Brief Summary:
The Book of Genesis can be divided into two sections: Primitive History and Patriarchal History. Primitive history records (1) Creation (Genesis chapters 1-2); (2) the Fall of man (Genesis chapters 3-5); (3) the Flood (Genesis chapters 6-9); and (4) the dispersion (Genesis chapters 10-11). Patriarchal history records the lives of four great men: (1) Abraham (Genesis 12-25:8); (2) Isaac (Genesis 21:1-35-29); (3) Jacob (Genesis 25:21-50:14); and (4) Joseph (Genesis 30:22-50:26).
God created a universe that was good and free from sin. God created humanity to have a personal relationship with Him. Adam and Eve sinned and thereby brought evil and death into the world. Evil increased steadily in the world until there was only one family in which God found anything good. God sent the Flood to wipe out evil, but delivered Noah and his family along with the animals in the Ark. After the Flood, humanity began again to multiply and spread throughout the world.
God chose Abraham, through whom He would create a chosen people and eventually the promised Messiah. The chosen line was passed on to Abraham’s son Isaac, and then to Isaac’s son Jacob. God changed Jacob’s name to Israel, and his twelve sons became the ancestors of the twelve tribes of Israel. In His sovereignty, God had Jacob’s son Joseph sent to Egypt by the despicable actions of Joseph’s brothers. This act, intended for evil by the brothers, was intended for good by God and eventually resulted in Jacob and his family being saved from a devastating famine by Joseph, who had risen to great power in Egypt.
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The Book of Genesis Summary
Context Summary
Genesis 1:1–13 describes the first three days of creation. These follow a common pattern. First, God speaks, then He creates, then names His creation, then declares that creation ”good.” Finally, the day is numbered. Each of these first three days prepares creation for what God will create in the second three days. Day one creates light, night and day, preparing for the sun and moon on day four. Day two creates the oceans, preparing for sea creatures on day five. Day three creates land and plants, preparing for animals and humans on day six.
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“Genesis 1:1-2” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 1:1-2
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep and God’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.
(Read Genesis 1:26-28)
Man was made last of all the creatures: this was both an honour and a favour to him. Yet man was made the same day that the beasts were; his body was made of the same earth with theirs; and while he is in the body, he inhabits the same earth with them. God forbid that by indulging the body, and the desires of it, we should make ourselves like the beasts that perish! Man was to be a creature different from all that had been hitherto made. Flesh and spirit, heaven and earth, must be put together in him. God said, “Let us make man.” Man, when he was made, was to glorify the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Into that great name we are baptized, for to that great name we owe our being. It is the soul of man that especially bears God’s image. Man was made upright, Ecclesiastes 7:29. His understanding saw Divine things clearly and truly; there were no errors or mistakes in his knowledge; his will consented at once, and in all things, to the will of God. His affections were all regular, and he had no bad appetites or passions. His thoughts were easily brought and fixed to the best subjects. Thus holy, thus happy, were our first parents in having the image of God upon them. But how is this image of God upon man defaced! May the Lord renew it upon our souls by his grace!
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Genesis 1 Bible Commentary – Matthew Henry (concise) (christianity.com)
Genesis 1:26
26 God said, “Let’s make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
Context Summary
Genesis 2:4–9 begins to describe additional details about the creation of human beings, starting with the creation of the first man. Man is ”formed” out of existing matter—the dust or debris of the earth—into which God breathes life. God plants the garden in Eden, and places the newly-created man there. Among the many trees in the garden are two of special significance: the Tree of Life, and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.
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“Genesis 2:7” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 2:7
7 Yahweh God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
Context Summary
Genesis 3:1–7 tells the story of Satan’s temptation of mankind, the first human sin and the immediate consequences which followed. Created sinless, ”very good,” and placed into a perfect environment by a fair and loving Creator, Adam and Eve choose to sin anyway. They earn spiritual death and separation from God, as well as lives punctuated by pain, conflict, and frustration, ending in physical death. This is followed by God’s response to human sin, tailored to each of the parties involved. The following chapter will tell the story of the beginning of human life apart from God and the garden.
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“Genesis 3:1” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 3:1
Now the serpent was more subtle than any animal of the field which Yahweh God had made. He said to the woman, “Has God really said, ‘You shall not eat of any tree of the garden’?”
