New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis: Advances in the Origins Debate by John H. Walton is a scholarly yet accessible text. He immediately addresses his detractors when he writes, “Hostility is best met with graciousness, which is not always easy. I’ve tried to find ways to express that I’m still learning and growing and that there is still much that continuing scholarship can bring to widen and broaden our understanding of the Genesis account.” He further explains, “My job Is to be a faithful interpreter and to put information on the table that others may not have so that they can make more informed decisions.” I was hooked at this point. I appreciated his acknowledgement that he is still learning and still able to change his mind.

My only critique is that I would have better understood his arguments had I read his other texts. He does a nice job of summarizing the previous texts prior to making new arguments or deepening old arguments, but I felt that I was missing significant elements due to my lack of knowledge of the other texts.

I enjoyed the narration byJamie Renell as he brought Walton’s words to life in a clear manner.

The culture and language of the [Old Testament] must be considered in order to truly understand its meaning because “scripture…has been written for us but not to us,” according to Walton. He further asserts that as Christians, “Our common ground in the authority of scripture unites us.”

As a Biblical scholar, he helps the reader comprehend the context in which the authors of scripture wrote - considering their culture, language, audience, and more - “often so different than our modern culture which can lead to gross misinterpretations of the Word. He considers part of a reader’s “due diligence” is to understand different authors’ “cultural rivers” so we may better understand their writing.

I was most intrigued by Walton’s ideas of creation through the lens of order and function - and “order bringing” versus chaos.

Understanding the language, idioms, and culture of the time, he refines a number of words. When considering Adam and Eve’s punishment from God, it is anxiety over conception rather than pain at childbirth. Additionally, “sweat is typically related to anguish or anxiety, not to hard labor.” Therefore, humans “will face challenges in the most basic aspects of life” with “reproduction…and food, still made available but accompanied by great anxiety.” These assertions would have been easier for me to digest had I read his text on Adam and Eve as I felt as though I only understood part of the picture.

With regard to religion and science, he argues that “religion and science are mutually informing” and explains this relationship with an analogy to two distinct types of U.S. maps that offer different information of the same geographic place. They are both correct because they “answer different questions” yet are “intertwined in complex ways.”

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed having many of my long held beliefs challenged based on my understanding of Scripture, and I will continue to think about his ideas for a long time.

Thank you to IVP Audiobooks and NetGalley for providing an advanced review copy of the audio version of this title for an honest review.

This is the 8th book in author John H. Walton’s The Lost World of Genesis series. This series is a look at Genesis through the eyes of the ancient Near Eastern world. I would like to read his book on Adam and Eve. Walton shares his background; he was raised as non-denominational which is a traditional church.
Walton suggests we ask the correct questions when researching Genesis: Why is this here? What did this text change about the audience’s thinking? Walton’s thesis is to study the book through the culture and the people of the Near East. We should be aware that we cannot fully understand without knowing the context of the culture.
This book is easy to understand even by laymen. Walton summarizes his earlier work in each chapter. In this book he focuses on chapters 1-3. I found his book interesting. He discusses the first three chapters is not to discuss the origins. The creation story is more about God brining order to the world. He also discusses Adam and Eve as Adam means man and Eve means woman. Scripture says that man was created in God’s image is this a statement about humanity or individuals? There is also discussion on the fall of could this be how humans bring and cause disorder by wanting things their way rather than God’s way. Creation is God bringing order, not creating the world out of nothing. Evolution is not in contradiction with scripture unless it denies God exists.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis: Advances in the Origins Debate by John H. Walton
challenging informative reflective slow-paced
2.5 Stars

First of all a big thank you to NetGalley for providing the audiobook version of this book to review.

I think that if I had acquired this book as a physical copy I would have scored it closer to a 3.5 to 3.75 but due to the intense academic nature of the text listening to the material via audiobook worked against it. There were so many references both to the authors previous texts and the texts of others that I found the book hard to follow and stay engaged with. If I had access to the physical book I likely would have been highlighting and seeking out the reference materials for expanded context.

It's worth being aware that this is a highly academic text, this will recommend it to some and dissuade others. I found it interesting as I have previously taken courses on ancient near eastern religions and was able to recognize many of the references made to the context that the old testament was written in. That being said, I feel like without that context I would have been completely lost in the weeds.

Overall while I cannot recommend the audiobook I do feel that this is a series I would seek out as physical copies to allow for better absorption and understanding of the text.

New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis: Advances in the Origins Debate

I enjoyed this book.

I found it a great way to consume the texts of Genesis, with mindset of the times the Bible was written, and not trying to confuse it by adding in modern debates and arguments from today, but instead examining the book itself.

This being said, I found the book fairly scientific and deeply researched. Although this would appeal to many readers, for me it was just a little too unapproachable / academic. But I still got lots of great ideas and insight from reading it.

I would recommend this book if you are looking for a book to learn more about Genesis, and also about Walton's unique way of doling out theology.

3.4/5

"New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis" is a great book that looks at the first three chapters of Genesis. Even though I haven't read any of the author's other books, I really liked this one. The author gives a lot of good insights and answers many questions about Genesis in a simple and clear way. He uses plenty of scripture to back up his thoughts and points, and also includes other historical data.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was really interesting! I really enjoyed listening to it and learning more about this as a Christian.