This week, we continued our study of the early chapters of Genesis, especially focusing on reading Genesis in it's proper historical context. We've now compared both the creation and flood narratives to some famous Babylonian creation and flood epics from around the same time period (Enuma Elish and the Epic of Gilgamesh respectively). This comparison has shown us how, in a world full of chaotic and unpredictible deities where humans are merely an afterthought, the radical message of Genesis is that God created us in is image to partner with him in building a good world. Unlinke the Babylonian gods, Yahweh cares deeply for his creation, is serious about sin, and ultimately wants a relationship with each and every one of us.
We also looked at several different theories of creation, some of which attempt to reconclie Scripture with modern observational science (i.e. Day-age Theory and Gap Theory). We emphasized that, although this is an interesting thought exercise for us, the Bible isn't overly concerned with our modern science. It comes from a time and place with different technology and scientific understanding of things, and God reveals himself to his people according to their understanding of the world at the time. The Bible's purposes are primarily theological, not scientific. That being said, as Christians we believe that God gave us both Scripture and creation to observe, so we can trust both, and they don't need to be in conflict with each other.
Genesis 1 vs. Enuma Elish- completed in class Jan. 21st
Five Views on Creation Research- completed in class Feb. 2nd
Genesis Flood vs. Epic of Gilgamesh- completed in class Feb. 4th
Genesis 1-11 Quiz- completed in class Feb. 6th
Next week, we will begin to look at the second section of Genesis (chapters 12-50) as it tells the story of God partnering with Abraham and his family to bring blessing to the whole world. Students will choose one of the patriarchs to study, we'll take a look at God's covenant with Abraham, and talk about the significance of the test of Abraham's faith on Mt. Moriah.