that would suggest that a degree of order had been introduced into the chaos!4 It is then with this issue of the structural unity and integrity of Deuteronomy that the present investigation is concerned. The question resolves itself into one of literary genre and Sitz im Leben. We believe it can be shown that what Mendenhall tentatively suggested concerning biblical history and law in general is certainly true in the case of Deuteronomy: “… the literary criticism of the past has been proceeding with
Page 28