Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• Scope
  The events recorded in Genesis stretch historically from Creation to Joseph's death, a period of at least 2500 years. The first part of the book (ch. 1-11) is not as easy to date precisely as the second part (ch. 12-50). The ...
• Purpose
  Genesis provides the historical basis for the rest of the Bible and the Pentateuch, particularly the Abrahamic Covenant. Chapters 1-11 give historical background essential to understanding that covenant, and chapters 12-50 re...
• Outline
  The structure of Genesis is very clear. The phrase "the generations of"(toledotin Hebrew, from yaladmeaning "to bear, to generate") occurs ten times (really eleven times since 36:9 repeats 36:1), and in each case it introduce...
• The creation of man 2:4-17
  2:4 Having related the creation of the universe as we know it, God next inspired Moses to explain for his readers what became of it.129Sin entered it and devastated it."The destiny of the human creation is to live in God's wo...
• D. What became of Noah 6:9-9:29
  The Lord destroyed the corrupt, violent human race and deluged its world, but He used righteous Noah to preserve life and establish a new world after the Flood."Noah's experience presents decisively the author's assertion tha...
• 2. The dispersion at Babel 11:1-9
  The main emphasis in this section is not the building of the tower of Babel but the dispersion of the peoples. We can see this in the literary structure of the passage.361AAll the earth had one language (v. 1)Bthere (v. 2)C o...
• F. What became of Shem 11:10-26
  "The Babel account (11:1-9) is not the end of early Genesis. If it were, the story would conclude on the sad note of human failure. But as with earlier events in Genesis 1-11, God's grace once again supersedes human sin, insu...
• II. PATRIARCHAL NARRATIVES 11:27--50:26
  One of the significant changes in the emphasis that occurs at this point in Genesis is from cursing in the primeval record to blessing in the patriarchal narratives. The Abrahamic Covenant is most important in this respect. H...
• A. What became of Terah 11:27-25:11
  A major theme of the Pentateuch is the partial fulfillment of the promises to the patriarchs. The promises in Genesis 12:1-3 and 7 are the fountainhead from which the rest of the Pentateuch flows.397Walter Kaiser labeled the ...
• The divine promises 12:1-9
  "These verses are of fundamental importance for the theology of Genesis, for they serve to bind together the primeval history and the later patriarchal history and look beyond it to the subsequent history of the nation."414"W...
• God's word 12:1-3
  12:1 This section begins with a wawdisjunctive in the Hebrew text translated "Now"in the NASB. It introduces an independent circumstantial clause (cf. 1:2). Probably the revelation in view happened in Ur. The NIV captures thi...
• Abram's response 12:4-9
  12:4 Possibly Abram viewed Lot as his heir (cf. 11:27-32; 12:4-5; 13:1-2)."Since Mesopotamian law-codes allowed for the adoption of an heir in the case of childlessness, this becomes an attractive hypothesis with respect to L...
• 2. Abram in Egypt 12:10-20
  The second crisis Abram faced arose because of a famine in Canaan. Abram chose to sojourn in the Nile Valley until it was past. In this incident Abram tried to pass Sarai off as his sister because he feared for his life. By d...
• 3. Abram's separation from Lot ch. 13
  This chapter records how Abram, though threatened with major conflict with Lot because of their herdsmen's strife, magnanimously gave his nephew his choice of what land he wanted. Lot took an area that was very fertile, thoug...
• 5. The Abrahamic Covenant ch. 15
  Abram asked God to strengthen his faith. In response Yahweh promised to give the patriarch innumerable descendants. This led Abram to request some further assurance that God would indeed do what He promised. God graciously ob...
• 6. The birth of Ishmael ch. 16
  Sarai and Abram tried to obtain the heir God had promised them by resorting to a culturally acceptable custom of their day even though it involved a failure to trust God. This fleshly act created serious complications for Abr...
• 11. Abraham's sojourn at Gerar ch. 20
  The writer composed chapter 20 as another chiasm with the focal point being Abimelech warning his servants (v. 8). Two dialogues dominate the story: the one between God and Abimelech (vv. 3-7) and the one between Abimelech an...
