Between the Lines of the Bible: Exodus: A Study from the New School of Orthodox Torah Commentary

Don't you just hate it when an excellent volume turns out to be the second volume of a series and volume two keeps referring you to volume 1? Especially if volume 1 is not in print and the used copies are all significantly higher than the original price? I hate it.All of which points to this being a very, very good book on how to read the Torah, in this case Exodus. Each chapter addresses a specific question that is raised by the text. That question is then answered step-by-step in clear, understandable reasoning that applies (generally) modern Bible study methods. However, the use of these new methods does not supplant tradition, rather, it supplements it.Examples: a chapter uses philology and midrash shem to convince the reader that Moses means "my son" and that we don't have a proper name for him. In another chapter, we see the pattern inherent in the first nine plagues and the lesson each group of three was intended to teach. Or for the Exodus which was billed as a three day journey to worship the Hebrew God, he shows us the steps God used both for teaching the Pharaoh and for teaching the Hebrew children to be a nation.What sets Etshalon's book apart is not that it is any more true or innovative than similar books but rather he walks you through the thought processes in a way that leaves you believing you can apply the thought processes too.

Great treatment

Brilliant in the illuminating the studied-areas presented of our Torah

Rabbi Etshalom is certainly well-versed in the "New School of Orthodox Torah Commentary," as he calls it, but the book falls a little short of what I expected. Rather than give multiple examples of methods, Rabbi Etshalom uses one example to show how each of the methods of this "New School" works creating an interesting series of articles on various topics throughout the Torah but not showing or proving in any way that these methods are applicable anywhere outside the single example given.

...into the world of modern biblical interpretation to those who adhere to the classical version of faith.

Rabbi Etshalom does a great job at laying out not only this approach but also the way in which such an approach illuminates the stories in a compelling, thought-provoking and entertaining manner. I initially opened the pages just to scan the contents but soon found I couldn't put it down... I can't wait for Volume II.