Genesis is the first book of the Christian Bible, and Augustine devotes a good deal of writing to its interpretation toward the end of the Confessions. Augustine's early encounters with the Book of Genesis were negative. The Manichee doctrines he followed attacked Genesis, and much of its simple language about God "making" the heavens and the earth or speaking his "word" initially struck Augustine as extremely flawed. His opinion began to change rapidly upon hearing Bishop Ambrose's interpretations, which read the words in a highly spiritual, metaphorical sense. Genesis spurs the discussion of time and eternity in Book XI, as well as providing the material for a consideration of "the creation" in Book XII. Book XIII is an exegesis of Genesis as an instruction on finding the church and living in God.

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