Reading Genesis
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- Create Date：2024-02-21 09:22:18
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Marilynne Robinson
- ISBN：0374299404
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Summary
One of our greatest novelists and thinkers presents a radiant， thrilling interpretation of the book of Genesis。
For generations， the book of Genesis has been treated by scholars as a collection of documents， by various hands， expressing different factional interests， with borrowings from other ancient literatures that mark the text as derivative。 In other words， academic interpretation of Genesis has centered on the question of its basic coherency， just as fundamentalist interpretation has centered on the question of the appropriateness of reading it as literally true。
Both of these approaches preclude an appreciation of its greatness as literature， its rich articulation and exploration of themes that resonate through the whole of Scripture。 Marilynne Robinson’s Reading Genesis ， which includes the original text， is a powerful consideration of the profound meanings and promise of God’s enduring covenant with humanity。 This magisterial book radiates gratitude for the constancy and benevolence of God’s abiding faith in Creation。
For generations， the book of Genesis has been treated by scholars as a collection of documents， by various hands， expressing different factional interests， with borrowings from other ancient literatures that mark the text as derivative。 In other words， academic interpretation of Genesis has centered on the question of its basic coherency， just as fundamentalist interpretation has centered on the question of the appropriateness of reading it as literally true。
Both of these approaches preclude an appreciation of its greatness as literature， its rich articulation and exploration of themes that resonate through the whole of Scripture。 Marilynne Robinson’s Reading Genesis ， which includes the original text， is a powerful consideration of the profound meanings and promise of God’s enduring covenant with humanity。 This magisterial book radiates gratitude for the constancy and benevolence of God’s abiding faith in Creation。
Reviews
Matthew Keating
，
I'm not religious but I have an interest in theology。 This book is a great primer for someone like myself who isn't intimately familiar with Genesis。 I also suspect this would be rewarding for readers who are more familiar than I am but looking for some kind of explication。 The digital advance copy that I read did not include the actual biblical text alongside Robinson's commentary， which made following the 'plotline' （for lack of a better word） sometimes confusing， because she doesn't seem to a I'm not religious but I have an interest in theology。 This book is a great primer for someone like myself who isn't intimately familiar with Genesis。 I also suspect this would be rewarding for readers who are more familiar than I am but looking for some kind of explication。 The digital advance copy that I read did not include the actual biblical text alongside Robinson's commentary， which made following the 'plotline' （for lack of a better word） sometimes confusing， because she doesn't seem to always move linearly（？）。 FSG's website claims the book will include the full King James version of Genesis， so I imagine readers of physical copies will have an easier time with this than I did。 The biggest takeaways for me were Robinson's insistence on the point that through Genesis， vengeance， when expected， is not taken， and her note that these stories are unusually focused on the lives and follies of individual humans （the text's inclusion of so many domestic squabbles， and so many terrible decisions on the part of its ostensible heroes， is， as Robinson says， remarkable）。 A really enjoyable read。 。。。more
Alexander Pyles
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This will be one of the most important works on Christianity in years to come。 It is already the most compelling book I've read on the topic in the last 15 years if not longer。 Robinson's attention， deep reading of scripture， and the scope of the perspective of the Divine are invaluable to the believer and skeptic alike。 This will be one of the most important works on Christianity in years to come。 It is already the most compelling book I've read on the topic in the last 15 years if not longer。 Robinson's attention， deep reading of scripture， and the scope of the perspective of the Divine are invaluable to the believer and skeptic alike。 。。。more
Ruthie
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Marilynne Robinson's Reading Genesis is a brilliant， insightful book。 The writing is so good， I lingered over passages。 As soon as I finished it， I started reading it again， finding more to ponder。 For example， Robinson compares the Babylonian creation and flood myths with the similar Biblical stories， identifying crucial differences in the character， purpose， and efficacy of the Biblical god and humans。 She focuses on historical context， on meaning and metaphysics， on realities that aren't nece Marilynne Robinson's Reading Genesis is a brilliant， insightful book。 The writing is so good， I lingered over passages。 As soon as I finished it， I started reading it again， finding more to ponder。 For example， Robinson compares the Babylonian creation and flood myths with the similar Biblical stories， identifying crucial differences in the character， purpose， and efficacy of the Biblical god and humans。 She focuses on historical context， on meaning and metaphysics， on realities that aren't necessarily literal。 Her reflections on Abraham， Issac， and Jacob have added depth and newness to these familiar stories。The one thing the book lacks （the reason I've rated it 4 instead of 5） is a tightly developed thematic structure。 It's an extended， occasionally discursive， essay。 that lacks the focus and the pauses for reflection that chapter divisions would give it。 。。。more
Nancy
