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In his clear and readable style Walter Brueggemann presents Genesis as a single book set within the context of the whole of biblical revelation. He sees his task as bringing the text close to the faith and ministry of the church. He interprets Genesis as a proclamation of God's decisive dealing with creation rather than as history of myth. Brueggemann's impressive perspective illuminates the study of the first book of the Bible.
Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching is a distinctive resource for those who interpret the Bible in the church. Planned and written specifically for teaching and preaching needs, this critically acclaimed biblical commentary is a major contribution to scholarship and ministry.
Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching is a distinctive resource for those who interpret the Bible in the church. Planned and written specifically for teaching and preaching needs, this critically acclaimed biblical commentary is a major contribution to scholarship and ministry.
384 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1982
209 people are currently reading
461 people want to read
About the author
Walter Brueggemann
320 books585 followersWalter Brueggemann was an American Christian scholar and theologian who is widely considered an influential Old Testament scholar. His work often focused on the Hebrew prophetic tradition and the sociopolitical imagination of the Church. He argued that the Church must provide a counter-narrative to the dominant forces of consumerism, militarism, and nationalism.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
February 25, 2018
Un buon commento alla Genesi; più "pastorale" che "scientifico", ma che tiene conto degli studi. Scritto da uno specialista ma che si rivolge non ad altri specialisti, ma a una "comunità d'ascolto" dichiaratamente cristiana. E infatti non raramente interpreta gli antichi testi ebraici alla luce del Nuovo Testamento.
Non recentissimo: il testo originale è del 1982 (e ogni tanto si sente, nei parchi spunti di attualizzazione, qualche riferimento alla società americana di qualche decennio fa).
Mi sembra più interessante nell'interpretazione delle singole parti che nell'impostazione generale iniziale.
Ripreso in un secondo momento con più continuità, sono felicemente arrivato a quel filibustiere di Giacobbe.
Belli gli accenni di rapporto dialettico di Brueggemann con i commenti di Lutero.
Con il ciclo di Giuseppe cambia di nuovo un po' tutto. Ma sempre la sfida è percepire la stratificazione senza lasciar sprofondare nel vuoto il testo così come ci è pervenuto.
Non recentissimo: il testo originale è del 1982 (e ogni tanto si sente, nei parchi spunti di attualizzazione, qualche riferimento alla società americana di qualche decennio fa).
Mi sembra più interessante nell'interpretazione delle singole parti che nell'impostazione generale iniziale.
Ripreso in un secondo momento con più continuità, sono felicemente arrivato a quel filibustiere di Giacobbe.
Belli gli accenni di rapporto dialettico di Brueggemann con i commenti di Lutero.
Con il ciclo di Giuseppe cambia di nuovo un po' tutto. Ma sempre la sfida è percepire la stratificazione senza lasciar sprofondare nel vuoto il testo così come ci è pervenuto.
October 25, 2019
What an excellent, lucid and insightful read! This scholar does a wonderful job of exposing the meaning of the Genesis narratives and relating them to NT truths.
January 28, 2025
DNF - this was the first Bible commentary I attempted to read and it was great! At least the first half of it. Walter is a legend and made the text in Genesis accessible for a layman like myself.
June 13, 2016
When I was planning to write/teach through the book of Genesis I wanted to pick up a commentary to help me with the process. I had one commentary already, but thought another one would be helpful so I picked up Walter Brueggemann's commentary on Genesis.
Out of the commentaries I had, this was the one that I found more thought provoking and useful. Brueggemann's commentary is a bit middle of the road. He may be hard to access for some and nto enough for others. If you're looking for verse by verse analysis or a very technical commentary he's not your man. However, Brueggemann takes chunks of the Genesis story and interacts with it from angles I hadn't thought of before.
Now admittedly this is both a strength and a weakness. His different way of looking at things really caused me to look at the Genesis narrative with new eyes at times. Like focusing in on the struggle and doubts of Abraham. I very much appreciated this kind of attention to the narrative without always presenting quick fix answers or a formulaic faith. I found this to be a very strong point of the commentary.
However, Brueggemann's different way of looking at things led at times to a rather bias view of the text (which we all do at times). One example of this was the Joseph story.
Part of Brueggemann's theology seems to be very anti-empire, which I really have no problem with particularly when we're pitting God vs. empire. However, after Joseph rose to power in Egypt and particularly in his interactions with his brothers, Bruggemann wanted to paint Joseph as some cool heartless tool of empire. I didn't always feel that this matched up entirely well with the text and required ignoring parts while emphasizing others a bit too much.
