People of faith often refer to the Bible as the word of God implying that every word contained within the covers is inspired, i.e., comes forth from God. From the opening chapters, questions arise as to what precisely God said. Can a close study of the texts reveal the word of God within the biblical texts? How can we know for sure? How has God chosen to communicate with His people? What hath God said?
In the Middle Ages, a Rabbi discovered a treasured secret within the Pentateuch. He noticed certain peculiarities within the texts and referred to them in his writings. He felt that he had come upon a “great secret.” He said in one place, “If you understand the secret….you will recognize the truth.” He sought to reconcile his discovery with tradition and with the words of the prophets. In the end, he cautioned against revealing the secret, encouraging silence on the matter. What was this secret?
The purpose of this teaching us to present in a single class, the evidence for a Moses Scroll. Generations of Biblical scholars, building upon the work of previous scholars determined that Moses, if he even existed, never wrote the Torah as fundamentalist Jews and Christians have maintained. A careful survey however of the five book reveals evidence that Moses did in fact write a scroll. What are the proofs that Moses wrote a scroll, and what was contained in the original Moses Scroll? As it turns out, the Biblical texts tell us all that is necessary to begin to reconstruct the contents of the world’s most precious document!
Dr. Tabor investigates the various texts of the Torah, Prophets, and Writings say about the ways Jehovah speaks definitively to certain chosen ones through history and what might be likely in the future. Moses as the Prophet par excellence appears to be the model–but what is involved in a human being speaking unmistakably FOR God–even in the first person? Many are the claims, but what is the evidence?
Early investigators determined that Deuteronomy was a mere rehearsal of material covered previously in the Pentateuch. The name Deuteronomy, from the Greek of the Septuagint, has supported this prejudice. The academic world eventually deemed the Book late and derivative, and ultimately the book was called a “pious fraud.” It was proposed that the reported discovery in the time of Josiah, was a story concocted in order to advance the Josianic reforms. Deuteronomy, however, is not a repetition of previously known material, neither is late or derivative. It rather contains within its words, traces of the scroll that Moses wrote.
When the Scroll of the Torah was found in 622 B.C.E., Josiah set out to reform the nation in accordance with its words. Three prophetic voices (Huldah, Jeremiah, and Zephaniah) all declared what was to come – these declarations too were in accordance with the words of the newly discovered scroll. Jeremiah found within the scroll, predictions of the impending doom of the Kingdom of Judah, but from the same scroll he found the promise of a new covenant. Jeremiah spoke of a circumcision of heart, but this did not originate with the prophet from Anatot. He saw a day when the Torah would be written on the heart, but this too was first recorded by another prophet. Jeremiah spoke of another Exodus that would be greater than the Exodus from Egypt. All of these ideas come from the words of Moses. They were recorded long ago in the Moses Scroll.
In this week’s class, Ross begins to search the Joseph Saga (Genesis 37-50) for textual clues that shed light on prophecies relating to the two dominant tribes of Israel – Judah, and Joseph. The class covers the texts from the beginning of chapter 37 through the selling of Joseph into slavery.
Central to the Torah’s story is the forty-year wilderness
wanderings of the children of Israel. According to our sources, 603,550 males
and their families with all of their stuff, leave Egypt en masse from
the land of Goshen to the land promised to them by God. The Bible reports the
high drama of this journey. Pharaoh and his armies give chase to their departed
slave labor, finding them at the Sea. The Sea splits before the Israelites
allowing them to cross over into the wilderness on dry ground but closes upon
the Egyptians, drowning them. The children of Israel sing a song of victory and
then begin their journey to the Mountain of God where they enter into a
covenant with the God of their fathers. They remain at the holy mountain for
some time and then move to an oasis called Kadesh. Scouts are sent to survey their
land, but the majority of them return with a negative report, dissuading the
people from entering and resulting in an extension of their wilderness journey
until that entire generation dies off. The Torah ends with a new generation of
Israelites prepared to enter the land under new and faithful leadership.
The story, in all or in part, has occupied the minds of people
for thousands of years, inspiring billions throughout the ages. It has served
as the subject of articles, books, and movies. Some of these have sought to
popularize, some to sensationalize, and some to scrutinize the details of the
story. Did any of it really happen? Did some of it happen, but
not the way the Bible describes it?
The story of this journey is recorded against a backdrop that
presents itself as a travel log within an exciting narrative of events. The biblical
books of Exodus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy provide the reader with geographical
data that is presented as authentic. Can we read these accounts and retrace the
route of the Exodus?
