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{jen' - i - sis}
General Information
Genesis, the first book of the Old Testament in the Bible, is so named because it opens with an account of the creation of the world. The first 11 chapters, which are heavily indebted to Mesopotamian tradition, trace the gradual expansion of humankind and the development of human culture. But they show the ambiguity of this development by incorporating stories about the sin of Adam and Eve and about the Deluge, both of which illustrate humankind's growing alienation from God and one another.
Although Moses has traditionally been considered the author of Genesis, modern scholars generally agree that the book is a composite of at least three different literary strands: J (10th century BC), E (9th century), and P (5th century). The interpretation of the book has led to many controversies. One of the most difficult problems has been distinguishing historical fact from symbolic narration intended to convey a religious message.
J J M Roberts
Bibliography
H Bloom, Book of J (1990); G von Rad, Genesis: A
Commentary (1972); E A Speiser, ed., Genesis (1964); R Youngblood,
ed., The Genesis Debate (1986).
Modern analysis indicates that the book of Genesis (and the other
four Books of the Pentateuch) were written by a
number of authors who assembled material from three traditions:
J seems to be a writer who focuses on humanity in his writing.
His writing shows much greater sensitivity towards women than does E.
He regularly used "Yahweh" as God's name. He describes
God in anthropomorphic terms: God forms Adam from clay; he waked and talked
with Adam and Eve in the garden; he spoke to Moses.
J lived in the southern kingdom of Judah, during an early period of
Israel's history when many followed a nature/fertility religion.
He may have been a member of the Judean court. He wrote a more or less
complete story of the history of the Israelites from a Judean perspective.
J was probably written between 848 BC (when King Jehoram gained power
in Judah) and 722 BC when the Assyrians destroyed the northern kingdom
Israel and took its people into exile. Some scholars date J to the
10th century BC.
E was a writer who writes about religious and moralistic concerns.
He consistently used "Elohim" as God's name. He lived in the
northern kingdom of Israel. He wrote a more or less complete story of
the history of the Israelites from the perspective of the northern kingdom.
E probably wrote between 922 and 722 BC. He may have been a priest from
Shiloh who viewed Moses as his spiritual ancestor.
P was a writer who focused his writings on God. He added material from
a priestly perspective. It discusses priests' lives, religious rituals,
dates, measurements, chronologies, genealogies, worship and law.
He was a priest who identified Aaron as his spiritual ancestor.
He views God as a distant, transcendent deity, less personal than in
J and E. P is sometimes harsh and critical. The words "mercy,"
"grace" and "repentance" do not appear in his
writing; they appear about 70 times in J, E, and D. P was displeased
with the work of J and E and wrote P as an alternative history.
P rejected the concepts of angels, dreams and talking animals that are
seen in J and E. He believed that only Levites who were descended
from Aaron could be priests. He lived after J, E and D because he
was aware of the books of the Prophets which were unknown to the others.
Lived when the country's religion reached a priestly/legal stage,
before the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BC. He patterned his
writing after the topics in J and E.
Two of the additional authors are:
D was a writer who lived well after J and E, because he was familiar
with later developments in Israel's history. He lived at a time when
the religion of ancient Israel was in its spiritual/ethical stage,
about 622 BC. He wrote almost all of the Book of Deuteronomy, as well
as Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings. A second
writer edited the original text after the destruction of Jerusalem by
the Babylonians in 587 BC. This writer added the last two chapters to
2 Kings and inserted short passages elsewhere to reflect the change
in circumstances brought about by the Babylonian attack.
D lived in Judah - probably in Jerusalem. He was probably a Levitical
priest - perhaps Jeremiah.
R.E. Friedman suggests that when the Assyrians conquered the northern kingdom in 722 BC, many refugees streamed south into Judea, bringing their sacred writing "E" with them. Subsequently, E and J were combined into a single document, referred to as "JE."
D was written perhaps a century later. It was conveniently "discovered" in the temple by the priest Hilkiah in 622 BC, shortly after it was written. D was then joined with JE.
P was written before the death of King Josiah in 609 BCE, probably during the reign of King Hezekiah. It was written as an alternate to JE.
R combined J, E, P and other documents together into the first four books of the Hebrew Scriptures. To this, he added D's writings, the book of Deuteronomy, to complete the Pentateuch. By the time that he did the editing, the JE, D and P documents were in wide circulation. Each was supported by various factions. R saw his task as attempting to join these sources together into a more or less cohesive, single document. Friedmann suspects that Ezra was the redactor.
