The Books of Moses The Books of Moses © John Stevenson, 2013
Dec 30, 2015
The Books of MosesThe Books of Moses
© John Stevenson, 2013
Dr. John T. StevensonDr. John T. Stevenson
http://JohnStevenson.net
Course ObjectivesCourse Objectives• Recognize the unity of the Torah--one
book in five parts--and its major themes and purposes and its “spirit” or “heart.”
• Explore the various genres within this book and how to understand them and how to relate the parts to the whole.
• Observe New Testament connections to the major themes of the Torah/ Pentateuch.
From Paradise to From Paradise to Promised Land: Promised Land:
An Introduction to the An Introduction to the
PentateuchPentateuchbyby
T. D. AlexanderT. D. Alexander
The Gospel The Gospel According to Moses: According to Moses:
What My Jewish What My Jewish Friends Taught Friends Taught Me About JesusMe About Jesus
byby
Athol DicksonAthol Dickson
Respond to the Respond to the charge that the charge that the Mosaic Law is Mosaic Law is obsolete for obsolete for
todaytoday
Compare & Compare & contrast Jewish contrast Jewish versus Christian versus Christian readings of the readings of the
TorahTorah
TorahTorahHebrew: “Law,
Instruction”
PentateuchPentateuchGreek: “Five-Part
Book”
NumbersNumbers
DeuteronomyDeuteronomy
Gives the Law to a new generation with special
emphasis to those entering the land
GenesisGenesisOrigins of God’s people from
creation to Egypt
ExodusExodusGod’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt and establishing
His covenant
LeviticusLeviticus Laws of worship
Wilderness wanderings
Documentary HypothesisDocumentary Hypothesis
Jehovah Elohim
Jean Astruc: Moses utilized two different source documents
Wilhelm de Wette: Deuteronomy penned by alternate author
Deuteronomy
Documentary HypothesisDocumentary Hypothesis
Jehovah Elohim
Herman Hulfeld: E-1 E-2
Deuteronomy
Julius Wellhausen: J – Jehovah
E – Elohim
D – Deuteronomy
P – Priestly
The Unity of the TorahThe Unity of the Torah
• Genesis 50:24 - Exodus 1:7.
• Exodus 40:34 - Leviticus1:2.
• Leviticus 27:34 - Numbers 1:4.
• Numbers 36:13 - Deuteronomy 1:5.
The Book of Beginnings
““These are the generations…”These are the generations…”
• Hebrew: tAdl.At hL,ae - Elleh toledoth
• Ten sets• History of account follows: “These are
the things that followed…”Adam
AbrahamIsrael
Genesis 2:4 – 11:26 Genesis 11:27 – 50:26
5 Toledoth from Adam to Abraham
5 Toledoth fromAbraham to Israel
Genesis 1-11Events Predominant
– Creation– Fall– Flood– Tower of Babel
Genesis 12-50People Predominant
– Abraham– Isaac– Jacob– Joseph
Race as a whole Family of Abraham
Over 2000 years 250 years
Beginning & EndingBeginning & Ending
• Genesis begins with God: “In the
beginning God created…”
• Genesis ends with a corpse: “…in
a coffin in Egypt”
Genesis 1:1Genesis 1:1In the beginning God created the
heavens and the earth.
• The “who” of creation.
• The work of creation.
• The “what” of creation.
Genesis 1:1-2Genesis 1:1-2In the beginning God created the In the beginning God created the
heavens and the earth.heavens and the earth.
And the earth was unformed and And the earth was unformed and unfilled, and darkness was over the unfilled, and darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of God was moving over the surface of the waters.the waters.
Unformed UnfilledDay 1: Light Day 4: Light-bearers
(sun, moon, stars)
Day 2: Water & sky divided
Day 5: Fish & birds to fill water & sky
Day 3: Dry land & vegetation
Day 6: Land animals & man
Day 7: Sabbath Rest
Theories of CreationTheories of Creation• Supernatural versus Evolutionary.
• A Superficial Appearance of History.
• The Gap Theory.
• The Day/Age Theory.
• The Non-Sequential Theory / Framework Theory.
• The Literal Interpretation.
Genesis 1:26-27Genesis 1:26-27The God said, “Let Us make man
in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. (Genesis 1:26-27).
Genesis 1:28Genesis 1:28God blessed them; and God said
to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
– In the Image of God
– Federal Headship
– Stewardship and a basis for Ecology
The image of GodThe image of God
Why are there Why are there two separate two separate accounts of accounts of creation?creation?
Genesis 1The heavens and the
earth are created in six days.
Genesis 2Creation of the man and woman (no time element mentioned).
