The Worldview Of God In The Book Of Genesis

The bible teaches us many things about God. From Genesis and Exodus we can learnwhat the Judeo-Christian view of God was. Genesis shows us that God made the sun, the moon,the earth and every living thing. During the days of creation God made all things good. On theseventh day of creation God rested and declared all he made to be very good (Genesis 1:31). God created human beings in his own image. We as humans can be certain of our owndignity and self worth because we have been created in the image of God. The book of Genesisshows us that people disobey God by choosing to do wrong. Even great bible heros failed Godand disobeyed him. The bible teaches us that God is forgiving. God has many attributes. God makes no mistakes and this is wisdom. God is infinite, heknows

Genesis 1-3 contains the creation story, so the origin of the earth. Describing events before human existence it cannot be a report of historical events. By definition, the creation story is a myth, as its topic is “beyond anyone’s experience or total understanding” (Ralph & Walters, 2001). To fully understand the story, one must consider the ancient context of the time Genesis was written. Documented after the Babylonian exile, the first creation story aims to re-establish the beliefs of the Israelites. While being held captive in Babylon, Judahites were confronted with beliefs opposing to their own. For instance, Enuma Elish, the Babylonian creation story, displays the faith in a good spirit, but bad matter. On the contrary, Israelites believed in the goodness of all. Furthermore, Babylonians assumed that humans were, at their core, not good. Genesis was therefore written as a contrast to Enuma Elish, emphasising and reaffirming the Israelites’ believe of humans being good, because they were created in the image of God (Ralph & Walters, 2001). A fundamentalist point of view does not take the beliefs of the time into account. It is impossible to fully appreciate the distinct theology of Genesis without considering Enuma Elish and other ancient narratives. Another major distinction between a fundamentalist and contextualist interpretation of the first creation story is how the cultural setting of the author determines the narrative. Contextualists correctly understand that the origin of Sabbath is due to the workweek structure of the author’s society. Contrasting, fundamentalists presume that because the story presents God’s point of view, Sabbath must originate from God resting on the seventh day. Misinterpreting these details leads to misunderstanding the relationship between God and humans. God had to work through human authors to pass on knowledge and insight

The Christian covenant promises that people will receive an earthly or heavenly inheritance on the premise of good behavior while the people of Mesopotamian society attempt to please the gods with no guarantee in their fate. The Christian God represents not just what is most powerful but what is morally best—humans were supposed to aspire to reach His level and ultimately imitate him especially since they were created in his image, whereas the Gods in Mesopotamia each had their own rules that the people were to follow. “You have assigned to everyone his place….You create the life.” (McKay, pg. 16). The Bible comes from the same region as Gilgamesh, and shares some of the same concepts and events, such as the snake as the enemy who deprived humans of eternal life and in Mesopotamian society, the flood. In both the Bible and Gilgamesh, disobedience to a god, or gods in Mesopotamian society, brings dire consequences; “The gods of the city turned away… The population breathed in fear.” (McKay, pg

Evolutions of civilizations can occur because of differences in people’s religion, culture, or geographic setting of the settlement. The relationship between the world of the gods and that of men was perceived differently by the Sumerians, Egyptians, and Hebrew ancient civilizations. This is demonstrated by the way each group viewed the process of creation. They had different thoughts on the creation of their gods, the universe and of man. This essay will discuss the relationship between humans and their gods in three different ancient civilizations: Sumerian, Egyptian and Hebrew.

How does being familiar with a biblical worldview help us understand the big picture of God’s design, and how can you apply that understanding to your calling?

The presence of fundamental storytelling methods across the globe establishes a universal connection between societies. Contrasting cultures influence variation among symbolism and moral values, however collective literary essentials exist. For instance, an abundance of flood stories that expand across the world verifies a connection among the traditions of mankind. The strong resemblance between the flood accounts in the ancient Mesopotamian myth The Epic of Gilgamesh and the biblical narrative of Noah’s Ark in The Genesis propose a closer relationship that encourages further analysis. The major plot points are echoed in both texts despite differentiation of detail, however the crucial distinctions are observed through the contrasting religious themes. In contrast to Gilgamesh, the Genesis is a religious narrative that promotes monotheistic ideals. Both texts articulate nearly identical scenarios, however the Genesis adaptation provides a Christian perspective by offering moral interpretation. Further exploration of both assists in the determination of significance between the differences.

