Description

Book of Genesis. King James Version Bible

The Book of Genesis (from the Latin Vulgate, in turn borrowed ortransliterated from Greek γένεσις, meaning "origin"; Hebrew:בְּרֵאשִׁית‎, Bərēšīṯ, "In [the] beginning") is the first book ofthe Hebrew Bible (the Tanakh) and the Christian Old Testament.

The basic narrative expresses the central theme: God creates theworld (along with creating the first man and woman) and appointsman as his regent, but man proves disobedient and God destroys hisworld through the Flood. The new post-Flood world is equallycorrupt, but God does not destroy it, instead calling one man,Abraham, to be the seed of its salvation. At God's command Abrahamdescends from his home into the land of Canaan, given to him byGod, where he dwells as a sojourner, as does his son Isaac and hisgrandson Jacob. Jacob's name is changed to Israel, and through theagency of his son Joseph, the children of Israel descend intoEgypt, 70 people in all with their households, and God promisesthem a future of greatness. Genesis ends with Israel in Egypt,ready for the coming of Moses and the Exodus. The narrative ispunctuated by a series of covenants with God, successivelynarrowing in scope from all mankind (the covenant with Noah) to aspecial relationship with one people alone (Abraham and hisdescendants through Isaac and Jacob).