Earth(world, dry land, continents)
“Erets (land, earth, world) and Adamah (ground, soil, from which Adam was named)”
Summary
The created planet on which humanity dwells, referred to in Scripture as both the material soil from which man was formed and as God's footstool over which He exercises sovereign dominion.
☩Hebrew Terminology
Scripture uses several Hebrew words translated 'earth,' each with distinct nuances. The term 'adamah' refers to the earth as soil or ground, particularly as capable of cultivation; from this word comes 'adam' (man), signifying that man's body was formed from the ground. This connection is reinforced by the fact that man returns to the dust upon death. The more general term 'erets' has wider application: it can mean the whole world, land as opposed to sea, a particular country, a plot of ground, or simply the place where a person stands. In the New Testament, the Greek 'ge' covers all these meanings, while 'oikoumene' sometimes refers to the inhabited world. Context must determine which sense is intended in any given passage—whether the entire globe, a specific land such as Israel, or merely the soil.
☩Creation and Cosmology
The Hebrew cosmology rests on the foundational principle that the earth exists dependently upon God—not independently, nor co-eternally, nor in opposition to Him, but in subjection to Him as Creator. Creation is presented as a progressive work, a development from inferior to superior orders. Scripture describes the earth as hanging upon nothing, established by God's word and maintained by His power. The earth is called God's footstool, expressing His sovereignty over it while heaven is His throne. Various passages describe the earth as circular, surrounded by waters, with the heavens spread over it as a canopy. While these descriptions use the bold imagery of poetry, they consistently affirm God as the architect and sustainer of the world.
☩The Dry Land
When God gathered the waters together on the third day of creation, the dry land appeared and was named 'Earth,' while the gathered waters were called 'Seas.' The formation of continents and the separation of land from sea demonstrated God's creative power in establishing boundaries and order. The Psalmist celebrates this: the sea and dry land are both the Lord's making, for His hands formed them. This distinction between land and sea runs throughout Scripture, from the boundaries set for the waters at creation to the prophetic vision of a new heaven and earth where there will be no more sea.
☩Spiritual and Prophetic Significance
In the New Testament, 'earth' takes on spiritual connotations, representing the sphere of worldly life opposed to the heavenly life with Christ in God. The first man was 'of the earth, earthy'—formed of dust and therefore transitory—contrasted with the Lord from heaven who brings eternal life. Scripture teaches that the earth was cursed because of human sin, and creation itself groans awaiting redemption. Yet the earth also awaits transformation: the prophets spoke of a new earth where righteousness dwells, and the apostle Peter described the present heavens and earth as reserved for fire, to be replaced by new heavens and a new earth. This eschatological hope forms the climax of biblical revelation, where the curse is removed and God dwells with His people in a renewed creation.
Related Verses1152 mentions
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Earth," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. III (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Earth," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. II (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.F. N. Peloubet & M. A. Peloubet (ed.), "Earth," in Smith's Bible Dictionary (Porter & Coates, 1884).
- 4.James Hastings (ed.), "Earth Earthen Earthy Earthly," in Dictionary of the Apostolic Church, vol. I (T. & T. Clark, 1915–1918).
- 5.George Morrish, "Earth," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).
- 6.Andrew Robert Fausset, "Earth," in The Englishman's Critical and Expository Bible Cyclopædia (Hodder & Stoughton, 1878).