There are hundreds of verses throughout the Bible that imply a Divine body.
This simple interpretation gradually shifted to become metaphoric.
Many commentaries, including Philo, Onkelos and Rav Sa’adia Gaon interpret those verses metaphorically.
Rambam (Maimonides) goes further and states that anyone who believes G-d has a body is a heretic.
Ra’avad, Ramban and Ohr Zarua defend those who believe G-d has a body, claiming that although the belief is mistaken, it is not heretical.
However, there certainly were rabbis, particularly in medieval France, who believed it was heretical to deny that G-d could have a body. The most explicit proponent of this view was Rav Moshe Taku, though it is implicit in several of Rashi’s commentaries.
As we all know, Rambam won. All Jews believe in the incorporeality of G-d.
However, a parallel paradigm shift began in the 13th century, where kabbalists used terminology of a Divine Body to explain their spiritual ideas. These physical descriptions of G-d are also part of modern Judaism, from Uncle Moishe to Anim Zemirot.
