Is Genesis poetry?

Before we can hope to understand creation we need to be sure of the literary style of Genesis. Is Genesis poetry or does it record actual historical events? We compare the structure of biblical poetry with historical narrative and see which form of literature Genesis matches.

Helpful Resources
Creation Magazine - 1 Year Print & Digital
15 Reasons to Take Genesis as History
The Creation Answers Book
Refuting Compromise
The Genesis Account
Related Content
Were Adam and Eve real people?
28:31 • 2 Dec, 2018
Did Moses really write Genesis
Should Genesis be taken literally
Orthodoxy and Genesis: What the fathers really taught
Are (biblical) creationists 'cornered'?—a response to Dr J.P. Moreland
Hebrew scholar affirms that Genesis means what it says! (Ting Wang)
Theistic evolutionist answers CMI’s questions
Former long-ager finds freedom in a literal Genesis
Does Genesis hold up under critic's scrutiny?
"But it's divisive!"
The authority of Scripture
Genesis Questions and Answers
The Fall: a cosmic catastrophe
Bible Questions and Answers
Creation Compromises -- Questions and Answers
Refuting Compromise (refutation of Hugh Ross): introductory chapter and reviews
Genesis: Bible authors believed it to be history
Is Genesis poetry / figurative, a theological argument (polemic) and thus not history?
Genesis: Myth or History?
Robert McCabe Old Testament scholar Genesis
Is Genesis allegory poetry
Is apparent age biblical
Professing Christians Bible not factual
Steinmann Hebrew professor interview
Genesis is history
6000 years masoretic vs lxx
Minister and Bible scholar: Genesis is history!
Genesis as ancient historical narrative
E.J. Young: Genesis is NOT poetry
Creation Magazine LIVE!
Chimp-Human DNA: Less similar than previously reported
30:59 • 9 Nov, 2022
Noah's Ark: Fact or Fiction?
29:17 • 6 Jul, 2022
Did Jesus really rise from the dead?
29:04 • 6 Apr, 2022
Did animals die before Adam sinned?
28:53 • 16 Mar, 2022
6-day creation: Irrelevant to the Gospel? (part 2)
16:31 • 9 Feb, 2022
6-day creation: Irrelevant to the Gospel? (part 1)
10 Feb, 2022
Climate Change: Who's to blame? (part 2)
13:14 • 31 Jan, 2022
Climate change: Who's to blame? (part 1)
15:37 • 20 Jan, 2022
A Biblical Approach to Climate Change (part 2)
16:21 • 15 Jan, 2022
A Biblical Approach to Climate Change (part 1)
14:04 • 5 Jan, 2022
Bloopers from Season 8 of Creation Magazine LIVE
14:25 • 20 Nov, 2020
Evolutionists bashing evolution (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-13)
28:40 • 30 Sep, 2020
How to graduate with your faith intact (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-12)
28:41 • 29 Jul, 2020
Exposing the truth about creationists
28:41 • 15 Jul, 2020
Unshakable faith (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-10)
28:42 • 1 Jul, 2020
Objection… Overruled! (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-09)
28:42 • 17 Jun, 2020
No, God did not use evolution (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-08)
28:42 • 3 Jun, 2020
Examining evidence for evolution and deep time (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-07)
28:41 • 22 May, 2020
Life: Incredibly created by God (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-06)
28:41 • 7 May, 2020
Dinosaurs in the Bible and on the Ark
28:40 • 22 Apr, 2020
Science, the Bible, and the Age of the Earth (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-04)
28:41 • 8 Apr, 2020
Evidence for the Global Flood of Noah (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-03)
28:41 • 25 Mar, 2020
Origins and the Gospel (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-02)
28:41 • 12 Mar, 2020
Making sense of science, faith and Genesis (Creation Magazine LIVE! 8-01)
28:41 • 29 Feb, 2020
Is Christmas based on pagan traditions?
28:30 • 5 Dec, 2018
Did dinosaurs live after the flood?
28:30 • 15 Jan, 2020
Why should we trust the Bible?
28:30 • 1 Jan, 2020
The Bible: Word of God or word of man? (Creation Magazine LIVE! 7-21)
28:30 • 10 Jul, 2019
Five atheist miracles
28:30 • 18 Dec, 2019
Gain of function mutations: not evidence for evolution
28:30 • 20 Feb, 2019
Was Jesus wrong about creation?
