Pentateuch

n.

The first five books of the Hebrew Scriptures.

[Middle English Pentateuke, from Late Latin Pentateuchus, from Greek Pentateukhos : penta-, penta- + teukhos, implement, vessel, scroll case.]

Pentateuchal Pen'ta·teuch'al adj.

The first five books of the Bible, known in Hebrew as the ḥumash (from the root ḥ-m-sh, meaning "five") or the Torah. It would appear that the division into these five books had already been made long before the destruction of the Second Temple. The five books are: Genesis (Be-Reshit), Exodus (Shemot), Leviticus (Va-Yikra), Numbers (Be-Midbar), and Deuteronomy (Devarim). They are also known as the Five Books of Moses.

The Hebrew names of the books are taken from the first words in each book. In Jewish tradition, each book has also another name: Genesis, Sefer ha-Yetsirah ("the Book of Creation"); Exodus, Sefer ha-Ge'ulah ("Book of Redemption," i.e., from Egypt); Leviticus, Torat Kohanim ("Law of the Priests," as most of the book deals with the law as it relates to the priests); Numbers, Ḥumash ha-Pekudim ("Book of the Censuses," as both the beginning and the end deal with the counting of the Israelites); and Deuteronomy, Mishneh Torah ("Repetition of the Torah," most of the book being a repetition of Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers).

Modern scholars have linked the Pentateuch to the Book of Joshua and have seen the six books as a unit, referred to as the Hexateuch. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, the Pentateuch speaks of the promise to inherit the Land of Canaan and the preparations for entering the land, and in order to complete the story and to realize the promise, the Book of Joshua, which deals with the conquest of the Promised Land and its division among the tribes, has to be included. Secondly, the Book of Joshua can be shown to be composed of the same sources as the Pentateuch, so that from a literary-critical viewpoint it appears to be a continuation of the Pentateuch, and part of it.

Opposed to this view is the argument that the Book of Joshua is an organic whole that stands alone while depending on a number of traditions in the Pentateuch (thus, for example, Josh. 14-21 is dependent on Num. 26:52-56, 34, 35:34).

The historical component of the Pentateuch opens with the creation of the world, deals with the transformation of Abraham's offspring into a nation, their redemption from Egypt, and their wanderings in the desert, and concludes with Moses' death just before the Israelites enter the Promised Land.

The Pentateuch is read in the synagogue from the Scroll of the Law. In ancient Israel, the Jews completed a cycle of the Pentateuch reading in the synagogue on the Sabbath every three years and therefore divided the Pentateuch into 154 (or 167, depending on custom) sedarim ("orders"). A remnant of this custom is to be found in the letter samekh at the beginning of the sedarim in the Pentateuch printed in Venice in 1518 (Mikra'ot Gedolot). This custom fell out of use, but has been reintroduced in some modern non-Orthodox congregations. The Babylonian custom, which is accepted today throughout the Jewish world, calls for the completion of the Pentateuch reading in the synagogue in a single year, the last section being read on Simḥat Torah. The Babylonian division is into 54 parashiyyot (see Parashah; Reading of the Law).

Traditional View According to Jewish tradition (BB 15a), the entire Pentateuch is a single unit that was given by God through Moses to the Israelites. Moses wrote the words of God, except for the last eight verses (Deut. 34:5-12), which were written by Joshua. Another view (ibid.) is that Moses wrote these eight verses as well. Because the Pentateuch is regarded as of Divine origin, it can never change, as stated by Maimonides in his 13 Principles of Faith: "l believe in perfect faith that this Torah will not be changed, nor will there be another Torah from the Creator." Similarly, according to Maimonides, a Jew must believe "that the entire Torah that we now have in our hands was given to our teacher Moses" (ibid.). The talmudic sages debate whether the Pentateuch was given scroll by scroll or as a complete sealed Torah. The dispute is whether Moses wrote down a section of the Pentateuch whenever it was dictated to him, and joined the different sections into a single work before his death, or whether, throughout the time in the desert, whenever God related a section to Moses, he memorized it, and close to his death wrote down the entire Pentateuch (Git. 60a).

Jewish tradition sanctified the text of the Pentateuch, not only in terms of its content, but also in terms of each individual letter. Because of its sanctity, the Pentateuch is to this day written by hand by a Scribe on parchment made of the hide of a ritually fit species of animal, and is copied from another scroll. The text is checked carefully, and if even a single letter is missing or added, the scroll is invalid. To ensure that no letters were omitted or added incorrectly, there were trained scribes who counted the letters and thereby prevented errors from creeping in. As the entire Pentateuch is seen as Divine, each word, and sometimes even each letter, has a purpose. The rabbis avowed that if it appears to a man that a certain word or sentence has no significance, the reason is human ignorance, and not any error in the Torah.

