A Message of Hope: Genesis 21:1–8 in Genesis Rabbah and John Chrysostom’s Homilies on Genesis

Abstract

Genesis 12–25 communicates a message of hope and sustains individuals through periods of dejection and despair. The idea of hope and resilience emerging from the Abraham narratives is seen in two commentaries composed in late antiquity: in Genesis Rabbah and in John Chrysostom’s Homilies on Genesis. After a brief presentation of Genesis 12–25 as a story of hope, this paper explains how both commentaries interpret the narrative of the birth of Isaac in Gen 21:1–8. Two issues are subsequently discussed: differences and similarities between rabbinic and patristic exegesis and the wider question of the interaction between Jewish and Christian communities in the fourth century CE. Although rabbinic and patristic authors make highly divergent claims, their works share similar interpretive techniques and theological themes. The concept of hope provides an important lens through which the ancient theologians interpret the ancestral narratives. The paper argues that Genesis Rabbah and Chrysostom’s Homilies on Genesis testify to the complex nature of the parting of the ways between Jews and Christians in late antiquity.