For many years, the historical-critical quest for an alternative reconstruction of the origin(s) and development of the Pentateuch or Hexateuch has coalesced around the documentary hypothesis, the heuristic power of which has produced a consensus so strong that an interpreter who did not operate within its framework was hardly regarded as a scholar. However, the relentless march of research has continued to bring new and refined analyses, data, methodological tools, and criticism. In this spirit, the contributions to this volume investigate new ideas about the composition of the Pentateuch arising from careful analysis of the biblical text against its ancient Near Eastern background.
Covering a wide spectrum of topics and diverging perspectives, the chapters in this book are grouped into two parts. The first is primarily concerned with the history of scholarship and alternative approaches to the development of the Pentateuch. The second focuses on the exegesis of particular texts relevant to the composition of the Torah. The aim of the project is to foster investigation and collegial dialogue in a spirit of humility and frankness, without imposing uniformity.
In addition to the editors, the contributors include Tiago Arrais, Richard E. Averbeck, John S. Bergsma, Joshua Berman, Daniel I. Block, Richard Davidson, Roy E. Gane, Duane A. Garrett, Richard S. Hess, Benjamin Kilchör, Michael LeFebvre, Jiří Moskala, and Christian Vogel.
Preface
Jiøí Moskala
Abbreviations
Introduction
Roy E. Gane
Part One: History of Scholarship and Alternative Approaches
1 A Critical Intellectual History of the Historical-Critical Paradigm in Biblical Studies
Joshua Berman
2 The Exodus, Debt Slavery, and the Composition of the Pentateuch
Richard E. Averbeck
3 Egyptian Language Practice—a Model for Hebrew Poetic Use?
L. S. Baker, Jr. and A. Rahel Wells
4 Second Millennium BC Cuneiform from the Southern Levant and the Literature of the Pentateuch
Richard S. Hess
5 The Hittite Treaty Prologue Tradition and the Literary Structure of the Book of Deuteronomy
Jiøí Moskala and Felipe A. Masotti
6 Embodied Covenantal Instruction and Legal Reuse in Torah
Kenneth Bergland
7 The Liturgical Function of Dates in the Pentateuch
Michael LeFebvre
Part Two: Exegetical Studies
8. In the Tradition of Moses: The Conceptual and Stylistic Imprint of Deuteronomy on the Patriarchal Narratives
Daniel I. Block
9 Was Moses the Last Prophet? An Analysis of a Neo-Documentarian Interpretation of Document E
Duane A. Garrett
10 Revisiting the Literary Structure(s) of Exodus
Richard Davidson, Tiago Arrais, and Christian Vogel
11 Was Leviticus Composed by Aaronide Priests to Justify Their Cultic Monopoly?
Roy E. Gane
12 The Reception of Priestly Laws in Deuteronomy and Deuteronomy's Target Audience
Benjamin Kilchör
13 The Implications of Some Current Ezekiel Research for Theories of the Composition of the Pentateuch
