Introduction to the Pentateuch Summary:
Section I:
The first five books of the Bible, known to the Jews as the torah, are entitles Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Genesis, in its entirety, deals with ancestral history.
The Book of Exodus describes Israelites’ deliverance from slavery in Egypt and the covenant at Mount Sinai. Numbers begins at Mount Sinai and accounts the departure from the covenant through the desert. Deuteronomy provides a summary of the laws given to the chosen people by Yahweh and emphasizes their significance.
Section II:
Despite Moses being credited with writing the “vast body of literature”, it was never explicitly claimed that he wrote the entire Pentateuch, and more recent analysis of the text have shown discrepancies. It was initially believed that there were two authors, designated by the letters J and E. However, a third source (D) was afterwards added. The study of style and syntax saw overlaps in time periods and the combination of documents. Uncertainty and indecision characterize hypothesis about the Bible and its age is also reflected in its composition. Its centrality, however, is not focused on questions about authorship, but rather Jewish personality and the Law of Moses.
Section III:
The Bible should not be taken as an exact and precise historical text, but rather reflect the beliefs of the time period and various stylistic elements of the narrators. Though the first eleven chapters of Genesis must be considered separately, they all have the same core elements and content. The story of the patriarchs in composed of anecdotes and family histories often passed on orally. This blurring of lines and facts continues throughout The Pentateuch and should be viewed as a book containing an explicit religious narrative rather than strict historical fact.
Section IV:
The Pentateuch is called the torah, which means “Law” and reflects both the social and religious laws that prevailed societies and governing bodies at that time. These laws changed and adapted to various conditions and events that occurred. The most prevalent is the Decalogue, or “ten words” inscribed as the fundamental law.
Section V:
The religion described in the Pentateuch and throughout the Old Testament is a historical one, which is composed of the accounts of divine intervention made to different people at different times. The Pentateuch is the foundation and core of Jewish Religion and represents the initial “exploration of destiny”.
Emma Ackerley 