After His Image and After His Likeness
God did indeed create us in His image and after His likeness. In Hebrew, this is understood as צֶלֶם (image) which is literally "form". And דְּמוּת (likeness) which literally means similitude. The Hebrews recognized that as His image, they were created as having dominion over all that the earth gives. That all humans were designed to mimic their creator and have lordship over that which He gave. And in His likeness, we were fashioned to model our existence after His. In the midst of this Edenic setting, God placed a test. He created us as sentient beings that were free to choose to love and worship their creator... or not. He had long ago created a host of beings designed for service and now sought fellowship with those that would love Him for who He is. And to underscore that desire, He placed a single cluster of trees in the depths of a perfect picture that would reveal our forefather's heart. To this point, there is no death, no pain, no suffering, n