Exodus and Deuteronomy are all written in the third person by Moses, never using I or me. Could it be that's a strong indication that Moses didn't write those books?
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Why Did Moses Write In The Third Person?
- Thread starter justlookinla
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He was recording history before it happened?
Deu 34:5 So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD.
Deu 34:6 And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Bethpeor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day.
Deu 34:7 And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated.
Deu 34:8 And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days: so the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended.
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ViaCrucis
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It's pretty unlikely that Moses wrote the Pentateuch. I personally think (based on my admittedly little understanding) the Documentary Hypothesis makes the most sense.
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Archie the Preacher
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The Pentateuch - the first five books of the Jewish Scriptures and the Christian Bible - are traditionally called the "Books of Moses". In Jewish tradition, they are ascribed to Moses. Christian tradition followed this belief and still does in large measure.
There are some other thoughts about when the texts were first written. I am intentionally going to leave them for another time.
I do NOT recall any passage in the set which records, "So the Lord told me (Moses) to record all these things..." or "The Lord directed Moses to prepare a history ..." However, the details of the Exodus account and desert travels imply a familiarity with the subject of a first person account.
I personally think Moses caused them to be written. I think the Lord inspired - either directly or indirectly I do not know - Moses to write them. The Israelites needed a history of their people. They had been slaves in Egypt for some 400 years and thought of themselves in that light. No doubt, they had some oral traditions of 'who' they were, but as a group, they needed the whole story.
The Lord wanted them to know Him. Who He was and why He was doing all this. The Lord also wanted the Israelites to know what He planned and what He expected from them.
But I doubt that Moses wrote every sentence by himself. I suppose in the forty years of trekking through the desert, Moses would have had enough 'spare time' to write it all. Still, I rather think Moses recruited a group of men who could write and assigned them certain sections to record. Moses then became the 'editor' who proof read and corrected the sections to correspond to what God inspired. I think God inspired the actual scribes to record what the Lord desired. The Lord certainly made sure it all came out the way He wanted it to read.
Also, in the writing and editing process (if such occurred), Moses understood the history was about the history of the Jewish people, the nation of Israel, and NOT about Moses.
There are some other thoughts about when the texts were first written. I am intentionally going to leave them for another time.
I do NOT recall any passage in the set which records, "So the Lord told me (Moses) to record all these things..." or "The Lord directed Moses to prepare a history ..." However, the details of the Exodus account and desert travels imply a familiarity with the subject of a first person account.
I personally think Moses caused them to be written. I think the Lord inspired - either directly or indirectly I do not know - Moses to write them. The Israelites needed a history of their people. They had been slaves in Egypt for some 400 years and thought of themselves in that light. No doubt, they had some oral traditions of 'who' they were, but as a group, they needed the whole story.
The Lord wanted them to know Him. Who He was and why He was doing all this. The Lord also wanted the Israelites to know what He planned and what He expected from them.
But I doubt that Moses wrote every sentence by himself. I suppose in the forty years of trekking through the desert, Moses would have had enough 'spare time' to write it all. Still, I rather think Moses recruited a group of men who could write and assigned them certain sections to record. Moses then became the 'editor' who proof read and corrected the sections to correspond to what God inspired. I think God inspired the actual scribes to record what the Lord desired. The Lord certainly made sure it all came out the way He wanted it to read.
Also, in the writing and editing process (if such occurred), Moses understood the history was about the history of the Jewish people, the nation of Israel, and NOT about Moses.
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Well, we know Moses wasn't very literate. He said so himself. I'm sure lawyers giving dictation to their secretaries (scribes) didn't start in the 20th century. I'm sure it was an ancient practice. After all, they were the only ones that understood computers at the time. 
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branchofthevine
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The content is from Moses, but the composition would probably be through a scribe. Paul has scribes write a few of his letters, and no one seems to care.
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Archie the Preacher
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I don't recall anything about literacy. I remember Moses claimed to be a poor speaker. Moses was reared - according to the Bible and tradition - in the court of the Pharaoh. I would think he was educated as such and therefore literate.Bobinator said:
However, I agree with the thought of 'sub' writers who did much of the basic work. I suppose Moses could have written them all himself over the forty years in the desert, but like the subordinate 'courts' he established, it makes more sense to me to have helpers writing certain 'assigned' portions. Then Moses 'editing', for lack of a better word.
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branchofthevine
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Well, the ending of Deuteronomy is written after Moses' death because he is well, dead.
Or, were you asking for the Paul & scribe evidence because that's actually pretty clear if you read his letters, like Romans for example.
But I'll say that it doesn't matter if Moses wrote them or not. It's not a big deal at all.
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