Ever since the unbelieving and naturalistic Higher Critics began their attacks on the Torah in the 19th century, people have been deceived into believing that Moses did not write the first five books of the Bible (the Pentateuch). Or that he wrote only some of the Torah.
The Higher Critics claimed that (1) the Torah was written long after Moses, (2) Moses was not the writer of the Torah, (3) the writers were a bunch of redactors (J,E,D,P), and (4) the Torah is a hodge-podge of human writings, not the inspired Word of God.
“THE Higher Criticism has been of late so associated with extravagant theorizing, and with insidious attacks upon the genuineness and credibility of the books of the Bible that the very term has become an offence to serious minds. It has come to be considered one of the most dangerous forms of infidelity, and in its very nature hostile to revealed truth. And it must be confessed that in the hands of those who are unfriendly to supernatural religion it has proved a potent weapon in the interest of unbelief. Nor has the use made of it by those who, while claiming to be evangelical critics, accept and defend the revolutionary conclusions of the antisupernaturalists, tended to remove the discredit into which it has fallen.”
THE HIGHER CRITICISM OF THE PENTATEUCH by William Henry Green (1895)
1. THE JEWS HAVE ALWAYS UPHELD THE MOSAIC AUTHORSHIP OF THE TORAH
Since the Jews have held (and still hold) the Torah in the highest esteem, Christians need to know and understand that they have always believed that Moses wrote the Torah in its entirety.
'Jewish tradition holds that "Moses received the Torah from Sinai," yet there is also an ancient tradition that the Torah existed in heaven not only before God revealed it to Moses, but even before the world was created... In the Bible, the Torah is referred to both as the "Torah of the Lord" and as the "Torah of Moses," and is said to be given as an inheritance to the congregation of Jacob- the Jewish people. Its purpose seems to be to make Israel "a kingdom of priests and a holy nation."... It was one of the very few real dogmas of rabbinic theology that the Torah is from heaven; i.e., the Torah in its entirety was revealed by God. According to biblical stories, Moses ascended into heaven to capture the Torah from the angels....'
The Written Law - Torah
Although the Bible does not say that Moses ascended to heaven to capture the Torah, that idea actually confirms the fact that Moses received the Torah from God.
II. JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY FOR CHRISTIANS, AND HE SAID THAT MOSES WROTE THE TORAH
'It is universally conceded that this was the traditional opinion among the Jews. To this the New Testament bears the most abundant and explicit testimony. The Pentateuch is by our Lord called "the book of Moses" (Mark xii. 26); when it is read and preached the apostles say that Moses is read (2 Cor. iii. 15) and preached (Acts xv. 21). The Pentateuch and the books of the prophets, which were read in the worship of the synagogue, are called both by our Lord (Luke xvi. 29, 31) and the evangelists (Luke xxiv. 27), "Moses and the prophets," or "the law of Moses and the prophets" (Luke xxiv. 44; Acts xxviii. 23). Of the injunctions of the Pentateuch not only do the Jews say, when addressing our Lord, "Moses commanded (John viii. 5), but our Lord repeatedly uses the same form of speech (Mat. viii. 4; xix. 7, 8; Mark i. 44; x. 3; Luke v. 14), as testified by three of the evangelists. Of the law in general he says, “Moses gave the law” (John vii. 19), and the evangelist echoes "the law was given by Moses" (John i. 17). And that Moses was not only the author of the law, but committed its precepts to writing, is affirmed by the Jews (Mark xii. 19), and also by our Lord (Mark x. 5), who further speaks of him as writing predictions respecting himself (John v. 46, 47), and also traces a narrative in the Pentateuchal history to him (Mark xii. 26).'
THE HIGHER CRITICISM OF THE PENTATEUCH by William Henry Green (1895)
"THE BOOK OF MOSES"
And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? (Mark 12:26)
Why did Jesus say “the book of Moses” when He was quoting from Exodus 3? Because the Torah is one scroll or book which contains all five books (Genesis –Deuteronomy). And since He explicitly called it "the scroll of Moses", that should settle the matter. And Paul confirmed this understanding of the Torah as one scroll or book, as did James, and simply called it “Moses”: But even unto this day, when Moses is read [in the synagogues], the vail is upon their heart. (2 Cor 3:15)... For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day. (Acts 15:21)
“MOSES AND THE PROPHETS”
Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them... And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.(Lk 16:29,31)
Here Abraham summed up the entire Tanakh (Old Testament) as “Moses and the Prophets”. He could have said “The Torah and the Prophets” but he explicitly said “Moses and the Prophets”. But Jesus used the same phrase as Abraham: And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. (Lk 24:27)
“THE LAW OF MOSES”
And he [the Lord Jesus Christ] said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. (Lk 24:44)
While in the previous passages the entire Tanakh was summed up as “Moses and the Prophets”, on this verse the Lord gave us the exact three major divisions of the Hebrew Bible: (1) TORAH (the Law of Moses = 5 books), (2) NEVIIM (the Prophets = 8 books), and (3) KETUVIM (the Psalms or Writings = 11 books) which is a total of 24 books. Once again, the Pentateuch is simply called “the Law of Moses” since the writer was Moses.
