The Joseph narrative is the longest in Genesis, occupying nearly a quarter of the book by itself. The length may be due to the fact that this narrative would have been the most relevant to God’s people as they came out of Egypt, connecting the covenant promises God gave to the patriarchs with the fulfillment … Continue reading Joseph, the Bridge Between the Abrahamic and Mosaic Covenants (Gen. 37-50)
Abrahamic Covenant
The Covenant with Jacob (Gen. 28:10-36:43)
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)
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)
