pentateuch

The Pentateuch, also known as the Five Books of Moses or the Torah in Jewish tradition, comprises the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. The term pentateuch comes from Greek pentateuchos, meaning “five scrolls” or “five volumes.” The Pentateuch serves as the foundational narrative and legal corpus for Judaism and is also integral to Christian Old Testament theology.

Contents: Genesis sets creation, the fall, and the ancestral narratives; Exodus recounts liberation from Egypt and the giving of the Law at Sinai; Leviticus emphasizes priestly regulation and holiness; Numbers follows the desert trek and census; Deuteronomy presents a series of speeches and a renewal of the covenant before entering the land.

Authorship and dating: Traditionally the Pentateuch was attributed to Moses. Modern biblical scholarship, however, views it as a composite document assembled from multiple sources—often labeled J, E, P, and D—produced and edited during the late monarchic and postexilic periods, roughly spanning the 9th to 5th centuries BCE. The text likely reflects earlier traditions as well as later redactional shaping.

Textual history: The Pentateuch exists in reliable Hebrew manuscripts such as the Masoretic Text and in ancient translations, notably the Septuagint. Fragments found among the Dead Sea Scrolls reveal earlier variants and long-standing textual development.

Significance: It constitutes the core of Jewish law and identity, provides key narratives for Christian theology, and shapes the religious and literary landscape of the broader ancient Near East.