BOB – The Pentateuch

by Stephen Rodgers

Comparative Outline of the Pentateuch

Having briefly dealt with the relevant introductory material, we now turn our attention to the first section of the Bible: the Pentateuch.  “Pentateuch” actually means “five volumes/scrolls” or “book in five parts” and refers to the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.  The Hebrew word for it is “Torah,” although you may occasionally hear it referred to as the “books of Moses” or “the five books of Moses.”  I had a rather alarming moment on a missions trip where someone referred to Exodus as “2nd Moses,” but that could have just been an artifact of translation.

Author & Composition

As is alluded to in the above section, traditional authorship of the Pentateuch has always held that it was written by Moses.  This was relatively undisputed until the 18th century, when some scholars began to challenge the assumption of Mosaic authorship.  While their arguments varied, the gist of it was that several authors (the “Yahwist,” the “Elohist,” the “Deuteronomist,” and the “Priestly writer”) were responsible for writing a number of documents (“J,” “E,” “D,” and “P”) which were edited and spliced together at various times up until approximately 500 BC.

In the late 20th century, this type of critical theory came under massive attack, not just by conservative religious scholars but also by secular textual critics.  While the attacks varied, the gist of it was that such theories are too complicated, self-contradictory, and ultimately unprovable.  Compositional theories have largely been abandoned in favor of disagreements as to when it actually was written, and most scholars currently treat the Pentateuch as a unified document.

However, there are really three areas that we should briefly touch on before moving on:

  1. Biblical support for Mosaic authorship
  2. Potential issues with Mosaic authorship
  3. Compositional issues with the Pentateuch

The Pentateuch itself attests to the fact that the it was written by Moses based on divine revelation (Ex 24:3-7; Lev 1:1; Deut 31:9; 31:24-26).  The Deuteronomy reference is particularly significant as it indicates that the five volumes were compiled as a single book, immediately recognized as Scripture, and often referred to later as a singular, unified book (2 Chron 25:4; 35:12; Ezra 6:18; Neh 13:1; Mark 12:26).  And while we’re on the subject of Biblical support for Mosaic authorship, Jesus Himself stated that Moses was the author (John 5:46; 7:19) and attributed sections of the Pentateuch to Mosaic authorship, including Exodus (Mark 7:10; Ex 20:12; Mark 12:26; Ex 3:6; Luke 20:37; Ex 3:6), Leviticus (Matt 8:4; Lev 13-14; Mark 1:44; Lev 14:3; Luke 5:14; Leviticus 13:8;14:4), and Deuteronomy (Matt 19:8; Deut 24:1-4; Mark 7:10; Deut 5:16; Mark 10:4; Deut 24:1).

There are however, a few places that seem to pose a problem to Mosaic authorship, simply because in places there are sections of text that seem out of place either linguistically (Gen 36:31) or historically (Deut 34:1-12).  While the account of his death has been held by some to be a prophetic account by Moses himself, it is also plausible that it was recorded by someone else (Jewish tradition cites Joshua), and Moses himself  claimed that prophets would succeed him in mediating God’s word (Deut 18:15-20).  Given these possibilities, such “issues” pose no real challenge to Mosaic authorship overall.

Last but not least, it should be mentioned that compositional issues can be at least partially explained by recognizing that Moses himself sometimes wrote from other literary sources, some of which are explicitly identified (Gen 5:1; Num 21:14).  Also, in Ancient Near Eastern (ANE) culture, “authorship” could refer both to someone who actually wrote a particular work, as well as to the person who lent their authority in supporting it. Many Christian scholars would claim that both cases apply to Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch.

Genre & Context

The Pentateuch includes three different literary genres: narrative, poetry, and law. The laws (numbering 611 or 613, depending on how you count them…the Talmud uses the latter number) account for the majority of the Pentateuch (one statistic claims 68.5%).  The fact that the laws feature so prominently is a fact; exactly what their role is in the life of Christians today has been a theological source of debate for centuries. I’ll touch on that briefly later.

However, it is worth remembering that given the strong case for Mosaic authorship, the context of the Pentateuch is the life of Moses. Genesis provides the necessary background and history for a people who would have been dwelling in a foreign culture for quite some time and needed a reminder. Exodus continues the story and includes the fulfillment of at least one key promise (Gen 50:25; Ex 13:19). Leviticus details the rituals of the tabernacle (which has its construction manual in Exodus) as well as the service for ordaining priests (also originally outlined in Exodus).  Numbers records the journey of Israel from the wilderness of Sinai to Canaan. And Deuteronomy summarizes the previous teachings of Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy for a new generation of Israelites who weren’t there to hear it the first time around.

