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Chapter SummariesChapter summaries offer the instructor a quick overview of each chapter of The Torah Story. The summaries may also be used to create lecture outlines for instructors who prefer slides and overheads to structure class sessions.

CHAPTER ONE: AN APPRENTICESHIP ON THE TORAH

Key Terms cause to effect or effect to cause: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative

which links narrative elements together in a specific kind of relationship. See p. 17. climax: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the point to and

from which the text ascends and descends. See p. 17. comparison: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the

juxtaposition of similar elements. See p. 17. contrast: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the

juxtaposition of dissimilar elements. See p. 17. documentary hypothesis: A source critical theory which suggests that the Torah was

edited together out of four (or more) sources, namely, J = the Jehovah (Yahweh) source, E = the God (Elohim) source, D = the Deuteronomistic source, and P = the priestly source (hence, also known as JEDP).

extended echo effect: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the parallel repeated ordering of story elements or features. See p. 17. May be illustrated by the following:

ellipsis: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the expectation that a reader will supply a major element or part that had been dropped from the story. See p. 17.

foreshadowing: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the suggestion of elements that will later come to fruition. See p. 17.

framing or bracketing: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the repetition of features or elements at the beginning and end of a unit, causing a framing effect or full circle. See pp. 17-18. May be illustrated by the following:

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Copyright © 2016 Gary E. Schnittjer

generalization: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the move from specifics to the general. See p. 18.

interchange: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the alteration of elements that further the story in a particular way. See p. 18. May be illustrated by the following:

intertextuality: As applied to the Bible, the way in which later biblical writers rewrote, commented on, reused imagery from, and otherwise dialogued with their scriptures. See pp. 23-24.

irreducibility of narrative: A characteristic of God’s word that denotes its permanence and integrity. See pp. 27-29.

janus: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting a bidirectional turning point, an element that simultaneously points both forward and back. See p. 18.

leading word: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the repetition of a key thematic word within a particular section. See p. 18.

mirror imaging: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the repetition of story elements in reverse order. This pattern is sometimes referred to as inverted parallelism or chiasmus. See pp. 18-19. May be illustrated by either of the following.

narralogic: A term coined by the author to denote the way biblical story works, namely with regards to story-words, story-rules, and the story rules. See pp. 21-22.

narrative: As per Fackre, “an account of characters and events in a plot moving over time and space through conflict towards resolution.” See p. 14.

particularization: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the move from the general to the specific. See p. 18

repetition: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the recurrence of similar or identical elements. See p. 20.

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Torah: The Five Books of Moses or the Pentateuch, comprising the biblical books Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. See p. 9.

turning point: A literary pattern commonly used in biblical narrative denoting the change in direction within a plot. See p. 20.

Key ideas Biblical narrative is itself a theological interpretation of the events narrated. Understanding biblical narrative requires familiarity with common literary patterns. The advanced reader will take seriously the more detailed ways in which biblical stories

work, understanding that reading biblical story as story and as scripture is basic to theological exegesis.

The Torah story must be heard first, but also within the biblical intertextual network of which it is a part.

The irreducibility of biblical story is characteristic of God’s word, remaining the same through the generations, even while the reader changes.

The biblical narrative should affect readers as it explains their identity, destiny, and direction.

Chapter SummaryThis book is an invitation and guide to the Torah story, with a particular focus on narrative and biblical intertextuality.

Theological Reading of Biblical Narrative—BasicsBiblical Narrative is a theological interpretation of the events narrated. In putting it this way we understand four things: First, a narrative is not the event itself but an account of the event. Second, because a narrative is an account of an event, it offers an interpretation of the event. Third, the interpretation offered by a biblical narrative is guided by the theological vantage point of the story itself. Fourth, the theology of a narrative can be learned by discovering how scriptural story works.The Torah apprentice should recognize literary patterns commonly used in biblical narrative, not because literary structure is the object of biblical study, but because it is the means used to present the story itself. Such common literary patterns include the following:

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Cause to effect or effect to cause Climax Comparison Contrast Extended echo effect Ellipsis Foreshadowing Framing or bracketing (inclusio) Generalization and particularization Groupings or numbers Interchange Janus Leading word Mirror imaging Narrative Time Proportion Repetition Summary Statement of purpose Question and answer Turning point Wordplays

Theological Reading of Biblical Narrative—AdvancedNarralogic, a term coined by the author, describes an idea that is threefold. First, narralogic refers to the function of the story-words themselves, the actual telling that holds together all the elements of the narrative world. Second, narralogic means that stories operate according to story-rules, rules that govern the various aspects of any given narrative. Third, narralogic means that the story rules or exercises dominion over all elements of the storied world. Aspects of narrologic include the following:

Dialogical and analogical patterns of discourse and thought Narrative selectivity Narrative space Narrative surprise Poetry, songs, and laws within narrative

In sum, narralogic denotes how biblical stories work, taking seriously the fact that narration is purposefully selective in detail, style, and point of view, and considering that arrangement itself affects narrative meaning.

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Biblical intertextuality, a concept emphasized throughout the textbook, refers to the way in which later biblical writers made use of their scriptures, especially the Five Books of Moses. Of the various sorts of intertextuality characteristic in the scriptures, the most challenging for North American readers is figural or typological literary relationships, when one story alludes to a previous story by use of echo. Polyacoustic reading is the attempt to hear the building echoes of biblical narrative that culminate in the Messiah. Polyacoustic reading includes two aspects. The first, progressive imaging in biblical narrative, refers to the way that biblical narratives build one upon another when they are read from the beginning. The second, multiple imaging biblical narrative, refers to the multiple simultaneous echoes that careful biblical readers can hear when considering the whole Bible.The irreducibility of biblical story is characteristic of God’s word, and this has significance for both story and reader. First, the biblical story remains the same through the generations, and when we read this story, we join all those through the ages who have been confronted by the word of God. Second, the reader does not stay the same, even when reading the same story. Therefore, we need to learn how scriptural narrative explains the world and situates us within it.

Story and ReaderReaders often are ruled by what they bring to the text with themselves. There is nothing wrong with the associations between our lives and scripture, unless we think that our readings of the scriptures are the meaning. Rather, biblical story is the meaning, explaining the human situation and offering a right view of life in three ways. First, biblical story explains the identity of all humanity. Second, scriptural narrative offers readers a view of the destiny of humankind and the human world. Third, biblical story defines the direction for human life. Our lives fit within the narrative explanation of the scriptures. We apprehend ourselves and envision life from the worldview offered by biblical story.

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CHAPTER TWO: INTRODUCING THE TORAH

Key Terms Pentateuch: Derived from Greek meaning “five books,” a term denoting the five books of

Moses, or the Torah. torah: Derived from a Hebrew word that means “instruction” or “teaching.” Torah: The Five Books of Moses or the Pentateuch, comprising the biblical books

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy Septuagint: Derived from a Greek term that means “seventy,” an ancient Greek

translation of the Hebrew Bible.

Key Ideas tora literally means instruction or teaching The Torah story can be framed as a question: How will God’s word overcome the human

rebellion? Each of the books of the Torah advances the interrelated five-part serial story

Chapter SummaryAn OverviewThe overview segment of chapter two introduces the Torah apprentice to the Torah itself, here described as a five-part serial narrative. Each of the five books has both a traditional Hebrew name (based on the opening words of each book) and a traditional Christian name (derived on some aspect of the book’s content), and these run as follows:

Traditional Hebrew title Traditional Christian title

“In the beginning” (bereshit) Genesis“These are the names”

(shemot)Exodus

“And he called” (wayyiqra) Leviticus“In the wilderness”

(bemidbar)Numbers

“These are the words” (debarim)

Deuteronomy

The chapter relates how the five books of the Torah connect, first by noting how the ending of one book dovetails in some fashion with the beginning of the next, and second by observing how Deuteronomy interprets the significance of Genesis-Exodus-Leviticus-Numbers and uses imagery towards its conclusion that echoes both the creation and Sinai narratives. These two means of connectivity may be demonstrated as follows:

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Connections between the Books of the Pentateuch Genesis ends Jacob blesses his twelve sons, looking forward to the fate of each family

lineExodus begins Picks up the story of the twelve tribes of Israel

Exodus ends God’s presence fills the tabernacle.Leviticus begins God calls to Moses from inside the tabernacle

Leviticus ends Series of regulations for rightly worshipping GodNumbers begins The tribes worship God

Numbers ends The Israelites reach the plains of MoabDeuteronomy begins Israel on the plains of Moab, preparing to enter the land of promise

Connections between the Imagery of the Creation and the RedemptionWhen the earth was wild and waste, darkness over the face of ocean, rushing-spirit of God hovering over the face of the waters (Gen. 1:2; Fox).

You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to me (Ex. 19:4; Fox).

He [Yahweh] found him [Jacob] in a wilderness land, in a waste, a howling desert…like an eagle protecting its nest, over its young-birds hovering, he spread out his wings, he took him, bearing him on his pinions (Deut. 32:10-11; Fox, emphasis added).

These connections present both a unified perspective of the Torah as a whole and the oneness of God the Creator and Redeemer.

A ReadingThe reading segment of the chapter touches on two matters: the meaning of the word tora, and the nature of the Torah story. First, though often understood too narrowly as “law,” the Hebrew word tora is better understood as “instruction” or “teaching.” As revealed instruction, it offers much to those who seek to read it as God’s will for living.Second, the Torah story may be framed as the following question: How will God’s word prevail over the human revolution? The rest of the reading segment summarizes the general content of the five books along the lines of that question. From its beginning and throughout the five-part serial narrative, God’s word is presented as powerful and certain to succeed, while humanity is presented as stubborn and certain to rebel. Though the Torah gives the reader confidence that God’s word will in fact prevail, the question of how lies somewhere in the future, beyond the Torah story itself, which ends with an expectation for a coming prophet like Moses who will bring God’s word to those who need it.

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Another LookChapter two concludes with a note concerning Moses’ pessimistic view of the Torah readers’ potential for obedience (cf. Deut. 31:26-27), along with Paul’s observation that the Torah exists for the torah-less (cf. 1 Tim. 1:8-9, author’s translation). The Torah’s demonstration of human sinfulness is the beginning of the gospel. But insofar as its story explains the meaning of the human situation and the hope for salvation, Torah itself is life.

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CHAPTER THREE: MACROVIEW OF GENESIS

Key Terms account: In the context of Genesis, a translation of toledot that denotes an extended

narrative unit of the book. Genesis uses the word toledot as a formula to open its sections. anthropomorphic language: a term denoting the ascription of human features to God. genealogies: In the context of Genesis, a translation of toledot that denotes the

compression of a narrative such that it typically relates the name of a character and his or her relationship towards parents and/or offspring.

Primary Narrative: the biblical story that begins with creation and ends with the exile of Judah, particularly as narrated through the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings.

primeval narrative: The first part of the book of Genesis which narrates the beginning of humankind.

Key Ideas The structure of Genesis includes four main parts. The first part narrates the beginning of

humankind and the last three narrate the beginning of the chosen family. The book of Genesis both begins many collections of biblical books and sets the

framework for the entire biblical narrative.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingChapter three provides a macroview of the book of Genesis. The reading segment examines first the narrative context provided by the book’s beginning and ending, second the four-part structure of its story, and third the relationship between God and the narrated events.By opening with the “beginning days” (Gen. 1:1—2:4a) and closing with the “last days” (49:1), Genesis offers its readers the framework for the entire story of humankind, creating the big story within which the rest of the Bible fits. More specifically, Genesis begins with the creation and fall, and ends with the expectation for the coming Judah-king. These bookends of Genesis provide the reader with the narrative context for interpreting the meaning of what unfolds in between.Genesis tells its story in the following four parts: the primeval narrative, the narrative of Abraham, the narrative of Jacob, and the narrative of the sons of Jacob. The placement of the three lengthy narratives describing the beginning of the chosen family after the narrative describing the beginning of humanity emphasizes this family’s significance within the larger human drama. The narrative of Abraham describes God’s promise of land, offspring, and blessing to Abraham, particularly emphasizing the promise of offspring; it is the story of Abraham waiting for and being tested in regard to his offspring. The Jacob narrative describes the journeys of Jacob and reveals him to be a man of complex character: ever deceptive, yet always looking better than nearly all the other characters he confronts within the story. His

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significance within the book of Genesis may be summed up in the meaning of his new name “Israel”: he wrestled with God and with humans, and he prevailed. The narrative of Jacob’s sons tells a story of brotherly animosity ending in reconciliation. The narrative sets up the first time reader for this surprise ending: while Joseph secures the birthright, Judah is granted the blessing, a blessing which includes the expectation that one of his descendants will be a world ruler, the long-awaited offspring.The book of Genesis invites its readers to struggle to understand the relationship between the world of circumstance and the intentions of God. While many apparent “accidents” occur throughout the Genesis narratives, God reveals at times that he is at work even when his actions are not sensible to those he is acting upon. Because Genesis is the beginning of God’s story, the nature of the relationship between the story and God makes all the difference for those who read this book as scripture.

Another LookThe book of Genesis is both a self-contained book which may be interpreted and appreciated on its own and the beginning of the larger biblical story for which it looks forward and establishes a setting. For example, one may read Genesis within the following contexts:

By itself Genesis

As beginning of Torah

Genesis + Exodus Deuteronomy

As beginning of Primary Narrative

Genesis + Exodus Kings

While the meaning of Genesis does not mean one thing by itself and something different as the beginning of the Torah, the Primary Narrative, the Hebrew scriptures, or the entire Bible, it does mean something in its own context, and something more in the larger contexts of which it is a part.

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CHAPTER FOUR: THE BEGINNING(Genesis 1:1—2:4a)

Key Terms cosmology: a view of the universe and its structure. cosmogony: an account of the beginning of the structured universe. connotation: meaning attached to a concept, not by what it literally denotes, but by its

relationship to a particular context. denotation: the most direct reference made by a text or image. image of God: the term used to denote humanity’s unique ability to relate personally to

God. ruah: a Hebrew term with a range of meaning including the English terms “wind,”

“breath,” and “spirit.” sabbath: the day of God’s rest special numbers: an ordinary number used in multiple contexts so as to invite readers to

associate larger meanings with those numbers. special words: an ordinary word used in multiple contexts so as to invite readers to

associate larger meanings with those words.

Key Ideas The beginning sets the course for all that followed. The Creator formed and filled the human world by the power of his word. The humans were designed in the image of God, which explains the creational shape of

the great commandments.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingIn the opening chapter of Genesis, the Torah begins with the beginning of the human world, the setting for God’s story. This beginning theologically interprets the relationship between God and the human world by explaining that he created it by the power of his word. The power of God’s word tames what is wild and brings to life what is desolate.The first verses of Genesis introduce readers to certain literary features which reappear in later biblical texts so as to invite comparison and reflection between the contexts, demonstrating in part the way in which Genesis provides the setting for God’s story. Such literary features include the special use of the Hebrew word ruah (Gen 1:2; cf. 3:8, 8:1; Exod 14:21), the special use of the number seven (cf. other numbers such as 3, 10, and 40 as used throughout the biblical story), and the repetition of “God”-plus-verb.The two-part structure of the creation days offers readers a contextual definition for what it means to create. Within the context of Genesis 1, to create means to form through separation and to fill with life. In the first three creating days, God formed the realms for existence in this world, and in the next three creating days, God filled these realms with celestial lights and life. The

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concept of order through separation prepares the reader for later divine calls for holiness (cf. esp. Leviticus), and the identification of Creator God as life-giver explains why death is the consequence for disobedience to the divine word.The story of the creating days presents the creation in human-centered terms, revealing humanity’s place within the creation. While the modernist perspective of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries examines the earth from “out there,” thereby deeming humanity as inconsequential in relation to it, Genesis 1 views the creation as the home or context for human life, its various components operating for humanity’s use.Humanity’s place within the created order is unique. Whereas God created animals “after their kind,” he made humans “in his image,” designed to reflect and represent God in a special sense. The image of God holds humanity responsible in three areas: First, humanity displays the image of God to the rest of creation by exercising responsible dominion over it (cf. Gen 1:26-27). Second, because humans are created in the image of God, it is their intrinsic responsibility to love him (cf. Deut 6:5). And third, because all other human beings are created in God’s image, it is each one’s responsibility to love others as oneself (cf. Lev 19:18).The creation days move in a direction which leads them toward the seventh day, the day of God’s rest, thereby defining the nature and significance of time itself. Humankind lives in a world that measures time according to such seven day weeks, a perpetual reminder that they live in a world created by God, and that they are forever moving toward the day of God’s rest.

Another LookBoth the biblical text and modern biological theorists seek to interpret the origins of the world, and many have wondered at the differences between the two. Whatever the merits of the latter may be, the biblical text intentionally explains the beginning in a manner that serves as the context for interpreting the story it introduces. The biblical narrative was shaped in such a way as to tell a particular story, selecting and including those elements which served to that end. Skilled readers of the scriptures must learn when to say, “I don’t know.”The New Testament picks up on the image of God theme, applying it to Jesus Christ in a special way. Transformation into the image of Christ becomes the way in which humanity returns to its role as bearers of God’s image. From a New Testament perspective, the image of God equals Christlikeness and the moral responsibility that comes with it.

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CHAPTER FIVE: THE GARDEN AND THE EXILE(Genesis 2:4b—4:26)

Key Terms adam: the Hebrew word for human, sometimes used as the personal name of the first

human (Adam). death: in the context of Genesis 2:4b-3:25, separation or exile as resulting from

disobedience to the word of God. Eve: the name given to the first woman, meaning “mother of all living.” Tree of Life: that tree in the Garden of Eden guarded by the cherubim against disobedient

humanity, “lest they… eat and live forever.” woman: the identifying term given to the counterpart created specially by God for the

first human, a term which points to her partnership and compatibility with the man.

Key Ideas The humans were specially created and place in their garden home. They disobeyed the word of God and died, meaning they were separated from all of

creational human relationships—to God, self, creation, others, and life. Sinful parents breed sinful children.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingThe placement of the story of the garden and the exile (2:4b—4:26) immediately after that of the creating days (1:1—2:4a) points to the tragedy which is the human rebellion: everything responds to God because he spoke—everything except humans. The narrative recounts God’s torah (i.e., teaching, instruction) to the first humans in these words: “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day you eat of it you shall die” (Gen. 2:16b-17 NRSV, italics added).This informs readers that sin is the cause of death. A comparison of the human situation before and after the rebellion points to death as separation or exile, and the narrative depicts the humans as becoming separated from their original situation in at least five waysFirst, the human rebellion resulted in separation from God. With regard to the original relationship, the narrator describes how God (1) personally handcrafted and breathed life into the human, (2) specially located the human in a home described in rich and beautiful dimensions, and (3) gifted the first human with human society through the personal creation of the woman, designed as a partner to him. The subsequent description of the humans hiding from God points to the breakdown of this relationship and of their inability to bear God’s presence.Second, the humans became separated from themselves, indicated through the noted change in their own respective self-images. Whereas the man and the woman were once at peace with their

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natural naked state, the eating from the prohibited tree transformed their view towards this nakedness into a source of shame, compelling them to cover themselves from themselves.Third, the human rebellion separated the humans from creation itself. The creation now bears a certain opposition towards the humans. The narrator observes this opposition (1) through the curse of the snake and the interjected hostility between it and its offspring towards the woman and hers, and (2) through the curse of the ground and the man’s struggle against and eventual return to it.Fourth, the human situation became one of separation within human society. Readers discern a breakdown of this relationship as (1) the man blames the woman for his involvement in the first sin, (2) God’s informs the woman that her desire for her husband will be set against his rule over her, and (3) the man names her Eve, shifting his perspective towards her from personal companion to the mother of children.Fifth, the humans were separated from “life,” specifically, the new dimension of life which the Tree of Life offered. To secure their inability to approach this tree, God exiled the humans from the Garden of Eden.A reading of this narrative alongside the context of the creation days leads to two observations: First, whereas separation in the former context leads to creation and life, separation in the story of the human rebellion equals anticreation and death. The different types of separation point to different responses to the word of God. Second, the juxtaposing accounts points to the contradiction of the human revolution: Human beings made in the image of the Creator revolted against God in an effort to become “like God.”The story of the brothers in exile typifies the anticreational character of the human problem. Echoes of the first human rebellion within the story points to the theological truth that sinful parents breed sinful children. The line of Cain closes with a description of Lamech and his haughtiness within the growing spiral of sin.

