Genesis Questions
Interpretation,
Significance, Application
Questions raised on the
reading of sections of Wenham's and Fretheim's
Genesis Commentaries
Word Processing Printing
11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20,
21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30,
31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40,
41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50
Genesis 1 Back to Top
1. If Genesis opens the Torah ("law"),
what does that tell us about the nature
of the Torah based on
the contents of Genesis? Is the law to
be
understood as all commandments? What other elements are important
to the Torah?
(Wenham, 1:5)
2. How are Genesis 1:1-2 and Genesis 2:1-3
connected? (Wenham, 1:5)
3. Wenham notes the number 7 seems to be
significant in Genesis 1-2:3 not
only in the day count but also "God" is
mentioned 35 times, "earth"
-21 times, "and it was so" seven times,
etc. How significant are these
statistics and what is their significance? (Wenham, 1:6)
4. Does the phrase "This is the story
of" or "This is the account of" usually
begin or end a storyline (Gen. 2:4)? Where elsewhere is that phrase
found in Genesis and what is its significance as a
literary feature?
(Wenham, 1:6)
5. What elements of structure do each of the
days have in common?
What is the significance of that structure? [For example each day
begins with a divine announcement: "And God said"] (Wenham, 1:6)
6. Which days have a doubled divine announcement
and a double approval
formula? What
is the possible significance of that? (Wenham, 1:6)
(Gen. 1)
7. What correspondences do you see between days
1 and 3; 2 and 4; and 3
and 6? How
could you diagram these correspondences?
What sense
do these correspondences leave with the reader (Gen.
1)?
(Wenham, 1:7)
8. How do the days of Genesis move between the
"two poles" of the heaven
and earth?
Where does the crossover take place?
(Wenham, 1:7)
(Gen. 1)
9. How is the seventh day set off from the other
six days? How is it bonded
to the beginning 1:1-2? What is an inclusio and how is it used in
literature? (Wenham, 1:7)
10. What are the similarities and differences
between the cosmology and
creation account in Genesis 1 and the Enuma Elish
(Babylonian ca.
1100 BC) and the Epic of Atrahasis (
What are the similarities and differences with the
Egyptian "Teaching
of King Merikare" (ca. 2200 B.C.)? (Wenham,
1:8f) (Gen. 1)
11. In what ways is Genesis 1 a polemic against
the myths about the gods of
the Ancient Near East? For example: in ANE man is an afterthought
created to work and provide food for the gods; in Genesis 1 man is
the goal and God provides him food. (cf. Hasel; Wenham, 1:9)
12. How is the creation described and utilized
elsewhere in Scripture (cf. Ps.
8, 136, 148; Prov. 8:22-3; Isa. 45:18; and Job
38)? How do the
accounts compare and contrast? How are the shaped by their
difference contexts?
(Wenham, 1:10)
13. What is the relationship of Gen. 1:1, 1:2 and
1:3? Is 1:1 a subordinate
clause to the main clause in 1:2 or 1:3? Is 1:1 a title for 1:2-30? Is
1:1 the main clause describing the first action
which is elaborated on
in 1:2-30?
How do the different translations indicate how they
interpret the connection between 1:1 and 1:2 (cf.
NIV/NASB/NLT
and the NEB/NRSV/TEV)? What difference do these
different
approaches have on how the text is describing the
creation of the
world? (Wenham, 1:11f)
14. Who is the only subject of the verb
"create" (bara) in the Old
Testament?
Does the fact that the word for create (bara) does not ever
state the material God made things out of prove
creation ex nihilo (out
of nothing)?
Cf. Ps 148:5; Prov. 8:22ff; Ps. 33:6. (Wenham, 1:14)
(Gen. 1:1)
15. Why is the title Elohim for God used in Genesis
1 and not Yahweh
(LORD)?
