TABLE OF CONTENTS Brief Explanation About the Technical Resources Used in this Commentary Series .......... i Brief Definitions of Hebrew Grammatical Forms Which Impact Exegesis................. iii Abbreviations Used in This Commentary.......................................... ix The Old Testament as History................................................... xi OT Historiography Compared with Contemporary Near Eastern Cultures................ xv Genre and Interpretation: Old Testament Narrative.................................. xvi A Word From the Author: How This Commentary Can Help You..................... xviii A Guide to Good Bible Reading ................................................ xx Introduction to Genesis 11:24-12:20 ...............................................1 Genesis 12 ................................................................ 4 Genesis 13 ............................................................... 23 Genesis 14 ............................................................... 31 Genesis 15 ............................................................... 44 Genesis 16 ............................................................... 66 Genesis 17 ............................................................... 73 Genesis 18 ............................................................... 83 Genesis 19 ............................................................... 95 Genesis 20 .............................................................. 105 Genesis 21 .............................................................. 119 Genesis 22 .............................................................. 126 Genesis 23 .............................................................. 135 Genesis 24 .............................................................. 139 Genesis 25 .............................................................. 150 Genesis 26 .............................................................. 159 Genesis 27 .............................................................. 168 Genesis 28 .............................................................. 179 Genesis 29 .............................................................. 185 Genesis 30 .............................................................. 191 Genesis 31 .............................................................. 198 Genesis 32 .............................................................. 208 Genesis 33 .............................................................. 216 Genesis 34 .............................................................. 221 Genesis 35 .............................................................. 229 Genesis 36 .............................................................. 238 Genesis 37 .............................................................. 246 Genesis 38 .............................................................. 256 Genesis 39 .............................................................. 264 Genesis 40 .............................................................. 269 Genesis 41 .............................................................. 275 Genesis 42 .............................................................. 286 Genesis 43 .............................................................. 294 Genesis 44 .............................................................. 300 Genesis 45 .............................................................. 308 Genesis 46 .............................................................. 320 Genesis 47 .............................................................. 327 Genesis 48 .............................................................. 337 Genesis 49 .............................................................. 346 Genesis 50 .............................................................. 363 Appendix One: Chart of the Old Testament .......................................374 Appendix Two: Statement of Faith..............................................376 SPECIAL TOPICS TABLE OF CONTENTS Names for Deity, 12:1 ..........................................................5 Bob’s Evangelical Biases, 12:3..................................................11 Messiah, 12:3................................................................12 Moon Worship, 12:4 ..........................................................13 The Pre-Israelite Inhabitants of Palestine, 12:6 ......................................14 The Angel of the Lord, 12:7.....................................................17 “The Name” of YHWH, 12:8 ...................................................18 Satanic Attempts to Thwart the Messianic Line (i.e., Gen. 3:15) in Genesis, 12:12..........20 Covenant, 13:15..............................................................26 Forever, 13:15 ...............................................................27 Terms Used for Tall/Powerful Warriors or People Groups, 14:5 ........................33 Fertility Worship of the ANE, 14:5 ...............................................34 Biblical Attitudes Toward Alcohol, 14:18 ..........................................38 Tithes in the Mosaic Legislation, 14:20............................................41 Tithing, 14:20................................................................41 Believe, Trust, Faith, and Faithfulness in the OT, 15:6................................49 Righteousness, 15:6...........................................................53 Where Are the Dead?, 15:15....................................................59 Peace (Shalom), 15:15.........................................................62 Fire, 15:17 ..................................................................63 Covenant Promises to Patriarchs, 15:18 ...........................................64 Blameless, Innocent, Guiltless, Without Reproach, 17:1 ..............................76 God Described as Human (Anthropomorphic Language), 18:1 .........................85 Ancient Near Eastern Weights and Volumes, 18:6...................................87 Know, 18:19.............................................................. ..91 Homosexuality, 19:4 ......................................................... 98 Lovingkindness (Hesed), 19:19.................................................101 Human Sexuality, 20:4 ........................................................108 Old Testament Prophecy, 20:7..................................................111 Trinity, 20:13...............................................................115 God Tests His People, 22:1,....................................................127 The Number Twelve, 25:16....................................................153 Terms for God’s Revelations, 26:5 ..............................................162 Edom and Ishmael, 27:40......................................................176 Teraphim, 31:19.............................................................202 Israel, 32:28................................................................214 Grieving Rites, 37:29.........................................................254 Election/Predestination and the Need for a Theological Balance, 41:33..................280 Intercessory Prayer, 44:16 .....................................................303 Remnant (Three Senses), 45:7..................................................311 Predestination (Calvinism) vs. Human Free Will (Arminianism), 45:8 ..................312 Glory, 45:13................................................................316 Believe, Trust, Faith and Faithfulness in the Old Testament (0/!), 47:29................333 Laying On of Hands, 48:14 ....................................................340 Ransom/Redeem, 48:16.......................................................342 Salvation, 49:18.............................................................356 Cornerstone, 49:23-25........................................................359 Cremation, 50:2.............................................................364 Burial Practices, 50:2.........................................................365 Symbolic Numbers in Scripture, 50:3............................................366 Brief Explanations of the Technical Resources Used in this Commentary Series I. Lexical There are several excellent lexicons available for ancient Hebrew. A. Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament by Francis Brown, S. R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs. It is based on the German lexicon by William Gesenius. It is known by the abbreviation BDB. B. The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament by Ludwig Koehler and Walter Baumgartner, translated by M. E. J. Richardson. It is known by the abbreviation KB. C. A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament by William L. Holladay and is based on the above German lexicon (#A). D. A new five volume theological word study entitled The New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis, edited by Willem A. Van Gemeren. It is known by the abbreviation NIDOTTE. Where there is significant lexical variety, I have shown several English translations (NASB, NKJV, NRSV, TEV, NJB) from both “word-for-word” and “dynamic equivalent” translations (cf. Gordon Fee & Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible For All Its Worth, pp. 28-44). II. Grammatical The grammatical identification is usually based on John Joseph Owens’ Analytical Key to the Old Testament in four volumes. This is cross checked with Benjamin Davidson’s Analytical Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon of the Old Testament. Another helpful resource for grammatical and syntactical