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In Genesis the recurring sin is grievous harm to one’s brother。Reading Genesis by Marilynne RobinsonI have loved Marilynne Robinson’s novels and have read Gilead three times （twice for book clubs）。 When my husband was in seminary–fifty years ago–I audited a half dozen classes in theology and Biblical studies。 I thought I was up to tackling Reading Genesis。I remember co-teaching a Sunday evening bible study for junior high teens。 I remember my husband explaining that the Bible is full of imperfec In Genesis the recurring sin is grievous harm to one’s brother。Reading Genesis by Marilynne RobinsonI have loved Marilynne Robinson’s novels and have read Gilead three times （twice for book clubs）。 When my husband was in seminary–fifty years ago–I audited a half dozen classes in theology and Biblical studies。 I thought I was up to tackling Reading Genesis。I remember co-teaching a Sunday evening bible study for junior high teens。 I remember my husband explaining that the Bible is full of imperfect people who do bad things but are used by God for the good。 And I found this message in Robinson’s exploration。Robinson argues that the Judeo-Christian tradition was remarkably different from the Babylonian and Egyptian。 And she shows that the messages of the stories in Genesis shows a providential history of mercy instead of justice， of using the bad for the good， and demonstrating that the humanity is failable and yet God can use them for righteousness。 The covenant， she states， “is not contingent upon human virtue，” for God can work through fallible beings。 Thank goodness， because the people in Genesis are certainly not virtuous。Robinson calls it the “economics of grace，” God forgiving our debts。 Even when we don’t forgive our debtors， although it is what we are called to do， along with doing justice and loving mercy。The Book of Genesis is framed by two stories of remarkable forgiveness， of Cain by the Lord， and of his ten brothers by Joseph。from Reading Genesis by Marilynne RobinsonThis is not an easy book to read。 Its message is not for everyone。 Robinson prefers the term providential history to predetermination but her Calvinist faith is central to her exploration。 It is a book that needs studying and discussion to fully integrate its message。Thanks to the publisher for a free book。 。。。more
Scott Ward
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Robinson clearly provides the thesis that， while some of the Genesis stories parallel other ancient texts， the motifs in the stories show a clear difference， particularly with the Babylonian narratives。 Genesis， and the rest of the Hebrew and Greek Judeo-Christian scriptures， describe a God who loves， protects and serves his people， his creations。 They were not “born” out of a divine contest or war with other gods but of his free will and therefore an object of his affection。 His disappointment Robinson clearly provides the thesis that， while some of the Genesis stories parallel other ancient texts， the motifs in the stories show a clear difference， particularly with the Babylonian narratives。 Genesis， and the rest of the Hebrew and Greek Judeo-Christian scriptures， describe a God who loves， protects and serves his people， his creations。 They were not “born” out of a divine contest or war with other gods but of his free will and therefore an object of his affection。 His disappointment is expressed when they don’t treat each other well， when they don’t live up to his standards。 The other main difference is how people are viewed between the other mythologies and the Hebrew text。 They are viewed as servants and objects of the gods’ capriciousness。 Moses’ text reveals that people are created and deemed ‘good’ and therefore worthy。 But this is not a humanistic reading of the scripture; the author points out that our understanding and confusion of the dynamics of these stories is because we forget the foundation laid in the Creation story（ies） that allows for God to show mercy and love， even to Cain who killed his own brother。 [The author shares that a non-Western student who exclaimed， “What god would not punish a person who killed his brother？”]Since these texts were written post-exodus from Egypt， it’s interesting that most of the comparison was not to Egyptian creation myths or divine stories。 Certainly Abram/Abraham’s experience with YHWH was different from his Babylonian counterparts， but Moses （and any other post-Exodus scribes） would have been more familiar with the Egyptian mythologies， unless we think Moses became indoctrinated in the Canaanite lore while living in Midian。 So I believe this question is unanswered by this volume， yet this book will certainly provide fodder for many， many discussions about what the Genesis stories mean to a person’s faith and their understanding of who YHWH’s character and our nature in relationship to him。Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an early copy。 。。。more
Clement
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Rarely has theological prose been as beautifully poetic and lyrical as in Marilynne Robinson's Reading Genesis。 Robinson's mastery of the English language， when applied to theological inquiry， makes for a beautiful and deeply enjoyable read。 Even if one were to disagree with some of her conclusions， as many conservative evangelicals likely will， Robinson's commitment to awe， allowing and embracing the mystery of a God that can be known and yet remains beyond mankind's understanding and grasp， ma Rarely has theological prose been as beautifully poetic and lyrical as in Marilynne Robinson's Reading Genesis。 Robinson's mastery of the English language， when applied to theological inquiry， makes for a beautiful and deeply enjoyable read。 Even if one were to disagree with some of her conclusions， as many conservative evangelicals likely will， Robinson's commitment to awe， allowing and embracing the mystery of a God that can be known and yet remains beyond mankind's understanding and grasp， makes Reading Genesis deeply worthwhile。 Her conviction that there is a goodness found in God， and that He is better than we think， surpassing human understanding and， frequently even disturbing our sense of justice， makes Reading Genesis convicting and essential。 。。。more
Ilya
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This is an excellent meditation on the foundational stories of Genesis。 It is gentle and thoughtful， unapologetically Christian yet wholly persuasive to a nonbeliever。 Robinson is not interested in a narrowly minded scholarly dissection of Scripture in （established） source-critical terms; what she cares about is stories—so familiar that we no longer pause over what they mean， especially when it comes to God’s relationship with humankind。 One highlight among many for me was her incisive analysis This is an excellent meditation on the foundational stories of Genesis。 It is gentle and thoughtful， unapologetically Christian yet wholly persuasive to a nonbeliever。 Robinson is not interested in a narrowly minded scholarly dissection of Scripture in （established） source-critical terms; what she cares about is stories—so familiar that we no longer pause over what they mean， especially when it comes to God’s relationship with humankind。 One highlight among many for me was her incisive analysis of the stories， such as the Flood， that have long been viewed by scholars as adaptations of the Babylonian or other Near Eastern sources （e。g。， Gilgamesh）。 Robinson does not dispute the obvious parallels， but she explains， with authority and persuasion， that the Hebrew stories arrived at fundamentally different conclusions， from the moral， theological， and philosophical points of view。 — thanks to Farrar， Strauss and Giroux for an ARC via NetGalley 。。。more
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Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Reading Genesis
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Reading Genesis&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Reading Genesis&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0