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Torah Through a Zionist Vision: Volume 2 Vayikra, Bamidbar and Devarim

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Volume II of Torah Through a Zionist Vision continues the task of the author to make the Torah come alive for the new generation of Israelites both in the Diaspora and in the Land of Israel. Volume II explores Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. It is through discussion of these three books that the author truly sets to applying the Torah to the modern life of the Israelites.

As with the first volume, the reader is expected to have a basic understanding of Hebrew, the rabbinic history of interpretation, and familiarity with the history of the Jewish people. The author draws from all of these sources to present an elevated discussion of how the text is to be understood today.

Character development is seen mostly in terms of Moses; where the first volume spent more time on characters and less on the pragmatics of the nation, the second reverses the two. Just as the Torah in the last three books spends much time in describing the various duties and responsibilities of Israel, so the discussion focuses on applying those commands to the modern Israelite people.

The author takes us through the complexities of Leviticus along with the rabbinical disputes and deviations from the text along the way. There is honest assessment of the difficulties of Israel in Numbers, although a love for the people no matter what is evinced in the presentation. Moses' final speech to the people is considered and its application to the later history of the Israelite people made evident.

The author concludes by indicating the need for Israel today to decide whether it will truly bear the covenantal obligation and return to a devotion to the Torah. There is an expectation of making the Torah relevant; it may not be exactly what Moses established in every case, but it should be true to the spirit of Moses' Torah, according to the author.

The author demonstrates a sweeping understanding of the Jewish history of interpretation of the Torah from the time of the Sages through the modern day, along with other disciplines that color the discussions. As with the first volume, there is a presupposition of the acceptance of the rabbinic tradition and the rabbinic means of interpretation and application; those espousing other forms of interpretation will not always agree with the interpretive style. The expected audience is Jews, both within and without the land of Israel; those not of the Jewish people may find aspects of the book difficult to approach. Nevertheless, even an outsider can read the book and appreciate the perspective and the attempt to apply the Torah to modern Israel.

Torah Through a Zionist Vision, volume II, represents a valuable perspective on Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy from the Jewish tradition, and is especially helpful for those Jews who would seek to follow their traditions in the modern age. While the scholarly or non-Jewish populations would find much with which to disagree, they can nevertheless appreciate the history of interpretation and the wrestling with the application of Torah in the modern world as presented in the book.