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The Five Books of Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy
Widely acclaimed by Bible scholars and theologians of every denomination, Everett Fox's masterful translation re-creates the echoes, allusions, alliterations, and wordplays of the Hebrew original. Together with its extensive commentary and illuminating notes, this unique translation draws the reader closer to the authentic living voice of the Bible.
1056 pages, Paperback
Published February 8, 2000
43 people are currently reading
495 people want to read
About the author
Everett Fox
17 books14 followersEverett Fox is a scholar and translator of the Hebrew Bible, a graduate of Brandeis University. He is currently the Allen M. Glick Professor of Judaic and Biblical Studies and director of the program in Jewish Studies at Clark University.
Dr. Fox received a B.A., M.A., and Ph.D from Brandeis University in 1968, 1972, and 1975, respectively. He has been at Clark since 1987. Dr. Fox serves as director of the program in Jewish Studies, and is also affiliated with the programs in Race and Ethnic Relations and Comparative Literature.
Dr. Fox's main scholarly focus is the rhetoric and internal coherence of the Hebrew Bible, and how they may be brought out in translation. In 1995, Everett published The Five Books of Moses, which tries to echo characteristics of the Hebrew text; in November of 1999, Give Us a King! Samuel, Saul, and David, a translation of the book of Samuel along similar lines, appeared. He is also interested in how the Bible has been transformed at each stage by generations of Israelites, Jews, and Christians. He teaches courses in which texts serve as windows to the attitudes and concerns of Jews through the ages.
Dr. Fox's activities in translation have led him to some unexpected places. He was a religious consultant on the animated film Prince of Egypt, and has been collaborating with an American-Israeli artist, Schwebel, who sets the David stories against the backdrop of 1980s Jerusalem.
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Dr. Fox received a B.A., M.A., and Ph.D from Brandeis University in 1968, 1972, and 1975, respectively. He has been at Clark since 1987. Dr. Fox serves as director of the program in Jewish Studies, and is also affiliated with the programs in Race and Ethnic Relations and Comparative Literature.
Dr. Fox's main scholarly focus is the rhetoric and internal coherence of the Hebrew Bible, and how they may be brought out in translation. In 1995, Everett published The Five Books of Moses, which tries to echo characteristics of the Hebrew text; in November of 1999, Give Us a King! Samuel, Saul, and David, a translation of the book of Samuel along similar lines, appeared. He is also interested in how the Bible has been transformed at each stage by generations of Israelites, Jews, and Christians. He teaches courses in which texts serve as windows to the attitudes and concerns of Jews through the ages.
Dr. Fox's activities in translation have led him to some unexpected places. He was a religious consultant on the animated film Prince of Egypt, and has been collaborating with an American-Israeli artist, Schwebel, who sets the David stories against the backdrop of 1980s Jerusalem.
Read more
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
April 4, 2009
A fascinating version of the first five books of the Bible. Translated to sound like an English version of the Hebrew text, so full of images that sound foreign but rich. A great way to immerse oneself further in the Biblical text and its mindset as a way to understand it better. Sometimes hard to read, but generally only because it is highlighting where the Bible's mindset is distant from ours today.
May 17, 2009
This translation of the Pentateuch with its detailed commentaries gave me a much greater insight into both the Jewish faith and tradition, and consequently the Hebrew origins of my own (Christian) faith. I would recommend this to anyone seeking to better understand how the Hebrews saw themselves in relation to YHWH. I also find it useful as a means to making better sense of the Bible's account of creation and how that conflicts with modern scientific knowledge.
April 7, 2010
Great reading and tons of help in providing background info.
And the generous size font are also a nice touch.
This is a successful project done with great care and consideration.
Wonderful.
And the generous size font are also a nice touch.
This is a successful project done with great care and consideration.
Wonderful.
October 2, 2024
So the Bible, if not an oral document, is certainly an aural one; it would have been read aloud as a matter of course. But the implications of this for understanding the text are considerable. The rhetoric of the text is such that many passages and sections are understandable in depth only when they are analyzed as they are heard. Using echoes, allusions, and powerful inner structures of sound, the text is often able to convey ideas in a manner that vocabulary alone cannot do.
from Translator's Preface
Avram said to Lot:
Pray let there be no quarreling between me and you, between my herdsmen and your herdsmen,
for we are brother men!
Is not all the land before you?