(Wenham, 1:15)
16. How does the God of Genesis 1 who acts and
speaks differ from a more
abstract philosophically conceived God? (Wenham,
1:15)
17. How is God's relationship to the world
founded and described in
Genesis 1? How is God's sovereignty demonstrated?
18. What major attribute of God is manifested in
Genesis 1?
19. "Heaven and earth" is a merismus
using two words to describe a totality.
What are some merismus phrases we use
in English? (Wenham, 1:15)
(Gen. 1:1)
20. Should Genesis 1:2 be taken as "The
Spirit of God," "the breath of
God," "a divine wind" or "a
mighty wind"? Compare which
translations support which reading (NIV/NRSV/New
English
Bible/New American Bible/New
does it make?
(Wenham, 1:16f)
21. How often does the phrase "And God
said" occur in Genesis 1?
What is the significance of the phrase
in relation to the creation
account? How
is the speaking of things into being developed
elsewhere in Scripture (Ps. 33:6; Jn. 1:1ff) (Wenham
1:17f)
22. What does the approval formula "and God
saw it was good" imply
about the person and character of God?
(Wenham, 1:18) (Gen. 1)
23. What kinds of things did God
"separate" in Genesis 1? What
does
that process have to do with the
ordering of the cosmos?
(Wenham, 1:18f)
24. In God's subsequent word after creating, he
either names something
or blesses it. What does that tell us about the character
and work
of God in relation to what has already
been created (Gen. 1)?
(Wenham, 1:19)
25. How long are the days of Genesis 1? How does what is described in
Genesis 1 fit with scientific
discoveries on the origin and evolution of
the universe?
Is the point of the author to give us a scientific
description of creation? What is the emphasis and direction the
original author is wanting to take his reader? What indications are
there in Gen. 1 itself as to the length of the days
beyond the diverse
meanings of the word "day [yom]" itself?
26. Wenham says "The Bible-versus-science
debate has, most regrettably,
sidetracked readers of Gen. 1. Instead of reading the chapter as the
triumphant affirmation of the power and wisdom of
God and the
wonder of his creation, we have been too often
bogged down in
attempting to squeeze Scripture into the mold of the
latest scientific
hypothesis or distorting scientific facts to fit a
particular
interpretation." Do you agree or disagree and why? (Wenham, 1:40)
26. How are the words used for the divine
commands paralleled with the
fulfillments (Gen. 1)? What does that reinforce? (Wenham, 1:20)
27. The third day of creation was different in
what way? Creative activity
often needs to be followed by what kind of
activity? (Wenham, 1:20)
Chaos to cosmos involves what two types of
activities (Gen. 1:14ff)?
28. How did the Hebrews view the watery depths
and oceans (Gen. 1:20ff)?
(Wenham, 1:20)
29. What are the implications of God making
things each after their kind
(Gen. 1)?
What roles do ordering and separating play in the creation
account? What
are the moral implications of things being made after
their own kind for modern biotech research on
cloning and stem cell
research (cf. Lev. 19:19; Deut 22:9-11). How is the question a
complex one?
(Wenham, 1:21)
30. Why was day four described in so much more
detail that any of the
other days but day six (cf. ANE [Ancient Near East])
(Gen. 1:14ff)?
(Wenham, 1:21)
31. How do the functions of "divide",
"rule" and "give light" pattern
themselves in Genesis 1:14-18? (Wenham, 1:22)
32.
From a Canaanite mythology perspective, why would the creation of the
great sea creatures be mentioned using the word
"create" (bara) for the
first time since 1:1 (cf. also Jer 51:34; Isa. 27:1;
51:9; Ps 74:13; Job
7:12)?
(Wenham, 1:24)
33. Besides creating and ordering, God also
blesses in Gen. 1. Where
does the notion of divine blessing
show up in Genesis 1-12? In the
patriarchal narratives (Gen. 12-50)
who are the primary blessers
there? (Wenham, 1:24) What role does the blessing of a father play
in modern culture?
Who blesses today?
