Biblical Worldview: The Pentateuch

Moses: The holy book of my faith is the Torah, and contains the Old Testament. The Old Testament is also used in the Christian’s Bible, making the Torah the foundation for the Bible.

Today, in modern day living, people are talking about either of the two worldviews, and the importance of that chosen worldview. However, one can choose to live by the principles of a secular worldview or a biblical worldview. This study highlights the distinguishable difference between a secular worldview and a biblical worldview, the incorporation of belief and doctrine, and the theories of vocations and the efforts for living righteously.

A worldview is the overall structure that a human being can use to interpret the world and how it applies to their life individually. It is what people believe about the big questions in their lives; who are we, how did we get here, is God real and why are we here? In today’s modern world, there are many different views regarding the natural world, human identity, human relationships, and culture. This paper will focus on the worldview and implications of these topics based on the Bible, in particular, Romans 1-8, and how it still applies in today’s world.

Everyone has a Worldview. “A collection of beliefs about life and the universe held by an individual or a group.” (1) Some have a Biblical Worldview. A Biblical Worldview is founded on the word of God. It is how a Christian views the world. Both belief systems are equally important to each individual, but there are differences in the way they view the natural world, human identity, human relationships, and culture.

How does being familiar with a biblical worldview help us understand the big picture of God’s design, and how can you apply that understanding to your calling?

Moses: The book of my people is the Bible. The Bible builds on the Torah by adding the stories and teachings of Jesus.

Thousands of years ago, it was taught and learned that Moses was the sole author of the Torah, or the Pentateuch; this is known as the Mosaic Authorship. Although this view was proven to possess many flaws, it is still believed by some people today. It is now agreed by most that there cannot be one exclusive author to such an epic document. This is due to the fact that many studies have conducted in order to prove that there is indeed more than one author. It was decided are simply too many discrepancies when it comes to writing styles,

Our relationships with other people give a strong sense of what our relationship with God is like. How we interact with people on a daily basis and the relationships that we build goes a long way in showing just how we feel about them. In Romans 1:10 we see that Paul wanted desperately to come to Rome to teach, to interact, to fellowship, and build relationships with the Christians that were there. Just as God wants a personal relationship with His creation we all feel a deep need for relationships with each other. It was not meant for man to go through life on his own without being able to interact with each other. We see the genuine love that Paul displayed toward the people and churches throughout his epistles and it should make us want to have an even stronger relationship with our Creator.

The Documentary Source Theory states the belief that Torah was not written by Moses, but rather, four independent authors. (Ch. 1 Pg. 21 )

For many, the Hebrew bible is read and accepted without question. It plays a significant role in the practice of many religions and yet not many dare to wonder who wrote such sacred writings that would still be read to this very day. For generations, it was almost unheard of to ask or even fathom the identity of the author. Richard Elliot Friedman, a biblical scholar and graduate from Harvard University, explores, studies, and analyzes the bible to discover who wrote it. Having earned a master degree in theology, B.A degree in Philosophy, and master degree in Hebrew literature, Friedman proves to be a knowledgeable expert in his field of studies. From the years of work he invested into, Friedman aims to provide convincing evidence that the book is written by four persons through historical, archaeological, logical proof.

This paper will delve into a greater understanding of the following questions. What is the meaning of Worldview? What is meant by each of the four primary aspects of the Biblical worldview: creation, the fall, redemption and restoration? How does free enterprise comport with or reject creation, the fall, redemption, and restoration? How does socialism comport with or reject creation, the fall, redemption, and restoration? How does progressivism support or reject Biblical Worldview?

Theology is the study of God, and further the Theology of the Pentateuch is defined as what is the Pentateuch teaching us about God today. The Pentateuch is another name for the Torah, which consists of the first five books of the Biblical canon. Studying the theological vision contained within the Pentateuch is crucial to scholars since it is this vision that shapes the principal form of this work. Further, the foundation for the theology of God is set forth in the rest of the Bible. One can read numerous intricate, complex stories as concern our Creator, however there is not one contradiction in respect to his attributes that can be found. It is owing to the fact that this is a solid

It is believed that the Pentateuch was compiled in the 5BCE from different sources. Coogan(2008:12) describes that Jewish tradition believed God revealed the Torah to Moses the author. Coogan(2008:20) challenges this perception by reporting that it was common place for authors of that area and culture to attribute their words to revered persons: Moses after all was the main character of the last four books. In the 17th century, the beginning of modern philosophy, men such as Baruch Spinoza, Thomas Hobbes and Richard Simon called for freedom from presumptions with consideration needed to explain style and inconsistencies such as different names used for God (Coogan 2008: 13.) Scientific challenges including Evolutionary biology and geology also appeared in 17th Century, again threatening the traditional perception associated with the authority of the Bible (Coogan 2008:15.) It is now believed that a number of authors wrote the Pentateuch. To help explain this, theories such as the Documentary Hypothesis have been considered. Coogan (2008:18) describes this as the editing of four different ‘sources’ into blocks or interwoven together to form the

Throughout the decades the traditional belief of the author of the first five books in the Hebrew Bible is believed to be Moses. The Pentateuch is the first division of the Hebrew Bible which consists of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Contrary to traditional belief, it is thought that the Pentateuch is a conglomeration of early written documents. The Documentary Hypothesis explains the issues of how and why the Pentateuch was written. The Documentary Hypothesis presents four source documents the Yahwist document, the Elohist document, the Deuteronomist document, and the Priestly document as the basis of the first five books in the Hebrew Bible that would later form the Pentateuch as the world knows it today.

     Abraham stands as one of the most important figures in the Hebrew Bible, and is central to the understanding of God’s solution to the problem of mankind. Man, the mysterious creature that God wraught as a semi-experiment, is constantly prone to believe he is self-sufficient and capable of survival without God, the central problem God must deal with in the Hebrew Bible. To solve this problem, God decides to strike fear in the heart of man and to revolutionise his lifestyle by creating laws and empowering a chosen group of people, who will spread the word of God by example. These people are the Hebrews, and Abraham is the father of their race, the man from whom all