These doublets sometimes appear to contradict each other. In most cases, one referred to God as Yahweh while the other used the term Elohim.
During the 19th Century, scholars noticed that there were a few triplets in the Torah. This indicated that a third author was involved. Then, they determined that the book of Deuteronomy was written in a different language style from the remaining 4 books in the Pentateuch (implying a fourth author). Finally, by the end of the 19th Century, liberal scholars reached a consensus that 4 authors and one redactor (editor) had been actively involved in the writing of the Pentateuch.
During the 20th Century, academics identified which verses (and parts of verses) were authored by the various writers. They have also attempted to uncover the names of the authors. In 1943, Pope Pius XII issued an encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu in which he urged academics to study the sources of Biblical texts. Recent archeological discoveries and new linguistic analysis tools have facilitated the research.
1 (J) And it came to pass, when men began to
multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,
2 That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and
they took them wives of all which they chose.
3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for
that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.
4 There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that,
when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children
to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.
5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great
in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was
only evil continually.
6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on
the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the
face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the
fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
9 (P) These are the generations of Noah: Noah was
a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.
10 And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with
violence.
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all
flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for
the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy
them with the earth.
14 Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark,
and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.
15 And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of
the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and
the height of it thirty cubits.
16 A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish
it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with
lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it.
17 And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to
destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and
every thing that is in the earth shall die.
18 But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into
the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee.
19 And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou
bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male
and female.
20 Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every
creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come
unto thee, to keep them alive.
21 And take thou unto thee of all food that is eaten, and thou shalt
gather it to thee; and it shall be for food for thee, and for them.
22 Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.
A slight conflict seems to exist:
One or more verses from J are followed by one or more verses
from P. If you read only the J verses, then you will get a coherent
story. If you read just the P verses, you will see a consistent but
slightly different story.]
| Verses by J | Verses by P and by R |
| 1
And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark;
for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. 2 Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. 3 Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. 4 For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth. 5 And Noah did according unto all that the LORD commanded him. |
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| 6 (R) And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth. | |
| 7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood. | |
| 8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that
are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth, 9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah. |
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| 10 And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth. | |
| 11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. | |
| 12 And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights. | |
| 13 In the selfsame day entered Noah,
and Shem, and Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah's wife, and the
three wives of his sons with them, into the ark; 14 They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort. 15 And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. 16 And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: | |
| 16 (Cont'd) and the LORD shut him in. 17 And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth. 18 And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters. 19 And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered. 20 Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered. |
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| 21 And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: | |
| 22 All in whose nostrils was the
breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. 23 And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark. |
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| 24 And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days. |
| Verses by J | Verses by P and by R |
| 1 And God remembered Noah, and every
living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God
made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged; 2 The fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, | |
| 2 (Cont'd) and the rain from
heaven was restrained; 3 And the waters returned from off the earth continually: |
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| 3 (Cont'd) and after the end of the
hundred and fifty days the waters were abated. 4 And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat. 5 And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen. | |
| 6 And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made: | |
| 7 And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. | |
| 8 Also he sent forth a dove from
him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground; 9 But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark. 10 And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark; 11 And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth. 12 And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more. |
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| 13 And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth: | |
| 13 (Cont'd)...and Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry. | |
| 14 And in the second month, on the
seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dried. 15 And God spake unto Noah, saying, 16 Go forth of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' wives with thee. 17 Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee, of all flesh, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth. 18 And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him: 19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark. | |
| 20 And Noah builded an altar unto
the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and
offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done. 22 While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. |
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.
From: Home Bible Study Commentary by James M. Gray
Professor Guyot adds that whenever the simple form of "bara" is used in the Bible it always refers to work made by God and never by man. These considerations, with others, justify the statement that "created" here means created out of nothing. But when was the "beginning"? The margin indicates a period about 4,000 years before Christ, but these marginal notes are not part of the divine text, but the work of uninspired minds and therefore open to debate. Should science ultimately determine on millions of years ago as the period of the creation there is nothing in this verse of the Bible it would contradict.