Pray part from me!
If to the left, then I to the right,
if to the right, then I to the left.
Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the plain of the Jordan--
how well-watered was it all, before YHWH brought ruin upon Sedom and Amora,
like YHWH's garden, like the land of Egypt, as you come toward Tzo'ar.
from Genesis 13:8-10
Everett Fox's translations of the Pentateuch breath new life into scripture which has, through innumerable translations, become somewhat tedious and stale. Fox captures the aural nuance of these passages, adhering closely to the Hebrew source, yielding a rich and vibrant text which recalls translations of Homer or selections of Shakespeare.
When, inevitably, the scripture becomes entangled or esoteric, Fox provides elucidating commentary and context. Even in a book like Leviticus, Fox's commentary keeps the seemingly endless litany of "thou shalt" and "thou shalt nots" interesting. I particularly enjoyed how Fox does not feel compelled to load each page with footnotes. He realizes there is a wealth of commentary for every verse and the reader knows where to find them. Rather, he provides succinct guidance regarding structure and/or themes which help a reader navigate the material with confidence.
When I was assigned the entire Pentateuch for a study-course, I admit I was not looking forward to certain elements. When I was assigned Fox's translation and guidance, though, the process was more rewarding than grueling.
Highly recommend this translation.
For the commandment that I command you this day:
it is not too extraordinary for you,
it is not too far away!
It is not in the heavens,
(for you) to say:
Who will go up for us to the heavens and get it for us
and have us hear it, that we may observe it?
And it is not across the sea,
(for you) to say:
Who will cross for us, across the sea, and get it for us
and have us hear it, that we may observe it?
Rather, near to you is the word, exceedingly,
in your mouth and in your heart, to observe it!
See, I set before you today
life and good, and death and ill:
in that I command you today
to love YHWH your God,
to walk in his ways
and to keep his commandments, his laws and his regulations,
that you may stay-alive and become-many
and YHWH your God may bless you
in the land that you are entering to possess.
from Deuteronomy 30:11-16
from Translator's Preface
Avram said to Lot:
Pray let there be no quarreling between me and you, between my herdsmen and your herdsmen,
for we are brother men!
Is not all the land before you?
Pray part from me!
If to the left, then I to the right,
if to the right, then I to the left.
Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the plain of the Jordan--
how well-watered was it all, before YHWH brought ruin upon Sedom and Amora,
like YHWH's garden, like the land of Egypt, as you come toward Tzo'ar.
from Genesis 13:8-10
Everett Fox's translations of the Pentateuch breath new life into scripture which has, through innumerable translations, become somewhat tedious and stale. Fox captures the aural nuance of these passages, adhering closely to the Hebrew source, yielding a rich and vibrant text which recalls translations of Homer or selections of Shakespeare.
When, inevitably, the scripture becomes entangled or esoteric, Fox provides elucidating commentary and context. Even in a book like Leviticus, Fox's commentary keeps the seemingly endless litany of "thou shalt" and "thou shalt nots" interesting. I particularly enjoyed how Fox does not feel compelled to load each page with footnotes. He realizes there is a wealth of commentary for every verse and the reader knows where to find them. Rather, he provides succinct guidance regarding structure and/or themes which help a reader navigate the material with confidence.
When I was assigned the entire Pentateuch for a study-course, I admit I was not looking forward to certain elements. When I was assigned Fox's translation and guidance, though, the process was more rewarding than grueling.
Highly recommend this translation.
For the commandment that I command you this day:
it is not too extraordinary for you,
it is not too far away!
It is not in the heavens,
(for you) to say:
Who will go up for us to the heavens and get it for us
and have us hear it, that we may observe it?
And it is not across the sea,
(for you) to say:
Who will cross for us, across the sea, and get it for us
and have us hear it, that we may observe it?
Rather, near to you is the word, exceedingly,
in your mouth and in your heart, to observe it!
See, I set before you today
life and good, and death and ill:
in that I command you today
to love YHWH your God,
to walk in his ways
and to keep his commandments, his laws and his regulations,
that you may stay-alive and become-many
and YHWH your God may bless you
in the land that you are entering to possess.
from Deuteronomy 30:11-16
May 23, 2012
I love Everett Fox's translation of the Torah. It's beautiful. It's lyrical, in the manner of the Hebrew. Genesis starts:
"At the begining of G!d's creating of the heavens and the earth,
when the earth was wild and waste,
darkness over the face of Ocean,
rushing-spirit of G!d hovering over the face of the waters--
G!d said: Let there be light! And there was light.