One other minor annoyance was that Brueggemann seems to hold a more critical approach to the Bible with mentions of the Documentary Hypothesis and JEDP. Now while I'm not a huge fan of such an approach, what was more annoying was that Brueggemann would bring it up but then dismiss it as being too important because we have to deal with the text as we have it. After doing this a few times I really wondered why he kept mentioning the critical at all. I mean I appreciate his take on it, but I just wondered why we had to keep mentioning it and brushing it aside as often as he did.
Despite these weaknesses though, I really enjoyed Brueggemann's commentary on Genesis. I didn't always agree with him, but felt that he presented new ways of thinking and looking at Genesis which were helpful. I particularly enjoyed the way he tended to present the stories in Genesis in a way that highlighted the humanity of those who interacted with the divine. He presented or at least attempted to present three dimensional humans who could have great faith and great doubt in their lives and even sometimes at the same time. So it's certainly a commentary I would recommend if you're looking for a Genesis commentary that's not too basic or advanced and may present some different ways of looking at Genesis, I would give this a shot. I certainly enjoyed it.
Out of the commentaries I had, this was the one that I found more thought provoking and useful. Brueggemann's commentary is a bit middle of the road. He may be hard to access for some and nto enough for others. If you're looking for verse by verse analysis or a very technical commentary he's not your man. However, Brueggemann takes chunks of the Genesis story and interacts with it from angles I hadn't thought of before.
Now admittedly this is both a strength and a weakness. His different way of looking at things really caused me to look at the Genesis narrative with new eyes at times. Like focusing in on the struggle and doubts of Abraham. I very much appreciated this kind of attention to the narrative without always presenting quick fix answers or a formulaic faith. I found this to be a very strong point of the commentary.
However, Brueggemann's different way of looking at things led at times to a rather bias view of the text (which we all do at times). One example of this was the Joseph story.
Part of Brueggemann's theology seems to be very anti-empire, which I really have no problem with particularly when we're pitting God vs. empire. However, after Joseph rose to power in Egypt and particularly in his interactions with his brothers, Bruggemann wanted to paint Joseph as some cool heartless tool of empire. I didn't always feel that this matched up entirely well with the text and required ignoring parts while emphasizing others a bit too much.
One other minor annoyance was that Brueggemann seems to hold a more critical approach to the Bible with mentions of the Documentary Hypothesis and JEDP. Now while I'm not a huge fan of such an approach, what was more annoying was that Brueggemann would bring it up but then dismiss it as being too important because we have to deal with the text as we have it. After doing this a few times I really wondered why he kept mentioning the critical at all. I mean I appreciate his take on it, but I just wondered why we had to keep mentioning it and brushing it aside as often as he did.
Despite these weaknesses though, I really enjoyed Brueggemann's commentary on Genesis. I didn't always agree with him, but felt that he presented new ways of thinking and looking at Genesis which were helpful. I particularly enjoyed the way he tended to present the stories in Genesis in a way that highlighted the humanity of those who interacted with the divine. He presented or at least attempted to present three dimensional humans who could have great faith and great doubt in their lives and even sometimes at the same time. So it's certainly a commentary I would recommend if you're looking for a Genesis commentary that's not too basic or advanced and may present some different ways of looking at Genesis, I would give this a shot. I certainly enjoyed it.
October 31, 2022
The first commentary that I read cover-to-cover. I have read pieces of many commentaries and this is among the best and worth reading all of it.
May 23, 2024
I try to read outside of my tradition, especially the best other traditions have to offer. I read through this one as I taught through the book of Genesis. It was my second book of Brueggemann's and I am still torn on him. He has moments of poetic brilliance where I can see why he has been so influential. At the same time, he can be frustratingly theologically liberal.
I don't mind his liberalism as much as his dismissiveness of anything that reeks of traditional orthodoxy. For example, he not only does not care for young earth creationism, but he is not interested at all in the question of who created the universe. He takes this approach repeatedly to any theological problems or key points of disagreement. It does not feel as if he offers a different perspective as much as he does not care at all about the normal theological discourse. I could allow it if he provided some incredible unique insight in return. It is like he ignores the forest and the trees by pointing out to something far in the distance that not even he knows what it is.
I don't mind his liberalism as much as his dismissiveness of anything that reeks of traditional orthodoxy. For example, he not only does not care for young earth creationism, but he is not interested at all in the question of who created the universe. He takes this approach repeatedly to any theological problems or key points of disagreement. It does not feel as if he offers a different perspective as much as he does not care at all about the normal theological discourse. I could allow it if he provided some incredible unique insight in return. It is like he ignores the forest and the trees by pointing out to something far in the distance that not even he knows what it is.
