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While some people believe that Moses wrote everything in the Pentateuch except a handful of postmosaica, the postmosaica may only be the tip of the iceberg. contested questions in biblical scholarship. Astruc claimed that these name changes indicated different sources that Moses used. And there are others that would simply be awkward for Moses to write, which are referred to as amosaica (such as Numbers 12:4). Not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled (John 17:12=Psalm 109:8). Scholars disagree about whether each toledoth follows or precedes the text with which it is associated, though we are inclined to agree with those scholars who conclude the former. Furthermore, we have testimony from Jesus himself that Moses wrote these books. This will refute any attempt of claiming that Muhammad was the prophet that Moses predicted. This is simply astonishing. Verse Concepts. This oral version of Genesis goes all the way back to roughly 2000 BC in Mesopotamia. In this post I will cite the texts where it is clearly stated that Jesus is the One whom Moses, as well as the rest of the prophets, spoke and wrote of. A witness gives firsthand evidence. Along with other documentation mentioned in the book, such as the account of Terah, the account of Noah, etc. Table 1. . One complaint about the Genesis account of creation is that the first five books of the Bible, known collectively as the Pentateuch ("five-volumed book"), could not possibly have been written by Moses. Regardless, the eleven uses of toledoth unite the book as a history of the key events and people from Creation to the time of Moses. It is possible that Rachel was already aware of that name (Dan), as it meant "judge," and used it for the son of her handmaiden (Genesis 30:6). And then explains it in terms of being personally taught by the Father. John 1:45 Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. . The attack on the Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch is nothing less than an attack on the veracity, reliability, and authority of the Word of Almighty God. First, other biblical authors, including Joshua, Ezra, Daniel, and Paul, point squarely to Moses . In this final post on the issue of the Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch, I want to examine a couple items in the New Testament. Next come 13 letters traditionally attributed to the Apostle Paul, who wrote the greatest number of New Testament books. The theme of the entire Bible is Christ. Selected passages confirming Mosaic authorship. . . Most of the authorship of Scripture goes uncontested. Though modern editors do this usually in a footnote, we cannot demand the same literary convention be applied to the ancient editors. . In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus claimed to be interpreting God's Torah according to its original intent, as God handed it to Moses. . The Documentary Hypothesis: Moses, Genesis, and the JEDP? For some, orthodoxy simply suggests that Moses wrote the whole Pentateuch, perhaps with the exception of postmosaica passages such as Genesis 11:28 and 14:14 and amosaica passage such as Numbers 12:4. Facts, however, say otherwise. Abraham was promised by God that his seed would bless all nations. (Deuteronomy 18:15 The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy . You know neither me nor my Father.. .. Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. Jesus had met Abraham in Genesis 12 and 15, and in Exodus 3:13-17. They assumed that the Bible is not a supernatural revelation from God and then manipulated the biblical text to arrive at that conclusion. The Spirit of Christ was directing him. For had ye beleeued Moses, ye would haue beleeued me: for he wrote of me. There are passages in Genesis that Moses could not have written, because they describe events that happened after his death, known as postmosaica passages. Among the authors used by God were those who actually walked with Jesus (Matthew, Peter, and John) and had seen Jesus in His post-resurrection form (St. Paul). Theirs was a "pick and choose" approach to studying the Bible, which is hardly honest scholarship in pursuit of truth. From there, we have the well-known story of the Great Flood, and the birth of the Israelite nation through Abraham. Such a claim is without warrant. Every culture, no matter how "primitive" (by our arrogant Western standards), teaches history to their children (how accurate that history may be is a separate question). Astruc also noticed that Elohim (the Hebrew name for God in Genesis 1:12:3) was used in Genesis 1, but then the text switches to Yahweh (Jehovah) in chapter 2. In other words, Gentiles who believe in Jesus the Messiah are included in the blessing of Abraham. Listen to the way John uses the word. In this case, Lot was Abraham's brother's son, i.e., Abraham's nephew. The Old Testament mentions him 767 times, making him one of the most prominent people in the Old Testament. Instead, it is claimed that at least four different authors (or groups of authors) wrote various portions of these books over many centuries and then one or more redactors (editors) over many years combined and interwove everything together into its present form. He believed Moses was the author of the Pentateuch, but he unlocked the door for the skepticism of later scholars. of