THE TORAH STORY

The Torah Story, by Gary E. Schnittjer

Table of Contents

Introduction3

Part 1: Genesis7

Chapter 1: An Apprenticeship on the Torah7

Chapter 2: Introducing the Torah14

Chapter 3: Macro view of Genesis19

Chapter 4: The Beginning (1:1-2:4a)22

Chapter 5: The Garden and the Exile (2:4b-4:26)27

Chapter 6: The Flood and the Nations (5-11)31

Chapter 7: The Abraham Narratives (12:1-25:18)34

Chapter 8: The Jacob Narratives (25:19-36:43)35

Chapter 9: The Sons of Jacob Narratives (37:1-47:26)37

Chapter 10 Summary: The Last Days (47:27-50:26)39

Part 2: Exodus44

Chapter 11: Macro view of Exodus 19744

Chapter 12: The River and the Bush (1 —4) 20746

Chapter 13: The Plagues and the Sea (5:1—15:21) 22149

Chapter 14: The Wilderness and the Mountain (15:22—24:18) 24153

Chapter 15: The Rebellion and the Dwelling (25—40) 25959

Part 3: Leviticus63

Chapter 16: Macro View of Leviticus64

Chapter 17: Sacrifice (1-7)66

Chapter 18: Purity and Worship (8-16)68

Chapter 19: holy living (17-27)71

Part 4: Numbers73

Chapter 20: Macro view of Numbers73

Chapter 21: The First Generation at Sinai Numbers 1:1-10:1076

Chapter 22: Two Generations in the Wilderness Numbers 10:11-21:3579

Chapter 23: The Second Generation on the Plains of Moab82

Part 5: Deuteronomy85

Chapter 24: Macro View of Deuteronomy85

Chapter 25: The Words88

Chapter 26: The Ten Words and the Command91

Chapter 27: The Rules and Regulations94

Chapter 28: A View of the Other Side Deuteronomy 29-34102

Chapter 29: Reintroducing the Torah108

Conclusion111

References115

The Torah Story, by Gary E. Schnittjer

Introduction

The Torah Story by Gary Edward Schnittjer is an impressive and lengthy book that treats the Pentateuch as a theological and literary unity. The book consists of 29 chapters, including two introductory chapters and one concluding chapter. The first introductory chapter, “An Apprenticeship on the Torah,” describes the purpose and format of the book. The purpose is to offer an invitation and guide, an apprenticeship or part of one to the Five Books of Moses to challenge and assist the apprentice reader. The book is not designed to be comprehensive in treating every verse, every law, or every problem in the Torah.

The format of most chapters consists of two primary sections. “A Reading” focuses on the meaning or the biblical text itself, and “Another look” considers questions related to history, chronology, culture, theology, and connections to the broader biblical canon. Each chapter contains a wealth or helpful study aids, including “Focus Questions”: lists of terms to guide the reader; an outline of the biblical text under consideration; a concluding chapter summary; a repetition of the key terms for review; “Challenge Questions”; “Advanced Questions”; ideas for further research; and bibliography. At the end of some chapters is a creative section entitled “American Stories and the Torah Story,” in which the author invites the reader for considering how popular culture resonates with the Torah story. Questions on the content occur frequently throughout each chapter as an encouragement to regular assessment of reading comprehension.

The author explains his presuppositions in the first chapter. He reads the Torah as Christian scripture, the authoritative word or God, not merely as an example of ancient Near Eastern literature or a part of the Hebrew Bible. The chapter “introducing the Torah” provides an excellent, brief overview of Genesis through ...