Genesis 12 begins coverage of Abram. My cryptic notes in Genesis 14 were, "Descendants of Noah created "Kings" Why?" "When did this King role begin?" It also reads about tribes and clans being developed. Again I wonder how people became so unfocused after an event when the world was destroyed and people from Noah's family had to repopulate. Did Noah's early descendants not pass on the lesson's learned from the flood and God's destruction of life based on his disappointment in how we had turned out? Why did God allow the concept of "Kings" to develop?
Genesis 14 seems to address the concept of tithing. Giving one tenth of everything. There is also a reference to not depending on man to make you rich. Genesis 15:13-16 mentions that those enslaved will come out with great possessions! Although this was meant directly for people in those times, I look to it as a forecast of the future for those enslaved from Africa from 1619 to the 1800s.
Genesis 16 mentions an early method of parents having a child through another host. The notion of a surrogate parent has been around for awhile! Genesis 16 also discusses Ishmael being cursed. He had no choice in his development. That does not seem fair and adds to the notion that life is not fair. We have been put into a system by our Creator where we sometimes have no choice in what happens in our lives.
Genesis 17 goes into a discussion of circumcision. It states that those not circumcised will be cut off from his people.
Genesis 19 goes into another destructive act of God. Our creator routinely seemed to turn to violence as a way to make corrections. It is no shock in how we his people also turn to violence so often. The traits of the creator passed on to us. Homosexuality is mentioned in Genesis 19. This behavior and lifestyle choice has been around for thousands of years. Sodom and Gomorrah were both destroyed along with all of their inhabitants. True to His agreement the entire world was not destroyed again, and the destruction of the 2 cities was not by flood. Genesis 19 also mentions incest and the misuse of alcohol.
My general impression from reading Genesis up to chapter 19, is that human beings were a flawed creation. A violent, misguided people were created by God. We seemed to wander for many years with no direction to correct our behavior. Unchecked behavior leads to non Godly actions. Even destruction of the world through a reboot, did not correct the true nature of Mankind. The lapse of time without Godly intervention makes it seem as though God lost interest in us and went away to focus on another species maybe. Then He returns and through his methods attempts to lay some seeds to help people he has identified as leading the way in the future?
The future gift of God's Son awaits us and opens doors to new hope with guidance given us on how to reach our fullest potential. On the surface, Genesis is a depressing, morbid tale of our early years as a species on Earth. Some of the issues of today, homosexuality etc. existed early on in our existence. The violent nature of the world today mirrors the violent actions and conflicts mentioned in Genesis. One cannot blame the current generation from not turning to religion. The documented actions in the Old Testament are not inspiring by any means. An explanation of the Old Testament and how God moved us into the doctrine of the New Testament is essential for a better understanding of how to apply the Bible to our daily lives, and how to interpret and apply the bible period.
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