Hebrew & German. PENTATEUCH). Chamishah Chumshei Torah - Der Pentateuch überfetzt und erläutert von SAMSON RAPHAEL HIRSCH, Rabbiner der Israelitischen Religionsgesellschaft zu Frankfurt am Main.

HIRSCH’S MAGNUM OPUS, HIS CROWNING LITERARY ACHIEVEMENT. The commentary reflects the era in which it was composed, in that its objective was to elucidate Divine injunction and defend it from rationalist attack. This was at a time of struggle for secession between traditional and reformist elements in Frankfurt. A central theme of this revolutionary German commentary is the demonstration of the unity of the Bible with the Oral Tradition, including the Mishnah, Tosephta, the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmuds, Midrash and the sea of Halachah. Additionally, the Chumash displays Rabbiner Hirsch’s unique etymological system for revealing the profundity of the Hebrew language. In his view, the structure of Hebrew is designed to convey vital teachings, reflecting the Divine wisdom of its Author. The commentary therefore devotes much time to the examination of the linguistic structure of Hebrew in order to deduce the Torah’s teachings. See E. Klugman, Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch: Architect of Torah Judaism for the Modern World (1996) pp. 330-34.