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The Book of Revolutions: The Battles of Priests, Prophets, and Kings That Birthed the Torah
2023 Top Five Reference Book from the Academy of Parish Clergy
The Torah is truly the Book of Revolutions, born from a military coup (the Northern Israelite revolution), the aftermath of an assassination and regency (a Judean revolution), and a quiet but radical revolution effected by outsiders whose ideas proved persuasive (Babylonian exile). Emerging from each of these were three key legal codes—the Covenant Code (Exodus), the Deuteronomic Code (Deuteronomy), and the Holiness Code (Leviticus)—which in turn shaped the Bible, biblical Judaism, and Judaism today.
In dramatic historical accounts grounded in recent Bible scholarship, Edward Feld unveils the epic saga of ancient Israel as the visionary legacy of inspired authors in different times and places. Prophetic teaching and differing social realities shaped new understandings concretized in these law codes. Revolutionary biblical ideas often encountered great difficulties in their time before they triumphed. Eventually master editors wove the threads together, intentionally preserving competing narratives and law codes. Ultimately, the Torah is an emblem of pluralistic belief born of revolutionary moments that preserved spiritual realities that continue to speak powerfully to us today.
The Torah is truly the Book of Revolutions, born from a military coup (the Northern Israelite revolution), the aftermath of an assassination and regency (a Judean revolution), and a quiet but radical revolution effected by outsiders whose ideas proved persuasive (Babylonian exile). Emerging from each of these were three key legal codes—the Covenant Code (Exodus), the Deuteronomic Code (Deuteronomy), and the Holiness Code (Leviticus)—which in turn shaped the Bible, biblical Judaism, and Judaism today.
In dramatic historical accounts grounded in recent Bible scholarship, Edward Feld unveils the epic saga of ancient Israel as the visionary legacy of inspired authors in different times and places. Prophetic teaching and differing social realities shaped new understandings concretized in these law codes. Revolutionary biblical ideas often encountered great difficulties in their time before they triumphed. Eventually master editors wove the threads together, intentionally preserving competing narratives and law codes. Ultimately, the Torah is an emblem of pluralistic belief born of revolutionary moments that preserved spiritual realities that continue to speak powerfully to us today.
320 pages, Paperback
Published September 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 8, 2023
Reading this was an experience of both learning an incredible amount and being aware that I was truly grasping maybe a third of the content, with about another third being partially understood and the last third going over my head. I think that I could read this a million times and learn something new every time. Definitely worth a reread in the future.
November 18, 2022
How did the Torah or the Pentateuch come into existence? Traditionally the first five books of the Tanakh or the Christian Old Testament were written by Moses. While there may be a few defenders of Mosaic authorship running around they are few in number. Since the nineteenth century, we've often spoken in terms of Wellhausen's JEDP, but that theory has its own problems. So maybe we need to look in other places to find greater insight. For Christians that means listening to our Jewish cousins who share this testament with us.
Edward Feld offers us an intriguing and helpful introduction to the origins of the Torah in his "The Book of Revolutions." These revolutions involved priests, prophets, and kings, all of whom helped create the texts that became the Torah. Feld is the senior editor of Siddur Lev Shalem, which is the Rabbinical Assembly prayerbook. In his mind, Torah is the product of several revolutions, starting with a military coup in the northern kingdom of Israel, an assassination of a king in the southern kingdom of Judea, and a quieter revolution that took place during the Babylonian exile. These events produced three legal codes. The first is the Covenant code as found in the book of Exodus. The second would be the Deuteronomic Code as found in Deuteronomy, and finally, the Holiness Code found in Leviticus. These three codes helped create biblical and modern Judaism. Feld seeks to read Torah with a historian's eye, understanding the context in which the texts emerged. While skepticism is warranted when it comes to historical analysis, that skepticism can go too far.
As for the direction taken by the author in analyzing the text of the Torah, Feld notes that unlike many biblical scholars he focuses not primarily on the narrative but the legal sections. Thus, while the editors of the Torah sought to create a continuous narrative, the legal codes were left largely intact. Thus, there isn't just one legal code. With that in mind, Feld notes that when it comes to these legal codes "it is often easy to show the ways in which one code reworks the language of another. This evidence of priority leads to a historical understanding of cultural development." Additionally, he believes and seeks to demonstrate (I think he does this rather well) how each of the three legal codes are the "product of revolutions that took place in biblical times" (p. xviii). He seeks to provide an analysis of this evidence.
