Sidelined But Not Abandoned: The Fate of the Firstborn in Genesis - A Dissertation

by James C. Bangsund

Was Cain treated unfairly by God? What does it mean that God would not give Ishmael the Abrahamic covenant and yet promised to "make him fruitful and multiply him" such that he would become "the father of twelve princes, and ... a great nation" even before such things were promised to Jacob? Would you rather have Jacob or Esau as your next door neighbor? Read the text carefully before you answer, and you may be surprised at your conclusion. Was it lust or arrogance that led to Reuben's downfall?

All these were firstborn; all were kicked to the side of the road by God. Or were they? What was actually happening in these Genesis encounters with destiny? In what sense were the firstborn in Genesis "sidelined but not abandoned"?

This book, originally the author's Ph.D. thesis, is being published for two reasons. The first is to make the basic research available more widely, since some of the observations are critical and yet have not been widely noted. The other after more than two decades of reflection as a seminary professor and pastor, the author has concluded that the "sidelining" of the firstborn in Genesis is part of a larger picture that, ultimately, reveals the intent of the entire book.

312 pages, Paperback

Published February 15, 2016