Mordechai Z. Cohen. The Rule of Peshat: Jewish Constructions of the Plain Sense of Scripture and Their Christian and Muslim Contexts, 900–1270.

In Jewish biblical interpretation, the term peshat normally refers to the “plain” sense of Scripture, which has often been understood as the product of “systematic philological-contextual and historically sensitive analysis” (p. 1). Whereas the sages of the Talmud placed greater emphasis on creative midrash used to derive religious law, Jewish interpreters of the Middle Ages gave increasing attention to peshat exegesis. This medieval interpretive trend was often supported with a saying from the Talmud: “a biblical verse does not leave the realm of its peshat” (Cohen calls this “the peshat maxim”). Some modern scholars, starting with a clearly defined concept of the peshat sense (e.g., “what the text really says”), have described the growth of peshat exegesis as a linear progression from early, imperfect efforts (e.g., Rashi) to genuine, consistent peshat interpretation (e.g., Rashbam). In The Rule of Peshat, Mordechai Cohen argues for a more nuanced account of...