Opening Question

Can you conceive of or imagine anything that doesn’t have a beginning?

Introduction

Genesis lays the groundwork—indeed, narratively sets the stage—for the rest of the Bible’s grand, overarching theme: redemption and atonement (at-one-ment) with God. The text assumes there to be a God, and attributes to Him powers beyond that of any other known being. He is able to create something from nothing (ex nihilo) by simply willing it to be, and making it known through speaking. And thus we have ostriches, jellyfish, dandelions, mountains, clouds, and friends. How important are these first stories in Genesis? Some of the most ...