28:30 • 16 Jan, 2019
Faith and facts
28:30 • 27 Nov, 2018
Does God exist?
28:30 • 7 Nov, 2018
Radiohalos ruin radiometric dating
28:30 • 18 Oct, 2018
Who were the Nephilim?
28:30 • 11 Oct, 2018
Were Adam and Eve real people?
28:31 • 2 Dec, 2018
Energizing your spiritual growth
28:30 • 15 Aug, 2018
Pluto: another young planet
28:30 • 4 Jul, 2018
Creationists damage Christianity?
28:30 • 6 Jun, 2018
What is the image of God?
28:30 • 9 May, 2018
Big Bang and the Bible
28:31 • 11 Apr, 2018
The Christian response to aliens and UFOs
28:31 • 28 Mar, 2018
Archaeology supports the Bible
28:30 • 14 Mar, 2018
Is Genesis poetry?
28:30 • 28 Feb, 2018
Evolutionary creation, round squares and other nonsense
28:30 • 14 Feb, 2018
If God created the universe then who created God?
28:30 • 31 Jan, 2018
How long were the Genesis days?
28:30 • 17 Jan, 2018
Why youth leave the church
28:30 • 3 Jan, 2018
Geniuses in the genealogies
28:30 • 4 Dec, 2016
The lost squadron
28:31 • 4 Dec, 2016
How can a good God allow evil in the world?
28:30 • 26 Oct, 2017
Cloning and stem cell research - right or wrong?
28:31 • 3 Dec, 2016
Can certain geological structures be explained by a global Flood?
28:31 • 3 Dec, 2016
Does the Bible contain scientific errors?
28:31 • 3 Dec, 2016
How does genetics point to design?
28:31 • 3 Dec, 2016
Evolutionists say the oddest things
28:30 • 3 Dec, 2016
What about the Garden of Eden?
28:30 • 2 Dec, 2016
Origins - who is being divisive?
28:31 • 2 Dec, 2016
What about mammoths?
28:30 • 5 Jul, 2017
Is evolution pseudoscience?
28:30 • 21 Jun, 2017
Fossils: evidence something happened quickly, not slowly.
28:31 • 7 Jun, 2017
The Flat Earth myth and the Bible.
28:31 • 24 May, 2017
The 'ape to man' evolutionary image is a fraud.
28:31 • 12 May, 2017
Genesis: the seedbed of all Christian doctrine
28:31 • 26 Apr, 2017
Does the Bible condone slavery, abuse or mass murder?
28:31 • 12 Apr, 2017
Flood legends
28:30 • 29 Mar, 2017
What about the Stone Age?
28:30 • 15 Mar, 2017
Are Genesis 1 and 2 contradictory?
28:31 • 1 Mar, 2017
Using the Bible to defend the Bible.
28:31 • 15 Feb, 2017
The Biblical basis for modern science.
28:31 • 1 Feb, 2017
Making sense of ‘ape-man’ claims.
28:31 • 18 Jan, 2017
The Irrational Faith of Evolution
28:31 • 4 Jan, 2017
Refuting abortion arguments
28:31 • 23 Nov, 2016
Everyone lives by faith, even atheists
28:31 • 9 Nov, 2016
More Amazing Design in Animals
28:31 • 26 Oct, 2016
Tree ring dating
28:30 • 12 Oct, 2016
Handling the Critics
28:30 • 28 Sep, 2016
Uniformitarianism and the age of the earth
28:30 • 14 Sep, 2016
Jesus is God – a biblical defense of the Trinity
28:30 • 31 Aug, 2016
Genesis: A case study for biblical authority
28:30 • 17 Aug, 2016
Creation and marriage
28:32 • 3 Aug, 2016
Hobbit Wars: The evolution of an ape man
28:31 • 20 Jul, 2016
Did God really say?
28:31 • 6 Jul, 2016
Epigenetics: What is it and how does it confirm creation?
28:31 • 22 Jun, 2016
The probability of evolution
28:32 • 8 Jun, 2016
Logic, reason and Christianity
28:32 • 25 May, 2016
Radiometric back flips; How solid are those dates?
