I did some brief reading on Torah.org, but wish to read more here...
2006-08-31 06:57:08 · 3 answers · asked by MishMash [I am not one of your fans] 7 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The Torah is the first five books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deutronomy. Actually, those are the English names, based on Latin and Greek. The Hebrew names are B'reshit, Shemoth, Vayikra, Bamidbar, and Devarim. These are the books that are believed to have been written by Moses and to contain all the commandments of God to his people.
Of course, Moses didn't write them, since he dies at the end of Deuteronomy and that would be awkward to write about. Many scholars believe that the books of the Torah were consolidated from a variety of sources sometime after the Israelites settled in Canaan but before the reign of Solomon and the creation of the Ark of the Covenant (in which the scrolls of the Torah were placed).
The next 8 books in the Tanakh are called the Nevi'im, or Prophets. The first four (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings) are narrative history/legend about the founding of Israelite Kingdoms. The last four (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the 12 minor prophets all in one book) are prophesies for the future. Many of these books were written in/around the period of Babylonian Captivity, in which many of the people of Judah were forcibly resettled in Babylon. They attempt to explain why God has made life so difficult for his Chosen People. Note that Christians break up these books into 21 different books in their Old Testament.
The final eleven books are the Ketuvim, or Writings: Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra-Nehemiah, and Chronicles.
The final three books cover the end of the Babylonian Exile and the restoration of Israel and the Temple.
At that point, the Tanach ends. So some books in the Christian bible are not included: Judith, Tobit, Wisdom, Maccabees, Ben Sira, or Baruch are all left out. The order is different as well. The Tanach is arranged thematically, while the Old Testament is really more chronological.
2006-08-31 07:18:08 · answer #1 · answered by NewcastleFan76 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋
It's a flexible term. It can mean the five books of moses, or the entire tanach, or the oral law (talmud and such), and even just any torah-related or moral concept. it really depends on the context.
cheerio
2006-08-31 14:05:55 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is my understanding that the Torah is the Pentateuch, which is the first five books of the Old Testament.
2006-08-31 14:00:04 · answer #3 · answered by Gestalt 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