Etz Hayim: Torah and Commentary (JPS Bible Commentary)

Rating:
Summary: A must have that will influence generations to come
Review: How can one decide to purchase upon a chumash? I think it can be based on translation, ease of use, and commentaries. On some Shabbat mornings, I might use three chumashim: the Hertz, the Plaut, and the Fox. One I use for translation, the others for commentary. For about seventy years, Conservative/Masorti congregations have chosen to use chumash by Rabbi Hertz, a pre war Chief British rabbi. Some find it very Thee-Thou-stilted in British English, and somewhat apologetic for Hebrew practices, like animal sacrifice. It reflected the insecurity of Jewish life at the time of its publication. This new book and keepsake is a replacement for the Hertz chumash. Etz Hayim was a ten year project, and it reflects the beliefs and ideology of the Conservative movement. It is not apologetic in tone, it gets rid of Thou Thy and Thee, and it contains some commentaries that are inclusive and feminist in nature. I like it because the commentary does not sugar coat the actions of the early Hebrews, and it does not hide from the belief in redactors and an evolving Torah.

In terms of translation to English, I find Etz Hayim enlightening. For example, take the first sentences of Parshat Noah (Genesis 6:9-12). The old Hertz Chumash translates the lines as: "These are the generations of Noah. Noah was in his generation a man righteous and whole-hearted; Noah walked with god. And Noah begot three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth. And the earth was corrupt before god and the earth was filled with violence. And god saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth." When you compare this to the UAHC Plaut translation, generations of Noah becomes "the line of Noah", and whole-hearted becomes "Blameless in his age." Violence is translated as "lawlessness." In the Art Scroll edition, the "generations" is translated as "offspring of Noah", violence is "corrupted", whole-hearted is "perfect in his generation" robbery, and violence is "robbery".

The new ETZ HAYIM translates it as: "This is the line of Noah - Noah was a righteous man; he was blameless in his age, Noah walked with god - Noah begot three sons; Shem Ham and Japheth. The earth became corrupt before god; The earth was filled with lawlessness. When god saw how corrupt the earth was, for all flesh had corrupted its ways on earth." I find it the best amalgamation of the others

In terms of order and structure: the Etz Hayim is right to left in format, uses a very clear voweled Hebrew font, is well indexed, and includes the Haftorah, both Ash-kenaz and if necessary, S'farad, after each parshat. A P'SHAT commentary which is based on the JPS five volume commentary (by Tigay, Sarna, Levine, and Milgrom) follows under the main text and was edited by Rabbis Lieber and Chaim Potok. A D'RASH section of commentary, edited by Rabbi Harold Kushner, follows on each page of text. It provides the deeper moral meanings of the passage. A running commentary, in shaded boxes, edited by Rabbis Dorff and Grossman, shows how various biblical verses serve as the basis for Jewish Halakha and Conservative practices. The commentaries for the Haftorahs were edited by Rabbi Michael Fishbane. The book closed with 41 essays by leading scholars and rabbis (including Wolpe, Tigay, Scolnic, Hammer, Tucker, Gillman, Sarna, Gordis, Orenstein, Hauptman, and Hanan Alexander).

But the best part of Etz Hayim, I think, are the commentaries. The old HERTZ elucidated on the words whole-hearted, righteous, all flesh, and "Noah walked with God" (comparing Noah's walking with God as a father and young son, to Abraham's walking before God, as a stronger more morally mature leader.) The Art Scroll includes Midrash from Abarbabel, Rashi, and others on why deeds are mentioned before the names of sons, why the sons are not listed in birth order, and discusses whether Noah is being praised or criticized. The WG Plaut chumash comments on the word lawlessness. However, The ETZ HAYIM follows its direct translations with a PSHAT commentary on how the Hebrew Noah flood story compares with other Near Eastern cultural flood accounts; it retranslates "this is the line of Noah" in to "This is the story of Noah:; it compares the idea of righteous (tzadik) with that of blameless (tamim); it mentions that the root word for "corrupt" is mentionned seven times in the narrative; and it discusses that "all flesh' includes animals. In its D'RASH section, Etz Hayim discusses how Noah first gave birth to his good deeds before his children. It then quotes Talmudic sages, such as Resh Lakish, on whether Noah was righteous relative to his generation or in absolute terms. It continues that "lawlessness" (hamas) results in people losing respect for governments and fairness, leading to anarchy.

Whew, and that is just for the four sentences in Genesis 6:9-12! You can see why I highly recommend this new chumash.

Rating:
Summary: Very Good Commentary
Review: I think the title of the review says it all, except the maps are great too!

Rating:
Summary: Surprisingly Refreshing
Review: This commentary is a welcome addition to any library. It is refreshingly honest in its discussion of many Biblical themes. For example, I did not know that there is now a consensus that there never was an actual historical personage called Abraham, and that the Exodus from Egypt never happened. I am surprised and deeply impressed that the Conservative movement would be open enough to publish such challenging ideals.