WEEK 1: OVERVIEW

Getting Acquainted

In Genesis, God's purposes for the heavens and earth, distorted by sin spreading through all the earth, are focused in one man: Abraham. Through him and his family God would bring blessing to all nations.

Despite God's good purposes for creation, sin enters and fills the earth (the primeval history1; chs. 1 — 11), and so God moves his plan forward to bless the nations through the offspring of Abraham (the patriarchal history2; chs. 12 — 50). Genesis is foundational to the whole Bible, and to every human life. Genesis tells us who God is, who we are, how things went wrong, and the plan that God has put in place to return the earth to the way it was meant to be.

Placing It in the Larger Story

Many readers miss the forest of God's larger purposes when immersed in the trees of each individual story. In creation, God creates humanity in his own image as his representatives to fill and rule the earth on his behalf (Gen. 1:26 — 28). Even after Adam and Eve sin and are punished, the promise is given that the offspring of the woman will defeat the serpent and restore the earth (Gen. 3:15). This promise is traced throughout the book in its genealogies,3 which provide the backbone of the entire book. Key divisions are traced by "These are the generations of," tracing out the stories of key figures, starting with "the heavens and the earth" (2:4 — 4:26), and going on to Adam (5:1 — 6:8), Noah (6:9 — 9:29), the sons of Noah (10:1 — 11:19), Shem (11:10 — 26), Terah (11:27 — 25:11), Ishmael (25:12 — 18), Isaac (25:19 — 35:29), Esau (36:1 — 37:1), and Jacob (37:2 — 50:26). The line of God's blessing is emphasized (e.g., Adam, Noah, Terah, Isaac, Jacob), while the stories of other lines receive less attention (e.g., Ishmael, Esau). The individual stories of Abraham, Jacob and Joseph are illustrations of how the promise of Genesis 3:15 begins to be fulfilled.

God desires to bless the nations through a future king. Adam is portrayed in the image of God, a phrase probably signifying a royal representative of God. Abraham would become a "great nation" (Gen. 12:2), and "kings shall come from you" (Gen. 17:6). God's original command to "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth" (Gen. 1:28) is fulfilled in microcosm4 as "Israel settled in the land of Egypt ... and were fruitful and multiplied greatly" (Gen. 47:27; cf. 1:28).

Israel fails, however, in its calling to be a "kingdom of priests" (Ex. 19:6). This priesthood is ultimately fulfilled through the church in Jesus Christ as a "royal priesthood" of all nations (1 Pet. 2:9). Through this priesthood, God's purposes for creation as detailed in Genesis 1 — 2 are finally accomplished, as is seen in Revelation 21 — 22.

Key Verse

"And God blessed them. And God said to them, `Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth." (Gen. 1:28)

Date and Historical Background

With the other books of the Pentateuch (Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy), Genesis has been ascribed to Moses. Although Mosaic authorship has been questioned by some, numerous parallels with other ancient Near Eastern literature in the second millennium BC confirm the plausibility of the traditional view.

Outline

I. Primeval History (1:1 — 11:26)

A. God's creation and the ordering of heaven and earth (1:1 — 2:3)

B. Humanity and sin in the world (2:4 — 3:24)

C. The downward spiral of sin in the world (4:1 — 11:26)

II. Patriarchal History (11:27 — 50:26)

A. Abraham and the covenant (11:27 — 16:16)

B. Abraham and obedience (17:1 — 22:24)

C. From Abraham to Isaac (23:1 — 26:33)

D. Jacob: consequences of deception (26:34 — 31:55)

E. Jacob: reconciliation with Esau (32:1 — 35:29)

F. Joseph: dreams and affliction (36:1 — 41:57)

G. Joseph: reconciliation with brothers (42:1 — 47:31)

H. Blessing of Jacob (48:1 — 50:26)

As You Get Started

Besides the individual stories in Genesis, how do you see the themes and trajectories laid out in this book developed in the rest of the Bible? In your view, how does Genesis play a foundational role for the entire Bible? ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________

The entire book of Genesis is framed by genealogies. What important role might be played by these otherwise boring lists of names in tracing out the many promises that we find in this book? ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________

What perplexes you about this book? What questions do you hope to see answered by this study of Genesis? ________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________

As You Finish This Unit ...

Come before God with humility in prayer and ask for the Spirit who inspired Scripture to illuminate your mind to understand Genesis in all its riches. Ask him to strengthen and deepen your understanding of God's foundational purposes for creation and the glory of his purposes in redemption. Pray that God might soften your heart to hear the still small voice of God's Spirit. Take some time to go back over this study and reflect on what the Lord might be teaching you, especially noting areas and questions that you would like to explore further through this study.

Definitions

Primeval history — The earliest history of the Bible from the creation of the world (Genesis 1) to the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11).

Patriarchal history — A history of the patriarchs (fathers) of the Old Testament, primarily Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Genealogy — The study of the lineage of families; genealogies are particularly important in Genesis as it traces the preservation of the offspring of the woman who will ultimately defeat the offspring of the...