28:32 • 11 May, 2016
What will that Restoration be like according to Genesis?
28:32 • 27 Apr, 2016
When exactly were bad things created?
28:32 • 13 Apr, 2016
Atheism needs evolution
28:32 • 30 Mar, 2016
Evidence for Noah’s Flood
28:32 • 16 Mar, 2016
How old is the earth?
28:32 • 2 Mar, 2016
Death before sin? What type of death?
28:32 • 17 Feb, 2016
Humans with tails?
28:31 • 3 Feb, 2016
Was Darwin a plagiarist?
28:31 • 20 Jan, 2016
How should the Bible be interpreted?
28:31 • 6 Jan, 2016
Was Noah’s Flood global?
28:31 • 17 Jun, 2015
Evolution and education- How to survive in a secular system
28:31 • 10 Jun, 2015
The Creation model
28:31 • 3 Jun, 2015
The Koran vs Genesis -
28:31 • 27 May, 2015
Speciation and the biblical kinds – What’s the connection?
28:31 • 20 May, 2015
Speciation: yes, Evolution: no
28:31 • 13 May, 2015
Refuting ‘bad design’ arguments
28:31 • 6 May, 2015
It’s a great time to be a Christian!
28:31 • 29 Apr, 2015
Fossil mix ups – When fossils are found where they shouldn’t be
28:31 • 22 Apr, 2015
Famous creation scientists – From Newton to Sarfati
28:31 • 15 Apr, 2015
Practical evangelism with evangelist Henry De Roos
28:31 • 8 Apr, 2015
What did the Son of God believe about Creation?
28:31 • 1 Apr, 2015
The Trojan horse of ‘deep time’
28:31 • 25 Mar, 2015
Will the REAL creationists please stand up?
28:30 • 18 Mar, 2015
Amazing design in animals
28:31 • 11 Mar, 2015
The key to understanding the age of the earth debate
28:31 • 4 Mar, 2015
How theistic evolution affects Christian theology
28:30 • 25 Feb, 2015
The key to understanding the creation/evolution debate
28:31 • 18 Feb, 2015
The holocaust before the holocaust
28:31 • 11 Feb, 2015
Living Fossils: Fossils that debunk evolution
28:31 • 4 Feb, 2015
What the Reformers believed about Genesis
28:31 • 28 Jan, 2015
Is the evidence for deep time really rock solid?
28:31 • 21 Jan, 2015
Transhumanism – using technology to propel human evolution
28:31 • 14 Jan, 2015
Biomimetics—engineers copying the Creator
28:31 • 7 Jan, 2015
Homology -- do common structures imply common ancestor?
28:31 • 11 Jun, 2014
Neo-catastrophism vs uniformitarianism
28:31 • 4 Jun, 2014
Physics and creation - an interview with physicist Dr Jim Mason
28:31 • 28 May, 2014
One human family -- an interview with Dr Carl Wieland
28:31 • 21 May, 2014
World winding down -- an interview with Dr Carl Wieland
28:31 • 14 May, 2014
Evolution and pop culture
28:31 • 7 May, 2014
Why is origins important?
28:31 • 30 Apr, 2014
No two ways about it: Operational vs historical science
28:31 • 23 Apr, 2014
What is the most 'cutting edge' fact for creation?
28:31 • 16 Apr, 2014
Do we all come from two people?
28:31 • 9 Apr, 2014
Life from non-life
28:31 • 2 Apr, 2014
The atheist's creation story
28:31 • 26 Mar, 2014
Tracing the nations back to Babel
28:31 • 19 Mar, 2014
What did the Church Fathers believe about Genesis?
28:31 • 12 Mar, 2014
More evidences for a recent creation
28:31 • 5 Mar, 2014
Creation and public education
28:31 • 26 Feb, 2014
Can you be a Christian and believe in evolution?
28:31 • 19 Feb, 2014
Countering creation skeptics
28:31 • 12 Feb, 2014
Grand Canyon - Evidence for Noah's Flood
28:31 • 5 Feb, 2014
Why does the evidence always point to evolution?
28:31 • 29 Jan, 2014
CMI's role in the body of Christ
28:31 • 22 Jan, 2014
How smart was ancient man?
