The "Toldoths" of Genesis

In Genesis 2:4, we find a word that is used eleven times overall in the Book of Genesis to mark off individual sections. It's the word toldoth, which is translated into English as account: "This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created."

A toldoth is a kind of genealogy, though it often serves a larger purpose than simply providing a list of names and lines of descent. It also provides relevant information on major events associated with a particular line of descent.
As already mentioned, the book of Genesis contains a total of eleven toldoths. Here they are:

Of the heavens and earth (2:4-4:6)
Of Adam through (5:1-6:8)
Of Noah (6:9-9:29)
Of Noah's sons (10:1-11:9)
Of Shem (11:10-11:26)
Of Terah (11:27-25:11)
Of Ishmael (25:12-18)
Of Isaac (25:19-35:29)
Of Esau's land (36:1-8)
Of Esau's line (36:9-37:1)
Of Jacob (37:2-50:26)

If we were looking for a good outline of Genesis, this is it. All we would need to do is add the Introduction at the beginning (1:1-2:3) and we would have it.

On Sunday we noted how there some fairly notable names missing from the list of toldoths. For example, Abraham's name is not on the list and neither is Joseph's. Nevertheless, their stories as part of the toldoth of Terah and Jacob respectively take up about half of the book. We also noted that the eleven are not of equal length. Both observations underscore how strategic Moses was to include or exclude what he did. In other words, Moses was not writing to give equal treatment to every detail of history. He wrote to pass on a theological perspective and the life lessons that go with it.

Knowing that Moses wrote with a strategy in mind provokes us to look for that strategy and for the life lessons that emerge from it. Looking sometimes involves taking notice of what is missing. For example, in the toldoth that begins in 5:1, Moses includes precious little historical detail for a period of history that covers almost 1700 years. He also makes only a few "editorial" comments about the period. This lack of information makes what detail he does include, along with the sparse "editorial" comment he does provide, stand out all the more.

Looking for Moses' strategy sometimes involves comparing one entire with another. For example, when we compare the toldoths of Ishmael and Esau with that of Isaac and Jacob respectively, we notice how much more of a focus there is on Isaac and Jacob, who through Abraham are the sons of promise. Ishmael and Esau also receive certain blessings from God according to their toldoths, but the difference in length indicates that this Book (the Book of Genesis) is not about them. It is about the promised line, the line from which the promised seed of the woman would eventually come (see Genesis 3:15)

Speaking of Genesis 3:15, as it turns out, it is the most important verse of all of the first toldoth (2:4-5:1). More about this in tomorrow's entry.