Genesis from the First Bible of Charles the Bald
The frontispiece to Genesis from the first Bible of Charles the Bald (ninth century) shows (top) the creation of man and woman, (middle) eating the fruit of the forbidden tree, and (bottom) the banishment of Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden.
The ancestral story is constructed of three narrative cycles that are collections of material revolving around Abraham, Jacob, and Joseph, respectively, with genealogical interludes devoted to Ishmael and Esau. In the Abraham cycle Abraham is guided by God to journey to Canaan and settle there, with the promise of divine blessing and offspring (Gen. 12). Arriving at his destination, Abraham and his wife, Sarah, find the land to be rife with disappointment and danger, from famine to threats to personal safety, to infertility. Eventually Abraham and Sarah have a son, Isaac, but the bestowing deity demands him back, as told in the wrenching episode called the Akedah, or binding of Isaac (Gen. 22). Surviving these challenges, Isaac marries Rebekah, and they have twin sons, Esau and Jacob (Gen. 25). The Jacob cycle is dominated by Jacob’s relentless efforts to win blessing and prosperity, acquiring them by dubious and devious methods. He steals the firstborn’s rights from Esau (Gen. 25) as well as the paternal blessing (Gen. 27) and then acquires considerable wealth from his uncle Laban (Gen. 29–31). Last, he wrestles a blessing from God at the Jabbok River and receives the name Israel (Gen. 32). Jacob has twelve sons by his four wives (Leah, Zilpah, Rachel, and Bilhah), and they begin the twelve tribes that later constitute Israel. The final cycle is focused on Joseph, son of Jacob, and takes the form of a short story. Driven by jealousy, Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery in Egypt (Gen. 37). While there he rises to a position of power as head of food resources (Gen. 39). When his brothers come to buy food due to a famine in Canaan, he takes revenge on them by imprisoning Simeon and threatening Benjamin (Gen. 40–44). He finally reveals his true identity, to their great shame and relief, and the entire extended family moves to Goshen in Egypt so that he can provide for them (Gen. 45–50). This positions the sons of Israel in Egypt, from which they will later escape, as told in the book of Exodus.
Bandstra, Barry L. “Genesis, Book Of,.” Ed. Mark Allan Powell. The Harper Collins Bible Dictionary (Revised and Updated) 2011 : 318. Print.
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