Includes bibliographical references (p. 185-212).

Chapter 1 Genesis at the Crossroads 1 -- Feminist-Advocacy Approaches and Biblical "Others" 2 -- Literary-Aesthetic Approaches and Biblical Ambiguity 4 -- Sociological Approaches and Biblical Authors 7 -- Who Wrote Genesis, and When? 8 -- Ezra-Nehemiah and the Interests of Yehud's Elite 16 -- Genesis and the Interests of Yehud's Elite 20 -- Plan of the Work 22 -- Chapter 2 A Lot to Talk About 25 -- From Ur to Canaan (Genesis 11-12) 25 -- Separation (Genesis 13) 30 -- Abr(ah)am between Lot and Death (Genesis 14; 18) 38 -- Sodom's Destruction and Its Aftermath (Genesis 19) 47 -- Chapter 3 Hearing Ishmael's Voice 63 -- Abram without Offspring (Genesis 15) 63 -- Ishmael's Prenatal (Mis)adventures (Genesis 16) 64 -- Ishmael and the Cutting of the Covenant (Genesis 17) 74 -- Ishmael behind the Tent Flaps? (Genesis 18; 20) 76 -- Ishmael Made Homeless (Genesis 21) 82 -- Out of Sight, Out of Mind? (Genesis 22) 90 -- Ishmael's Family (Gen 25:7-18) 95 -- Chapter 4 Seeing Red 97 -- Esau before and at Birth (Gen 25:19-26) 97 -- Sale of Esau's Birthright (Gen 25:27-34) 102 -- Esau's First Two Wives (Gen 26:34-35) 108 -- Jacob's Theft of Esau's Blessing (Genesis 27) 110 -- Aftermath to Jacob's Deceit (Gen 27:41-28:9) 117 -- Esau's Reunion with Jacob (Genesis 32-33) 126 -- Esau in Retrospect (Gen 36:1-8) 133 -- Chapter 5 White Lies 139 -- Laban as Brother(-in-Law) (Genesis 24) 139 -- Laban as Father(-in-Law) (Genesis 29) 145 -- Laban's Loss, Jacob's Gain (Genesis 30) 154 -- Formal Separation (Genesis 31) 157 -- Chapter 6 Genesis in Context 171 -- Genesis 12-36 and Its Ambiguities in Yehud 172 -- Lot and Yehud's Moabite and Ammonite Neighbors 172 -- Ishmael and Yehud's Arabian and Egyptian Neighbors 174 -- Esau and Yehud's Edomite Neighbors 177 -- Laban and Yehud's Mesopotamian Neighbors 179 -- Dynamics of Diselection 182