Knowra Torah Torah The Torah is the foundational Jewish scripture comprising Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. It recounts creation and Israel’s early history and presents laws and covenants.
Genesis : The first book of the Torah, narrating creation, the patriarchs, and the origins of Israel. It opens the Torah with creation and the ancestral narratives.
Masoretic Text : The authoritative medieval Hebrew text of the Jewish Bible, preserved with vocalization and reading marks. Its scribal tradition established the standard form of the Torah’s Hebrew text.
Documentary hypothesis : A modern theory that explains the Torah’s composition through the combination of multiple literary sources. It contrasts with traditional accounts that attribute the Torah’s authorship to Moses.
Halakha : The body of Jewish law and practice developed from scripture, rabbinic interpretation, and later legal rulings. Torah commandments form a foundational source for Jewish legal reasoning.
Tanakh : The Jewish Bible, whose name abbreviates its three divisions: Torah, Prophets, and Writings. The Torah is the Tanakh’s first division and its interpretive foundation.
Exodus : The second book of the Torah, recounting Israel’s departure from Egypt and its covenant at Sinai. Its liberation narrative leads into the Torah’s central covenant and lawgiving.
Torah scroll : A handwritten parchment scroll containing the Torah, used for public reading in Jewish worship. It is the traditional physical form through which the Torah is read aloud in synagogue.
Mosaic authorship : The traditional attribution of the Torah to Moses, with varying accounts of how it was written or transmitted. It represents the classical Jewish account of the Torah’s origin.
Talmud : The central rabbinic collection of law, debate, and interpretation, comprising the Mishnah and Gemara. Its discussions interpret and apply commandments found in the Torah.
Covenant : A binding relationship or agreement, often between God and a people in biblical tradition. Covenants with Israel organize the Torah’s account of obligation and belonging.
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