The Hebrew Bible tells the story of Israel and her relationship with God. The story unfolds from the beginning of creation, illustrating the eternal divine plan of election and formation. The first five books, the Torah, were traditionally believed to have been written by Moses and pre-date the prophets and writings.
The first five books of the Hebrew Bible are often known as “Torah,” which means “The Law.” This title indicates the shared Jewish and Christian tradition that Genesis through Deuteronomy represents a cohesive divine revelation to ancient Israel in the Sinai desert following the Exodus event and giving of the covenant. Most Bible scholars agree that the Torah resembles legal codes and treaties found among neighboring ancient Near Eastern cultures and have documented correlations between Torah and legal codes of the Babylonian, Assyrian and Hittite Empires.