What Was Adam's Job?

From the very moment that “the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,” man not only became a living soul but he was given a job. “…Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.” After his creation, God was very specific in exactly what man’s job was. Man was to “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it…” All of this info can be found in Genesis 1:26 and 1:28.

In explaining the sequence of events later in the next chapter, it is stated that, “there was not a man to till the ground.” It was after man was created that the Lord God planted a garden and it was there that he put him. Genesis 2:15 tells us that God took the man and put him into the garden to dress it and keep it, giving him explicit instructions on what he may or may not eat. In the following verses, we see that God said it wasn’t good for man to be alone, so He planned to make someone to be a help that was adapted specifically for him. In that event, with Adam possibly watching, God again created more beasts and more birds, and then brought them to Adam to see what he would name them. When he didn’t find a helper suitable, God performed the first surgery and created woman from the rib of Adam. And that is when Adam’s job really began by being the first husband and father!