Another LookJohn’s Gospel provides some help in defining “live forever” more specifically, in keeping with its expressed purpose (cf. John 20:30-31). This life (or eternal life, as used elsewhere) refers to a life that is made full or abundant by Jesus (cf. 10:10b), a life directly related to Jesus (11:25), and a life defined by Jesus as “[knowing] you, the only true God, and Jesus Messiah, whom you have sent” (17:3). According to John’s Gospel, eternal life, “full life,” is life reoriented by and toward faith in the Messiah, Son of God. Though eating from the Tree of Life was not identical to believing in Jesus, they are parallel in their effects: a different kind of life—full, forever. The subsequent stories of Enoch and Noah point to individuals who each avoided the terminal fate of their respective contexts, informing its readers that the possibility of life remains in some sense. The Torah itself ends on this note with its call for readers to choose the life which God’s word offers (Deut 30).

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CHAPTER SIX: THE FLOOD AND THE NATIONS(Genesis 5—11)

Key Terms Canaan: son of Ham, the cursed grandson of Noah, whose descendants become the

nemeses of the Israelites. Enoch: seventh generation within the genealogy of Adam through Seth, an exception to

the penalty of death, characterized as having “walked with God.” Lamech: the ninth generation within the genealogy of Adam through Seth, the father of

Noah whom he named in hope of finding relief from the curse. Nephilim: literally “fallen ones,” known as “heroes of old, persons of name,” described as

living both before the flood and after. sons of God: the term used to describe those persons who took the “daughters of men” in

the period leading up to the flood. walk with God: an expression referring to a life lived in accordance with God’s ways.

Key Ideas The human society that grew up in exile from the garden was increasingly characterized

by sinfulness and death. The few humans who “walked with God” were spared the judgment of the larger society. The judgment of God reverses the work of God in creation, providing opportunity for a

new beginning. As before, sin against God’s word quickly entered this new beginning.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingHumankind filled the earth with sin and death. In response, God killed the entire human race except for one family and graciously began anew. This new beginning, however, led immediately to a new fall, and the human rebellion against God and his word continued.The two ten-generation genealogies of Genesis 5 and 11 provide two functions within Genesis 1—11. First, each genealogy appears to conclude two units of narrative that parallel each other through the use of extended echoes. Second, the two genealogies frame a series of short accounts connecting the creation of the world to the calling of the chosen family. The stories between these two ten-generation genealogies are global in scope.The genealogy of Genesis 5 expands the creational notion of humans made in God’s image by adding that Adam had a son “according to his image” (5:3), informing readers that God’s image in humanity was not lost entirely (cf. 9:6). This ten-generation genealogy presents the line of Adam through Seth to Noah, each generation ending with the phrase, “and he died,” with two exceptions. The first exception was Enoch, the seventh from Adam through Seth. The genealogy twice notes that Enoch “walked with God” (5:22, 24), permitting readers to conclude that he did not die (cf.

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Heb 11:5). This account of Enoch reminds readers of God’s walk in the garden as he looks for the humans (Gen 3:8), indicating that people can walk with God outside the garden, providing an exception to the rule of death. Moreover, as the seventh from Adam through Seth, readers might contrast Enoch with Lamech, the seventh from Adam through Cain.The second exception is Noah, the tenth from Adam through Seth. His father names him according to the hope that he would deliver humanity from the effects of the curse. As with Enoch, Noah’s record does not include mention of his death, with it later noted that he too “walked with God” (6:9). “To walk with God” suggests a life in accordance with God’s ways (cf. Abraham, 17:1). This image provides background for similar notions in later biblical wisdom literature.Despite notorious difficulties related to the opening of Genesis 6, the storyteller interprets the events of vv. 1-8 as signifying the comprehensive wickedness of humankind. So far as the identity of the “sons of God/gods” is concerned, the three most common answers include the following: The first view understands “sons of God/gods” as fallen angelic beings, concluding that these are different in kind from the daughters of humans mentioned in the same passage. The second view considers the “sons of God/gods” as the more godly line of Seth, in contrast to the daughters of humans thought to be women of Cain’s line. The third prominent view observes the ancient attribution of quasi-divine titles towards royal figures, leading to the conclusion that these “sons of God/gods” were ancient rulers. Torah “sin stories” often exhibit the kind of ambiguity seen here, arguably for the intended purpose of inviting readerly study and conversation. The narrator’s interpretation of the situation’s significance, however, is clear enough: the wickedness of humankind had escalated to such a level that God determined to destroy them all (Gen 6:5-7), with the exception of Noah, his family, and the animals on the ark.The use of reverse mirror imaging in the flood narrative invites the reader to view the ark itself from two contrasting perspectives, first an earth bound view wherein the ark appears large and impressive, followed by a “view from above,” where the ark, surrounding by the flood water, suddenly seems insignificant. The story turns when “God remembered Noah” (8:1), leading to the clearing away of the waters through a “wind” (ruah), echoing the first verses of Genesis and signaling a new beginning.The new beginning comes with a repetition of the creational blessing for Noah’s family to “be fruitful and multiply.” Through the use of extended echoes pointing back to the story of the first humans in the garden, the episode of Noah and the vineyard following the flood informs readers that Noah took the effects of the fall with him in the ark. Ham’s sin, though apparently sexual in nature, remains obscure in detail. Noah responds by cursing Ham’s son, Canaan, whose descendants later appear as long term nemeses of the Israelites. The records of the descendants of the three sons of Noah which follows in Genesis 10 situate Israel internationally within the Torah and the rest of the Hebrew scriptures.The tower of Babel account makes use of multiple literary features. At the turning point where God descends to inspect the tower, the project which before seemed larger than life quickly turns insignificant as the reader’s vantage point shifts from below to that from above. The account of

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the judgment contains a density of the Hebrew letters b, l, and r, playing on the name Babel with the Hebrew term for “confounded” (balal).The short account of Terah provokes readers to wonder at its tragic incompleteness, leaving many questions which the text answers with silence.

Another LookThe story of the flood is a figure of both the wrath and the grace of the Almighty, figures used later by Isaiah and by Jesus. For Isaiah the days of Noah offered an image of peace (see Isaiah 54:7-14), reflecting on God’s resolve to never again destroy the world with a flood. Jesus, however, borrowed from Isaiah’s phrase, “like the days of Noah,” while reflecting on those who were taken away and drowned (see Matthew 24:36-42). In his follow-up parable concerning the wise and foolish virgins, Jesus further took the image of the ark’s door shut by God as noted in Genesis 7:16, not to reflect on those residing safely on the inside (as in Genesis), but to consider the danger of those left on the outside (see Matthew 25:10-12).The garden and flood narratives ties the collective fate of the created order into that of humankind, the God-imaging lords of creation. The judgment of humanity results in the judgment of creation. Paul much later thought along these lines, yet for opposite effect, when he personified the earth as a woman in labor awaiting relief that comes as an effect of the redemption of humankind (see Romans 8:19-23). The hope of creation then, is that the human revolution against God’s word will not finally prevail.

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CHAPTER SEVEN: THE ABRAHAM NARRATIVES(Genesis 12:1—25:18)

Key Terms circumcise: as given by God to Abraham, the physical sign of the parents’ commitment to

the covenant between God and the chosen family. covenant: an agreement between at least two parties, binding them to each other in terms

of certain obligations and entitlements. laugh: a “special-word” used in Genesis in association with Isaac and the promise of his

birth. offspring: an aspect of God’s promise to Abraham made particularly prominent

throughout the Book of Genesis. test: associated with God’s call to Abraham, intended to reveal the nature of Abraham’s

obedience and faith.

Key Ideas Abraham obeyed the call of God. The promise of God to Abraham included land, offspring, and blessing. The Abraham Narratives underscore the theme of waiting for fulfillment. The testing of Abraham in the sacrifice of Isaac serves as the climax of the Abraham

Narratives, revealing the storyteller’s concern with Abraham’s obedience to God’s call.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingThe Abraham stories (roughly Gen 12:1—25:11) make up the second of the four major sections of Genesis, as well as the first of three parts tracing the beginning of the chosen family. Its placement after Genesis 1—11 indicates that it must be read within the context of the overall human situation: God’s calling of Abraham is in response to the human revolution against his word.The word of God to Abraham includes the three-fold promise of land, offspring, and blessing (Gen 12:1-3). The second of these, the offspring aspect, takes center stage within the Abraham stories, heightened by the slowing of narrative time the closer the reader gets to the birth of the promised offspring. The Books of Exodus and Leviticus underscore the blessing aspect of God’s promise, whereas Numbers and Deuteronomy focus on the land aspect.The way in which both Abraham and Sarah initially responded to God’s promise of offspring demonstrates a faith that seeks to make sense of God’s word in light of their circumstance. Their inability to produce a biological heir through Sarah led Abraham to consider adopting his chief servant (Eliezer of Damascus), and Sarah to offer her female servant (Hagar the Egyptian) to Abraham. The birth of Ishmael through Hagar, though wrong-minded, was an act of faith, and both Abraham and Sarah laughed when later informed by God that the promised offspring would

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come through Sarah. The reemergence of laughter at Isaac’s birth proved that God’s power could change the laughter of Abraham’s and Sarah’s doubts to laughter of joy.The testing of Abraham immediately following his long wait demonstrates that the story of Abraham is primarily concerned with how he responds to God’s word, particularly as it relates to the promised offspring. Through the use of literary devices (i.e., the three-fold emphasis of God’s word, and the construct “leave/go”), the storyteller presents the testing of Abraham’s devotion to God and obedience to his word as the climactic episode in the Abraham stories.The detailed narratives concerning Abraham’s acquisition of a burial plot for Sarah and a wife for Isaac points to the highly limited nature of Abraham’s land holdings in the former case, and the providence of God in the latter. The surprisingly brief, concluding account of Abraham’s last 40 years reinforces the point that these narratives are not intended to be read as general biography, but as the story of God’s word to Abraham and the beginning of its fulfillment as it relates to the promised offspring.

Another LookJoshua 24 includes a retelling of the story of the nation of Israel beginning with the call of Abraham, adding the point that both Terah and Nahor (Abraham’s father and brother, respectively) worshipped other gods in Mesopotamia. The inclusion of this detail reinforces Joshua’s charge for the Israelites: reject the foreign gods of your ancestors and devote yourselves singularly to Yahweh (cf. vv. 2, 14).The exclusion of this detail in the Genesis telling of Abraham’s call complements its own purpose, one that specially accents the power of God’s word. Without any explanation, God simply calls Abraham, and Abraham simply obeys. The account of Abraham’s call in Genesis is based solely on God’s word—reason enough for the reader!

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CHAPTER EIGHT: THE JACOB NARRATIVES(Genesis 25:19—36:43)

Key Terms birthright: the right to a double portion of the inheritance. blessing: the right to rule. Edom: meaning “red,” a nickname given to Esau which became the name of the nation

composed of his descendants. Israel: meaning “wrestled with God and with humans and have prevailed,” a name given

to Jacob and attached to the nation composed of his descendants. Joseph: the first son of Jacob and his favored wife, Rachel, whose name reveals Rachel’s

desire for more children. Laban: meaning “white,” the name of the brother of Rebekah and uncle of Jacob.

Key Ideas Jacob shared many of the sinful characteristics of his relatives. Jacob differed from his relatives in that he listened to God’s word and learned gratitude

and faith. Jacob was named Israel because with wrestled with humans and with God and prevailed.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingGod gave Jacob the new name Israel, interpreted to mean, “he wrestled with God and with humans and prevailed” (Gen 32:28, author’s translation). This interpretation invites readers to discern how exactly Jacob prevails as they read through his narratives. Jacob prevailed, readers discover, not by abandoning his deceptive tactics, but by crediting God for his accomplishments while others only credited themselves.Jacob first wrestled with his older brother Esau while still in Rebekah’s womb, the word of God informing her that “the older will serve the younger” (25:23). Esau quickly disadvantages himself by selling his birthright to Jacob for “red” soup (hence the name “Edom”), and nearly-blind Isaac “accidently” blesses Jacob after Rebekah disguised him as his older brother. To escape the wrath of Esau, Jacob leaves to live with Rebekah’s brother, Laban.Laban matches the deceptive tendencies already shown in both Rebekah and Jacob. Jacob accidently marries Leah after Laban disguised her as her younger sister Rachel. After marrying Rachel as well, in parallel fashion the narrator tells of the increase of Jacob’s family and of his livestock holdings. Just as Jacob previously acquired the birthright of brother “red” (edom) through red soup, so he now acquires the livestock of uncle “white” (laban) through white-striped sticks. Though Jacob, his wives, and Laban’s sons all expressed belief in rightful ownership of Laban’s wealth, Jacob alone perceived it as being a gift from God.Having escaped with his family and animals from Laban, Jacob journeys home and fearfully learns of Esau’s approach with four hundred men. Jacob wrestles with a stranger, releasing his

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opponent on the condition of a blessing, whereupon Jacob receives the name “Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome” (32:28). Jacob and Esau embraced each other the following day, though when invited to return south with Esau, Jacob deceived him and journeyed to Shechem via Succoth.Jacob’s remained troubled while in Canaan, fearful of a Canaanite uprising against him following Simeon and Levi’s act of vengeance against the city of Shechem, and his beloved wife Rachel died while giving birth to her second son, Benjamin. Thereafter, the contest for Jacob’s affections resulting in his favoritism toward Rachel will be taken up by the next generation as those affections are redirected toward her two sons, Joseph and Benjamin.

Another LookNotable similarities can be discerned by careful biblical readers when comparing stories from the Jacob narratives and those of David and his sons. Specifically, the seizure of David’s daughter Tamar by her half-brother Amnon, and the responses of both David her father and Absalom her full-brother are narrated in such a way as to “sound like” the seizure of Dinah by Shechem and the different responses of her father and brothers. In narrating the David episodes in such a way, the storyteller calls upon readers to appreciate how the past is, in some fashion, a picture of the future.

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CHAPTER NINE: THE SONS OF JACOB NARRATIVES(Genesis 37:1—47:26)

Key Terms bad report: an ambiguous term used in the Torah Story to refer the report given by

Joseph concerning his brothers, and the report given by the ten spies to the nation concerning the inhabitants of Canaan.

first reading: a reading in relation to the beginning only. leader: the role played by Judah in both the selling of Joseph and the appeal for

Benjamin’s life. pledge: a symbol of guarantee, used Genesis narratives such as that of Judah and Tamar,

and of Judah and Benjamin. second reading: a reading in relation to the end, or whole story. surprise: the twist and/or turning point in a story that resolves the plot.

Key Ideas The sons of Jacob vied for the birthright and the blessing. After Judah led the sinful acts against Joseph, he acted against his daughter-in-law,

Tamar, but finally humbled himself and began to change. When the chosen family was in desperate circumstances, Judah pledged himself in place

of his brother Benjamin and thereby broke the chain of deception and reunited the family of Israel.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingGenesis 37—50 concern the struggle between the sons of Jacob for the birthright and the blessing of Israel, a continuation of the sibling-rivalry theme introduced in God’s words to the serpent in Genesis 3. This section of Genesis hinges on a “surprise” in the narrative revealed in chapters 48 and 49. This invites readers to read the Sons of Jacob Narratives a second time (“first reading” versus “second reading”) in order to figure out the logic which demands the given resolution.The narrator has prepared “first” readers of Genesis to anticipate Benjamin as the next heir of both the birthright and blessing, insofar as he is (1) the youngest of Jacob’s sons, (2) the son of the favored wife, and (3) excluded from episodes in the narrative which seemingly disqualify many of Benjamin’s older brothers. This includes, as it might initially appear, Joseph who had been sold into slavery and sent to Egypt, and Judah who has mistreated his daughter-in-law Tamar and “accidently” committed incest with her.The theme of favoritism within the chosen family, exemplified earlier in Isaac and Rebekah’s special love toward Esau and Jacob, respectively, and Jacob’s special love for Rachel, continues in these narratives through Rachel’s sons, Joseph and Benjamin. Jacob’s love toward Joseph becomes a divisive force among his children, prompting his brothers (lead by Judah) to sell him

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into slavery. Later in Egypt, the theme of deception, exemplified earlier in Jacob’s deception of Isaac, and Laban’s deception of Jacob, continues in Joseph’s deception of his brothers when they approach him for the purchase of grain.Renewed attention to chapter 38, the episode concerning Judah and Tamar, reveals numerous connections which reveal the logic behind the choice of Judah as ruler in chapter 49. The use of recurring words such as “recognize” and “pledge” link this episode with the earlier selling of Joseph and the later appeal for Benjamin’s life. Whereas a first reading prompts interpreters to understand the story as reason for excluding Judah from the inheritance of blessing, the use of such “special words” alerts the returning interpreter to a change in Judah’s character which will result in the subsequent salvation of the chosen family.The high point of the sons of Jacob stories comes when Judah offered himself in place of Benjamin in chapter 44. In substituting himself in order to restore the favored son of Jacob back to his already distraught father, Judah breaks the long-standing Genesis theme of sibling rivalry and family deception. Having led his brothers in selling Joseph into slavery, Judah now offers himself. In doing so, Judah reunites not only Benjamin to Jacob, but also Joseph to Jacob.

Another LookThe position of Judah as leader over his brothers in the later narratives of Genesis anticipates the role of Judah the tribe as leader over the various other tribes throughout the history of the chosen-nation. From this position of leadership, readers of the biblical story make sense of God’s choice of David as king, out of the tribe of Judah. Similar to Judah, what set David apart from others was his self-humiliation. While David was in many ways no better than his rivals (as was true of Judah), the prophet Samuel identified David as one “after God’s own heart” (1 Sam. 13:14). Whereas the sins of Saul and David were comparable, David confessed his guilt and humbled himself (cf. 2 Sam. 12). The self-humiliation of both Judah and David further anticipate the New Testament narratives of Jesus the Messiah.

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CHAPTER TEN: THE LAST DAYS(Genesis 47:27—50:26)

Key Terms gathered to his people: an expression used in Genesis suggesting the continuation, in

some manner, of life after death. Judah-king: the promised offspring of Judah, fashioned in part according to the Joseph

story. last days: the days of fulfillment, toward which the greater biblical story is moving. mummification: the embalming of the deceased in a manner traditional within ancient

Egypt, used by both Jacob and Joseph within Genesis.

Key Ideas Jacob gave a blessing to the two sons of Joseph, thus establishing his reception of the

birthright. The blessing of Judah instituted a most significant biblical hope, namely, that the Judah-

king would one day come and rule the nations. The death of Israel and Joseph signaled the end of the story of the ancestors.

Chapter SummaryA Reading

Due to its position within the narrative, the last words of Israel to his sons provide the end toward which the story has been moving, and explaining much of the preceding material. As Genesis began with the narrative of the beginning days and concludes with Jacob’s blessing for the “last days” (Gen. 49:1), the storyteller indicates that all other biblical stories fit within its narrative framework and must be understood in the light of it. Insofar as Jacob’s blessing constitutes the continuation of God’s powerful word, the promise of a king coming from Judah must be regarded as irrevocable.

Jacob’s blessing of Joseph’s two sons reveals the bestowal of the double portion of the inheritance, the birthright, onto Joseph, and anticipates the prominent role to be played by the tribe of Ephraim throughout the history of the chosen nation. The following poetic blessing of the 12 sons of Jacob serves as the first of four poetic inserts placed strategically throughout the Torah, namely Genesis 49, Exodus 15, Numbers 23—24, and Deuteronomy 32, each serving as a theological commentary on the preceding major narrative sections.

The blessing bestowed upon Judah holds forth the promise for a king among his offspring, extending God’s word concerning the offspring, first, of the woman, and subsequently of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jacob builds a picture of the expected Judah-king using language which echo earlier statements attached to Joseph, indicating that the story of Joseph serves as a picture of the Judah-king.

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Unusual within the biblical narrative is the description of the land of promise as “beyond the Jordan” (Gen. 50:10). Such language reveals an exilic, outside the land, perspective, with which all major collections of scripture end.

Joseph addresses his brothers’ fear of revenge following Jacob’ death by echoing Jacob’s earlier words to Rachel that life and death are always and only God’s prerogatives, underscoring the role of God as creator. In his response, Joseph confesses a mysterious interrelationship between the sinfulness of humanity and the grace of God directly, included by the storyteller so as to encourage readers of adopting a similar perspective. Finally, Joseph’s forgiveness towards his brothers provides resolution to the multiple fraternal battles and unending bitterness between brothers scattered throughout the many narratives within Genesis, offering a symbolic, hopeful ideal.

Another LookLater biblical writers, building off of a foundation provided by the blessing of Jacob to

Judah, expected a ruler to whom the nations would bring tribute, in a manner resembling the gathering of the nations to Joseph in Egypt narrated earlier. Psalm 72, “of Solomon,” poetically reinterprets the much of what is attached to the Judah-king in Genesis 49, and other biblical passages reference the wealth of the nations brought to Solomon and promised to be brought to Jerusalem.

