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GENESISGenesis is a book about ‘beginnings’. It tells of suchthings as the beginnings of creation, of languages andof a chosen nation. It also gives us an account of thegenerations before and after the flood, together withspecific details about lineage (5:1-32; 10:1-32). In factthe phrase ‘this is the account of’, which occurs at keypoints in the book, could literally be translated ‘these arethe generations of’ (2:4; 5:1; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10; 11:27;25:12, 19; 36:1; 37:2).Genesis can also be described as a book about relationships.It shows us relationships such as those betweenAdam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Seth’s descendants andthose of Cain, Abraham and Lot, Sarah and Hagar, Jacoband Esau, and Joseph and his brothers.But above all, Genesis is a book about God: creating(all things), saving (Noah, his family, and certain animalsand birds), destroying (with water in Noah’s time, withfire at Sodom and Gomorrah), choosing (Abraham), makingcovenants (with Noah and with Abraham), forgiving(Jacob) and protecting (Joseph).Genesis and the four books that follow it (Exodus,Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) are traditionallyviewed as a unit known as the Pentateuch. They are allthought to have been written by Moses. Moses was probablyborn about 1500 BC, and lived for 120 years (Deut34:7). For the first forty years of his life, he enjoyed thestatus of Pharaoh’s adopted grandson (Exod 2:11; Acts7:23). The Pentateuch was probably written during his lasteighty years, forty of which were spent caring for Jethro’sflock in Midian and in God’s providence, familiarizing himselfwith that area (Acts 7:30), and forty of which werespent leading the people of Israel.Some scholars suggest that the five books were producedby many writers over many years, with the bulkof the writing having been done between approximately850 BC and 550 BC, and that they were not all put togetheruntil as late as the fifth century BC. However, none of thearguments for this view (for example, the use of differentnames of God in different sections) have been strongenough to overthrow the traditional position that Moseswrote the Pentateuch. This commentary thus assumesMoses to be the writer.The book falls into two main sections: God’s dealingwith humans in general (1:1-11:9) and his dealingwith those he has chosen to be his special people(11:10-50:26).Outline of Contents1:1-11:9 God and Humankind1:1-31 Creation of All Things2:1-3 God’s Rest2:4-25 Creation of the Human Community3:1-24 Disobedience of the First Couple3:1-6 A flaw in the community3:7-19 A new reality3:20-24 Immediate consequences of the fall4:1-16 Evil Between Brothers: Cain and Abel4:17-5:32 The First Genealogies4:17-24 The line of Cain: Multiplication of evil4:25-26 The line of Seth: Abel’s replacement5:1-32 Family tree from Adam to Noah6:1-8:22 The Flood6:1-7, 11-13 The cause of the flood6:8-10, 14-18 An exception6:19-7:5 The goal of the flood7:6-24 The nature and effect of the flood8:1-19 God finishes the operation8:20-22 Noah’s worship and God’s commitment9:1-17 God’s Covenant with Noah9:18-29 Noah’s Failure10:1-32 Repopulation of the Earth10:1 Introduction10:2-5 The descendants of Japheth10:6-20 The descendants of Ham10:21-32 The descendants of Shem11:1-9 The Tower of Babel11:10-25:18 Abraham and His Descendants11:10-26 Abram’s Ancestors11:27-32 The Move from Ur to Haran12:1-9 Abram Obeys the Lord’s Call12:10-20 The Lord Strikes Pharaoh13:1-4 Abram Returns from Egypt13:5-18 Abram and Lot Separate13:5-13 Abram protects family ties13:14-18 The Lord reassures Abram14:1-16 Abram Intervenes on Behalf of Lot14:17-24 Kings’ Responses to Abram15:1-21 God Reassures Abram16:1-16 Sarai’s Solution to Childlessness17:1-27 The Lord’s Promises18:1-15 Abraham Entertains Three Visitors
