Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Figures
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- 1 How the Bible Became a Book
- 2 The Numinous Power of Writing
- 3 Writing and the State
- 4 Writing in Early Israel
- 5 Hezekiah and the Beginning of Biblical Literature
- 6 Josiah and the Text Revolution
- 7 How the Torah Became a Text
- 8 Writing in Exile
- 9 Scripture in the Shadow of the Temple
- 10 Epilogue
- Suggested Further Reading
- Notes
- Index
7 - How the Torah Became a Text
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 16 July 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Figures
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- 1 How the Bible Became a Book
- 2 The Numinous Power of Writing
- 3 Writing and the State
- 4 Writing in Early Israel
- 5 Hezekiah and the Beginning of Biblical Literature
- 6 Josiah and the Text Revolution
- 7 How the Torah Became a Text
- 8 Writing in Exile
- 9 Scripture in the Shadow of the Temple
- 10 Epilogue
- Suggested Further Reading
- Notes
- Index
Summary
The writing of the five books of the Torah is a prominent example of the textualization of ancient Israelite religion. On the one hand, the Book of Exodus, and particularly the revelation at Mount Sinai in Exodus 19–23, serves as a powerful illustration of the Bible's disinterest in its own textuality. On the other hand, the Book of Deuteronomy integrates the textuality of the Torah as a pivotal part of the revelation at Mount Horeb (not Mount Sinai as in Exodus). These differing accounts of the revelation reflect a historical process of the textualization of Israelite culture and religion. Although scholars have usually analyzed the Torah from the perspective of who wrote what (using source criticism), this chapter begins with a different approach, asking the question: how does the Torah relate to its own textuality?
The central figure of the Torah's textuality is Moses. There is a literary history to the textualization of Torah that follows Moses' own role in the revelation. Moses is first the deliverer of Israel. Next, he receives and speaks the revelation at Mount Sinai. Moses is given the stone tablets. According to Exodus, these tablets seem to contain the plans for the tabernacle. According to Deuteronomy, these tablets are the Ten Commandments. Finally, Moses grows into an author and the authority for the Jewish religion.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- How the Bible Became a BookThe Textualization of Ancient Israel, pp. 118 - 138Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2004