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The Anchor Yale Bible Reference Library
The Composition of the Pentateuch: Renewing the Documentary Hypothesis
For well over two centuries the question of the composition of the Pentateuch has been among the most central and hotly debated issues in the field of biblical studies. In this book, Joel Baden presents a fresh and comprehensive argument for the Docume
644 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
22 people are currently reading
298 people want to read
About the author
Joel S. Baden
16 books14 followersJoel S. Baden is professor of Hebrew Bible at Yale Divinity School. He is the coauthor, with Candida R. Moss, of Bible Nation: The United States of Hobby Lobby and Reconceiving Infertility: Biblical Perspectives on Procreation and Childlessness (both Princeton). He lives in New Haven, Connecticut.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 27, 2023
Baden's book is clearly written and well organized. His pedagogical approach in this book also was helpful. By the last two or three "case studies" I was able to predict many of the divisions that he would make of the text into its various sources. While I still am not an advocate of the Documentary Hypothesis, I think that Baden provides the best defense possible for it.
January 14, 2020
You need to be pretty interested in the Documentary Hypothesis of the formation of the Pentateuch as in true academic fashion the author takes on its origin of the Hypothesis in the 19th century and critiques every revision of it since. In response to the myriad arguments scholars have put forth for designating which passages come from which sources, Baden argues that narrative arc is the guide to what sections mark what goes with what, something like a literary jigsaw puzzle. What was most interesting to me were the "case studies" where he took excerpts from the Torah and separated them into their sources. Suddenly stories which seemed hopelessly confused, such as the confrontation between the Israelites and Egyptians at the sea fell into compelling narratives. I would love to see the author take on the task of doing that for all of the Torah.
November 8, 2015
Disclaimer- I skipped chapter 3,4&5.
I read the first two chapters and the 5 case studies.
Baden demonstrates how the 4 classical sources of DH can remain true to itself without getting bogged down by stylistic, thematic, and theological claims, rather using these in supporting roles. With an approach that breaks away from Wellhausen, et al. he relies on the arc of the historical narrative to identify the strands. His method doesn't break each verse into bits, and his case studies illustrates how clearly the narrative fits each source.
Highly recommended.
I read the first two chapters and the 5 case studies.
Baden demonstrates how the 4 classical sources of DH can remain true to itself without getting bogged down by stylistic, thematic, and theological claims, rather using these in supporting roles. With an approach that breaks away from Wellhausen, et al. he relies on the arc of the historical narrative to identify the strands. His method doesn't break each verse into bits, and his case studies illustrates how clearly the narrative fits each source.
Highly recommended.
October 31, 2022
A wonderful introduction to the Documentary Hypothesis. Joel Baden writes in a concise, clear, and convincing way, showing in both theory and practice the logic of the Documentary Hypothesis. Baden argues that the Documentary Hypothesis—“the central assertion” of which is that “four originally independent documents [termed J, E, P, and D] … have been subsequently combined and interwoven” to produce the canonical Pentateuch (20)—makes the most sense in light of what he perceives to be inconsistencies and contradictions in the Pentateuch. These narrative contradictions, for Baden (and many others) indicate that the Pentateuch is a composite work, rather than the work one single author. Baden posits that these four sources were combined by one compiler, who did not seek to smooth out any narrative inconsistencies (likely out of respect and reverence for what was passed down to him), but simply presented a unified (yet complex) narrative of Israel’s beginnings.
What I found most helpful about this book were a number of case studies, in which Baden demonstrates the logic of the Documentary Hypothesis. While it is still a “hypothesis,” Baden argues that it provides the best answer to the questions posed by the canonical text of the Pentateuch. While not everyone will agree with Baden and his conclusions (indeed, many have rejected the Documentary Hypothesis for various reasons), I found this book to be very helpful and, at times, very convincing.
What I found most helpful about this book were a number of case studies, in which Baden demonstrates the logic of the Documentary Hypothesis. While it is still a “hypothesis,” Baden argues that it provides the best answer to the questions posed by the canonical text of the Pentateuch. While not everyone will agree with Baden and his conclusions (indeed, many have rejected the Documentary Hypothesis for various reasons), I found this book to be very helpful and, at times, very convincing.
May 21, 2015
Previously, I have posted about my qualms with Documentary Hypothesis in my review of Who Wrote the Bible? by Richard Elliot Friedman.
This book has more than answered my questions about DH. While I am still a bit of a skeptic, I now see why DH, as opposed to, say, Source Criticism, is a viable solution to the question of the Bible's authorship. Of course, I completely deny that the Torah was a monolithic piece written once by Moses after some divine epiphany at Sinai. We may never know completely, as most of it is due to reverse engineering. But Baden does argue very convincingly for DH and why it is the solution. And he provides plenty of examples.