In addition to providing a picture against which to imagine the coming Judah-king, the Joseph story provided material from which the stories of Moses, Esther, Daniel, and Nehemiah drew. The narrator’s emphasis on unseen providence within the Joseph story reappears especially strong within the book of Esther, where God is nowhere mentioned explicitly. As with the closing of Genesis, the book of Esther demonstrates the mysterious interrelationship between actions designed by Israel’s enemies for evil and actions designed by God for the good of his people.

Chronological difficulties within the later narratives of Genesis illustrate how many biblical narratives are arranged in non-chronological ways, and for a variety of reasons. In this manner, the biblical narrators reveal that these histories are interpreted histories, carefully directed, arranged, and structured as a story.

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CHAPTER ELEVEN: MACROVIEW OF EXODUS

Key Terms filling: relative to Exodus, the creational blessing of Israel’s population growth within

Egypt at the book’s beginning, and the corresponding movement of God’s glory into the tabernacle at the book’s close.

Genesis-shaped: the manner in which the book of Genesis provides the theological framework for interpreting other biblical books.

presence: the seemingly impossible proximity of God to his sinful people, evidencing his gracious commitment to the covenant.

remember: God’s faithful enactment of his earlier word of promise. tabernacle: a term denoting the tent’s function as a dwelling place of God. tent of meeting: a term signifying the tent as the place of conference with Moses.

Key Ideas The story of Exodus builds in stages and reaches its highest level in the section of the

rebellion and the revelation. The sinful people, in the presence of their holy God, are met with forgiveness and grace.

Chapter Summary

A Reading

The story of Exodus, in each of its sections, invites a question which highlights a very basic problem: How can sinful rebels bear the presence of the holy Creator? The problem is, they cannot, and this problem only increases as God and his people grow closer together in three broad stages.First, Yahweh delivered Israel from oppression and brought the people to the mountain. The Egyptian problem of Israel’s fruitfulness in their land was caused by the creational and covenant blessing of Israel—they were fruitful and multiplied, fulfilling both God’s commission to humanity (Gen. 1; 9) and word of promise to Abraham (Gen. 12; 15; 17). The remainder of the book of Exodus is, then, a consequence of God’s word.Second, God’s glory descended upon the mountain and he spoke the Ten Words to Israel. As the Israelites were terrified of God’s voice, Moses served as a mediator by receiving the word of God and speaking his will to the people. Exactly in the middle of twelve chapters on the dwelling where God’s glory would reside with his people is the remarkable account of the people’s rebellion and God’s revelation. Thus, the most serious difficulty of the book is not Pharaoh’s stubbornness, but that of the chosen people. If Yahweh brought his terrors to the defiant Egyptian ruler, then how can Israel avoid his wrath? It is at this juncture that Yahweh reveals himself, in part, to Moses. His character toward human rebels is expressed, at his discretion, by the phenomena of compassion and forgiveness.

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Third, at the end of the book, the glory of God filled the tent of meeting in a way that echoes its beginning. The story moves from Israel “filling” the land of Egypt, dwelling in its midst, to the glory of God’s presence “filling” the tent within Israel’s community. Just as the Egyptians could not tolerate Israel filling their land, so too Moses could not remain in the dwelling once God’s glory came upon it.The book of Exodus is “Genesis-shaped,” telling the story of the creation of Israel by the power of God’s word. Whereas the Genesis story began with God making a garden for the humans, the book of Exodus ends with Israel making a dwelling place for God. This then prepares readers for the book of Leviticus which in part concerns what it would mean for the Creator to reside with Israel.

Another LookThe plot of the book of Exodus—focusing on the progressive proximity between Yahweh and his people in stages—correlates with its three-part, geographically rooted, structure:

The Progressive Proximity of God and his People and the Structure of ExodusThe Proximity of God and His People within Exodus Itself

The Structure of Exodus within the Torah

God brought Israel to the mountain (1—18)

from Egypt (1:1—15:21)

through the desert (15:22—18:27)God came down upon the mountain (19)

at the mountain (19—40)

God’s word granted to the people (20—24)God’s glory filled the dwelling (25—40)

Rereading the book of Exodus from the vantage point of Numbers reveals a symmetry within the Torah’s central section (i.e., Exodus-Leviticus-Numbers). Insofar as the people arrive at the mountain in Exodus 19 and remain there through Numbers 10, the Sinai event is given an importance that should not be downplayed. In addition, the three-part structure of Exodus and Numbers complement each other within the larger structure of the Torah.

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The symmetry of Exodus-Leviticus-NumbersExodus Leviticus Numbers

from Egypt1:1—15:21

plains of Moab

22—36

through the wilderness15:22—18:27

wilderness journeys10:11—21:35

at the mountain19—40

the camp at Sinai1:1—10:10

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CHAPTER TWELVE: THE RIVER AND THE BUSH(Exodus 1—4)

Key Terms anthropomorphism: a figure of speech wherein human characteristics are ascribed to

God. gender-specific metaphor: characteristics applied to what is biologically genderless

which the Bible’s earliest readers would have associated with roles typical of either males or females.

Jehovah: a reading of God’s name mistakenly produced through the combination of vowels belonging to the Hebrew title adonai with the consonants of the name Yahweh.

lord/Lord/LORD: English translations of the Hebrew adonai or Greek kyrios which, depending on context, serves either as titles of respect or as substitutes of the name of God (as when used with all capital letters).

Masoretes: Judaic secretaries responsible for making copies of the Hebrew scriptures in the medieval period.

second temple period: that era from 516 BCE to 70 CE when the temple, rebuilt after its destruction by Babylon, served as central to the ancient Judaic community.

tetragrammaton: literally, “the four letters,” the name of God spelled with the four consonants YHWH.

Yahweh: the name of God revealed to Moses, in some way related to God’s statement, “I am who I am.”

Key Ideas The Egyptians oppressed Israel because they were filling the land. God revealed himself to Moses and commissioned him to deliver the people from

enslavement in Egypt.Chapter SummaryA Reading

Beginning with a list of the sons of Jacob and a description of how “the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly” (Exod. 1:7), the book of Exodus situates its story within the context of the book of Genesis. In fulfilling the creational blessing by multiplying and filling the land of Egypt, the Israelites set in motion a chain reaction of events that will culminate in the presence of God’s glory filling the dwelling.Women play a significant role early in the book of Exodus as foils to Pharaoh in his attempt to deal with the Israelite problem. The Hebrew midwives, Moses’ mother and sister, and Pharaoh’s daughter are each used by God as deliverers in preparation of his great work of deliverance through Moses. The scene shifts to God at the end of Exodus chapter 2 and includes a fourfold use of God-plus-verb that follows the pattern of the first creation day. Just as it does in Genesis, the statement “God remembered” signifies a spur to action, and it anchors the deliverance which follows entirely upon his word of promise to the patriarchs. The dialogue between God and Moses at the

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bush reveals a reluctance on Moses’ part that escalates to an apparent rejection of God’s will. Yet, God prevailed and insisted that Moses obey his word.In their interaction, the identity of God is revealed in terms of his name. The name of God in the Hebrew scriptures was spelled with the four consonants, YHWH, and eventually became known as the tretragrammaton (i.e., “the four letters”). Out of reverence, the tradition emerged in the second temple era to use the Hebrew word for lord or master (Adonai) whenever coming upon the four consonant name while reading. When the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek, the Septuagint translators used its Greek equivalent, kyrios. In keeping with this tradition, the Masoretes attached the vowels of the word Adonai to the written name YHWH. Western Christians later misread the word as YeHoVaH, or “Jehovah.” The practice of substituting the word “lord” for the name of God in the Old Testament has continued in most English translations today (usually by printing the word in all capital letters).

Two significant things happened to Moses while he was returning the Egypt. First, God explained one part of his rationale for delivering his people in the manner he was planning: because God considered the people of Israel his firstborn son, he would rescue his son Israel by killing the son of his opponent, Pharaoh. Second, Moses was saved by a woman yet again. During one of the stops that Moses took, Yahweh met him and was going to kill him, until Moses’ wife, Zipporah, circumcised their son and touched her husband with the foreskin. The narrative of Zipporah rescuing Moses (4:24-26) and the one concerning Moses delivering Zipporah and her sisters (2:15-22) bracket the dialogue at the bush, framing the story of Moses, in Exodus chapters 2 through 4, by women saving him from death.

ANOTHER LOOKSeveral literary and theological matters concerning Exodus 1-4 will be briefly touched on

here. First, the Greek term for “lord” (kyrios) was put to good use by the New Testament writers especially because of the word’s connotation in the Septuagintal translation of the Hebrew scriptures. Jesus himself was called the “master” (kyrios). Thus, when the New Testament letters referred to Jesus as “the Lord” (kyrios), it signified at one time both his role as the master of those who follow him and his divine proximity to God.

Second, all people are children of God because they were created in his image. The figural expression “son of God” when applied to Israel signified their heightened relationship with God as father. The metaphorical phrase was used in even more specific ways later in the scriptures. God’s promise to king David included his commitment to David’s son as his own son. In the case of Jesus, via the virgin’s conception, there was a literalization of the figural sense of “son of God.” He is the Son of God in a qualitatively different sense from any other “son of God.”

Third, the structure of Joshua chapter 5 is reminiscent of the stories in Exodus chapters 3 and 4. Joshua chapter 5 has three scenes: the circumcision of the second generation of Israelites (vv. 2-9), the celebration of the first Passover in the land of promise (vv. 10-12), and the appearance of a messenger of Yahweh (vv. 13-15). This reverses the sequence of similar events reported of Moses in Exodus chapters 3 and 4. The biblical reader may be surprised at first that

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the Israelites did not circumcise their sons in the wilderness. They failed in one of the same ways that Moses himself had failed. The lack of the sign of the covenant also symbolized their sin of unbelief toward the God who had rescued them and patiently provided for their needs.

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CHAPTER THIRTEEN: THE PLAGUES AND THE SEA(Exodus 5:1—15:21)

Key Terms dialectic: “conversation” between elements in tension. hard heart: figurative language signifying stubbornness and rebellion, the opposite of

humility and obedience. Passover: the evening wherein God delivered Israel his son while killing Pharaoh’s,

commemorated annually through a reenactment according to instructions embedded within the Exodus narrative of the original event.

plagues: the judgments of God whereby his power and uniqueness are made known, most memorably in connection with the deliverance from Egypt.

Reeds Sea: a literal translation of that body of water through which God delivered Israel and judged the Egyptian army, rendered in most English versions as the “Red Sea.”

sovereignty: the prerogative to act according to what is deemed appropriate or fitting, an attribute applied most pointedly to God in the Exodus passages narrating his judgment of Pharaoh and forgiveness of Israel.

worship: appropriate response toward God in memory of his work, often informed by scriptural instruction given to that end (such as that found within the Passover narrative).

Key Ideas The ten plagues testified to God’s power and grace for generations to come. The acts of God against the Egyptians concluded with the Genesis-shaped deliverance at

the sea.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingThe story of the exodus from Egypt itself has two main parts, the plagues and the crossing of the sea, which together provide a direct view of the conflict between the word of God and the human revolution. God had already explained to Moses at the bush his intention to kill Pharaoh’s son as the climactic and final plague (Exodus 4:21-23), allowing readers to progress through the narrative with the realization that God will not stop until he kills Pharaoh’s son. In order to perform all the plagues and bring the conflict to such a climax, God promises to harden Pharaoh’s heart. God’s rationale for the plagues was so that the Israelites and the Egyptians would see his unique power (6:1; 7:5; 9:14-15). While it is true that Pharaoh hardened his own heart six times before God did, it is an escape tactic to say that God merely confirmed the stubborn pattern of Pharaoh’s heart. God was explicit that he was planning to harden Pharaoh’s heart because he wanted to perform all his acts of judgment against the Egyptians (4:21-23; 9:14-16). To soften or explain away God hardening Pharaoh’s heart because of the biblical witness to the holiness and goodness of God misses the point—the explicit side—of this case. God is sovereign. He has the right and

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the power to rightly and justly make his enemy stubborn in order to display his mighty power in redeeming his people.Embedded within the story of the Passover itself are instructions for commemorating the event with the feast of unleavened bread and Passover for the coming generations. The effect of interrupting the story with teaching for the future memorial of the sign is that the tenth plague was both worship and event. The dialectic, that is, “conversation” between elements in tension, is between the past and the present. The power of the event for readers lies, therefore, in their participation and ever-renewing representation of the work of God through worship. The function of the narrative for the instruction of the up and coming generation was explained to Moses: “…that you may tell your children and grandchildren how I dealt harshly with the Egyptians and how I performed my signs among them, and that you may know that I am Yahweh” (10:1-2).The account of the crossing of the sea reaches back into both Genesis and the earlier chapters of Exodus so as to situate it theologically. First, the language of the sea crossing has common imagery with the creation narrative. The “dry land” to grant life (Gen 1:9-10; Ex 14:16) in place of the chaos of “the deep” (Gen 1:2; Ex 15:5, 8) connects the two contexts. The exodus and the word of God are part of a new beginning for the people of God. By the redemption, Yahweh created Israel as his people for his own purposes. Second, whereas the book of Exodus began with Pharaoh’s edict to throw the male Israelite infants into the river, this portion of the book closes with a song of how the warrior Yahweh has thrown Pharaoh’s army into the sea (15:1, 4, 21), thereby underscoring the poetic justice of the event. And third, as the story of the beginning of humankind and the beginning of the chosen family ended with the poetic expectation of the last days (Gen 49), so the story of the redemption of the chosen nation concludes with the Song of the Sea (Ex 15).

Another LookLater biblical writers often reflected on the narratives of Israel’s rescue from Egypt.

When Israel and Judah’s preachers of doom pronounced their messages of coming judgment, they often employed the terrifying imagery from the book of Exodus. The memory of God’s devastating judgment upon Pharaoh and the Egyptians was a leading part of the prophetic imagination of God's judgment.

In the New Testament, Romans chapter 9 offers an interpretation of the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart within a discussion concerning the justice of God. To the question, “What then shall we say? Is God unjust?” (Rom 9:14), Paul provides two quotations from the book of Exodus. The first is God’s explanation for forgiving the stiff-necked Israelites: “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion” (9:15, from Ex 33). The second focuses on God’s rationale for hardening Pharaoh’s heart: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth” (Rom 9:17, from Ex 9). The point is that the one who questions God’s justice in judgment must equally challenge his justice in forgiveness.

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CHAPTER FOURTEEN: THE WILDERNESS AND THE MOUNTAIN(Exodus 15:22—24:18)

Key Terms apodictic law: absolute commands, such as those in the Ten Words. book of the covenant: that body of law, following the Ten Words, regulating worship and

the social responsibilities of Israel (Exodus 20:22-23:19). case law (casuistic): precedent-setting rules to be later applied by judges according to the

circumstances of individual cases. covenant: a relationally binding agreement or treaty between parties, often involving

certain obligations and entitlements. kingdom of priests: a status bestowed upon the people Israel by God whereby they are set

apart to serve and represent the nations of the world to God. manna: a white, sweet food substance provided by God to Israel in the wilderness, the

word literally meaning something like, “What is it?” Sinai covenant: the relationally binding agreement between God and the nation of Israel

at Mount Sinai resulting from its salvation from Egypt, and related to its status amongst the peoples of the world as their representative.

suzerain treaties: formal agreements between a sovereign (suzerain) and the people, common within the ancient Near East.

Ten Words: also known as the Ten Commandments, those absolute commands written on tablets of stone presenting God’s will for his people, relative to their relationship to God and to others.

Key Ideas The trek through the desert, from the sea to the mountain, was constantly punctuated with

the unfaith and grumbling of Israel and the gracious provision of God. When the Israelites arrived at Mount Sinai, God established his covenant with them and

gave them the Ten Words and the book of the covenant.Chapter SummaryA ReadingThe story of the journey to and the revelation from the mountain of God is a compact version of the Torah story at large. The narrative of the deliverance of Israel through the midst of the sea very quickly leads into the telling of their rebellion against God in the wilderness (paralleling the Genesis creation and flood narratives). When readers of the narrative pass judgment on grumbling Israel, they must eventually realize that the narrative functions as a mirror in which they are viewing their own rebellious condition. Israel’s journey to the mountain is told in three stories which highlight their grumbling and quarrelling. For his part, God responds to these early acts of rebellion with gracious provision: bitter water made sweet, the appearance of manna, and water from the rock. Out of chronological sequence, the account of Moses’ father-in-law and the establishment of judges within Israel is placed between the defeat of the Amalekites in the wilderness and the arrival of Israel at the

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mountain. The positioning of that episode here may be an intentional set up for the need for the law which was to come, it may be intended to correspond to the other mention of Moses’ father-in-law in Numbers 10 (thereby bracketing the entire Sinai encampment narrative), or perhaps because of the frequency with which Kenites and Amalekites appear together elsewhere in scripture.The story of the revelation of God at Mount Sinai in Exodus 19 and following include two movements of God toward his people: first, God descends upon the mountain to which Israel has gathered, and second, God’s word is passed on from the mountain to the people. According to God’s explanation of his new relationship with the people, the Sinai covenant was designed to separate Israel so as to serve and represent the nations to God. They were not chosen for the sake of their being chosen, but chosen as a royal priesthood for the nations. The writing of the Ten Words upon two tablets likely reflects the ancient Near Eastern practice of creating two copies of a treaty. Because Yahweh was both God and King to Israel, both copies (tablets) of the Ten Words were placed together in the ark. There are generally two kinds of laws within ancient Near Eastern cultures. Absolute (apodictic) laws resemble the Ten Words. Case (casuistic) laws present precedent-setting rules which would later be applied by judges to individual cases, resembling those laws found in the book of the covenant (Ex 20:22-23:19), and elsewhere in Leviticus and Deuteronomy.The book of the covenant intertwines social and religious instructions in a way that resists separation, there being no such thing as “secular” in the modern sense. Its instructions concerning worship focused on holiness and devotion to God alone, and its social stipulations were generally designed to set proper limits and protect society. This book of the covenant was written down by Moses as instructed by God, followed by a spoken word of commitment by the people and a confirmation by the nation’s seventy elders. After ascending the mountain, Israel’s leaders (including Moses and Aaron) are said to have seen the God of Israel (Ex 24:9-11).The creation of the nation and the giving of the law itself were each Genesis-shaped. God brought the nation through the waters of the sea and led them to the mountain. As he had spoken the world into existence now he spoke his word to the people of Israel.

Another LookDue to several points of resemblance, the covenant at Mount Sinai has often been

compared to ancient Near Eastern covenant forms, especially the suzerain treaties of the ancient Hittites. While questions remain about how familiar the biblical writers were with such treaty forms, it may help establish a general framework significantly adapted for the covenant with Yahweh.The similarities and differences between the laws of Israel and other law codes of the ancient Near East point to certain shared cultural values, as well as what made Israel distinct from its neighbors. However important the shared traits may be, readers should not be distracted from hearing the distinct voice of the scriptures themselves. The covenant at Sinai is situated within a narrative framework, rooted within the creational worldview and the redemptive acts of God.

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Chapter Fifteen: The Rebellion and the Dwelling(Exodus 25—40)

Key Terms ark: a gold-covered box with cherub-topped gold lid, serving as the special locale for

God’s presence. cubit: the approximate distance between the elbow and end of the fingers (about eighteen

inches). dialogue: back and forth communication, such as that characterizing God and Moses’

relationship in the book of Exodus. face to face: an expression signifying close and personal relationship, applied to that

enjoyed by God and Moses. golden calf: the idol-image created by rebellious Israel at the base of Sinai, seemingly

intended to represent God and/or one of his attributes. priestly garments: highly symbolic garb worn by Aaron and his successors as they

ministered before Yahweh, functioning as a reminder of Yahweh’s holiness. Key Ideas

The lengthy description of the instructions for and construction of the tabernacle enclosed the climactic narrative of the rebellion and the revelation.

