Genesis [ebd]
The five books of Moses were collectively called the Pentateuch, a word of Greek origin meaning "the five-fold book." The Jews called them the Torah, i.e., "the law." It is probable that the division of the Torah into five books proceeded from the Greek translators of the Old Testament. The names by which these several books are generally known are Greek.
The first book of the Pentateuch (q.v.) is called by the Jews Bereshith, i.e., "in the beginning", because this is the first word of the book. It is generally known among Christians by the name of Genesis, i.e., "creation" or "generation," being the name given to it in the LXX. as designating its character, because it gives an account of the origin of all things. It contains, according to the usual computation, the history of about two thousand three hundred and sixty-nine years.
Genesis is divided into two principal parts. The first part (1-11) gives a general history of mankind down to the time of the Dispersion. The second part presents the early history of Israel down to the death and burial of Joseph (12-50).
There are five principal persons brought in succession under our notice in this book, and around these persons the history of the successive periods is grouped, viz., Adam (1-3), Noah (4-9), Abraham (10-25:18), Isaac (25:19-35:29), and Jacob (36-50).
In this book we have several prophecies concerning Christ (3:15; 12:3; 18:18; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14; 49:10). The author of this book was Moses. Under divine guidance he may indeed have been led to make use of materials already existing in primeval documents, or even of traditions in a trustworthy form that had come down to his time, purifying them from all that was unworthy; but the hand of Moses is clearly seen throughout in its composition.
GENESIS [smith]
(origin), the first book of the law or Pentateuch, so called from its title ia the Septuagint, that is, Creation . Its author was Moses. The date of writing was probably during the forty-years wanderings in the wilderness, B.C. 1491-1451. Time . --The book of Genesis covered 2369 years,--from the creation of Adam, A.M 1, to the death of Joseph, A.M. 2369, or B.C. 1635. Character and purpose . --The book of Genesis (with the first chapters of Exodus) describes the steps which led to the establishment of the theocracy. It is a part of the writer?s plan to tell us what the divine preparation of the world was in order to show, first, the significance of the call of Abraham, and next, the true nature of the Jewish theocracy. He begins with the creation of the world, because the God who created the world and the God who revealed himself to the fathers is the same God. The book of Genesis has thus a character at once special and universal. Construction . --It is clear that Moses must have derived his knowledge of the events which he records in Genesis either from immediate divine revelation or from oral tradition or written documents. The nature of many of the facts related, and the minuteness of the narration, render it extremely improbable that immediate revelation was the source from whence they were drawn. That his knowledge should have been derived from oral tradition appears morally impossible when we consider the great number of names, ages, dates and minute events which are recorded. The conclusion then, seems fair that he must have obtained his information from written documents coeval, or nearly so, with the events which they recorded, and composed by persons intimately acquainted with the subjects to which they relate. He may have collected these, with additions from authentic tradition or existing monuments under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, into a single book. Certain it is that several of the first chapters of Genesis have the air of being made up of selections from very ancient documents, written by different authors at different periods. The variety which is observable in the names and titles of the Supreme Being is appealed to among the most striking proofs of this fact. This is obvious in the English translation, but still more so in the Hebrew original. In Gen 1 to 2:3, which is really one piece of composition, as the title, v. 4, "These are the generations," shows, the name of the Most High is uniformly Elohim , God. In ch. (Genesis 2:4) to ch. 3, which may be considered the second document, the title is uniformly Yehovah Elohim, Lord God ; and in the third, including ch. 4, it is Yehovah, Lord , only; while in ch. 5 it is Elohim , God only, except in v. 29, where a quotation is made, and Yehovah used. It is hardly conceivable that all this should be the result of mere accident. The changes of the name correspond exactly to the changes in the narratives and the titles of the several pieces." Now, do all these accurate quotations," says Professor Stowe, "impair the credit of the Mosaic books, or increase it? Is Marshall?s Life of Washington to be regarded as unworthy of credit because it contains copious extracts from Washington?s correspondence and literal quotations from important public documents? Is not its value greatly enhanced by this circumstance? The objection is altogether futile. In the common editions of the Bible the Pentateuch occupies about one hundred and fifty pages, of which perhaps ten may be taken up with quotations. This surely is no very large proportion for an historical work extending through so long a period."--Bush. On the supposition that writing was known to Adam, Gen. 1-4, containing the first two of these documents, formed the Bible of Adam?s descendants, or the antediluvians. Gen 1 to 11:9, being the sum of these two and the following three, constitutes the Bible of the descendants of Noah. The whole of Genesis may be called the Bible of the posterity of Jacob; and the five Books of the Law were the first Bible of Israel as a nation.--Canon Cook.GENESIS [bridgeway]
Originally the first five books of the Bible were one. They were divided into their present form for convenience, and collectively are known as the Pentateuch (meaning ‘five volumes’). The books are also commonly referred to as the books of Moses, because Moses has traditionally been regarded as the author (see PENTATEUCH).Purpose of the book
The name Genesis means ‘origin’ or ‘beginning’, and comes from the title given to the book by those who first translated the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek. The book speaks of the origins of the universe, of the human race, of human sin and of God’s way of salvation.