Christians should believe God, rather than the fallible, sinful skeptics inside and outside the church who, in their intellectual arrogance, are consciously or unconsciously trying to undermine the Word so that they can justify in their own minds (but not before God) their rebellion against God. Genesis 1:1 "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.". "But regarding the fact that the dead rise again, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He doesnt argue that something happened. Initially, in his 1780 Introduction to the Old Testament, Eichhorn said that Moses copied previous texts. Moses is traditionally considered the author of Genesis. Lets close by looking at three of these. For a group that revered Scriptures so much and paid meticulous attention to the text when copying it, if Moses had not written the books, the Jewish people likely would not have held to such a strong tradition by saying he did. Answer. So the entire Old Testament is precious to Christians, because all Christians are counted by God as true Jewsbeneficiaries of all the promises made to the covenant people. Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it . The books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) were all written roughly 1,400 years before the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. read more. Test yourself and test others who claim to know God. 35 He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. First, Moses was qualified to write the books. That, that one there, yonder. John 10:35 is one of the most important references to the Scriptures in Johns Gospel because after referring to Psalm 82:6, Jesus says, Scripture cannot be broken. This is one of the strongest claims for the infallibility and inerrancy of the Bible in all of Scripture. Both Old Testament and New Testament. The Bible begins with these famous words in Genesis 1, laying the foundation for the rest of the Bible. Various sections of the Pentateuch are assigned to various authors who are identified by the letters J, E, D, and P. Hence, it is called the documentary hypothesis (or the JEDP model3). One of the major attacks on the Bible in the past 300 years has been directed against Moses and his authorship of the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament. Genesis 14:1415"Now when Abram heard that his brother19 was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained servants who were born in his own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. "You've heard it said, . I have come in my Fathers name, and you do not receive me. How does Jesus know that they dont love God? Wrote This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all . - King James Version (1611) - View 1611 Bible Scan "For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. What does the word witness imply? If we know God as he really is in the Old Testament, we know Jesus. He answers for himself, and reproves them, showing by the testimony of his Father, Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers, NT Gospels: John 5:46 For if you believed Moses you would (Jhn Jo Jn). However, most JEDP advocates would say that Moses had nothing to do with writing Genesis or the rest of the Pentateuch, which were written much later by many authors and editors. Ibn Ezra was a very influential Jewish rabbi in the twelfth century AD. "He . While Abraham is Israel's ancestor, Moses is often considered its founder, for his role in establishing Israel as a . Demonstrative Pronoun - Nominative Masculine Singular. In the case of Deuteronomy, the author of the obituary of Moses was probably Joshua, a close associate of Moses who was chosen by God to lead the people of Israel into the Promised Land (for Moses was not allowed to because of his disobedience), and who was inspired by God to write the next book in the Old Testament. What Does It Really Mean That Your Body Is a Temple? . Its Hebrew name is the same as its first word, Bereshit ("In the beginning").Genesis is an account of the creation of the world, the early history of humanity, and of Israel's ancestors and the . These are the three implications. The following post is adapted from his series. Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. Many of his writings confirm the events in Genesis, writes Dr. Lisle for the Biblical Science Institute. In John 6, Jesus reminded the Jews that their fathers had eaten manna in the wilderness (Exodus 16:15) and then applied it to himself and said, For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world (John 6:33). In addition, when the heavens . So we have indirect allusions, direct quotes to show specific fulfillments, and we have statements, like in chapter 12, that show the whole Old Testament revelation of God is a revelation of Jesus. It was Moses who wrote where the allotments would be! (Only David. A primary particle of conditionality; if, whether, that, etc. So what does it mean when John calls the Old Testament Scriptures a witness to Jesus? Does this mean that Moses wrote Genesis without reference to any previous information? Would this be a problem for Moses? So it is perfectly reasonable to think that Moses wrote Genesis from pre-existing, well-preserved oral tradition and/or written documents from the . Listen to the audio version of this content. Jesus said (to fulfill the Scripture), I thirst (John 19:28=Psalm 69:21). 