Bible Criticism At the base of Bible criticism lies the belief that the Pentateuch is not Divine and was not written by Moses. It is, rather, a compilation of various literary sources that were written at different times and later combined by an editor into a single work.

Modern Bible criticism emerged in the 18th century and became especially influential with the work of the German scholar Julius Wellhausen (1878). According to this view, the Pentateuch was composed from four main sources: J---the source that uses the Tetragrammaton for the name of God, transcribed YHWH (see God, Names of); E---the source the uses the name EIohim; P---the priestly code (primarily Leviticus); D---the Deuteronomistic source. Some claim to identify a JE source, one combining the first two enumerated above and appearing mainly from Exodus on.

The view of different sources for the Pentateuch is also based among other things on the duplication of stories, such as the two accounts of the Creation (Gen. 1:1-2:3 and 2:4-24), or the taking of Sarah by Abimelech as recorded in Genesis 20 (E source) and the taking of Rebekah by Abimelech in Genesis 26 (J source). In addition, the system seeks to solve various textual and theological problems. The chronological aspect of the system is based on the hypothesis of Martin de Wette (1805) that the book found by King Josiah in 622 BCE (II Kings 23) was the Book of Deuteronomy. According to De Wette, Josiah did not find the book but composed it himself at the time (D source). This book represents the theological revolution of centralization of worship in one place, Jerusalem. Therefore all references to decentralization of worship must precede this period, whereas those which emphasize the new principle are later than Josiah's time. According to this theory, the J and E sources preceded the Book of Deuteronomy; on the othert hand, the time of the P source is a matter of dispute. Some regard it as dating from the time of Ezra and Nehemiah (Wellhausen), others (Yeḥezkel Kaufmann) as preceding Deuteronomy.

This form of criticism was called "Higher Criticism" to distinguish it from "Lower Criticism," which allowed for emendations of the text of the Pentateuch (and the rest of the Bible) on the assumption that the received text contained errors. Limited and minor errors were to be found in the Masorah, but these were held to be of ancient tradition and were introduced without touching the text. However, critics who had no inhibitions regarding the sanctity of the text suggested many alternative readings, sometimes based on the ancient translations. In the light of modern scholarship and understanding, including archeological finds, much of it by Jewish scholars, some of the more excessive hypotheses have been modified and replaced by more conservative views.

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The first five books in the Bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy). The scope of these books extends from creation to the wanderings in the wilderness by the Children of Israel recently liberated from slavery under Moses' leadership. Interspersed within the story of liberation from Egypt and the journey to the promised land are several collections of laws which, it is stated, were revealed to Moses on Mount Sinai. The combination of redemptive story and divine stipulations for obedience became normative for post-biblical Judaism, so that the other two divisions of the Hebrew Bible, Prophecy and Writings, were subordinated to the Pentateuch (Torah).

Modern students of the Bible do not agree about the exact number of books that formed the original work. Some critics propose a four-fold unit (a Tetrateuch), joining Deuteronomy with the comprehensive historical work which follows (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings). Other interpreters suggest that Joshua belongs to the first five books, comprising a Hexateuch. The primary reason for this claim is the otherwise incomplete character of the Pentateuch, inasmuch as the promise of land is not yet fulfilled.

The beginnings of biblical historical criticism focused on the Pentateuch. A medieval Jewish commentator, Abraham Ibn Ezra, recognized signs of inconsistency which could bring into question the belief of Mosaic authoriship (e.g., the formula "until this day"; the admission that Canaanites had been dispossessed when the author wrote; anachronisms such as the late name for Kirjath Jearim; references to Moses' death). In the middle of the 18th century a French physician, Jean Astruc, wrote a treatise in which he argued that Moses used literary sources in compiling the Pentateuch. The use of different names for deity, Yahweh and Elohim, provided the decisive clue for this hypothesis.

There followed a century of source criticism during which a theory emerged that has served as an interpretative tool to the present day. This model goes by the name of the brilliant German scholar Julius Wellhausen who perfected and popularized it in the Encyclopedia Britannica.

In brief, it postulates the existence of four literary sources in the following sequence: JEDP. A relative chronology was achieved when D (Deuteronomy) was identified with the lost scroll that was said to have been discovered in Josiah's reign (7th century B.C.) and to have become the basis for this king's sweeping reform of the cult. The earliest source, J (the Yahwist) was thought to have come roughly from the time of David, while E (the Elohist) arose about a century later. These southern and northern sources respectively were joined together around 750 B.C. and to this larger work was added D somewhere around 550. Finally, P (the priestly source) was integrated into the whole about 450. Various features of the Yahwistic and Priestly sources soon gave rise to theories about additional sub-units (a lay source and a legal source). It is still a matter of debate among source critics whether the growth of the Pentateuch is best described as the coming together of fragments or the supplementation of a basic literary source by several lesser ones. The fragmentary nature of E has prompted some critics to deny its existence, while others stress its influence on northern prophetic circles.

Another hypothesis about the origin of the Pentateuch has come from the school of form criticism. The emphasis here is on the liturgical setting of the material that eventually formed the Hexateuch. One significant hypothesis called attention to little credos in Deuteronomy 6:20-25; 26:5; Joshua 24:2-13, which are understood as the seeds from which the larger tree grew. In short, it is said that these liturgical confessions encapsulate the entire story of the Hexateuch, with a single exception, the Sinai legislation. The latter is therefore taken to be a later addition. The little credos were at home in the sanctuary at Gilgal, whence they came to assume representative capacity for all Israel. The essential point is that the Hexateuch arose within Israelite worship.

An alternative theory has emerged among tradition historians. In this view the Tetrateuch comprises units of oral tradition dealing with the exodus from Egypt, wanderings in the wilderness, primeval history, patriarchal narratives and the revelation at Sinai. A fundamental work combined the traditions of JE, to which a priestly emphasis was later added (P). Deuteronomy chapters 1-4 served as an introduction to another comprehensive work, which traced a history of failure from the time of Moses to the release and death of King Jehoiachin in 561. This Deuteronomistic history functioned as a theological explanation for the collapse of Samaria and Jerusalem. These cities fell because the people refused to heed prophetic warnings.

From this survey of competing hypotheses it can readily be seen that an adequate solution to the Pentateuch has not yet appeared. Conservatives have long rejected the documentary hypothesis in favor of Mosaic authorship. Several prominent Jewish interpreters have questioned the idea of sources, arguing instead for complementary story-telling akin to that which created rabbinic literature, or have insisted (e.g., Yehezkel Kaufman) that the Priestly source is much earlier than generally thought. It should be noted, however, that most interpreters distinguish between the age of the materials within a source and its actual composition (which is later).

Perhaps the concentration on sources should be replaced by emphasis on strata, thus avoiding the assumption of written documents. It is likely that the Hexateuch arose from many separate strata which were brought together in the interests of worship and celebration. The form critical acknowledgment that professional storytelling lies behind some narratives in Genesis commends itself, and the same can surely be said for portions of Exodus. Beyond that, one can certainly recognize motives behind many emphases, particularly those which seek to promote priestly interests. Then, of course, legal codifications will have arisen from precedent and in circles where absolute claims seemed to be more desirable than case law. In the end, however, the exact nature of the rise of the Pentateuch remains a mystery.

The heated debate over the origin of the Pentateuch has obscured its contents in certain scholarly circles to the extent that attention has been aimed at taking it apart verse by verse. The virtue of the form critical and tradition historical approaches is their attention to the larger narrative. One significant attempt to isolate the theme of the Hexateuch has emphasized promise and fulfillment. An arc of tension extends from the story about Abraham to the narrative about Joshua's conquest of the land and the settlement of Jacob's descendants in Canaan. Others have preferred to think in terms of themes, for it can rightly be said that many different themes combine to tell the sacred story.

Three significant blocks of tradition have received considerable attention of late, namely the primeval history, the patriarchal narratives and the Sinai legislation. The influence of Mesopotamian traditions of creation and flood has been examined in much detail, often with clarification of disputed points. Recent analysis of the patriarchal stories is of two kinds: one of which is primarily interested in historical accuracy, and another which attends primarily to theological issues, with insights derived from the history of religions. Important gains have come from comparative studies in law, which have led to distinctions between case laws and categorical laws. Although early claims that the latter were unique have not stood the test of time, the scope of these absolute expressions of the deity's will is impressive.

One trend in contemporary interpretation has yielded significant analyses within the Pentateuch. That is the literary study of the Bible, an appreciation of its style and craft. Several discussions of stories in Genesis have enabled modern readers to appreciate the ancient text much better (e.g., the Joseph story; the episode of Judah and Tamar; the offering of Isaac; the story of creation and fall; the incident of the tower of Babel). In some cases these literary analyses have offered plausible explanations for elements that gave rise to a theory of multiple authorship.

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - de fem mosebøger

Nederlands (Dutch)
eerste vijf boeken van de Bijbel

Français (French)
n. - Pentateuque

Deutsch (German)
n. - fünf Bücher Mose, Pentateuch

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (θρησκ.) (η) Πεντάτευχος

Italiano (Italian)
Pentateuco

Português (Portuguese)
n. - Pentateuco (m)

Русский (Russian)
Пятикнижие

Español (Spanish)
n. - Pentateuco

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - Pentateuken (5 Moseböcker)

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
摩西五书

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 摩西五書

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 모세 5경(구약 성서의 맨 앞의 5권)

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 五書

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) أسفار موسى الخمسه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮חומש, תורה‬

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