The Story of the BibleFive thous

The Story of the BibleFive thousand years ago a story, which told of the creation of this world in seven days was common among all the people of western Asia. And this was the Jewish version of it.They vaguely attributed the making of the land and of the sea and of the trees and the flowers and the birds and of man and woman to their different gods.But it happened that the Jews were the first among all people to recognize the existence of One Single God. Afterwards, when we come to talk of the days of Moses, we shall tell you how this came about.In the beginning, however, the particular Semitic tribe, which later was to develop into the Jewish nation, worshipped several divinities, just as all their neighbours had done before them for countless ages.The stories of the creation, however, which we find in the Old Testament, were written more than a thousand years after the death of Moses, when the idea of One god had been accepted by the Jews as an absolutely established fact, and when doubt of His Existence meant exile or death.You will now understand how the poet who gave unto the Hebrew people their final version of the beginning of all things, came to describe the gigantic labour of creation as the sudden expression of one single and all-mighty will, and as the work of their own tribal God, whom they called Jehovah, or the Ruler of the High Heavens.And this is how the story was told to worshippers in the temple.In the beginning, this earth floated through space in somber silence and darkness. There was no land, but the endless waters of the deep ocean covered our vast empires. Then the Spirit of Jehovah came brooding over the sea, contemplating mighty things. And Jehovah said: “here be light,” and the first rays of dawn appeared amidst the darkness. “This,” Jehovah said. “I shall call the Day.” But soon the flickering light came to an end and all was as it had been before. “And this,” Jehovah said, “shall be called the Night.” Then he rested from his labours, and so ended the first of all days. Then Jehovah said: “Let there be a heaven, which shall spread its vast dome across the waters below, that there may be a place for the clouds and for the winds which blow across the sea.” This was done. Once more there was an evening and a morning, and there was and end to the second day. Then Jehovah said: “Let there be land amidst the waters.” At once the rugged mountains showed their dripping heads above the surface of the ocean, and soon they arose mightily towards the high Heavens and at their feet the plains and the valleys spread far and wide. Then Jehovah said: “Let the land be fertile with plants which bear seeds, and with trees that bear flowers and fruit.” And the earth was green with a soft carpet of grass, and the trees and the shrubs enjoyed the soft caress of the early dawn. And once more the morning was followed by eventide , and so the labour of the third day came to an end. Then Jehovah said: “Let the Heavens be filled with stars that the seasons and the days and the years may be marked. And let the day be ruled by the sun, but the night shall be a time of rest, when only the silent moon shall show the belated wanderer across the desert the true road to shelter.” This too was done, and so ended the fourth day.Then Jehovah said: “ Let the water be full of fishes and the sky be full of birds.” And he made the mighty whale and the tiny minnows and the ostrich and the sparrow, and he gave them the earth and the ocean as their dwelling place and told them to increase, that they and little minnows and little whales and ostriches and sparrows might enjoy the blessings of life. And that night, when the birds tucked their tired heads underneath their wings and when the fishes steered into the darkness of the deep sea, there was an end to the fifth day.Then Jehovah said: “It is not enough, Let the would also be full of creatures that creep and such as walk on legs.” And he made the cows and the tigers and all the beasts we know unto this earth. And when this was done, Jehovah took some of the dust of the soil, and he moulded it into and image, resembling Himself, and he gave it life, and he called it man, and he placed it at the head of all creations. So ended the labour of the sixth day, and Jehovah was contented with what he had wrought and on the seventh day he rested from his work.Then came the eighth day, and Man found himself amidst his now kingdom. His name was Adam, and he lived in a garden filled with lovely flowers, and with peaceful animals who came and brought their kittens and their puppies, so that he might play with them and forget his loneliness. But even so, Man was not happy. For all other creatures had been given the companionship of their own kind, but Man was alone. Therefore, Jehovah took a rib from Adam’s body and out of it created Eve. Then Adam and Eve wandered forth to explore their home, which was called Paradise.At last they came to a mighty tree and there Jehovah spoke to them and said: “Listen, for this is very important. Of the fruit of all the trees in this garden you may eat to your hearts’ content. But this is the tee that gives forth the knowledge of Good and Evil. When Man eats the fruit from this tree, he begins to understand the righteousness or the wickedness of his own acts. That means an end to all peace of his soul. Therefore, you must leave the fruit of this tree alone, or accept the consequences, which are very terrible.”Adam and Eve listened and promised that they would obey. Soon afterwards, Adam fell asleep, but Eve remained awake and began to wonder. Suddenly there was a rustling in the grass, and behold! There was a crafty old serpent.In those days the animals spoke a language which could be understood by man, and so the serpent had no difficulty in telling Eve how he had overheard the words of Jehovah, and how foolish she would be if she were to take them seriously. Eve thought so too. When the serpent handed her the fruit of the tree, she ate some, and when Adam woke up, she gave him what was left.Then Jehovah was very angry. At once he drove both Adam and Eve from Paradise, and they went forth into the world to make a living as best they could.In due course of time they had two children. They were both boys. The name of the elder was Cain, but the younger was called Abel.They made themselves useful about the house. Cain worked in the fields and Abel tended his father’s sheep. Of course they quarreled as brothers are apt to quarrel.One day, they both brought offerings to Jehovah. Abel had killed a lamb, and Cain had placed some grain upon the rude stone altar which they had built as a place for worship.Children are apt to be jealous of each other, and they like to brag about their own virtues.The wood on Able’ s altar was burning merrily, but Cain had trouble with his flint.Cain thought that Abel was laughing at him. Abel said no, he was just standing by and looking on.Cain asked him to go away. Abel said no, why should he? Then Cain hit Abel, and killed him.Cain was terribly frightened and ran away.But Jehovah, who knew what had happened, found him hiding in some bushes. He asked him where his brother was. Cain, in a surly mood, would not answer. How should he know? He was not supposed to be looking after his brother, was he?But of course, this lie did not do him any good. Just as Jehovah had driven Adam and Eve from Paradise because they had disobeyed his will, so he now forced Cain to run away from home, and although he lived for many years, his father and mother never saw him again.Decide whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F) according to the information given in the text.1.The Jews believed that the land,the sea,the trees and flowers,the birds,and man and woman were created by One Single God.
A、True
B、False
【正确答案】：B
【题目解析】：第二段说明他们分别由不同的神创造的。P308