43 I have come in my Fathers name, and you do not receive me. Favorite Verses in Genesis. From the base of peran; properly, through, i.e. But this does bring forth the question: how would Moses know all of these things? Dictation was one means employed, very often in the prophetic books (e.g., the prophet says, "The Word of the Lord came to me saying"). Besides using the verses noted by Ibn Ezra, Spinoza offered a few other brief arguments against Mosaic authorship which were easily answered by Christian writers in the following few decades.6. Astruc basically questioned, as others had before him, how Moses knew what happened prior to his own life, (i.e., the history recorded in Genesis). Surely translation errors must have seeped in. Privacy Policy and He is author of. You will have already known him. In 1802, Johann Vater insisted that Genesis was made from at least 39 fragments. And the LORD said to Moses, 'Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book." (Exodus 32:30-33) In order that Israel might be saved from the wrath of God, Moses stood ready to offer his own lifeto take the punishment of the people's sins on himself if God could find no other way to forgive them. Seminary courses, theology books, introductions to the Pentateuch in Bibles, and the secular media have promoted the man-made idea that Moses did not write the Pentateuch (also known as the Law or Torah). But the Fathers did not explain how Moses wrote it, other than to assert that he was inspired by God. But by the end of the nineteenth century liberal scholars had reached general agreement. Salem Media Group. This is a good place for this focus because twice in this passage Jesus says that the Old Testament Scriptures are written about him. We can answer this question in a number of ways. Jesus said in John 5:4243, But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. In the New Testament, when quoting the Pentateuch, people often spoke of Moses being the author. Modern source criticism, because of its late dating of the Genesis sources abandoned this traditional view. Heres the assumption behind these three implications, which are very controversial in a pluralistic, relativistic, religious world like ours. More than 1400 of her works have been featured in various publications. Luke 16:16. Your form could not be submitted. Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. This means that the way the Old Testament gets people ready to know Jesus is not merely by specific prophecies that have specific fulfillments in Jesus (like being born in Bethlehem), but far more profoundly, the point is: If you meet God, and know God, and admire God, and trust God, and are shaped by God as he truly reveals himself and his ways in the whole of the Old Testament, then when Jesus comes, you will know him. A similar obituary of Joshua was added by an inspired editor to the end of Joshua's book (Joshua 24:2933). For more on this topic, see Henry Morris, The record of Esau's descendants contains a. Share This Verse: When Moses came on the scene, God revealed to him what really happened, and this is what Moses wrote down. 3. But, perhaps the most convincing passage of all is found in John 5:46-47 where Jesus said: "For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. Four of them are Greek words, and one of them, Numbers, is a Latin word. But how do we know this? Moses was the adopted son of the daughter of Pharaoh. The first five books of the BibleGenesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomyare commonly referred to as the "five books of Moses.". Traditions attributes the Book of Genesis to Moses, but this is a view that few scholars would now support. Consider the following: Exodus 17:14 "Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it . Moses began writing about JESUS in Genesis 1:1. In John 1:34, John the Baptist says, I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God. In John 3:11, Jesus says, We speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen. John 3:32 says, He bears witness to what he has seen and heard. And John 19:35 says, He who saw it has borne witness.. 39 You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. Then from chapter 13 to the end of the book, John pours it on to show that almost every detail of Jesus redeeming work was planned by God and witnessed in Scripture. In Exodus 33:17, the Lord said to Moses directly, "I know thee by name.". But he was, and that too pointed to his truth. These books are named for their intended recipientswhether groups or individuals: Romans, 1 and 2 . But what about Genesis? It's not far-fetched to think Moses wrote the account of his own death and burial, particularly since God revealed his word and works to Moses (Ps. In the minds of the Jewish people, "Scepter" was . Therefore, it is the united testimony of the New Testament that Jesus was the Prophet that Moses said would come. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words? If You Believed Moses, You Would Believe Me, for He Wrote of Me, If You Believed Moses, You Would Believe Me, for He Wrote of Me (Excerpt), John Piper is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. Learn more in Tremper Longman's video series on the book of Genesis . For all of them witness to him and speak of him. (John 1:1, 14). Jimmy Akin 1/1/2013. 