G!d saw the light: that it was good.
G!d seperated the light from the darkness.
G!d called the light: Day! and the darkness he called: Night!
There was setting, there was dawning: one day." (11-13)
Fox's text speaks for itself really. It's different than any other translation I've ever read, and it's beautiful.
I love that names are transliterated, not translated. I love that a few words are not translated, words such as tumei, efod, and shalom, whose essence is not captured in their usual translations, for whom no English equivalent quite exists.
"At the begining of G!d's creating of the heavens and the earth,
when the earth was wild and waste,
darkness over the face of Ocean,
rushing-spirit of G!d hovering over the face of the waters--
G!d said: Let there be light! And there was light.
G!d saw the light: that it was good.
G!d seperated the light from the darkness.
G!d called the light: Day! and the darkness he called: Night!
There was setting, there was dawning: one day." (11-13)
Fox's text speaks for itself really. It's different than any other translation I've ever read, and it's beautiful.
I love that names are transliterated, not translated. I love that a few words are not translated, words such as tumei, efod, and shalom, whose essence is not captured in their usual translations, for whom no English equivalent quite exists.
September 29, 2011
Fell in love with the Pentateuch after this one. Great translation, especially Genesis and Exodus, that brings old stories to life.
February 2, 2013
6-star book!
i'm rereading this, my favorite translation, for the fifth or sixth time.
Fox is a poet and wonderful scholar
i'm rereading this, my favorite translation, for the fifth or sixth time.
Fox is a poet and wonderful scholar
September 20, 2019
Great translation. It sings.
March 28, 2013
The sound and the sense...of the original.
Newly translated by Everett Fox with (lots of) commentary and notes, this version of Torah brings with it a lifetime of devotion and scholarship; it is an outstanding study resource and an exceptional choice for public reading. Fox brings the sensibilities, rhythms, literary devices, and general styles of the original Hebrew into English in ways that make reader and especially anyone listening during worship wonder if they've really heard that passage before! As the translator explains, principles in the work of Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig influenced him--in many ways he's gone beyond those giants. And why not? After all, The Five Books of Moses is copyright 2000 though parts were published earlier, starting in 1983. The commentary is especially valuable to me as someone far more familiar and experienced with interpreting the New Covenant scriptures than the Old. One reviewer suggested it would be even better as an interlinear or side-by-side English/Hebrew bible and I agree, though keeping the same highly readable text size and style might make the book too awkward and heavy.
Printed in large serif type on quality paper, this paperback is solidly sewn and glued in signatures; the 1.75" thick book is a pleasure to heft and it easily stays open! If you're passionate about scripture, please consider adding this Torah version to your library.
Newly translated by Everett Fox with (lots of) commentary and notes, this version of Torah brings with it a lifetime of devotion and scholarship; it is an outstanding study resource and an exceptional choice for public reading. Fox brings the sensibilities, rhythms, literary devices, and general styles of the original Hebrew into English in ways that make reader and especially anyone listening during worship wonder if they've really heard that passage before! As the translator explains, principles in the work of Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig influenced him--in many ways he's gone beyond those giants. And why not? After all, The Five Books of Moses is copyright 2000 though parts were published earlier, starting in 1983. The commentary is especially valuable to me as someone far more familiar and experienced with interpreting the New Covenant scriptures than the Old. One reviewer suggested it would be even better as an interlinear or side-by-side English/Hebrew bible and I agree, though keeping the same highly readable text size and style might make the book too awkward and heavy.
Printed in large serif type on quality paper, this paperback is solidly sewn and glued in signatures; the 1.75" thick book is a pleasure to heft and it easily stays open! If you're passionate about scripture, please consider adding this Torah version to your library.
September 4, 2024
Recommended by James Jordan, I decided to pick this up recently. Fox has some liberal views on things concerning multiple authors for the Pentateuch among other topics, but the overall translation is great, especially the narrative portions.
I really enjoyed it.
Some of his footnotes and intros are informative as well.
Reading aloud with my wife now. We are really enjoying it. (2019)
Read through to my kids 2022. Favorite translation by far.
I really enjoyed it.
