When was Genesis written:

While the authorship of Genesis is of some confusion and debate, the same cannot be said regarding the time period Genesis was most likely written. Several clues help identify during which time Genesis may have been written:

• According to Genesis, tradition and the rest of the Pentateuch (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy), Moses is the author of Genesis (with some inclusion from other authors). Assuming Moses is the author of Genesis this would place the writing of Genesis in the mid-second millennia BC.
• The writing style and theology of Genesis is consistent with the mid-second millennia BC.
• The use of “EL“ compounds for the name of God ( El Shaddai - God Almighty, Genesis 17:1) is consistent with the mid-second millennia BC and entirely inconsistent with the first millennia BC. This suggests Genesis was written prior to the first millennium BC.
• The book of Joshua recalls events immediately following the death of Moses and is not considered part of the Pentateuch. This suggests the Pentateuch already existed prior to the writing of Joshua. Nearly all scholars, critical or otherwise, agree Joshua was written after the Pentateuch.
• Genesis recalls events that conflict with the laws established within the Pentateuch (such as Abraham’s marriage to his half-sister Sarah). If Genesis were written after the establishment of the laws of God (which are known to have been established in the mid-second millennia BC) it is unlikely Genesis would recall such events.

The writing style, theology, and events described within all suggest Genesis was written prior to the first millennia BC and during or after the events described within Genesis (which conclude in approximately 1400 BC). Therefore, we can assume Genesis was written in the mid-second millennia BC; probably around the death of Moses in approximately 1400 BC.