The Universal Story: Genesis 1–11 (Transformative Word)

by Dru Johnson

Publishers:

Lexham Press; St. George’s Centre

, 2018

The Universal Story

The opening chapters of Genesis tell us the story of how humans relate to our world—and to God.

Genesis 1-11 is a parade of stories of humanity intertwined with the most intriguing subjects we still wrestle with today: the beginning of the cosmos, the nature of humanity, family, sex, deceit, death, murder, mass murder, ecology, agriculture, urbanization, and more.

In The Universal Story, Dru Johnson shows how Genesis 1–11 is written in a way that informs the rest of biblical history—including the exodus, the kings of Israel, the exile, the Gospels, and early church. Genesis 1–11 presents a story of humanity that seeks to explain the background of every human endeavor. It is the universal story—the story of stories—because it is a story about how all of these things came to be the way the Hebrews understood them to be. These bizarre and ancient stories frame the story of God and His plan for earth and humanity. Through these stories, God speaks and pleads with us. Let us learn how to listen and hear God’s voice well in Genesis 1–11 and throughout the rest of Scripture.

Praise for The Universal Story

Johnson's short exploration of Genesis 1-11 is at once biblical, illuminating, provocative, and insightful. Readers will encounter the biblical text of Genesis and the ways it drives us to consider what it means to be human and living in God’s world today. With relevant explorations on sex, technology, power, sin, death, and life, this is a book to which I shall return regularly. Highly recommended!

–Dr. Heath A. Thomas, dean, Herschel H. Hobbs College of Theology; professor of Old Testament, Oklahoma Baptist University

Top Highlights

“Unlike the first man and the patriarchs, Joseph is the only male in Genesis that doesn’t listen to a woman with a wayward desire. When Potiphar’s wife seeks him sexually ‘day by day’ (compare Gen 3:17; 16:2–3; 27:8; 39:10), he refuses to listen to her on the principle of his entrusted position.” (Page 9)

“It might surprise us that God diagnoses the problem, not as eating the fruit, but as the man shifting his trust to the woman who, by implication, is listening to the serpent.” (Page 50)

“We must consider that, of the millions of details and stories that the biblical authors could have included in these texts, they chose these details and these stories to relate the story of the universe to us. Hence, we should submit to the wisdom of the biblical author, knowing that God speaks to us through these stories and not the ones we wish he had told.” (Page 3)

“However, the ‘image of God’ plays a special role in Genesis 1–11, not just identifying the form that humans are created in, but also referring to our role on earth. First, the image of God includes our commission: fruitfulness and care of creation. Second, as Leon Kass puts it, ‘Human beings really are different from and higher than the other animals; and only the human animal could be called god-like.’¹⁰ Third, in the very first giving of a statute, our image is the basis for human dignity, requiring recompense when humans are murdered (see Gen 9:6). Surprisingly, being created in God’s image is not defined in Genesis in terms of our rational capacities. Rather, the image of God gives humanity both a different status and culpability among the creatures in the world.” (Page 26)

The Transformative Word Series

God’s Word is transformative. It is this conviction which gives the Transformative Word series its name and its unique character. Series Editor Craig G. Bartholomew has worked alongside authors from around the world to identify a key theme in each book of the Bible, and each volume provides careful Biblical exegesis centered on that gripping theme. The result is an engaging, accessible thematic exploration of a biblical book, poised to offer you new and refreshing insights.

Learn more about the other titles in this series.

Contents

• Introduction
• Genesis 1–11 and the Rest of Scripture
• The Lineage of the Universe
• Humans, Always in Relation
• Humans Shift Their Trust
• God Publically Commits Himself to the World
• Fame and Nations
• Genesis 1–11 in the World of Science
• Genesis 1–11 in the World of Ethics

Product Details

• Title: The Universal Story: Genesis 1–11
• Author: Dru Johnson
• Series: Transformative Word
• Publisher: Lexham Press
• Publication Date: 2018
• Pages: 136
• Format: Logos Digital, Paperback
• Trim Size: 5x8
• ISBN: 9781683590712

About Dru Johnson

About Dru Johnson

Dru Johnson (Ph.D. University of Saint Andrews–Scotland) is associate professor of biblical and theological studies at The King’s College in New York City. He is currently a research fellow in the Logos Institute at the University of St Andrews (Scotland) and formerly the co-chair for the Hebrew Bible and Philosophy program unit in the Society of Biblical Literature. He has taught in Western Kenya, Guatemala, and Brazil. He is currently ordained in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and worships at Comunidade Cristã Presbiteriana in Newark, NJ.