MOSES, IS HE THE AUTHOR OF THE PENTATEUCH?

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I) INTRODUCTION

II) INTERNAL EVIDENCE

A) WITNESS OF THE PENTATEUCH

1) THE BOOK OF THE COVENANT:

a) [EX 24:4, 7]:

2) RENEWAL OF THE COVENANT

a) [Ex 34:27 referring to Exodus 34:10-26]:

3) DEUTERONOMIC CODE

a) [Dt 31:9]:

b) [Dt 31:24-26]:

4) GOD'S JUDGMENT OF AMALEK

a) [Ex 17:14]:

5) ITINERARY OF ISRAELITES FROM RAMSES TO MOAB

a) [Nu 33:2]:

6) THE SONG OF MOSES IN DEUTERONOMY 32

B) THE TERM 'HAVING WRITTEN' SIGNIFIES AUTHORSHIP AND DOES NOT NECESSARILY MEAN ONE HAS ACTUALLY PENNED THE WORDS

C) THE LEGAL DOCUMENTS IN THESE PASSAGES ATTRIBUTE THEIR AUTHORSHIP TO MOSES IN EITHER THE SUPERSCRIPTION OR SUBSCRIPTION:

1) EXODUS

2) LEVITICUS

3) NUMBERS

4) DEUTERONOMY

D) MOSES CERTAINLY WAS IN A POSITION TO WRITE THE PENTATEUCH

1) INTRODUCTION

a) [Acts 7:22]:

2) MOSES' QUALIFICATIONS

a) EDUCATION

b) TRADITION

c) GEOGRAPHICAL FAMILIARITY

d) MOTIVATION

e) TIME

f) CONCLUSION

B) WITNESS OF THE OTHER OLD TESTAMENT BOOKS

1) OLD TESTAMENT VERSES RECORD THAT THE TORAH OF 'THE LAW' WAS FROM MOSES AND NOT SIMPLY AN ORAL TRADITION BUT AN ACTUAL WRITTEN 'LAW OF MOSES'

a) Joshua 8:32 speaks of "The Law of Moses, which he had written."

b) Joshua 1:7, 8*; 8:31*, 34*; 23:6*

c) 1 Kings 2:3*

d) 2 Kings 14:6*; 23:25

e) 1 Chronicles 22:13

f) 2 Chronicles 5:10; 23:18*; 25:4*; 30:16; 33:8; 34:14; 35:12*

g) Ezra 3:2; 6:18; 7:6

h) Nehemiah 1:7, 8; 8:1*, 14*; 9:14; 10:29; 13:1*

i) Daniel 9:11, 13*

j) Malachi 4:4

C) WITNESS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT

1) INTRODUCTION

2) VERSES WHICH REFER TO MOSAIC AUTHORSHIP OF THE LAW

a) [Mk 12:19]:

b) [Jn 1:17]:

c) [Rom 10:5]:

d) [Luke 2:22; 20:28]

e) [John 1:45; 8:5; 9:29]

f) [Acts 3:22; 6:14; 13:39; 15:1, 21; 26:22; 28:23]

g) [1 Cor 9:9]

h) [2 Cor 3:15]

i) Heb 9:19

j) Rev 15:3

3) VERSES WHICH RECORD THAT JESUS BELIEVED THE TORAH TO BE FROM MOSES

a) MARK 7:10; 10:3-5; 12:26

b) LUKE 5:14; 16:29-31; 24:27, 44

c) JOHN 7:19, 23

d) JOHN 5:45-47

4) CONCLUSION

III) EXTERNAL EVIDENCE

A) JEWISH TRADITION

1) INTRODUCTION

2) ECCLESIASTICUS, ONE OF THE BOOKS OF THE APOCRYPHA WHICH WAS WRITTEN ABOUT 180 B.C., GIVES THIS WITNESS TO MOSES' AUTHORSHIP

3) THE TALMUD AND THE MISHNAH ATTRIBUTE THE TORAH TO MOSES

4) PHILO HELD TO MOSAIC AUTHORSHIP

5) FLAVIUS JOSEPHUS TESTIFIES TO MOSAIC AUTHORSHIP

B) EARLY CHRISTIAN TRADITION

1) JUNILIUS

2) LEONTIUS OF BYZANTIUM

3) OTHER CHURCH FATHERS

4) OTHER EVIDENCE FROM THE EARLY CHURCH

IV) ANSWERS TO OBJECTIONS TO MOSES BEING THE AUTHOR.

A) THE STYLE OF DEUTERONOMY IS TOO DIFFERENT FROM THE OTHER BOOKS OF THE PENTATEUCH TO HAVE BEEN WRITTEN BY THE SAME AUTHOR.

B) THE PHRASE "BEYOND THE JORDAN" IN DEUTERONOMY INDICATES THAT THE BOOK WAS WRITTEN IN AN AREA THAT MOSES DID NOT LIVE IN

C) THE PHRASE "UNTIL THIS DAY"... INDICATES A GREAT LAPSE OF TIME [THUS RULING OUT MOSES AS AUTHOR]

D) THE ACCOUNT OF MOSES' DEATH COULD NOT HAVE BEEN WRITTEN BY MOSES, THEREFORE DEUTERONOMY WAS NOT WRITTEN BY MOSES

E) CERTAIN TERMS IN LEVITICUS PUT THE BOOK'S DATE AFTER THE TIME THAT MOSES LIVED

1) ishsheh - "offering made by fire"

2) kalil - "whole burnt offering"

3) shelamin - "peace offering"

4) asham(?) - "guilt offering"

F) OBJECTORS TO MOSES' AUTHORSHIP POINT TO SUPPOSED DIFFERENCES IN LANGUAGE AND STYLE AND REFERENCES TO CUSTOMS AND CULTURES WHICH THEY MAINTAIN RULE MOSES OUT IN FAVOR OF A NUMBER OF UNKNOWN AUTHORS

EXCERPT FROM GENESIS CHAPTER ONE STUDY:

4) DIFFERENCES IN STYLE DO NOT SIGNIFY DIFFERENT AUTHORS BUT A CHANGE IN FOCUS AND CONTEXT. OTHER DIFFERENCES ARE IMAGINARY.

5) NAMES FOR GOD DIFFERING BETWEEN CHAPTERS ONE AND TWO INDICATE A CONTEXT CHANGE NOT A CHANGE IN AUTHORS

6) IMAGINARY CONTRADICTIONS DISSOLVE BEFORE A CLOSE ANALYSIS OF THE TEXT AND CONTEXT

a) CRITICS CLAIM CONTRADICTION: GEN 1: A WATERY BEGINNING VS GEN 2: A Dry LAND BEGINNING

b) CRITICS CLAIM THAT THERE ARE DIFFERENT SEQUENCES OF CREATION BETWEEN CHAPTERS ONE AND TWO IS ANSWERED

G) THE CULTURE OF MOSES WAS FALSELY CLAIMED NOT TO BE ADVANCED ENOUGH TO ATTRIBUTE MOSES AS THE AUTHOR OF GENESIS OR ANY OF THE PENTATEUCH

V) FOOTNOTES

A) MCDOWELL FOOTNOTES

B) MORRIS FOOTNOTES: