I have this t-shirt that says *Chaos Coordinator* on it. I bought it as a tongue-in-cheek joke (with a good dose of reality). When I bought it, my ‘jobs’ always seemed to entail chaos—years of wrangling kids with crazy schedules as a (now retired) homeschool mom to coordinating competing goals and plans as a Communications Coordinator at my church.
Chaos. We all experience it at some point. And, well, we all eventually cause it for someone else. 😉
In today’s culture, we define chaos as “a state of utter confusion or disorder.” (1) In ancient Greece, they described chaos as “the abyss or emptiness that existed before things came into being.” (2)
Remember, as I wrote last week, the Torah (Genesis-Deuteronomy) was written down after the Hebrew people had escaped from 400+ years of bondage in Egypt and were wandering in the wilderness. They needed reminding of who the Living God was and who they were in relation to Him. The Hebrews had cultural ideas of chaos, creation stories and how they fit into the world. Let’s take a quick look at the first words God reveals about Himself to them in Genesis.
“In the beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth. The Earth was chaos and empty and darkness on the faces of the depths and the Spirit of God hovered on the faces of the waters.” (Peshitta Holy Bible Translation)
In studying Genesis 1, many significant things have been fascinating to learn, but one stood out to me in Genesis 1:2—the earth was chaos. Hmmmm. When I started studying, I wondered how it could be chaos since we know nothing was there? A look at Ancient Greek and Near East cultures gives us more clarity.
In modern Bible translations, this verse says “formless and empty.” However, the Aramaic translation in the PHBT points us to a cultural understanding of the word chaos.
In Jewish culture, chaos and water are often understood as the same thing.(3) According to the Jewish Study Bible, “In this verse, chaos is envisioned as a dark, undifferentiated mass of water.”(4). God was speaking to them culturally in a way they could understand. He wanted them to grasp that He [His Spirit] was the One subduing or conquering the water/the chaos. Additionally, in the ancient Near East when it was thought a deity had subdued or conquered chaos, that deity was due praise and honor.
God started his book with, “In the beginning, God created …” and left them with no questions about who He was—the Creator of everything. Then, he quickly moved to the second verse and told them He’s the Chaos Coordinator … really the Chaos Conquerer … as He was the One who subdued the turbulent waters. He was the one due praise and honor!!
Through this, they (and we) begin to see His intimacy with His creation and His intention of bringing order and peace to all things. This must have been a revelation for them after the long centuries and challenging years of labor as enslaved people.
The theme of the story of the Bible is God pursuing and providing *redemption and restoration* for those made in His image—humanity. The book of the Bible is full of micro-stories that tell this same story of redemption and restoration, illustrating God’s endgame through each one.
We see God conquering the chaos from the very beginning of Scripture as He created order, structure, life and intimacy.
His story in our lives is still the same today—He wants intimacy with us, and He wants us to know Him as our Creator and Chaos Conquerer.
What chaos is threatening to overtake you today? How is God asking you to trust Him in the midst of it? How is He asking you to see yourself and your situation in relation to Him as the Chaos Conquerer?
See you next time for Genesis 2 and God’s design for humanity!
Resources:
(1) https://www.dictionary.com/browse/chaos
(2) https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/chaos-meaning-and-history
(3) https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hbd/c/chaos.html
(4) The Jewish Study Bible, 2nd edition, p 11