohim breathed life into them!
