THE PENTATEUCH
The term“ Pentateuch” refers to the first five books of the Bible— Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In the Hebrew Bible and Judaism, these books are referred to as the Torah. They are considered sacred and authoritative.
AUTHORSHIP
Jewish and Chris tian traditions ascribe the Pentateuch to Moses. However, modern scholarship is divided on the authorship and composition history of the Pentateuch. Some have asserted that the Pentateuch was compiled over a period of centuries as multiple authors or communities produced distinct versions of Israel’ s early history and laws. Julius Wellhausen( 1844 – 1918) articulated the most influential version of this theory, identifying four sources in the Pentateuch that he called J, E, D and P. This model for the origin of the Pentateuch is called the Documentary Hypothesis.
Proponents of the Documentary Hypothesis identify and categorize supposed unique sources within the Pentateuch based on changes in style, vocabulary and content. Over time, according to this view, various editors( called redactors) combined the source documents and added other material to create the Pentateuch as we know it.
However, there is no real consensus about the Documentary Hypothesis in modern scholarship; even among those who hold to the viewpoint, there is great variation in how the theoretical sources are understood, divided, and how many sources there are.
Current opinions on the composition of the Pentateuch vary widely, from affirming traditional Mosaic authorship to complex theories involving multiple sources being woven together over centuries of textual transmission. Nonetheless, J, E, D and P are still often used as convenient labels for identifying different types of content in the Pentateuch, apart from questions of sources or authorship.
CONTENT AND THEMES OF EACH BOOK
The fundamental purpose of the Pentateuch is to define the origin, mission and institutions of Israel as God’ s elect nation, chosen for his purposes in the world. Utilizing multiple settings, narratives and laws the Pentateuch articulates this viewpoint.
Genesis In Genesis 12:1 – 3, Abraham is called by Yahweh to leave his homeland because God has chosen him and will give the land of Canaan to his offspring. This text defines Israel’ s ultimate mission: All the nations of earth will find blessing through Abraham’ s offspring.
Genesis 1 – 11 is a prologue to Abraham’ s election; it describes a world estranged from God and in need of reconciliation, illustrated by the expulsion from Eden, Cain’ s murder of Abel, the flood and the Tower of Babel. Genesis 12 – 50 describes God’ s special protection and provision for the patriarchs, caring for Abraham even when he was acting dishonorably( Ge 12:10 – 20) and