Introducing the Book of Books
Preface to Scripture.
by Solomon B. Freehof.
Union of American Hebrew Congregations. 372 pp. $3.00.

A remarkable number of books on the Bible have been published in recent years. Many of them seem motivated not only by the scholar’s desire to summarize the latest results of Biblical research but by a profound concern for the overcoming of the intellectual and emotional alienation that separates modern man from the Book of Books. Dr. Freehof’s volume, part of a series of popular commentaries to the American-English versions of the Hebrew Bible which is projected by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, is in this trend. It does not approach the Bible merely as a literary monument of the past but attempts to make it relevant to contemporary experience. Therefore Dr. Freehof addresses himself primarily to the modern reader who must be “won again to a conviction of the worth-whileness of the enterprise of reading the Bible regularly.”

Dr. Freehof has the rare ability to be popular without sacrificing depth. His book is easily readable without being shallow, critical yet reverent, liberal without surrendering a warm religiosity. Preface to Scripture consists of two parts. In the first, Dr. Freehof portrays the role which the Bible has played as the most continuous and extensive cultural and literary influence in the history of man. He analyzes its origin, growth, and structure, describes the techniques used by the Masoretes to safeguard the integrity of the Biblical text, traces the introduction of the Bible into the services of the synagogue, and delineates the historical and literary processes which led to the development of Midrash, Mishnah, and Talmud. He explores the philosophy and mood of Scripture, clarifies its style, and focuses the reader’s attention on the dominant thoughts conveyed in the various parts of the Bible.

The second part provides a general descriptive introduction to each Biblical book, followed by a synopsis of important textual portions and a commentary designed to explain unusual phrases and relate them to their historical context.

One can differ with some of Dr. Freehof’s formulations without detracting from the exceptional quality of his book. Thus he expresses the frequently heard theory that the Biblical God-concept is presented not on the purely philosophical level but in vivid popular terms because the prophets had to speak the language of the masses in their attempt to teach the difficult idea of the one universal God to every human being. However, the Bible seems to be non-philosophical not merely in its language but in its thinking, and the absence of abstract terminology is not simply an educational device but is caused by the absence of abstract thinking itself. The prophetic knowledge of God is not a product of metaphysical speculations but originated in the immediacy of religious experience. Biblical thought is reflective, not speculative; it seeks to grasp the meaning of human and cosmic phenomena but does not integrate its insights in a philosophical system.

Dr. Freehof’s analysis of the origin and growth of the Oral Law is valid but seems slanted. The rabbinical theory that Jewish law was derived not only from the visible text of the Bible but from an oral tradition as well was not simply a matter of “belief”; the existence of an oral tradition even in Biblical times seems well established. It would also have been helpful if Dr. Freehof had been more specific in the crucial chapter on “The Bible and the Modern Reader,” in which he analyzes the resistance of many modern Jews to the Bible. The non-religionist can hardly be satisfied with an assertion that there is no sound reason why modern man should refuse to believe in God. It is true that the scientist operates on the assumption that there is law and order in nature. But the step from the recognition of a principle of order in the cosmos to the acceptance of a personal God who controls the destinies of man and nature involves an affirmation that would have deserved the same patient and cogent analysis which Dr. Freehof gave to other problems.

While such reservations cannot mar one’s appreciation of this book, it is questionable whether a book on the Bible can strike sparks of religiosity in those who have discarded it as antiquated ballast. But anyone who wants to understand the Hebrew Bible, or wants to understand it better, will find Dr. Freehof’s book an exceptionally competent and informative guide.

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