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Author |
Moses |
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Date |
Between 1450 and 1400 BC |
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Time Span |
Chapters 1-11 record the first years of man's history from the Creation to the Tower of Babel. Chapters 12-50 cover about 300 years, centering around the lives of 4 men: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. Genesis spans more time than the other 65 books of the Bible combined |
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Title |
The word “genesis” means “beginning” or “origin.” Bereshith (Bereshith) the first word in the Hebrew text, means “in the beginning.” |
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Background |
Genesis is the first of the 5 books of Moses, called the Pentateuch. Before the Genesis account, God was and always will be. Genesis deals with the history of the human race dwelling in the lands from Eden to Ur in the first 11 chapters, and from Canaan to Egypt in the remaining 39 chapters. This first book forms the basis for all further revelation about God and His plan for man. |
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Where |
The general belief is that Moses received this revelation while on Mt. Sinai in the wilderness. |
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To Whom |
Genesis is written for the benefit of the Israelites, but the messages contained herein are timeless . . . as the promises God made to the patriarchs are made known and the foundation is set for the revelation of God's love and the redemption of mankind through Jesus Christ. |
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Content |
God uses His Word to speak all of Creation into being. This Creation is perfect until man sins by listening to Satan instead of trusting God and obeying His plan. This sin of Adam and Eve results in spiritual death and eventually leads to filling the world with hate, violence, and disobedience. Finally, sin prevails until God uses a flood to destroy mankind, except righteous Noah and his family. Even after this, sin sweeps the land, and the people build the huge Tower of Babel in defiance of God. God never stops loving man, however, and the last 39 chapters of Genesis reveal how God through the family of Abraham directs history to establish the early stages in His plan to save the people and mend their fellowship with Him. The book closes with His Chosen People in Egypt. |
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Themes |
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Key |
“Beginning”; “Man”; “Covenant.” Genesis accounts for the “beginning” of the heavens and earth, plant and animal life, “man” and woman, sin and civilization, and God's work of redemption. God's eternal plan of salvation for mankind is revealed through the “Covenant” He establishes with Abraham. |
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Outline |
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