The Jacob narrative is bookended by his time in Bethel. It is in Bethel, when he is fleeing from his brother Esau that he receives a vision of a ladder between Heaven and Earth on which angels of God were ascending and descending (Gen. 28:12). Most commentators understand this not as a ladder as we … Continue reading The Covenant with Jacob (Gen. 28:10-36:43)
Scripture Commentary
The Continuation of the Covenant Under Isaac (Gen. 24:1-28:9)
The literary division of Genesis along the lines of generations (Heb. toledot) goes from 25:19 until the end of ch. 35, but narratively the focus shifts at 28:10 from Isaac and his immediate family to his son Jacob in particular. In the Genesis narrative, the account of Jacob provides the pivotal connection between the patriarchal … Continue reading The Continuation of the Covenant Under Isaac (Gen. 24:1-28:9)
The Covenant with Abraham (Gen. 12-22)
There are multiple episodes in the development of God’s covenant with Abraham, but they should be treated as all part of one covenant. In international diplomacy, the sum total of multiple agreements between two covenant-making parties—larger agreements and smaller ones, formal and informal, and precedents set in the history of relations between two parties—is known … Continue reading The Covenant with Abraham (Gen. 12-22)
Renewed Rebellion and the Tower of Babel (Gen. 11:1-9)
Sandwiched between the genealogies of Noah’s sons and the specific line of Shem is the short, but noteworthy, account of the Tower of Babel. This account shows the advancement of God’s Covenant of Grace despite man’s resistance to the contrary, and marks the transition to God’s direct redemptive activity. The account of the Tower of … Continue reading Renewed Rebellion and the Tower of Babel (Gen. 11:1-9)
Reading the Genealogies (Gen. 9:18-11:32)
It is undeniable that the genealogical lists in Scripture can seem boring. But, rightly understood, they do have both a narrative and a covenantal significance in several ways. Narratively, they give a sense of time, space, and relational context. The Genesis 5 genealogy, for example, describes the growth of human families, whereas the Genesis 10 … Continue reading Reading the Genealogies (Gen. 9:18-11:32)
