Questions in Genesis

One of the resolutions many have for the new year is to read through the Bible completely in a year’s time. One good friend recently told me she was embarking on the Bible-reading journey. She wondered if I would mind answering some questions along her way. Here are her handful of her questions so far. If you are also reading through the Bible and want to ask questions, feel free to email me or add your questions to the discussion area at the bottom.

The ages some lived to are so outrageous to consider. Were they that old or was age/time just not understood?

Scholars debate this, but two concepts explain it for me. First, many of the really high age numbers come before the Flood. Before the Flood, the earth was moistened through a mist – greenhouse effect. This moisture may have kept the skin subtle and not aging as quickly. Second, death and aging is a result of sin. As sin increased, disease and sickness must have increased also. This would increase the likelihood of death.

What/who are Nephilim?

The Hebrew word NEPHILIM is translated “giants” by the KJV and others. The word is only found in two passages, Genesis 6:4 and Numbers 13:33. Interpreting the passage in Genesis 6 is a challenge. The word must also be explained in connection with “the daughters of men” and “the sons of God.” Some try to explain this on a strange level – saying that humans and angels produced offspring. I don’t know that we need to jump to that conclusion. Even this early in the Bible symbolism is being used. A contrast is seen between the “seed of the Serpent” – those following evil and the “seed of the woman” – those who follow righteousness. See the “sons of God” as the seed of Seth – the descendants of faith. Contrast that with the “daughters of men” who were probably descendants of Cain. It seems possible these offspring were giants – perhaps the beginnings for Goliath and other Philistines.

I have been reading a lot about Enoch. Was he God’s scribe? Is there a book of Enoch not included in the Bible?

There are a lot of Enoch’s that we need to address in this question. Let’s see if we can keep them all straight. In the 4th and 5th chapters of Genesis, there appear to be two men named Enoch. First, he is Cain’s oldest son (Genesis 4:17-18). Second, Enoch was the son of Jared and the father of Methuselah. He is the seventh in line from Adam (Jude 1:14). Remember, the lineage does not pass through Cain but through Seth, so it has to be two different people. That would not have been unusual – you know people who are named for uncles and aunts. This Enoch lived 365 years (Genesis 5:23). His life is summarized in these words: “Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him (Genesis 5:24). Hebrews helps us understand that verse by telling us, “By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death” (Hebrews 11:5a NIV).

On a different note, the books not included in the Bible are called the Apocrypha books. The word is a Greek adjective meaning “things hidden,” and almost certainly implies the noun “biblia,” meaning writings or books. There are many such books which for one reason or another did not measure up to the standard of the books of the canon of Scripture.

There are 14 Apocryphal books included in the Roman Catholic Bible. The “Book of Enoch” is an old religious text attributed to the great-grandfather of Noah. The book talks about the origins of the Nephilim but also contains material from the Macabbean era (a time between our “Testaments”). Its oldest surviving manuscripts are Ethiopian, the only churches that accept the book.

Some say that Jude quotes from the book but it only says Enoch the seventh from Adam. This may be an indicator rather than a quotation.

God uses “we” and “us” many times. Why?

Although this sounds very simplistic next to the other answers, the plural emphasizes what we have later understood as the Trinity.

Why is it important to know all these names in Genesis? I know some lead to important areas and other people, but it just seems the reading gets bogged down with names.

You are absolutely right about getting “bogged down” in the names. It is the reason that most people who start “reading through the Bible” in a year give up before January is over. The list provides for us a chronology of sorts but for the Jewish faithful it provided the lineage through which the Messiah was to come. After the destruction of Jerusalem and the records in 70AD, it became impossible to know who was from the line of David. Do you see why it was “the fullness of time” as Paul says in Galatians?

How did Pharaoh find out that Sarai was Abram’s wife? Why were diseases sent?

Abram committed deception which obviously showed a distrust toward God’s promises and ability to protect him in a foreign country. The diseases came immediately causing Pharaoh to begin to connect the problems with Sarai. Abraham is summoned into the palace and questioned (Genesis 12:17-19).

Where did the tar come from in the desert?

There are many things that contribute to the development of tar pits. The ingredients which make the formation happen are present in and around the Dead Sea. The tar pits was probably very natural there.

Did God not condemn Abram and Hagar for having relations and her conceiving a child?

Although the customs were different then and there than in today’s Western culture, the consequences came because of Abraham’s lack of faith. Isn’t it interesting that we usually consider Abraham the father of faith? Here again he wants to take matters into his own hand to “help God” in keeping the promise of being the father of a great nation. The consequences, of course, include that the promise would not come through this offspring. Ironically it is the descendants of Hagar and the descendants of Sarah that are at conflict today. Hagar seems to have birthed the Muslim people while Sarah the Jewish people.

Why did God choose circumcision as a sign of the covenant?

This is a question that many ponder but most are afraid to ask because of its personal nature. Today we can know of several medical benefits for circumcision, and many of God’s laws had health and safety as their root, even when the people did not know it. The primary purpose in ancient Israel was religious in nature, but it is remarkable that the timing and details of the procedure reflect sound medical practices. The personal nature of the act reflects the immensely personal nature of the circumcision of the heart of the faithful – one which must cut through sin and pride and accept the covenant of faith.

Why did Rebekah deceive Isaac with Jacob?

The heart of this question asks for understanding why we sin. A great deal of the answer is going to be speculation. Perhaps she was a mother who had a “favorite” child – and it was Jacob not Esau. Perhaps she herself was deceived by Jacob, wrapping his mother around his finger. It may have simply been a hasty decision made in the heat of the moment.

Was the earth not populated elsewhere? The Bible seems centered on a certain area.

From the time of Cain and Able (later Seth), people began to scatter and populate the earth. We are centered on a particular part of the Mediterranean area because that is where the people of faith are located. People in other parts of the world wandered further away from God as they traveled farther from their roots. The Bible doesn’t follow them closely because they are not a part of the story of faith.

Why did God reveal himself more in the OT?

One of the New Testament books – one which quotes heavily from the Old Testament – helps us understand the answer to this question. Listen to what the writer of Hebrews (my personal leaning is to credit it to Paul) says: “In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, ² but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe” (Hebrews 1:1-2 NIV). Once God spoke through His Son, there is no longer a need for any other revelation. It doesn’t get any more like God than Jesus.