Genisis: The First Book of the Bible and Beginning of Mankind?
Whatever your personal belief is, learning about the Bible can be the first step to understanding it, and thus, formulating your own personal opinion on the matter.
Genisis, as the beginning of the Bible, is the logical place to start.
Genisis was written by Moses, who also wrote Exodous, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, otherwise known as the Pentateuch. It details the beginning of the world, and then goes on to record the history of humanity, down to the rule of the Pharohs in Egypt. Genisis begins with the words ‘In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.’ Chapters 1-5 explains the seven days of creation, the beginning of Man and Woman, so named Adam and Eve. In Chapter 3, Eve is decieved by a sepent and eats the fruit of the tree of knowledge. Some call this ‘the apple’, although the Bible never directly names the fruit. Adam also eats the fruit, and they are subsequently evicted from the Paradise-like setting of Eden. Eden is rumored to have been located somewhere in what we call the Middle East, at the mouth of the river Euphrates.
After being kicked out of paradise, Adam and Eve become farmers, and Eve bears a son, whom she name’s Cain, and then gives birth to another son named Able.
As many already know, Cain and Able grew up, Cain becoming a farmer, Able becoming a sheepherd. We also know that Cain killed Able, and became the first murderer in human history.
Cain was then exiled [with his wife, who was also his sister].
Eve then gave birth to another son, named Seth, and the Bible then embarks on his history.
Little history happens between then, and the time of Noah. Chapter 6 of Genisis sights that some of the angels in heaven as ‘looking down at the daughters of the sons of men.’
According to the Bible record, the angels materialize physical bodies, and have relations with these women, birthing giants called ‘The Nephilim.’
The Nephilim litterally means ‘the fellers’ and thus they proved to be. The Nephilim’s rule over the land was violent. They took what they wanted, and basically behaved badly. The world overall went so badly downhill, that God is said to have taken ‘no pleasure in it.’
Only one man, Noah, and his three sons, and their respective wives, were considered upright in the land. God then commands Noah to build an Ark, and through it, saves Noah and his family, along with the animals.
Through Noah’s three sons, the human race continues.
The next bit of really important history comes in Genisis chapter 11, which is the account of the Tower of Bable.
A man named Nimrod, a mighty hunter, decided he wanted to be ‘as high as the heavens’. He, and his followers, started to build a tower to achieve this goal.
According to the account, God then scrambled the languages of men, making one language into the many that we have today.
Also in Chapter 11, we see that a man named Terah became father to a man named A’bram , whom we know better as Abraham.
Abraham was married to his half-sister, Sarai, who was later renamed ‘Sarah.’
Abraham travelled through the land of the Egyptians, and the Cannanites, and eventually grew to be a very wealthy man. His best known son is Isaac, but he also had a son named Ishmael, by an Egyptian slave girl who was also his wife.
And thus history progressed.
Isaac, as we know, married Rebekah, a daughter of Bethuel of one of Abraham’s brothers. They had twin sons Esau and Jacob.
Esau was born first, but later sold his right as first born to the younger Jacob for a bowl of stew. Eventually, Esau became jealous of Jacob, and Jacob fled to Paddanaram. There he met the love of his life, Rachel.
For Rachel’s hand in marriage, Jacob worked for her father seven years. However, on the night of their wedding, Leah, Rachel’s older sister, was substituted in, and Jacob was forced to work another seven years for Rachel. Leah, although being the less favorite of the two wives, bore Jacob many sons, and daughters. Rachel though, remained barren for a long time.
Later, Jacob left Paddanaram, and returned to the land of his father. Along the way, he meets up with Esau. At first, Jacob fears that his brother has come to fight over the birthright, but is suprised to find that Esau is a changed man.
The reunion then, is a joyfull one, and both groups go along on their separate ways. Rachel bares a son and names him Joseph, and later a son named Benjamin.
Sadly though, Rachel dies while birthing Benjamin.
Another lesson learned in Jacob’s children is that of Dinah. Dinah became involved with some of the people of the land. She was then seduced by a leader named Shechem. This led to the slaughter of Shechem’s entire village by Dinah’s brothers, and great reproach on their father. [Chapter 34]
The account continues, with Jacob’s older sons tending the sheep. Joseph comes to check up on them, and his brothers, spurned to invy by Jocob’s preferential treatment of Joseph, sell him into slavery.
Joseph is then taken to Egypt, and sold to an influentual man named Potiphar. He gains much favor, and is made chief of the slaves. However, Potiphar’s wife tries to seduce Joseph. When he refuses, Potiphar’s wife tells her husband lies about him, and he’s sent to prison.
Joseph spends some time in prison. While there, he meets two other men, the Pharoh’s Cupbearer, and Pharoh’s Chief Baker. Joseph [with a little devine intervention] tells them the meaning of their dreams. True to his prediction, the Cupbearer is returned to his position, the Baker is hanged.
This act is later rewarded when the Pharoh has a dream that no one can figure out. Joseph is called, and is able to tell the Pharoh what it means. In return, Pharoh makes Joseph second only to him in the kingdom, a man of great power. Later, Joseph is reunited with his brothers, and his father.
The account ends when Joseph dies at a good old age, and is embalmed in Egypt.
Bible Myths Resolved
1. The original sin was Eve’s eating of the fruit of the tree of knowledge. It had nothing to do with Adam and Eve, or their sexual relations.
2. Noah built an ark a closed structure in the shape of a box, not an open boat.
3. God told Abraham to sacrifice his son, but did not go through with it.
4. Jacob was later called Israel, in line with the covenant God made with him.
Hopefully, this has been informative for you. The Bible uses beautiful mental pictures to inspire all who read it. This article is by no means a substitue for the Bible, it is merely a review. No matter what you believe, we can all benefit from this wonderfully crafted Bible Book.