I recently read, The Sinai Journeys, the Route of the
Exodus, by Menashe Har-El.[1] The
book was originally published in Hebrew in 1968 by the author and was
republished in English in 1983.
I learned of the work from Dr. Tali Erickson-Gini in a
discussion with her about the various possibilities for locations of places
mentioned in the biblical texts, in the wilderness itinerary lists. Upon her
recommendation I ordered the book and am glad that I did.
This is not like one of the many popular, sensational books
claiming to reveal the real Mount Sinai. Though Har-El does offer his opinion
on that question, the real value is in the bulk of disciplined research that he
provides. The book is packed with information, presented in three major sections:
Part One – Landscape, Sites, and Mankind, Part Two – The Views of Modern
Scholars Concerning the Exodus and Criticism of These Views, and Part Three –
The Investigation in the Light of Geographical Science.
Har-El works through his material in a detailed manner,
discussing the geology, climate, soil and vegetation, water resources, and ancient
routes related to the regions associated with the bible’s wilderness
itineraries. He provides the reader with many of the theories proposed by
various leading scholars and then offers criticism of these views based upon
his extensive knowledge of historical and geographical realities of the land
from the Nile Delta, through the Sinai Peninsula, and into the Land known
anciently as Canaan.
The narratives recorded in the Hebrew Bible about this
central event assume a familiarity that few modern researchers have at their
disposal. This has created an opportunity for assumptions that are simply uninformed.
The terrain of this vast wilderness is not suitable in places for travel. Many
of the place names are difficult to identify today. Har-El takes the reader on
an incredible journey back through time, surveying the words of ancient
authors, in an effort to retrace the route of the Exodus. He demonstrates known
routes from his extensive knowledge with maps and diagrams that combine to
produce an “original study of a subject which has too often been treated in a
superficial manner.”
In his preface, Har-El says, “I have attempted to rely fully
on biblical narrative and keep close to it without trying to misrepresent the
contents of its verses or to interpret them too freely. I have restricted the
discussion on the identification of the route of the Exodus from Egypt and the Sinai
Peninsula as far as Kadesh-Barnea, that is to those areas where the problem of identification
has been complex or intricate and have refrained from attempting to identify
the whole route because of limitations of scope.”
I highly recommend this book. It is not an easy read. The
first section, though necessary, is especially slow going and extremely scientific;
the discussions of various positions are tedious; but for those who can
persevere, the reward is great. His research ultimately demonstrates that some
of the popular theories of the Exodus and proposed sites for Sinai are
unrealistic when one closely examines the biblical texts in the light of
geology and geography.
Har-El’s, Sinai Journeys, The Route of the Exodus is
an informed contribution to one of the Bible’s foundational stories. I wish
that the book was required reading before one can enter a discussion of the
location of the True Mount Sinai, but it is not the kind of book that most
people prefer.
“And you shall remember all the way which Jehovah your God led you these forty years in the wilderness…” Moses ~ Deuteronomy 8:2
[1] Menashe Har-El, The Sinai
Journeys, The Route of the Exodus (San Diego, CA: Ridgefield Publishing Company,
1983). From the jacket of the book: “Professor Menashe Har-El is a noted
geographer and scholar, as well as an outstanding surveyor and explorer. He received
his M.A. degree from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Ph.D. degree from
New York University. A noted teacher of Geography of the Middle East, Dr.
Har-El is Professor of Historical and Biblical Geography at Tel-Aviv
University.”
In this teaching, Ross presents the births of Israel’s children, working through the genealogy of Scripture’s Holy Family. He carefully demonstrates the birth order according to the matriarchal lines of Jacob’s sons. The class today also shows that the birthright is given to the sons of Joseph. How did this happen? How is it that the eleventh of Jacob’s sons gets the birthright?
In this class, Ross begins to provide a chronological context to his study on the tribes. He begins with a look at the phrase signs and wonders. He demonstrates that the phrase is generally associated with Israel’s redemption, but is also used to describe its destruction. He shows that the lives of two prophets and their children were signs and wonders to their generations.
In this teaching, part of the series on The Tribes, Ross begins to track the tribes in an effort to determine their ultimate whereabouts. Following the narrative of the Biblical texts, and with the aid of a map of the Ancient Near East, Ross introduces his audience to significant locations as described in the Bible. In this class he covers material from Abram’s departure from Ur through the exile of the northern tribes. You will not want to miss this informative teaching.
In this teaching, Ross focuses on the subject of exile, or banishment for the purpose of punishment. He shows that the bible is replete with examples of people and groups who are exiled for their disobedience. In this study, Ross demonstrates that the sentence of exile is brought out on both houses of Israel.
