Introduction © John Stevenson, 2009 The Book of Beginnings

Introduction

© John Stevenson, 2009

The Book of BeginningsThe Book of Beginnings

Dr. John T. StevensonDr. John T. Stevenson

• Family Life

• Academic Life

• Family Life

• Academic Life

• Professional Life

Dr. John T. StevensonDr. John T. Stevenson

• Family Life

• Academic Life

• Professional Life

• Spiritual Life

• Ministry Life

Dr. John T. StevensonDr. John T. Stevenson

Dr. John T. StevensonDr. John T. Stevenson

http://JohnStevenson.net

JohnStevenson@Bellsouth.net

Group IntroductionsGroup Introductions

• Your name

• Your home church

• Where are you in your educational process?

• What classes have you already taken in the area of the Old or New Testament?

TorahTorahHebrew: “Law,

Instruction”

PentateuchPentateuchGreek: “Five-Part

Book”

NumbersNumbersRelates the wilderness

wanderings

DeuteronomyDeuteronomy

Gives the Law to a new generation with special

emphasis to those entering the land

GenesisGenesisTraces the origins of God’s

people from creation to Egypt

ExodusExodusRelates God’s deliverance of

Israel from Egypt and establishing His covenant

LeviticusLeviticus Sets forth the Laws of worship

Documentary HypothesisDocumentary Hypothesis

Jehovah Elohim

Jean Astruc: Moses utilized two different source documents

Wilhelm de Wette: Deuteronomy penned by alternate author

Deuteronomy

Documentary Hypothesis

Jehovah Elohim

Herman Hulfeld: E-1 E-2

Deuteronomy

Julius Wellhausen: J – Jehovah

E – Elohim

D – Deuteronomy

P – Priestly

Mosaic Authorship of GenesisMosaic Authorship of Genesis

• Moses was qualified to write the Moses was qualified to write the book of Genesis.book of Genesis.

• The Style of Genesis reflects an The Style of Genesis reflects an Egyptian influence.Egyptian influence.

• The unity of the book of Genesis The unity of the book of Genesis reflects a single author.reflects a single author.

Title for the BookTitle for the Book

• The Hebrew Title: tyviareB. (BeReshyth); “In the Beginning”

• Greek Title: - “Beginnings”

“THESE ARE THE GENERATIONS OF...”

Formula Contents Location

In the beginning God... Creation 1:1 - 2:3 1. This is the account of the heaven and the earth

Creation 2:4 - 4:26

2. This is the written account of Adam's Line

Genealogy: Seth to Noah 5:1 - 6:8

3. This is the account of Noah Flood & Covenant 6:9 - 9:29

4. This is the account of Shem, Ham & Japheth

Table of Nations & Babel 10:1 - 11:9

5. This is the account of Shem Genealogy: Shem to Abraham 11:10-26 6. This is the account of Terah Story of Abraham 11:27 - 25:11 7. This is the account of

Abraham's son Ishmael Genealogy of Ishmael 25:12-18

8. This is the account of Abraham's son Isaac

Transition of blessing from Isaac to Jacob

25:19 - 35:29

9. This is the account of Esau Genealogy of Esau 36:1-43 10. This is the account of Jacob Joseph & Israel in Egypt 37:1 - 50:26

““These are the generations…”These are the generations…”

• Hebrew: tAdl.At hL,ae - Elleh toledoth

• Ten sets• History of account follows: “These are

the things that followed…”Adam

AbrahamIsrael

Genesis 2:4 – 11:26 Genesis 11:27 – 50:26

5 Toledoth from Adam to Abraham

5 Toledoth fromAbraham to Israel

Genesis 1-11Events Predominant

– Creation– Fall– Flood– Tower of Babel

Genesis 12-50People Predominant

– Abraham– Isaac– Jacob– Joseph

Race as a whole Family of Abraham

Over 2000 years 250 years

Genesis Revelation

Creation of the heavens and earth.

A new heaven and a new earth.

The Tree of Life in the Garden. The Tree of Life in the New Jerusalem.

A river runs through the Garden.

A river runs through the New Jerusalem.

The first marriage: Adam and Eve.

The last marriage: The last Adam to the church.

The beginning of the career of Satan.

The end of Satan’s career: The Lake of Fire.

Death enters. Death is destroyed.

Man lost privileges because of sin.

Man regains privileges because of Christ’s payment for sin.

Beginning of sorrow, pain and death.

Christ wipes away all tears.

The first murder. No more death.

The beginning of Babylon. Babylon destroyed.

Beginning & EndingBeginning & Ending

• Genesis begins with God: “In the

beginning God created…”

• Genesis ends with a corpse: “…in

a coffin in Egypt”

Babylonian Creation AccountBabylonian Creation Account

• Enuma Elish

• Seven Tablets

• World begins in chaos

• Marduk fights Tiamat

• Heavens and earth created from her body

Ennuma ElishTiamat engulfs world

in a primal chaos.

Genesis AccountThe world was

unformed and unfilled.

