Christian struggling with faith - Please help!

[LolaBumble]

The main thing that is troubling me is that Judaism originated 4000 years ago, but humans have lived for 200,000 years. This just does not make sense to me. I do believe the bible is the word of God, but why was Judaism not around at the beginning of the human race?

The Bible itself spans thousands of years and shows God interacting with humanity in ways appropriate to their stage of development. Before Judaism, people had a general knowledge of God (e.g., Adam, Noah, and others in Genesis). However, God chose Abraham (around 2000 BC) as the starting point for a specific covenant and nation (Genesis 12:1-3). This was part of His plan to prepare for the coming of Christ, through whom all nations would be blessed (Galatians 3:8). Judaism is the formalization of God’s covenant with a specific people (the descendants of Abraham) for a specific purpose: to reveal His nature and prepare the world for Jesus Christ. The Bible begins with universal history (Genesis 1-11), including people known as Adam, Eve, and Noah, long before Judaism was established. This shows God’s interaction with humanity from the start, outside of Judaism. The Bible is not meant to be a comprehensive history of all humanity but rather a focused narrative of God’s redemptive plan. It centers on specific events, people, and covenants that lead to Jesus Christ.