Although Israel was sinful and stubborn like the Pharaoh, God forgave them and condescended to “tent” among them.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingThe last major segment of the book of Exodus concerns the presence of God with his people. Two sections describing the instructions for and the construction of the tabernacle (chapters 25—31 and 35—40) are separated by the narrative of the people’s rebellion and its aftermath (chapters. 32-34). The ensuing dialogues between Yahweh and Moses underscore the problem of how God’s glory can dwell amidst a stiff-necked people. The highpoint of the book comes at its end as the glory of God does, in fact, descend upon and fill the tabernacle.The narrative informs readers several times that Moses received the instructions, in part, through a vision of the dwelling. The writer of the letter to the Hebrews described the dwelling as a copy of what is in heaven (Heb 8:1-5). God’s decision to dwell with his people required that an earthly dwelling be made for him that corresponded to his dwelling.The dwelling included the ark, the table, the seven-branched lampstand, and the incense altar, and was itself comprised of two chambers, the holy and the holy of holies. The dwelling was surrounded by an enclosed courtyard, which included a water basin and a sacrificial altar. This dwelling concretely represented the concept of sacred space in the encampment. The closer to God’s presence, the more holy the space, and the fewer people could go there less often.The turning point of the book occurs with the narratives of the rebellion, revelation, and covenant renewal. These, in turn, are interspersed with dialogues between God and Moses. The dialogues carry the story to its climax as Moses functions as Israel’s mediator and guarantees God’s continued presence. In addition, the dialogues reveal the real tension inherent to the

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relationship between God and his people, with several possible actions on God’s part being considered and turned aside in order to accent his grace to a people just as stubborn as Pharaoh.The golden calf made by the people was said to be an image of Israel’s God, breaking the second commandment and depicting God amongst the creation. When King Jeroboam of Israel’s northern kingdom established a worship system intended to compete with that in Jerusalem, the narrator quotes him as using the very words used here at Sinai (1 Kgs 12:28), thereby inviting readers to associate his activity with the earlier insurrection.In answer to Moses’ impossible request to see God’s glory, he reveals the back of his glory to Moses. In this way, God is revealed in his hiddenness, a revelation apprehended by Moses (as with us all) by faith. Moses saw Yahweh not as he is in himself, but according to his acts and his word to and for humankind and Israel.

Following the rebellion and the revelation, God granted his spirit to the skilled workers, enabling them to make his dwelling. The presence of God’s spirit in this context reminds readers of the spirit’s role in creation. Additionally, the glory filling the dwelling after its construction points back to humanity’s charge to fill creation, as well as Israel’s filling of Egypt—which had initiated the chain of events leading to this moment.Another LookIn Jonah chapter 4 readers get a retrospective interpretation of God’s self-disclosure to Moses. Jonah’s dialogue with God following the repentance of Nineveh reveals the rationale for the prophet’s earlier rebellion against his calling.Recalling God’s words to Moses, Jonah knew that God was a “gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity” (Jonah 4:2; cf. Exod. 34:6). Jonah understood that the rebellion narrative in the book of Exodus applied to the Ninevites of Assyria as much as to the Israelites in the wilderness.The book of Jonah, then, is in large part a narrative commentary on the applied theological meaning of the account of the rebellion in Exodus. If God judged the stubborn Pharaoh, he could judge the stubborn Israelites. If God forgave the sinful Israelites, he could forgive the sinful Ninevites.

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CHAPTER SIXTEEN: MACROVIEW OF THE BOOK OF LEVITICUSKey Terms

community: the people viewed collectively and proximate to each other, with a view towards their common interests and welfare.

holy: a cut above or separate, from ungodliness and toward God. microcosm: a small-scale model, such as the tabernacle with respect to creation. storied framework: the placement of material within a larger narrative context, affecting

the way that material is to be understood.Key Ideas

The book of Leviticus is the story of God’s instruction for Israel to dwell with him. The grace-based instructions explain worship and holiness for the camp.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingThe book of Leviticus is the story of God’s instruction for surviving in the newly established holy space and holy life of the kingdom of priests. Despite its traditional Greek-Latin-English name, the book of Leviticus has nothing to do with the Levites, but is comprised of teaching for the priests and people regarding their responsibilities now that God dwells in their midst.The leading idea of the book of Leviticus is the holiness of God. “Holy” means a cut above, separate, other, different, unique. Moving closer to God increases the degree of holiness and, so far as sinful humans are concerned, danger. Whereas the book of Exodus tells the story of Israel’s deliverance from the sins of others, the book of Leviticus tells the story of the instruction for deliverance from the community’s own unholiness. Given the nature of the clean-unclean regulations, Leviticus’ instructions for holiness demonstrate the inability of humans to live uprightly before the Holy One. At the same time, these instructions provided the people of God an opportunity for worship.The frequent reoccurrence of the phrase, “Yahweh said to Moses…,” situates the book’s instructional content within a context of a story, namely, the wilderness narrative of Exodus 15-Deuteronomy 34. Failure to appreciate the storied framework of the book of Leviticus will distort it. Readers receive its instruction as it proceeds from within the tent of meeting, at Sinai, upon which God has condescended so as to dwell with his redeemed people.The book of Leviticus is made up of two halves which each speak to the community rather than individuals. The first half—chapters 1 through 16—focuses on purity for the dwelling within the community, as sustained by the prescribed worship. The second half—chapters 17 through 27—is oriented toward holiness for persons within and for the benefit of the community.

Another LookThe book of Leviticus needs to be heard within its creational and tabernacle contexts, built upon a theological framework provided by Genesis and Exodus. The dwelling was a microcosm of creation, making order from chaos by the spirit of God (Exod. 31:3; 35:31; cf. Gen. 1:2).There are many basic commonalities between creation and the holy instructions for dwelling with God: the marking off of times and seasons in Genesis 1 anticipates Leviticus’ segmenting of

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time into sacred units; the creation of animals according to their kinds anticipates Leviticus’ proscribed ritual diet; the priesthood’s responsibility to make distinctions and reinforce God’s word to the people echoes the separating work of God’s word in creation.After the humans rebelled against God, he drove them out from the garden to the east, with sphinxes and a flaming sword placed at its entrance as guards. Similarly, the holy of holies was covered from the east by a veil or canopy embroidered with sphinxes, creating a gap between the holiness of God and the ritually and sinfully contaminated people, with fire from God killing those that approached him wrongly. The Genesis-shaped book of Leviticus functions as warning and as invitation to those who wish to approach the almighty Creator.

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CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: SACRIFICE(Leviticus 1—7)

Key Terms analogical reasoning: the perception and acceptance of a physical reality as representing

a metaphysical one based on significant similarities. cut off: to be banished from the community of God’s people, thereby losing access to God

and the life derived from him. fat: related to the sacrificial instructions, the hard suet fat which encased an animal’s

kidneys, signifying that which belonged to God alone. graduated holiness: the increasing sacredness of a space corresponding to increasing

proximity to God, as in the three zones of the tabernacle. intentional sin: an act of disobedience to God’s word committed knowingly by the agent;

regarded as “high handed” or defiant when never followed by repentance. microcosmic depiction: A small-scale representation of the universe and how it operates. sacrifice: a representation and reenactment of the worshipper’s philosophy of life. silence: the way prescribed by God’s law to conduct the sacrifices, perhaps as a polemic

against the practices of other nations, and/or to denote the solemn awe appropriate to Yahweh.

unintentional sin: an unwitting act of disobedience to God’s word, for which the agent is repentant of upon realization.

Key Ideas The sacrifices, optional and mandatory, functioned as microcosmic depictions of the

biblical worldview. Each sacrifice pointed beyond itself to the graduated holiness of worship and the heart

condition of the worshiper.

Chapter SummaryA ReadingThe sacrifices were Yahweh’s gracious provision to sustain worship and forgiveness for Israel, serving as microcosmic representations of the universe. Microcosmic thinking used analogies to correlate the symbolic meaning of sacrifice and worship. The philosophy of life was enacted through the system of worship, from the structure of the sacrifice. After the animal was killed and the blood was drained, it would need to be turned over to extract the various parts in the manner instructed in Leviticus chapters 1-7. Thus, the priest’s viewpoint from the upturned lower side of the animal controlled how the animal parts related together.

Animal sacrifices had three parts. First, “All the fat is Yahweh’s” (Lev 3:16c). The hard suet fat and the organs it covered, the kidneys and the lobe of the liver, belonged to God. Just as the dense fat hides the inmost secret organs, the kidneys and the lobe of the liver, so too the secret and inmost part of the human soul is hidden from all except God.

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Below the fat, second, was the head and body of the animal. The lower portion of the (upside down) animal sacrifice was placed on the altar first. In the cases in which the sacrifice could be eaten by the priest and/or the people, this was the part of the animal to which they were given access.

The third section of the animal sacrifice was the portion “above” the middle zone of suet fat, kidneys, and liver lobe, namely, the entrails, reproductive organ, and the legs, or hind legs. This part of the animal symbolized fertility and life. After it was washed it was placed on the top of the sacrifice depicting the Creator’s life-giving power.

There were five kinds of sacrifice that did not have any set time. First, the burnt offering in Leviticus 1: The offering was a male animal from the herd. The meaning of “burnt offering” (‘ola) is literally that which ascends. The animal was to be completely incinerated on the altar, and was an optional offering.

Second, the grain offering, sometimes called cereal or meal offering, in Leviticus chapter 2: The grain offering had to be unleavened and was mixed with oil and frankincense. Part of the offering was burned at the altar and part was reserved for the priests, and was also optional.

Third, the well-being offering, also known as the peace offering or fellowship offering, in Leviticus chapter 3: The blood of the animal was poured on the ground around the altar. The sacrifice was either male or female, without blemish as with all animal sacrifices, from the herd. Some of the meat was eaten by the worshiper. This offering was not mandatory and was a “pleasing aroma.”

Fourth, the purification offering, traditionally known as the sin offering, in Leviticus 4:1-5:13: The purification offering was required after suffering the state of ritual uncleanness by an individual (see Lev 11-15). The animal varied depending on for whom it was offered. Some blood was put on the horns of the altar and the rest was poured on the ground. The purification offering purged the person, the camp, and especially the dwelling itself, of the metaphorical but real contaminants created by the holy presence in the midst of a ritually impure encampment. This was necessary to maintain the holiness of the dwelling, so that God’s glory could both stay and not bring death to the people.

Fifth, the reparation offering, traditionally referred to as the guilt offering, in Leviticus 5:14-6:7 [5:14-26]: Primarily sins between human and human that needed to be “repaired” required this offering. Specifically, the offender had to repay the offended party and add another twenty percent.

Another LookTwo of the David psalms were especially important as early biblical commentary on the meaning and function of the sacrifices, especially those for sin. In the first, Psalm 51, David presented the real issue as repentant humility before God, of which the sacrifice was a mere symbol: “You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifice of God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart” (Ps 51:16-17).In the second, Psalm 40, where it says “Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but my ears you have pierced; burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require” (v. 6), the author of the letter to the Hebrews understood its message as signifying that “those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because it is impossible of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Heb 10:3-4). These two David psalms, therefore, interpreted the meaning of the sacrifices themselves as symbolic.

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The importance of both the optional and mandatory offerings was entirely in their value as symbols, representing the faith and obedience of the participants. God accepted the sacrifices as symbols of their faith and he effected purification. It was not the offering itself that was of value, but the repentance it represented. Thus, during the exile from the kingdom, when there was not temple, God could forgive the sin of the repentant with no sacrifice at all. God had always and only forgiven sin on one basis—the death of his son Jesus the Messiah, whose sacrifice was effectual (Rom 3:25).

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CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: PURITY AND WORSHIP(Leviticus 8—16)

Key Terms Azazel: the Hebrew term traditionally translated “scapegoat” in English versions; the term

refers to the ceremonial goat and also the wilderness entity to whom the goat is sent. clean and unclean: respectively, terms designating that which God has declared

ceremonially fit or polluted. Day of Atonement: the annual ceremony on which the dwelling, priests, people, and camp

were cleansed for the maintenance of God’s presence with his people. holy and common: respectively, categories to which persons or things belonged

depending on whether they were set apart toward God or not. messiah: a term derived from Hebrew meaning, “anointed one,” applied to persons

recognized to serve God in a given capacity by the pouring on of oil. moral responsibility: the category on which is now based all matters of holiness, that is,

the sinfulness or righteousness of those beings created in God’s image. scapegoat: the goat selected on the Day of Atonement to bear the sin of the chosen

people, driven outside the community and into the wilderness. skin disease: a broad term designating a visible condition which rendered an individual

ceremonially unclean for its duration, conceptually parallel to molds and fungi which might appear on garments or houses; not to be confused with the more specific condition of leprosy (i.e., Hansen’s disease).

unauthorized fire: an unclear reference to the unacceptable manner by which the priests Nadab and Abihu approached Yahweh in their service.

Key Terms The institution of the priesthood and tabernacle worship was quickly followed by the

deadly judgment of Aaron’s sons, thus accenting the seriousness of the responsibility of Israel’s relationship with God.

The people were required to obey the clean and unclean regulations. The Day of Atonement purified the tabernacle and the community each year, so that God

could continue to live with his people without killing them.


The account of the institution of the Aaronic priesthood in chapters 8 and 9 gives the details of the consecration of the dwelling and of Aaron. Aaron was the first “messiah” in the scriptures, a verbal noun literally meaning “anointed one,” referring to the oil which was poured on the head of persons publicly recognized to serve God in a given capacity. The failure of Nadab and Abihu following the institution of the priesthood brought swift judgment from God, and definitively demonstrated the danger of God’s holiness. The narrative seems more focused

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on the significance of approaching God than on the particular failure of Aaron’s sons. In light of the death of Nadab and Abihu, the repeated terminal consequences are strongly accented in this context (“…or you will die…,” 10:6a, 7-9), providing a powerful undercurrent for the teachings on clean and unclean in chapters 11—15.Leviticus chapter 11 presents a list of the clean and unclean animals. The criteria for clean land animals is split hooves and cud chewing; for water animals, fins and scales; for swarming insects, joined legs. The designation “unclean” does not refer to dirt or other repugnant features of animals, but was a question of whether they were ceremonially fit or polluted. There is no intrinsic reason why the clean are clean: the clean are clean and the unclean are unclean because God said so. Leviticus 12, for example, declares that mothers are unclean whenever they have babies, but twice as long in the case of having female babies. It is irrational to argue that new mothers are unclean intrinsically for twice as long after delivering female babies.

Leviticus chapters 13 and 14 present lengthy directions for examining and purifying skin disease and fungus. Though traditionally translated “leprosy,” this should not be associated with the incurable condition now known as Hansen’s disease. Garments and homes, for example, do not get the disease known as leprosy or Hansen’s disease (see 13:47-59; 14:33-35). Leviticus chapter 15 explains the innermost kind of uncleanness of which humans are susceptible, namely, the normal discharges of nocturnal emission and menstruation, and abnormal discharges resulting from infection.

The Day of Atonement was a most significant annual ceremony (Lev. 16). Within the context of the community in the wilderness it made possible their ability to dwell with the presence of God’s glory and survive. The Day of Atonement was the definitive necessary cleansing for the relationship. The motion of verses 11-22 depicts the purification beginning in the inmost part of the camp—the holy of holies—and extending across all the borderlines of holiness. The practice of expelling the scapegoat reinforced the symbolic and real differences between the holiness within the community and the hostile wilderness within which the people lived.

Another LookBecause the real teachings on the categories of clean and unclean were based on symbolic designations, later torah could reinterpret or adjust their significance. For example, Jesus proclaimed new torah regarding the clean and unclean by the power and authority of his word. The record of the teaching in Mark chapter 7 includes this brief commentary by the narrator, making explicit the meaning of Jesus’ new torah: “Thus he declared all foods clean” (Mark 7:19 NRSV).

Paul applied the new teaching of Jesus to the holy-common distinctions of those things which do not have moral responsibility. Specifically, he challenged the view that some “times,” of themselves, were more holy than others. “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind” (Rom 14:14). It appears that Paul based his reinterpretation of the regulations for holiness on the new torah of Jesus referred to above. “I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that

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nothing is unclean in itself; but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean” (14:14 NRSV; see 14:20). The matters of clean-unclean and holy-common that once applied to animals, places, things, and time had a different significance because of the teaching of Jesus. Matters of holiness were now based only on the category of moral responsibility, that is, the sinfulness or righteousness of those beings created in God’s image.

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CHAPTER NINETEEN: HOLY LIVING(Leviticus 17—27)

Key Terms blood: a symbolic representation of life itself, belonging to God alone. circumcision of the heart: a metaphor used to describe humility and a reorientation

toward God. Jubilee: the fiftieth year following seven sabbath year cycles, during which slaves were to

be liberated, debts canceled, and lost land restored. nakedness: a euphemistic term, the “uncovering” of which referring to sexual activity. sabbath year: the last year within a seven-year cycle, during which the land was to rest

from normal agricultural activity.Key Ideas

The holiness code (Lev 17—26) instructs Israel in the personal holiness required of the community of God’s people.

Failure to listen to the instructions will bring judgment and eventually exile. Even still, God will remain faithful to his word.


Leviticus chapter 17 offers the command and rationale concerning animal blood. No person was permitted to ingest blood, for life belongs to the life-giving Creator. Moreover, the blood of animals, while not intrinsically meritorious for atonement, was the vehicle, or authorized symbol, for the faith of participants.

Leviticus chapter 18 begins with rationale for obedience to God’s instruction: “I am Yahweh your God.” The relationship between God, holiness, and the ethical demands upon his people was intrinsic. Leviticus 18:6-20 repeatedly used the euphemistic formula “do not uncover the nakedness of x” to list a variety of sexual relationships prohibited by God. Leviticus chapter 18 closes with a rationale for the sexual prohibitions: to protect “the land” from becoming defiled. Just as the purity of the tabernacle was a major concern of the first half of the book of Leviticus, the pollution of the land was a reoccurring theme in the second half.

The instruction for holy living in Leviticus chapter 19 has often been compared to the Ten Words, with several of them alluded to in the chapter. The individual’s responsibility is related as generationally bidirectional, extending toward both parents and children. For example, the responsibility for prostitution was not stated here in terms of the individual, but from the perspective of the parent (v. 29). Moreover, the issue was not merely personal involving the prostitute and her constituents, but was a community concern.

The context of the command to love one’s neighbor in Leviticus 19:18, when matched with the same toward the stranger in verses 33-34, forces readers to see the identical posture one should have toward neighbors and strangers alike. The basis of this complementary pair of commands is that all human beings are created in the image of God.

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Leviticus 20 follows with the penalties for many of the violations enumerated in chapter 18. God explained, “Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am Yahweh your God. Keep my decrees and follow them. I am Yahweh, who makes you holy” (20:7-8). The last phrase is significant because it explains the source of human holiness. The same idea is stated at the end of Leviticus 22 in conclusion of two chapters of stipulations for priests. The priesthood were held to high standards that included spouses, grooming, and physical blemishes. The priests—in way similar to animal sacrifices and the tabernacle—were a microcosm of the entire universe. The regulations for priests demonstrate the necessity to accord with the word of God, and reveal that approaching Yahweh is based fully upon his mercy.

Leviticus chapter 23 enumerates the cycle of commemorative events. Every week moved toward its destiny in the sabbath, the holy day of rest unto Yahweh, and the weeks themselves were always building toward the next annual event dedicated to God. This listing focuses almost entirely on individual lay persons and farmers, rather than priests (cf. Ex 23:14-17; 34:21-23; Deut 16:1-17). Leviticus chapter 24 presents miscellaneous priestly regulations and narrative of the execution of the blasphemer, highlighting the deadly consequences which accompany disobeying the instructions for holiness.

Leviticus 25 and 27 each present instructions concerning the year of Jubilee, and thus frame chapter 26. Chapter 25 opens with regulations for the sabbath year: every seventh year was to be an agriculture sabbath for the land. After every seven sabbath years, on the fiftieth year, the people were to celebrate Jubilee. The year of Jubilee was for the liberation of slaves, the canceling of debts, and the return of land to the family to whom it was decreed. Leviticus 27 closed the book by explaining a variety of regulations regarding vows and tithes, as well as how making vows impacted the Jubilee regulations.

Another Look“Circumcise,” “uncircumcised,” and “foreskin” were sometimes used metaphorically. The image of foreskin carried the idea of thickness, as in unfeeling or unresponsive. The state of an uncircumcised heart can be characterized in Leviticus 26:40-41 as lacking humility toward God. That is, there was a stubbornness that needed to be removed. In contrast to Deuteronomy 10:16 where the people are exhorted to circumcise their own hearts, 30:6 stipulates that God is the performer of heart circumcision. Just as physical circumcision of the Hebrew male child symbolized the parental commitment to raise their child according to the covenant, so God’s circumcision of the person’s heart depicts his fatherly commitment to the one he has changed.

Other Hebrew scriptures occasionally use circumcision/uncircumcision in a figural sense regarding ears and hearts. For Jeremiah the need for heart circumcision, and the people’s lack of the same, were a root problem (see Jer. 4:4; 9:25-26). Physical circumcision without the corresponding internal changed heart caused Israel to be regarded like other peoples under judgment.

Paul went further than Jeremiah by regarding heart circumcision as essential while physical circumcision was not (Rom 2:25-29). Elsewhere, Paul pointedly describes internal circumcision as “putting off the body of the flesh,” which, in his ethical use of “flesh,” refers to

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human sinfulness (Col 2:11-14 NRSV). The internal circumcision, or circumcision of the heart, therefore, is interpreted in the New Testament as that event or state which both begins and characterizes the new life, sometimes called regeneration.