34. Why does God say "Let us" make man
in the plural instead of "let me"
(Gen. 1:26)?
[divine assembly, majesty, trinity, self-deliberation]
(Wenham, 1:27)
(cf. Job 38:4,7; Lk 2:13f)
35. What is meant by the terms "image"
and "likeness"? How are they
used elsewhere (Gen. 1:26)? (Wenham, 1:27) [distinct[natural/
supernatural faculties]; mental/spiritual qualities;
physical
resemblance; representative; capacity to
relate]. How does man being
made in God's image impact in our understanding of
humankind in
post-modern culture in such realms as human rights,
euthanasia,
cloning, the death penalty, love and war? What does this imply about
our interfacing with animals and with intelligent
machines? What
implication does the image have in our relationship
to God? Where
else in Scripture is the importance of God's image
in humankind
developed?
36. When is the actual name "Adam"
introduced in the different translations
(cf. KJV, NRSV, TEV and
determining when his name is first used? (Wenham,
1:32)
37. How is fruitfulness seen as a blessing
throughout Genesis? How do
the genealogies and patriarchal
blessing fit into that? How does the
idea of multiplying and being fruitful fit with the
global population
explosion?
Are we to be multiplying beyond our resources to
sustain life?
At what point does the blessing become a curse?
(Wenham, 1:33)
38. What was Adam and Eve's initial relationship
to the plant and animal
kingdoms (Gen. 1)? How does that change after the fall? How does
Noah's building a boat to preserve all the animals
fit with modern
environmental concerns and human
responsibilities? (Wenham, 1:33)
39. In the Mesopotamian myths, man was created to
get food for the gods,
who supplies whom with food in Genesis
1? (Wenham, 1:33)
40. Why is Gen. 1:31 a bad place to break the
chapter? Who originally
broke the text there? How do 1:1 and 2:2-3 fit together?
(Wenham, 1:34f)
41. While the term "Sabbath" is not
used in Gen. 1-2 where else does this
notion come up in the Pentateuchal
materials? (Wenham, 1:36)
What does the Sabbath have to teach
post-modern culture? How
should it be understood today? Does the New Testament negate
or diminish its relevance? What does it mean to declare something
"holy" in Scripture?
42. How is Genesis 1 a polemic against the
polytheistic mythico-religious
worldview of the ancient Near East? What are the points of contact
and contrast? (Wenham, 1:37)
43. What does Genesis 1 tell us about the
essential nature of God? How
is God's relationship with humankind
initiated already in Genesis 1?
(Wenham, 1:37f)
44. How does Genesis 1 appear in the apostles
creed? (Wenham, 1:39)
45. How is Genesis 1-3 foundational to the
construction of biblical world
views? Is the
construction of biblical world views impacted as much
by Genesis 12-50
Genesis 2 Back to Top
46. What role does Gen. 2:4 play in the over all
structure of the
book of Genesis (cf. 6:9; 10:1; 11:27;
37:2; 5:1; 25:12)?
How is that phrase translated by the different
translations
and commentators?
47. Genesis 2-3 may be broken into the following
seven subunits:
1) 2:5-17; 2) 2:18-25; 3) 3:1-5; 4) 3:6-8; 5)
3:9-13; 6) 3:14-21;
7) 3:22-24.
Wenham suggests a palistrophic or mirror-image
style (1:51).
How are units 1 & 7; 2 & 6; 3 & 5 connected?
How does unit 4 stand as the center? How would you diagram
that out? What does such a literary construction say
about the unity
of the biblical text in contrast to a more
fragmentary stitched together
"sources" view?
48. What are the similarities and differences
between the Genesis 2
account and the Sumerian flood story,
Gilgamesh and Atrahasis epics?
Compare and contrast the Adapa
myth. (Wenham, 1:52) What
symbols are shared between Genesis and
the myths of the
ancient Near East?
