Hebrew Bible

The Hebrew Bible is a sacred collection of scriptures. It is also known as the Tanakh.

This name is an acronym for its three main divisions. The first part is the Torah, or the Law. This contains the five Books of Moses. The second part is the Nevi'im, which means the Prophets. The third part is the Ketuvim, which means the Writings. These divisions are well-attested in Rabbinic literature from the Masoretic period. Scholars sometimes use the term Hebrew Bible to remain neutral. This avoids the specific religious connotations of words like Tanakh or Old Testament.

The collection contains many different types of writing. The Torah includes legal material and rules for behavior. The Book of Psalms is a collection of hymns. Other books, like Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, are called wisdom literature. Some books contain prophecy, where a prophet denounces evil or predicts future events. The Book of Daniel is often called apocalyptic literature. This is a special type of writing that describes visions. Most of the text is written in Biblical Hebrew. However, small portions in the books of Daniel and Ezra are in Biblical Aramaic.

The text is organized into specific parts. It is divided into sections called parashot. These are further broken down into verses called pesuqim. The development of the Hebrew Bible occurred during the Second Temple Period. During this era, people decided which religious texts had divine origin. Many different versions of these texts have existed through history. One version is the Septuagint, a Greek translation from Alexandria. Another is the Samaritan Pentateuch, produced by the Samaritans. These ancient editions differ significantly from the medieval Masoretic Text.

The Masoretic Text is the version used in Rabbinic Judaism today. It was compiled by Jewish scribes and scholars between the 7th and 10th centuries CE. These scholars are known as the Masoretes. It is important to distinguish the Hebrew Bible from the Masoretic Text. The Masoretic Text is a medieval version, not the only one. Some scholars believe an original 'Urtext' once existed. This would be a single source text for all versions. However, no Urtext has ever been found. Scholars still debate which version is closest to it.

The narratives in the Tanakh follow a long timeline. It begins with the Genesis creation story. The text traces Israelite origins to the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The descendants of Jacob lived in Egypt for 430 years. After the Exodus, the Israelites wandered the wilderness for 40 years. Later, the Kingdom of Samaria was conquered by the Assyrians in 722 BCE. The Kingdom of Judah was conquered by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. In 539 BCE, Cyrus the Great of Persia conquered Babylon. This allowed the exiles to return and rebuild their Temple.

A central theme of the Tanakh is monotheism. This is the belief in only one God. This was a major change from the polytheism of the ancient Near East. The Israelites rejected many gods to focus on one. This relationship is described as a covenant. A covenant is a special bond or agreement. Through this bond, God provides redemption and the Promised Land. The Tanakh also addresses theodicy. This is the study of how God can be just while evil exists. It also imposes ethical requirements, such as social justice and ritual purity.

The Hebrew Bible connects to many other world religions. The Protestant Old Testament includes the same books but in a different order. Catholic and Orthodox churches include additional books called the Deuterocanonical books. In Islam, the Tawrat is often identified with the Pentateuch and other Hebrew books. Scholars also study the text through archaeology. Some narratives after the 9th century BCE are supported by archaeological finds. Others remain subjects of debate among historians and researchers.