I especially enjoy that he focuses more on themes than content (i.e. "word lists", commonly used by classic proponents of DH).
The book is a bit inaccessible to those not familiar with the Bible and can be a bit wordy and dense. But for those looking to understand DH, this is a great read.
This book has more than answered my questions about DH. While I am still a bit of a skeptic, I now see why DH, as opposed to, say, Source Criticism, is a viable solution to the question of the Bible's authorship. Of course, I completely deny that the Torah was a monolithic piece written once by Moses after some divine epiphany at Sinai. We may never know completely, as most of it is due to reverse engineering. But Baden does argue very convincingly for DH and why it is the solution. And he provides plenty of examples.
I especially enjoy that he focuses more on themes than content (i.e. "word lists", commonly used by classic proponents of DH).
The book is a bit inaccessible to those not familiar with the Bible and can be a bit wordy and dense. But for those looking to understand DH, this is a great read.
July 14, 2019
A very methodical textual critical review of the Pentateuch, Baden's analysis renews and refines Wellhausen's documentary hypothesis, while critiquing and showing how supplementary approaches fall short. A must read for anyone interested in modern biblical studies.
December 26, 2014
Baden didn't add anything new to the Documentary Hypothesis. He is to be commended for his simple presentation of the topic without watering it down.
Read
April 11, 2025FINALLY finished.
May 31, 2023
The Composition of the Pentateuch: Renewing the Documentary Hypothesis
Joel Baden approaches the Documentary Hypothesis in a new way in this book by taking the approaches from those of the classical approach and simplifying them in many ways. He diverged from the classical approaches in several ways in this book.
Warning, spoilers ahead!
1. He avoided getting into the idea that certain words “belonged” to the certain sources, and rather cut to the heart of the matter and asked this question, “what are the historical claims that each source is making?” What did D say about where sacrifices were permitted? What historical claims about the name of God were made by P, E and J?
2. Baden focused on the fact that P, E, J, and D do not tell the same basic story. They each have divergent theological views, ideas regarding where things took place, and how the world should look. By recognizing this, Baden’s approach and arguments were, in my view, made clear and his arguments held tremendous value.
3. Baden avoided the historical entanglements that many scholars have been wandering through and simply focused on the literary nature of the task of the Pentateuch. He writes, “For generations now, the Documentary Hypothesis has been considered synonymous with Wellhausen’s reconstruction of the evolutionary growth of ancient Israelite religion. Almost more than the source division, the placement of the sources in a straight line of development from earliest to latest, from naturalistic to legalistic, has been taken as the fundamental claim of the hypothesis. This is demonstrated by the attempts in scholarship to debunk the Documentary Hypothesis by arguing against Wellhausen’s view of Israelite religion, as if the former depended on the latter” (p. 247). Baden avoids the arguments of the date of the sources, other than acknowledging that D comes after JE, and simply argues that there is probably not evidence in the text to really date when they were composed and that the dating of JEDP does not really affect the Documentary Hypothesis.
4. He argues that one person compiled the text and that J, E, D and P are all stand alone texts, not redactional layers. He gives evidence for this in several places in his book. He acknowledges that we are missing a ton of E, especially the beginning of E, and he explains his view on how and why this is so.
His conclusion is brief and to the point. He ends by stating the following:
“The major point I have emphasized throughout this book is that the Documentary Hypothesis, in general and in its particulars, is a literary solution to a literary problem, and no more than that. It does not begin with the search for sources in the text: the sources are the conclusion of the theory, not its beginning. It begins with the canonical text and the literary problems that require explanation. Why the Pentateuch is incoherent, that is the driving question of all critical enquiries into the composition of the text, and the Documentary Hypothesis is the simplest and best answer to that question” (p. 249).
Joel Baden approaches the Documentary Hypothesis in a new way in this book by taking the approaches from those of the classical approach and simplifying them in many ways. He diverged from the classical approaches in several ways in this book.
Warning, spoilers ahead!
1. He avoided getting into the idea that certain words “belonged” to the certain sources, and rather cut to the heart of the matter and asked this question, “what are the historical claims that each source is making?” What did D say about where sacrifices were permitted? What historical claims about the name of God were made by P, E and J?
2. Baden focused on the fact that P, E, J, and D do not tell the same basic story. They each have divergent theological views, ideas regarding where things took place, and how the world should look. By recognizing this, Baden’s approach and arguments were, in my view, made clear and his arguments held tremendous value.