Context Summary
Genesis 4:1–16 tells the beginning of human history in the wake of Adam’s and Eve’s sin and separation from God. This passage details the murder of Abel by his older brother Cain, the first son of Adam and Eve. Cain and Abel work the ground and tend sheep. They worship God, but Cain kills Abel in a fit of envy over God’s rejection of Cain and his offering. The first human born on earth becomes the first murderer. God forces Cain to leave his family and wander the earth, but God also marks Cain with a promise of great vengeance on anyone who would kill him.
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“Genesis 4:11” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 4:11
11 Now you are cursed because of the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand.
Context Summary
Genesis 5:1-32 is a bridge of genealogy connecting the time of Adam and his son Seth to the time of Noah. This brings the Bible’s historical record to the era of the flood. It provides a small, but helpful set of details: early humans lived a long time, had many children, and all died as a result of ubiquitous human sin. Enoch is the exception that proves the rule, commended for walking with God and seemingly taken away before his physical death. Despite the presence of early God-worshippers such as Adam and Seth, man will quickly descend into extraordinary wickedness, as seen in chapter 6. The coming of Noah at the end of this chapter prepares us for God’s response to the sins of humankind.
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“Genesis 5:1” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 5:1
This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, he made him in God’s likeness.
Context Summary
Genesis 6:1–8 introduces us to two mysterious groups: the ”sons of God” and the Nephilim. Provoked by the wickedness of humanity and, perhaps, by the power of these two groups, God declares that He will reduce human lifespans to 120 years. Alternatively, this same remark might refer to God’s plan to wipe out all of humanity in 120 years. In either case, this prediction is fulfilled. God will exercise His authority as Creator and execute justice by ending the world as it was. Human civilization will be forced to start again, through one man: Noah.
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“Genesis 6:4” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 6:4
4 The Nephilim were in the earth in those days, and also after that, when God’s sons came in to men’s daughters and had children with them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.
Context Summary
Genesis 6:1–8 introduces us to two mysterious groups: the ”sons of God” and the Nephilim. Provoked by the wickedness of humanity and, perhaps, by the power of these two groups, God declares that He will reduce human lifespans to 120 years. Alternatively, this same remark might refer to God’s plan to wipe out all of humanity in 120 years. In either case, this prediction is fulfilled. God will exercise His authority as Creator and execute justice by ending the world as it was. Human civilization will be forced to start again, through one man: Noah.
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“Genesis 6:5” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 6:5
5 Yahweh saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of man’s heart was continually only evil.
Context Summary
Genesis 7:1–10 confirms that Noah fulfilled all that he was commanded in chapter 6. In addition to the two pairs of all animals, Noah is also told to bring seven (total) pairs of ”clean” animals, most likely for sacrificial purposes. God gives Noah a last-minute warning of the coming flood. As the preparations are completed, the great catastrophe occurs, just as God said it would. The next passage describes the colossal event.
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“Genesis 7:9-10” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 7:9-10
9 went by pairs to Noah into the ship, male and female, as God commanded Noah. 10 After the seven days, the floodwaters came on the earth.
Context Summary
Genesis 8:1–19 describes the process of God drying out the earth following the flood. Noah and his family and the animals wait for the waters to recede. Noah uses birds as a test to see if any land is nearby. When the time is finally right, a full year after they entered, God commands Noah, his family, and all the animals to leave the ark. Their mission from God is to swarm over the earth, multiply, and begin again.
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“Genesis 8:18-19” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 8:18-19
18 Noah went out, with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives with him. 19 Every animal, every creeping thing, and every bird, whatever moves on the earth, after their families, went out of the ship.
Context Summary
Genesis 9:1–17 continues God’s interaction with Noah and his sons following the flood. First, God blesses them and gives them specific instructions about how to live in this remade world. God commands them to reproduce and fill the earth, among other things. Next, God establishes His unilateral covenant to never again end all life on earth with a flood, offering the rainbow as a sign of this promise.
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“Genesis 9:16” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 9:16
16 The rainbow will be in the cloud. I will look at it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.”
Context Summary
Genesis 10:21–32 details the descendants of Noah’s son, Shem. Shem’s brothers, Japheth and Ham, fathered the nations described in the earlier portion of this chapter. Shem’s children would be especially blessed by God. Into Shem’s line, Abraham (Abram) would be born, as would the nation of Israel, and eventually the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The context given here suggests that some of these descendants were born after the events of the Tower of Babel, explained in chapter 11.
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“Genesis 10:32” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 10:32
32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, by their generations, according to their nations. The nations divided from these in the earth after the flood.
