Perhaps I should outline the major stories so far in Genesis.

Creation story


Second creation story

First sin and punishment
Very sexual
woman as trickster character.
Snake becomes smooth.

Cain murders Abel (God puts a mark on Cain)
?What is the mark of Cain?
?Why does God reward Cain with generations, after he murders his own bro?
A: God condemns Cain to generations of exhile.
Archetype of fugative

Noah’s Arc
Many flood myths.
Myths prevail until Abraham's story begins in Genesis.

Tower of Babel
Why does God divide all people?
Speaking in tongues?

Abram sacrifices animals to God, Lord gives land to Abram. (Land of Caanan).
?Why does God prefer blood sacrifices?
A:BBQ?

Sarai can’t have children.
Barreness is worst curse for women in bible.

Sarai gives slave girl to Abram, and then beats her when she concieves.
?Why is Hagar punished?
?Is Hagar giving Sarai a look of contempt because she was raped?
?Can this be read as ironic?
?Why does God support Sarai's vengence.
A:Sarai takes matters into own hands to ensure future generations. Surrogate mother.T
A:Hagar is vulva only.
A:Ishmael represents treachery of Sarai in the Koran.
A:Sacred well in Iraq where Hagar escaped dehydration.
A:Isrealites viewed themselves as the second child. Isaac had to be the second child who preveiled, so Ishmael had to be second best.

Angel names Ishmael and prophesizes his heavy hand.

Hagar gives birth to Ishmael.

Abram is named Abraham (ancestor of multitudes of nations).
God gives Abraham the rules: Males must be circumcised at eight days old “So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant” Genesis 17:13
A:Phallocentricism.
A:Isrealites as woman, or wife, to father: Yaweh.
A:What is more demasculating than circumcision?

Sarai is named Sarah and is promised a son: Isaac. Sarah laughs.
Sarah chuckles with wit, or Abraham laughs with praise.
Trickster eavesdropping.

God blesses both Ishmael and Isaac, but establishes covenent with Isaac only.
?Is God Calvanistic, blessing only the chosen ones?


Hagar and Ishmael are sent away into the wilderness.
Patriarchial God hostile to women, nature, and snakes.

Abraham circumcises the men.
Abraham questions God about sweeping the righteous with the wicked.
Sentimental me likes this alot. "For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it." Genesis 18:32 It implies that for the sake of one, God will be merciful.

Angels test town of Sodom?Okay, the town of Sodom is mentioned, but what about the town of Gomorrah? It never explains where, what...anything about it. Is Gomorrah even a town? Just a little lacuna.
?Does this passage, as right wing christians claim, speak against homosexuality? Or is it sex crimes in general? Lot was punished for offering his daughters instead of the men. But, the problem with sexual promiscuity in bible, is that of ownership of future generations.

Lot offers his daughters in place of Angels.?Footnotes explain that Lot pleased God by protecting the angels, but also in trouble for not respecting his role as protector to his daughters. And that is why Lot is saved but exhiled. But Abraham and Isaac sacrifice Sarah and Rebekah by calling them their sisters, and they are favored by god.
? Is the difference: Abraham and Isaac rewarded for their tricksterness?

God makes men of Sodom blind.

Sodom and Gommorah destroyed, but Lot and daughters saved.

Lot’s wife looks back and turns into a pillar of salt.

Lot’s two daughters revenge father by raping him. (Sons: Moabites, and Ammonites).Female tricksters.

Abraham claims Sarah as sister, loses her, until God intervenes.God rewards trickster.

100 year old Abraham (and Sarah) bear son Isaac.Second Patriarch born.

Sarah forces Hagar and son to exile into the wilderness.
Abraham makes a covenant with Abimelech as an alien on Philistinian Land.

God tests Abraham.
Written by P.
Angel saves Patriarch's (Isaac) life.

Abraham buries Sarah at 127 years old.

Slave of Abraham finds Isaac a wife: Rebekah.
Isaac marries Rebekah.
Isaac in mourning over mother, Sarah.
Isaac consumates marriage with Rebekah in dead mother's tent.
First Well narrative.

Abraham remarries Keturah, and dies at 175 years old.Rebekah is with twins “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples born of you shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the elder shall serve the younger.” Genesis:25:23
Twins fought even in the womb.


Esau and Jacob are born. Isaac loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.
Jacob: smooth, feminine, favored by Yaweh.
Esau: hairy, masculine, not favored by Yaweh.

Esau sells Jacob his birthright for stew.
Jacob and Rebekah as tricksters.
Archetype of mother and son plotting against father.

Famine sends Isaac to foriegn lands.

Isaac pretends Rebekah as sister, God protects them.Why theme of claiming wife as sister?
Crafty. Insult done to property is a very bad thing. Cleverness of tricking their way into new territory is favored by Yaweh.

Esau marries two Hittite wives, and makes life hard for parents: Isaac and Rebekah.

Rebekah tricks Isaac by having Jacob steal Isaacs blessing from Esau,
"By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; but when you break loose, you shall break his yoke from your neck" Genesis 27:40.
?: Why does God favor the trickster?
?: What does this response mean?
A: Prophesy. Later, Esau vies to kill Jacob.
Myth: Once blessing is given, can't be taken away.
Archetype of brother conflict.


Rebekah sends Jacob away to escape Esau's vengence

Esau marries Mahalath, Ishmael's daughter.

Jacob dreams of God promising him land.
Jacob makes vow to give one-tenth back to the Lord.
pillar of stone

Jacob meets Rachael at the well.
Character developement by asking of Laban, again.
second well story
Love at first site archetype

Laban makes deal with Jacob
Leah has exquisite, or weak, eyes.
Rivalry between wives.


Jacob serves seven years, and is tricked into consumation with Leah.
Laban, Rachael, Leah trickster figures.
Shakespeare's bed trick.
Leah is given maid: Zilpah.

Jacob serves seven more years and weds Rachael and her maid, Bilhah.

Rachael is barren, but Leah is furtile because she is unloved.
Leah's sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah.

Rachel gives maid, Bilhah to Jacob as a third wife.
Son for Rachel is named Dan and second son is named Naphtali.
Rachel see's Bilhah's births as winning a competetion with Leah.

Leah cannot procreate anymore, so she gives her maid Zilpah as a fourth wife.
Zilpah has Gad, Asher,

Leah again is blessed with two more, Zebulun and Dinah.

Finally God has mercy and gives Rachel a son named Joseph.

Jacob wishes to take family and leave, makes deal with Laban.
Jacob as magician.
Jacob as trickster.
household god figures idolized and stolen from Laban.

Rachael sits on figure
Bleeding woman.
Rachael's cunningness.

Jacob stands up to Laban and deal is made.
Jacob can take no more wives, and neither party can intend to do harm to eachother.
pillar of stone

Jacob wrestles angel and prevails.
Jacob is named Israel, "For you have striven with God and with humans, and have preveiled." Genesis 32:22.
?As Jesus did?

Jacob and Esau meet and make-up.

Rape of Dinah
Dinahs brothers demand circumcision from Shechem and every male among them before giving her to them.

Jacob and two sons, Simeon and Levi murdered all Hivite males.

"A terror from God fell upon the cities of all around them," in order for Jacob's family to flee to Canaan.
God, again, promises blessings.
pillar of stone.

Rachel dies in childbirth; Benjamin is born.