The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition and Interpretation

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Following Leviticus is Numbers, which covers key events during the 40 years that Israel wandered in the wilderness as well as additional instructions for worshiping God and living as His covenant people. The last of the five books that make up the Pentateuch is Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy is sometimes referred to as the “second law” or “repetition of the law.” It records the final words of Moses before the nation of Israel crosses over into the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 1:1). In Deuteronomy we find God’s Law and standards that were given to Israel at Mount Sinai repeated and expounded upon by Moses. As Israel was to move into a new chapter of their history as God’s chosen nation, Moses is reminding them not only of God’s commandments and their responsibilities but of the blessings that would be theirs by obeying God and the curses that would come from disobedience. Pentateuch means simply “five books”. In Greek, the Pentateuch (which Jews call the Torah) includes the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. What is the Pentateuch and why is it important? Chambers’s Twentieth Century Dictionary defines Pentateuch as “the first five books of the Old Testament.” Pentateuch is from the Greek words penta, meaning five, and teuchos, meaning a volume, a book. Since the people were well acquainted with God’s law, the major emphasis is to remember His instructions and obey them. They were to “carefully observe” the commandments ( Deuteronomy 4:1, 5-6, 9, 14; 5:1), including the Sabbath ( Deuteronomy 5:13-15). The bibliography for the Introduction to the Pentateuch, as well as for Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy is presented at the end of this article. The Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible

The Meaning of the Pentateuch - The Gospel Coalition

The first five books of the Bible have commonly come to be referred to as the Pentateuch, a word derived from the Greek penta, meaning, "five," and teuchos, originally meaning “a case for carrying papyrus rolls” but in later usage, meaning the "scroll" itself. The division of these writings into five separate books may owe its origin to a practical consideration as one scroll containing all the words would be unwieldy, whereas five scrolls could be handled quite easily (Wolf 1991:17-18). John Sailhamer is an evangelical Old Testament Professor at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary in Brea, CA. He was president of the Evangelical Theological Society in 2000, and he authored over a dozen books on biblical theology and the Pentateuch. The current work, The Meaning of The Pentateuch, covers the gamut of biblical studies. Not only does it deal with the meaning of the Pentateuch; it also interacts with hermeneutics, biblical theology, OT theology, and covenant theology and dispensationalism. In establishing a chronology for the Pentateuch two broad time periods are considered; the time period for Genesis, and the time period for Exodus through Deuteronomy. For Genesis, there are two chronological frameworks to be considered; that which is prior to the Patriarchs, and that which is for the Patriarchs. In the case of Exodus through Deuteronomy, the prominent chronological factor which establishes the chronological framework is the date of the Exodus. Chronological framework prior to the Patriarchs (Genesis 1-11) God next drove Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden ( Genesis 3:24), thereby resulting in a world that is still deceived and held captive by Satan ( Revelation 12:9). Exodus The second of the four Pentateuch narratives is known as the Ephraimite History. The author is designated by the letter E for two reasons. E is the first letter in the word Ephraimite, which is used interchangeably with the northern kingdom. Because the place names in this history belong to the northern kingdom, it is assumed that the author was a native of this place. The second reason that E is designated for this material is that E is the first letter in the word Elohim, which is the name for the deity in that part of the history that precedes the story of Moses and the burning bush. In our bibles today, the J and E histories have been interwoven to present a single narrative. However, careful analysis reveals with a fair degree of accuracy the materials that belong to each of the original histories. The E narrative has several distinctive characteristics, including the use of the term Elohim, place names that belong to the north, a more advanced conception of the deity, higher ethical standards implied in the stories concerning the patriarchs, strong opposition to idol worship, and an unfavorable attitude toward the establishment of a monarchy.James 2:12 makes the statement that we shall be judged by the “law of liberty.” By obedience to these laws, we are showing God that we love and respect Him. “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3). Israel set out from Rameses on the 15 th day of the 1 st month (of the 1 st year) the day after the Passover (see also, Exod 12:2); God brings the people of Israel to the foot of a mountain in the wilderness, called Mount Sinai. Here, the people enter that covenant we discussed earlier. Throughout this process, God works with a prophet named Moses. He becomes the human go-between for both God and Israel, tasked with calling the people to follow God and also dealing with their complaints and disputes. He represents God to the people, and mediates on behalf of the nation when the people break God’s laws.

pentateuch | Etymology, origin and meaning of pentateuch by pentateuch | Etymology, origin and meaning of pentateuch by

The name Genesis is translated from the Greek Septuagint and means “beginning” or “origin.” Genesis introduces God as the Creator and then proceeds to tell the origin and purpose of all He created. When used in that sense, Torah means the same as Pentateuch or the Five Books of Moses. It is also known in the Jewish tradition as the Written Torah (תּוֹרָה כָתובָה, Torah Katuvah). What do Pentateuch refers to? Love and respect for other humans. Israelites were expected to show generosity toward marginalized people, execute justice for both the rich and the poor, and not bring shame on each other. In constructing a chronology for the Pentateuch is important to understand that for the time period before the Patriarchs (Gen 1-11), OT data are very limited and concise and there exists the possibility of gaps in the genealogical biblical records recorded in Genesis 5 and 11 (Archer 1979:361-365) as such genealogies were not intended to serve a narrow chronological purpose as is the case in the modern sense. Rather, like those in Matthew 1 or Luke 3, their main purpose was theological (see Kitchen 1966:37-38; and Archer 1979:361). Exodus records the beginning of God working with Israel on a national level. Until this time He had mostly worked with individuals. Because the entire nation was involved, God gave civil laws, statutes and judgments. These were necessary for the proper governing of the nation. Furthermore, He established His festivals (Exodus 12; 23:14-17) and the priesthood ( Exodus 40:13-15).For the Jew, these five books contained an authority that the rest of (their) Scripture—the prophets and the writings—did not seem to match. This is evident in that when the Jews were driven into exile, it was the books of Moses that were read most frequently in the synagogues. The first five books of the Bible have from the earliest of time been taken by the Jews to constitute a unity known to them as the Torah or Law. To the Jews, the word Torah best described this part of Scripture as this biblical Hebrew term means not only the "law" but also "teaching" or "instruction" which more completely characterizes God’s communication to the Israelites through Moses (Wolf:1991:18).

Pentateuch | Bible.org Introduction to the Pentateuch | Bible.org

The Pentateuch comprises the first five books of the Old Testament. It depicts a series of beginnings—the beginning of the world, of humankind, and of God’s promise to the Israelites. Genesis, the first book, opens with God’s creation of the world.Israel arrived at Mount Sinai on the 15 th day, of the 3 rd month, of the 1 st year after the Exodus; The Dazzling Darkness of God’s Triune Love: Introducing Evangelicals to the Theology of Hans Urs von Balthasar by Stephen M. Garrett The first five books of the Bible ( Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) form one unified group, which goes by several names. You’ve likely heard them called: Moses died on the Plains of Moab when he was 120 years old (therefore Exodus 2:1 to Deuteronomy 34:7 spans 120 years);