• 16. The purchase of Sarah's tomb ch. 23
  Abraham's purchase of a burial site in the Promised Land demonstrated his intention to remain in Canaan rather than going back to his native homeland. Since he was a sojourner in Canaan his friends probably expected him to bu...
• C. What became of Isaac 25:19-35:29
  A new toledotbegins with 25:19. Its theme is "the acquisition of the blessing and its development and protection by the Lord."625Moses set up the whole Jacob narrative in a chiastic structure that emphasizes the fulfillment o...
• 2. The sale of the birthright 25:27-34
  25:27-28 Esau was a nomadic hunter, but Jacob remained in his tents.". . . they became the personification of the two different ways of life which would have been typical for Palestine at this period of history: that of hunte...
• 3. Isaac and Abimelech 26:1-11
  God prevented Isaac from leaving the Promised Land and renewed the covenant with him, but then He had to protect Rebekah when Isaac lied about his relationship with her to Abimelech."In the short span of one chapter, the writ...
• God's encouragement to move 46:1-7
  The structure of chapters 46 and 47 is also chiastic.887AGod appears to Jacob (46:1-4)BJacob journeys to Egypt (46:5-27)CJoseph meets Jacob (46:28-34)DJoseph's brothers meet Pharaoh (47:1-6)C'Jacob meets Pharaoh (47:7-10)B'Jo...
• God's provision of land and food for Israel 46:31-47:12
  The major purpose of this section is probably to show how God sustained and blessed Jacob's family in Egypt during the remaining five years of the famine (cf. vv. 12-13). It is also to demonstrate how He partially fulfilled H...
• Bibliography
  Aalders, Gerhard Charles. Genesis. The Bible Student's Commentary series. 2 vols. Translated by William Heynen. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1981.Aharoni, Yohanan, and Michael Avi-Yonah. The Macmillan Bible Atlas...
• I. The public worship of the Israelites chs. 1--16
  Leviticus continues revelation concerning the second of three elements necessary for any nation to exist, namely, a people (Gen. 12:10--Exod. 19), their law (Exod. 20--Num. 10:10), and their land (Num. 10:11--Josh. 24).Leviti...
• A. The deaths of Naomi's husband and sons 1:1-5
  God had promised the Israelites that if they departed from Him He would discipline them by sending famine on the Promised Land (Deut. 28:17, 23, 38-40, 42).16The famine on Israel at this time indicates God's judgment for unfa...
• Scope
  The Book of Samuel covers the period of Israel's history bracketed by Samuel's conception and the end of David's reign. David turned the kingdom over to Solomon in 971 B.C.3David reigned for 40 and one-half years (2 Sam. 2:11...
• 2. A reminder of assured victory 60:6-8
  60:6 David quoted a prophecy assuring Israel's military success that he had received. God had said He would give Shechem and the valley of Succoth (the Jordan Valley?) to Israel. Shechem is the site where God first promised C...
• 2. The record of God's faithfulness to Israel 105:7-41
  105:7-11 God remembered His people (v. 7, cf. v. 42) so His people should remember Him (v. 5). God had been faithful to the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 12:1-3, 7; 15:18-21; 22:15-18; 28:13-15). He made this covenant with Abraham...
• The parable of the wicked tenant farmers 21:33-46
  Jesus proceeded immediately to tell another parable. Luke wrote that Jesus addressed it to the crowds in the temple courtyard (Luke 20:9). The chief priests and elders continued to listen (vv. 45-46).21:33-34 Jesus alluded to...
• 7. The King's judgment of the nations 25:31-46
  Jesus concluded the Olivet Discourse with further revelation about the judgment that will take place at the end of the present age when He returns. He had referred to it often in the discourse, but now He made it a special su...
• 3. Wives' respect for their husbands 3:1-6
  Having explained before how Christians should conduct themselves in the world, Peter next gave directions about how Christian wives and husbands should behave. He did this to help his readers identify appropriate conduct in f...
• 1. Renouncing sin reaffirmed 3:4-9
  "The present vv, 3:4-9, form six strophes, each of which divides . . . roughly into half. The two halves of the strophes balance one another; for the second part of the v provides a development of the first part (vv 4, 5, 7),...