August 21, 2017
Will totally alter and/or deepen you understanding and appreciation for the biblical story. Certain passages are given very cursory reviews (namely Ishmael/Hagar and Dinah) but he says up front he intends to focus on the central line of the story, so he kept his word in that regard. Very good resource for preaching/teaching.
February 21, 2018
Not a readable book because Brueggemann keeps referencing other Bible passages, which makes you feel you need to run over to said passages and read them also. I only wanted to read Genesis. Or better yet, reference a Bible passage and then give it to us (lazy me).
Otherwise, this is a great book for a seminary student, or ministers/pastors who need sermon ideas.
Otherwise, this is a great book for a seminary student, or ministers/pastors who need sermon ideas.
September 24, 2023
Not great, not terrible. I was hoping for more literary points from him, but it was a theological commentary so he used the texts as means to talk about theological and moral topics, some of which worked with the text. There were a few good points scattered throughout and his structures of the texts were helpful.
November 17, 2024
Insightful Commentary
In reading the Bible there is always a desire to discount the original audience while applying lessons to today's struggles. Brings many loves the Bible and takes the time to Interpret each story in Genesis soberly and thoroughly.
In reading the Bible there is always a desire to discount the original audience while applying lessons to today's struggles. Brings many loves the Bible and takes the time to Interpret each story in Genesis soberly and thoroughly.
January 20, 2025
I typically love Brueggemann, but this one did not make it for me. This is B at his most "higher critical." I was hoping for a more canonical and narrative-based approach to this commentary, and that's just not what I got.
November 14, 2020
This has my vote as the best commentary of any I've read or used. For me it is the gold standard of what and how a commentary is supposed to work.
October 17, 2022
Well written and engaging. But wildly insistent and often infuriating. Worth consulting but not top tier.
January 26, 2023
Buy this book and read it front to back - you’re welcome and please let me know your thoughts when you finally consume this gem.
January 5, 2026
I read this together with my mum - it was an incredible spiritually edifying study. Walter Bruggerman is a wonderful theologian.
December 7, 2015
Brueggemann is a United Church of Christ theologian who has published a host of works on Genesis. He is more eloquent in his wording and enthusiasm. He follows the promise of seed as the theme of the text, and includes Christian interpretations of passages. This allows him to show how our expectation of salvation is similar to the expectation of the promise of Abraham. He sometimes delves much deeper into Hebrew and its historic interpretation than Ross, and draws slightly more heavily on parallels to other Mesopotamian texts. In some cases, he gets carried away.
Example, in Genesis 49:
"But the narrative would not have our heads turned by the Egyptian honor. He does not die an Egyptian. He does not want to die an Egyptian. He most fears he will be buried in the wrong place as a son of the empire (v. 5). Both his acts, the binding of his heirs (chapter 48) and the provision for burial (49:28-33), are militantly Israelite acts. They reject and resist any accommodation to Egypt. The acts are intended to place the narrative and the family squarely in the current of the promise."
He opens the Joseph story with Romans 8:28-31 and looks at Paul's interpretations first.
"Christian interpretation of our Genesis text (when juxtaposed with that of Gal. 4) has two tasks: (a) to be clear that the Genesis narrative does not contain all of this typology but (b) that our Christian tradition has now chosen a certain lens through which to view the narrative. The test for the expositor is not to insist on the "original" meanings of the narrative, but to find the ways in which interpretation illuminates our human lot in the context of the gospel."
On Jacob's election, he maintains a good balance of Hebrew audience and Christian:
"Read with excessively Christian eyes, the temptation is to be too christological. Read with Jewish eyes, the temptation may be to be excessively Israelite."
Brueggemann also seems to assume the Documentary Hypothesis more than Ross, who only mentions the viewpoints on certain passages. He also skips over other important points in chasing his themes. He doesn't make a coherent outline of the text, and this book is not as well-referenced as the Ross commentary.
3 stars.
Example, in Genesis 49:
"But the narrative would not have our heads turned by the Egyptian honor. He does not die an Egyptian. He does not want to die an Egyptian. He most fears he will be buried in the wrong place as a son of the empire (v. 5). Both his acts, the binding of his heirs (chapter 48) and the provision for burial (49:28-33), are militantly Israelite acts. They reject and resist any accommodation to Egypt. The acts are intended to place the narrative and the family squarely in the current of the promise."
He opens the Joseph story with Romans 8:28-31 and looks at Paul's interpretations first.
