The Pentateuch: First Five Books of the Bible

The Pentateuch

Pentateuch comes from the Greek language and means, properly, "the book of five cases", that is, the book divided into five cases, consisting of five volumes or rolls. These are: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. It was recognized by Jews as the Torah.

Versions for the creation of the Pentateuch:

• Yahwist: The authors called God by the name of Yahweh.
• Elohist: Called God by the name of Elohim.
• Deuterocanonical version, which enriched the previous two, is at least 400 or 500 years after them.
• The priestly version.

Genesis

It is called so because it describes the origin of the creation of the world and humanity. Indeed, *Genesis* is of Greek origin, meaning *beginning*. It is the first book of the Pentateuch and the Bible.

It has 50 chapters, divided into three main parts:

1. The beginning of the world (1-2:6)
2. The beginnings of humanity (2:7-11:32)
3. The beginnings of the people of Israel (12-50)

Patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph.

Doctrinal Content: Genesis was made the seed of every biblical system. Without what we are told here, the rest of the Bible would be incomprehensible.

Message of the Book: God is the creator of all beings. God has a plan for humanity and the world.

Exodus

Exodus is the second book listed in the Bible, but according to specialists, it should appear before Genesis because it was the first that was written, perhaps some 300 years earlier. Exodus means "departure" and narrates the "exit" of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.

Contents of this Book

Perhaps this is the most important book of the Old Testament because it is the quest of the true God who remembers and saves his people. Here is the story of important points such as the institution of the Jewish Passover, a figure of the Christian Easter, the passage through the Red Sea, and the march to Sinai.

Exodus

The 40 chapters can be divided into four parts:

1. The slavery of Egypt and the vocation of Moses: Slavery, Moses, "The Vocation of Pest-Passover"
2. The march through the desert: Freedom, the passage through the Red Sea, the Desert.
3. The trip to Sinai and the covenant: God proposed an alliance.
4. The institution of the tabernacle: The priesthood, "The Pact", the construction of the tabernacle.

Leviticus

It is the third book of the Pentateuch and the Bible. It comes from Levi, or the tribe of Levi, who were the Hebrews especially dedicated to the cult.

The theme of this book is holiness, a word that is repeated 87 times. The key verse is 19:2: "Be holy, for I the Lord your God, am holy."

The 27 chapters are divided into five parts:

1. Acts of sacrifice.
2. Consecration of the priests.
3. Laws on purification rituals.
4. Laws of holiness.
5. Vows and tithes.

The best commentary on this book is the Epistle to the Hebrews.

Numbers

The fourth book of the Pentateuch and the Bible was given the name Numbers because of the censuses that were raised, primarily from the crowd that came out of Egypt and then their children on the eve of the entry into the promised land.

The purpose of the census was to mobilize the Israeli army in a well-ordered manner, both in the camp and during the march.

All 36 chapters could be divided into five parts:

1. Before leaving Sinai.
2. Sinai to Kadesh.
3. The stay at Kadesh for over 30 years.
4. The march to the promised land.
5. The last facts of Moses.

This book is about the experiences of the children of Israel during the 40 years spent in the desert while disciplined to enter the promised land. It is called the book of murmurs, the way of complaints (11, 32, 14-4); those of the guides (16:3); those of the judgments of God (16:41); the desert (20:2-5); and manna.