1. Genesis - Asimov's Guide to Bible
Chapter 1 of Genesis describes the creation of the world and everything in it.
- God creates the heavens and the earth. The phrase "In the beginning" is a translation of the Hebrew word bereshith, which is the title of the first book of the Bible.
- The first book of the Bible is also called "The First Book of Moses, Called Genesis".
- The Hebrew word translated as God in Genesis is Elohim, which is a plural form that could be translated as "gods".
- The creation is described as taking place over six days.
- On the seventh day, God rested and established the Sabbath.
- The first 34 verses of Genesis are carefully and beautifully written.
There are two versions of the creation story in Genesis. The first version, referred to as the "P version," includes the creation of the world in six days. In the second version, the "J version," God does not call humans into being through spoken command but forms them from clay and breathes life into them. The J version is considered more primitive than the P version. The P version of the creation story is considered to have been put into final form by priestly hands after the Exile.
The Garden of Eden is mentioned as a place east of the land of Canaan. The geographical references in Genesis must refer to the situation in the 9th to 5th centuries BC. The garden is planted in the land of Eden and the location of that land is the focal point of reference of the Biblical story. The Bible refers to Eden several times, and not as a mystical primeval site.
The chapter also discusses the four rivers of Eden: Pison, Gihon, Hiddekel, and Euphrates. The Euphrates is known as a "great river". The Hiddekel is the Hebrew version of the Assyrian "id-di-ik-lat" and is described as "toward the east of Assyria". The rivers mentioned imply that the location of Eden might be in eastern Turkey.
The chapter also presents the creation of man, Adam (which means "man-kind"), and woman as a companion, Eve (or Havvah), who is named "mother of all living.". The serpent is introduced as a creature that manipulates Eve into disobeying God's command not to eat from the tree of knowledge. As a result of their disobedience, God drives them out of the garden.
- The story of Cain and Abel is introduced. Cain, a tiller of the ground, kills his brother Abel, a keeper of sheep. Cain is then driven away to the land of Nod, which means "wanderer".
- The chapter concludes with a brief genealogy, starting with Adam and the descendants of Seth. The ages of the patriarchs are also listed.