"Christian interpretation of our Genesis text (when juxtaposed with that of Gal. 4) has two tasks: (a) to be clear that the Genesis narrative does not contain all of this typology but (b) that our Christian tradition has now chosen a certain lens through which to view the narrative. The test for the expositor is not to insist on the "original" meanings of the narrative, but to find the ways in which interpretation illuminates our human lot in the context of the gospel."
On Jacob's election, he maintains a good balance of Hebrew audience and Christian:
"Read with excessively Christian eyes, the temptation is to be too christological. Read with Jewish eyes, the temptation may be to be excessively Israelite."
Brueggemann also seems to assume the Documentary Hypothesis more than Ross, who only mentions the viewpoints on certain passages. He also skips over other important points in chasing his themes. He doesn't make a coherent outline of the text, and this book is not as well-referenced as the Ross commentary.
3 stars.
February 5, 2011
This is a solid addition to the commentary shelf of any preacher's library. Brueggemann, as usual, offers a thoughtful commentary here. Despite its age, this work provides many insights still applicable in the pulpit and classroom today. He approaches the text on its own terms and does not interpret elements in the text that are not present. At times, he struggles with interpretation and he is not shy to admit it, although he provides potential possibilities for interpretation in these places and I appreciate his unwillingness to commit to an unsure interpretation. He offers plenty of fair intertextual references across the Old and New Testament, as well as appropriate historical, hermeneutical, and cultural references- the right ingredients to spark the mind of the expositor. In all, as Brueggemann wrestles with Genesis, he sticks to his persistent approach of acknowledging the tension and reality within the OT (in the vein of a Pauline "now/not yet" dialectic),while emphasizing both God's grace and inscrutability- in my experience a helpful approach from the pulpit.
My main criticism comes in a limitation (probably) imposed by the publisher. I would like to see some excurses on topics like theodicy and violence (which preachers must face in the congregation), but Brueggemann largely remains mum on these topics as he is bound to the basic claims of the text. I am sure that he could have written a magnum opus on Genesis, which I would love to read, but that is not the aim of this commentary series.
My main criticism comes in a limitation (probably) imposed by the publisher. I would like to see some excurses on topics like theodicy and violence (which preachers must face in the congregation), but Brueggemann largely remains mum on these topics as he is bound to the basic claims of the text. I am sure that he could have written a magnum opus on Genesis, which I would love to read, but that is not the aim of this commentary series.
February 6, 2018
Brueggeman commentary is masterful and he continually impresses with strong insights one every page. I found his discussions of the creation, fall and Joseph cycles of stories particularly good. he uses mainly a literary analysis, but reverences other critical methods as well.
August 8, 2013
This is the second book I have read in the Interpretation series (John), and I am equally impressed with the wealth and depth of knowledge provided in this volume. The book's greatest strength is its ability to equip the reader with a comprehensive understanding of the deeper meaning and messages embedded in the Bible's first book that could not be extracted in solitary study. For anyone who desires a more profound exegetical understanding or desires the ability to digest the Biblical foundations established in the text, this book is for you. One will quickly realize that although the words were written thousands of years ago, the stories not only detail a historical record of the faith's founding fathers but also provide a blueprint for navigating everyday life and its conflicts, highly relevant in our modern age (i.e. the promise vs. present-preference, familial conflict, the visionaries: seen vs unseen, secularism vs. piety, forgiveness, right of primogeniture and inversion). The Biblical stories are much more than stories, and Brueggemann assists in understanding several basic tenets that serve as a general guidebook for the subsequent 65 books of the Bible, notably the pervasive, persistent divine hand in all things despite our own thoughts and emotions (i.e. guilt) that inherently draw us to different conclusions. I would think if you were to read only one book in the series, this would be it as the first book sets the tone for everything else.
August 20, 2015
***
UPDATE
***
I've returned to Brueggemann's commentary on Genesis, and I've walked away with a better opinion this time.
This commentary does not offer some of the depth I usually look for, but Brueggemann does supply an evenhanded and reflective journey through Genesis.
So I'll up my rating to 3 out of 5 from an original 1 out of 5.
***
ORIGINAL
***
When I planned out my quick, seven-week Abraham series, I knew I had limited resources to invest in the project. So I went with a name you can trust: Walter Brueggemann. I quick skim through Amazon's preview convinced that Brueggemann dealt with the complex character of Genesis while still listening with ears of faith for God to speak.
I made the wrong choice.
I've been profoundly disappointed by the (lack of) depth of engagement of this commentary. Instead of excavating the text and showing how it shapes our stories today, Brueggemann seems to adopt an explanatory structure (often more rooted in scholarly/theological discussion than in the text itself) and to proceed to force every story through that grid.
