2. Toward a Canonical Reading of the Pentateuch

Primer on the Canonical Approach

A canonical reading of the Pentateuch prioritizes at least three things: the shape of the book as a unified whole, the complex but coherent narrative framework that this book provides, and the internal arrangement of non-narrative material at strategic textual locations.

The Shape & Structure of the Pentateuch as a Book

The first five books of the OT are the foundation for the rest of the Scriptures. While many readers are accustomed to studying these books as five individual units, in the Hebrew Bible the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy form one work, sometimes called the Pentateuch (i.e. five books) or simply the Book of Moses.

The Pentateuch was meant to be read as a whole, with each of its five parts connected to and building upon the others. The five books of Moses are really five narrative components of the one Book of Moses. Another common name for the Pentateuch is the Law or Torah, the latter of these names derived from the Hebrew word meaning “instruction.”

This characterization of the book clues readers into the fact that the Pentateuch is not just a series of laws or legal stipulations, but rather as a whole is meant to instruct readers on how to live and have life with God. In other words, though there are “laws” in the Law, it would be a grave and glib mistake to characterize the Pentateuch solely as a law book or the “constitution” of ancient Israel.

Indeed, part of the purpose of the “story of the Law” is to recount and provide an interpretation of the Mosaic covenant and its stipulations. In other words, the Law (Pentateuch) provides an interpretation of the Law (Mosaic covenant) along with its selection of laws (legal requirements). These simple but crucial distinctions are important to establish clearly when studying the Pentateuch and the “story of the Law.”

A masterfully composed Mosaic mosaic

The Pentateuch is known for its many laws, but it also contains many other literary elements. This includes poems (“Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the Lord,” Exod 15:1); genealogies (“This is the book of the generations of Adam,” Gen 5:1); collections of laws (“Now these are the rules that you shall set before them,” Exod 21:1); census lists (“Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel,” Num 26:4); building instructions (“Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle . . . so you shall make it,” Exod 25:9); and travel logs (“These are the stages of the people of Israel, when they went out of the land of Egypt,” Num 33:1).

As a skillful literary artist, Moses has drawn together these diverse literary elements into a coherent narrative framework. Within the Book of Moses, each type of document serves an intelligently designed function and contributes to its overall message. The end product of this textual work is a masterfully composed Mosaic mosaic of literary elements. The grand storyline of the Bible encourages readers to recognize that the Scriptures provide a cohesive and interconnected account of God’s dealing with his people and the world.

Through the grandeur of its scope and the provocative implications of its direct statements, the Pentateuch generates and grounds this grand storyline of the Bible. The opening narratives of the Pentateuch set the conceptual parameters for the many narratives that follow in the biblical canon. At no point do later biblical authors work outside of the textual and theological framework generated by the Book of Moses.

The narrative of the Pentateuch itself has a definite shape. There are three broad movements to consider: Genesis beginning the book; the Exodus–Leviticus–Numbers sequence in the middle; and the speeches of Deuteronomy concluding the book. This broad structural framework of the Pentateuch helps readers see what its message is all about.

The story of the Book of Moses provides both reason for despair and also reason for hope. It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. Moses’s final words at the pinnacle of the Pentateuch produce a theological dynamic that forms the backdrop for the entire prophetic history. This dual emphasis is given a large amount of textual real estate in the closing portion of the story of the Law. The people are about to enter into the land of promise, but Moses here gives his comprehensive and somber word of exhortation. 

This textual feature has an impact for readers trying to understand this portion of the Bible’s grand storyline. To revisit its hermeneutical and theological significance, Moses’s prophetic speech has a remarkable scope. He reaches back to the promises of the patriarchs in Genesis and reflects on the rescue of the people from Egypt. He provides commentary on the giving of the law, the establishment of the Mosaic covenant, and its failure at Sinai and in the wilderness.

Moses exhorts the current generation to learn the lessons of the first generation, anticipates the entry into the land, and envisions the establishment of the people in the land. He also foresees the sustained rebellion of the nation, details the eventual disaster of exile, and then holds out hope of a return from exile after genuine repentance.

