which are scattered through the pentateuchal law codes, the Psalms and the Wisdom literature. These originated at different times and in different circles, so it is not at all certain that they have the same ethical outlook as each other or as the narrative texts, but given the sparsity of information on some aspects of thought we shall assume homogeneity of outlook if heterogeneity is not demonstrable. Notwithstanding the critical problems of potentially different ethical standards in different