Although the Bible mentions matters relating to the beginnings of the universe and the early days of the human race, its main concern is not with the scientific aspect of these matters (see CREATION). The Bible is concerned rather with the relationship between God and the people he placed in the world he had made. It shows in the opening chapters of Genesis how human beings, though created sinless, rebelled against God and corrupted human nature. Their sin brought with it God’s judgment, but the judgment contained an element of mercy, as God repeatedly gave them the opportunity to start afresh. Still they rebelled, and still God did not destroy them.
This leads Genesis into its second and major section, which shows how God worked in human affairs to provide a way of salvation. God chose to work through Abraham, one of the few surviving believers. He promised to make from Abraham a nation, to make that nation his people, and to give them Canaan as a national homeland. From that nation God would bring a Saviour, through whom the blessings of God’s salvation would go to all peoples of the world (Gen 12:1-3; 13:14-16). The book goes on to record the birth of this nation and the events that helped prepare it for its occupation of the promised land.
Outline of contents
Genesis begins with the story of creation (1:1-2:3) and the rebellion of Adam and Eve (2:4-4:26). As the human race spread, so did human sin (5:1-6:4), till the rebellion became so widespread and so resistant to reform that God sent a flood that destroyed the entire generation, except for a few believers (6:5-8:19). From these believers, God made a new beginning and repopulated the devastated earth (8:20-10:32), but as people became more secure and independent, so did they become more rebellious against God (11:1-9). Judgment inevitably followed, but in his grace God again preserved the faithful. One of these was a man from Mesopotamia named Abram, later renamed Abraham (11:10-26).
After God announced to Abraham his promise of blessing (11:27-12:3), Abraham and his household moved into Canaan. When a famine hit the land, they went to Egypt, but in due course they returned and settled at Hebron, west of the Dead Sea (12:4-14:24). (For a map and other details relevant to Abraham’s varied experiences see ABRAHAM.)
God made a covenant with Abraham, in which he promised to give him a multitude of descendants (15:1-21); but the birth of Ishmael had no part in the fulfilment of that promise (16:1-16). God then confirmed the covenant with Abraham, giving the rite of circumcision as the sign and seal of the covenant (17:1-27). Some time later the promised son Isaac was born (18:1-21:34). God tested the faith and obedience of Abraham, but Abraham proved himself totally committed to God, no matter what the circumstances (22:1-23:20).
Isaac married and produced two sons, Esau and Jacob (24:1-25:26). In accordance with God’s will, the blessing of Abraham passed to Jacob instead of to Esau. That, however, was no excuse for Jacob’s ruthlessness and deceit in obtaining the blessing (25:27-28:9).
Jacob moved from Canaan to Mesopotamia to obtain a wife among his parents’ relatives. He stayed in Mesopotamia for twenty years, during which he built up a large family. He then left to settle again in Canaan (28:10-31:55). But first he had to be reconciled to his brother Esau, who by this time had developed a prosperous settlement in neighbouring territory to the south-east (32:1-36:43).
Troubles arose among Jacob’s twelve sons, with the result that one of them, Joseph, was sold as a slave and taken to Egypt. But God was controlling the affairs of his people, and through a series of remarkable events, Joseph eventually became governor over Egypt. When the entire region was devastated by a famine, his wise administration saved the nation (37:1-41:57). More than twenty years after Joseph’s brothers had sold him as a slave, they met him in Egypt when they went there to buy food. The result was that the whole of Jacob’s household migrated to Egypt and settled in the fertile Nile Delta (42:1-47:26).
In the specially marked-off area that Pharaoh had given them, Jacob’s large family could live together and multiply without being corrupted by Egyptian ideas. Jacob saw that a prosperous future lay ahead for his descendants and announced his blessings on them before he died (47:27-49:33).
Years later Joseph died, but before his death he expressed his unwavering faith in God’s promises. He knew that just as God’s promise to Abraham of a nation had been largely fulfilled, so his promise of a homeland would also be fulfilled. The Israelites’ increasing prosperity in Egypt was rapidly preparing them for the day when they would be strong enough to move north and take possession of the promised land (50:1-26).
