Since the Beginning: Interpreting Genesis 1 and 2 through the Ages

by Kyle R. Greenwood

Publisher:

Baker Academic

, 2018

Overview

Few passages in the Hebrew Bible have been subject to more scrutiny than Genesis 1 and 2. In this volume, a diverse international team of experts guides readers through interpretations of the Genesis creation stories throughout history, inviting readers to consider perspectives from the earliest times to the present.

Written with the capabilities and needs of students in mind, this book offers an accurate description of how Genesis 1 and 2 have been read through the centuries and explains each interpretive approach in its own terms. Each chapter includes sidebars and suggestions for further reading. Since the Beginning is well suited for courses on the Old Testament, Genesis and creation, the history of interpretation, and science and religion. It will also appeal to teachers, pastors, and others following the creation debates and discussions.

Key Features

• Presents eleven detailed essays examining varying aspects on Genesis 1-2
• Examines Second Temple and New Testament interpretations of Genesis 1-2
• Brings together a range of leading scholars on Genesis and Old Testament interpretation

Contents

• Old Testament Reverberations of Genesis 1-2 by Kyle R. Greenwood
• Interpretations of Genesis 1-2 in Second Temple Jewish Literature by Michael D. Matlock
• New Testament Appropriations of Genesis 1-2 by Ira Brent Driggers
• Early Rabbinic Interpretations of Genesis 1-2 by Joel S. Allen
• Interpretations of Genesis 1-2 among the Ante-Nicene Fathers by Stephen O. Presley
• Interpretations of Genesis 1-2 among the Nicene and Post-Nicene by Fathers C. Rebecca Rine
• Medieval Jewish Interpretations of Genesis 1-2 by Jason Kalman
• Medieval Christian Interpretations of Genesis 1-2 by Timothy Bellamah, OP
• Interpretations of Genesis 1-2 among the Protestant Reformers by Jennifer Powell McNutt
• Rediscovery of the Ancient Near East and Its Implications for Genesis 1-2 by David T. Tsumura
• Post-Darwinian Interpretations of Genesis 1-2 by Aaron T. Smith

Praise for the Print Edition

Kyle Greenwood's volume provides students with a highly useful resource for studying both the background and the afterlife of the first two chapters of Genesis. The volume ably demonstrates that 'literal' readings are hardly ever univocal.

—William P. Brown, William Marcellus McPheeters Professor of Old Testament, Columbia Theological Seminary

The creation narratives found in the first chapters of Genesis have been foundational for Judaism and Christianity, and indeed for Western culture more broadly, for millennia. This volume gathers together excellent studies by leading scholars who offer insight into how Judaism and Christianity have drawn nourishment from these texts and, in so doing, show us how they can continue to stimulate our lives and faith.

—Fr. John Behr, Fr. Georges Florovsky Distinguished Professor of Patristics, St. Vladimir's Seminary

One important role scholars have is putting information on the table for consideration. In our time, this is crucial for the early chapters of Genesis. As the relationship between science and the Bible is under constant discussion, many think that a long-standing consensus in church history is being challenged. In this book, however, readers discover that this perceived consensus is actually a controversy that has stretched throughout the history of interpretation. Here they discover various voices and interpretations that have characterized the discussion--always in the context of today's issues. Such valuable information gives us pause before concluding that Christianity has always been of one mind about these issues. This is an extremely important volume that elegantly addresses these fundamental questions.

—John H. Walton, professor of Old Testament, Wheaton College

Product Details

• Title: Since the Beginning: Interpreting Genesis 1 and 2 through the Ages
• Editor: Kyle R. Greenwood
• Publisher: Baker Academic
• Publication Date: 2018
• Pages: 336
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Topic: Biblical Theology

About Kyle R. Greenwood

Kyle R. Greenwood (PhD, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion) has taught at Colorado Christian University and Denver Seminary. He is the author of Scripture and Cosmology: Reading the Bible between the Ancient World and Modern Science.