49. How does Gen. 2-3 impact how one looks at
culture and the roots
of the history of humankind? What roots are seen in those
chapters that flower in the records of
history? How does Gen. 2-3
contrast with the world view of
post-modernism or secular
humanism?
50. How does Genesis 2-3 describe the human's
connection to the land?
What does Adam's name mean and how does that play
into a
paronomasia?
Did God/Adam speak Hebrew in the naming of Adam
in Gen. 2?
When did Hebrew as a language come into existence?
What role does dust/clay play in the rest of the
Bible? How will that
land theme be developed in the rest of Genesis? Does this land theme
connect with modern environmental concerns? (Wenham,
1:58f)
51. What modern philosophical schools emphasize
that man is mere
dust (Gen. 2)? (Wenham, 1:60) Which schools of thought emphasize
humans has having the divine breath?
52. What role does
symbolism? Where
was
53. What symbolic role do trees play in the
ancient Near East and in
the rest of Genesis and Bible (cf.
Gen. 2, Proverbs)? (Wenham, 1:62)
54. What is meant in Gen. 2 by "knowledge of
good and evil"
[consequences of obeying/disobeying, moral
discernment, sexual
knowledge, omniscience, human wisdom]. How does Ezek. 28 help
with a solution?
(Wenham, 1:63f)
55. What symbolic role do rivers play in
Scripture (cf. Gen. 2; Ezek. 47;
Rev. 22; Ps. 46:5)? What are the options for the Pishon and Gihon
rivers? How
are the geographical descriptions of the rivers like a
genealogy?
How does the reference to Ashur by the
the antiquity of the biblical account (pre-1400 BC)?
(Wenham, 1:65f)
56. In Gen. 2:18, God says man needs a
"helper". How is that term
used
elsewhere in Scripture? Is God himself ever called or viewed as
a helper? What does that statement show about God's
concern about
human needs?
Does the notion of "helper" mean woman was
under the authority of the man?
57. In Gen. 2:19 Adam names the animals? What role do names and
naming play in the stories in Genesis? (Wenham, 1:68)
58. What is learned about male/female
relationships from the description of
Eve's being "built" in Gen.
2:21-25? How is repetition, poetic
parallelism and word play used in Adam's enthusiasm
for his partner?
What other births have name word plays in
Genesis? Why is poetry
used instead of straight narrative? How does the marriage relationship
restructure other closest of relationships? In what aspects does
"oneness" play itself out in the marriage
relationship (physical,
mental, spiritual, emotional, kinship and economic,
etc.)?
(Wenham, 1:70)
Genesis 3 Back to top
59. In Gen. 3:1 the serpent is said to be crafty
or shrewd. How is this
term ambiguous? Is the serpent identified with Satan in
Genesis 3?
What ancient Near Eastern imagery was brought up by
snake
imagery? What
role does a snake play in the Gilgamesh epic?
In
Levitical terms was the snake viewed as an unclean
or clean
animal (Lev. 11)?
Does it initially contain any of the anti-God
imagery of Job 26:13 or Isa. 27:1? (Wenham, 1:72)
60. How were the serpent's words in Gen. 3:4f
vindicated? What does that
tell us about the insidious nature of
how evil moves? Does the
serpent/Satan speak the truth? What does the serpent's approach tell
us about the art of seduction? (Wenham, 73f)
61. How did Adam and Eve understand the notion of
death in Gen. 3?
Was there plant and animal death while
Adam and Eve were still in
the garden?
Is it possible as Wright suggests that Adam/Eve would
have experienced death even if they had not eaten of
the tree? What
do you think of that (Biblica 1996)? What are the different aspects of
death and how do they play out in the stories in
Gen. 3-6 and
following? (Wenham, 1:74f)
62. What literary palistrophic (ABCDCBA) pattern
is seen in description
of the seduction of Eve (Gen.
3:6-7)? How does 3:8-10 link back to
chapter 2?
How are guilt and nakedness related in the story?