Man in his cosmic setting
Man as central to God’s purpose
Panorama of creation as a whole
Detailed focus on one aspect of creation
Centers on God creating the heavens
and the earth
Centers on man as the crowning act of God’s
creation
Compare & Contrast Compare & Contrast these three views:these three views:
Romantic View of the Natural
World
Biblical View of the
Natural World
Resource View of the
Natural World
Creation complete: Heavens & earth created; God finished His work (1-3)
Man created: Formed from dust (4-9)
Trees & Rivers in garden given names (9-14)
Creation complete: Heavens & earth created; God finished His work (1-3)
Man created: Formed from dust (4-9)
Trees & Rivers in garden given names (9-14)
Man assigned task of guarding & keeping the garden (15)
Forbidden fruit (16-17)
And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; 17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die.“ (Genesis 2:16-17)
Creation complete: Heavens & earth created; God finished His work (1-3)
Man created: Formed from dust (4-9)
Trees & Rivers in garden given names (9-14)
Man assigned task of guarding & keeping the garden (15)
Forbidden fruit (16-17)
Man in need of a helper: not good to be alone (18)
Animals in garden are given names (19-20)
Woman created: Formed from rib (21-24)
Creation complete: Man & woman naked & unashamed in presence of God (25)
When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. (Genesis 3:6)
What are the results from
their actions of taking and eating the
forbidden fruit?
And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel. (Genesis 3:15)
Seed of the WomanSeed of the Serpent
Cain & Abel
How is the Cain & How is the Cain & Abel narrative Abel narrative
related to the larger related to the larger story of Genesis?story of Genesis?
And Adam had relations with his wife again; and she gave birth to a son, and named him Seth, for, she said, "God has appointed me another offspring in place of Abel; for Cain killed him." (Genesis 4:25).
Seed of the WomanSeed of the Serpent
AbelCain
Lamech
Literally, “another SEED”
Seed of the WomanSeed of the Serpent
Abel & SethCain
Lamech
Enoch
Noah
ShemHam
AbrahamCanaan
Three sonsThree sons
NoahNoah
Ten
Gen
erat
ions
AdamAdam
Three sonsThree sons
TerahTerah
Ten
Gen
erat
ions
NoahNoah
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
Adam
Noah
Enoch
Morris & Whitcomb, The Genesis Flood
Genesis 9:20-22Genesis 9:20-22Then Noah began farming and
planted a vineyard. 21 He drank of the wine and became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent. 22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside.
Genesis 9:23Genesis 9:23But Shem and Japheth took a
garment and laid it upon both their shoulders and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were turned away, so that they did not see their father's nakedness.
Genesis 9:24-25Genesis 9:24-25When Noah awoke from his
wine, he knew what his youngest son had done to him.
25 So he said, “Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants He shall be to his brothers.”
Genesis 9:26-27Genesis 9:26-27
“Blessed be the LORD, The God of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant. 27 May God enlarge Japheth, And let him dwell in the tents of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant.”
He also said,
Genesis 9:26-27Genesis 9:26-27
“Blessed be the LORD, The God of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant. 27 May God enlarge Japheth, And let him dwell in the tents of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant.”
He also said,
T.p.y:
tp,y<
Genesis 9:26-27Genesis 9:26-27
“Blessed be the LORD, The God of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant. 27 May God enlarge Japheth, And let him dwell in the tents of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant.”
He also said,
To whom does the pronoun refer?
27 May God enlarge Japheth, And let him dwell in the tents of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant.”
To whom does the pronoun refer?
AdamPlaced into a Garden
Noah
Results in a curse
Results in a lasting division of the seed
Followed by a genealogy to demonstrate the division
Plants a Garden
Eats the fruit of the tree
Drinks of the fruit of the vine
Results in recognizing his nakedness
Results in lying naked in his tent
If we do not count the three If we do not count the three sons of Noah, there are a total sons of Noah, there are a total
of 70 names in this table.of 70 names in this table.
What is significant What is significant about this number?about this number?
……all the persons of the house of all the persons of the house of Jacob, who came to Egypt, Jacob, who came to Egypt, were were
seventy (Genesis 46:27)seventy (Genesis 46:27)
When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance,When He separated the sons of man,He set the boundaries of the peoplesAccording to the number of the sons of Israel.9 For the Lord’s portion is His people,Jacob is the allotment of His inheritance. (Deuteronomy 32:7-9).
Israel is a microcosm Israel is a microcosm of the worldof the world
Jesus is the “better Israel”Jesus is the “better Israel” who came to save the world who came to save the world