28:31 • 15 Jan, 2014
Fossils: Evidence for Biblical creation
28:31 • 8 Jan, 2014
What would we know about creation if we only had the New Testament?
28:31 • 1 Jan, 2014
The Ice Age and the Bible
28:28 • 3 Jul, 2013
Apes and Humans: 99% similar?
28:25 • 26 Jun, 2013
Transitional fossils? Where?
28:24 • 19 Jun, 2013
Effective Evangelism in an Evolutionized World
28:19 • 12 Jun, 2013
How did bad things come about?
28:27 • 5 Jun, 2013
Same old song and dance
28:26 • 29 May, 2013
A 'mountain of evidence' for evolution?
28:31 • 22 May, 2013
Why Christianity is true
28:23 • 15 May, 2013
Astronomy, the Big Bang and creation
28:31 • 8 May, 2013
Creative Genesis Interpretations
28:31 • 1 May, 2013
Evolutionary creation
28:31 • 24 Apr, 2013
Who is the God of Genesis?
28:29 • 17 Apr, 2013
Marvellous molecular machines
28:16 • 10 Apr, 2013
Where do the fossils fit?
28:20 • 3 Apr, 2013
Aliens and UFOs -- What are they really?
28:31 • 27 Mar, 2013
Dinosaurs and humans -- did they live together?
28:31 • 20 Mar, 2013
The relationship between faith and science
28:26 • 13 Mar, 2013
Continental drift and the Bible
28:25 • 6 Mar, 2013
God's amazing design
28:31 • 27 Feb, 2013
Scientific evidence for a recent creation
28:31 • 20 Feb, 2013
When did God create?
28:31 • 13 Feb, 2013
Genetic Mutation - Magnificent Modifier or Mega Meltdown?
28:31 • 7 Feb, 2013
How natural selection supports a recent creation
28:02 • 30 Jan, 2013
Roman Road begins in Genesis
28:31 • 23 Jan, 2013
Effective Evangelism in a Evolutionized World (Part 2) -
59:31 • 16 Oct, 2011
Effective Evangelism in a Evolutionized World (Part 1)
59:31 • 15 Oct, 2011
Refuting arguments against Noah's Flood
59:31 • 15 Oct, 2011
Cornerstones of Evolution Refuted
59:30 • 15 Oct, 2011
Hot Topics—Controversies in the Culture
58:33 • 15 Oct, 2011
Defending the Christian Faith
58:33 • 15 Oct, 2011
Astronomy—The Heavens Declare the Glory of God
59:33 • 14 Oct, 2011
15 Reasons to Take Genesis as History
59:35 • 14 Oct, 2011
Noah's Flood: Key to Understanding the Age of the Earth (Part 2)
59:34 • 14 Oct, 2011
Noah's Flood: Key to Understanding the Age of the Earth (Part 1)
59:34 • 13 Oct, 2011
Radioisotope dating—An evolutionist's best friend?
59:36 • 13 Oct, 2011
The Tower of Babel and the origin of 'races'
59:33 • 12 Oct, 2011
Aliens and UFOs—what are they really?
01:00 • 12 Oct, 2011
Dinosaurs and the Bible
01:00 • 10 Oct, 2011
Noah's Ark—Real or Ridiculous?
59:43 • 10 Oct, 2011
Progressive creation—Preposterous Compromise
59:45 • 9 Oct, 2011
Gap Theory—an idea with holes?
59:34 • 8 Oct, 2011
Did God use evolution to create?
01:00 • 7 Oct, 2011
What the Bible says about the Age of the Earth
01:00 • 6 Oct, 2011
What the Science says about the Age of the Earth
01:00 • 18 Sep, 2011
Changes in Living Things (part 2)—Mutations
01:00 • 14 Sep, 2011
Changes in Living Things (part 1)—Natural Selection
01:00 • 13 Sep, 2011
Creation/evolution—What's it all about (part 2)
59:36 • 13 Sep, 2011
Creation/evolution—What's it all about? (part 1)
59:36 • 12 Sep, 2011
The Bible declares: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1
200K+
INFObyters
10.6K+
FEEDERS
5k+
FOLLOWERS
84K+
FANS
17K+
FOLLOWERS
2M+
YOUTUBE VIEWS