Iain Provan – Discovering Genesis

Episode: Matt L. sits down with his former professor Iain Provan to discuss Discovering Genesis: Content, Interpretation, Reception. Their conversation ranges from fly fishing and salmon forests to the wilds of Genesis. They discuss the imperfection of Eden and the history of interpreting Genesis. Iain also finesses his way through an OT-focused ‘speed round’ (tbh – Iain always keeps his answers concise and jam-packed).

Guest: Iain Provan is Marshall Sheppard Professor of Biblical Studies at Regent College (no, not Regent University) in Vancouver, BC. Provan has written numerous essays and articles, and several books including commentaries on Lamentations, 1 and 2 Kings, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs, and co-authored with Phil Long and Tremper Longman A Biblical History of Israel (John Knox Press, 2nd edition, 2015). He has also published Against the Grain: Selected Essays (Regent College Publishing, 2015), Seriously Dangerous Religion: What the Old Testament Really Says and Why It Matters (Baylor University Press, 2014) and Convenient Myths: The Axial Age, Dark Green Religion, and the World that Never Was (Baylor University Press, 2013). His most recent book, and the topic of our interview, is Discovering Genesis, (Eerdmans/SPCK 2016). He is currently finishing a book on Protestant biblical hermeneutics, projected for release in 2017.

The On-Script Quip (our review): Discovering Genesis (Eerdmans/SPCK 2017) offers readers a fascinating journey through a book that has shaped the imagination and lives of countless Jews and Christians through the ages. Provan sets the stage for reading Genesis by tracing the book’s history of interpretation and then guiding his reader through a brief history of biblical hermeneutics. In the book’s main body he then offers a brilliant literary and theological exegesis of the book. He adds to his exegesis the insights of countless Jewish and Christian interpreters, theologians, artists, historians, playwrights, and films. This book is no predictable introduction. It’s jam-packed with Provan’s original and creative insights alongside the time-tested and sometimes bizarre interpretations of Genesis that pervade the history of biblical interpretation. – Matt Lynch, Westminster Theological Centre, OnScript Podcast