If the point of work is to serve and exalt ourselves, then our work inevitably
becomes less about the work and more about us. Our aggressiveness
will eventually become abuse, our drive will become burnout, and
our self-sufficiency will become self-loathing. But if the purpose of work is
to serve and exalt something beyond ourselves, then we actually have a
better reason to deploy our talent, ambition, and entrepreneurial vigor -
and we are more likely to be successful in the long run, even by the
world’s definition. (Timothy Keller, Every Good Endeavor)

The Cultural Mandate
“subdue” = “kabash” (ka-vash)
“dominion” = “radah,” (ra-da)

Through our work we bring order of out chaos, create new entities, exploit
the patterns of creation, and interweave the human community. So
whether splicing a gene or doing brain surgery or collecting the rubbish
or painting a picture, our work further develops, maintains, or repairs the
fabric of the world. In this way, we connect our work to God’s
work. (Timothy Keller, Every Good Endeavor)

“work it” = “abad” (ah-vad)
“keep it” = “shamar” (sha-mair)

The author is saying that Eden is made up of raw materials. It’s spilling over
with pent-up potentiality. Everything you need to make civilization is there; all
you have to do is cultivate it, to draw it out. (John Mark Comer, Garden City)

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.
(W.B. Yeats, “The Second Coming”)