X-Nico

unusual facts about Pentateuch



Aaron of Jerusalem

S. Poznanski published some valuable specimens of Aaron's work; and, following a suggestion of Harkavy, he threw new light on the author and some other works of his: namely, the Kitab al-Kafi, a commentary on the Pentateuch, often quoted by Karaite writers, and a lexicographical work bearing the title "Sharḥ Alalfaẓ," a part of which is extant in the British Museum.

Gordon Wenham

Wenham has written a large number of articles and several books, including commentaries on Genesis, Leviticus and Numbers, and more recently a study of Old Testament narrative ethics, Story as Torah (T & T Clark, 2000), and Exploring the Old Testament: the Pentateuch (SPCK: 2003).

Heinrich Jacob Bashuysen

Bashuysen published Abravanel's commentaries on the Pentateuch, and intended to edit the entire work in four volumes.

Isaac Aboab of Castile

A supercommentary to the commentary of Rashi on the Pentateuch and a number of rabbinical decisions exist in manuscript.

Johann Peter Lange

In 1857 he undertook with other scholars a Theologisch-homiletisches Bibelwerk, to which he contributed commentaries on the first four books of the Pentateuch, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, Matthew, Mark, Revelation.

Joseph Blenkinsopp

Blenkinsopp has published a number of standard commentaries and introductions on parts of the Old Testament, particularly on the Prophets, the Pentateuch, and Ezra–Nehemiah.

Joshua ben Hananiah

They were both present at the celebration of the circumcision of Elisha b. Abuyah (Acher), in Jerusalem, and diverted themselves by connecting passages in the Pentateuch with others in the Prophets and the Hagiographa (Yer. Hagigah 77b).

Judah Leon ben Moses Mosconi

Mosconi was well versed in philosophical works, both Hebrew and Arabic; but, having a predilection for metaphysics, he occupied himself particularly with Ibn Ezra's commentary on the Pentateuch, on which he wrote a supercommentary.

Obadiah ben Jacob Sforno

He wrote the following commentaries: on the Pentateuch (Venice, 1567); on Canticles and Ecclesiastes, that on the latter being dedicated to King Henry II of France; on the Psalms (1586); "Mishpaṭ Ẓedeḳ," on Job (ib. 1589); on the books of Jonah, Habakkuk, and Zechariah, published with David ibn Hin's "Likkute Shoshannim" (Amsterdam, 1724).

Oral Torah

Many terms used in the Torah are left undefined, such as the word totafot, usually translated as "frontlets," which is used three times in the Pentateuch (in Exodus 13:9 and Deuteronomy 6:8 and 11:18) but only identified with tefillin in the Mishnah (see Menachot 3:7).

Rabbinic Judaism

Rabbinic Judaism is based on the belief that at Mount Sinai, Moses received directly from God the Torah (Pentateuch) as well as additional oral explanation of the revelation, the "oral law," that was transmitted by Moses to the people in oral form.

Shir ha-Shirim Zutta

Further, Naḥmanides (in Torat ha-Adam, p. 102c) cites it as "Midrash Shir ha-Shirim"; so does his pupil (teacher?) Azriel, in the commentary on Canticles generally ascribed to Naḥmanides himself; Abraham, son of Maimonides (see A. Neubauer, Ḳobeẓ 'Al Yad, iv. 63, Berlin, 1888), calls it "Agadat Shir ha-Shirim"; Recanati, in his commentary on the Pentateuch (on Beha'aloteka), cites the same passage quoted by Judah b. Barzilai.

The Divine Legation of Moses

As its full title makes clear, it is a conservative defence of orthodox Christian belief against deism, by means of an apparent paradox: the afterlife is not mentioned in terms in the Pentateuch (i.e. Torah – see Jewish eschatology#"The world to come"), making Mosaic Judaism distinctive among ancient religions; from which, Warburton argues, it is seen that Moses received a divine revelation.

The Pentateuch of the Cosmogony

The Pentateuch of the Cosmogony is the combination of a hardback book and double vinyl album released in 1979, conceived, written and illustrated by Patrick Woodroffe, with music written and performed by Dave Greenslade.

The story and artwork within 'Pentateuch' concerns the discovery of an abandoned spacecraft in orbit around Jupiter, and the project to decipher the ideograms in the pentateuch 'document' discovered within.

Thorah Township, Ontario

The origin of the name is unclear; it may have been named for the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible, known to those in the Jewish Faith as the Torah.


see also