In light of these textual and theological features, there is little wonder why the prophets and poets of Israel return to the Book of Moses with relentless regularity.

Annotated Walking Tour

Stephen Chapman, “The Pentateuch as Canon,” in Canon Formation (T&T Clark, 2023),101–119. An excellent up-to-date distillation of current scholarship on the formation of the Pentateuch and the shape of its final form(s).  

T. D. Alexander, From Paradise to the Promised Land: An Introduction to the Pentatuech, fourth edition (Baker, 2022). This textbook introduces you to the various scholarly approaches taken when studying the Pentateuch. Alexander critically engages historical-criticism at the outset (e.g., the sundry permutations of the documentary hypothesis) and then shows the constructive explanatory power of literary and theological patterns that stretch across Genesis through Deuteronomy. Highly recommended starting point for the academic study of the Pentateuch. 

John Sailhamer, Pentateuch as Narrative: A Biblical-Theological Commentary (Zondervan, 1995). Taking a “compositional approach” that assumes the coherence of the Pentateuch as a single yet complex composition with a coherent message, Sailhamer’s commentary focuses on textual aspects that indicate what the author is doing at the level of the whole. Lots of interesting inner-textual connections & theological interpretation of narrative sequences on the basis of the author’s editorial choices. The introduction is also one of the most accessible and succinct articulations of Sailhamer’s interpretive approach. 

Joshua E. Williams, “Message of the Pentateuch” Southwestern Journal of Theology 52.1 (Fall 2009): 2–16. This article is very helpful on two levels: it provides a succinct articulation of the message of the Pentateuch and also cogently outlines the types of questions you need to answer to discern this message. For the Pentateuch, Williams interrogates the notion of “message” or “central theme,” and then examines the function of Gen 1–3, the nature of the law, and the thread of hope in Genesis through Deuteronomy. This article would be a good primer to prepare you for larger works that try to distill the message of the Pentateuch (like Clines, The Theme of the Pentateuch or Schnittjer, The Torah Story). 

Kevin Chen, The Messianic Vision of the Pentateuch (IVP, 2019). In this book, Chen aims to show that the book of Moses paints a developed portrait of the Messiah. In this “messianic vision,” the specific prophetic texts about Messiah that are found in Genesis–Deuteronomy are woven into the literary fabric of the book and organically connect to the central message and movement of the Pentateuch taken as a whole. Chen’s enthusiastic “messianic maximalism” assumes the coherence of the Pentateuch as a single book and works out this strand of its message with literary and theological details. See also my further interaction w/ Chen’s work.

L Michael Morales, Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord? A Biblical Theology of the Book of Leviticus (IVP, 2015). One of the finest entries in IVP’s NSBT series, Morales argues for the central function of the book of Leviticus within the scope of the Pentateuch. He shows the way the text functions as a literary and theological entry into the heart of the Pentateuch’s purpose: presence with Yahweh. The thematic core of Leviticus addresses the central concern of the “gate liturgy”—”Who may ascend the hill of Yahweh? Who may be found in his holy place?” (Ps 24). Along the way, Morales uncovers a rich web of structural, thematic, and literary connections with Genesis–Exodus and Numbers–Deuteronomy. You have to read this book. 

David M. Allen, Deuteronomy and Exhortation in Hebrews: A Study in Narrative Re-Presentation (Mohr-Siebeck, 2008). Examines the use of Deuteronomy in the letter to the Hebrews. Allen discusses each of the quotations from Deuteronomy in the letter but more significantly explores the “non-citational uses” of the book as well. Allen helpfully highlights how important the final chapters of Deuteronomy are for its subsequent reception (e.g., the blessings and curses, the song of Moses, etc). This intertextual study also demonstrates the way that Hebrews not only draws upon Deuteronomy but also employs the same global compositional strategy (i.e. Hebrews does the same thing that Deuteronomy does, namely, give a word of exhortation that includes the narration and interpretation of Israel’s history). An interesting example of inner-biblical reception of Deuteronomy in one of the NT books that is most heavily invested in the Pentateuch for the core of its argument.

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