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The Origins of Oral Torah: A New Pauline Perspective
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Abstract This article proposes to rethink the genealogy and origin of the rabbinical terms Oral Torah and Written Torah. The terms appear for the first time in Tannaitic literature, yet scholars have attempted to ascribe to them an earlier date and to present them as a Second Temple, specifically Pharisaic, distinction. This article problematizes the existing genealogies and considers neglected evidence found in Paul’s Letter to the Romans that advances our understanding of the Oral Torah/Written Torah distinction in the first century CE. According to my rereading of Rom 10:5-13 and 3:19-31, Paul has a notion of double-nomos within scripture, and his twofold torah is presented as oral and written. Apart from rabbinic literature, it is only in Paul that we find the use of an Oral Torah/Written Torah distinction. This evidence affects both how the history of the rabbinic terms is understood and how Paul is configured in his Jewish matrix.
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“Paul uses the multivocality of the Torah to make it relevant to the Gentiles in his associations (Fisch 2020).”
From Nomos and the Dispute in Galatians 2: A Case of Conflicting By-Laws (2023) · cites this paper as Fisch 2020
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“Paul might mean two things by nomos, referring to a torah of deeds and a torah of trust, reflecting different facets of the Hebrew Bible.”
From Nomos and the Dispute in Galatians 2: A Case of Conflicting By-Laws (2023) · cites this paper as Fisch 2020
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Cited by
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BackgroundNomos and the Dispute in Galatians 2: A Case of Conflicting By-Laws
Lavender, J. (2023) · Religions · doi:10.3390/rel14121449 · Cited by 1
Yesus Kristus dan Hukum Taurat di Era Anugerah
Simanjuntak, F., & Suwandi, M. (2022) · Formosa Journal of Multidisciplinary Research · doi:10.55927/fjmr.v1i4.868 · Cited by 1
People-conscious leadership: Strategic and tactical strengths of Pharisees in early Christianity
Bvumbi, A. E. (2025) · Verbum et Ecclesia · doi:10.4102/ve.v46i1.3334
“This perspective raised the bar to qualify the Torah beyond its original emergence, viewing oral tradition as a strategic central contributor towards the wholeness of the effectiveness of the written law (Fisch 2020).”
Metadata
- Authors
- Fisch, Y.
- Affiliations
- University of Oxford (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Fisch, Yael
- Venue
- Journal for the Study of Judaism
- Publisher
- Walter de Gruyter GmbH
- Published
- 2020-03-19
- Volume
- 51
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 43-66
- ISSN
- 0047-2212 (ISSN-L)
- 1570-0631
- OpenAlex
- W3014503916
- Cited by
- 5
- References
- 66
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 1
- FWCI
- 8.78
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal for the Study of Judaism (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Religious studies › Biblical Studies and Interpretation
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Religious studies › Religion, Theology, History, Judaism, Christianity
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Classics › Classical Antiquity Studies
- Keywords
- Oral Torah, Pauline theology, Epistle to the Romans, Tannaim, Pharisees, Second Temple Judaism, nomos, Paul and Judaism
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