Daniel Bediako

Theological Character: of the Patriarchal History Daniel Bediako German edition

Scholarly interest in the book of Genesis is polarized either on source criticism or literary criticism. Such polarization has led to the neglect of the theological investigation of the book, particularly the Patriarchal History (Gen 12-50). A review of the relevant literature indicates that although some scholars notice some important theological ideas in the patriarchal narratives, such ideas hardly receive any in-depth investigation. To this end, this study identifies and investigates several dominant theological ideas found in the Patriarchal History, including the character of God, promises, covenant, blessings and curses, sin and judgment, salvation, and genealogies. Based on this investigation, the author concludes that the Patriarchal History is not to be approached as a mere conflation of variegated traditions. Rather, the Patriarchal History is a unified one that has theological concatenations with the Primeval History, in that theological themes found in the latter are expanded or enlarged in the former. Within the Patriarchal History, Gen 12:1-3 seems to encapsulate all that follows.