On Genesis

This volume contains three works on the Book of Genesis: On Genesis: A Refutation of the Manichees, Unfinished Literal Commentary on Genesis and the third and longest, The Literal Meaning of Genesis.

No other part of the Hebrew Scriptures, aside from the Psalter and sections of the prophet Isaiah, captured the interest and aroused the attention of the early Church as did the opening chapters of the Book of Genesis. The subject of creation fascinated Augustine too, for whom the relationship between creator and creature was of utmost importance. Creation, Augustine believed, finds its fulfillment in returning to God, who waits for our freely given response to his offer of love.

This volume brings Augustine's works on the beginning of Genesis together for the first time in English and provides a comprehensive introduction to each one. The first two, On Genesis: A Refutation of the Manichees and Unfinished Literal Commentary on Genesis, are early works, written within ten years after Augustine's conversion to Christianity. The third and longest, The Literal Meaning of Genesis, was produced at the height of Augustine's maturity and has been ranked with his Confessions, The Trinity, and The City of God.