3. Baden avoided the historical entanglements that many scholars have been wandering through and simply focused on the literary nature of the task of the Pentateuch. He writes, “For generations now, the Documentary Hypothesis has been considered synonymous with Wellhausen’s reconstruction of the evolutionary growth of ancient Israelite religion. Almost more than the source division, the placement of the sources in a straight line of development from earliest to latest, from naturalistic to legalistic, has been taken as the fundamental claim of the hypothesis. This is demonstrated by the attempts in scholarship to debunk the Documentary Hypothesis by arguing against Wellhausen’s view of Israelite religion, as if the former depended on the latter” (p. 247). Baden avoids the arguments of the date of the sources, other than acknowledging that D comes after JE, and simply argues that there is probably not evidence in the text to really date when they were composed and that the dating of JEDP does not really affect the Documentary Hypothesis.
4. He argues that one person compiled the text and that J, E, D and P are all stand alone texts, not redactional layers. He gives evidence for this in several places in his book. He acknowledges that we are missing a ton of E, especially the beginning of E, and he explains his view on how and why this is so.
His conclusion is brief and to the point. He ends by stating the following:
“The major point I have emphasized throughout this book is that the Documentary Hypothesis, in general and in its particulars, is a literary solution to a literary problem, and no more than that. It does not begin with the search for sources in the text: the sources are the conclusion of the theory, not its beginning. It begins with the canonical text and the literary problems that require explanation. Why the Pentateuch is incoherent, that is the driving question of all critical enquiries into the composition of the text, and the Documentary Hypothesis is the simplest and best answer to that question” (p. 249).
December 21, 2022
An interesting book about the hypothesis theory for the composition of te Pentateuch.
Baden is fair and established the basics of the theory with good biblical examples through each material sources.
A great book to introduce this theory of composition
Baden is fair and established the basics of the theory with good biblical examples through each material sources.
A great book to introduce this theory of composition
February 4, 2024
Wow, it’s taken me a long time to actually use this Goodreads account. I hope 2024 will be the year of reading books for me. Anyways, Baden’s book on the development of the Torah (Pentateuch) focuses on one of the primary theories for its composition. The documentary hypothesis argues that four separate and coherent sources can be recognized within its text, J, E, P, and D. From these different narratives, we can then begin to recognize literary, historical, and theological perspectives unique to each source. Baden does a fantastic job at arguing for the mainstream perspective of Old Testament scholarship by using numerous case studies to illustrate the construction of our biblical narrative. Famous examples like, the story of Joseph and his descent into Egypt and the meat narrative in the wilderness all showcase the compilation of these sources. Through the documentary hypothesis, biblical scholarship is able to finally grasp the contradictions and incoherent narratives sometimes noticeable in the biblical text, that has troubled scholars, theologians, and the common reader for centuries.
July 9, 2025
Baden’s attempt here is to reform the documentary hypothesis through simplifying its claims: 4 distinct sources and a single compiler. Where Wellhausen started with the sources and moved to historical reconstruction, Baden claims to start with the canonical text, and, using what he claims to be primarily historical criteria, identifies the sources (he makes no attempt to reconstruct history). Judging Baden’s book on his expressed goals, he has written a wonderful book. He clearly articulates his position and distinguishes his methods from the classic documentary hypothesis. While I am not persuaded by his conclusion (that the documentary hypothesis is the simplest and best solution to the alleged “problem” of pentateuchal inconsistencies), I acknowledge the strategic purpose of the book within the documentarian conversation. Specifically, his argument that the “compiler” of the Pentateuch was merely a chronological compiler of 4 documents is not persuasive. The literary shape of the Pentateuch is too complex and intentionally designed to be the product of mere chronological compilation of sources (cf. Sailhammer).
May 15, 2025
Baden does an excellent job presenting the Documentary Hypothesis in a clear and presentable fashion. His analysis pulls back the reins on the increasingly complex field of source criticism. Being only generally familiar with JEDP, Baden explains the division of the text very well and offers helpful criteria for discerning sources. As Baden argued, the division of the text according to lexical or theological concerns is reductionistic. I think Baden does well by starting with the canonical text and only dividing material on breaks in the narrative. This approach is definitely an improvement and better grounds for the theory than relying on choice words. While I am not entirely versed in the theory and some of the particulars of his argument are debatable, this book makes a convincing case for the four source theory, and as an introduction to JEDP, it does an excellent job.
September 12, 2025
For years, I have been fascinated by the Documentary Hypothesis. However, the variety of literature and opinions on this hypothesis have hindered my comprehension and exploration of both the core and intricate elements of this topic. Baden's "The Composition of the Pentateuch" has both (1) reinforced my foundational understanding of the DH and (2) given a sophisticated way of understanding its complexities. Moreover, Baden's structure of pairing source-centered chapters with case studies was significant for the reinforcement of his concepts and propositions. This work is both profound and foundational, and I am thankful to have read it at this point on my own scholarly journey.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews