Includes bibliographical references and index.

What is a theology of Genesis? -- Towards a theology of Genesis -- The contested nature of theology -- Historical criticism and socially-valued knowledge -- Ideological criticism of the biblical text -- A proposal for a theology of Genesis -- Biblical text and canonical contexts -- Text and contexts: an example -- On reading Genesis 1-11 -- Building on the history of interpretation -- Noah and the flood -- The perspective and convention embodied in the use of Hebrew language -- Literary conventions and theological interpretation -- Genesis 1: picturing the world -- A first reading of Genesis 1 -- Genesis 1 in relation to its possible compositional context -- Genesis 1 in relation to alternative ancient pictures -- Jon D. Levenson's reading of Genesis 1 -- Genesis 1 and evolutionary biology -- Genesis 1 and alternative pictures of the world: a proposal -- Genesis 2-3: Adam and Eve and the fall -- James Barr on Genesis 2-3 -- A reformulated version of the traditional interpretation -- Is a gnostic precedent a good precedent? -- Identifying the key issue -- Rereading the narrative -- Genesis 4: Cain and Abel -- Exposition of Regina M. Schwartz's interpretation -- A theological reading of Cain and Abel -- Conclusion: Doing well in demanding circumstances -- Genesis 6-9: cataclysm and grace -- Reflections on some characteristic modern approaches -- Pentateuchal criticism and reading strategy -- The flood in Genesis and the epic of Gilgamesh -- A characteristic postmodern anxiety -- Towards a theological interpretation of the flood narrative -- The collocation of Genesis 6:5 with 8:21 -- The evil-thought clause in Genesis 8:21 -- Reading the story without the evil-thought clause -- Israel and the world, Sinai and the flood -- On reading Genesis 12-50 -- The patriarchs as a problem for Jewish observance of Torah -- Genesis as a compositional and religio-historical problem -- A third way : a canonical approach -- Genesis as the Old Testament of the Old Testament -- On interpreting the revelation of the divine name -- The distinctive patterns of patriarchal religion -- Theological issues in a canonical approach to the patriarchal narratives -- Genesis 12:1-3: a key to interpreting the Old Testament? -- A contemporary Christian approach to Genesis 12:1-3 -- An alternative reading of Genesis 12:1-3 -- The idiomatic meaning of blessing -- The significance of the proposed reading -- Theological interpretation as a continuing task -- Exegesis and theology -- On evaluating Gerhard von Rad's interpretation -- A Jewish-Christian dimension -- Genesis 12:3a: a biblical basis for Christian zionism? -- Why Christians should support Israel -- Some factors in the use of scripture -- An appeal to the plain sense of the text -- Merely human words? -- Possible significance of the patriarchal and non-settled context -- Some observations on unconditional divine promises -- The bearing of the New Testament upon Christian appropriation of the Old Testament -- Conditionality and Christian attitudes towards Jews -- Who are the children of Abraham? -- Politics and self-interest -- Genesis 22: Abraham, model or monster? -- Interpretive clues within the biblical text -- Model or monster? some factors for making progress -- De-instrumentalizing Isaac -- The nightmare scenario -- A Christian epilogue -- Abraham and the Abrahamic faiths -- Exposition of Karl-Josef Kuschel's account of Abraham -- Preliminary critique of Kuschel -- Jon D. Levenson's critique of Kuschel -- Should we continue to speak of Abrahamic faiths/religions? -- Genesis 37-50: Joseph -- The Joseph narrative in Gerhard von Rad's analysis -- Analysis of Von Rad's account -- Re-envisioning key elements in the Solomonic enlightenment hypothesis -- Re-envisioning the Joseph narrative in relation to Proverbs -- Joseph's treatment of his brothers -- Divine sovereignty and human activity.