The Story of Genesis and Exodus.

Long before the King James Bible, English writers were retelling scripture in the verse of their own day. This early Middle English poem gathers the narratives of Genesis and Exodus into a flowing account, offering a glimpse of how medieval England received and reshaped the foundational stories of its faith.

What it's about

The work retells, in verse, the biblical narratives from the creation and the earliest generations through the story of the patriarchs and on to the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt. It compresses and paraphrases its sources, shaping sacred history into a continuous poem for hearers and readers.

Themes

Creation, covenant, obedience, and deliverance carry over from the biblical material, framed by the medieval poet's own devotional purpose. The retelling reflects how scripture was understood and taught in an age when few could read the Latin Bible.

Why it still matters

As a specimen of early Middle English, the poem is valuable to students of the language and of medieval religious literature alike. It preserves a moment in the long history of the Bible in English, and of the poetry through which ordinary people met it.

Who it's for

Students of medieval literature and the English language, readers interested in biblical retellings, and anyone curious about how scripture lived in the Middle Ages.