Years ago, a brother in Christ showed me about 20 Chinese characters which told the story of Genesis 1-11 through their etymology. I thought it was neat, share it with a few friends, and then forgot about it. In the fall of 2008, I met a Chinese Queen's University student, whom I shared the material with. At first, he was uncomfortable with me "tearing apart" Chinese words, but very quickly realized there was something to it. After seeing just a few more, he exclaimed, "It's irrefutable!"
While showing the material to this Chinese brother, the thought crossed my mind, "There must be more!". And so I searched to see what books were written on the topic. I found two:
I read these books with excitement, as they opened the door even wider on the connection between the Genesis account of creation and the written language of the Chinese. But, even when I had finished reading Nelson's books, I had a thirst for more.
With no more books on the market dealing specifically with the topic, I began my own etymological research through the use of the MDBG Chinese-English Dictionary. At present, I am aware of 90+ Chinese characters which tell in specific detail via etymology the details of the early (1-11) chapters of Genesis.
What is so intriguing about seeing the Genesis story in the etymology of certain Chinese characters is this: the written Chinese language was developed before (note that, BEFORE) Moses was born. Thus, these details were recorded and being used among the Chinese before the book of Genesis was written! That's simply awesome!!
After I have completed my research, I intend to write a book entitled, "The Genesis Echo". When the project will be done, I do not know. I have shared this material at preaching engagements for four churches, and have a few other invitations to do so. What a blessing to share this extra-biblical evidence corroborating the Genesis account.
The Genesis Echo
Consider a few examples of the relationship between the etymology of certain Chinese characters and the details provided by inspiration through Moses in the writing of Genesis. Note, if you place your cursor over the characters, the definition of the character will appear.
CREATE
A Chinese character for CREATE specifically pictures Adam. The words WALK and TALK are employed to designate CREATE. However, the word TALK breaks down further, being a combination of LIFE, DUST and MAN.
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Genesis 2:7 tells us, "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being."
GARDEN
The Chinese character for GARDEN pictures an ENCLOSURE with two PEOPLE of DUST in whom is the BREATH of life. Notice that the second person in the image for GARDEN is rotated 90°, and is protruding from the side of the first person!
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Genesis 2:8 reveals that man was put in the garden of Eden by the Lord. God provided a companion for Adam, as He "...caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man." (Genesis 2:21-22). As GARDEN pictures, Eve came from Adam's side.
NOAH
NOAH is comprised of the words SECOND and PROMISE. The first promise given in Scripture is recorded in Genesis 3:15, as God reveals that the seed of woman will conquer the seed of the serpent. The second promise appears in Genesis 5:29, in the naming of Noah, the son of Lamech. In this child, there was an expectation that the curse of the weeds would be taken away.
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There are upwards of 16 Chinese characters which can be used to convey the idea of a promise. The one which was used in Noah's name specifically mentions WEEDS - the very curse which his father expected that God would use Noah to rid the earth of. We might consider that God's WORDS were upon Lamech, indicating that his son was the MAN whom God had chosen to return LIFE to the EARTH by ending the WEEDS curse. Genesis 8:20-21 speaks of the fulfillment of this promise.
SHIP
Noah was commanded to build a huge boat - the ark. Notice the Chinese character for SHIP:
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EIGHT PEOPLE in a BOAT! That is clearly a reference to Noah, his three sons, his wife, and their wives (Genesis 7:13)!
For more examples, I encourage you to visit the following pages:
The Garden Of Eden... In Chinese
The Flood And Tower of Babel... In Chinese
And keep your eye out for "The Genesis Echo" on bookstore shelves in the future!!