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CHAPTER TWENTY: MACROVIEW OF NUMBERS

Key Terms first generation: the Israelites who, after beholding God’s saving wonders in Egypt, died

in the wilderness for persistently rejecting God’s word. second generation: the Israelites who, after imitating their rebellious parents in nearly

every way, were saved through both the word of God and priestly intervention. Tetrateuch: the four-scroll serial narrative including Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, and

Numbers. wilderness: a literal geographic space in Numbers with the symbolic overtone of present

testing.Key Ideas

Numbers is structured according to its story, developing around its generational and geographical segments.

Numbers reaches its turning point and resolution when God delivers the people from both the external and internal threats of Moab by the power of his word.


The student of the Torah will likely find the book of Numbers challenging. Whereas the Christian name for the book, “Numbers,” highlights the censuses of the successive generations (Num 1; 26), the traditional Judaic name provides the context for hearing this challenging story––“In the wilderness.”

Discerning the structure of the book of Numbers is difficult. There are the clues in the chronology and geography, time and space, of the book. The census of the first generation has been taken out of chronological sequence and placed at the head of the book. By raising the generation to reader consciousness from the beginning, the two generations can be compared at nearly every point.

The dominant structure seems to correlate generational time with literal-symbolic space. The primary geographic spaces include Sinai, the wilderness, Egypt, Moab, and Canaan, and respectively signify something like meeting God, present testing, tempting fictive memories, physical and moral enemies, and future hope. These literal-symbolic spaces fit within the broad narrative structure of the first generation’s preparation at the mountain for their journey to the land of promise (1-10), the wilderness (10-21), and the second generation’s preparation, on the plains of Moab, to enter the land of promise (22-36). Reading the book in this manner provides an unexpected, if superficial, symmetry.

The three major travel and camp narratives are not the only journeys or encampments; rather they are the only fully narrated accounts. Many, but not all, of the events in the Exodus wilderness stories are echoed, often in the same order, by the first generation, and then by the second generation in the book of Numbers. Readers of the book of Numbers often get the sense of having been there before. The repetitions are occasionally noted explicitly, for example, “This is what your fathers did . . .” (Num 32:8a).

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By locating the literal-symbolic space of the story’s mainframe along the axis of the two successive generations the reader can interpret several significant things about God, his people, and the world. First, the range of Yahweh’s character was revealed within the story. The stories of Israel’s repeated grumbling demonstrate the extent of God’s patience, tolerating extraordinary unfaithfulness. The first generation crossed the line “for the tenth time” when they embraced the second report of the ten spies rather than trusting the word of God. Yahweh revealed his grace to the second generation, who may have been worse than their parents, preserving them by the word of God and the priest of God (Num 22-25). The second generation would enter the land promised to their ancestors.

Second, the character of the people was defined by an incurable addiction to sinfulness. Both generations were hard-hearted, stiff-necked rebels. The first generation saw God provide for all of their physical needs in the wilderness. Yet when they faced the difficulties of the desert they created new fictional memories in order legitimize their rejection of God’s instruction. The story of the second generation is more remarkable and telling. They had never known any life except the wilderness, constantly sustained by the provision of Yahweh. They were “after the kind” of their parents, however, and emulated their faithless rebellion.

Third, the book of Numbers explains something about the wilderness or the external world. The wilderness narratives demonstrate that the problem was never really from the wilderness, that is, from outside the people. The real problem was failing to embrace the word of God. Moses interpreted that humans do not “live on bread alone but on every word that come from the mouth of Yahweh” (Deut 8:3b). The people who lived in a “great and fear-inspiring” wilderness could have, and should have, trusted the word of their “great and fear-inspiring” God (Deut 1:19; 8:15; 7:21; 10:17).

Another LookThe collection of books from Genesis through Numbers is called the Tetrateuch, “the four

books.” The Tetrateuch begins with the creation of the human world along with a storied explanation of how the chosen family of Abraham “fits” among the peoples of the earth. On the one side, all of the families of earth will be blessed through the chosen family. Reading backwards from the Abrahamic covenant it seems that his offspring of promise is the selfsame offspring that was divinely promised in the poem of judgment on the snake in the garden. Perhaps Abraham’s offspring would bless the families of the earth by defeating the revolution which started in the garden. Reading forward from the word of God to Abraham it appears that the offspring would be the Judah-king that was to come in the last days and rule the nations according to the pattern of Joseph, the savior-monarch.

On the other side, the family of Abraham was chosen from among the families of the earth. Looking back through the primeval narrative this means that he was a Shem representative and would rise above the line of Ham and his son Canaan. Looking ahead through the stories of the first generations of the chosen family, the various peoples to fall outside of it included Ishmael, the sons of Lot, Ammon and Moab, and Esau. Moreover, the internal strife amongst the

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Israelite brotherhood also created a pecking order among the tribal groups that bore the names of the sons of Jacob.

It was the intra-national and inter-national expectations of the book of Genesis into which the storyteller of the book of Numbers chose to situate his story. In specific, the book of Numbers brought to fruition many of the latent social fractures initiated in the book of Genesis. Its narrative segments are largely occupied by showing the coming of age of the chosen nation according to the worldview of the nation and of the nations established in the Genesis story. The book of Numbers, in the main, played off the social world of the book of Genesis in reverse order. The narrative world of the book of Numbers, therefore, is Genesis-shaped.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE: THE FIRST GENERATION AT SINAINumbers 1:1-10:10

Key Terms census: The military counting of the males 20 years and upward of the first generation

(Num 1) and second generation (26). cloud: The visible manifestation of God’s glory to signify his dynamic relationship with

his redeemed people (9). large numbers: The military consensuses of over 600,000 in the military raises

interpretive issues (1; 26). Levites: God takes the tribe of Levi to himself as a permanent replacement for the

firstborn of all Israel for redeeming them from Egypt (3-4). nazirite: A temporary voluntary vow for men or women to signify dedication to the Lord

(Num 6). official order: Judah leads in worship and marching and camps in the privileged position

at the opening of the tabernacle courtyard (7). priestly benediction: The poem to signify God’s mercy and presence (6) often serving as

basis to later prayers of Israel (see psalms of ascent 120-134).Key Ideas

Numbers 1-10 houses a variety of materials associated with the first generation of Israelites preparing to invade the land of promise.

Many of the details foreshadow elements of rebellion and in the second generation. An Outline

A. Census of the First Generation (1-4)1. The military census (1)2. The arrangement of the camp (2)3. The census and arrangement of the Levites (3-4)

B. Setting Apart the People (5:1-10:10)1. Regulations concerning holiness (5-6)2. The dedication of the dwelling (7)3. Regulations concerning the Levites (8)4. The Passover (9:1-14)5. The cloud (9:15-23)6. The silver trumpets (10:1-10)


The first section of the book of Numbers embodies the literary diversity that has made the book challenging to interpreters. The opening chapters of the book of Numbers can be thought of as the preparation of the first generation of Israelites at the mountain of God.

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The preparations at the mountain aimed at the invasion of the land of promise, but also included several other matters. The Levites were separated out from military responsibility to attend to the dwelling of God on behalf of the people. Moreover, the movement of the camp with the tabernacle through the wilderness would cause various ritual pollutions, creating the need for further regulations concerning ritual purity and worship. The institution of the tabernacle on the first Passover celebrated the memory of the community’s identity as the people of God. While it is difficult to make sense of some of the details, many matters begin to form patterns that suggest rationale and meaning.

• prominence of Judah• ranking of the families of the Levites • centrality of God in the camp • Levi belongs to God

The size-significance of tribes is predicated on the idea that it is God alone that grants life, an idea emphasized repeatedly in the book of Genesis: Judah is largest and “Joseph” (Ephraim and Manasseh) second largest. The camp was laid out in relation to the idea of graduated sacred space with the tribes of Judah and Levi were granted the favored positions.

The book of Numbers is routinely punctuated with regulations which emphasize purity and worship. The instruction regarding the wife suspected of adultery may be the strangest regulation in the entire Bible (5). The nazirite vow was generally a voluntary and temporary individual commitment to God (6). Nazirite vows were usually temporary, like those taken by and sponsored by the apostle Paul (see Acts 18:18; 21:23-24, 26). The nazirite vow included not cutting one’s hair, abstaining from wine and the fruit of the vine, and avoiding contact with dead bodies.

The account in Numbers chapter 7 chronologically precedes the census of chapters 1. The chapter is long, eighty-nine verses, as the individual offering of each tribe, beginning with Judah. The long chapter ends with Moses entering the tent of meeting to speak with God.

Readers need to be patient when considering the opening chapters of the book of Numbers. There are many details, some confusing in themselves, that are juxtaposed in a way that, on first sight, does not seem to fit neatly. It is more than geography, however, that holds these chapters together within the story. The interrelationship between and organization of the families of Israel reflects the logic of the sons of Jacob in the book of Genesis.

Another LookOne of the challenges is the large number of Israelites recorded therein. According to the

tallies from the censuses there were about six hundred thousand men. If women and children are added the number was traditionally approximated at two million people. Challenges include the problem of sustaining so many in the wilderness regions between Egypt and Canaan, the lack of corroborative archeological evidence in the land of Israel for a military campaign of this size, and the tendency among various ancient societies to exaggerate the size of their populace.

First, the survival of the people was accomplished by a series of supernatural acts, as well as daily provision of manna. Second, the problem of there being no corroborative archaeology is

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as true of the stories in the book of Numbers as for (almost) all the events recorded in the Torah. Third, some have argued that the large numbers in censuses of the book of Numbers is an example of ancient narrative hyperbole.

Chapter SummaryThe book of Numbers begins with a military census of the Israelites to signal their

preparation to take the land of promise. The census is followed by several short narratives and laws centered on the preparation of the community to leave the mountain. The opening section, in many ways, extends themes, laws, and narratives from the preceding books of the Pentateuch.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: TWO GENERATIONS IN THE WILDERNESS Numbers 10:11-21:35

Key Terms Aaron’s staff: Symbol of God affirming his selection of Aaron as messiah and priest (17). Anakites: Large people of ancient Canaan used to signify basis of rebellion (13). bad report: A term signifying the intentional distortion of facts by the ten scouts to fuel a

rebellion against God’s will. sheol: The underworld or realm of the dead (the term is also sometimes used generally of

the grave) (16). temptation: Creative imagination (rationalization) designed to rebel against God’s will. Transjordan: The land God gave to Israel included the area to the east of the Jorden river

for, south to north, Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh—this land is conquered in Numbers 21.

Key Ideas The echoes and connections between the first and second generation offered extended

treatment of temptation. The brief glimpse of the 38 “silent years” (16-17) shows the hardened rebellion of the

first generation of Israelites. God shows himself faithful by granting definitive victory over the kingdoms of Sihon and

Og in the Transjordan, the beginning of the fulfillment of his promise to the Hebrew ancestors.

An OutlineA. The failure of the first generation (10:11-14:45)

1. Grumbling in the wilderness (10:11-12:16)2. Unbelief at Kadesh (13-14)

B. The thirty-eight (almost) silent years (15-19)1. Various laws (15)2. The revolt of Israelite leaders (16-17)3. Levite responsibilities (18)4. The red heifer and other laws (19)

C. Failures of the second generation (20-21)1. The sin of Moses and Aaron (20:1-13)2. Edom refused passage for Israel (20:14-21)3. The death of Aaron (20:22-29)4. The fiery snake (21:1-9)5. Victories over the transjordan kingdoms (21:10-35)

Chapter Summary

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A ReadingThe major category of Numbers chapters 10-21 is the threefold repetition of the failure of

the leaders and the people. The issue, repeated at both levels and at each stage along the way, is that the people rejected the word of God.

The three sections of wilderness travel narrative are divided by two law collections in Numbers chapters 15 and 18-19. The placement of the law collections has dual effect. In regard to the narratives, the laws divide the stories into the first generation and the second generation. And, the effect upon the law collections is to see them as inherently bound up with the story of the people.

The fact that Numbers chapters 20 and following relate to the second generation is, in first reading, not apparent. The character of the story is such that it sounds as though it is a continuation of the narrative of the selfsame people who have been complaining since they Egypt. It is not until the reader gets to Numbers 33:38, which reports that Aaron’s death occurred in the fortieth year, that she or he realizes that the story in Numbers 20 is about the second generation because of the collation of Aaron’s death.

What started among “the rabble” quickly spread through the masses and they complained, again, about the lack of meat. “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost––also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic” (11:4c-5). Much turns on the fictive element in their complaining (see below).

The two spies that stood out at Kadesh, Caleb and Joshua, were from Judah and Ephraim, respectively. The tribal relations within Israel were still functioning in accord with the expectations of the Genesis narrative. The first report by the twelve scouts was “factual” in that they emphasized the good land as well as the strong inhabitants. Then they created a second report, a “bad report” (dibah) appears to mean “false report” which intentionally distorted the facts as a kind of propaganda, in order to dissuade the people against Caleb’s recommended course of action.

Both of the mythical elements in the bad report immediately became symbols of unfaith and faith. First, the Israelites were afraid to enter the land that “devours” because they did not wish to die. Their judgment was to die in the wilderness over forty years. Also, the wilderness actually devoured the enemies of God’s chosen leaders. Second, the large-sized Anakites were said to be descended from the legendary Nephilim, the children of the sons of God and daughters of humans wiped out by the flood (Gen 6:1-4). There could be no biological link between the Anakite people and the pre-flood peoples. The only good reason we, or the Septuagintal translators, could have for insisting that the Nephilim were “giants” is if we accepted the scouts’ myth and read it back into Genesis 6. But why should the “bad report” be considered the basis for a good interpretation? The point at hand is that the gigantic Anakites, who could not be physically descended from the Nephilim, needed to be faced by faith. Caleb had it and the people did not.

The only view of the long years of wandering in the wilderness afforded to readers is the rebellion of Korah of Levi, with Dathan and Abiram of Reuben, and their compatriots, along with the related aftereffects. This extraordinary damning of the rebels did not end the matter.

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Many in Israel sided with the revolution which had relocated the rebels to sheol. In the aftermath of the rebellions God reaffirmed Aaron as his chosen leader from amongst the Levites. It was his staff and only his that budded when placed before Yahweh in the dwelling.

The story itself resumes in Numbers chapter 20, but in the fortieth year of wilderness travels (see 20:28 with 33:38). The older generation was dead. This is the story of their children, the younger generation. The chapter begins and ends with the death of Moses’ siblings, Miriam and Aaron, respectively. In between the bracket of these two deaths are the accounts of the sin of Moses and Aaron and of Edom’s refusal to grant passage to Israel. It is helpful to pay attention to the details of Moses’ sin in Numbers 20, since later Moses blames the people three times (see Deut 1-4).

The younger generation were so much like their parents that readers would not be able to tell the difference if it was not for the dating provided by the death of Aaron. The narrator depicts the second generation with complete continuity to the generation buried along the path that stretched back to Egypt.

The people complained again. God sent snakes. After the people repented, God instructed Moses to make a “fiery snake” on a pole. Those who looked at it were healed. Jesus interpreted their turning to the snake as an act of faith, and the fiery snake upon the pole as a symbol of himself (John 3:14-15; cf. 8:28; 12:32-33). The people kept the snake on the pole and eventually came to regard it with religious devotion worthy of God alone, until king Hezekiah destroyed it (2 Kgs 8:4).

The journey section of the book of Numbers closes with accounts of the Israelite victories over the transjordan kingdoms of Sihon and Og, the peoples on “the other side of the Jordan river,” that is, on the east side. After forty years there was little hope. But there was hope. Two scouts would see the land. Two! Also, the Israelites defeated the kingdoms of the transjordan. The greatest problems of the wilderness, however, lay ahead. Moab was bent on destroying the Israelites, one way or the other, before they reached the land of promise.

Another LookThe apostle Paul used the wilderness stories of the books of Exodus and Numbers as part

of his teaching concerning temptation, he said: “Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did . . . . These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us” (1 Cor 10:6, 11; cf. Rom 15:4). Augustine’s categories of time and story help illuminate how the temptation narratives function as warnings to readers.

For Augustine the words past, present, and future, as they are used in everyday language seem clear enough, but do not, and cannot, actually denote three different kinds of time. “Who will tell me that there are not three times, past, present, and future, as we learnt when children and as we have taught children, but only the present, because the other two have no existence?” (17:22). He noted that past is always “no longer” and future is forever “not yet,” thus, if they exist, it can only be in the present (18:23).

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For Augustine people are not “in time,” but “time” is a function of the human perception of reality. He located the three “times” inside the human mind. “It is inexact language to speak of three times—past, present, and future. Perhaps it would be exact to say: there are three times, a present of things past, a present of things present, a present of things to come. In the soul there are these three aspects of time, and I do not see them anywhere else. The present considering the past is memory, the present considering the present is immediate awareness, the present considering the future is expectation” (20:26). The past exists, for Augustine, in the present as memory and the future as expectation. He illustrated this by referring to a song (28:37).

What do memory and expectation have to do with temptation? Everything, that’s the point. There is nothing good or bad about a desert or fortified cities per se; rather the mind is the context for temptation (see Figure 22-a). Thus, the fortified cities of Canaan may or may not be a temptation depending on the memory and expectation of the individual and society. For Caleb and Joshua the cities of Canaan provided an opportunity to embrace the power of God’s word, but for the rest of the Israelites they were the temptation that killed them. What was the difference? The way their minds accorded with, or distorted, the word of God.

Figure 22-a: The Mind as Context for Temptation—the General Framework

InformingMemory

InformingExpectation

External Problems or Allurements

Apprehension of Challenges

Internal Problems or Allurements

Figure 22-b: Faith and Temptation as a Function of PerceptionA Interpreting circumstances.

(creative)-memory:(re)define past

(creative)-expectation:(re)define future

Perceived Circumstance:(temptation) or faith

When Israel redefined their past. They manipulated memory and expectation, and deceived themselves.

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The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost––also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!” (Num 11:4-6). Dathan and Abiram . . . said, “We will not come! Isn’t it enough that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to kill us in the desert? And now you also want to lord it over us?” (16:12-13).[At Kadesh] you grumbled in your tents and said, “Yahweh hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us” (Deut 1:27).

The wilderness narratives teach about temptation. First, the identity of the people, along with their view of God himself, was tied to their collective memory. Second, when faced with challenges or allurements, the people frequently reinvented the past in order to change their direction and thus alter their expected future. Complaining against God’s will was to embrace unfaith. Third, the antidote to temptation—as Paul said, “he will provide a way out”—is bound up with faith, that is, to accord individual and collective memory and expectation with the word of God.

Chapter SummaryThe first generation of Israelites fell to temptation in the wilderness, and definitively rebelled against the word of God at Kadesh. The revolution effectively ended the story of the older generation. The second generation grew up in the desert and faced many of the same temptations as their parents. They failed also. The younger generation was as sinful as their parents.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: THE SECOND GENERATION ON THE PLAINS OF MOAB

Numbers 22-36

Key Terms Balaam: A wicked, mercenary prophet of Israel’s God (22-24). bless: The unbreakable word of promise placed upon the Hebrew ancestors protected

them from the curses of Balaam. curse: Those who curse God’s people are cursed (Gen 12:3; 27:29) thus explaining why

Balaam damned Balak and the Moabites repeatedly (Num 23-24). itinerary: Moses’ list of 40 places Israel camped between Egypt and the plains of Moab

(33). Phinehas: Grandson of Aaron who is blessed for his zeal in obeying God’s word (25). zealous: Those who kill for God (Levites, Phinehas, Elijah) and later used of thieves and

terrorists and other second temple revolutionaries.

Key Ideas The final chapters of Numbers are an assemblage of elements signifying the second

generation’s preparation to invade Canaan. The second generation is as bad as the first, thus demonstrating the breadth and depth of

God’s mercy.

An OutlineA. The Threat from Moab (22-25)

1. The external threat—the Balaam story (22-24)2. The internal threat—sin with the Moabites (25)

B. Census of the Second Generation (26)C. Review of the Journey and Preparation for Possession of the Land (27-36)

1. Inheritance of Zelophehad’s daughters (27:1-11)2. The new leader for Israel (27:12-23)3. Regulations concerning offerings and vows (28-30)4. The war against Midian (31)5. The settlement of the transjordan by two and a half tribes of Israel (32)6. A review of the wilderness itinerary (33)7. A preview of the land itself (34-35)

i. Boundaries and allotments of the land (34)ii. Special cities dispersed through the land (35)

a. Levite towns described (35:1-5)b. Cities of refuge (35:6-34)

8. Inheritance of Zelophehad’s daughters (36)

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When readers reach Numbers 22 through 25 they arrive at the defining moments of the book—the turning point of the story. The first generation fell to temptation and rejected the promise of Yahweh (Numbers 13-14). Now, the younger generation has arrived at the edge of the land. They are like their parents.

