Language:
English
Year of publication:
2020
Titel der Quelle:
Review of Rabbinic Judaism - Ancient, Medieval, and Modern
Angaben zur Quelle:
23,2 (2020) 260-278
Keywords:
Sforno, Obadiah ben Jacob,
;
Bible. Criticism, interpretation, etc., Jewish Middle Ages, 600-1500
;
History
;
Bible. Criticism, Form
;
Polemics in rabbinical literature
Abstract:
Classical exegetes’ exploration of structure and order in the Pentateuch is generally perceived as part of an internal-Jewish debate. However, in an exceptional testimonial, the introduction to R. Ovadiah Sforno’s Torah commentary describes a polemic against the Torah grounded in a claim about the Torah’s disorderliness. Responding to this critique, Sforno set out to uncover the Torah’s logical order. His efforts to elucidate the Torah’s order and structure include three aspects: he points to a circular structure that is repeated seven times in Genesis-Numbers, he systematically links the independent legal sections in Deuteronomy, and he discusses the Torah’s division into five separate books. While methodically addressing the question of order, Sforno also offers a response to fundamental theological issues at the center of the interfaith polemic.
DOI:
10.1163/15700704-12341372
URL:
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