Discover how the Chinese written language bears witness to the creative acts of God

The Chinese Genesis Discover how the Chinese written language bears witness to the creative acts of God

CHINESE BIBLE MISSION 2400 Old Crow Canyon Road, #A4 San Ramon, CA 94583 www.chinesebiblemission.org

The Chinese Genesis China is one of the oldest civilization on earth over 4700 years of recorded history. In fact, the Chinese celebrated their lunar year 4701 on February 1, 2003, the Year of the Ram. When one studies the characters of the Chinese language, one can readily see the connection between the creation account in the book of Genesis, the first book of the Bible and many of the Chinese words. In the study of the origin of Chinese words, we begin to see and understand a little of what the Chinese fathers had in mind and what they were trying to convey to us. It tells us what the Chinese fathers were thinking, seeing, feeling, hearing, and experiencing at the time they formulated the words. The way the Chinese characters are put together are very significant. They were not put together randomly or without plan. At first the Chinese words were in picture form, called pictograph, then later ideas were added, called ideograph. After five millenniums, these same characters are still in use among the Chinese. They were in written form several thousand years before any missionaries landed on Chinese soil. The original religion of the ancient Chinese at the time the written language was formulated was monotheistic. They worshipped the one true God, the Creator of heaven and earth. There were no idols or any of the many forms of idolatry that are in China today. The polytheistic religions of Taoism and Buddhism came approximately 2000 years later. 3

The apostle Paul writing in Acts 14:17 said, And yet He (God) did not leave Himself without witness Besides creation itself with its marvelous designs that point to and give witness to God s creative acts, the Chinese written language also bears witness to the creative acts of God as recorded in Genesis, the first book of the Bible. A SAMPLING OF WHAT WE MEAN Chinese word for GOOD: girl boy When God first created Adam, Adam was all alone. In Genesis 2:18, God said, It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him. And God did just that, by taking one of Adam s rib and made a woman and brought her to him (verse 22). The Chinese word for good is written with a girl and boy together. Chinese word for PEACE: roof woman Genesis 2:24 teaches, Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh. The Chinese fathers understood that God intended marriage to be monogamous, one man and one woman, thus to insure peace and happiness. Therefore the word for peace is one woman under one roof. 4

Now let us examine some of the Chinese characters as they relate to the creation account as recorded in the Word of God, the Bible. We shall start with the creation account of man and the Garden of Eden. I. CREATE Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. dust mouth pieh, life or movement walking or able to walk The Chinese fathers believe and understood that God was man s creator, that God made man from the dust of the ground and then breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul able to walk. Adam was not a baby, but a man with a vast God given intellect and ability. God made man in His image and likeness, as a personal, rational and moral being. Man was the crown of God s creation. The Psalmist declares, I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Thy works (Psalm 139:14). II. GARDEN - Genesis 2:7, 8. And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground... And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there He put the man whom He had formed. soil mouth 5

two people (a sideman from his side) enclosure, surround. and another person Note how well the Chinese fathers understood that God is our Creator and how they are conveying that truth to us in this word. God took the dust of the soil and formed the body of man and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. Since Adam was without a loving companion, God said it was not good for Adam to be alone. Then God took the initiative and made Adam a wife, a companion, one that is equal to him. He then placed them in an enclosure (the beautiful Garden of Eden). III. FORBID Genesis 2:9, 15-17. And out of the ground the LORD God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil... Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat it you shall surely die (Gen. 2:9, 16, 17). two trees radical, an abbreviated form of the word God and when the hook is added on the bottom, a verb is formed. 6

Man was made in God s image and likeness. As a person, Adam was given the following attributes: mind, will, and emotions. God gave man the freedom and ability to choose. IV. DEVIL - Genesis 3:1. Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, Has God indeed said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden? pieh = life or movement field or garden man secretly or privately The Chinese fathers want us to see how cunning and deceptive the devil was as he moved into the Garden of Eden in the form of a serpent and spoke privately to Eve with a voice of a man. V. TEMPTER - Genesis 3:1-5. Now the serpent was more cunning... And he said to the woman, has God indeed said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden? (verse 1). And the serpent said to the woman, You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. cover or covering two trees devil 7

Here Satan the devil deceptively tempted Eve by: 1. Questioning the Word of God. By doing so, he placed doubt in the mind of Eve concerning God s will. 2. Satan then blatantly denied the Word of God. The Chinese fathers understood this deception of the devil, how he approached Eve in the midst of the garden where the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil were located. There under the covering of the two trees, he tempted Eve to rebel against God s revealed will. VI. COVET Genesis 3:6. So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave it to her husband with her and he ate. two trees woman The Chinese fathers obviously wanted to convey to us the Chinese word for covet consists of two trees and a woman. This story is found only here in Genesis in the garden of Eden. Eve saw the beautiful fruit and she desired it. So by an act of the will, she took and ate it. She then gave the fruit to her husband who also ate it. Their sin was not merely eating the forbidden fruit, but it was a deliberate act of the will in direct disobedience to God s revealed will. 8

VII. BEGINNING - Genesis 3:7,8. And their eyes were opened... And Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord woman mouth secret or private When Eve saw the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, she desired it. A decision was made in which she disobeyed the authoritative Word of her Creator. God told them in no uncertain terms that the consequences of disobeying Him would be death -- spiritual death (separation from God) and eventually, physical death (separation from the body). The Chinese fathers formulated this Chinese word for beginning to convey the beginning of sin that is, the woman doing something secretly or privately with her mouth. VIII. RIGHTEOUSNESS - Genesis 3:21. Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin and clothed them. lamb me When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, sin entered the human race. Adam and Eve became sinners and were separated from a holy God. It is here that we see the love of God demonstrated toward sinners. God took the initiative by taking an innocent animal (a lamb) and killed it and covered Adam and Eve with its skin. Somehow, the Chinese fathers understood this biblical truth and formulated the word for righteousness to be a LAMB OVER ME. 9

CONCLUSION: What about today? How do these biblical truths as conveyed by our Chinese fathers relate to us? Since these Chinese words bear witness to the accuracy and reliability of the biblical account of creation, we need to take to heart that God the Creator is also God our Redeemer. Dear friend, the God who created us has provided a way for us to have our sins forgiven. Even though we are sinners by nature and by practice, yet God loves us. He demonstrated that love for us by sending His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to pay for the penalty of sin on the cross of Calvary. Christ was the Lamb of God Who took our place as our Substitute and died for us. And all who placed their faith in Him and receive Him as Savior are saved, with sins forgiven and have eternal life. THE LAMB OF GOD OVER ME MAKES ME RIGHTEOUS. This is the understanding of the Chinese fathers who formulated the Chinese written language five millenniums ago. And this is the gospel truth of the Word of God today in the 21st century. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16). Please feel free to write us if we can be of any help to you spiritually. We would count it a privilege to hear from you. --- Sen Wong 10

References 1. The True Spiritual Roots for All Chinese. Author: Davy Tong and Raymond Petzholt. Pasadena: Copyright @ 2000. When you drink water remember the source 2. The Discovery of Genesis How the truths of Genesis were found hidden in the Chinese Language. Author: C. H. Kang and Ethel R. Nelson. St. Louis: Copyright @ 1979 by Concorida Publishing House. 3. The Chinese Character Story. Author: Chinago. Loves Park: Copyright @ 1997 by Ends if the Earth Mission. 11