The scene shifts from the career desert travelers to the enemy of Israel, Moab. In chapters 22 to 24 the Moabite king seeks to ruin Israel by hiring a wicked prophet—an evil prophet of Israel’s God (!)—to curse them. This external threat failed because the word of God ruined Balaam’s conspiracies. The depraved prophet tried again, this time to destroy Israel from within. He helped launch a conspiracy with the Moabites and Midianites to incite Israel to debauchery and thus bring the wrath of God on themselves (25). The plan almost worked. One person, however, heard the word of God and responded decisively to deliver Israel. The righteous zealot Phinehas saved the Israelites from themselves. The word of God prevailed over both the external and internal threats conceived by the enemies of God’s people. The census of the second generation symbolized their readiness to enter the land of promise (26).

The Balaam narratives of Numbers 22-24 show that God can make a donkey or an evil prophet speak his will. The poetic oracles of Balaam became an enduring witness to the hope for the coming king, whom later biblical readers called the messiah. Balak hired the mercenary prophet to curse Israel by Yahweh. The whole thing backfired on the Moabite king because of the power of the word of God already upon Israel. God told Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse” (Gen 12:3; cf. 27:29). Balaam concluded his third failed oracle thus, “May those who bless you be blessed and those who curse you be cursed” (Numbers 24:9b). The Moabite king damned himself by the word of God.

Balaam, though evil, was a prophet of Yahweh. What does this mean? The word of God does not depend at all, in any way, on the prophet herself or himself. God’s word utterly transcended Moses as much as Balaam. The prophet was a mere vessel, or delivery person, for his word. The basis of power and reason for hope was always and only that the word of the prophet is the word of Yahweh. The fourth oracle made use of poetic imagery to dramatize the coming of the king.

Balaam devised a conspiracy with the enemies of the chosen people, apparently a cooperative effort between Moab and Midian, to cause Israel to rebel against the word of God. The idea, it seems, was to get Israel to damn herself through sin against God. After the Israelites defeated the Midianites, Moses confronted the officers. “‘Have you allowed all the women to live?’ he asked them. ‘They were the ones who followed Balaam’s advice and were the means of turning the Israelites away from Yahweh in what happened at Peor, so that a plague struck Yahweh’s people’” (31:15-16). The women in question were Moabite women, perhaps religious prostitutes, and the daughter of one of the Midianite tribal chiefs (25:15-18; 31:8, 15-17; see Yamauchi).

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This rebellion of the younger generation, with the Moabite and Midianite women and their gods, surpassed the wickedness of the older generation. Yahweh immediately responded with a deadly plague that killed thousands. But because of Phineas’ quick ovbedience Balaam failed. The external threat had been ruined by the oracles bringing blessing to Israel and curse to her enemies. The internal threat, orchestrated by Balaam and embraced by many in Israel, was defeated by Phinehas’ obedience to the word of God.

The difference between the first and second generation was not virtue or character. The younger generation evidenced great propensity for sin. The difference, the turning point of the entire book, was the grace of God prevailing according to his word.

The first element, within the literary frame of the inheritance of Zelophehad’s daughters, is the appointment of a leader to replace Moses (27:12-23). The laws in Numbers chapters 28-30 supplement those in the book of Leviticus—additional sacrifices for the feasts listed in the holy calendar of Leviticus chapter 23 and regulations n vows (30).

The entire nation was again put in mortal jeopardy, this time by two and a half tribes (32). The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh requested that they simply settle down in the transjordan region, which was already secured (see Numbers 21), rather than cross the Jordan river to assist the other tribes in the campaign against the Canaanites. This request demonstrated once more that the younger generation were as sinful as the older generation. “Moses said to the Gadites and Reubenites, … ‘This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh Barnea to look over the land. ... And here you are, a brood of sinners, standing in the place of your fathers and making Yahweh even more angry with Israel. If you turn away from following him, he will again leave all this people in the desert, and you will be the cause of their destruction” (32:6-8, 14-15). The comparison to the rebellion at Kadesh signifies once again that the second generation did not deserve to go into the land.

Numbers chapters 33 through 35 look back and look ahead. Chapter 33 reviews the entire journey from Egypt to the plains of Moab via a 40 stop itinerary. Numbers 34 presented the boundaries of the land of promise and explained how the land would be divided among the tribes. Numbers 36 returns to the ruling of Zelophehad’s daughter (27) are demands they marry within their own tribe to preserve the tribal inheritance.

Another LookPhinehas was not the first zealot. Four decades earlier the Levites brought bloody

retribution upon thousands of Israelites who had worshipped and immorally danced before the golden calf. David, in Psalm 69, sounds like he belonged in the tradition of Phinehas, at least in the sense that the poem stated “zeal for your house consumes me” (Ps 69:9; cf. 24-26 = Num 25:16-17). Later the prophet Elijah, who had just overcome the prophets of Baal in a duel which ended in their death, prayed, “I have been very zealous for Yahweh God Almighty” (1 Kgs 19:10a, 14a). The interplay between imagery associated with Phinehas and Elijah was also used in Malachi chapters 2-4. Especially note: “And you will know that I have sent you this admonition so that my covenant with Levi may continue, says Yahweh Almighty. ‘My covenant

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was with him, a covenant of life and peace, and I gave them to him; this called for reverence and he revered me and stood in awe of my name. True instruction was in his mouth and nothing false was found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and turned many from sin” (Mal 2:4-6). This context which focuses on a priestly covenant can be regarded along with the mention of the prophet (3:1) and Elijah (4:4 [3:23]).

When Paul applied the term “zealous” to himself he was not classifying himself with the political activists known as zealots. If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confident in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness faultless (Phil 3:4b-6).

Then Paul said: “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. Under Gamaliel I was thoroughly trained in the law of our fathers and was just as zealous for God as any of you are today. I persecuted the followers of this Way to their death, arresting both men and women and throwing them into prison, as also the high priest and all the Council can testify. I even obtained letters from them to the brothers in Damascus, and went there to bring these people as prisoners to Jerusalem to be punishment” (Acts 22:2c-5).

Chapter SummaryThe second generation faced their greatest challenge after they arrived on the plains of Moab. God delivered them from the threat of the Moabites, both external and internal, by the power of his word. Moreover, he permitted them to enter the land of promise in spite of their sin.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR: THE SECOND MACROVIEW OF DEUTERONOMY

Key Terms the command: The great commandment, Love God, appears in Deuteronomy 6 and is

followed by an extended treatment (6-11). headings: The structure of Deuteronomy is marked by the headings on the several

discourses (1:1; 4:44; 6:1; 12:1; 29:1; 32:1; 33:1). narrator: The discourses of Moses (nearly 900 verses) are framed by an inspired narrator

(nearly 60 verses total). next generation: The focus of the present generation’s devotion to the Lord is the up and

coming generation (6:6-9). today: The ten commandments are said to be for the generation standing for Moses

“today” (5:1-5). transgenerational: The identity of God’s people is not simply collective at one time, but

extends across time (30:1-6). voices: The three main speaking parts of Deuteronomy are Moses, God, and the narrator. you: “You” (sing and plural) dominate the book focusing both on individual

responsibility and collective identity. Key Ideas

Deuteronomy offers an interpretive application of the first four books of the Pentateuch to Israel.

The theology of the book is deeper than obey and blessed, disobey and be cursed.

An OutlineA. “These are the words” 1:1––the First Discourse (1:1-4:43)B. “This is the torah” 4:44––the Second Discourse (4:44-28:68)

1. “This is the torah”––the Ten Words (4:44-5:33)2. “This is the command” 6:1––an exposition of the first word (6-11)3. “These are the rules and the regulations” 12:1––an exposition of the other

words (12-26)4. The blessings and curses (27-28)

C. “These are the words of the covenant” 29:1––the New Covenant and the Song of Moses (29-32)

D. “This is the blessing” 33:1––the Blessing and the Death of Moses (33-34)


Some treatments of the book of Deuteronomy reduce its theology to “obey and be blessed or disobey and be cursed.” Such a reduction is true, but it is not the whole of the truth.

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The people stood on the threshold between two worlds. Moses delivered three speeches, looking back and looking ahead. The story ended with the death of Moses. The book, and thus the entire Torah, is an exilic and forward-looking story.

The use of headings signals the macrostructure of the book of Deuteronomy. The four main sections begin with the headings “These are the words” (1:1), “This is the torah” (4:44), “These are the words of the covenant” (29:1), and “This is the blessing” (33:1).

The first section, “These are the words,” is largely made up of retrospective theological interpretation of the first four books of the Torah. Deuteronomy is Torah interpreted.

The second discourse, “This is the torah,” contains the soul of the book. The story of the Ten Words is not to their parents, “but with us, all of us who are alive here today” (5:3). This present tense orientation––“today” ––is no mere word game. The story of the Ten Words is followed by the three other sections: the command (6-11), the rules and regulations (12-26), and the blessings and curses (27-28).

The new covenant (29-30) is followed by the passing of Moses’ leadership to Joshua and to the Torah scroll (31), which in turn leads naturally to the Song of Moses (32). The final section, “This is the blessing” (33), formally resembles the closing of the book of Genesis. Moses, like Jacob before his own death, pronounces blessing upon the families of Israel. The death of Moses reminds of the hope for the coming of a prophet like Moses (34).

It has often been noted, so often that it is almost a truism in some circles, that the essence of Deuteronomic theology can be understood as a covenant relationship which elaborates blessing for obedience and curses for disobedience. If, however, the book is effectively reduced to this principle of reward and retribution, then it becomes a distortion of the instruction and an error. The book of Deuteronomy teaches the principle of covenantal reward and retribution within a larger understanding of the relationship between God and his people.

The shorthand for the command is “love God” (6:4-9). The command is the basis of any true obedience, and thus basic to the kind of obedience that leads to life. Obedience which is not based on love of God is not obedience at all. It is hypocrisy. The command—love God—is a cause of obedience, but it is also caused. It is said to be the effect of “the circumcision of the heart” in the new covenant (30:6).

Another LookThe narrator’s 64 verses are often placed in parentheses, effectively setting them off from

the rest of the text, in standard English translations like the New International Version and the New Revised Standard Version.

Table 24-A: The Proposed Narrator of the Book of Deuteronomy

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The narrator’s reporting context includes the following verses:

1:1-5; 2:10-12, 20-23; 3:9, 11, 13b-14

4:41-5:1a; 10:6-9; 27:1a, 9a, 11

29:1 [28:69]; 29:2a [29:1a]; 31:1, 7a, 9-10a, 14a, 14c-16a, 22-23a, 24-25, 30; 32:44-45, 48

33:1; 34:1-4a, 5-12.

The narrator reports God’s words in direct discourse in the following verses:

31:14b, 16b-21, 23b; 32:49-52; 34:4b.

The narrator introduced all the material in the book of Deuteronomy, including each of the discourses, and frequently inserted commentary to assist the readership. That is, the narrator sounds as if he is at some distance from the time of Moses. The frequent updates provided by the narrator put a natural distance between the final speeches of Moses and the hearing of those speeches by later Torah readers. Horites used to live in Seir, but the descendants of Esau drove them out. They destroyed the Horites from before them and settled in their place, just as Israel did in the land Yahweh gave them as a possession (2:12).Yahweh had done the same for the descendants of Esau, who lived in Seir, when he destroyed the Horites from before them. They drove them out and have lived in their place to this day (2:22).Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, took the whole region of Argob as far as the border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites; it was named after him, so that to this day Bashan is called Havvoth Jair (3:14).The narrator explained things to the readership from a vantage point long after the conquest.

Chapter SummaryThe book of Deuteronomy presents the last words of Moses, as he spoke to the people of Israel on the plains of Moab. The book has several distinctive features that shape the way readers need to hear it, which include the command as foundational, the next generation as present responsibility, and special use of “you” and “today.”

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CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: THE WORDSDeuteronomy 1:1-4:43

Key Terms as tall as the Anakites: Moses led the people in exploits against several other “giant size”

peoples signifying God’s mercy over the worst fears of the first generation who dies in the wilderness (2-3).

Horeb: The name for Sinai in Deuteronomy. judges: Those appointed to help Moses administer God’s law (1). Rephaites: Giant peoples of the Transjordan region (2). your eyes (your hearing): Moses claimed that the things God did happened before their

very ears and eyes (4).

Key Idea Looking back and retelling the Torah stories again is the way Moses help the younger

generation look forward. An Outline

A. Heading (1:1-5)B. Retrospective––the journey from Horeb to Moab (1:6-3:29)

1. Resuming the journey (1:6-8)2. Shared leadership (1:9-18)3. The death of the old and the birth of the new (1:19-46)4. Israel among the nations (2:1-25)5. Remembering the victories over Sihon and Og (2:26-3:29)

C. Exhortation to observe God’s instruction (4:1-40)D. The cities of refuge (4:41-43)


The first five verses set up the story of the book. Moses proclaimed his last words to the people of Israel on the plains of Moab, the wilderness behind and the land of promise across the Jordan river. The first discourse as a whole presents commentary on the entire narrative of the first four books.

Moses explained the leadership structure which was established at the time they departed from Mount Horeb. The event Moses referred to resembles the accounts in Exodus 18 and Numbers 11. The context of Deuteronomy 1 invites us to think through it. The timing here should not be stressed woodenly, however, as the accounts in the book of Deuteronomy often chronologically relocate and/or merge events, because of the teaching purposes of immediate contexts.

First, the accounts in the books of Exodus and Numbers could be two different views of the same event. Second, the two accounts could reflect two stages of establishing judges for the

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nation. Perhaps Moses listened to his father-in-law’s advice at Sinai, then his father-in-law went home as they left the mountain, and then Moses applied the advice when he faced the challenges of the people in the wilderness travels (thus, Exod 18:24-26 would be later application of earlier advice). That is, Moses complained to Jethro who gave advice; later he complained to God who instructed him along the same lines. The problem with both of these possibilities is that the appointing of seventy elders in Numbers 11 hardly fits with the much more numerous hierarchical judge structure depicted in Exodus 18 and Deuteronomy 1, unless the seventy elders held authority over the top level of judges. The different ways to think through it represent the kinds of interpretations raised by the reflection upon the events (or event), along with new insights, in the book of Deuteronomy. Part of the function of these Deuteronomic reflections, therefore, is to hear the story anew. The upshot, in this case, is to reinforce Moses’ shortcomings and accent the equality of all social classes—rich and poor without prejudice—before the law as before God.

Deuteronomy chapters 2 and 3 retell, from a different perspective, many of the events presented in Numbers chapters 20, 21, 31, and 32. The arrangement of material is different, and some things appear to be in different chronological sequence. It seems better not to assume that the rehearsal of wilderness travels and battles is in chronological order.

Perhaps these parenthetical notations can be thought of as the heightening of Edom, Moab, and Ammon and the diminishment of Israel’s status to a certain degree. The Ammonites and Moabites drove out the Rephaites. The Rephaites were large like the Anakites, and the large stature of the Anakites was a key factor in Israel’s unbelief at Kadesh in Numbers 13-14. Thus, the Israelites needed to catch up to the Ammonite and Moabites, in this sense. The only Israelites that the biblical text credits with defeating giant people were Moses, Joshua, Caleb, and David and his associates.

Deuteronomy 4 turns toward exhortation. The instruction to remain loyal to God alone was based on the historical event at Mount Horeb and creation. “You saw no form of any kind the day Yahweh spoke to you at Horeb out of the fire. Therefore, watch yourselves very carefully, so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol, an image of any shape, whether formed like a man or a woman, or like any animal on earth or any bird that flies in the air, or like any creature that moves along the ground or any fish in the waters below” (4:15-18).

The younger generation really, literally, did “see” it and “hear” it. They saw and heard when they read or heard a witness to it. That is, they saw it and heard it when their parents told them about it, or when they listened to the proclamation of the acts of God narrated in the scriptures. One of the Psalms interpreted it along this line: “... what we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us” (Ps. 78:3). To hear the story of what Yahweh did—the Torah story—recreates it. It is the storied world that presents sight and sound to those that can see and hear it.

The extension of “you” to later generations who also saw and heard it for themselves heightens the point all the more. “You were shown these things so that you might know that Yahweh is God; besides him there is no other. From heaven he made you hear his voice to

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discipline you. On earth he showed you his great fire, and you heard his words from out of the fire. Because he loved your forefathers and chose their descendants after them, he brought you out of Egypt by his Presence and his great strength, to drive out before you nations greater and stronger than you and to bring you into their land to give it to you for your inheritance, as it is today” (4:35-38). Those who saw and heard God’s revelation were not only those who actually stood there, but also those later generations who inherited the land after the conquest. How? To hear the Torah story is to hear and see what God has done.

Another LookMoses himself placed an astounding spin on his judgment from God. Three times he

blamed the people for the pronouncement that he could not enter the land. Because of you Yahweh became angry with me also and said, “You shall not enter it, either” (1:37).But because of you Yahweh was angry with me and would not listen to me. “That is enough,” Yahweh said. “Do not speak to me anymore about this matter” (3:26).Yahweh was angry with me because of you, and he solemnly swore that I would not cross the Jordan and enter the good land Yahweh your God is giving you as your inheritance. I will die in this land; I will not cross the Jordan; but you are about to cross over and take possession of that good land (4:21-22).On the surface it appears to contradict the account of his sin. “But Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron, ‘Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them’” (Numbers 20:12; see Chapter 22).

The discrepancy between Moses and the narrative in Numbers serves to place a twofold perspective on Moses and the book of the Torah. First, Moses is just a prophet, sinful like anyone else. Second, it is the one whom Moses represents who provides the power for the word. In this sense God is wholly other and transcends the prophets who deliver his word.

One of the biblical poets dealt with this same tension. He presented a broad relationship which, at first, seems to release the tension, but not entirely. “By the waters of Meribah they angered Yahweh, and trouble came to Moses because of them; for they rebelled against the Spirit of God, and rash words came from Moses’ lips” (Ps 106:32-33). The psalmist, however, does not directly tie the people to Moses’ judgment because the “rash words” came from his mouth. The people wore out Moses, yes, but his sin was his responsibility. Toward the end of the book of Deuteronomy, God explained why Moses would die in the wilderness. “This is because both of you broke faith with me in the presence of the Israelites at the waters of Meribah Kadesh in the Desert of Zin and because you did not uphold my holiness among the Israelites. Therefore, you will see the land only from a distance; you will not enter the land I am giving to the people of Israel” (Deuteronomy 32:51-52).

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CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX: THE COMMANDDeuteronomy 4:44-11:32

Key Terms the command: The great commandment, Love God, appears in Deuteronomy 6 and is

followed by an extended treatment (6-11). next generation: The focus of the present generation’s devotion to the Lord is the up and

coming generation (6:6-9). remember: Moses calls the people to “remember” God’s mercy on redemption once they

enjoy his blessing since that make them susceptible to forget (8) today: The ten commandments are said to be for the generation standing for Moses

“today” (5:1-5). Ten Words: The Ten Words are repeated to the next generation as their very own (5). wisdom: Wisdom literature in the Old Testament speak much the same challenge as

Deuteronomy simply is sage rather than law clothing.

Key Ideas Everything in one life turns on the great command. The great commandment is part of defining the identity of God’s people primarily in

terms of responsibility. The transgenerational perspective of the great command eliminate justification for

egocentric followers of God’s will.

An OutlineA. The Ten Words (4:44-5:33)

1. Heading (4:44-49)2. Prologue (5:1-5)3. The Decalogue (5:7-21)4. The mediator (5:22-33)

B. The command (6-11)1. Yahweh is one––love God and teach his word to the next generation (6:1-9)2. The danger of gifts (6:10-25)3. The danger of other gods (7:1-10:22)

a. . . . military might (7:1-26)b. . . . wealth (8:1-20)

(a) Observe the commandment so you may live (8:1)a. Remember (8:2-10)

i. The wilderness journey of the past (8:2-6)1. The promised land of the future (8:7-10)

b. Do not forget (8:11-17)1. The promised land of the future (8:11-14)

ii. The wilderness journey of the past (8:15-17)(b) Remember and live, forget and die (8:18-20)

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c. . . . self-righteousness (9:1-10:11)4. Motivation to love God––life and death, blessing and curse (11:1-32)


The covenant was not with individual Israelites per se, though it was, but to the living generation of Israelites. He spoke “to you face to face” (5:3-4). The scriptural witness to it is, in fact, the very word of God—face to face as it were. The community responsibility to the Ten Words does not erase personal responsibility.

We know there are ten because the Pentateuch says there are ten (Exodus 34:28; Deuteronomy 4:13; 10:4). But, there are at least three different ways to count them.