(Wenham, 1:75f)
63. God in Gen. 3:8 is portrayed as walking in
the garden. When elsewhere
is Scripture does God "walk"? How do walking, presence and
relationship intertwine? "Walking" is used for portraying
what
types of activities? (Wenham, 1:76)
64. What role does God's question "Where are
you?" play in the Gen. 3:9
narrative and elsewhere (cf. Gen. 4:9; Isa 33:18;
36:19; Ps 42:4, 11)?
How does it function with God's omniscience? What are different
ways rhetorical questions are used? (Wenham, 1:77) How is this
discovery motif continued in God's questioning of
Adam (Gen. 3:11)?
65. How do Adam and Eve readily confess their
sinful actions but try to
deny their culpability (Gen. 3:12ff)? How is that similar move made
in modern times?
(Wenham, 1:89)
66. What role did cursing play in the ancient
Near East and in the rest
of Scripture (Num. 22:6; Deut.
27:15ff) and in Genesis (cf. 3:14)?
(Wenham, 1:78) What was eating dust a symbol of (cf. Mic.
7:17;
Isa. 49:23)?
67. Is the curse on the serpent (Gen. 3:15) an
etiology on why women hate
snakes? Does the serpent stand for sin, death and the
power of evil
so that the curse here is broader than
a mere etiology referring to
the continual struggle between good
and evil and humankind's
ultimate triumph? Does the serpent stand for Satan? How early
did that identification happen? How is this passage interpreted
in the New Testament (Rom. 16:20; Heb.
2:14; Rev. 12)?
Is there a fuller sense that develops
later in the history of redemption?
Were Justin (ca. A.D. 160) and the
early church fathers right in taking
this passage as the
"Protoevangelium" (first gospel) in applying it
to Christ and Satan? (Wenham, 1:80f)
68. What is the "woman's desire for her
husband" (Gen. 3:16)? Is female
subordination a part of the curse? Is her desire what subjects her
to exploitation?
Is her desire a desire to dominate her husband? Is
the rule of the man part of the curse? Should the curse be accepted
or resisted?
Does the verbal parallel with Gen. 4:7 help us understand
Gen. 3:16?
What role does this verse play in the dialogue with
modern feminism?
Does this verse tell us what roles of women were
effected by the curse? Is Vogels right when he says what kills the
relationship is the desire to possess, to keep, to
hold, to dominate, or
to crush the other?
How do each of these play out in male/female
relationships?
(Biblica, 1996) (Wenham, 1:80f)
69. What play is made with "eating" in
the curse of Adam (Gen. 3)? What
roles of the man were effected by the
curse (food-producer)? Was
work a curse because of the fall (cf.
2:15)? How is the futility
of work a curse? How is such futility seen in our post-modern
culture? Was death part of the curse? Was there death before
the fall? How does Gen. 3:19 relate to Gen. 2:7? Where
elsewhere in Scripture is man's going
to the dust seen? How
does the notion of death impact
individuals and society (fear, grief,
hope, alientation, futility, etc.)? (Wenham, 1:83)
70. What play is seen in the naming of Eve right
after Adam was cursed
(Gen. 3:22)?
What does that reveal about how Adam looked at Eve
after the fall? (Wenham, 1:84)
71. How is God's provision of clothes another
indication of God's tender
provision for human need (Gen.
3:21)? How does the idea of needing
clothing when approaching God come up in the
tabernacle
descriptions both in the use of tunics and in
covering one's
nakedness (vid. Exodus)? (Wenham, 1:84)
72. Could and did humans eat of the tree of life
prior to being expelled from
the garden (Gen. 3:22ff)? Did the tree of life magically give life?
Cherubim guard the way to the tree of life. Where elsewhere in
Scripture are cherubim seen and what roles do they
play in those
contexts (cf. Ex. 25:18ff; 26:31; 1 Kgs 6:29)? Was the flaming sword
the first laser sword? In what way did they die on the day they ate
the
fruit?