Light comes from the gods.

God brings light into existence.

Marduk makes the stars of the zodiac and

ordains the year.

God sets sun and moon for signs,

seasons, days, and years.

Marduk makes man from the blood of

Kingu.

God creates man in His own image and

likeness.

Moses is giving to us a refutation of the Moses is giving to us a refutation of the accepted mythos that was held in accepted mythos that was held in

antiquity as he goes point by point to antiquity as he goes point by point to show that God is the true Creator of show that God is the true Creator of

heaven and earth.heaven and earth.

Ennuma Elish Genesis Account

Genesis 1:1Genesis 1:1

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Elohim

• Teaches the existence of God.

• Teaches the existence of One God.

• Teaches the pre-existence of God.

• Teaches the personhood of God.

Genesis 1:1Genesis 1:1

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

bara

• An initial act of creation.

• A summary statement of the entire chapter.

Genesis 1:1Genesis 1:1

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

shamayim

aretz

Theories of CreationTheories of Creation

• Supernatural versus Evolutionary.

• A Superficial Appearance of History.

• The Gap Theory.

Genesis 1:2Genesis 1:2And the earth was formless and

void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.

6 Days of 6 Days of Re-creationRe-creation

Original Original CreationCreation

Formless Formless & Void& Void

The verb hayeta in Genesis 1:2 can be

translated “became” so that we could read that

“the earth became without form and void.”

The normal rendering of hayeta is “was” and

indicates a state of being.

Support Objections

Tohu wabohu (“formless and void”)

are a destruction which took place after God’s original creation (Jer. 4:23, Isa. 34:11).

Tohu wabohu (“formless and void”)

can just as easily describe an

unconstructed state.

Isaiah 45:18 says that God did not create the earth void (tohu) while Genesis 1:2 says that

the earth was now void. It is reasoned that the earth must have come to be in this manner after its

original creation.

Isaiah 45:18 simply tells us that God’s

intention for the earth in its completed form was that it would not

be tohu, but rather that it might be inhabited. The prophet is simply stating the purpose of

creation.

Support Objections

The darkness which characterized the formless and void

condition is indicative of evil.

Darkness does not always indicate evil.

Both light and darkness existed upon the finished earth and it was still said to be

good.

Support Objections

Theories of CreationTheories of Creation

• Supernatural versus Evolutionary.

• A Superficial Appearance of History.

• The Gap Theory.

• The Day/Age Theory.

The word “day” is sometimes used in the Scriptures to describe a period of time longer than a 24 hour period (“the day of the Lord”).

The word “day” does not normally refer to

an extended period of time when it appears with a modifier (1st day, 2nd day, etc).

Support Objections

2 Peter 3:8 states that with the Lord one day

is as a thousand years.

These days are clearly defined in Genesis 1:5

when God calls the light day and the darkness night.

The sun and the moon are not created until

the 4th day. This indicates that the

previous days are not literal.

The very purpose of the sun was to rule

over the day while the moon was to rule over

the night.

Support Objections

Theories of CreationTheories of Creation

• Supernatural versus Evolutionary.

• A Superficial Appearance of History.

• The Gap Theory.

• The Day/Age Theory.

• The Non-Sequential Theory / Framework Theory.

I personally take the view that Genesis 1 and 2 relate to each other the way Judges 4

and 5 and Exodus 14 and 15 do. In each couplet one chapter describes a historical

event and the other is a song or poem about the theological meaning of the event.

When reading Judges 4 it is obvious that it is When reading Judges 4 it is obvious that it is a sober recounting of what happened in the a sober recounting of what happened in the

battle, but when we read Judges 5, battle, but when we read Judges 5, Deborah’s Song about the battle, the Deborah’s Song about the battle, the

language is poetic and metaphorical. language is poetic and metaphorical.

When Deborah sings that the stars in the When Deborah sings that the stars in the heavens came down to fight for the heavens came down to fight for the

Israelites, we understand that she means Israelites, we understand that she means that metaphorically.that metaphorically.

I think Genesis 1 has the earmarks of poetry I think Genesis 1 has the earmarks of poetry and is therefore a “song” about the wonder and is therefore a “song” about the wonder and meaning of God’s creation. Genesis 2 and meaning of God’s creation. Genesis 2

is an account of how it happened is an account of how it happened ((The Reason for GodThe Reason for God, pg 93-94)., pg 93-94).

Theories of CreationTheories of Creation

• Supernatural versus Evolutionary.

• A Superficial Appearance of History.

• The Gap Theory.

• The Day/Age Theory.

• The Non-Sequential Theory / Framework Theory.

• The Literal Interpretation.

…general revelation in creation, as well as the

special revelation of Scripture, is also the

voice of God. We live in a “universe,” and all

truth speaks with one voice (2001:77).

Genesis 1:2Genesis 1:2And the earth was formless and

void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.

• Formless and Void.

• Darkness over the Surface of the Deep.

• The Spirit of God was moving over the Surface of the Waters.