Introduction To Genesis
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ScribdTranslationsIntroduction To Genesis
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ScribdTranslationsElectronic Comment
Ps Alex Donnelly
INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS
The book of Genesis is the first book of the sacred canon. It is known as 'The Book of the
Beginnings. It forms the first part of the Torah of the Jews, known as the Pentateuch, by
the Christians.
The Jews named this book 'beresit' (= 'in the beginning'), because it is the first.
word in the text in Hebrew (Gen 1:1). The name 'Genesis' comes from the translation of the Old
Testament to the Greek (the Septuagint), in which the first book was called 'Genesis', which
means 'origin' or 'beginning'.
AUTHOR
The literary authorship of Genesis is closely related to that of the Pentateuch. For the
In the first century, the Jews accepted that Moses was the author of the first five books of the
Sacred Scriptures. The authors of the New Testament accepted this fact, and Christ himself
he confirmed it on several occasions (see Matt 8:4; 19:7-8; Mark 7:10; etc.). There is no reason
some to reject this. We know that Moses was educated in the court of Egypt; therefore,
had the ability to write such a book.
Many liberal theologians claim that Genesis was written by scribes, taking material from
various literary sources. The main argument in favor of this hypothesis is the assumptions
‘Duplicate’ accounts: two creation stories (Gen 1:1 – 2:3 and Gen 2:4-25), two accounts of the
lie of Abraham (Gen 12:10-20 and Gen 20), etc. However, this hypothesis falls under the weight
of the authority of the New Testament, and of Christ himself.
Accepting that Moses wrote this book, the date on which Genesis was written would coincide with
the date of the Exodus, which would be around 1400 B.C.
CONTENT
Genesis tells us about the beginning of many things:
the beginning of creation (Gen 1-2).
the beginning of sin (Gen 3).
the beginning of God's judgment (Gen 4).
the beginning of the nation of Israel (Gen 12).
the beginning of the plan of salvation (Gen 3:15).
In terms of literary structure, the book of Genesis is made up of an introduction,
followed by ten main sections, each of which begins with the Hebrew word
'toledot' (in Greek, 'geneseos'), which means 'origins', 'beginnings' or 'generations'. This
gives us the following literary structure:
1
(Gen 1:1 - 2:3)
The story of the origins of the heavens and the earth (Gen 2:4 - 4:26)
2. The story of 'the generations of Adam' (Gen 5:1 - 6:8)
3. The story of 'the generations of Noah' (Gen 6:9 – 9:29)
4. The story of 'the generations of the sons of Noah' (Gen 10:1 – 11:9)
5. The story of 'the generations of Shem' (Gen 11:10-26)
6. The story of 'the generations of Terah' (Gen 11:27 - 25:11)
7. The story of 'the descendants of Ishmael (Gen 25:12-18)
8. The story of 'the descendants of Isaac' (Gen 25:19 – 35:29)
9. The story of 'the generations of Esau' (Gen 36:1 – 37:1)
10. The story of 'the story of the family of Jacob' (Gen 37:2 – 50:26)
THEOLOGICAL IMPORTANCE
Being the first book of the Bible, Genesis holds great importance for the believer. In
in this book we learn many fundamental things for the Christian faith:
the doctrine of the creation of the material world: that it was created by God, from nothing,
through the power of the Word of God (Gen 1-2).
the nature of man, created in the image and likeness of God, and having the
Spirit of God (Gen 2).
the origin, nature, and consequences of sin (Gen 3).
God's judgment on sin, illustrated in the case of Cain (Gen 4), the flood of
Noah (Gen 6-8), the Tower of Babel (Gen 11), and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah
(Gen 19)
God's plan for the salvation of man, promised in Genesis 3, and illustrated in the
the life of Abraham, who was justified by faith, and who saw on Mount Moriah
(Gen 22), how God would effect the salvation of the world, through the offering
of His only Son.
BOOK ANALYSIS
We can summarize the content of Genesis using the following analysis, taken from Gleason.
Archer (Critical Review of an Introduction to the Old Testament, p. 198):
1. The Beginnings of Humanity (Gen 1:1 - 11:32).
2. The Life of Abraham (Gen 12:1 – 25:18).
3. The Life of Isaac and His Family (Gen 25:19 – 26:35).
4. The Life of Jacob (Gen 27:1 – 37:1).
5. The Life of Joseph (Gen 37:2 – 50:26).
