The author of Genesis is held to be Moses by both Christians and Jews.  Moses is also held to have written the first five books of the bible, which are known as the Pentateuch.  They are also known as the Torah, which means instruction.  The word Pentateuch means, five volumed book (Zondervan, 1999).  Both of these words are used to describe this five book volume, which is widely believed to be written by Moses. 

   There is little controversy surrounding the authentication of Moses as author.  There is one argument that has depicted the Pentateuch as a “patchwork of stories, poems and laws” (Zondervan, 1999).  This is because some scholars believe to have found four different external sources for these five volumes.  This argument does not have enough “conclusive evidence” and archeology has countered against many challenges that have risen against the authorship of Moses.  Mosaic authorship of Genesis is widely supported by strong evidence.

   There is quite a lot of detail known about the author Moses.  Moses grew up in the house of the Pharaoh of Egypt, Thutmose I.  It is believed that Hatshepsut, daughter of Thutmose I, found Moses among the reeds where his mother left him (Richards, 2000).  Moses’ mother feared for his life because all Hebrew male children were ordered to be executed by the Pharaoh.  She hid him in the reeds on the bank of the Nile River .  Moses grew up in Pharaoh’s house and still maintained his love and connection his Hebrew roots.  He killed a taskmaster for abusing a Hebrew slave and fled to the desert where he stayed 70 years.  Moses had to wait for the Thutmose line to end before God could use him to free the Hebrews from Egypt .  Thutmose III was the last Pharaoh that may have killed him for his act of murder (Richards, 2000).  A great deal of information is known about Moses, who is credited with the authorship of Genesis.

   Moses wrote Genesis as part of the five books of the Pentateuch.  This collection is referred to as the five fifths of the law of Moses by Jewish tradition (Zondervan, 1999).  These books were written after the exodus from Egypt .  During the time period that the Hebrews were in the desert, from 1446 to 1406 BC, Moses most likely found the opportune time to write.  It is during this time that the law was given to Moses, including the Ten Commandments.  Moses’ account and testimony of what he had learned and had been given from God, started with the beginning of creation and ended at Moses’ own death.  The passage I selected is from the first book of Moses or one fifth of the law of Moses.

   The original reader of the book of Genesis was the Hebrews, Israel , God’s chosen people.  These descendants are all of the family line of Abraham.  Later, in the New Testament we learn that this family line consists of all those who live by faith in God’s Word and commands.  Moses was a descendant of Abraham who is the father of Jacob who was called Israel by God (Gen 32:28).  All who now strive to know God through prayer, belief, and obedience, are adopted into the Israelite family through faith.  Genesis addresses how our relationship with God, the earth, and each other both started and how it was meant to be.  The original readers of Genesis are those who desire to look into and know more about their relationships with the God of Israel. 

   In the time frame of my selected passage of scripture, Israel had not yet been given their territory promises by God.  At this time, Abraham was promised that he would be the father of many nations though he was advanced in years old and his wife, Sarah, was bare of children and passed the age of child bearing (Gen 18:10-11).  It isn’t until Jacob is named Israel , in Genesis 32, that they begin to be a nation.  The first readers of this account of Israel ’s history would have been during the Israelites 40 years in the desert.  However, in the background of this passage, Abraham is dwelling in the land of the Amorites of Mesopotamia. 

   This passage selection contains the very first mention of the practice of tithing.  Abraham is blessed by the ancient king Melchizedek.  It seemed right to Abraham to give God a tenth of all his goods for the victory and blessing God gave him in retrieving his nephew, Lot, from captivity (Gen 14:20).  Once Abraham confesses that the God Most High is the possessor of heaven and earth and Abraham saw that Melchizedek served the same God, Abraham jumped on the opportunity and lavished some praise on God.  That is why he gave his tithe to Melchizedek.  This is known to bring pleasure to God because of the testimony of Abel (Gen 4:4).  When Melchizedek offers a blessing to Abraham, Abraham begins showing appreciation to God by tithing to God’s works on earth through Melchizedek.

   Melchizedek was a priest and a king of God.  The Old Testament builds big picture of Israel as God’s chosen.  So it is easy to assume that they were the only chosen, truly loving of God, until Christ came to the Gentile races.  But Baylis stated that, “God was truly known and worshiped by non-Israelites in the period before the Exodus is evident from the examples of…Melchizedek, the king-priest of Salem (Baylis, 1996, p.261).  Melchizedek was not an Israelite since Jacob had not yet been born to Abraham’s line.  Here we see another confirmation of God working through faith.  Melchizedek was a priest of God without being a Jew or Israelite. 

   Abraham did not want there to be any appearance that God needed anyone to bless Abraham.  Abraham knew that God could bless him all by God’s power alone.  These acts of righteousness, by all of God’s people, make God happy attract his blessings.  Abraham wanted this to be known surrounding his experience with God, so he blessed the king-priest with no receiving of other blessings beside that which God already gave, victory.

References

Baylis, A.H. (1996).  From Creation to the Cross: Understanding the first half of the bible.  Grand Rapids , MI : Zondervan.  This book shares the authors understanding and perspective of the Old Testament.  Albert H. Baylis is chairman of the theology department at Multnomah Biblical Seminary in Portland , Oregon .

NASB Study Bible. (1999). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

Richards, L. O. (2000). The illustrated concise bible handbook.  Nashville: Thomas Nelson.