45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. That was Jesus view. Evidence for Mosaic Authorship of the Torah. Several other books of the Pentateuch include passages that mention Moses recording events and writing down what God says. 103:7). The postmosaica indicate that there were also editorial additions. How was Moses able to read pre-Tower of Babel texts? Other New Testament speakers/writers said the same thing, e.g. For had you believed Moses, you would have believed me; for he wrote of me. The biblical doctrine of the inspiration of Scripture does not require us to conclude that all the books of the Bible were written by God dictating to the human authors. One of the major attacks on the Bible in the past 300 years has been directed against Moses and his authorship of the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament (GenesisDeuteronomy). We can now see more clearly the special way in which God inspired . As stated before, most scholars attribute the authorship of Genesis and the other first four books of the Old Testament known as the Pentateuch to Moses. Matthew 19:8). They still do not necessarily mean that Moses wrote every word, but they do imply a belief that Moses had an integral connection with the composition of the Pentateuch. Get updates from Zondervan Academic directly in your inbox. At most Jesus admits that through Moses came this com-mandment. Yet John also reveals that this came earlierin Genesis, with Abraham. According to Jesus, that sixth day of creation was "from the beginning," a phrase we hear a number of times in the New Testament. As yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead (John 20:9=Psalm 16:10). The majority of biblical scholars have attributed the authorship of Genesis to Moses, but this has not gone without contest, especially from documentary hypothesis theorists. For example, the disciples, referring to Deuteronomy 24:14, questioned Jesus, Why then, they asked, did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away? (Matthew 19:7). John 12:3741 is an amazing window onto how Jesus viewed the Jewish Scriptures. So when John says about the Scriptures in 5:39, It is they that bear witness about me, he means that God knew Jesus perfectly and fullyas it were face to faceand that he inspired these Scriptures, and through the Scriptures revealed Jesus. Does It Really Matter If Moses Wrote Genesis? Still, there are good reasons to co. There is no forgiveness of sin without the shedding of . Galatians 3:10,13,24 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them, Galatians 4:21-31 Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? Scripture was divinely inspired. 500 BC). Reared by his faithful parents in his earliest days, Moses was eventually brought to the court of Pharaoh. These are stellar confirmations by Jesus that Moses is the true and only writer of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Mark also recorded a conversation Jesus had with the Pharisees regarding what "Moses permitted" and "wrote" in Deuteronomy chapter 24 (Mark 10:3-5; cf. In either case, we know the book is about 3,000 plus years old. Most people in the world have no experience of lasting joy in their lives. Genesis follows humanity through creation and humanitys descent into sin (Genesis 3). Jesus said, "He who hears My word, and . Novum Testamentum in Vetere latet, Vetus Testamentum in Novo patet. Matthew 16:21 indicates that Jesus knew . There is also the fact that since the Israelites were never enslaved in Egypt and there was no Exodus, then there is no historical place for a Moses. My thoughts were: And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel. He refers to Isaiah 54:13, It is written in the Prophets, And they will all be taught by God. Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. So the prophets point to how people will come to the Messiah, Jesus. John 5:46. And Jews who dont believe in Jesus are excluded from the blessings of Abraham. These postmosaica establish a principle that later inspired editors/redactors can contribute to the writing of the Pentateuch. 1.He Was Qualified. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. Liberal Bible scholars allegedly based their theories on evidence from the Biblical text and yet they evaded the Biblical evidence that refutes their theories. And there are no ancient Jewish commentaries that mention any of these imaginary documents or their alleged unnamed authors. I, the first-person pronoun. All Rights Reserved. So did God create the world in a literal six days or a symbolic six days? The chart below shows that the Pentateuch states that Moses wrote these books: We also have the witness of the rest of the Old Testament: The New Testament is also clear in its testimony: They assumed their conclusion. As Paul says in Romans 3:4,"Let God be true and every man a liar.". In essence, John is saying: Where God is manifest in the Old Testament, Jesus is manifest. Several sources, or literary traditions, that the final redactor used in his composition are discernable. Wellhausen put dates to the alleged four sources and none were earlier than around 900 BC.10 As noted Old Testament scholar, Gleason Archer remarks, "Although Wellhausen contributed no innovations to speak of, he restated the documentary theory with great skill and persuasiveness, supporting the JEDP sequence upon an evolutionary basis."11.