After providing a prelude in which he takes note of the origins of the people of Israel, origins that are not necessarily clear, he begins to lay out the evidence of each of the four revolutions. The fourth revolution is essentially the production of the Torah. Regarding the origins of Israel, he acknowledges that these are cloudy and that the biblical texts themselves provide divergent stories, with Joshua and Judges offering different versions of settlement. However, the nation came into existence, we can point to the beginning of the first millennium as the point at which the clans and tribes moved toward the creation of a united kingdom, first under Saul and then under David. He notes that it's possible that this coming together as tribes required the creation of a common story of origins. While the tribes did unite for a time they would eventually break into two kingdoms. While these kingdoms shared some commonalities and at times were allies they often were enemies or rivals.
Part 1 invites us to consider the first revolution, which took place in the northern kingdom of Israel. It is a revolution that involves Elijah and Elisha. along with the dynasty of Jehu, the king of Israel, which carried the support of the two prophets, replaced the dynasty of Omri (including Ahab and Jezebel). It is in this context that the Covenant Code found in the Book of Exodus emerges. He helpfully sets this code in its large context. What is especially important here is that this code influences later developments among the biblical authors. So, items mentioned briefly in Exodus get developed further in later books. One of the ways in which it influenced later developments involved later Jewish thinking (and Christian thinking as well) about the nature of a covenant. So, he writes: "The code formulates a relationship of mutuality beween God and the people Israel" (p. 43).
Before moving to the next revolution, the one that takes place in the south, Feld provides an interlude in which he sets up the upcoming conversation. Here he links the house of Jehu in Israel with the monarchy in Judea. He notes earlier that while the northern monarchy was rather unstable with several dynasties, in the south the Davidic monarchy remained in force throughout. There was a link between the dynasty of Jehu and that of David in that Ahab's sister Athaliah was the queen mother of Israel. She ruled for around six years before her son Joash gained maturity. It should be noted that Kings rate the monarchs from Joash to Hezekiah very highly. It was during this period that the northern kingdom fell to Assyria and the southern kingdom shrunk, under Hezekiah to not much more than the city of Jerusalem.
While the kings might have done what was right in the eyes of God, the situation from Ahaz and afterward was not good. While the kingdom would gain some of its territory back under Manasseh and his successors, including Josiah, the kingdom was really in its final years of existence as a monarchy. Since the focus is on the development of legal codes, the one that emerges here is that of Deuteronomy which finds its origins during the rule of Josiah. As described in 2 Kings, a book believed to be Deuteronomy or a prototype was discovered in the Temple during a restoration of the Temple under Josiah who sought to reform Judea's religious life (he did so with a very heavy hand). While it's clear that Deuteronomy depends on the earlier northern book of Exodus, it takes on its own identity. Feld provides a very insightful exploration of the origins of Deuteronomy, the law code found there, and how it impacted the people.
With the Deuteronomic Code the focus of Part II, a section that takes up around 100 pages, Feld provides a second interlude where he discusses the end of the monarchy. He shares that the reforms connected to Deuteronomy did not get passed on to the generation that followed Josiah who died in battle fighting the Egyptians at Megiddo, leading to Judea becoming a vassal of Egypt before being overtaken by Babylon. That eventually led to the demise of the monarchy along with sending the elite, including the priests, into exile in Babylon.
In Part III we are invited to explore with Feld a third revolution, one that took place among the exiles in Babylon. This next revolution involved not monarchs, who no longer ruled, but priests, prophets (such as Jeremiah), and scribes. As the exiles sought to discern a path forward after the destruction of the Temple and the traditional Jewish religious experience, they began to develop a new legal code, the Holiness Code found in Leviticus. While a significant portion of Leviticus focuses on Temple worship and its leadership, ultimately the focus was on living as a people without the Temple. The concept of the holiness code as found in Leviticus is reflected in chapter 19 of that book where the people are commanded "to be holy, because the Lord Your God is holy". Feld writes that the texts, which include much of Leviticus along with parts of Numbers and other passages of Torah share this theological conception: "an emphasis on the practice of holiness even outside the Temple confines, amid all of the people" (p. 187). The authors of this code are understood to be reformist priests (no longer serving in the Temple). They seek to combine their calling with a prophetic perspective that leads to a vision of the future of this society. Thus, "while their rhetoric is formed from the priestly language of holiness and purity, it incorporates the prophetic demand of the centrality of personal behavior on the part of each person in serving God." (p. 188). He takes us through discussions of such things as the Sabbath and Jubilee, along with how the stranger is to be treated. While Exodus and Deuteronomy focused on civil jurisprudence and ethical imperatives, he writes that "The Ho9liness Code added to this understanding its own insistence on the need for personal transformation and its dream of a utopian society" (p. 208). This discussion of the Holiness Code casts a new light on the code and the way we might understand Leviticus. It makes sense that a code focused on personal transformation would emerge in the context of an exile.
