Tenakh: Torah, Nevi'im and Ketuvim

Overview

Recall questions on Torah, Nevi'im and Ketuvim and their authority, the Tenakh's presentation of God's self-disclosure, its use in worship and study, differing readings, and Cohn-Sherbok and Robinson on these books.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   What are the three parts of the Tenakh?

   Model answer

   Torah, the Five Books of Moses; Nevi'im, the prophetic books; and Ketuvim, the writings. The name itself is built from the first letters of the three, which tells you that Jews read the collection as a structured whole with a clear hierarchy rather than as a loose assortment of books.

2. 2

   Why does the Torah outrank the rest of the Tenakh in authority?

   Model answer

   Because Jews hold that God revealed himself to the people in it directly and gave the commandments through it, whereas the prophets and the writings are treated as inspired but secondary. The Torah scroll alone is kept in the ark and given the honours that go with it, and it alone is read publicly right through on a fixed cycle, with members of the congregation called up to the reading.

3. 3

   What is in Nevi'im, and how is it used?

   Model answer

   It runs from Joshua and Judges through Samuel and Kings to the prophets themselves, from Isaiah to Malachi. Passages from it are read publicly as the haftarah after the Torah reading on Shabbat and festivals, usually chosen to echo something in the portion just read.

4. 4

   What is in Ketuvim?

   Model answer

   The remaining books, including Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Daniel, Chronicles and the five scrolls read at particular festivals: Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes and Esther. Psalms in particular has shaped Jewish prayer more than almost any other book.

5. 5

   What is distinctive about how the Tenakh presents God's self-disclosure?

   Model answer

   The emphasis falls on God making himself known to a whole people in history and in a body of instruction, rather than on private mystical insight. The public event at Sinai and the giving of commandments are the model, so revelation in Judaism is bound up with law and community from the start.

6. 6

   How is the Tenakh used in worship?

   Model answer

   The Torah scroll is read publicly on Shabbat, festivals and on Mondays and Thursdays, with members of the congregation called up to the reading. A prophetic passage follows on Shabbat and festivals, Psalms are woven right through the daily services, and the scrolls of Esther, Lamentations and the others are read on their appointed days.

Other ways to work this

The same content, four other ways.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.