Genesis is characterised by an obsession with land and mad logic. Most conflicts and dramas revolve around land and obscure justifications for ownership. It usually involves two protagonists being equally obtuse followed by weeping and making up. From a feminist perspective, women folk are treated pretty shoddily - but then again, these were more barbaric times so maybe that's OK.
Authorship
The bible is known to be a hodgepodge of made up myths concocted by evil monks and noblemen claiming to be receiving message straight from God himself. So in a sense this is the word of God. Art can be art as long as you're calling it art. And sadly for the skeptics and the haters, there will never be a definitive 'yes this really is the word of god.' It is up to us to make the leap of faith, which Christ so often reiterated. We can never be really sure, but if it feels right, do it. So we read the stories, accept that some of them are folklore, some are history and just try and force it all together and see if we can find God pouring out of the cracks. There are no right or wrong answers.
Point
If I was looking to Genesis for guidance on spiritual living and how to become closer to God, I would assume that this would involve slaughtering animals and my enemies, pretending my wife was my sister (or vice-versa), and deceiving my brothers out of their birthrights.
Jacob and Esau are a bizarre case in point. Born as twins to Isaac, these fellows are a key point in the lineage of the Hebrew people. At birth, mother Rebekah is warned there are two nations in her belly. When they are born, Esau is Esau because he is red and hairy (like an angry clay hedgehog) and Jacob is Jacob (because he grasps his brother's heel). Straight away, I don't know who to side with. Then it is revealed that Esau is the manly outdoor type who hunts for game while Jacob sits at home with his mother baking. Then, Esau comes home hungry and says, I need some stew. Jacob says, here, have some of my stew, but only if you give me your birthright. Esau says, that's not really on, but I am really hungry, and the deal is done. The conclusion is that Esau is a bad man for giving his birthright up so easily. Yet, surely Jacob is the wrong one for exploiting his brother's hunger.
Next, aided by his mother, Jacob wears an animals pelt to appear like his hairy brother so that his dying blind father blesses him with Esau's birthright. Esau is a bit annoyed with this and Jacob runs away. But eventually comes back and they are all pals. In the mean time, God appears to Jacob in the night and they wrestle. Little is said about this bit but I quite enjoyed it. (Was a bit like when someone who's been out the story for ages in WWE suddenly reappears and you don't see it coming.) Anyway, all in all, Jacob is the winner in all this and goes on to sire the mighty Joseph.
Joseph
This character seems almost as important in the scheme of things as someone like Moses. He gets a lot of column space. Seems his position in our modern culture as a Jason Donavon impersonator seems to have mired his gravitas slightly. Again, his story is about being deceived by his brothers, going to a foreign land, becoming a powerful force in the economy, meeting his brothers, tormenting them, then forgiving them and weeping. Key phrases for me were:
43:17 They (Joseph's catering staff) served (Joseph) by himself, the brothers by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because Egyptians could not eat with Hebrews, for that is detestable to Egyptians.
48:17 When Joseph saw his father placing his hand on Ephraim's head he was displeased; so he took hold of his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. 18 Joseph said to him, "No, my father, this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head." 19 But his father refused.
Other observances from Genesis:
17:5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you the father of many nations.
(Much like when in Brazil, little Ronaldo becomes known as Ronaldinho)
19:34 The next day, the older daughter said to the younger, "Last night I slept with my father. Let's get him to drink wine tonight, and you go in and sleep with him so we can preserve our family line through him."
30:14 During wheat harvest, Reuben went out into the fields and found some mandrake plants, which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, "Please give me some of your son's mandrakes." 15 But she said to her, "Wasn't it enough that you took away my husband? Will you take my sons mandrakes?"
Conclusion
Do not look here for spiritual guidance. Do look here for the bizarre idiomatic foundations of Judeo-Christianity.
Authorship
The bible is known to be a hodgepodge of made up myths concocted by evil monks and noblemen claiming to be receiving message straight from God himself. So in a sense this is the word of God. Art can be art as long as you're calling it art. And sadly for the skeptics and the haters, there will never be a definitive 'yes this really is the word of god.' It is up to us to make the leap of faith, which Christ so often reiterated. We can never be really sure, but if it feels right, do it. So we read the stories, accept that some of them are folklore, some are history and just try and force it all together and see if we can find God pouring out of the cracks. There are no right or wrong answers.
Point
If I was looking to Genesis for guidance on spiritual living and how to become closer to God, I would assume that this would involve slaughtering animals and my enemies, pretending my wife was my sister (or vice-versa), and deceiving my brothers out of their birthrights.
Jacob and Esau are a bizarre case in point. Born as twins to Isaac, these fellows are a key point in the lineage of the Hebrew people. At birth, mother Rebekah is warned there are two nations in her belly. When they are born, Esau is Esau because he is red and hairy (like an angry clay hedgehog) and Jacob is Jacob (because he grasps his brother's heel). Straight away, I don't know who to side with. Then it is revealed that Esau is the manly outdoor type who hunts for game while Jacob sits at home with his mother baking. Then, Esau comes home hungry and says, I need some stew. Jacob says, here, have some of my stew, but only if you give me your birthright. Esau says, that's not really on, but I am really hungry, and the deal is done. The conclusion is that Esau is a bad man for giving his birthright up so easily. Yet, surely Jacob is the wrong one for exploiting his brother's hunger.
Next, aided by his mother, Jacob wears an animals pelt to appear like his hairy brother so that his dying blind father blesses him with Esau's birthright. Esau is a bit annoyed with this and Jacob runs away. But eventually comes back and they are all pals. In the mean time, God appears to Jacob in the night and they wrestle. Little is said about this bit but I quite enjoyed it. (Was a bit like when someone who's been out the story for ages in WWE suddenly reappears and you don't see it coming.) Anyway, all in all, Jacob is the winner in all this and goes on to sire the mighty Joseph.Joseph
This character seems almost as important in the scheme of things as someone like Moses. He gets a lot of column space. Seems his position in our modern culture as a Jason Donavon impersonator seems to have mired his gravitas slightly. Again, his story is about being deceived by his brothers, going to a foreign land, becoming a powerful force in the economy, meeting his brothers, tormenting them, then forgiving them and weeping. Key phrases for me were:
43:17 They (Joseph's catering staff) served (Joseph) by himself, the brothers by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because Egyptians could not eat with Hebrews, for that is detestable to Egyptians.
48:17 When Joseph saw his father placing his hand on Ephraim's head he was displeased; so he took hold of his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. 18 Joseph said to him, "No, my father, this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head." 19 But his father refused.
Other observances from Genesis:
17:5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you the father of many nations.
(Much like when in Brazil, little Ronaldo becomes known as Ronaldinho)
19:34 The next day, the older daughter said to the younger, "Last night I slept with my father. Let's get him to drink wine tonight, and you go in and sleep with him so we can preserve our family line through him."
30:14 During wheat harvest, Reuben went out into the fields and found some mandrake plants, which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, "Please give me some of your son's mandrakes." 15 But she said to her, "Wasn't it enough that you took away my husband? Will you take my sons mandrakes?"
Conclusion
Do not look here for spiritual guidance. Do look here for the bizarre idiomatic foundations of Judeo-Christianity.
