Gamaliel's E2 Guide to the Bible : The Pentateuch
The
Pentateuch (
Greek - "five-volumed"), known as the
Torah (
Hebrew -"law") in
Judaism, is the word used to refer to the first five books of the
Bible.
Christians refer to the individual books by their Greek or
Latin names, while
Jews use
Hebrew titles, the first word of the first
verse of each book.
Traditionally, authorship of these books has been ascribed to
Moses, but there is zero evidence for this in the books themselves, and in fact Moses
dies at the end of
Deuteronomy, so that doesn't make much sense at all. The most common view among Biblical scholars is the "
Documentary theory" or the "
Graf Wellhausen Hypothesis", which hypothesizes four textual sources for the Pentateuch, explaining the textual and thematic differences between different parts. The work of authors
J,
E,
D, and
P were combined by an editor,
R, to form the five books. This view is not universal, and much of it has been challenged, but no competing view has gained as much support.
The books of the Pentateuch tell the story of the creation of the world and of man and the various trials of the Israelites, culminating with the
covenant between
God and the Israelites and ending just prior to their entry into the
Promised Land, the land of
Caanan promised by God to
Abraham and his descendants.
GENESIS : Greek for "origin" or "beginning". Hebrew -
Bereshith ("in the beginning")
The story of the creation of the world by God in seven days and of the first man,
Adam, and his descendants, ending with the 12 sons of
Jacob, whose are the ancestral heads of the
twelve tribes of Israel.
EXODUS : Greek for "departure". Hebrew -
shemot ("the names")
Centered around
Moses, who leads the Israelites out of bondage in
Egypt and into the wilderness. There, God makes a covenant with the Israelites, detailing the laws they must adhere to, most especially the
Ten Commandments.
LEVITICUS : Latin for "dealing with
priestly matters". Hebrew -
Vayyiqra ("and he summoned")
Instructions from God to Moses detailing rituals, sacrifices, purity, and the priesthood given during the time the Israelites spend wandering the wilderness near
Mount Sinai. Jewish
kosher dietary laws have their origins here.
NUMBERS : Hebrew -
BeMidbar ("in the wilderness"), also referred to as the
Homesh Happiqqudim ("dealing with the numbering of the Israelites")
"Numbers" refers to the
census taken of the Israelites in this book. The events concern the grumblings of the restless Israelites and their journey from
Mount Sinai towards
Canaan, the
Promised Land.
DEUTERONOMY : from the Greek
deuteronomion ("the second law"). Hebrew -
debarim ("words")
Speeches and laws preparing the Israelites for their entry into the Promised Land. The
Ten Commandments are reiterated. Moses dies just as the Israelites are poised to conquer Caanan under the leadership of
Joshua.