Hebrew Bible

=== Genres and themes ===
The Tanakh includes a variety of genres. Over half of it consists of narratives, that is, descriptions of events set in the past. Leviticus and large parts of Exodus and Numbers contain legal material. The Book of Psalms is a collection of hymns, but songs are included elsewhere in the Tanakh, such as Exodus 15, 1 Samuel 2, and Jonah 2. Books such as Proverbs and Ecclesiastes are examples of [[wisdom literature]].<ref>{{cite book | last = Barton | first = John | author-link = John Barton (theologian) | chapter = Introduction to the Old Testament | year = 2001 | title = The Oxford Bible Commentary | editor-last1 = Barton | editor-first1 = John | editor-last2 = Muddiman | editor-first2 = John | pages = 8–9 | publisher = Oxford University Press | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Ef1QEAAAQBAJ | isbn= 9780198755005 | doi = 10.1093/acref/9780198755005.001.0001}}</ref>

Other books are examples of [[prophecy]]. In the prophetic books, a prophet denounces evil or predicts what God will do in the future. A prophet might also describe and interpret visions. The Book of Daniel is the only book in the Tanakh usually described as [[apocalyptic literature]]. However, other books or parts of books have been called proto-apocalyptic, such as Isaiah 24–27, Joel, and Zechariah 9–14.{{Sfn|Barton|2001|p=9}}

A central theme throughout the Tanakh is [[monotheism]], worshiping one [[God in Judaism|God]]. The Tanakh was created by the [[Israelites]], a people who lived within the cultural and religious context of the [[ancient Near East]]. The [[religions of the ancient Near East]] were [[polytheistic]], but the Israelites rejected polytheism in favor of monotheism. Biblical scholar [[Christine Hayes]] writes that the Hebrew Bible was "the record of [the Israelites'] religious and cultural revolution".<ref>{{cite book |last=Hayes |first=Christine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SKbkXYHxvlAC |title=Introduction to the Bible |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2012 |isbn=9780300188271 |page=3 |author-link=Christine Hayes}}</ref>

According to biblical scholar [[John Barton (theologian)|John Barton]], "[[YHWH]] is consistently presented throughout the [Hebrew Scriptures] as the God who created the world, and as the only God with whom Israel is to be concerned".{{Sfn|Barton|2001|p=9}} This special relationship between God and Israel is described in terms of [[Covenant (biblical)|covenant]]. As part of the covenant, God gives his people the [[promised land]] as an eternal possession. The God of the covenant is also a God of [[Redemption (theology)#Judaism|redemption]]. God liberates his people from Egypt and continually intervenes to save them from their enemies.{{Sfn|Barton|2001|pp=9–10}}

The Tanakh imposes [[Ethics in the Bible|ethical requirements]], including social justice and ritual purity {{Crossreference|(see [[Tumah and taharah]])}}. The Tanakh forbids the exploitation of widows, orphans, and other vulnerable groups. In addition, the Tanakh condemns murder, theft, bribery, corruption, deceitful trading, adultery, incest, bestiality, and homosexual acts. Another theme of the Tanakh is [[theodicy]], showing that God is just even though evil and suffering are present in the world.{{Sfn|Barton|2001|p=10}}