Some of his footnotes and intros are informative as well.
Reading aloud with my wife now. We are really enjoying it. (2019)
Read through to my kids 2022. Favorite translation by far.
June 15, 2020
Appreciated the notes and commentary.
October 30, 2020
I like the translation. It helps me think about things in different ways.
May 25, 2024
Man, like many of my seminary books, it’s hard to know how to review something like this. It’s certainly not the kind of book I would ever just pick up and read for fun. And this is further complicated by the fact that the (slim?) majority of the book is simply a translation of the first five books of the Bible. Who gets to give God’s Word less than five stars!? But I feel like there are some caveats there worth describing.
First, as Fox is very clear about, he tried to translate the text as Hebraically as he could. His goal was to try to help draw out the cadences and emphases that get lost when smoothing things out into our more readable English translations. But that’s exactly it—because it’s so NOT standard English, it’s not very readable. Syntax and repetition and word choice were odd for an English reader. Thus, just sitting and reading this was a chore.
Yet I don’t necessarily mean that as a deficit. It just made it really hard to read start to finish. I think it would function far better as either a reference tool or as a parallel Bible to more fluid English translations. So in saying it was hard to read, I find that more a fault of the way I had to read it for class (straight through in the midst of a very busy season) than how it could be more profitably used.
Second, though, as a counterpoint is the fact that this is very much FOX’S translation. He does a nice job detailing his process, but there were many translation decisions that simply struck me as odd (i.e. “serf” in place of “slave”) which seemed to serve the translator’s preference more so than accuracy. Which brings me to…
Third, Fox’s own theology is painfully apparent at times. As one who sees heavy deuteronomistic activity in the Pentateuch, he assumes later authorship and/or editorial work over against biblical inspiration. Not just that, but his modern sensibilities about the “violence” or “harshness” of God and his commands are a frequent theme. To say it differently, I think Fox sometimes got in the way of his own effort to let us as English readers hear the Hebrew text.
Fourth, as a logical result, I frequently find his commentary and notes simultaneously helpful and insanely frustrating. Inasmuch as he wanted me as a reader to feel and appreciate the Hebraic nature of the text, he would very much insert his twentieth century views and biases. So in an effort to bring the ancient text alive, he bogged it down with modern hang ups. It was, to be blunt, perennially annoying.
Finally, sometimes his commentary was incredibly lengthy and filled with the complaints I listed in the above points. At other times, his commentary was sparse or barely present. Thus I would have times of thinking “Yes, I get you don’t think Moses wrote this; you’ve been saying so for several pages—please move on��� and other times “I really wish you said more here.” That’s, naturally, the case with any commentary, but I had a sense of it being very uneven throughout the work.
With all of that in mind, it’s hard to rate this book. Perhaps I could break it down this way:
As a translation to use for regular scripture reading: ★ ★ ★
As a faithful/helpful commentary on the Pentateuch: ★ ★
As a reference tool for someone who wants to use this alongside another translation to get a better sense of an ancient text in a language you don’t speak: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
First, as Fox is very clear about, he tried to translate the text as Hebraically as he could. His goal was to try to help draw out the cadences and emphases that get lost when smoothing things out into our more readable English translations. But that’s exactly it—because it’s so NOT standard English, it’s not very readable. Syntax and repetition and word choice were odd for an English reader. Thus, just sitting and reading this was a chore.
Yet I don’t necessarily mean that as a deficit. It just made it really hard to read start to finish. I think it would function far better as either a reference tool or as a parallel Bible to more fluid English translations. So in saying it was hard to read, I find that more a fault of the way I had to read it for class (straight through in the midst of a very busy season) than how it could be more profitably used.
Second, though, as a counterpoint is the fact that this is very much FOX’S translation. He does a nice job detailing his process, but there were many translation decisions that simply struck me as odd (i.e. “serf” in place of “slave”) which seemed to serve the translator’s preference more so than accuracy. Which brings me to…
Third, Fox’s own theology is painfully apparent at times. As one who sees heavy deuteronomistic activity in the Pentateuch, he assumes later authorship and/or editorial work over against biblical inspiration. Not just that, but his modern sensibilities about the “violence” or “harshness” of God and his commands are a frequent theme. To say it differently, I think Fox sometimes got in the way of his own effort to let us as English readers hear the Hebrew text.