10Genesis 1:1–218:16-33 Abraham Pleads for Lot19:1-29 The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah19:30-38 Lot and His Daughters20:1-18 Abraham and Abimelech21:1-7 Isaac, the Promised Son21:8-21 Hagar and Ishmael21:22-34 The Treaty with Abimelech22:1-19 Another Test of Faith22:20-24 Nahor’s Descendants23:1-20 Death and Burial of Sarah24:1-67 Isaac’s Marriage25:1-11 Abraham’s Death25:12-18 Ishmael’s Descendants25:19-28:9 Isaac25:19-34 Two Sons: Jacob and Esau26:1-33 Isaac and the Philistines26:34-35 Esau’s Marriage27:1-29 Esau’s Blessing Given to Jacob27:30-40 Esau’s Despair27:41-28:5 Jacob Flees to Haran28:6-9 Esau Learns a Lesson28:10-36:43 Jacob28:10-22 The Lord Meets Jacob29:1-14a Jacob Reaches Paddan Aram29:14b-30 Jacob Marries His Two Cousins29:31-30:24 Life in Jacob’s Family29:31-35 Jacob’s children from Leah30:1-8 Jacob’s children from Bilhah30:9-13 Jacob’s children from Zilpah30:14-21 More children from Leah30:22-24 Jacob’s children from Rachel30:25-43 Jacob Blessed with Flocks31:1-21 Jacob Leaves Without Telling Laban31:22-32:2 The Lord Protects Jacob from Laban32:3-21 The Lord Protects Jacob from Esau32:22-32 The Lord Changes Jacob’s Name33:1-17 The Meeting with Esau33:18-34:31 Dinah Dishonoured35:1-15 Jacob Returns to Bethel35:16-29 Rachel and Isaac Die36:1-43 The Descendants of Esau37:1-50:26 Joseph37:1-11 Joseph and His Dreams37:12-36 Joseph Sold by His Brothers38:1-30 Judah’s Sin39:1-23 Joseph’s Victory over Temptation40:1-23 Pharaoh’s Two Officials41:1-40 Pharaoh’s Dreams41:41-57 Joseph in Charge of Egypt42:1-38 Joseph Meets His Brothers43:1-15 Joseph’s Brothers Return to Egypt43:16-45:15 Joseph Reveals Himself43:16-34 A meal together44:1-34 Benjamin and the silver cup45:1-15 Joseph’s revelation45:16-28 Pharaoh’s Support46:1-47:12 Jacob Moves to Egypt46:1-4 Jacob’s time with God46:5-27 Jacob’s company46:28-30 Jacob meets Joseph46:31-47:12 Pharaoh’s welcome47:13-26 Joseph’s Strategy for the Future47:27-49:28 Jacob’s Final Years47:27-28 Jacob’s circumstances47:29-31 Jacob plans for his burial48:1-22 Jacob blesses Manasseh and Ephraim49:1-28 Jacob blesses his sons49:29-50:14 Jacob’s Death50:15-26 Joseph’s Life after Jacob’s Death50:15-21 Joseph’s reassurance to his brothers50:22-26 Joseph’s deathCOMMENTARY1:1-11:9 God and Humankind1:1-31 Creation of All ThingsThe account of God’s creation of the world establishes twokey points that apply throughout this book and throughoutthe Bible. The first is that God was uniquely involved in theorigin of the earth and the sky. They do not exist by themselvesand are not the result of impersonal forces or otherspiritual beings. The second is that because the world isGod’s creation, it reveals him and is subject to his will.The first verse of Genesis can be read as a summarystatement that God created everything – the heavens and theearth and everything in them (1:1). The rest of the chapteris then seen as an expansion on this summary. However, itis also possible that these words outline the first step increation, with the words, in the beginning being equivalentto ‘first’. The idea then would be that the first thing God didwas to create the raw shell (heaven and earth), and thenfor six days he filled that shell with content. He did not createthe whole universe as a finished product in one grandgesture, but worked to create it. This second view fits withthe description of the earth as formless and empty and ofdarkness over the surface of the deep (1:2). The Spirit of Godhovered over the waters to keep them under control until
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