▁Bible ▁professor ▁Benjamin ▁D . ▁Sommer ▁says ▁it ▁is ▁" am ong ▁the ▁most ▁precise ▁and ▁detailed ▁comment aries ▁on ▁the ▁legal ▁texts ▁[ Le v it icus ▁and ▁De uter onomy ] ▁ever ▁written ." ▁Ye he zk el ▁Kauf mann ▁was ▁the ▁first ▁Jewish ▁scholar ▁to ▁appreciate ▁fully ▁the ▁import ▁of ▁higher ▁criticism . ▁Mor de ch ai ▁Bre uer , ▁who ▁branches ▁out ▁beyond ▁most ▁Jewish ▁ex eg esis ▁and ▁expl ores ▁the ▁imp lications ▁of ▁historical ▁criticism ▁for ▁multiple ▁subjects , ▁is ▁an ▁example ▁of ▁a ▁contemporary ▁Jewish ▁bib lic al ▁critical ▁scholar . ▁▁ ▁Contempor ary ▁methods ▁▁ ▁So cio - s cient ific ▁criticism ▁is ▁part ▁of ▁the ▁wider ▁tr end ▁in ▁bib lic al ▁criticism ▁reflect ing ▁inter dis cipl inary ▁methods ▁and ▁divers ity . ▁It ▁grew ▁out ▁of ▁form ▁criticism ' s ▁Sitz ▁im ▁Leben ▁and ▁the ▁sense ▁that ▁historical ▁form ▁criticism ▁had ▁failed ▁to ▁ade qu ately ▁analyze ▁the ▁social ▁and ▁anth rop ological ▁context s ▁which ▁form ▁criticism ▁claimed ▁had ▁formed ▁the ▁texts . ▁Using ▁the ▁pers pect ives , ▁theories , ▁models , ▁and ▁research ▁of ▁the ▁social ▁sciences ▁to ▁determine ▁what ▁social ▁norm s ▁may ▁have ▁influenced ▁the ▁growth ▁of ▁bib lic al ▁tradition , ▁it ▁is ▁similar ▁to ▁historical ▁bib lic al ▁criticism ▁in ▁its ▁goals ▁and ▁methods . ▁It ▁has ▁less ▁in ▁common ▁with ▁literary ▁critical ▁approaches . ▁It ▁analy zes ▁the ▁social ▁and ▁cultural ▁dimensions ▁of ▁the ▁text ▁and ▁its ▁environmental ▁context . ▁ ▁In ▁the ▁