What's more, many of the puzzling details of the narratives (and there are many in the Abraham collection) are left unaddressed. Instead, much space is given to canonical connections to the NT. Canon criticism is good, but only after one wrestles with the text as it stands.
I trust that Brueggemann has written better volumes. This is not one of them.
UPDATE
***
I've returned to Brueggemann's commentary on Genesis, and I've walked away with a better opinion this time.
This commentary does not offer some of the depth I usually look for, but Brueggemann does supply an evenhanded and reflective journey through Genesis.
So I'll up my rating to 3 out of 5 from an original 1 out of 5.
***
ORIGINAL
***
When I planned out my quick, seven-week Abraham series, I knew I had limited resources to invest in the project. So I went with a name you can trust: Walter Brueggemann. I quick skim through Amazon's preview convinced that Brueggemann dealt with the complex character of Genesis while still listening with ears of faith for God to speak.
I made the wrong choice.
I've been profoundly disappointed by the (lack of) depth of engagement of this commentary. Instead of excavating the text and showing how it shapes our stories today, Brueggemann seems to adopt an explanatory structure (often more rooted in scholarly/theological discussion than in the text itself) and to proceed to force every story through that grid.
What's more, many of the puzzling details of the narratives (and there are many in the Abraham collection) are left unaddressed. Instead, much space is given to canonical connections to the NT. Canon criticism is good, but only after one wrestles with the text as it stands.
I trust that Brueggemann has written better volumes. This is not one of them.
October 9, 2012
Brilliant and breath-taking. While doing some good or not so good history (we honestly can only deal with probabilities with history, and we really don't know about the actual historical events in the OT), Brueggemann focuses on the text as we have it. His insights as to what the text is saying, especially as story/narrative, is great. He shows how profound the text of Genesis are, and believe me, there is so much to some of the short, seemingly simple stories. I have never been so moved in dealing with Genesis as I was when Brueggemann helped me work through it. He helped to expound and expand my view of God and his revelation and his dealings with people and reality. Quite simply the best material (including sermons, teachings, discussions, books) I have ever encountered and dealt with when it comes to Genesis.
Want to read
March 16, 2011I've been looking for commentaries or other books on specific books of the Bible by scholars whom I respect (hard to know who fits that, when you have the high standards of a "professional" but in a different field)-- got NT Wright's on Colossians, and now I have Breuggemann on Genesis. Really interested to see what he has to say, though I just picked up another book by him which I think I will read first...
June 4, 2023
Perhaps more than any other foundational text, Genesis is locked to the Western mind. Sadly, I don't think that Brueggemann has the key. This may be due to its age, published in 1981 originally. It is a capable effort, with some gems among its insights and a good explanation of the structure of the text in places. But there were some key passages, such as Judah & Tamar in chapter 38, that were so weak in their handling that I feel that I cannot broadly recommend this commentary.
October 24, 2013
Extremely helpful for a teacher trying to help students understand the Christian world view. This commentary provides practical insights for the fundamental points of theology introduced to us in Genesis. I love spending time with Jesus with a good commentary. The Interpretation series has been one of my favorite ways through a book of the bible.
January 8, 2016
This isn't a book that one reads from cover to cover. I have used it twice now as a teaching resource for a Genesis Sunday School class. Brueggemann is a well respected scholar. He is able to write in a way that is both academic and approachable to a reader without a seminary education. This has become one of my go-to resources for Genesis.
October 23, 2007
I used this as a reference for a Bible study on the life of Jacob. Really appreciated Brueggemann's descriptions of the wrestling match with God...Jacob's "crippling victory" or else his "magnificent defeat."
February 29, 2012
Can "imaginative" and "whimsical" be used as appropriate adjectives to describe a Bible commentary? I felt like I was reading a novel at times - which isn't necessarily a bad thing but neither was it particularly helpful or productive for Bible study output.
August 11, 2012
Read for church bible study on the Book on Genesis. Brueggeman is one of my favorite Old Testament scholars. An accessible but scholarly book - very helpful in understanding Genesis as the beginning of the story of God and God's creation.
April 12, 2017
Brueggemann writes in such a way as to leave the reader guessing whether he is a genius or a fraud.
While highly insightful, he seems determined to find only the deeper layers of meaning, and often completely overlooks the more simple excellence of the text.
While highly insightful, he seems determined to find only the deeper layers of meaning, and often completely overlooks the more simple excellence of the text.
March 3, 2020
I keep coming back to this Commentary because I resonate so well with Brueggemann's take on Scripture and his style of writing. I always see something new to appreciate about Genesis by seeing it through Brueggemann's heart and mind. I'll probably pick it up again.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews