Old Testament Genesis 1: The First, Foundational

¶ … Old Testament

Genesis 1: The first, foundational book of the Old Testament, defining the relationship between the creator and the creation. It defines that God and one God alone is the creator of the world.

Genesis 2: Defines the relationship of God to humanity. Humanity is lionized as superior to the other animals. Adam is given the task of naming all of the animals. Eve is portrayed as coming 'from' Adam, suggesting an inferior position of women in the eyes of many readers in successive generations.

Genesis 3: Eve's sin of eating from the Tree of Knowledge is deemed greater because of her influence over Adam. Her condemnation to bear children as well as being expelled from the Garden of Eden after being tempted by the Serpent further underlines the inferior position of women in the eyes of many readers. Protestants often read this first major narrative as defining Original Sin which has stained mankind for all time and is only rectified through the sacrifice of Christ.

4. Genesis 4: A common theme in Genesis is that of the supplanting of the birthright of one son with that of another. In the story of Cain and Abel, the toiler of the soil Abel brings an offering of his labors to God, while Cain brings that of a meat portion from the firstborn of his flock. God does not look upon Cain's offering with favor, and for this Cain kills Abel. God marks Cain with the 'mark of Cain' as a murderer, and God's rejection of pagan-style animal sacrifice (burnt offerings) along with his rejection of a firstborn offering underlines virtually every filial dyad within the Old Testament.

5. Genesis 5: A common, reoccurring theme in the first books of the Bible is man's sin and God's forgiveness. Even before God's covenant with Israel, God must wash the world clean of sin in Genesis 5 Noah, the only sinless man, along with Noah's wife, is instructed to build a boat to withstand the deluge. However, after this first expunging of sin, God does agree not to afflict the world again with a flood. But the idea of punishment and redemption continues throughout the Pentateuch.

6. Genesis 17: The next major story is the covenant of Abraham with God. The covenant, marked by circumcision of all males, is the foundational bond between God and the Israeli people.

7. Genesis 18: God makes Sarah, Abraham's wife, fertile despite her great age and she bears Isaac.

8. Genesis 21: As a result of this, Abraham abandons his mistress Hagar to the wilderness with her child Ishmael. Ishmael, often reputed to be the founding father of the Arab nation, is said by God in the Old Testament to also be a source of another great people.

9. Genesis 22: Abraham is forced to offer Isaac as a sacrifice to God but at the last minute Isaac substitutes an animal for Abraham's son.

10. Genesis 24: Isaac takes a wife Rebecca.

11. Genesis 25: Rebecca gives birth to two children, Esau and Jacob in Genesis 25. Esau, described as a 'hairy' or wild man, is favored by Isaac but not by his mother.

12. Genesis 27: Rebecca arranges to deceive her husband so that the old, blind Isaac will bless her favorite Jacob rather than his brother. She arranges for Jacob to put on a hairy cloak, so that Isaac will mistake the boy for his younger brother in Genesis 27.

13. Genesis 29: Jacob's youngest son Joseph is hated by his brothers because he is his father's favorite. Joseph is sold into slavery into Egypt in a manner that prefigures the selling into slavery of the entire race of Israelites. Joseph proves to be of great service to the Egyptian Pharaoh, establishing the close relationship between the Israelites and the Egyptian royal family that will exist, despite the fact that the Israelites will suffer in slavery in Egypt for so many years.

14. Exodus 1, the story of Moses unfolds. Moses is a Jew, but is strategically abandoned by his mother at birth so that he will be adopted by the Egyptian royal family. Moses, in a vision of God in a burning bush, receives word of his true ancestry.

15. Exodus 6: Moses' resistance to Egyptian rule, reinforced by God's sending plagues upon the people of Egypt, results in the freedom of the Israelites from bondage.

16: Exodus 10: This is followed by the first Passover, an event that will be replicated by Jews all over the world, continuing to the present day.

17. Exodus 18: However, the journey to the Promised Land of Israel is not a smooth one in Exodus. In this book, Israelites receive the Ten Commandments and instructions in how to properly behave towards God and one another.