For Plato and Aristotle, the form of the good or the prime mover (philosophical God) does not interact with
the world; by their very nature they are incapable of emotion and unaffected by anything else. They are
not involved with humanity which contrasts the belief in the Bible, where there is a concentrated focus on
the relationship between God and humanity.It is also assumed in the bible that God created this world and
there is no attempt made to justify this view; the two main creation stories are found in the book of
Genesis. The creation stories are symbolic myths, not to be taken literally; they are concerned with the
reasons for creation rather than simply understanding the process of creation.
The first story of creation is part of the Priestly writing in the Pentateuch. It takes place within 7 days. On the first day God creates
light and separates day from night; on the second he creates waters and the sky and on the third day he creates dry land and
vegetation. The last three days of creation involving filling the spaces he has created. The fourth day is the creation of the sun,
moon and stars; the fifth is the creation of birds and fish and on the last day he creates animals and then finally humans. On the
seventh day, God rests, this is an example for humans to follow by observing the Sabbath.
God is seen to create "ex nihilo" (out of nothing); God created everything in the universe and things only came
into existence because God commands it via word of mouth . This also highlights his omni-potence as he simply
says "let there be light" and there is light. There is a particular stress on God's omni benevolence, which can be
seen by the frequent mentions of "God saw that it was good". Human beings are the last to be created in the first
creation story and are made in the image and likeness of God. God has given humans "dominion" over his
creation; at first sight this may imply to rule over his creation but Genesis as a whole implies that we have
responsibilities towards God in looking after his creation. To "rule" involves a large element of responsibility.
The Jahwist's story differs greatly from Genesis 1. God creates man (Adam) from the dust of the ground and places him in
the garden of Eden. The garden has a river and many different edible fruit trees. Adam is commanded not to eat from the tree
of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam names all the animals in search for a companion; God then creates Eve (women)
from Adam's rib as there is no suitable companion among the animals. Genesis 3 focuses on the "fall". The serpent tempts
Eve to eat of the forbidden tree and she does so before giving some to Adam. God is angry and punishes them; they are
clothed by God before being banished from the Garden of Eden.
God's omni benevolence can be highlighted in multiple ways. God gave Adam the gift of the Garden of Eden, he did this out of love, not because
he has a need for it. He also provided a companion for Adam in the form of Eve after seeing animals were not suitable, which suggests that God
cares about his creation. Even after Adam and Eve had sinned, God showed his loving nature by clothing them. The presentation of God is also
more anthropomorphic, which can be seen by God's display of anger in reaction to eating of the forbidden tree. "Creatio Continua" refers to God's
continuing activity in the world. God does not create Adam and then forget about his creation but speaks to him, saying that he should eat of every
tree except for the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil. God speaking to Adam and walking in the Garden also emphasises his immanence.
Scholars believe that the Babylonian Enuma Elish influenced the biblical creation stories. There is
no conflict in regard to creation following from God's words and that a transcendent God is seen to
create "ex nihilo". There is also strong agreement that human beings are to display a sense of
stewardship; i.e. take care of God's creation.
Psalm 8 is a hymn of praise to God as creator and like Genesis 1 accepts that God has put humans in charge of
creation. Psalm 33 stresses God's omni-benevolence (like Genesis) by saying love is the reason for his creation; it also focuses on
God's love being continuous and this keeping everything alive.