If Christians (particularly Catholics) reject the words of Christ in this matter, they may as well reject the whole New Testament. The same applies to those who refuse to believe that Moses wrote the Torah.
The Higher Critics claimed that (1) the Torah was written long after Moses, (2) Moses was not the writer of the Torah, (3) the writers were a bunch of redactors (J,E,D,P), and (4) the Torah is a hodge-podge of human writings, not the inspired Word of God.
“THE Higher Criticism has been of late so associated with extravagant theorizing, and with insidious attacks upon the genuineness and credibility of the books of the Bible that the very term has become an offence to serious minds. It has come to be considered one of the most dangerous forms of infidelity, and in its very nature hostile to revealed truth. And it must be confessed that in the hands of those who are unfriendly to supernatural religion it has proved a potent weapon in the interest of unbelief. Nor has the use made of it by those who, while claiming to be evangelical critics, accept and defend the revolutionary conclusions of the antisupernaturalists, tended to remove the discredit into which it has fallen.”
THE HIGHER CRITICISM OF THE PENTATEUCH by William Henry Green (1895)
1. THE JEWS HAVE ALWAYS UPHELD THE MOSAIC AUTHORSHIP OF THE TORAH
Since the Jews have held (and still hold) the Torah in the highest esteem, Christians need to know and understand that they have always believed that Moses wrote the Torah in its entirety.
'Jewish tradition holds that "Moses received the Torah from Sinai," yet there is also an ancient tradition that the Torah existed in heaven not only before God revealed it to Moses, but even before the world was created... In the Bible, the Torah is referred to both as the "Torah of the Lord" and as the "Torah of Moses," and is said to be given as an inheritance to the congregation of Jacob- the Jewish people. Its purpose seems to be to make Israel "a kingdom of priests and a holy nation."... It was one of the very few real dogmas of rabbinic theology that the Torah is from heaven; i.e., the Torah in its entirety was revealed by God. According to biblical stories, Moses ascended into heaven to capture the Torah from the angels....'
The Written Law - Torah
Although the Bible does not say that Moses ascended to heaven to capture the Torah, that idea actually confirms the fact that Moses received the Torah from God.
II. JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY FOR CHRISTIANS, AND HE SAID THAT MOSES WROTE THE TORAH
'It is universally conceded that this was the traditional opinion among the Jews. To this the New Testament bears the most abundant and explicit testimony. The Pentateuch is by our Lord called "the book of Moses" (Mark xii. 26); when it is read and preached the apostles say that Moses is read (2 Cor. iii. 15) and preached (Acts xv. 21). The Pentateuch and the books of the prophets, which were read in the worship of the synagogue, are called both by our Lord (Luke xvi. 29, 31) and the evangelists (Luke xxiv. 27), "Moses and the prophets," or "the law of Moses and the prophets" (Luke xxiv. 44; Acts xxviii. 23). Of the injunctions of the Pentateuch not only do the Jews say, when addressing our Lord, "Moses commanded (John viii. 5), but our Lord repeatedly uses the same form of speech (Mat. viii. 4; xix. 7, 8; Mark i. 44; x. 3; Luke v. 14), as testified by three of the evangelists. Of the law in general he says, “Moses gave the law” (John vii. 19), and the evangelist echoes "the law was given by Moses" (John i. 17). And that Moses was not only the author of the law, but committed its precepts to writing, is affirmed by the Jews (Mark xii. 19), and also by our Lord (Mark x. 5), who further speaks of him as writing predictions respecting himself (John v. 46, 47), and also traces a narrative in the Pentateuchal history to him (Mark xii. 26).'
THE HIGHER CRITICISM OF THE PENTATEUCH by William Henry Green (1895)
"THE BOOK OF MOSES"
And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? (Mark 12:26)
Why did Jesus say “the book of Moses” when He was quoting from Exodus 3? Because the Torah is one scroll or book which contains all five books (Genesis –Deuteronomy). And since He explicitly called it "the scroll of Moses", that should settle the matter. And Paul confirmed this understanding of the Torah as one scroll or book, as did James, and simply called it “Moses”: But even unto this day, when Moses is read [in the synagogues], the vail is upon their heart. (2 Cor 3:15)... For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day. (Acts 15:21)
“MOSES AND THE PROPHETS”
Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them... And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.(Lk 16:29,31)
Here Abraham summed up the entire Tanakh (Old Testament) as “Moses and the Prophets”. He could have said “The Torah and the Prophets” but he explicitly said “Moses and the Prophets”. But Jesus used the same phrase as Abraham: And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. (Lk 24:27)
“THE LAW OF MOSES”
And he [the Lord Jesus Christ] said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. (Lk 24:44)
While in the previous passages the entire Tanakh was summed up as “Moses and the Prophets”, on this verse the Lord gave us the exact three major divisions of the Hebrew Bible: (1) TORAH (the Law of Moses = 5 books), (2) NEVIIM (the Prophets = 8 books), and (3) KETUVIM (the Psalms or Writings = 11 books) which is a total of 24 books. Once again, the Pentateuch is simply called “the Law of Moses” since the writer was Moses.
If Christians (particularly Catholics) reject the words of Christ in this matter, they may as well reject the whole New Testament. The same applies to those who refuse to believe that Moses wrote the Torah.
Last edited: