Biblical interpretation by the Tannaim and the Amoraim, which may be best designated as scholarly interpretations of the Midrash, was a product of natural growth and of great freedom in the treatment of the words of the Bible. However, it proved an obstacle to further development when, endowed with the authority of a sacred tradition in the Talmud and in the Midrash (collections edited subsequently to the Talmud), it became the sole source for the interpretation of the Bible among later generations. Traditional literature contains explanations that are in harmony with the wording and the context. It reflects evidence of linguistic sense, judgment, and an insight into the peculiarities and difficulties of the biblical text. But side by side with these elements of a natural and simple Bible exegesis, of value even today, the traditional literature contains an even larger mass of expositions removed from the actual meaning of the text.