Why were the 5 books of Moses written?

Answer 1

Moses wrote 5 books, Genesis, Exodous, Leviticus, Numbers, & Deuteronomy. Genesis was written to explain: * Creation, Adam and Eve, Noah and the Flood, the Patriarchs and the Matriarchs, and ends with the descent of Jacob and his family to Egypt. *The commandment of circumcision, the promise to Abraham that he would receive the Land of Israel and that his descendants would be a blessing to the rest of the world. Exodus was written to explain: *The exile, the gradual enslavement and suffering. The birth of Moses and his initial prophecies, the ten plagues and the Exodus from Egypt. *The Revelation at Mt.Sinai, where the Jewish people received the Written and the Oral Torah. *The building of the Mishkan, a portable Temple which housed the two tablets of stone on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed. Leviticus was written to explain: *God calls to Moses and teaches him the laws of the Priests, the Temple, the sacrifices and the Festivals. Numbers was written to explain: *The travels, battles and struggles of the Jewish People during their 40 year sojourn in the desert after the Exodus from Egypt. *The census of the 12 tribes and describes the formation of their camp. *The rebellion of Korach, his demise, and the sending of 12 spies into Israel. *The capture of the East Bank of the Jordan river and the subsequent settlement there of the Tribes of Reuven, Gad and half of Menashe. Deuteronomy was written to explain: *The final address of Moses to the Jewish People before his death. This prophetic farewell includes rebuke, encouragement and warnings for their future. *Commandments that apply only in Israel. *Commandments that govern the interaction with other nations. * that Moses writes 13 copies of the complete Torah, giving one to each tribe and placing one in the Holy Ark. *The Five Books of Moses close with the death of "the greatest of all prophets" and "the most humble of all men," Moses. Hope that helps :) The Pentateuch was traditionally believed to have been written down by Moses. Hence Genesis is sometimes called the first book of Moses, Exodus the second book of Moses, and so forth. In its current form, each successive book of the Pentateuch picks up and continues the story of the previous book to form a continuous story. Hence Genesis tells how the Israelites went to Egypt while Exodus tells how they came to leave Egypt. Exodus describes the building of the tabernacle at Sinai while in Leviticus Moses is given rules while at Sinai for offering sacrifice and worship at that tabernacle. In Numbers the Israelites leave Sinai and travel eventually to the plains of Moab, while in Deuteronomy Moses gives speeches about the law on the plains of Moab.

Answer 2

A:Although the majority of biblical scholars believe that the Book of Deuteronomy was written in the seventh century BCE by an anonymous source now known as the 'Deuteronomist', most people continue to believe that it was written by Moses. Apart from tradition, it is hard to define why Moses would have written a book that in part duplicates what he is said to have written elsewhere in the Pentateuch and in part contradicts those other writings. This is even more puzzling as the style of Deuteronomy differs from some of the other writings commonly attributed to Moses.

In order to support authorship by Moses, it is commonly asserted that the last chapter, which describes the death and burial of Moses, was written by his successor, Joshua. This also is puzzling, as Deut. 34:10 says, "And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face." This not only tells us that this passage was written quite long after the time of Moses, but after the establishment of the kingdom of Israel. If indeed Moses wrote the other chapters, we could probably never say why this was so.

Answer 3

Genesis chapters 1 to 3 were written by two different sources, far removed from each other both in time and place, but with a common purpose. The two stories we find in those chapters were both intended to explain why we are here. They are two stories of creation.

For more information, please visit: http://christianity.answers.com/theology/the-story-of-creation

Answer 4

Tradition holds that Moses did write Genesis, which is an epic from the time of creation until the time of the captivity in Egypt. Some say that Moses wrote Genesis because God commanded him, although there is no evidence to support this view.

As Genesis does not contain events that occurred during the life of Moses, nor anything of which Moses would have had any personal knowledge, he did not write Genesis as a record for posterity. As it stands, the Book of Genesis could equally have been written by any religious leader of the Hebrew people, in his time or much later, a conclusion that most modern scholars do support.

For more information, please see: http://christianity.answers.com/bible/the-book-of-genesis

Answer 5

Moses wrote Genesis (Deuteronomy 31:24) as it was revealed to him by God (Exodus 24:12) in order to provide a background for the rest of the Torah and to relate the context in which God's covenant was made with the Israelites: their lives, deeds and origins. Note that the narratives of Genesis were not unfamiliar to the early Israelites. Even before Moses, they had parchments on which their traditions had been recorded (midrash Shemot Rabbah 5:18), which they studied regularly (ibid). These included the entire book of Genesis (ibid. 5:22), which had been prophetically written by the Forefathers themselves. They may have also had such ancient texts as the Book of Yashar (see Joshua 10:13), the Book of the Generations of Man (Genesis ch.5), the Book of the Wars of the Lord (see Numbers 21:14) and others.

While Judaism has always seen the Torah as an intricate tapestry that nonetheless had one Divine source, some modern authors such as Wellhausen (the father of modern Biblical-criticism, 1844-1918) have suggested artificially chopping up the narrative and attributing it to various authors, despite the Torah's explicit statement as to its provenance (Exodus 24:12, Deuteronomy 31:24). This need not concern believers, since his claims have been debunked one by one, as Archaeology and other disciplines have demonstrated the integrity of the Torah. No fragments have ever been found that would support his Documentary Hypothesis, which remains nothing more than an arbitrary claim:

http://www.whoreallywrotethebible.com/excerpts/chapter4-1.php

http://www.pearlmancta.com/BiblicalcriticswrongRShlomoCohen.htm

And see also the wider picture:

http://judaism.answers.com/hebrew/does-archaeology-support-the-hebrew-bible

Answer 6

Genesis chapters 1 to 3 were written by Moses (Deuteronomy 31:24) as told to him by God (Exodus 24:12), as part of the Torah's historical narrative which includes the Book of Genesis and large portions of Exodus and Numbers. These chapters of Genesis were written to inform us that God exists, that the world and life have a purpose and are not accidental, and that we are answerable to Him.

Concerning Genesis ch. 1 and 2, and the Torah's authorship in general:

http://religion.answers.com/theory/debunking-the-jepd-documentary-hypothesis

http://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=6&article=1131(a Christian author)

http://www.whoreallywrotethebible.com/excerpts/chapter4-1.php

And concerning Creation:

http://religion.answers.com/controversy/is-there-evidence-against-evolution