Editing Torah (section)

==Contents==
[[File:Page Pointers for reading of Torah.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Reading pointers, or [[yad]], to ensure more ordinal reading of the Torah.]]

The Torah starts with [[God]] [[Genesis creation narrative|creating the world]], then describes the beginnings of the [[Israelites|people of Israel]], their descent into Egypt, and the giving of the Torah at [[Mount Sinai (Bible)|Mount Sinai]]. It ends with the death of [[Moses]], just before the people of Israel cross to the [[Promised Land]] of [[Canaan]]. Interspersed in the narrative are the specific teachings (religious obligations and civil laws) given explicitly (i.e. [[Ten Commandments]]) or implicitly embedded in the narrative (as in [[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 12 and 13 laws of the celebration of [[Passover]]).

In Hebrew, the five books of the Torah are identified by the [[incipit]]s in each book;<ref>{{Cite news |last=Pattanaik |first=David |date=9 July 2017 |title=The Fascinating Design Of The Jewish Bible |work=Mid-Day |location=Mumbai |url=https://www.mid-day.com/news/india-news/article/Devdutt-Pattanaik--The-fascinating-design-of-the-Jewish-Bible-18406175}}</ref> and the common English names for the books are derived from the [[Greek language|Greek]] [[Septuagint]]{{citation needed|date=February 2021}} and reflect the essential theme of each book:

* ''Bəreshit'' ({{lang|hbo|בְּרֵאשִׁית}}, literally "In the beginning")—[[Book of Genesis|Genesis]], from {{lang|grc|Γένεσις}} ({{Transliteration|grc|Génesis}}, "Creation")
* ''Shəmot'' ({{lang|hbo|שְׁמוֹת}}, literally "Names")—[[Book of Exodus|Exodus]], from {{lang|grc|Ἔξοδος}} ({{Transliteration|grc|Éxodos}}, "Exit")
* ''Vayikra'' ({{lang|hbo|וַיִּקְרָא}}, literally "And He called")—[[Leviticus]], from {{lang|grc|Λευιτικόν}} ({{Transliteration|grc|Leuitikón}}, "Relating to the Levites") 
* ''Bəmidbar'' ({{lang|hbo|בְּמִדְבַּר}}, literally "In the desert [of]")—[[Book of Numbers|Numbers]], from {{lang|grc|Ἀριθμοί}} ({{Transliteration|grc|Arithmoí}}, "Numbers")
* ''Dəvarim'' ({{lang|hbo|דְּבָרִים}}, literally "Things" or "Words")—[[Deuteronomy]], from {{lang|grc|Δευτερονόμιον}} ({{Transliteration|grc|Deuteronómion}}, "Second-Law")

===Genesis===
{{Main|Book of Genesis}}

The Book of Genesis is the first book of the Torah.{{sfn|Hamilton|1990|p=1}} It is divisible into two parts, the [[Primeval history]] (chapters 1–11) and the [[Patriarchal age|Ancestral history]] (chapters 12–50).{{sfn|Bergant|2013|p=xii}} The primeval history sets out the author's (or authors') concepts of the nature of the deity and of humankind's relationship with its maker: God creates a world which is good and fit for mankind, but when man corrupts it with sin God decides to destroy his creation, using the flood, saving only the righteous [[Noah]] and his immediate family to reestablish the relationship between man and God.{{sfn|Bandstra|2008|p=35}} The Ancestral history (chapters 12–50) tells of the prehistory of Israel, God's chosen people.{{sfn|Bandstra|2008|p=78}} At God's command Noah's descendant [[Abraham]] journeys from his home into the God-given land of [[Canaan]], where he dwells as a sojourner, as does his son [[Isaac]] and his grandson [[Jacob]]. Jacob's name is changed to Israel, and through the agency of his son [[Joseph (son of Jacob)|Joseph]], the [[children of Israel]] descend into Egypt, 70 people in all with their households, and God promises them a future of greatness. Genesis ends with Israel in Egypt, ready for the coming of [[Moses]] and [[the Exodus]]. The narrative is punctuated by a series of [[Covenant (biblical)|covenants with God]], successively narrowing in scope from all mankind (the [[Noahic Covenant|covenant with Noah]]) to a special relationship with one people alone (Abraham and his descendants through Isaac and Jacob).{{sfn|Bandstra|2004|pp=28–29}}

===Exodus===
{{main|Book of Exodus}}

The Book of Exodus is the second book of the Torah, immediately following Genesis. The book tells how the ancient [[Israelites]] leave slavery in Egypt through the strength of [[Yahweh]], the God who has chosen Israel as his people. Yahweh inflicts horrific harm on their captors via the legendary [[Plagues of Egypt]]. With the prophet [[Moses]] as their leader, they journey through the wilderness to [[biblical Mount Sinai|Mount Sinai]], where Yahweh promises them the land of [[Canaan]] (the "[[Promised Land]]") in return for their faithfulness. Israel enters into a [[Mosaic covenant|covenant]] with Yahweh who gives them their laws and instructions to build the [[Tabernacle]], the means by which he will come from [[heaven]] and dwell with them and lead them in a [[holy war]] to possess the land, and then give them peace.