Fourth, as a logical result, I frequently find his commentary and notes simultaneously helpful and insanely frustrating. Inasmuch as he wanted me as a reader to feel and appreciate the Hebraic nature of the text, he would very much insert his twentieth century views and biases. So in an effort to bring the ancient text alive, he bogged it down with modern hang ups. It was, to be blunt, perennially annoying.
Finally, sometimes his commentary was incredibly lengthy and filled with the complaints I listed in the above points. At other times, his commentary was sparse or barely present. Thus I would have times of thinking “Yes, I get you don’t think Moses wrote this; you’ve been saying so for several pages—please move on��� and other times “I really wish you said more here.” That’s, naturally, the case with any commentary, but I had a sense of it being very uneven throughout the work.
With all of that in mind, it’s hard to rate this book. Perhaps I could break it down this way:
As a translation to use for regular scripture reading: ★ ★ ★
As a faithful/helpful commentary on the Pentateuch: ★ ★
As a reference tool for someone who wants to use this alongside another translation to get a better sense of an ancient text in a language you don’t speak: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
February 14, 2021
This gorgeous translation preserves rhymes and sounds of the original Hebrew, and doesn’t shy away from the awkwardness of the poetic structure. I’ve read these texts over and over again, but these translations felt wholly new and unfamiliar. The commentary is enlightening and informative.
March 5, 2023
I really enjoyed reading through this version of the Five Books of Moses that stays very close to the Hebrew text, including the pronunciation of names. Also loved the commentary, which provided many useful explanations.
December 18, 2020
Read this for class.
I found it a bit hard to read, because it is very literal, but it is helpful in some places, and helps the reader get a feel for the way it is written in the original language.
I found it a bit hard to read, because it is very literal, but it is helpful in some places, and helps the reader get a feel for the way it is written in the original language.
March 27, 2021
An excellent resource book for Bible study.
September 27, 2021
An excellent read... always.
September 11, 2025
Almost as good as Robert Alter's translation.
May 15, 2016
I highly recommend this commentary/translation to all of us who can't read Hebrew...yet! Replete with helpful notes, outlines and explanations; I will definitely return to it every time I need a quick reference. I am grateful for Fox's work and would recommend this book to Sunday school teachers, the laity and my fellow seminarians. I believe that everyone could benefit greatly from using this book alongside their preferred English translation. I would recommend using in it as a study Bible/commentary. I gave it 5 stars as a debt of gratitude for the scholarship of its author.
June 8, 2013
This book is an indispensable commentary on the Pentateuch. In the age old tradition of the Targums - translations as commentary - Fox writes about the Five Books of Moses by re-writing them. The translation is fresh and engaging. If you want to hear the texts as if they were new, this is for you. His comments reveal his unbelieving Jewish background at times, but are generally very helpful. I recommend this book very highly.
May 9, 2008
Unless you're reading the Hebrew, this is really the only translation to use. The Torah wasn't written in fancy language appropriate for Rococo cathedrals and salons. It was written in the earthy raw language of the ancient near east. It comes through in this translation better than in any other English one.
March 10, 2012
Here is an interesting approach to translation, capturing the experience of the Hebrew language in terms of cadence (rhythm) and sound as read aloud. Repetition, allusion, alliteration, and wordplay. This is a very different approach from most modern translations which seek to translate the text into readily accessible, modern english.
January 24, 2008
This is a real eye opener, if you study Torah or the Bible. This provides a much more literally-accurate presentation (and I mean that in the literary sense), with tons of historical information that the common person doesn't know. Very revealing.
September 9, 2009
I read Genesis and Exodus. Mr. Fox claims he is attempting to preserve the rhythm of the Hebrew in this translation, and I have to say that of all the translations I have looked at, this seems to be the most enjoyable to read (it almost demands to be read aloud).
February 22, 2010
As a Catholic, this was an exciting book for me! I still rave about it and I bought a book from the first printing. To see the exact meaning of the words used in the first five books of scripture and to learn all the new information was thrilling. It got me reading Martin Buber.
November 3, 2011
This is the Bible as you've never read it before, as close to the original voice, language and meaning as you can get. I felt like I was reading Genesis for the first time with this remarkable translation.
June 14, 2007
A wonderful edition. The good folks at Schocken need to get crackin' on Volume 2.
January 4, 2009
This is my all-time favorite translation of the Torah into English.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews