You asked

how do societal structures and global economies impact our ability to cultivate and keep the earth?

The passage, plainly, with room to sit with it.

Genesis 2:15

“Yahweh God took the man, and put him into the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and to keep it.”

This verse is from the second creation account in the book of Genesis, one of the foundational texts of the Hebrew Bible. It describes humanity's initial role and purpose within the created world, immediately after the formation of the first human.

What does it mean for us to 'cultivate' and 'keep' the earth in our current global context?

Keep thinking

Read alongside it

Leviticus 25:23-24
This passage speaks to the land belonging to God and not to humans, suggesting limits to ownership and exploitation.
Psalm 8:6-8
This psalm echoes humanity's dominion over creation, placing all things under human feet.
Romans 8:19-22
This New Testament passage speaks of creation groaning and awaiting liberation, connecting humanity's fate with the earth's.

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