Traditionally [[Mosaic authorship|ascribed to Moses]] himself, modern scholarship sees the book as initially a product of the [[Babylonian captivity|Babylonian exile]] (6th century BCE), from earlier written and oral traditions, with final revisions in the [[Yehud Medinata|Persian post-exilic period]] (5th century BCE).{{sfn|Johnstone|2003|p=72}}{{sfn|Finkelstein|Silberman|2002|p=68}} [[Carol Meyers]], in her commentary on Exodus suggests that it is arguably the most important book in the Bible, as it presents the defining features of Israel's identity: memories of a past marked by hardship and escape, a binding covenant with God, who chooses Israel, and the establishment of the life of the community and the guidelines for sustaining it.{{sfn|Meyers|2005|p=xv}}

===Leviticus===
{{Main|Book of Leviticus}}

The Book of Leviticus begins with instructions to the Israelites on how to use the [[Tabernacle]], which they had just built (Leviticus 1–10). This is followed by rules of [[tumah and taharah|clean and unclean]] (Leviticus 11–15), which includes the laws of slaughter and animals permissible to eat (see also: [[Kashrut]]), the [[Yom Kippur|Day of Atonement]] (Leviticus 16), and various moral and ritual laws sometimes called the [[Holiness Code]] (Leviticus 17–26). Leviticus 26 provides a detailed list of rewards for following God's commandments and a detailed list of punishments for not following them. Leviticus 17 establishes sacrifices at the Tabernacle as an everlasting ordinance, but this ordinance is altered in later books with the Temple being the only place in which sacrifices are allowed.{{citation needed|date=February 2024}}

===Numbers===
[[File:Beth_Yaacov_Torah.JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|An opened Torah scroll ([[Book of Numbers]] part), and a reading pointer (yad).]]
{{Main|Book of Numbers}}

The Book of Numbers is the fourth book of the Torah.{{sfn|Ashley|1993|p=1}} The book has a long and complex history, but its final form is probably due to a [[Priestly source|Priestly]] redaction (i.e., editing) of a [[Yahwist]]ic source made some time in the early [[Yehud medinata|Persian period]] (5th century BCE).{{sfn|McDermott|2002|p=21}} The name of the book comes from the two censuses taken of the Israelites.

Numbers begins at [[Mount Sinai]], where the Israelites have received their [[Covenant (biblical)|laws and covenant from God]] and God has taken up residence among them in the [[Tabernacle|sanctuary]].{{sfn|Olson|1996|p=9}} The task before them is to take possession of the Promised Land. The people are counted and preparations are made for resuming their march. The Israelites begin the journey, but they "murmur" at the hardships along the way, and about the authority of [[Moses]] and [[Aaron]]. For these acts, God destroys approximately 15,000 of them through various means.  They arrive at the borders of Canaan and send spies into the land. Upon hearing the spies' fearful report concerning the conditions in Canaan, the Israelites refuse to take possession of it. God condemns them to death in the wilderness until a new generation can grow up and carry out the task. The book ends with the new generation of Israelites in the "[[plains of Moab]]" ready for the crossing of the [[Jordan River]].{{sfn|Stubbs|2009|pp=19–20}}

Numbers is the culmination of the story of [[The Exodus|Israel's exodus from oppression in Egypt]] and their [[Conquest of Canaan|journey to take possession of the land God promised their fathers]]. As such it draws to a conclusion the themes introduced in Genesis and played out in Exodus and Leviticus: God has promised the Israelites that they shall become a great (i.e. numerous) nation, that they will have a special relationship with Yahweh their god, and that they shall take possession of the land of Canaan. Numbers also demonstrates the importance of holiness, faithfulness and trust: despite God's presence and [[Kohen|his priests]], Israel lacks faith and the possession of the land is left to a new generation.{{sfn|McDermott|2002|p=21}}

===Deuteronomy===
{{Main|Book of Deuteronomy}}

The Book of Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Torah. Chapters 1–30 of the book consist of three sermons or speeches delivered to the Israelites by Moses on the [[plains of Moab]], shortly before they enter the Promised Land. The first sermon recounts the [[Moses#The years in the wilderness|forty years of wilderness wanderings]] which had led to that moment, and ends with an exhortation to observe the law (or teachings), later referred to as the [[Law of Moses]]; the second reminds the Israelites of the need to follow Yahweh and the laws (or teachings) he has given them, on which their possession of the land depends; and the third offers the comfort that even should Israel prove unfaithful and so lose the land, with [[repentance]] all can be restored.{{sfn|Phillips|1973|pp=1–2}} The final four chapters (31–34) contain the [[Song of Moses]], the [[Blessing of Moses]], and narratives recounting the passing of the mantle of leadership from Moses to [[Joshua]] and, finally, the death of Moses on [[Mount Nebo]].

Presented as the words of Moses delivered before the conquest of Canaan, a broad consensus of modern scholars see its origin in traditions from [[Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)|Israel (the northern kingdom)]] brought south to the [[Kingdom of Judah]] in the wake of the [[Assyrian conquest of Aram]] (8th century BCE) and then adapted to a program of nationalist reform in the time of [[Josiah]] (late 7th century BCE), with the final form of the modern book emerging in the milieu of the return from the [[Babylonian captivity]] during the late 6th century BCE.{{sfn|Rogerson|2003|pp=153–154}} Many scholars see the book as reflecting the economic needs and social status of the [[Levite]] caste, who are believed to have provided its authors;{{sfn|Sommer|2015|p=18}} those likely authors are collectively referred to as the [[Deuteronomist]].

One of its most significant verses is Deuteronomy 6:4,<ref>{{bibleverse||Deuteronomy|6:4|HE}}</ref> the [[Shema Yisrael]], which has become the definitive statement of [[Jewish identity]]: "Hear, O Israel: the [[Tetragrammaton|{{LORD}}]] our God, the {{LORD}} is one." Verses 6:4–5 were also quoted by [[Jesus]] in Mark 12:28–34<ref>{{bibleverse||Mark|12:28–34}}</ref> as part of the [[Great Commandment]].