One more ball to juggle, but let's sum up the first two: (1) Israel's dismal story of the monarchy is the meat of the Old Testament, and the origins stories are an introduction to that main story. (2) Israel's origins stories, like the stories of the monarchy, were written during the period of the monarchy and the exile when the Israelites were ready to write it. Now, the third ball to keep in the air: (3) Israel's stories of kings and exile are also the most historically verifiable of all the Old Testament books.