Table 26-B: Traditional Ways of Counting the Ten WordsJUDAIC ROMAN CATHOLIC/

LUTHERANREFORMED

1st I am Yahweh your God no other gods no other gods2nd no other gods Yahweh’s name in vain no graven image3rd Yahweh’s name in vain remember the sabbath day Yahweh’s name in vain4th remember the sabbath day honor parents remember the sabbath day5th honor parents do not kill honor parents6th do not kill do not commit adultery do not kill7th do not commit adultery do not steal do not commit adultery8th do not steal do not give false witness do not steal9th do not give false witness do not covet neighbor’s

housedo not give false witness

10th do not covet do not covet neighbor’s wife, and so on

do not covet

How should the opening line of the great command be translated? Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God, the LORD is one (NIV). Or, Hear, O Israel: the LORD is our God, the LORD alone (NRSV). The word “is” is not in the Hebrew text, which literally says “Hear O Israel, Yahweh God, Yahweh one.” In translation we supply the “is” and place it where it should go which, in this case, directs the meaning in different directions.

The first translation foregrounds God himself and the second the people’s loyalty to God. Though both are acceptable, I favor the placement of “is” in the first translation. My reasons include the frequent statements concerning God himself in the Torah—like “I am Yahweh,” and so forth—in sections giving commands. Also, in Deuteronomy “Yahweh” and “our God” never occur as subject and complement, but always as in the first translation above (see 1:6; 5:2; 6:20, 24, 25). The Septuagint likewise supplied an “is” as in the first translation above.

How can one begin to love God? It begins with human design. Human beings are created in the image of God, that is, we are designed to love him. The gospel, forged on the sacrifice of

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the Messiah, the very image of God, is the basis of obeying the first command. The power of the gospel begins to make us who we are supposed to be by creational intention. The command to love God, then, is a mandate for those in the image of God. It is the meaning of human life.

The command defines the all-consuming focus of life itself. It is the first thing and it is everything. What it looks like includes teaching his word to the younger generation as a perpetual occupation. Within a family structure the next generation is our own children. More broadly, however, the next generation refers to those coming after us. Our responsibility before God does not end with each of us considered alone.

The command is both an interpretation of the first word and a concise summary statement of the entire section, namely, Deuteronomy 6-11.

Table 26-C: A Summary of Deuteronomy 6-116:4-9 The Command

6:10-25 The danger of enjoying the gifts of God7 The danger of military might8 The danger of prosperity9-10 The danger of self-righteousness11 Summary of the command

The first instruction concerning the meaning of the command within the Israel’s story is the warning about the danger of God’s gifts. The dangerous gifts, in this case, are not just any gifts but acts of Yahweh’s grace to the people of God. The problem has nothing to do with the gifts from God, but has everything to do with the recipients of his kindness. The hazard of the gifts is that people will enjoy the gifts and forget the giver. The dangers—military might, wealth, and self-righteousness form a set. The relationship among them can be seen, first, by the phrases “say to yourself.”

You may say to yourselves, “These nations are stronger than we are. How can we drive them out?” (7:17)You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me” (8:17).After Yahweh your God has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself, “Yahweh has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness” (9:4a).

First, the danger of military might refer to how the people could misjudge the reason for their chosenness or fail to trust God when faced with military challenge. Second, financial security, in terms of the good life, presents grave danger to those that would be loyal to Yahweh. The peril is failing to place present prosperity in its rightful perspective. The rightful and necessary worldview, especially under the threat of affluence, is placing life within God’s story. The alternative is conceit. Third, the danger of self-righteousness could cause Israel wrongly to connect the results of grace with their own merits.

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True obedience of God’s instruction has nothing to do with earning anything. Following the word of God is an act of faith, that is to say, a function of his grace. More precisely, the rightful interpretation of circumstance, whether good or otherwise, begins with the recognition of the sinfulness of humankind. This is the beginning of the great command and the beginning of the gospel.

Deuteronomy 10:12-22 appears to be a catechism of sorts—a religious or theological summary designed for youth to memorize. This passage summarizes the message of the entire Torah in a manner suitable for younger people or converts or anyone to learn and recite. The passage is remarkably compact and comprehensive.

The exposition of the first command closed as it began. The tight framing effect provides stable structure to the entire section of the book (6:1-3//11:22-25; 6:4-9//11:13).

Another LookThe creational shape of the first command—love God—can be seen at the intersection of

Torah and wisdom. The wisdom of the book of Proverbs in particular makes frequent use of the teaching from Deuteronomy 6:4-9.

Table 26-E: Deuteronomy 6:6-9 and the Wisdom of the Book of ProverbsDeuteronomy 6:6-9

Proverbs

These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.

My son, do not forget my teaching [torah], but keep my commands in your heart (3:1).

My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight (3:21).

My son, observe the commandment of your father, And do not forsake the teaching of your mother (6:20).

My son, keep my words and store up my commands within you. Keep my commands and you will live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye (7:1-2).

Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and

For they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity (3:2).

Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble when you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you

When you walk about, they will guide you; When you sleep, they will watch over you; And when you awake, they will talk to you

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when you get up. lie down, your sleep will be sweet (3:23-24).

(6:22).

Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart (3:3).

They will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck (3:22).

Bind them continually on your heart; Tie them around your neck (6:21).

Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart (7:3).

Chapter SummaryThe Ten Words were not confined to the generation of Israel who originally received them, but were to be renewed by Israel as a society in each generation. The first command—including the oneness of Yahweh himself and the mandate to love him with everything we are and to proclaim his word everywhere, all the time to the next generation—was explained in terms of the story of who they were and what God had done.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: THE RULES AND REGULATIONSDeuteronomy 12-28

Key Terms assembly of Yahweh: The citizenship of Israel (23:1-8). blessings and curses: The ends of obedience and disobedience of God’s will (27-28). Canaanites: The term “Canaanites” traditionally includes all those who lived in the land

of promise since most were descended form Canaan (Gen 10). Deuteronomistic Narrative: The serial narrative of the rise and fall of the Hebrew

kingdoms (Joshua-Judges-Samuel-Kings) told in light of the book of Deuteronomy. indecency: The obscure Hebrew term (Deuteronomy 24:1) which the Lord glossed as

sexual indiscretion/porneia (Matt 19). Moabites and Ammonites: The literal-symbolic “others” who cannot enter the assembly

of Yahweh (23:1-8). the rules and regulations: The laws of the covenant (12-26) over and against the great

command (6-11). torah-code: The traditional term for the collection of laws housed in Deuteronomy 12-26.

Key Ideas The laws of the torah collection (12-26) shapes the history of Israel as seen in the

Deuteronomistic Narrative (Joshua-Judges-Samuel-Kings). Just as not all Israel is Israel, not all Canaanites are Canaanites (e.g., Rahab), and not all

Ammonites and Moabites are Ammonites and Moabites (e.g., Ruth). The literal Torah identities have theological/symbolic function to speak of rejection of God and his people.

An OutlineA. The Rules and regulations (12-26)

1. Worship (12-13)2. Dietary regulations (14)3. Tithes and holy time (15:1-16:17)4. Leaders (16:18-17:13)

i. judges (16:18-17:13)ii. kings (17:14-20)

iii. Levitical priests (18:1-14)iv. the prophet-like-Moses (18:15-22)

5. Matters of life and death (19-21)i. protection of innocent life––cities of refuge boundary markers, witness

laws (19:1-21)ii. limits on killing in warfare (20:1-20)

iii. limits in life, death, captivity, and the unloved—protection of the socially challenged (21:1-23)

6. Boundaries (22:1-23:14)i. forbidden mixing (22:1-12)

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ii. marital and sexual misconduct (22:13-30)iii. on exclusion from and conversion to the assembly (23:1-8)iv. purity within the camp (23:9-14)

7. Miscellaneous regulation, often concerned with financial matters—interest, vows, crops, spouses, pledges, wages, poverty, levirate marriages (23:15-25:19)

8. Offerings (26:1-15)9. Concluding summary (26:16-19)

B. Blessings and curses (27-28)1. Altar and curses at Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim (27)2. Blessings for obedience (28:1-14)3. Curses for disobedience (28:15-68)


“The rules and regulations,” commonly called the torah-code (Deuteronomy 12-26), offer the framework for the life of the Israelite community in the land of promise. The instructions explain the way life was supposed to look for the society of chosen people that listen to the word of God. The effect of obeying or disobeying God’s teaching would lead to life and blessing or to death and curses. The torah-code provided the norm—the word of God—for measuring the rebellion of Israel.

The biblical storytellers who told the narrative of the rise and fall of the Hebrew kingdom interpreted the meaning of the Israel’s history in relation to the rules and regulations. The torah-code played such a significant role in the four-part narrative that runs through the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings, that the serial narrative can be called the Deuteronomistic Narrative. The biblical preachers—Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Twelve Prophets—frequently looked to the blessings and curses to explain the judgments of God against his people.

The torah-code as an instructional unit operates according to a relationship to the command. The great command is the basis for any true obedience. The torah-code, then, is subordinate to the command to be loyally devoted to God, which is established from Yahweh himself.

Several examples will illustrate how the interpretive guidelines operate. First, the centrality of the place of worship in the land of promise is repeated five times in Deuteronomy chapter 12. The theological significance of the singular place of worship reflected the reality that Yahweh is one. The singularity was reinforced further by the repetition of the place as a “dwelling for his Name.” This centralized worship implied that the nation of Israel, like their God, was united.

Second, the instructions for kings in Deuteronomy chapter 17 needs to be considered Was it God’s will or against his will for Israel to have a human king? Deuteronomy does not imply that there was anything wrong with having human a king, but it must be the right person. “When you enter the land Yahweh your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, ‘Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,’ be sure to appoint over

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you the king Yahweh your God chooses. He must be from among your own brothers. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not a brother Israelite” (Deut 17:14-15). The problem in 1 Samuel 8 was not that the Israelites wanted a king but why they wanted one. They wanted a king because they had rejected God. They said, “We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us to fight our battles” (1 Sam 8:19b-20; cf. 10:19; 12:12-15).

The remarkable story of king Solomon’s downfall in 1 Kings 11 echoes with the sounds of the instruction from Deuteronomy 17. The king’s problem was success. Deuteronomy chapters 8 and 9 had warned of the dangers of prosperity, and Solomon was a classic example of the problem. Solomon and his kingdom, therefore, were not everything that had been hoped for. Solomon pointed beyond himself to a coming son of David, the Judah-king.

Third, the biblical instruction to slaughter all of the Canaanites, including civilians, women, children, and animals, is one of the biblical teachings that most troubles late modern readers. The term Canaanites is used as the generic term for the various nations who lived in the land of promise before Israel got there. Most of these nations were descended from Canaan, the cursed son of Noah (see Gen 10:15-19). The total destruction of the Canaanites and other nations was for specific reasons. When Yahweh your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations––the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you––and when Yahweh your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy. Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, for they will turn your sons away from following me to serve other gods, and Yahweh’s anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy you (Deut 7:1-4).

However, in the cities of the nations Yahweh your God is giving you as an inheritance, do not leave alive anything that breathes. Completely destroy them––the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites––as Yahweh your God has commanded you. Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshiping their gods, and you will sin against Yahweh your God (20:16-18).The command to destroy the Canaanites was not given because they were Canaanites. Rather, it was to protect Israel from rebelling against the word of God, to protect them from themselves. Protection from sin came at an extreme cost.

The Israelites were commanded literally to kill all the Canaanites. There is, however, a symbolic dimension to this teaching as well. The apostle Paul wrote that “not all who are descended from Israel are Israel” (Rom 9:6; cf. 11:3-5; 1 Kgs 19:10, 14, 18). In a similar manner, not all who were descended from the Canaanites were Canaanites. The problem was not being born Canaanite, but embracing the Canaanite way of life. In the book of Joshua chapter 2 readers discover a Canaanite prostitute who had greater faith in God than many in Israel. The placement of the story of Rahab comments almost as significantly on the meaning of Deuteronomy 7 and 20

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as the story itself. Rahab converted to Israel’s God and escaped destruction. Rahab’s faith was exactly the kind called for in the book of Deuteronomy.

Fourth, the beginning of Deuteronomy chapter 23 explains, at one time, who cannot and who can covert to Israel. Notice the two kinds of foreigners and the rationale for exclusion. “No one whose testicles are crushed or whose penis is cut off shall be admitted to the assembly of Yahweh. Those born of an illicit union shall not be admitted to the assembly of Yahweh. Even to the tenth generation, none of their descendants shall be admitted to the assembly of Yahweh. No Ammonite or Moabite shall be admitted to the assembly of Yahweh. Even to the tenth generation, none of their descendants shall be admitted to the assembly of Yahweh, because they did not meet you with food and water on your journey out of Egypt, and because they hired Balaam son of Beor, from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you . . . . You shall never promote their welfare or their prosperity as long as you live. You shall not abhor any of the Edomites, for they are your kin. You shall not abhor any of the Egyptians, because you were an alien residing in their land. The children of the third generation that are born to them may be admitted to the assembly of Yahweh” (Deuteronomy 23:1-4, 6-8 NRSV). The two kinds of foreigners are the concern here, but several contextual issues need to be addressed briefly, issues discussed particularly in Judaic circles.Is “the assembly of Yahweh” the place of worship, that is, tabernacle or temple, or the nation of Israel? Some understand it as referring to the place of worship because the reference to deformed male genitalia may be referring to a similar regulation which is part of the priestly guidelines (see Lev 21:20). However, the terminology could be used of worship or the nation, and, in either case, refers to relationship with God.

If one converted to Israel through faith in Yahweh, they would signify it by circumcising themselves and their sons. The sign of infant circumcision is passive to the individual, so the conversion could not be demonstrated as real until the circumcised children placed the mark of the covenant upon their children. Thus, one’s conversion to Israel was demonstrated in the faith of one’s grandchildren. This parallels the next generation in the great command.

There were two kinds of foreigners. The context explains why the Edomites and Egyptians could convert in three generations and the Moabites and Ammonites could not. For the former they were relatives (Esau’s descendants) and Israel’s oppressive “host,” respectively. But the Moabites and Ammonites were also relatives (descendants of Lot’s sons/grandsons). Ammon and Moab were conceived in an illicit union, but that is not the rationale for exclusion given here. These nations were excluded because of hostility against Israel in the wilderness, as narrated in Numbers chapters 22-25. It is worse to bring God’s curse upon his people than to physically oppress—oppression and murder only drive someone out of this world whereas damning and inciting to the sin with false gods are attempts to drive someone out of the world to come.

There are two kinds of foreigners referred to in the teachings on the Passover in the book of Exodus. The context tells of a “mixed crowd” that went up from Egypt (Exodus 12:38 NRSV).

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“Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron, ‘These are the regulations for the Passover: “No foreigner is to eat of it. Any slave you have bought may eat of it after you have circumcised him, but a temporary resident and a hired worker may not eat of it . . . . An alien living among you who wants to celebrate Yahweh’s Passover must have all the males in his household circumcised; then he may take part like one born in the land. No uncircumcised male may eat of it. The same law applies to the native-born and to the alien living among you’”” (Exodus 12:43-45, 48-49). The two kinds of foreigners, in this context, are distinguished without regard for their ethnicity. The difference was whether the foreigners accepted the sign of the covenant, that is, if they were converting to the covenant community. The distinction was based wholly on the person’s relative relationship toward Yahweh.

What does it mean to be an Ammonite or Moabite? Better, what is the meaning of Deuteronomy 23:1-8, especially as it pertains to Ammonites and Moabites? Are they literal or symbolic designations? Isaiah chapter 56 opens with a poetic commentary on this passage. These categories were interpreted toward temple worship and the community of faith—thus, toward the broader and narrower views of “assembly of Yahweh” mentioned above. “Do not let the foreigner joined to Yahweh say, ‘Yahweh will surely separate me from his people’; and do not let the eunuch say, ‘I am just a dry tree.’ For thus says Yahweh: ‘To the eunuchs who keep my sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast to my covenant, I will give, in my house and within my walls, a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off. And the foreigners who join themselves to Yahweh, to minister to him, to love the name of Yahweh, and to be his servants, all who keep the sabbath, and do not profane it, and hold fast my covenant— these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and all their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.’ Thus says Yahweh God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, ‘I will gather others to them besides those already gathered’” (Isa 56:3-8 NRSV). This poetic interpretation of Deuteronomy 23 was directed to the “insiders”—the non-foreigners. They should not let the foreigners and eunuchs think themselves excluded. The embrace of the “others” was the responsibility of the people of God.

According to Nehemiah 13, the problem with their foreignness was not ethnicity itself. “In those days also I saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab; and half their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and they could not speak the language of Judah, but spoke the language of various peoples. And I contended with them and cursed them and beat some of them and pulled out their hair; and I made them take an oath in the name of God, saying, ‘You shall not give your daughters to their sons, or take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves. Did not King Solomon of Israel sin on account of such women? Among the many nations there was no king like him, and he was beloved by his God, and God made him king over all Israel; nevertheless, foreign women made even him to sin’” (Nehemiah 13:23-26).

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The dilemma was religious. They were excluded not because they were born to non-Israelites, but because they refused to convert to the ways of God.

Most importantly, relative to our concern with the book of Deuteronomy, consider the way they were raising their children. The path of conversion, like the path for those of Israel, revolves around training the next generation in God’s instruction. The problem was not the ethnicity of the spouses but that the Israelites were converting away from their God. Their children did not even know the language of the people of God; a sign that they were not being raised according to the teachings of God. The interpretation of Ammonites and Moabites in Deuteronomy 23, according to the book of Nehemiah, is, therefore, that those foreigners who do not convert to Israel’s God are permanently excluded.

The book of Ruth forces readers to interpret the Moabite aspect of Deuteronomy 23 in light of the story of David and the Davidic covenant. Ruth was the great-grandmother of David. More than an interesting fact, this throws the reader into a quandary. How could David be a legitimate king of Israel and the recipient of the word of promise for his son, if he was a fourth-generation Moabite? He could not. Unless, “Moabite” in Deuteronomy 23 is read symbolically. If “Moabite” is taken literally—as tenth generation or never—David and Solomon would be excluded from the assembly of Yahweh. Ruth converted to faith and loyalty in Israel’s God. She spoke an oath to her Israelite mother-in-law, Naomi, “Your people will be my people and your God my God” (Ruth 1:16c).

In sum, the opening section of Deuteronomy chapter 23 concerns conversion to the assembly of Yahweh. There were those who would not convert. Ammonites and Moabites symbolized those who opposed and desired the curse of God upon his people. As Nehemiah read it, many people that are not born Ammonites or Moabites function as such when they refuse to convert to Israel’s God. However, not all who were born Moabites are Moabites. The book of Ruth reveals that Moabites can convert to Yahweh’s people and bring forth the fruit of wisdom and righteousness, even, for Ruth herself, the messiah of promise

Fifth, the torah-code contains many regulations for marital relationship. They are in the form of case law so the principles need to be discovered and used as precedent for various circumstances. Among the common denominators between these laws and others concerning other social relationships is the protection of the weak and helpless. Polygamy, capturing a bride while at war, marriage to servants, and serial divorces were all permissible, but the socially challenged and powerless were protected in each case.

Discussions about the meaning of these rules has stretched across the centuries. These laws are still vigorously discussed by many practicing Judaic communities. An ancient collection of commentary on many laws called the Mishnah includes numerous debates amongst proto-rabbis (Pharisees) from around the time of Jesus (though it was not written down until 180 or 200 CE). Compare Deuteronomy 24:1 (which in larger context refers to serial divorces and marriages) and the debate about the meaning of this teaching itself in the Mishnah.Suppose a man enters into marriage with a woman, but she does not please him because he finds something objectionable about her, and so he writes her a certificate of divorce . . . (24:1a NRSV).

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The School of Shammai say: A man may not divorce his wife unless he has found unchasity in her, for it is written, “Because he hath found in her indecency in anything.” And the school of Hillel say: [He may divorce her] even if she spoiled a dish for him, for it is written, “Because he hath found in her indecency in anything.” R. Akiba says: Even if he found another fairer than she, for it is written, “And it shall be if she find no favour in his eyes” (Gittin 9:10).

The difference between these three readings of Deuteronomy 24:1 embedded in the Mishnah largely relates to which part of the verse was allowed to control the rest. Compare the three views to the debate about this verse between Jesus and some of his opponents. “Some Pharisees came to test him. They asked, ‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?’ . . . . Jesus replied, ‘Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery’” (Matt 19:3, 8-9 TNIV). The religious leaders used an interpretation something like that of Hillel above. Jesus explained both the creational context which takes precedence over the teaching itself—which was a concession for the hard-hearted—and the meaning of the difficult term “indecency” (the Hebrew term ‘ervah is only used in Deuteronomy 24:1, and of human excrement in 23:13) which he interpreted as “sexual immorality” (porneia is the Greek word from which we get “porno-”).

