Journal: Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
Volume: JETS 66:2 (Jun 2023)
Article: From Basket Baby To Virtual Divinity: The Characterization Of Moses In History And Tradition In The Biblical Period
Author: Daniel I. Block

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From Basket Baby To Virtual Divinity:
The Characterization Of Moses In History And Tradition In The Biblical Period

Daniel I. Block*

^* Daniel I. Block is Gunther H. Knoedler Professor Emeritus of Old Testament at Wheaton College, 501 College Ave., Wheaton, IL 60187. He may be contacted at [email protected].

I am grateful to Kenneth Bergland, for his reading of an earlier version of this essay and for his vital suggestions for its improvement.

Abstract: This essay sets the stage for a larger project examining the validity of pseudepigraphic and pseudonymous approaches to the composition of Deuteronomy.1 The concern of this essay with Moses is not to offer a biography of the man, but to trace the evolution of the perceptions of the man from his earliest biographers to the end of the Second Temple period and the emergence of the New Testament. The survey of the history of literary characterizations begins with his portrayal in biblical narratives where he appears as the principal human character (Exodus-Deuteronomy), followed by the Deuteronomistic historiographic narratives (Former Prophets), the prophetic books (Latter Prophets), and the Writings, both the poetic texts (e.g., Psalms) and the priestly chroniclers’ narratives, and then moving on to extrabiblical sources. While the purpose of this study is to gather the data on the evolution of perceptions of Moses, it concludes with brief reflections on the significance of our findings for theories of the composition of Deuteronomy, particularly Moses’ first address (1:6–4:40).

Key words: Moses, characterization, pseudonimity, pseudepigraphy, lawgiver, prophet, composition of Deuteronomy

Given the prominence of Moses in biblical narratives of Israel’s early history and his reputation in later texts as the conveyor of divine revelation and the source of Israel’s foundational scripture, particularly but not limited to the Torah of Moses in Deuteronomy, we are not surprised by the number and variety of scholarly volumes whose authors focused on his life.2 Our concern in this essay is not to offer a

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biography of the man, but to trace the evolution of the perception of the man from his earliest biographers to the end of the Second Temple period and the emergence of the New Testament. Our survey of the history of literary characterizations will begin naturally with the portrayal of him in the Hebrew Bible narratives in which he functions as the principal human char...