Context Summary
Genesis 11:1–9 recounts one of the most dramatic acts of God recorded in Genesis. Before the tribes and nations described in Genesis 10 were formed, all the people of the earth shared one language and one culture. They also shared the goal of not wanting to be separated. To that end, they decided to make themselves great by building a great city with an enormous tower—and without apparently acknowledging God. To keep humanity from being too powerful, and lapsing into the widespread sin which inspired the flood, God confuses human languages and scattered mankind around the world. The city of Babel, similar to the Hebrew word for ”confused,” would later become known as Babylon.
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“Genesis 11:4” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 11:4
4 They said, “Come, let’s build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top reaches to the sky, and let’s make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad on the surface of the whole earth.”
Context Summary
Genesis 12:1–9 is a landmark passage in the Bible. God calls Abram to leave his people and land behind. He also promises to bless Abram and to make his descendants into a great nation who will one day occupy the land of Canaan. Though childless, and with no obvious path to becoming a father of an entire culture, Abram begins to worship the Lord in the land of Canaan, journeying through the land and building altars to God.
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“Genesis 12:2” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 12:2
2 I will make of you a great nation. I will bless you and make your name great. You will be a blessing.
Context Summary
Genesis 13:14–18 shows Abram settling in Hebron, after offering his nephew Lot the first choice of which area to establish his family. Lot chose to live in the lush—but depraved—region of Sodom. Abram chooses to live on the general region of Canaan. Abram once again hears a promise from God: that he and his uncountable descendants will one day possess all the land he can see.
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“Genesis 13:18” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 13:18
18 Abram moved his tent, and came and lived by the oaks of Mamre, which are in Hebron, and built an altar there to Yahweh.
Context Summary
Genesis 14:1–16 is an action-packed story of war between ancient city-states. Four kings from the east arrive to put down a rebellion by five kings from cities around the Dead Sea. After defeating them, the eastern kings loot Sodom, carrying off Abram’s nephew Lot and all he owns in the process. Abram gathers his own small army, along with three Amorite allies, and gives chase. They catch the enemy in the northern reaches of Canaan, defeat them, and recapture all the plunder, including Lot.
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“Genesis 14:14” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 14:14
14 When Abram heard that his relative was taken captive, he led out his three hundred eighteen trained men, born in his house, and pursued as far as Dan.
Context Summary
Genesis 15:1–21 falls between Abram’s heroic rescue of Lot in Genesis 14 and his less-than-heroic choice to have a child with his wife’s servant in chapter 16. Chapter 15 features Abram’s hard questions to the Lord about how the lofty promises of uncountable descendants and possession of the land will be kept. God responds, in part, by formalizing His covenant promises to Abram with an elaborate ritual. He also reveals to Abram details about the difficult circumstances his descendants will face before they come back to take possession of the land ”in the fourth generation.”
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“Genesis 15:1” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 15:1
After these things Yahweh’s word came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Don’t be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”
Context Summary
Genesis 16:1–16 demonstrates that God hears and sees and cares, but that He won’t be rushed or manipulated into keeping His promises. Sarai and Abram attempt to receive God’s promised child through their own scheme. In this case, by marrying Abram to an Egyptian servant girl. The resulting pregnancy, though, leads to harsh conflict and a surprising revelation from the Lord to Hagar. Her son Ishmael will not be the child of the promise, though he will become a great nation, and his people will live in conflict with everyone. Abram and Sarai will continue to wait for the arrival of their own son.
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“Genesis 16:15” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 16:15-16
15 Hagar bore a son for Abram. Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. 16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.
Context Summary
Genesis 17:1–14 describes God’s appearance to a 99-year-old Abram. Again God confirms His expansive covenant promises: to make Abram a father of nations and to give to him and his offspring the land of Canaan. At this time, God even changes Abram’s name to Abraham to mark the occasion. This time, though, the repetition of the promise comes with God’s requirements for Abraham: walk with me, be blameless, and circumcise yourself and every male of your household from now through every generation in the future.
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“Genesis 17:8” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 17:8
8 I will give to you, and to your offspring after you, the land where you are traveling, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession. I will be their God.”
Context Summary
Genesis 18:22–33 describes Abraham’s negotiation with the Lord for the city of Sodom, where his nephew Lot and his family live. Previously, God spoke from a poetic human perspective, saying that He would judge Sodom and Gomorrah if their sins were as awful as they seemed. Here, Abraham recoils at the idea that the Lord would annihilate righteous people along with the wicked, beginning a sort of negotiation with God. Of course, God does not need to negotiate with man, and already knows how depraved Sodom is. This conversation with Abraham has nothing to do with changing God’s mind; it has everything to do with proving, beyond all doubt, that God’s actions here are just. God says He will spare Sodom for the sake of just ten righteous people; later passages show the city fails that test.
