Introduction to Genesis

Title

• Bereshith is the Hebrew title. – It means “in beginning”– The English title, Genesis, comes from the Greek work geneseos which means “birth”, “genealogy”, or “history of origin.”

• So Genesis means Beginning.• What was Genesis the beginning of?

Purpose

• To Record God’s creation of the world.• To show God’s desire to have a people set apart to

worship him. • To reveal how the sin of man is met by the

forgiveness of God.

Author

• Genesis does not directly name its author.

• Jesus and the writers of Scripture believed that Moses was the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible, also called “the Law”)

Date Written

• Genesis spans more time than any other book in the Bible. In fact, it covers more than all the other 65 books of the Bible put together (approximately 2400 years).

• 1450-1410 B.C.

Setting

• The region presently known as the Middle East

• The setting of Genesis divides neatly into three geographical areas: (1) The Fertile Crescent, 1-11; (2) Israel, 12-36; and (3) Egypt, 37-50.

Key PeopleAdamEveNoahAbrahamSarahIsaacRebekahJacobJoseph

Beginnings• Beginnings of the World: The Story of Creation

-Beginnings of Life-Beginnings of Mankind

• Beginnings of Sin-Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden

-Cain & Abel

• Beginnings of the nation of Israel-Abraham- Father of the nation, makes covenant with God

-Isaac- The promised son of Abraham-Jacob- Name changed to Israel, his 12 sons become the 12 tribes of Israel

-Judah- Carries the line of Christ-Joseph- Carries the blessing, saved the nation by getting them to Egypt-Levi- The priests

• Beginning's of God's solution (God's promise through Jesus)