The Pentateuch: An Introduction to the First Five Books of the Bible (review)

Book Reviews 119 The Pentateuch: An Introduction to the First Five Books of the Bible, by Joseph Blenkinsopp. The Anchor Bible Reference Library. New York: Doubleday, 1992. 273 pp. $28.00. In biblical studies, a book called an "introduction" (as this one is) requires some further identification as to genre. The term is used for works ranging from basic helps of various kinds for those who have had no previous experience in studying the Bible to technical scholarly volumes providing background information (usually historical-critical in nature). Joseph Blenkinsopp addresses the question ofgenre in the Foreword to his book. He states explicitly that it is neither a commentary on nor a theology of the Pentateuch. By implication, it paves the way for such interpretive work, and so most nearly approaches the latter sort of introduction described above. In one respect, however, Blenkinsopp intends it to differ from other such introductions. He proposes to take into account not only the historical-critical approach, with its "tendency to accord a privileged status to origins and the earliest stages ofdevelopment, to concentrate exclusively on diachronic analysis and the development of ideas, and therefore to put a premium on the identification and chronological ordering of sources" (p. viii). He also intends to incorporate more recent literary-critical contributions to the field. Having given a word of warning about the limitations of each approach, he writes, "I assume in the present study that the diachronic and synchronic readings of biblical texts are both legitimate and both necessary" (p. ix). Chapter 1 reviews "Two Centuries of Pentateuchal Scholarship," and is of necessity largely concerned with historical-critical matters, though the· work of literary critics is briefly mentioned near the end. The chapter is not just descriptive but also evaluative, noting both positive contributions and also inadequacies and failures, as well as the constraints-social, cultural, and psychological-on scholars of any era. Chapter 2, "The Basic Features ofthe Pentateuch: Structure and Chronology," exhibits the careful attention to the structure of the Pentateuch that will continue throughout the book. But it also reveals the dominant emphasis on diachronic concerns that will remain apparent in succeeding chapters. Chapters 3 through 6 take up one by one the major segments of the Pentateuch: "Human Origins"; "The Story of the Ancestors"; "From Egypt to Canaan"; and "Sinai, Covenant and law." In the last two of these chapters, material is divided in such a way that Exodus 1:1-18:27 and Numbers 10:11-36:13 are taken up in Chapter 5; consideration of all of the legal sections is postponed to Chapter 6. The effect is to separate law 120 SHOFAR Winter 1994 Vol. 12, No.2 from its narrative context, though Blenkinsopp makes efforts to ameliorate this. It is also noteworthy that only 25-30 pages are devoted explicitly to the legal sections, despite their large presence in the Pentateuch. While Pentateuchal law has for obvious reasons been of lesser interest to Christian interpreters than to Jewish ones, Blenkinsopp's discussion of this material, including the ritual law, is sympathetic and contrasts strongly with the dismissive treatment often accorded it in the past by non-Jewish scholars. Thus the lack of proportion in his presentation may only reflect the fact that legal material is less amenable to the approaches he is following. Blenkinsopp consistently uses the term "Old Testament" for the canon ofwhich the Pentateuch is part. Although this suggests a specifically Christian perspective, he does not otherwise place the literature in the context of interpretation in the Christian tradition. Although he occasionally alludes in passing to a New Testament reference or to post-biblical interpretation elsewhere, his substantive comparisons are with the rest of the Hebrew Bible and other material from the biblical period or earlier. Only occasionally, as in the last paragraph of Chapter 7 ("Concluding Reflections") does he touch on the status accorded the Pentateuch in Judaism and Christianity. It is appropriate to conclude by listing some especially excellent features of this book. Blenkinsopp's presentation is judicious, goodhumored , and admirably clear; even his account of the past two centuries of Pentateuchal scholarship is sprightly in comparison to other such surveys. The bibliography, for the...