The Pentateuch, in the Core Biblical Studies series, will introduce the Five Books of Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. It will combine a purely literary approach to reading the final form of the Pentateuch with a historical reading of the text. The literary approach will emphasize the structural role played by the so-called toledoth (generations) formulae that trace the history of humankind from Adam, through the ancestors of Israel, and finally to Moses and Aaron as the founders of Israel's priesthood. The historical reading of the text will challenge the older...

If the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom formed in the life of faith, its end is nothing less than the shaping of a moral self and community attuned to the character of God. This pursuit of wisdom is an ongoing journey, never a simple arrival.

For the wisdom writings of the Old Testament, the pursuit of wisdom calls for the ongoing attainment of instruction, insight, shrewdness, knowledge, prudence, learning, and skill. And persons who attain wisdom think more deeply, are more discerning, and have a keener insight into the complexities and nuances of decision making. For a...