I can’t help but take the opportunity to point out that the factual basis for certain “controversial” portions of the Pentateuch were confirmed by Jesus Himself including Adam and Eve (Matt 19:4-5; Mark 10:6-8), Cain and Abel (Matt 23:35; Luke 11:51), Noah and the flood (Matt 24:37-39; Luke 17:26-27), Abraham (John 8:56), Sodom and Gomorrah (Matt 10:15; 11:23-24; Luke 10:12; 17:29), Lot (Luke 17:28-32), Isaac and Jacob (Matt 8:11; Luke 13:28), manna (John 6:31, 49, 58), and miraculous healing (John 3:14).

Theme

I would argue that the central theme of the Pentateuch actually can be summarized in four sub-themes.  And in true MacArthurian style I’m going to alliterate them using the letter “P” (after all, this is for the Pentateuch):

  1. A Promise: In Genesis 12:1-3 God appears to Abraham and made a three-fold promise to give him a land, descendants, and a blessing. This later (Gen 15:7) becomes what we know as the Abrahamic covenant.  The remainder of Genesis deals with the fulfillment of all three promises (which are ultimately fulfilled in Christ…see Gal 3:8,14), but focuses in particular on the “seed” or descendants, which brings us to…
  2. A People: Genesis is the story of the foundation of Israel. Exodus is the story of God rescuing them from Egypt, and the initial giving of the law.  Leviticus expounds on the giving of the law.  Numbers does as well, and highlights both God’s sovereign care and judgment for His people.  This culminates in Deuteronomy with a new generation of Israelites receiving their history and law from Moses.  As you can see, Israel and the law are intertwined, which brings us to the importance of…
  3. The Precepts: The importance of the law really cannot be overstated.  As the first inspired body of Scripture, Israel was to meditate upon it (Jos 1:8), teach it to their children (Deut 6:4-8), and read it publicly (Neh 8:1). Prior to his death, Moses gave explicit instructions as to how the reading of the law would change the hearts of the people of Israel and their relationship with God (Deut 31:12).  This would serve as the right foundation for the OT believer’s relationship with God until the coming of Jesus Christ, which leads us to…
  4. The Prefigured Christ: The NT is clear that the law exists to show us our sin (Gal 3:19-25), that sin is the breaking of the law (Rom 3:19-23), and that Jesus alone perfectly fulfilled the law (Matt 5:17-18). Jesus took our sin upon Himself so that we could be credited with His righteousness and perfect obedience to the law (2 Cor 5:21). What you may not realize though is that Jesus not only fulfilled the law, but that He is foreshadowed throughout the entire Pentateuch as well.  Gordon Wenham said it better than I ever could, so I’ll let him have the last words…

From NT times, Christians have seen the promises in the Pentateuch as finding their ultimate fulfillment in Christ. Jesus is the offspring of the woman who bruises the serpent’s head (Gen 3:15). He is the one through whom “all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Gen 12:3). He is the star and scepter who shall rise out of Israel (Num 24:17). More than this, many heroes of the OT have been seen as types of Christ. Jesus is the second Adam. He is the true Israel (Jacob), whose life sums up the experience of the nation.

But preeminently Jesus is seen as the new and greater Moses. As Moses declared God’s law for Israel, so Jesus declares and embodies God’s word to the nations. As Moses suffered and died outside the land so that his people could enter it, so the Son of God died on earth so that his people might enter heaven. It was observed that the filling of the tabernacle with the glory of God was the climax of the Pentateuch (Ex 40:34–38). So too “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory” (John 1:14). The goal of the entire Bible is that humans everywhere should glorify the God whose glory has confronted them. Lost sight of in Eden, this goal reappears through Moses, on its way to final fulfillment through Christ.

Other Works Referenced
  • ESV Study Bible, “Introduction to the Pentateuch”
  • MacArthur Study Bible, “Introduction to the Pentateuch”
  • Reformation Study Bible, “Introduction to the Pentateuch”
  • Driscoll, A Book You’ll Actually Read On the Old Testament