These five examples of how to read the torah-code demonstrate several guidelines for work on other case laws in this section of the book of Deuteronomy. First, the reader needs to be sensitive to context. Second, the Bible is the best commentary on the Bible. Readers need to recognize that the biblical writings themselves contain the most important interpretations of the laws and narrative of the Torah. Studying through the entire Bible, whether in academic, church, or personal setting, is not the end of the task, but the beginning. Third, mastering biblical contexts, like the torah-code, requires patience and humility.

Another LookThe blessings and curses were the results for the nation of obeying or disobeying the

torah-code. The horrific curses would eventually drive the rebel people to act against all sense. “Because of the suffering that your enemy will inflict on you during the siege, you will eat the fruit of the womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters Yahweh your God has given you. Even the most gentle and sensitive man among you will have no compassion on his own brother or the wife he loves or his surviving children, and he will not give to one of them any of the flesh of his children that he is eating. It will be all he has left because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you during the siege of all your cities. The most gentle and sensitive woman among you––so sensitive and gentle that she would not venture to touch the ground with the sole of her foot––will begrudge the husband she loves and her own son or daughter the afterbirth from her womb and the children she bears. For she intends to eat them secretly during the siege and in the distress that your enemy will inflict on you in your cities” (28:53-57).

The covenantal nature of the blessings and curses, and their attachment with the torah-code, can be seen in the introductory setting of Deuteronomy 27. Moses and the elders described

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a monument with the law written on it that the people needed to place on Mount Ebal to demonstrate themselves bound to the covenant. Moreover, this monument related to the ceremony the people were to participate in according to the closing of Deuteronomy chapter 11. They were to recite the blessings from Mount Gerizim and the curses from Mount Ebal. The story of the fulfillment of these teachings is found in the book of Joshua chapter 8, following Israel’s defeat of the cities of Jericho and Ai.

It is important not to reduce the cause and effect relationship—of obey/bless, disobey/curse—to some kind of mechanistic one-to-one correspondence that can be measured empirically in specific actions of specific individuals. The context of the torah-code must be remembered. It was for the nation of Israel in the land.

Chapter SummaryThe rules and regulations, also known as the torah-code, is the collection of laws which bound the nation of Israel in the land of promise. Biblical preachers and storytellers interpreted the covenant relationship established by the torah-code. To apprehend the meaning of the rules and regulation requires listening to the “conversation” between the torah-code and the biblical commentaries on it. The covenant relationship established by the torah-code, moreover, bound Israel to the blessings and curses attached to it.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT: A VIEW OF THE OTHER SIDEDeuteronomy 29-34

Key Terms book of the Torah: The writing Moses said he placed by the ark to bear witness against

Israel (31). heaven and earth: The created realm, the effects of God’s word (Gen 1), serve as “two

witnesses” along with Torah in the expected capital case against rebellious Israel (31). life and death: The ends toward which Moses called the congregation as the faced up to

the realities of the covenant in the land God had promised (30). new covenant: What Moses calls “another covenant” God will make in addition to the

Sinai covenant (29:1) Jeremiah calls “new covenant.” other side: The Torah is “Jerusalem centered” in that even though the Israelites had not

yet been in the land proper, they considered themselves on the plains of Moab as “on the other side” of the Jordan.

prophet-like-Moses: The expectation grounded in the Sinai revelation that God would raise up a prophet like Moses who perform signs and speak with God face to face (34:9-12; 18:15ff; 5; Exodus 20).

Key Idea The book of Deuteronomy ends both framing Torah with the creation in Genesis, and

looking ahead at the fulfillment of God’s promise.

An OutlineA. New covenant (29-30)B. Moses to be replaced by Joshua and the Torah (31)C. The Song of Moses (32)D. The blessing of Moses (33)E. The death of Moses (34)


The view from the end of the book of Deuteronomy, the end of the Torah story, is a view of “the other side.” The end of the Torah story does not signify that the story is finished—it looks forward to the rest of the story. The view from the end is of the next beginning.

Table 28-A: A View of the Other Side in Deuteronomy 29-34

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A view of . . .New covenant (29-30) . . . the other side of the older covenant and

the exile.Moses to be replaced by Joshua and the

Torah (31). . . Israelite leadership on the other side of the Jordan river.

The Song of Moses (32) . . . the other side of time—the last days.The blessing of Moses (33) . . . tribal life on the other side of the Jordan

river.The death of Moses (34) . . . the other side of the Jordan.

The new covenant also intentionally reaches beyond the people’s dwelling in the land of promise to a time when they will again be in exile and long to return to the land. Future generations would see the curses and judgments that had fallen on the land of promise and the people of God. It would be like Sodom and Gomorrah (29:22-28). The terrifying acts of God in the Torah story offered a template for the judgment to come.

The fate of Israel was certain. They would rebel against the command and promises of God until they received the full measure of his wrath. Yet, Torah does not end in a word of death. The hope of every generation of God’s people is that one day Yahweh will “restore their fortunes,” he will bring them back once again. “Yahweh your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live” (30:6).

Israel is invited to choose life. “See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. ... This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live” (30:15, 19). What does it mean that it was not out of their reach (30:11-14)? To obey the command requires an act of God—a miracle. The human revolution can only be overcome by divine grace. The new life needed for obedience to God’s will has always been the effect of his grace. The work of God is here expressed as an act of God in the heart.

The near death of Moses signaled the need for a replacement. Deuteronomy chapter 31 offered a view of his replacements for life on the other side of the Jordan river. Moses was to be replaced by Joshua and a book, the Torah scroll. The chapter moves back and forth in interchange between the two, demonstrating, among other things, the enduring place of the Torah of Moses in the life of the people.

The “book of the Torah,” within this context, may refer to the torah-code (Deuteronomy 12-26) or the entire second discourse (4:44-28:68)—“this is the Torah” (4:44)—or maybe the entire book of Deuteronomy. In its present form, however, it effectively includes the entire Torah. In any case, the Torah scroll came to signify the sinfulness of the people. “After Moses finished writing in a book the words of this torah from beginning to end, he gave this command to the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of Yahweh: ‘Take this Book of the Torah and place it beside the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God. There it will remain as a witness against you. For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you have

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been rebellious against Yahweh while I am still alive and with you, how much more will you rebel after I die! Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and all your officials, so that I can speak these words in their hearing and call heaven and earth to testify against them. For I know that after my death you are sure to become utterly corrupt and to turn from the way I have commanded you. In days to come, disaster will fall upon you because you will do evil in the sight of Yahweh and provoke him to anger by what your hands have made’” (Deuteronomy 31:24-27, 29).

The Song of Moses looks backward to the beginning of humankind and the creation of Israel and looks ahead to the last days. The “last days” were referred to earlier in the blessing of the sons of Jacob, the oracles of Balaam, and in the first discourse the book of Deuteronomy (Gen 49; Num 24; Deut 4). This Song, by its placement and by its content, offers a sense of closure to the Five Books of Moses. The Song of Moses established embryonic ideals that later became known as heaven and hell.

The blessing of Moses (33) offered a poetic view of tribal life on the other side of the Jordan river. The general fact of this blessing to the tribes resembles Jacob’s blessing to his sons upon his death bed (Gen 49). The book of Deuteronomy closes with the narrative of the death and burial of Moses, and the expectation for the coming of a prophet-like-Moses.

The expectation for the coming prophet-like-Moses closes the book of Deuteronomy and the entire Torah by situating this expectation into the indefinite future in the book, making it contemporary through the kingdom, the exile, and beyond. “Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom Yahweh knew face to face, who did all those miraculous signs and wonders Yahweh sent him to do in Egypt––to Pharaoh and to all his officials and to his whole land. For no one has ever shown the mighty power or performed the awesome deeds that Moses did in the sight of all Israel” (Deuteronomy 34:10-12).

The expectation for the coming prophet was drawn from three main contexts, each one further back within the Pentateuch. The expectation for a prophet like unto Moses was first reported in Deuteronomy chapter 18. Moses himself said, “Yahweh your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him” (18:15). The interpretation of the revelation-event by God gave rise to this expectation. Thus, the past revelation of the word of God created the necessary coming of a new mediator.

Table 28-E: The Origin of the Expectation for a Coming Prophet-like-MosesThe Story of the Revelation-Event at Sinai

The Retelling of the Story of the Revelation-Event at Sinai

The Meaning, in Terms of the Expected Prophet, Based on the Revelation-Event and the Narratives of It

When the people saw the thunder and lightning and

When you heard the voice out of the darkness, while the

For this is what you asked of Yahweh your God at Horeb

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heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die” (Exodus 20:18-19).

mountain was ablaze with fire, all the leading men of your tribes and your elders came to me . . . . But now, why should we die? This great fire will consume us, and we will die if we hear the voice of Yahweh our God any longer. . . . . Yahweh heard you when you spoke to me and Yahweh said to me, “I have heard what this people said to you. Everything they said was good” (Deuteronomy 5:23, 25, 28).

on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of Yahweh our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die.” Yahweh said to me: “What they say is good. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him (Deuteronomy 18:16-18).

The Torah story, therefore, is not merely an account of what happened. Rather, the narrated acts of God themselves create the future hope that would bring his word to pass. The future-creating nature of the Torah narrative was apprehended by Israel’s preachers. The prophets envisioned a future according to the scriptural past. They spoke of new heavens and new earth, the days like Noah’s, the new exodus, the coming son of David, and so forth. What God had done provided the shape and meaning of what he would do.

The book of Genesis ended with the promise of the Judah-king who would come in the last days to rule the nations. The book of Deuteronomy, and thus the Torah story, closed with the narrator’s stated expectation for a prophet-like-Moses, one who would know God and wield his power in accord with Moses himself. The Torah’s promises reach into and beyond the world of the reader. The Torah-shaped king and prophet will return.

Another LookThe last section of the book of Deuteronomy were frequently used by later scripture

writers; Here are three examples. First, the Elijah and Jesus narratives echoed with the sounds of prophet-like-Moses imagery. Elijah’s miraculous signs and his unusual experience on Mount Horeb, gave him a Moses-like story. God sent a wind, earthquake, and fire, but he was not in them. When Elijah heard the “gentle whisper” he covered his face and went into the cave (1 Kgs 19:11-14).

Second, although he never directly quoted it, Paul’s Athenian-friendly speech depicted a worldview which applied imagery based on the Song of Moses (see Table 28-F). Most of the parallels are at the conceptual level, but there are several terms that are common between Acts chapter 17 and the Septuagintal translation of Deuteronomy chapter 32.

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Table 28-F: Paul’s Speech to the Athenians and the Song of MosesActs 17 Deuteronomy 32All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas. Paul . . . said: “Men of Athens! . . . . I even found an altar with this inscription: ‘To an unknown god.’ Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you . . . . And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live . . . . Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone––an image made by man’s design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead (17:21-22a, 23b, 25-26, 29-31).

They sacrificed to demons, which are not God––gods they had not known, gods that recently appeared, gods your fathers did not fear (32:17).When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when he divided all mankind, he set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel (32:8).They have acted corruptly toward him; to their shame they are no longer his children, but a warped and crooked generation. Is this the way you repay the LORD, O foolish and unwise people? Is he not your Father, your Creator, who made you and formed you? (32:5-6)“It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them” . . . . He will say: “Now where are their gods, the rock they took refuge in . . . . See now that I myself am He! There is no god besides me. I put to death and I bring to life, I have wounded and I will heal, and no one can deliver out of my hand” (32:35, 37, 39).

The point of departure for Paul’s speech was the monument “to an unknown god,” who he identified as the one and only God. This allusion to the Song of Moses was ironic because it inverted the reference to “unknown gods” which Israel had wrongly worshipped in the desert. Moreover, Paul used language similar to Deuteronomy 32 to refer to the Creator’s relationship with humankind and his providential will over the nations. He also used the concept of ultimate judgment to press his point. Paul went on to connect the Song of Moses-shaped discourse to the resurrection of Messiah.

Third, the letter to the Romans offers an illuminating reading of the teaching in Deuteronomy 30. The meaning of the teaching on the new covenant has significant overlap with the gospel. The Torah is not the gospel, but its teaching of the new covenant is also not the opposite of the gospel.

Table 28-G: A Comparison of Deuteronomy 30 and Romans 10Keep my decrees and laws, for the man who Moses writes about the righteousness that is

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obeys them will live by them. I am Yahweh (Lev 18:5).Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it. See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction (Deuteronomy 30:11-15).

by the law: “The one who does these things will live by them.” But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’”—that is, to bring Christ down—“or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’”—that is, to bring Christ up from the dead. But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved (Rom 10:5-9 TNIV).

Moses and Paul are in agreement. Neither thought people would obey the commands of God; rather they both thought that the Torah revealed the rebellion of Israel and humankind (see Deuteronomy 31:26-27; Rom 3:19-20). If the Torah condemns, how can it speak life? Is it not the word that gives life? Of course! If Moses and Paul were both talking about the life-giving word “in your mouth,” the Torah for the former and the gospel for the latter, then is it a word of death or of life? Yes, and yes. The Torah as a collection of laws, according to Moses and Paul, demonstrates the sin and rebellion of Israel and of humanity in general. It speaks death. But that is not all.

The Torah as the beginning of God’s story—from the garden to the Skull—speaks the good news to all who have ears to hear. The Torah story, which has a beginning and an end, is not a world unto itself. The book of Deuteronomy closes, as does the book of Genesis, with a view of the other side, a view that stretches to the cross and beyond. The Torah is the beginning of the story that reaches its height in the death and resurrection of the Messiah. The Torah story is the beginning of the gospel story. Paul said it this way, “Messiah is the culmination of the Torah so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes” (Rom 10:4 translation mine). The gospel does not remove the need for the Torah story, it enlarges it. The story which the Torah begins finds its completion and goal in the gospel.

Chapter SummaryThe closing chapters of the book of Deuteronomy look back, but only in order to look forward. The view of the other side of the Jordan river carries with it the devastating reality that the people will break the covenant and be exiled from the land, yet there is hope. The expectations include the new covenant that God will establish with Israel, and the expected prophet-like-Moses.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE: REINTRODUCING TORAH

Key Terms Deuteronomistic Narrative: The serial narrative of the rise and fall of the Hebrew

kingdoms (Joshua-Judges-Samuel-Kings) told in light of the book of Deuteronomy. exile: The dominant perspective of the people of God in the scripture: Torah ends looking

across Jordan at the land of promise; OT ends waiting for the restoration of the fortunes of God’s people; NT ends waiting for the return of the king.

Former Prophets: Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings Latter Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, The Twelve Prophets Primary Narrative: The Serial Narrative from Genesis to Kings Tanak: Torah, Nevi’im/Prophets, Ketuvim/Writings Writings: Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Ruth, Sing of Sings, Ecclesiastes, Lamentations, Esther,

Daniel, Ezra-Nehemiah, Chronicles

Key Ideas Torah has a key role within the Hebrew Bible. Torah is the beginning of the gospel of Christ.


The serial story begins with God speaking creation and ends with the hope for the prophet-like-Moses who will one day bring the word of God to his people. The five-part story moves from the garden to the river, just across from the land of promise.

The serial story began with the gift of the garden as the home for the new human society. The young society revolted against the word of God and was sentenced to death. The revolutionaries were expelled to the east of the garden into a world that was suddenly conflicted, creational yet cursed, life yet death. How would the word of God prevail over the human revolution?

The story took a surprising turn when God called Abraham. He gave him a new word, but not entirely new, to carry forward his creational intention. Yahweh chose Abraham to be the recipient and vehicle of his grace to all of the families of the earth. The story of the Hebrew ancestors concludes with expectation for Judah-king would rule the nations in the last days.

Figure 29-a: The Torah Story from the Garden to the River

the garden exile to the east the land east of the river

The Opening of the Book of Genesis The Closing of the Book of DeuteronomyThe story closed on the east side of the Jordan river. Torah story ended the way it began:

the people had before them a choice between death and life—both effects of the word of God.

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They were ready for a new beginning. The exiled people on the bank of the Jordan river looked forward to completion of the word of God. The Pentateuch, then, does not finally resolve the human problem. The question remains. How will the word of God overcome the human revolution? The forward-looking serial narrative, therefore, is the beginning of the story.

The “Genesis-shaped” features of the books of Exodus through Deuteronomy provide another clue to the meaning of the Torah story. Are the books of Exodus through Deuteronomy Genesis-shaped, or is the book of Genesis Torah-shaped? In either case, the biblical narratives demonstrate significant interdependence and interrelationship.

Torah and Hebrew ScripturesThe books of Moses are the first five of the nine book serial narrative called the Primary

Narrative. The Deuteronomisticc Narrative is the story of the rise and fall of the Hebrew kingdom in the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings within the shadow of the Torah, especially the book of Deuteronomy.

Table 29-A: The Primary NarrativeGenesis-Exodus-Leviticus-Numbers-Deuteronomy-Joshua-Judges-Samuel-Kings

Figure 29-b: The Exilic Framing of the Primary Narrativeexile to the east

The Garden

exile to the east

JerusalemThe Opening of the Book of Genesis The Closing of the Book of Kings

The Primary Narrative provided the story which served as the theological framework for the rest of the Hebrew scriptures. Looked at from the other direction, the writings of the Hebrew scriptures—prophetic, narrative, poetic, wisdom, visionary—all of them, are, in one way or another, theological commentary on the Primary Narrative.

Judaic traditions at the turn of the era referred to their scriptures as the Torah, Prophets, and Writings—later called the Tanak based on the first letter of each word in Hebrew: Torah, Nevi’im (Prophets), Kethuvim (Writings)—the same scriptures that Protestant Christians later called the Old Testament. The book of Tanak or OT other than Torah, all emphasize kingdom, exile, and return.

Table 29-C: The Kingdom, Exile, and Return Focus in the Latter Prophets and the Writings

Isaiah kingdom, exile, return

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Jeremiah, Ezekiel

The Twelve Prophets

Psalms

Job

Proverbs, Ruth, Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, Lamentations, Esther, Daniel, Ezra-

Nehemiah

Chronicles

kingdom, exile, return



(kingdom, exile, return)



If the writings of the Hebrew scriptures are oriented around the kingdom, exile, and return, then the writings that stand out are those that begin the Primary Narrative, namely, the Torah story. The fact that the Hebrew scriptures deal with the kingdom, exile, and return does not mean that they are not concerned with the books of Moses—just the opposite is true. The conversation among the scrolls about the kingdom, exile, and return is all about the meaning of these things in light of the Torah. The Pentateuch, especially its expectation of the exile and return, established the basis for the biblical interpretation of the meaning of the kingdom, exile, and return.

The Torah and the Entire BibleThe New Testament provides several summary reflections on the Torah. First, the Torah

explains human sinfulness. “Now we know that the Torah is good if anyone uses it the way it should be used. Knowing this, that the Torah does not exist for a righteous person, but for the torah-less and defiant, the irreligious and sinful, the unholy and unclean, father-killers and mother-killers, human-killers, sex-seekers, perverts, human-stealers, liars, deceivers, and any other such thing which opposes wholesome teaching; according to the good news of the blessed God, which he committed to me” (1 Tim 1:8-11 translation mine; see discussion of this passage in Another Look of Chapter 2). The Torah is good, so long as it is used according to its design, namely, to reveal the sinfulness of humankind. Similar views on the function of the Torah are expressed in Romans 3:19-20 and 7:12-13.

Second, the Torah pointed toward the Messiah. Jesus spoke against some of his opponents: “You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that in them you possess eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life .

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. . . But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?” (John 5:39-40, 45-47 TNIV). They were looking for the right thing—life—in the right place—the scriptures—but, according to Jesus they missed what it is saying. He taught that the Torah should lead to Messiah (cf., e.g., Luke 16:31; 24:26-27, 45-46; Acts 24:14; 26:22-23).

The Torah is the beginning of the story; it is God’s word for all of humankind. The plotline of God’s story, which can best be stated in the form of a question because of the nature of serial narratives, is, how will the word of God prevail over the human revolution? The story, even when it is largely focused on Israel, is the human story. The descendants of Abraham were chosen, among other things, to bring blessing to all nations. Moreover, the chosen nation was to be a kingdom of priests to the families of the entire earth. The word of God must prevail, and it will in the Messiah. “Messiah is the culmination of the Torah so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes” (Romans 10:4 translation mine).

The Torah story is the beginning of the gospel story—God’s story. The story that began in Eden reached its height on the Skull. “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures . . . he was buried ... [and] was raised on the third day according to the scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3b-4 TNIV).

Chapter SummaryThe Torah story can be summarized in the form of a question: How will the word of God conquer the human revolution? The other writing of the Old Testament engaged in lively interpretive conversation with the Torah story in relation to the kingdom, the exile, and the return. The result was an abiding expectation for the coming of the Judah-king. The New Testament presents Jesus as the long expected Messiah, the one who conquered sin by his death and resurrection. The Torah, then, is the beginning of the story that reaches its climactic point in the gospel.

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