Customer Reviews

Genesis: Translation and Commentary

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This edition pairs a fabulous translation with commentary that is extensive and erudite without being the least bit boringly pedantic. Alter's running commentary in the footnotes (which constitute at least one half of every page!) alerts readers to centuries of interpretations and re-interpretations of this cornerstone of world literature, in a manner that makes the book of Genesis seem more alive and more vital than ever before, an ongoing and important discussion.

Alter's commentaries help to situate Genesis within the larger narrative arc of the Bible as well as they address even the most current strains of Biblical exegesis (like feminist rethinkings of gender roles in the creation, for example), but this reader found the wealth of fascinating minutiae even more endearing. What did Potiphar's wife REALLY say to Joseph when she tried to seduce him? It's in there. What does Adam's name mean in Hebrew? It's in there.

First-time readers of the Bible can expect a very readable yet faithful prose, while long-time readers can expect the unexpected, as Alter's etymological and socio-historical explanations bring a pleasantly surprising new clarity to a classic.

I'll never look at Genesis in quite the same way. That said, sometimes the "fresh" "new" look is just another way of packaging a worthless, fleeting novelty. Once in awhile, though, "fresh" means a shift in paradigm.

Alter's translation is thoughtful, readable, and faithful to the spirit and dignity of the great book of Genesis. As a man who principally looks at Genesis through literary eyes, one might think his commentary would be reduced to cold faithlessness. But Alter is deeply linked to the faith of the authors and what they were trying to tell. He leaves the judgment of the story to the reader.

As a believer, I also appreciated Alter's comments on the intelligence of the composition. To him, it's not just a collection of old legends, but a story with a plan - a tapestry with patterns to be sure woven into a sensible design.

In a day where we've chaptered and versified the Bible to death, Alter's holistic treatment probably gets back to the spirit in which the original account was probably presented.

Perhaps the most serious limitation of standard translations of the Bible is the tendency for the target language and its literary conventions to take control. One concrete example of this is the convention within contemporary English prose that word repetition is undesirable. This is particularly unfortunate when translating a language like biblical Hebrew in which frequent word repetition is one of the key elements of literary structure. Alter has produced a valuable translation of Genesis which allows the literary conventions of the source language to retain control. Of course, this means that the translation will often depart the expectations of contemporary English prose, but the result is well worth this price. For the first time, the literary features of the Hebrew text of Genesis are available for English readers to observe. Those who find the stories of Genesis so familiar that they have become stale will find that this translation gives the text new life. Alter has included helpful commentary on the text in footnotes. Unfortunately, this commentary is somewhat uneven. Some literary features of the text are discussed in great detail while others receive no comment at all. Therefore, the need for a fully developed narrative commentary on Genesis is still unmet.

Alter is attempting to capture both the meaning of the words and the poetry of the phrasing. This was a wonderful read. And where his choice of words differs from mainstream translation, he is careful to explain what the Hebrew words are and why he made his choices, so you can make up your own mind. Masterful.

If you're looking for an unbiased version of this great work of literature, something that gives readers the chance to have a better insight into various possible translations of one of the best selling books ever, Robert Alter's Genesis is what you're looking for. This book is truly extraordinary, in that it doesn't manipulate words to achieve a certain goal or position in the reader's mind, instead, it explains why many previous translation give a very wrong view of the bible. Robert Alter carefully revises the Hebrew, and uses large amounts of footnotes, to explain why he has chosen a certain translation, and what several other interpretations could be. Many people think a translation really can't change a book very much, but this version of Genesis shows us otherwise.

A good example for instance, is the creation of mankind. King james and most other translators have always said the first human was a man, and from his flesh a woman was created. When we look at the exact word that is used in the original book, we see that it is `adam, which means human. Without the prefix "ben" (son of), this does not suggest maleness, and verse 27 says

"And god created the human in his image,
in the image of God he created him,
male and female he created them."

This suggests the first human being both male and female. Then God took part of this human, and made another human, now calling one man and the other woman. This would also explain the attraction between man and woman, the need to be together, because they were once one. This shows how much difference even just the fact that the translator is male (such as King James) can make, and what a huge impact something this small can have on all of Christianity and indeed mankind.

This translation of Genesis is full of valuable information, and should be read by anyone with an interest in religion or literature. Personally I am not religious at all, but I frequently use the bible as a reference for other literature, and this book has given me a much better insight into how careful one should be with translations.

Alter's translation of Genesis is superb and he provides an exhaustive level of insight into the source material. Too bad the publisher didn't treat such scholarship with a little more respect--this Kindle version is appallingly bad. Typos, bizarre alignment issues, improperly placed footnotes and a lack of definitive page numbers go well beyond the typical ebook translation errors. This should not be sold in its current ebook format. I will be asking for a refund.

DO NOT BUY THIS IN EBOOK FORMAT

One can judge a translation by the vividness of the characters, the careful delineation of the moral issues, and the reasonableness of the choices the translator makes. Alter has done a wonderful job bringing GENESIS to life. The moral dilemmas facing Abraham, Jacob, and Joseph are deciphered from a nuance in the language or the placement of a noun or verb. The notes reveal a translator in full mastery of his material, though at times the discussion becomes a little too technical. Nevertheless, this is a great achievement. Recommended.

Thoroughly entertaining, educationally enlightening, and very readable. I've been really pleased with this commentary on Genesis. I've read a couple of commentaries on Genesis, and this one is my favorite.

My only complaint is that Alter provides neither his source material for translation, nor cites any of his sources. While I want to believe some of Alter's more novel assertions, without citations and the scrutiny of peer review I am forced to come away with a healthy dose of skepticism. This is such a big deal to me that I almost changed my review to 3 stars instead of 4.

There are hosts of people for whom reading the Bible has been a life-changing experience. Reading this book was a life-changing experience for me as it changed the way I read the Bible.

Alter shows Genesis as a work of literature. This doesn't mean that it holds no timeless truths. Rather the reverse. The fact that Genesis was written with a spirit beyond that found in a mere journalistic account make it more valuable not less.

This is one of those books where in the footnotes are longer than the text. Through these, Alter passes on wisdom from commentators throughout the ages.

The stories of Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Jacob, and Joseph we all remember from Sunday school. Alter's work brings them to life in a way nothing I've seen ever has before. If you revere the Bible, you owe it to yourselve to buy this book.

I'll take Alter's translation and commentary of Genesis over any other commentary yet produced. Alter's translation is easily the best out there and provides for the greatest insights into the narrative strategy of the author/editor.

Alter's translation has forced me to shake my head time and again in disappointment over major translations like the NASB or NIV simply because they force the ancient text to read like a modern writing - and as a result lead the reader to miss so many interesting, important and wonderful features of Genesis.

Alter's footnotes are gold. It's not going to give you a full commentary on every part of the text - but he will capture the power of the narrative and the insights offered are priceless. Having read through Alter, when I pick up a commentary (like that of Wenham's or Waltke's - both excellent commentaries) I find myself bored and slightly disappointed.

Alter does not deal extensively with the ancient cosmology of Genesis one and the extensive cultural and literary background to that text (John Walton's recent book on this is an important contribution to this). I'd have liked to have seen more on this from him. However, this is a bit peripheral to the literary and narrative intent of Alter. This "gap," if you will, doesn't really take away from the value of the book. It still must come with a 5-star recommendation. I'm afraid that those who have rated this book lower on the scale just don't get Genesis or the value of this translation.