Genesis 2:7 (NIV) says: "the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the
ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became
a living being. "
Traditionally this has been interpreted to mean that God scooped up dirt and
fashioned Adam. But when one compares this with Eccl. 3:19-20 one might get
a different interpretation of what the dust means.
Eccles. 3:19-20 "...there is no advantage for man over the beast, for
all is vanity. All go to the same place. All came from the dust and
all return to dust."
What caught my eye was the statement that all animals came from the dust.
This places a different interpretation on dust than the traditional
interpretation. Animals come from their mothers bodies, i.e., come from
living matter or at least organic matter, and God does not physically scoop
up dirt in the formation of the various critters. I would contend that
Eccl. 3:19-20 is consistent with the view I have advocated that Adam was
created from living matter, an ape. I have advocated that Adam was the
victim of a chromosomal fusion (apes have 48 chromosomes; man has 46).
Ecclesiasties usage of the term dust would certainly allow for this type of
interpretation of Genesis 2.
glenn
Adam, Apes, and Anthropology: Finding the Soul of Fossil Man
and
Foundation, Fall and Flood
http://www.isource.net/~grmorton/dmd.htm