Part IV is the briefest section, but it helps bring everything together. Here is how the Torah takes shape and is experienced after the exile when the exiles return to Jerusalem and Judea under the Persians and begin to put things back together. One of the key figures, besides Nehemiah, is the Scribe Ezra who is responsible for bringing much of this heritage together and promulgating it. While the later prophets such as Haggai, Malachi, and Zechariah do not speak of Torah, one of the elements of the emergence of Torah is the role of the priestly leadership, which replaces the monarchy. This religious perspective is clearly monotheistic. As understood post-exile, the message is one of universal monotheism.
By setting out the development of Torah in terms of three revolutions centered on the development of legal codes, which build on each other, we gain a larger and more complete picture of early Judaism. While he doesn't focus on the larger narrative, by focusing on these codes the narrative takes on new life. This is, therefore, an important contribution to our understanding of the biblical story. It is a word that will prove helpful not only to Jewish readers of Torah but Christian readers of that same common text.
Edward Feld offers us an intriguing and helpful introduction to the origins of the Torah in his "The Book of Revolutions." These revolutions involved priests, prophets, and kings, all of whom helped create the texts that became the Torah. Feld is the senior editor of Siddur Lev Shalem, which is the Rabbinical Assembly prayerbook. In his mind, Torah is the product of several revolutions, starting with a military coup in the northern kingdom of Israel, an assassination of a king in the southern kingdom of Judea, and a quieter revolution that took place during the Babylonian exile. These events produced three legal codes. The first is the Covenant code as found in the book of Exodus. The second would be the Deuteronomic Code as found in Deuteronomy, and finally, the Holiness Code found in Leviticus. These three codes helped create biblical and modern Judaism. Feld seeks to read Torah with a historian's eye, understanding the context in which the texts emerged. While skepticism is warranted when it comes to historical analysis, that skepticism can go too far.
As for the direction taken by the author in analyzing the text of the Torah, Feld notes that unlike many biblical scholars he focuses not primarily on the narrative but the legal sections. Thus, while the editors of the Torah sought to create a continuous narrative, the legal codes were left largely intact. Thus, there isn't just one legal code. With that in mind, Feld notes that when it comes to these legal codes "it is often easy to show the ways in which one code reworks the language of another. This evidence of priority leads to a historical understanding of cultural development." Additionally, he believes and seeks to demonstrate (I think he does this rather well) how each of the three legal codes are the "product of revolutions that took place in biblical times" (p. xviii). He seeks to provide an analysis of this evidence.
After providing a prelude in which he takes note of the origins of the people of Israel, origins that are not necessarily clear, he begins to lay out the evidence of each of the four revolutions. The fourth revolution is essentially the production of the Torah. Regarding the origins of Israel, he acknowledges that these are cloudy and that the biblical texts themselves provide divergent stories, with Joshua and Judges offering different versions of settlement. However, the nation came into existence, we can point to the beginning of the first millennium as the point at which the clans and tribes moved toward the creation of a united kingdom, first under Saul and then under David. He notes that it's possible that this coming together as tribes required the creation of a common story of origins. While the tribes did unite for a time they would eventually break into two kingdoms. While these kingdoms shared some commonalities and at times were allies they often were enemies or rivals.
Part 1 invites us to consider the first revolution, which took place in the northern kingdom of Israel. It is a revolution that involves Elijah and Elisha. along with the dynasty of Jehu, the king of Israel, which carried the support of the two prophets, replaced the dynasty of Omri (including Ahab and Jezebel). It is in this context that the Covenant Code found in the Book of Exodus emerges. He helpfully sets this code in its large context. What is especially important here is that this code influences later developments among the biblical authors. So, items mentioned briefly in Exodus get developed further in later books. One of the ways in which it influenced later developments involved later Jewish thinking (and Christian thinking as well) about the nature of a covenant. So, he writes: "The code formulates a relationship of mutuality beween God and the people Israel" (p. 43).
Before moving to the next revolution, the one that takes place in the south, Feld provides an interlude in which he sets up the upcoming conversation. Here he links the house of Jehu in Israel with the monarchy in Judea. He notes earlier that while the northern monarchy was rather unstable with several dynasties, in the south the Davidic monarchy remained in force throughout. There was a link between the dynasty of Jehu and that of David in that Ahab's sister Athaliah was the queen mother of Israel. She ruled for around six years before her son Joash gained maturity. It should be noted that Kings rate the monarchs from Joash to Hezekiah very highly. It was during this period that the northern kingdom fell to Assyria and the southern kingdom shrunk, under Hezekiah to not much more than the city of Jerusalem.
