The Priestly Writings in the Torah

Abstract This chapter examines the Priestly Pentateuchal legal literature in light of the Two Model Theory. Counter to later rabbinic and post-biblical interpretations that impose a quantitative hierarchy on pollutions, the chapter argues that the Priestly texts generally present pollution as varying by type rather than degree. Through terminological, rhetorical-structural, and legal analyses, including an assessment of hierarchic organization within the Priestly worldview, and the observation that these texts lack terminology for “very polluting,” the chapter demonstrates the consistency of this model despite minor diachronic distinctions. Though diachronic processes are evident—earlier Priestly strata present a more purely qualitative model, whereas faint footsteps toward quantitative thought are discernible in its later strata (including the Holiness writings)—the chapter ultimately underscores the Priestly literature’s coherence.