The passage that I choose to write about was Genesis chapter 1 verses 1-5. I choose this passage because I was interested in studying how God supposedly created the earth and turned darkness into a world full of life and spirit. Genesis 1 begins by saying “in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”(NKJV) I think that the purpose of this verse is to summarize the things that God would do in the future. This text tells us that God existed before the heavens and the earth. We also learn that before God started to create, the earth was empty, dark, and lifeless. The text also represents the beginning of everything earthly by saying God will create life on earth and in

When one approaches the biblical text, it is important to explore the cultural context in which the text occurs. With regard to the Book of Genesis, it is important to examine the writing with other contemporary works of similar geography and topics. The people of ancient Mesopotamia, where the oldest civilizations originated, produced a number of stories of creation and natural occurrences. It is important to note that many of the stories of the Sumerians, Akkadians and Hebrews began as oral traditions as the events they depict predate writing, so it is difficult to date these works on the basis of when these prehistoric myths were initiated. Comparison to writings contemporary to the people of Israel, can offer a deeper understanding of

Since the time the Hebrew people settled in the land that God had given them, they have made an impact on the world. A tiny people that started with a mighty call from God, the Hebrew civilization has had a lasting influence on Western Civilization. When God called Abram, he told him, “…all the peoples of the earth will be blessed through you” (Gen 12:3 [New International Version]). Looking back, it is plain to see the truth that God was speaking. Although other civilizations, such as the Sumerian’s and the Egyptian’s, had earlier starts and were larger, they played a smaller part in influencing Western Civilization than the Hebrew civilization.

In Genesis, God is portrayed as the Creator of the world and of man and woman, and as a strict enforcer of justice ("Because you have done this, Curse are you above all livestock and wild animals") (Gen. 3:14), ("If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?") (Gen. 4:6). God destroys what is wicked, as is seen from the flood, but saves what is good, as is seen in the case of Noah. Following the flood, God makes a covenant with Noah, which shows another side of God's "personality" that He insists on establishing a "bond" between Himself and mankind, i.e., a religion. Several covenants will be established over time, all of them culminating in the one set by Christ, who really shows the personality of God.

Both the Hebrews and the Mesopotamians used religious ideologies to govern society. According to the Book of Exodus, “You shall have no other gods before me.” (1) The Hebrews emphasized only one God as their savior and protector. In the book, God states, “I will bless your bread and your water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of you.” (5) The Hebrews, similar to the Mesopotamians, believed

What is your purpose in the world? This is a question that many people ponder as they grow up and begin to make an impact on the realm around them. As people grow they start to form their view of the world. Divincezo (2014) defines a worldview as “a foundational set of assumptions to which one commits that serves as a framework for understanding and interpreting reality and deeply shapes one’s behavior.” If a worldview shapes one’s behavior then where do they get their guidelines and morals? Many people develop their sense of right and wrong from their parents and society but Christians look for their answers from God and the bible.

For example, many values presented in the bible have been used to build the morale system in many societies. It is fascinating to see how this work alone is reflected among many religions and morality. In the book of Genesis, an ancient Near East literature, presents the creation of the universe from a supernatural being. The book of Genesis has a significant impact in Ancient Near East because this teaches them how creation was made and by who. The Near East are the nations and/or empires that are surrounded geographically in the land where God promised to Israel. The story of the creation explains how there were two parts, the creation of the universe and the creation of mankind. These two stories have influenced the Near East culture to show that God is the creator therefore people should only follow him, and with the creation of Adam and Eve (the first people on earth) it is explained that there are only two genders Male and Female. The Bible’s idea of creation was an action that brought functionality into a nonfunctional world. The message that was given cannot be fully understood without the having the knowledge of the cultural and historical background of the people to who the revelation is given to. After the book of Genesis, Exodus, a hero is chosen by God. Unlike the Greek, Hebrews have been wanderers where their goal is to search for home. Unlike The Odyssey, The Bible is straightforward in telling the story with a beginning, middle and end where Moses took the Jews out Egypt and took them into the promised land. Therefore, this story is primarily for the Jews. The story of Exodus influenced the Near East by showing them faith, but also influenced modern society. “Therefore God dealt well with the midwives: and the people multiplied, and waxed very mighty. And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses” (Exodus

Through these ancient text we can perceive, the importance of purpose for human beings in early civilizations. Considering the perceived role of human beings in the literature of the Mesopotamians, Hebrews, and Egyptians we can clearly say that religion and has shaped the worldview of each civilization. When comparing the similarities and differences in Emuna Elish, the Book of Genesis/Exodus in the Old Testament, and the Hymn to the Nile, the similarities and differences reveal the importance of religion to the overall worldview of each civilization. This is demonstrated through key pieces of text in the Emuna Elish, the Book of Genesis/Exodus in the Old Testament, and the Hymn to the Nile. When comparing the perceived role of human beings in these three texts the similarities reveal the importance of religion to the overall worldview of each

The depiction of God in the Bible’s story of creation, namely Genesis, brings to mind the image of an omnipotent, almighty and all-powerful child playing in a sandbox. Like a child his sole purpose seems to be to simply amuse himself, and possibly acquire a source of unconditional love. These needs are in contrast to the classic view of God acting with the idea of an ultimate plan. His actions clearly show that there is no perfect plan, or if there is it must be grossly overcomplicated. Consistently God makes poor decisions, and then eventually acts to fix the situation. The whole scenario conjures up an image of the crew of Apollo 13, alternately breaking things and then patching it together