While the kings might have done what was right in the eyes of God, the situation from Ahaz and afterward was not good. While the kingdom would gain some of its territory back under Manasseh and his successors, including Josiah, the kingdom was really in its final years of existence as a monarchy. Since the focus is on the development of legal codes, the one that emerges here is that of Deuteronomy which finds its origins during the rule of Josiah. As described in 2 Kings, a book believed to be Deuteronomy or a prototype was discovered in the Temple during a restoration of the Temple under Josiah who sought to reform Judea's religious life (he did so with a very heavy hand). While it's clear that Deuteronomy depends on the earlier northern book of Exodus, it takes on its own identity. Feld provides a very insightful exploration of the origins of Deuteronomy, the law code found there, and how it impacted the people.
With the Deuteronomic Code the focus of Part II, a section that takes up around 100 pages, Feld provides a second interlude where he discusses the end of the monarchy. He shares that the reforms connected to Deuteronomy did not get passed on to the generation that followed Josiah who died in battle fighting the Egyptians at Megiddo, leading to Judea becoming a vassal of Egypt before being overtaken by Babylon. That eventually led to the demise of the monarchy along with sending the elite, including the priests, into exile in Babylon.
In Part III we are invited to explore with Feld a third revolution, one that took place among the exiles in Babylon. This next revolution involved not monarchs, who no longer ruled, but priests, prophets (such as Jeremiah), and scribes. As the exiles sought to discern a path forward after the destruction of the Temple and the traditional Jewish religious experience, they began to develop a new legal code, the Holiness Code found in Leviticus. While a significant portion of Leviticus focuses on Temple worship and its leadership, ultimately the focus was on living as a people without the Temple. The concept of the holiness code as found in Leviticus is reflected in chapter 19 of that book where the people are commanded "to be holy, because the Lord Your God is holy". Feld writes that the texts, which include much of Leviticus along with parts of Numbers and other passages of Torah share this theological conception: "an emphasis on the practice of holiness even outside the Temple confines, amid all of the people" (p. 187). The authors of this code are understood to be reformist priests (no longer serving in the Temple). They seek to combine their calling with a prophetic perspective that leads to a vision of the future of this society. Thus, "while their rhetoric is formed from the priestly language of holiness and purity, it incorporates the prophetic demand of the centrality of personal behavior on the part of each person in serving God." (p. 188). He takes us through discussions of such things as the Sabbath and Jubilee, along with how the stranger is to be treated. While Exodus and Deuteronomy focused on civil jurisprudence and ethical imperatives, he writes that "The Ho9liness Code added to this understanding its own insistence on the need for personal transformation and its dream of a utopian society" (p. 208). This discussion of the Holiness Code casts a new light on the code and the way we might understand Leviticus. It makes sense that a code focused on personal transformation would emerge in the context of an exile.
Part IV is the briefest section, but it helps bring everything together. Here is how the Torah takes shape and is experienced after the exile when the exiles return to Jerusalem and Judea under the Persians and begin to put things back together. One of the key figures, besides Nehemiah, is the Scribe Ezra who is responsible for bringing much of this heritage together and promulgating it. While the later prophets such as Haggai, Malachi, and Zechariah do not speak of Torah, one of the elements of the emergence of Torah is the role of the priestly leadership, which replaces the monarchy. This religious perspective is clearly monotheistic. As understood post-exile, the message is one of universal monotheism.
By setting out the development of Torah in terms of three revolutions centered on the development of legal codes, which build on each other, we gain a larger and more complete picture of early Judaism. While he doesn't focus on the larger narrative, by focusing on these codes the narrative takes on new life. This is, therefore, an important contribution to our understanding of the biblical story. It is a word that will prove helpful not only to Jewish readers of Torah but Christian readers of that same common text.
August 15, 2023
I have known Rabbi Edward Feld for many years and respect him highly. Not only has he served as a Hillel rabbi at several universities, he also chaired the editorial committee that produced two fine prayer books, with a third on the way.
Rabbi Feld is learned, sincerely religious, and very intelligent.
The present book is a well-informed survey of the development of Biblical law from the time of the monarchies to after the Babylonian exile, using philological insights and taking account of archaeological research and other current scholarship. However, it is much more than an objective account of historical developments. Rabbi Feld has a vision of Judaism in the spirit of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, who was one of Feld's inspiring teachers at the Jewish Theological Seminary. Hence, his account of the three legal codes that are laid out in the Pentateuch is aimed, though not explicitly until the end of the book, at showing showing that Heschel's humane take on Jewish faith grows out of the religion taught by the Hebrew Bible.
As Rabbi Feld sees it, Judaism has always tolerated, indeed encouraged, differing opinions about basic issues. I find his arguments both convincing and inspiring.
Rabbi Feld is learned, sincerely religious, and very intelligent.
The present book is a well-informed survey of the development of Biblical law from the time of the monarchies to after the Babylonian exile, using philological insights and taking account of archaeological research and other current scholarship. However, it is much more than an objective account of historical developments. Rabbi Feld has a vision of Judaism in the spirit of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, who was one of Feld's inspiring teachers at the Jewish Theological Seminary. Hence, his account of the three legal codes that are laid out in the Pentateuch is aimed, though not explicitly until the end of the book, at showing showing that Heschel's humane take on Jewish faith grows out of the religion taught by the Hebrew Bible.
As Rabbi Feld sees it, Judaism has always tolerated, indeed encouraged, differing opinions about basic issues. I find his arguments both convincing and inspiring.
November 3, 2022
There are many ways to explore the Torah text, all of which offer insights into its meaning. Some of these approach the work from a historical point of view, rather than a religious one. Others offer a historical, close look at specific words in the text. While different types of study appeal to different audiences, when viewed together, they can enrich one’s understanding and appreciation of the text. While “The Book of Revolutions: The Battle of Priests, Prophets, and Kings That Birthed the Torah” by Edward Feld (The Jewish Publication Society) looks at the historic reasons behind the development of three codes found in the Torah, “Dirshuni: Contemporary Women’s Midrash” edited by Tamar Biala (Brandeis University Press) offers an interpretation of the biblical text that is both feminist and very traditional at the same time.
See the rest of my review at https://www.thereportergroup.org/past...
See the rest of my review at https://www.thereportergroup.org/past...
November 2, 2022
Feld offers up a history of Israel as it relates to the writing of the five books of the Torah, as well as an analysis of the manner in which the particulars of the history influences the books' structure. He strays too much into religious theorising and interpretation for me, away from a strictly historical analysis - although I acknowledge that not much is known about many aspects of that era. Nevertheless an illuminating book, and highly rewarding.
August 16, 2023
I deliberately delayed reading this book until I was about to start rereading the Torah. I'm glad I did because it offers much insight regarding the first five books of the Bible. The book is written by a practitioner of Judaism from a Jewish perspective, but a Christian (I am one) can learn much from reading this book as well.
The book is very readable and clear. I highly recommend it.
The book is very readable and clear. I highly recommend it.
December 26, 2024
Fascinating, not always easy
A fascinating view of how Judaism developed. It is by necessity not orthodox (let alone Orthodox!); nor is it always easy. But is is a fascinating read on a fascinating subject.
A fascinating view of how Judaism developed. It is by necessity not orthodox (let alone Orthodox!); nor is it always easy. But is is a fascinating read on a fascinating subject.
November 29, 2022
Excellent! This book has my vote for Best Biblical Studies book of 2022.
January 6, 2023
This was a tremendously exciting read, and I learned a lot. By this point, we know a lot about when each piece of the Torah and later scriptures were written. But by considering what was happening geopolitically when several key portions were written, Feld has brought needed context to why those portions were written a particular way, and what implications that has for Judaism in our own time. For one, pilgrimage festivals were instituted when Jerusalem was reduced to a city-state and most people lived within walking distance. For another, just as we know Jews living under Babylonian rule were influenced by Babylonian culture despite railing against it (and European culture, and Spanish culture, and American culture…), it turns out Judea was likely a vassal state to Northern Israel at one point and was influenced by them, too.
Also, I can’t express how deeply I appreciate that this book discusses women’s practices and beliefs where relevant instead of either erasing them or relegating them to a separate chapter. It turned odd, anomalous details into a coherent part of a larger story of diversity and repression in different eras.
I came away with a sense that there has never been a time when Jews were united in culture or practice, but that the genius of the biblical editors was that they allowed a range to coexist. That range of beliefs and practices prevented infinite fragmentation from occurring, and also meant Judaism had enough ambiguity and contradiction built in that it could continue to be meaningful for lots of different people in lots of different contexts.
Also, I can’t express how deeply I appreciate that this book discusses women’s practices and beliefs where relevant instead of either erasing them or relegating them to a separate chapter. It turned odd, anomalous details into a coherent part of a larger story of diversity and repression in different eras.
I came away with a sense that there has never been a time when Jews were united in culture or practice, but that the genius of the biblical editors was that they allowed a range to coexist. That range of beliefs and practices prevented infinite fragmentation from occurring, and also meant Judaism had enough ambiguity and contradiction built in that it could continue to be meaningful for lots of different people in lots of different contexts.
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