Genesis

2Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished.

2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.

3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.

Genesis, the first book of the Bible, forms a unit with the following four books under the collective title of the “Law of Moses,” or sometimes simply the “law” (Josh. 23:6; 1 Kings 2:3; Luke 24:44). Later, in the Christian tradition, the Pentateuch became the common name for the five books.

4 This is the historya of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,

5 before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground;

The English names of the Old Testament books of the Bible follow the lead of the LXX (“the Septuagint,” the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible), which chose titles based on the theme or suggested author of each biblical book. Contrary to that pattern, the Hebrew Bible (MT, the abbreviation for the “Masoretic Text”) adopted names for the Pentateuchal books from the first words of each book. Only in Genesis do the MT and the LXX titles coincide (e.g., LXX: “Genesis” or “Origins”; MT: bere’shit, meaning “In the beginning”). To be sure, Genesis is definitely a book of beginnings.

6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground.

7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Life in God’s

8 The LORD God planted a garden and there He put the man whom 9 And out of the ground the tree grow that is pleasant to the food. The tree of life was also in den, and the tree of the knowledge 10 Now a river went out of Eden den, and from there it parted and erheads.

11 The name of the first is Pishon; which skirts the whole land of Havilah, is gold.

12 And the gold of that land is good. the onyx stone are there.

13 The name of the second river one which goes around the whole

14 The name of the third river is the one which goes toward the east fourth river is the Euphrates.

Archaeological Periods

Genesis 1-11:

Author

Like the other books of the Pentateuch, Genesis does not identify its author. On the other hand, evidence appearing elsewhere in the Pentateuch suggests likely Mosaic authorship, since it credits no person other than Moses with composing any part of it, while God repeatedly tells Moses to write down parts of it (Exod. 17:14; 24:4; 34:27). Besides, Moses appears as the most significant person in the Pentateuchal stories (Deut. 34:5; Josh. 1:1, etc.).

The word “Eden” comes from the West Semitic root ‘dn, which means “abundance,” “delight,” and “luxury,” an etymology attested in Ugaritic texts (2nd millennium BC) and an Aramaic inscription (9th century BC). Aware of this, the translators of the book of Genesis into Greek (the Septuagint) rendered the expression “garden of Eden” as a “garden of luxuries” (LXX Gen. 3:23-24). It makes sense in light of what was in that garden. The biblical text describes an abundance of trees and a river flowing through it (Gen. 2:8-10). Scholars throughout the centuries have attempted to locate the Garden of Eden based on the geographical information found in Genesis 2:10-14. The text mentions four rivers, two of them the well-known Tigris and the Euphrates (v. 14). Both rivers have their sources in northern Turkey and continue south through the land of Mesopotamia. According to the Genesis account, the Pishon river flowed around the land of Havilah, a place of gold and gemstones (vv. 11-12), possibly the region of modern Hawlan, near the city of Medina, in Saudi Arabia. Interestingly, satellite images have identified a dry riverbed extending through that territory toward the Persian Gulf and exiting near the mouth of the Tigris. Quite possibly,

Garden of Eden—Genesis

Also, Jesus specifically connects Moses with Genesis (Mark 10:3-9; John 7:22) and, more generally, to the “Law” (i.e., the Pentateuch, Luke 16:29, 31; 24:27; John 1:17, 45).

Beyond this biblical evidence, the interlocking themes of the Pentateuchal books suggest a single author. For example, Genesis tells the reader who the Israelites are, where they originated, and how they came to live in Egypt. Exodus continues the Israelite tribal story by explaining the circumstances of their leaving Egypt, how they gained their covenanted status with YHWH, and the beginning of their cult practices. Leviticus reaffirms and details the Israelite cultic practices. Numbers describes significant events during the Israelite wilderness wanderings and the Moab encampment near Jericho, and also prescribes laws related to, and in preparation for, the Promised Land. Deuteronomy retraces early Israelite events starting at Kadesh-Barnea, repeats the covenant, provides guidelines and warnings before the people enter Canaan, and then installs Joshua as the new Israelite leader after Moses’ death. The linkages between these five books suggest continuity in authorship. Moses, the main character from Exodus to Deuteronomy, is the best candidate.

18 the Arvadite, the Zemarite, and the Hamathite. Afterward the families of the Canaanites were dispersed.

19 And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon as you go toward Gerar, as far as Gaza; then as you go toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha.

20 These were the sons of Ham, according to their families, according to their languages, in their lands and in their nations.

Lands And Places

the biblical writer thought of the river Pishon Genesis 2. The Hijaz mountains in that region of the richest gold mines in the area. As for the connects it with the land of Cush (v. 13), possibly to the territory of the Kassites (Kushshu) in western But far more critical than Eden’s possible location in the first three chapters of Genesis. Scripture Garden of Eden as the first home of human beings place where God would meet with them (Gen. 3:8) a place in which Satan through the serpent was permitted work in tempting Adam and Eve (see Ezek. 28:13, as “the king of Tyre,” cf. Rev. 12:9). After sin entered, protected the garden (Gen. 3:24), indicating the divine tion to preserve it, and the book of Revelation mentions connection with the New Jerusalem (Rev. 22:2; cf. promised “Paradise” to the thief on the cross (Luke utilizing the Greek word commonly used in the Septuagint of Genesis and elsewhere about Eden (Isa. 51:3; Joel new earth would indeed be a place of untainted and abundance. Even more important, it is where God would ever dwell with His creation.

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21 And children were born also to Shem, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder.

22 The sons of Shem were Lud, and Aram.

23 The sons of Aram were

4 For You are not a God who takes in wickedness, Nor shall evil dwell with You.

24 Arphaxad begot Salah,

25 To Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided; and his brother’s name

26 Joktan begot Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah,

27 Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah,

5 The boastful shall not stand in Your You hate all workers of iniquity.

6 You shall destroy those who speak Thefalsehood; LORD abhors the bloodthirsty deceitful man.

29 Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these sons of Joktan.

28 Obal,c Abimael, Sheba,

30 And their dwelling place was from Mesha as you go toward Sephar, the mountain of the east.

31 These were the sons of Shem, according to their families, according to their languages, in their lands, according to their nations.

32 These were the families of the sons of Noah, according to their generations, in their nations; and from these the nations were divided on the earth after the flood.

6 There are many who say, “Who will show us any good?” LORD, lift up the light of Your countenance upon us.

7 You have put gladness in my heart, More than in the season

7 But as for me, I will come into Your in the multitude of Your mercy; In fear of You I will worship toward holy temple.

8 Lead me, O LORD, in Your righteousness because of my enemies; Make Your way straight before my face.

9 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; Their inward part is destruction; Their throat is an open tomb; They flatter with their tongue.

10 Pronounce them guilty, O God! Let them fall by their own counsels; Cast them out in the multitude of their Fortransgressions, they have rebelled against You.

11 But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let