The word "earth" in this verse, however, must not be understood to mean our globe with its land and seas, which was not made till the third day, but simply matter in general, that is, the cosmic material out of which the Holy Spirit organized the whole universe, including the earth of to-day. "And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." "Moved upon" means brooded over as a bird on its nest. "Waters" means not the oceans and seas as we know them, but the gaseous condition of the matter before spoken of. The Spirit of God moved "upon" the waters, and not "inside of" them, showing that God is a personal Being separate from His work. As the result of this brooding, what appeared?
We need not suppose that God spake just as a human being speaks, but the coming forth of light out of thick darkness would have seemed to a spectator as the effect of a divine command (Ps. 33:6-9). On the natural plane of things vibration is light or produces light, which illustrates the relation between the moving of the Spirit upon inert matter and the effect it produced. "And God called the light day." The Hebrew word "yom," translated "day," is used in five different senses in the first two chapters of Genesis. Here it means light without reference to time. Later in the same verse it means the period covered by "the evening and the morning" mentioned, the exact duration of which we do not know.
At verse 14 it stands for what we know as 24 hours, at verse 16 it means the light part of the day of 24 hours, and at 2:4 the whole period during which the heaven and the earth were created. All this bears on the question whether creation was wrought in 6 days of 24 hours or 6 day-periods of unknown length; and it will be seen that one does not necessarily contradict the Bible if he believes the latter. When we recall that days of 12 and 24 hours were altogether excluded before the appearance of the sun on the fourth day, the latter hypothesis receives the stronger confirmation.
It is interesting to note: (a) that this peopling of the water, the air and the land is in the precise order indicated by the science of geology; (b) that the plant life of the third day was the preparation for the animal life of the fifth day; (c) that the plant is now in the animal shaped into new forms, and subservient to higher functions than it could ever perform by itself; (d) that two powers which place the animal on a higher platform than the lower grades of existence are sensation, by which it perceives the world around it, and will, by which it reacts upon it. This is life, and is not the result of chemical elements left to themselves, but the effect of previously existing life. In other words, the Bible and science agree in declaring that "spontaneous generation is an untenable hypothesis," and life only begets life.
Note: (a) that the consultation in the Godhead regarding man's creation foreshadows the New Testament doctrine of the Trinity; (b) that the "image of God" may mean the trinity in man represented by body, soul and spirit (2:7; 1 Thess. 5:23), but especially that moral image suggested in Colossians 3:10; (c) that the dominion of man over the lower creation has in some measure been lost through sin, but will be restored again in Christ (Psalm 8); (d) that the creation of matter, of life and of man are three distinct creations out of nothing, and that God's action in them is direct, hence evolution from one into the other is impossible. There may be evolution within any one of these systems of existence considered by itself, but this is different from that other evolution which would make man the descendant of an ape and rule God out of the universe which He made.
Questions 1. What does "create" probably mean in this chapter, and why do you think so? 2. When may "the beginning" have been? 3. What does "earth" mean in verse 2? 4. What word in verse 2 opposes pantheism by showing God to be a Person? 5. If the creation days were not limited to 24 hours, why do you think so? 6. What does "heaven" of the second day stand for? 7. What two works were accomplished on the third day? 8. What two powers in the animal define life? 9. Quote Colossians 3:10. 10. How would you distinguish between a rationalistic and a possibly Biblical evolution?
"In the beginning" God created, i.e., called into being, all things out of nothing. This creative act on the part of God was absolutely free, and for infinitely wise reasons. The cause of all things exists only in the will of God. The work of creation is attributed (1) to the Godhead (Gen. 1:1, 26); (2) to the Father (1 Cor. 8:6); (3) to the Son (John 1:3; Col. 1:16, 17); (4) to the Holy Spirit (Gen. 1:2; Job 26:13; Ps. 104:30). The fact that he is the Creator distinguishes Jehovah as the true God (Isa. 37:16; 40:12, 13; 54:5; Ps. 96:5; Jer. 10:11, 12). The one great end in the work of creation is the manifestation of the glory of the Creator (Col. 1:16; Rev. 4:11; Rom. 11:36).
God's works, equally with God's word, are a revelation from him; and between the teachings of the one and those of the other, when rightly understood, there can be no contradiction. Traditions of the creation, disfigured by corruptions, are found among the records of ancient Eastern nations. (See ACCAD.) A peculiar interest belongs to the traditions of the Accadians, the primitive inhabitants of the plains of Lower Mesopotamia. These within the last few years have been brought to light in the tablets and cylinders which have been rescued from the long-buried palaces and temples of Assyria. They bear a remarkable resemblance to the record of Genesis.
genesis
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