God and the Gods in the Pentateuch

Abstract

Based on the theory of traditional source criticism and centered on the textual examination of the four different sources in the Pentateuch, this thesis discusses God and the gods there into present the religious development and religious landscape of ancient Israel. These four sources are the Yahwist, Elohist, Deuteronomist, and Priestly writings, which represent four parallel yet incommensurate understandings of the past and of God. The thesis lays special emphasis on the analysis of the Sinai revelation in the Deuteronomic and Priestly writings and argues for their significance in the religious history of the Pentateuch. The complex and diverse religious history in the Pentateuch is not a single evolution, but multi-pronged development. Through rewriting and reconstructing God in their cultural memory, the Israelites bid farewell to their polytheist past and embark on the new era of monotheism．