The book of Genesis begins by telling us that God created everything in six days and rested on the seventh (Genesis 1-2). On Day 1, He separated light from darkness. On Day 2, He created the sky to divide the waters. On Day 3, He created land and vegetation. On Day 4, He made the sun, moon, and stars. On Day 5, He created fish and birds. Finally, on Day 6, He made animals and humans. On the seventh day, He rested.
Adam named the animals, including sharks, snakes, dolphins, and all kinds of birds. They had only one command from God: "Do not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." However, the devil, disguised as a snake, tempted Eve. She gave Adam the fruit to eat. Both Adam and Eve were punished and were banished from the beautiful garden forever.
Years later, we read about Noah. He had three sons who helped him build an ark. All three sons and their wives were on the ark, along with Noah and his wife—only eight people in total were saved. Noah preached for 120 years, but no one listened. They all perished in the flood.
Another story in Genesis is about Abraham and Sarah. God promised Abraham that he would have many descendants. One son, Ishmael, was born to Hagar, and another, Isaac, was born to Sarah. Abraham received the promise of a son and also that all of humanity would be blessed through him.
Isaac had two sons, Esau and Jacob, who disliked each other and fought constantly. Jacob stole his brother’s birthright and blessing. Jacob had twelve sons and one daughter, Dinah, and they also fought among themselves. There is also a story about Jacob being tricked into marrying two sisters.
One of Jacob's twelve sons was named Judah. Judah had a great-great-great-great-great-grandson named Jesus, born into that family through his mother, Mary. He is the Savior of the world! The rest of the Bible will tell us more about Jesus and His family.
These and many other great stories are found in the book of Genesis. Please study your Bible and visit a church of Christ in your community. Thank you for reading this blog.