Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange
Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [genesis]

The first book of the Hebrew Bible which covers events from Creation to the start of Israel's sojourn in Egypt. It tells the origins of heaven and earth, Adam, Noah, Noah's sons, Shem, Terah, Ishmael, Isaac, Esau and Jacob.

The Book of Genesis, first book of the Bible, is equally the first of a group of Five Books that the Jews call Torah (which means law) and the Christians call Pentateuch. Its name derives from a Latin transliteration of the Greek γένεσις (geneseōs) meaning "origin".

The authorship is, since Jewish tradition, attributed to Moses.

Genesis tells the origins of heaven and earth (2:4), Adam (5:1), Noah (6:9), Noah's sons (10:1), Shem (11:10), Terah (11:27), Ishmael (25:12), Isaac (25:19), Esau (36:1,9) and Jacob (37:2).

Some topics covered in this book have their own tags:

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Why is the observation that "it was good" missing on the second day?

The account of the first six days of creation as found in Genesis 1 is highly stylized, though with variations. For instance, each day ends, "And there was evening, and there was morning—the (n)th day." One variation that jumps out pertains to the…
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How many daughters did Lot have, two or four?

When we read the KJV we get the impression that Lot possibly had daughters living with their husbands in Sodom, in addition to two unmarried daughters still living at home: "And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his …
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What, exactly, is the "knowledge of good and evil" in Genesis 3:22?

Genesis 3:22a (ESV): Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil..." I've gathered the following from the text: Adam and Eve knew before the Fall that eating from the tree was wrong (see Eve's…
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Why was a chapter division placed at the end of Genesis 1, rather than between 2:3 and 2:4?

It's pretty well universally accepted that Genesis 1:1 - 2:3 represent one view of the story of creation and 2:3 - 25 a second. And yet, when Stephen Langton instituted his chapter scheme in the 13th Century, he must have had a motivation for…
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What kind of desire was given to Eve?

Genesis 3:16 NIV - To the woman he said, "I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." GWT - He said to the woman, "I…
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Does Genesis 3:16 imply that there was pain / sorrow before the fall?

Genesis 3:16 says: To the woman he said, I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in sorrow you shall bring forth children; and your desire shall be to your husband, and he shall rule over you. If God "multiplied" the woman's…
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Why did Adam think that he was still naked in Genesis 3:10?

Adam and Eve thought that they were naked after having eaten the forbidden fruit. Genesis 3:7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. 8Then…
user35953
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Could the "tree of knowledge of good and evil" mean "tree of intelligence"?

Genesis 2:16-17 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” Is there any…
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How to interpret Genesis 25:1-2?

In Genesis 25:1-2 we see: "Abraham had taken another wife, whose name was Keturah. She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah". But even before that in Genesis 17 it says: 'Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to…
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Why is Cain's line shown to be so inventive?

In Genesis 4:19-22, we read a short account of some of Cain's decendents: Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. His brother’s name…
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Does Genesis 6:6 mean that God made a mistake?

Genesis 6:6, New American Standard Bible (NASB): The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. Some versions use the word regret instead of sorry. Regret and sorrow are both acts related to mistakes or sin.…
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How did mankind's way of relating to God change in Genesis 4:26?

At the end of Chapter 4 of Genesis there is a statement in verse 26, "It was then that men began to invoke the Lord by name." Other translations have "call on the name" or "worship the LORD by name". Before this it seems like Adam and Abel worshiped…
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What does 'dominion' mean in Genesis?

"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the…
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Why did the people at the Tower of Babel not want to go to other parts of the world?

Genesis 11:4 English Standard Version Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” I'd think it's an…
user35953
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In Genesis 32 what is the significance of Jacob's injury?

In some kind of divine encounter Jacob receives a hip injury: NIV Genesis 32: 22During the night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two servant wives, and his eleven sons and crossed the Jabbok River with them. 23After taking them to…
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