text · B0015
Sefer Yehoshua ספר יהושע
The first book of Nevi'im — the conquest and division of the Land under Moshe's successor. In the tradition's own account of how Scripture was written, this is the first book after the Torah itself: the baraita of Bava Batra has Yehoshua write his own book (and the Torah's last eight verses), with the very last lines — his own death — finished by the hands that outlived him, Elazar and then Pinchas. The written Torah's library begins assembling within one lifetime of Moshe.
I. Who
- Hebrew
- ספר יהושע
- Also known as
- Yehoshua, Joshua, Book of Joshua
- Era
- bible
II. When
- Traditional
- written down by Yehoshua himself, c. 2488–2516 AM, per Bava Batra 14b–15a; his closing verses finished by Elazar and Pinchas
- Academic
- part of the Deuteronomistic History; composition and redaction dated between the late monarchy and the exilic period
- Duration
- ≈28 years
- Precision
- approximate
IV. What
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
V. How do we know
| Claim | Evidence | Confidence | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Yehoshua wrote his book and the eight verses of the Torah" (יהושע כתב ספרו ושמונה פסוקים שבתורה) — the baraita of Bava Batra assigning the book to Yehoshua himself. | rabbinic | ★★★★☆ | |
| The Gemara asks how Yehoshua could have written "and Yehoshua son of Nun, servant of Hashem, died," and answers that Elazar finished it (דאסקיה אלעזר) — and Elazar's own death notice was finished by Pinchas. Even the tradition's model of single authorship has the book completed by others after the writer's death. | rabbinic | ★★★★☆ | |
| The book's own text reports Yehoshua writing: "and Yehoshua wrote these words in the book of the Torah of God" (Yehoshua 24:26).
Confidence is for what the biblical text states about itself. |
biblical | ★★★★★ | |
| Timeline placement c. 2488–2516 AM — Yehoshua's years of leadership after Moshe's death, ending at his own death per the traditional chronology; the span is schematic. | tradition reconstruction | ★★★☆☆ |