When was Genesis written?

[Jerry Smith]

In another thread, someone mentioned that part of the Genesis creation account might have been influenced by the Babylonians (specifically their hanging gardens)...

JohnR7 replied that Genesis was written 1000 years before the Babylonians even existed as such.

My question is this: What does the best available research say about the writing of Genesis? Under the Documentary hypothesis, when were P & J written & when were they redacted? Was there a Babylonian influence before or after the redaction of Genesis?

I wish I knew more about the state of Bible research and history.

 

[JohnR7]

Here is a Bible timeline:

http://www.wordsight.org/btl/000_btl-fp.htm

 

[Jerry Smith]

John,

Thanks for the link. They did not give a date for the writing of Genesis, or explain how they arrived at many of their dates. They gave the incorrect date for when God created this earth, and likely for other events, so I would be reluctant to trust their dating of the writing of Genesis even if they had given one.

 

[JohnR7]

Originally posted by Jerry Smith
John, Thanks for the link. They did not give a date for the writing of Genesis, 

Just search the document for Moses.

Joshua, son of Nun, of the tribe of Ephraim, was born. Joshua lived 110 years and became the leader of Israel after Moses' death. (1536 B.C.)

Nebuchadnezzar II (604-562 BC) is credited for building the legendary Hanging Gardens. It is said that the Gardens were built by Nebuchadnezzar to please his wife or concubine who had been "brought up in Media and had a passion for mountain surroundings

http://ce.eng.usf.edu/pharos/wonders/gardens.html

If you do not trust christians then most any law school has courses on ancient law, get your date from them on when Moses wrote the ancient laws of Isreal.

http://www.law.pitt.edu/hibbitts/ancientl.htm

 

[Jerry Smith]

John,

The first link you gave me mentioned both Moses and Genesis. It gave a time-frame for the life of Moses. It gave a timeframe (2369 years) for the events of Genesis. Still, I looked and looked and saw no mention of the writing of Genesis or the redaction of Genesis.

I trust Christians as much as I trust anybody. Lawyers are another story
Seriously, the U. of Pitt link you gave me didn't mention Genesis at all, especially not the time of its writing or redaction.

I have read some of the various discussions (and various conclusions) about the dating of Genesis by textual analysis and other trustworthy methods, but none of it ever stuck.

I am just interested to know what the most trustworthy methods give for a date of the writing of the J & P accounts in Genesis and the (presumably later) redaction of them.

If those who do not accept the documentary hypothesis have a method for dating the writing and/or redaction of Genesis, I'd be interested to hear that too.. So far, no one has given me any dates for the writing of Genesis.

Thanks, by the way, for the link to the Hanging Gardens page. That is interesting. If the Gardens were built during the reign of Nebuchadnezzer II, and if they did indeed influence one of the Genesis accounts, or the redaction of the Genesis accounts, then we would be looking at a date of 600BC or younger for some parts of Genesis or for its redaction.

 

[Mr.Cheese]

J-10th/9th Century.
P-6th century.

To answer the question any further I'd have to do some reading.

 

[Jerry Smith]

Cheese: thanks... You don't happen to know an approximate date for the redaction?

A 6th century composition of P would be consistent with the Hanging Gardens influence on the Garden of Eden story, if I remember correctly that story as being part of P.

I would like to hear something from anyone who knows more about how these dates were decided upon...

 

[Mr.Cheese]

The redaction would have to have occurred during the exile. Of course, I should tell you something that isn't obvious. Hmm...

Gerhard von Rad did some real nice work on Genesis.

I think the dates I gave were consistent with the Documentary Hypothesis. I really need to read more on Genesis. I think the Documentary Hypothesis was a place to begin looking for the answers to this issue, not the answer to the issue. Oral tradition and the ages it can be passed down complicates Wellhausen's theory. For instance, if P was written in the 6th century, how old are the traditions that are represented by P?
Does that make any sense? I probably shouldn't open a can of worms cause I don't know enough to get the lid back on.

 

[Jerry Smith]

It is a can of worms... When I was reading on it a year or two ago it took very little time for it to all go over my head. I understand that there is an issue of the ages of the oral traditions, but I don't know much past that.

I mainly wanted to know if the age of Genesis falsified the idea that Eden was influenced by Babylon - if what you have given is correct, then it obviously doesn't.

I appreciate your help & I'm sorry my curiosity leads to a big can of worms. Maybe I'll learn about it after I retire & have more time...

 

[Mr.Cheese]

No, I wish I knew more than I did. I just haven't had the time to really look into it. So I end up making more questions than answering.
Zondervan, InterVarsity, and Anchor are some of the Publisher types who have reliable scholarship.
Von Rad wrote for the Old Testament Library series.

 

[lucaspa]

Originally posted by Jerry Smith
In another thread, someone mentioned that part of the Genesis creation account might have been influenced by the Babylonians

My question is this: What does the best available research say about the writing of Genesis? Under the Documentary hypothesis, when were P & J written & when were they redacted? Was there a Babylonian influence before or after the redaction of Genesis?

I wish I knew more about the state of Bible research and history.

The Biblical scholars I have seen state that the Biblical cosmology is that of the Babylonians.  Most Biblical scholars date Genesis 1 about 550 BC or so.  The redaction of the JEPD sources into the Torah came about the time of Ezra.  Genesis 2 comes from earlier, about 950 BC.

http://www-relg-studies.scu.edu/netcours/hb/dh/index.htm

http://www-relg-studies.scu.edu/netcours/rs011/sess08/hisdochp.htm

 

[kern]

However, this refers to the writing (redaction) of Genesis -- many of the elements found in the books would go back hundreds of years (or more) before those dates.

-Chris

 

[Jerry Smith]

Thanks again, Cheese & everybody. I appreciate the help. Bible scholarship tends to just stay over my head.

 

[Mr.Cheese]

I should know a lot more than I do. But I've learned that the scholars shouldn't imtimidate you. It's like reading literary criticism. Half of them just write some crazy stuff to get published and to hear themselves talk. SO when you think someone is blowing hot air, it's very possible that you may be right.

 

[Mr.Cheese]

I should know a lot more than I do. But I've learned that the scholars shouldn't intimidate you. It's like reading literary criticism. Half of them just write some crazy stuff to get published and to hear themselves talk. SO when you think someone is blowing hot air, it's very possible that you may be right.