(Wenham, 1:85f)
73. How is that connection between sin and
consequence seen elsewhere in
Scripture (esp. wisdom lit., covenants, Deut 28. and
prophets)? How
is that connection denied and marginalized in post-modern
culture on
an individual, societal and even political
spheres? How did
Adam/Eve's sin impact the whole human race (Rom
5:12)? Where
does the Bible place the blame for pain, suffering
and alienation and
how and in what directions do we try to shift that
blame?
(Wenham, 1:90)
Genesis 4
Back to Top
74. What struggles are seen in Genesis between an
older and young
brother in relation to divine favor or
blessing (Gen. 4:3ff)? What
other battles of favored and unfavored sons takes
place in Genesis
and elsewhere in the Old Testament? Where else in
Genesis is the
"hostile brother" motif? (Wenham, 1:97f)
75. How does God use rhetorical questions with
Cain (Gen. 4:9ff) and how
does that compare with how he used them in Gen. 3:9ff? What other
parallels are there between Gen. 3 with Adam and Eve
and Gen. 4 the
Cain and Able story?
What contrasts are seen in Gen. 3 and 4?
What
is fratricide?
(Wenham, 1:99f)
76. What euphemism occurs in Gen. 4:1? What other topics does the Bible
use euphemisms to talk about? How do we use them today?
(Wenham, 1:100)
77. How does Gen. 4:1-2 parallel Gen. 25:15-27?
(Wenham, 1:102)
78. How does the meaning of Abel's name
foreshadow what will
happen (Gen. 4:1; cf. Eccl. 1:2)?
(Wenham, 1:102)
79. Why was Cain's offering rejected and Abel's
accepted (Gen. 4:5)?
[shepherds/gardeners; animal/gain;
inscrutable; faith [Heb 11:4];
choicest firstlings versus normal 2 Sam 24:24)
(Wenham, 1:104)
80. What is God's relationship to blood in Gen.
4:10 and elsewhere in
Scripture (cf. Lev. 17:11)? Why do people cry out to God?
Who are some biblical examples of
people that cried out to God
when facing death or the shedding of
their blood? In what other
passages is there a personalization of blood in
Scripture (Rev. 6:9f;
Lk. 18:7f; Isa. 5:7; Exod. 20:13; 1 Kgs. 21; Num.
35, etc.) (Wenham,
1:107, 117)
81. When it says the one hurting Cain would be
punished sevenfold is
that a hyperbole? How and when are hyperbole's used? What
might the number seven mean in this
text (Gen. 4:15)?
(Wenham, 1:109)
82. Who founded the first cities in the biblical
text (Gen. 4:14, 17) and how
do cities arise in the ancient Near
Eastern materials (cf. Adapa,
Eridu and the seven apkallus)? What is the point of Genesis linking
nomadism and urbanization, music and metalworking to
Cain's
genealogy?
How is Cain condemned to wander yet he is the first city
builder? How
are cities viewed in the biblical narrative?
How do
cities function in post-modern times? (Wenham, 1:110f)
83. How is Lamech like his father Cain? What father-son parallels in
character and activity are seen in
Genesis? Does that fit modern
phenomena? Why/why not?
(Wenham, 1:112)
84. In the song of Lamech how is Hebrew poetic
parallelism seen between
the lines (Gen. 4)?
Did Lamech know Hebrew and did he understand
Hebrew poetry?
How was this poem written? What progression is seen
in the narrative between Adam, Cain and Lamech as
sinners? How does
Cain's evil play out elsewhere in Scripture (Jude
11; 1 Jn 3:11ff)?
(Wenham, 1:114, 117)
85. Seth is born and named as a simple
paronomasia (Gen. 4)? What is that
and how often does it occur in the naming of people
and places in
Genesis and elsewhere? What do people's names mean today? Are
nick-names more accurate? (Wenham, 1:115)
86. How does the Sumerian flood story parallel
the genealogies of
Cain (nomadism, city-building and
institution of public worship; Gen.
4)? How does
the Sumerian flood story parallel the long lives of the
people of Gen. 5? The last person in the Sumerian flood story
list as in Genesis is a survivor of
the flood (Ziusudra/Noah).
What differences are there between the
king lists and the genealogies
of Genesis (length of life [Sumerian 50x longer])? How does cultural
"progress" impact religious and moral
categories? (Wenham, 1:124)
Genesis 5 Back to Top
87. Gen. 5:1 is the first mention of written
sources standing behind the
Genesis account. Where else in Scripture does it talk about
books
outside of the Scripture but yet
existent during those times (Josh.
10:13; 2 Sam. 1:18 etc.)? How do such works fit with the notion of
Scripture being divinely inspired? (Wenham, 1:126)
88. How was Enoch special? How does Enoch relate to the extra-canonical
book of Enoch?
How does Enoch fit with the ancient sage Utuabzu
"who ascended to heaven" (Cf. also Adapa,
Aeneas, Heracles) (Wenham, 1:128)
89. Which other fathers besides Noah father 3
sons in Genesis?
(Wenham, 1:129)
90. How are the long life spans of the Genesis 5
genealogy explained?
How do the ages different between the
Hebrew Masoretic text, the
Greek Septuagint and the Samaritan Pentateuch? For example, the
MT has the flood coming in 1656 after Adam, the
Samaritan Pent.
1307 and the LXX in 2242. Which text tradition is right? (Wenham,
1:130-33; see Wenham's chart on p. 131 for the
differences) How
does this all fit with the Sumerian king list which
totals 241,200 years
instead of the 4004 BC of the biblical text? No matter how long they
lived what is the point?
Genesis 6 Back to Top
91. Who were the sons of the God that married the
daughters of men (Gen.
6)? (Wenham,
1:137ff). See difficult questions. How does Scripture
view crossbreeding of kinds? (Wenham,
1:146f) (cf. Sir. 16:7;
14:6; Bar.
3:26ff; 2 Pet 2:4 to see how the
ancients looked at this
passage.)
92. How does the story of Noah compare and
contrast to the Gilgamesh
and Atrahasis epic (Gen. 6)? (Wenham, 1:138)
93. Who were the Nephilim in Genesis 6:4 (cf. Num
13:33; Ezek.
32:20-28)?
(Wenham, 1:143)
94. What kind of commentary is Gen. 6:5 on the
character and nature
of humankind? What are the religious, political,
sociological,
psychological and ethical implications
of this verse? How does
this verse fit with Romans 1-3; Ps.
51; Jer. 17:9f? Is total depravity
an appropriate way to look at humankind? Is it the only way
important theological aspect of humanity? Is "total" a theologically
accurate modifier given that man was and is made in
the image of
God (cf. Ps. 8)?
What role does a healthy tension play in this
discussion?
How does one balance these two important aspects or
ways of describing humankind found in Genesis? (Wenham, 1:144)
95. Gen. 6:6 says God repented or was
sorry? Is it possible for God to
change his mind (cf. 1 Sam. 15:11;
Jer. 18:10; Ex. 32:12, 14; 2 Sam
24:16; Amos 7:3, 6) without being capricious (Num.
23:19; 1 Sam.
15:29)? If
God can't change his mind what does that imply about
prayer? Is
God's thinking fossilized and static or dynamic and
creative? Is Gen. 6:6 a mere anthropomorphism? Is this theological
point the point of the Gen. 6:6 passage? Why do
certain theological
systems have trouble with this verse and dismiss it or
explain it away?
What is the significance of saying that God had
regrets and sorrow?
How does God experience sorrow and what is its
connection/
disconnection with human sorrow? Are there tears in heaven?
(Wenham, 1:144; Fretheim, 395)
96. Does the following structure of B. W.
Anderson for the flood story
work?
Transitional intro (6:9-10)
1) Violence in creation (6:11-12)
2) First divine speech: resolve
to destroy (6:13-22)
3) Second divine speech: "enter ark" (7:1-10)
4)
Beginning the flood (7:11-16)
5) The rising flood (7:17-24)
6) God remembers
Noah
How would you finish the
structure coming back out?
Use a palistrophic method
(ABCBA) (Wenham, 1:156)
97. Is there any historical or scientific
evidence to corroborate the flood
story (Gen. 6)?
98. How is Noah's relationship with God described
(Gen. 6:9f)?
What does the phrase "walk with
God" mean and where have we
seen that before? (Fretheim, 390)
99. In Genesis 6:11-22, how is the corruption of
the land described?
What is the connection between human
morality and the inanimate
physical world? Does human evil transcend the boundaries of
humankind (e.g. animals)? (Fretheim, 390)
100. How has the word "hamas" which is
used to describe the violence on
the earth (Gen. 6:11) come into modern
parlance? What was the
extent of violence and how does that impact the
extent of the flood?
(Fretheim, 390)
101. How do the dimensions of the biblical ark
compare to the dimensions
of the ark in the Gilgamesh epic (Gen. 6:15f)? How were the
constructions of the ark similar or dissimilar?
(Fretheim, 391)
102. How does the promise of the covenant in Gen.
6:18 help Noah in the
face of the pending situation? (Fretheim, 391)
103. When God announces the destruction of the
Israelites to Moses,
how does he regularly respond? How does that differ with Noah's
response (Gen. 6)? How do both of their responses embrace
obedience? (Fretheim,
391)
104. How do you harmonize the description of
taking animals two by two in
Gen. 6:19f and the taking of seven of
clean animals in Gen. 7:2f?
How would Noah have known which
animals were clean and unclean
without the book of Leviticus which
specifies these categories? Does
clean/unclean refer to the sacrificial
or dietary laws? (Fretheim, 391)
Genesis 7 Back to Top
105. How do Gen. 7:4 and 10 work together? What point does that make
about God's word and promise?
106. In the chronology of the flood, how does the
following pattern play
out in the narrative of Genesis
7:4-8:12: 7, 40, 150, 40, 7? What
does such a pattern imply about God's
control of the flood chaos?
How does the time limit of the flood
contrast with the lack of spatial
limit of the flood highlighting God's grace? (Fretheim, 392)
Genesis 8 Back to Top
107. How is God's remembering the turning point
in the flood narrative
(Gen. 8:1)? How is his remembering connected to the
anticipated
covenant? What does it mean for God to remember? (Fretheim, 392)
108. The divine wind reverses the chaotic flood
(Gen. 8:1) which is
reminiscent of the divine wind in what
part of Gen. 1?
(Fretheim, 392)
109. How does the order in which the birds are
sent out of the ark compare
with the other ancient Near Eastern sources (Gilgamesh
et al.)?
(Fretheim, 392)
110. How is God's reception of Noah's sacrifice in
Genesis 8:21 different
than the gods reception of the post-flood sacrifice
in the Gilgamesh
epic?
(Fretheim, 393). What does that
say about the differences
between the nature of sacrifice in
111. How is one to view the relationship of
Genesis 1-9 to the ancient
Near Eastern epics?
Is it appropriate to see Genesis as a polemic
against other religions or is it better to
appreciate that
significant historical and even theological
understandings from
cultures outside of
borrowed much of its thinking about beginnings. To what extent is
this true and not true? (Fretheim, 395)
112. When in Gen. 8:21 God reverses the curse does
this apply just to
no more floods, no additional curses
on the ground or does it
reflect back on the Gen. 3 curse on
the ground saying that that curse
would be mitigated? How is Noah's relationship with God mediated
through God's new relationship with creation? (Freitheim, 393)
113. How are the words of Gen. 6:5 and 8:21
similar? How do these two
similar passages play a totally different role in
the narrative? Did the
flood change the interior nature of humankind? What did change?