Genesis: A Commentary for Bible Students - Hardcover

Wilbur G Williams

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 089827205X ISBN 13: 9780898272055

Publisher: Wesleyan Publishing House, 2000

Synopsis

One of the ways we might refer to the book of Genesis is the book of beginnings. It starts with the creation of the universe, after which God created the human pair from whom all peoples of the world have come. Genesis provides insights as to how sin came into the world, under what circumstances the people of Israel became God's covenant people, and how Israel's God is not simply a local deity or tribal god.

Throughout the book of Genesis, we learn that God wanted the people created in His image to know about Him. He demonstrates His desire for fellowship with humankind. He met people where they were and drew them toward himself, no matter how far humans strayed from God's plan. God also showed that He could not make a treaty with sin and that sin carries a punishment with it. God also proved He is a covenant God, one who gives and keeps His word.

Author Wilbur Williams brings scholarly support as well as archeological support to the validity of the biblical record. Dr. Williams shares his enthusiasm for the way that archeological discoveries verify the details of Genesis. As he presents the story of God and humanity from the book of Genesis, we are able to understand a bit more about God and ourselves.

An excellent resource for personal study, and especially helpful for those involved in the teaching ministries of the church, the Wesleyan Bible Study Commentary series will encourage and promote life change in believers by applying God's authoritative truth in relevant, practical ways. Written in an easy-to-follow format, you will enjoy studying Scripture insights that are faithful to the Wesleyan-Armenian perspective.

About this title

About the Author:

Wilbur Glenn Williams has been a professor of Biblical Literature and Archaeology at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana, for the past 32 years. Every year he takes groups to the Bible lands to tour the sites made famous by Jesus and dig at xcavations of such cities as Jerusalem, Carthage, Megiddo and Hazor. Altogether he has traveled to Isreal over 95 times. Dr. Williams lives in Marion, Indiana, with his wife Ardelia.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.:

Author's Preface For thirty-three years, I have taught an introductory course in Old Testament to beginning university students. Of the thousands that have taken the course, all have taken on a semester project of some type. Most have chosen to write an appraisal paper on "What I thought about the Old Testament, and what I now think about it." For this assignment, they have been expected to write the first half at the beginning of their study and the remainder a week before the end of the course. Most of the papers have begun something like this: "I set my mind to read the entire New Testament, but I soon got bogged down with all the geneologies of Genesis 10 and 11. I gave up the project, going back to the New Testament. Some students testified that they made it through Genesis, but could not get past the antiquated laws and ordinances beginning in Exodus 21, followed by all the tedious descriptions of the Tabernacle and its fittings and furniture. Admittedly, casual readers struggle to read the Old Testament and find connections between all its books. Casual readers do not quite grasp why a prophet wrote what he did, since they do not know how to connect those writings to historical information given in the books of Kings and Chronicles. Even when reading Genesis, people cannot understand why God would allow His people to participate in what appear to be pagan practices by people of faith. To make the Old Testament a more approachable book has been part of my lifelong quest. But of all the Old Testament books, the most difficult book to grasp fully in significant ways has been the book of Genesis. Why? First, there are great differences between the cultural practices of the times of the patriarchs and those of our time. Those differences involve multiple wives (29:21-30), marriage to close relatives (20:12), favoritism within the family causing deception and rivalry (25:28; 27:2-40), servitude that bordered on slavery (29:24, 29), and the almost absolute exploitation of women (19:8). Second, Genesis is a book that compressed the most amount of time in its coverage. And great gaps of time exist between chapters and verses. For example, thirteen years transpire between the events of chapters 16 and 17. Twenty years occur between verses 20 and 26 of chapter 25. Hundreds of years pass between the end of Genesis and the beginning of Exodus. But the greatest span of time is encompassed in the first eleven chapters, chronicling the period from the Creation to the life of Abraham. Unfortunately for us, God did not reveal definitively the amount of time involved in this period. God gave only a skeletal outline of the world's history to the time of the patriarchs. From there, relatively speaking, He allowed events to slow to a crawl so all could see how He worked to make salvation possible for all the world. In graduate school, I chose to study under Jewish professors. I hoped that these descendents of those to whom God chose to give the truth could help me glean additional nuances of meaning from Hebrew thought and expression. I am grateful for their teaching. I hope some of what I learned comes through to the reader of this book. I have not attempted to be overly technical but have sought to clarify the depth of meaning in and behind the text. I have tried to discover the heart of God as He expresses it in the pages of Genesis. He patiently worked with people prone to influence from pagan customs, those who gave in to the pull of sin, those who repeatedly moved away from Him. With undying love and faithful leadership, God worked so steadily to bring Abraham to a level of faith that could be reckoned to him as righteousness (15:6). God enabled Isaac to live a sufficiently peaceful life through the unfaltering obedience of Abraham (25:11). Jacob, ever more crafty and more prone to deception, finally quit trying to manipulate others when, in anticipation of meeting Esau, he met the Lord instead. God changed his grasping inner nature. I prayerfully hope that readers of this commentary will also meet the Lord and be changed by the experience. In appreciation for assistance in the composition of this book, my deepest gratitude goes to Dr. Phil Bence, who often challenged my assumptions, gave invaluable advice, made constructive suggestions, and helped me to give a more cohesive presentation of the truth. My gratitude also goes to Darlene Teague and Kelly Trennepohl, who unfailingly read the manuscript with patient, word-by-word scrutiny to improve expressions and keep verb tesnse uniform, thereby greatly improving the readability of the book. Above all, though, no small part of this work has come from God's help in the thoughts, ideas, and expressins that have been prayerfully inserted. I pray you approve; more yet, I pray He approves. Wilbur G. Williams Marion, Indiana

About this edition

• Publisher: Wesleyan Publishing House
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 089827205X
• ISBN 13: 9780898272055
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 324