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“Genesis 18:32” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 18:32
32 He said, “Oh don’t let the Lord be angry, and I will speak just once more. What if ten are found there?”
He said, “I will not destroy it for the ten’s sake.
Context Summary
Genesis 19:23–29 describes the utter destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah with sulfur and fire. Based on prior descriptions in the book of Genesis, this devastation is both overdue and well-deserved. The Lord’s judgment wipes out the cities, all of the valley, all of the people, and all of the vegetation. God demonstrates that He will judge humans for their sinfulness when the time is right. He also demonstrates His grace and mercy, however, remembering His promises to Abraham in rescuing Abraham’s nephew Lot.
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“Genesis 19:24” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 19:24
24 Then Yahweh rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah sulfur and fire from Yahweh out of the sky.
Context Summary
Genesis 20:1–18 describes what happens when Abraham once again moves to a new place and insists on lying that Sarah is merely his sister and not his wife. Abimelech, the king of Gerar, takes Sarah as one of his wives. He is soon struck with an illness and visited in a dream with a warning from God that he will die if he doesn’t return Sarah to Abraham and if Abraham doesn’t pray for him. Sarah is returned untouched, Abraham prays, and all are healed.
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“Genesis 20:14” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 20:14
14 Abimelech took sheep and cattle, male servants and female servants, and gave them to Abraham, and restored Sarah, his wife, to him.
Context Summary
Genesis 21:8–21 describes the painful departure of Hagar and Ishmael from Abraham’s life. Now that Isaac is born, Sarah furiously demands that Abraham cast them out. He is greatly displeased, but is told by God that Ishmael will be protected and blessed. So Abraham obeys the Lord and sends them into the wilderness. God steps in and saves the mother and child. He renews his promise to make Ishmael a great nation in his own right. Ishmael grows up in the wilderness, eventually marrying an Egyptian woman.
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“Genesis 21:18” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 21:18
18 Get up, lift up the boy, and hold him with your hand. For I will make him a great nation.”
Context Summary
Genesis 22:1–19 takes place over the course of a few days, when Isaac is perhaps a teenager. God commands Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son as a burnt offering. Abraham sets out to obey without hesitation, acting in complete trust that God, somehow, will make all things right. Abraham stops the sacrifice only when the Lord intervenes. For his deep trust and obedience, the Lord renews and emphasizes His blessing on Abraham and his
offspring, as well as promising to bless all nations through Abraham’s descendants.
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“Genesis 22:12” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 22:12
12 He said, “Don’t lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him. For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”
Context Summary
Genesis 23:1–20 begins with the death of Abraham’s wife Sarah at 127 years of age. That makes Abraham 137 years old and Isaac around 37. Abraham mourns for his wife and then approaches the Hittites settled in the region of Hebron about purchasing a permanent family burial place near Mamre. Once that transaction is completed, Abraham buries Sarah in the tomb where he himself and their son and one grandson will later be buried.
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“Genesis 23:11” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 23:11
11 “No, my lord, hear me. I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. In the presence of the children of my people I give it to you. Bury your dead.”
Context Summary
Genesis 24:60–67 describes how, after being blessed and sent away by her family, Rebekah journeys to the land of Canaan. Arriving in the Negeb, she is met by her future husband Isaac and given the tent of his late mother Sarah. Soon, they are married, taking their place as the next generation of God’s chosen people.
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“Genesis 24:67” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 24:67
67 Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife. He loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.
Context Summary
Genesis 25:19–28 describes the birth of Isaac and Rebekah’s twin boys. After marrying when Isaac is 40, Rebekah does not become pregnant for 20 years, and only in response to Isaac’s prayer to the Lord. Her pregnancy is so difficult that she approaches the Lord to ask why. His response is a prophecy about the divided nations that will come from her. That makes more sense when two children are born, one red and hairy, the other grabbing his brother’s heel. The first is named Esau, who becomes a hunter loved by his father. The second is Jacob, a quiet, stay-at-home man favored by his mother.
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“Genesis 25:23” Bibleref.com
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Genesis 25:23
23 Yahweh said to her, “Two nations are in your womb. Two peoples will be separated from your body. The one people will be stronger than the other people. The elder will serve the younger.”
