Creation Narratives and Human Travail in Genesis 1-3: Developing a Biblical Theology of Suffering

Discourse on human suffering is integral to human existence. People are confronted daily with pain and suffering from political, economic, and social factors that affect and determine their quality of life and productivity. Suffering has elicited diverse diagnoses and prescriptions from medical practitioners, psychologists, sociologists and religious scholars. While medical science, psychology and sociology are primarily concerned with the causes and effects of suffering to be able to make appropriate prescriptions, religious scholars and theologians, on the other hand, are mainly preoccupied with tracing the origin of suffering and its connection with the concept of God (theology). The quest for the origin and nature of suffering remains relevant in unravelling its underlying mystery, especially in the context of creationism, which traces the origin of all that exists, including evil, to God’s creative act. Moreover, the concept of suffering cannot be fully understood outside the context of theodicy, which is the justification of the existence of a righteous and omnipotent Creator of an imperfect earth full of evil, pain, and suffering. Through historical-grammatical exegesis of selected passages from Gen. 1-3, this paper examines the origin and nature of human suffering to develop some theological deductions that can enhance its understanding and facilitate an appropriate response. The exegesis reveals that suffering is rooted in the concept of primordial imperfection of the universe at the time of creation, as shown in the primordial chaos (evil) of formlessness, emptiness and the presence of darkness. It also reveals that these elements were not accidental products of creation, but natural and purposeful in connection with the omnipotence and omniscience of God. In addition, human suffering is volition-dependent, that is, how human will is used in the choices that are made will determine the existence, nature, magnitude and implications of suffering. Furthermore, the consequence of wrong human decisions can inflict personal or collective suffering on their existence and environment. Theological response to human suffering requires an appropriate perspective of God as both transcendent and immanent; proper use of human volition; and awareness of the consequences of human free will and choices are recommended for implementation.