I think, Scott, that we have to take the Bible as a whole, and not allow ourselves to be drawn away by “proof texts” that don’t in fact prove anything.
My own personal take is that the Pentateuch was compiled, perhaps partially written, and edited together from at least four sources, at some point toward the end of the Babylonian Captivity – possibly by Ezra with extensive assistance from Jeremiah (from what I’ve read). This makes sense to me. A compilation of family stories including creation myth (containing truths too great to convey in prose) and other myth, as well as period history (that is, written in a heroic – read hyperbolic – fashion), an adaptation of the Code of Hammurabi written by Moses, and an eking out of the religious and civic code of a new nation. Jesus did say, “Moses gave you this law because of your hardness of heart . . .” MOSES GAVE – not “My Father gave.” The laws of Moses are, I’m told, far more equitable and far more gentle 
than other law codes of the day. Moses was probably worried that they would be rejected because they were too lenient concerning people whom the more powerful would think should be treated with greater harshness. In practice, it is, I’m told, doubtful that the many horrific penalties prescribed were carried out – rather, payments would customarily be made between parties to settle the matter. That’s the way it’s still done today in the Middle East. Remember, it is the land of “The mother of all battles!!!” It’s also the origin of the eastern European people (the Russians) so famed for their mad passion. 
The people needed the sacrificial system, btw, not God. Later in the OT, we read over and over that God did and does not desire sacrifice and offering, but rather obedience and mercy.
I guess by now you’re suspecting that I don’t believe in the every word (plenary) type of inspiration.
One thing that led me to this was my own experiences in learning to hear the voice of God. I will write down what I believe I “hear” from Him, and mostly it’s great stuff. I love reading back over it – it’s always a blessing to me, and frequently to others as well. It’s a funny thing though. You can tell it was me who wrote it. It’s in my style, using my vocabulary, my knowledge of the earth, nature, people, etc. When you read Ezekiel or Isaiah or Daniel or Jeremiah or David or Hezekiah, or John, etc., you can tell their styles, too. I could reword what I’ve written (and sometimes I do) to make it clearer, without doing any disservice to God, who inspired me. If I go through and I think, “This doesn’t really feel right to me,” I’ll give it closer scrutiny and often I’ll end up blacking it out because I just don’t believe that bit (though it might be good enough in its own right) is inspired.
I can’t help thinking that I’m not all that different from the men who wrote the scriptures. Sure, I’ll easily allow they’re more mystical, more dedicated, closer to God, better at hearing His words (or they wouldn’t be in the scriptures), but at the foundation, we’re the same – just people who love God trying to hear what He’s got to say to us. Sometimes I get it wrong. I can tell because I don’t sense the Spirit there. But probably there’s stuff in my journals that I HAVEN’T detected as wrong, that I ought to have blacked out. Or maybe just stuff that doesn’t apply for anyone else but me. That’s okay. I know this is not the pure elixir of the words of God dropping like honey from my lips. It’s filtered through my mortality, my foolish heart, my oft-mistaken understanding. Take it with a very large helping of wisdom. We should do the same with the scriptures, IMO. Even those guys can get it wrong now and then, especially if their whole culture tells them a certain thing, and what they’re truly hearing is contrary to that.
Beyond the possibility of mistaken hearing, we have the culture gap, the time gap, the language gap. On top of that, we in the west want to read things literally that would cause any easterner (modern or ancient) to laugh at us. How silly. Locusts with the hair of women and the faces of men, wearing crowns on their heads, with the sting of a scorpion in their tails? Really? Don’t you know that symbolizes . . . . . . Well no – actually we don’t. And some of us don’t even believe it symbolizes ANYTHING. We’re looking to see those creepy locusts (biting the other guy, of course!)
Jesus sent us His Holy Spirit to help us and to teach us and remind us of all the things we need to know. Just as I need to rely on the HS to critique the things I write in my journals, I also need help to understand and apply the scriptures correctly. In addition, having an army of linguists, culture experts, historians, etc. at my fingertips is a WONDERFUL boon. Ultimately of course, I still need HS to help me weed through them, too.
But scripture is a wonderful thing. We do need to use our God-given reason when reading it, but that doesn’t lessen its beauty or its value. IMO, it increases it as we are forced not just to consume and obey, but to interact and discuss and seek out the truth.
I hope somewhere your questions are answered.
And why are we so insistent that it is this collection
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