#70: “Jesus vs. Moses”

#70: “Jesus vs. Moses” by Brendon Wahlberg Jesus and Moses are certainly two towering figures in the Bible. As such, many throughout history have compared the two. And there are many interesting similarities and differences. Christians in particular see Jesus as the successor to Moses. From the beginning, as seen in the book of Deuteronomy, there was an expectation that someday, a prophet would arise to follow Moses, who would speak to the people in God’s own words. “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you shall heed such a prophet. This is what you requested of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said: ‘If I hear the voice of the Lord my God any more, or ever again see this great fire, I will die.’ Then the Lord replied to me: ‘They are right in what they have said. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their own people; I will put my words in the mouth of the prophet, who shall speak to them everything that I command. Anyone who does not heed the words that the prophet shall speak in my name, I myself will hold accountable.” (Deuteronomy 18:15-19) Early Christians understood this passage to refer to Jesus. Jesus, as the Son of God, could speak for God on Earth. Hearing the prophet Jesus, people could hear the voice of God and survive. In the book of Acts, Peter makes a speech that refers back to Deuteronomy 18, suggesting that Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophecy. “‘And now, friends, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer. Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Messiah appointed for you, that is, Jesus, who must remain in heaven until the time of universal restoration that God announced long ago through his holy prophets. Moses said, “The Lord your God will raise up for you from your own people a prophet like me. You must listen to whatever he tells you. And it will be that everyone who does not listen to that prophet will be utterly rooted out from the people.” (Acts 3:17-23) (see also: Acts 7:37 in which the martyr Stephen uses Deuteronomy 18). Because Moses was such a central and revered figure in the Jewish faith, when first century Jewish Christians wanted to convert other Jews to follow Jesus, it was necessary to compare Jesus to Moses and assert that Jesus was superior. The following passage from the Letter to the Hebrews is an example of this argument. “Therefore, brothers and sisters, holy partners in a heavenly calling, consider that Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses also ‘was faithful in all God’s house.’ Yet Jesus is worthy of more glory than Moses, just as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. (For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.) Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that would be spoken later. Christ, however, was faithful over God’s house as a son, and we are his house if we hold firm the confidence and the pride that belong to hope.” (Hebrews 3:1-6) The gospel of Matthew is very much interested in the comparison between Moses and Jesus. Issues within the Jewish religion were important to Matthew, and this is reflected in the general character of his gospel. One of Matthew’s goals was apparently to establish that Jesus was the “new Moses”, but also superior to Moses. Here are some of the parallels that can be drawn between the two in Matthew. 1. When Moses was born, the ruler Pharaoh ordered out of fear that babies were to be slaughtered. Moses escaped that fate. When Jesus was born, the ruler Herod ordered out of fear that babies were to be slaughtered. Jesus escaped that fate by being taken to Egypt, reminding us again of Moses. 2. After the birth story, the book of Exodus skips over the childhood of Moses, taking up the narrative when Moses is an adult. Matthew does the same thing with Jesus. 3. Moses climbs a mountain (Mt. Sinai) in order to teach the Law to his people. Jesus does the same thing in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus, however, makes many statements that revise the Laws given by Moses, interpreting the Law with authority. Moses receives the Law, but Jesus fulfills the Law. 4. Moses fasts in the wilderness for forty days and nights while receiving the Torah from God. Jesus fasts in the wilderness for forty days and nights while being tempted by Satan. In the wilderness, Moses is told to bring water from a rock. In the wilderness, Jesus is told to bring bread from a rock. 5. Moses gave the people the Ten Commandments. Jesus gave the Great Commandment. 6. Both Moses and Jesus communicated directly with God. Moses performed many miracles, such as saving his people at the Sea of Reeds crossing, yet his people often rejected him. Jesus performed many miracles, such as healings, yet his people often rejected him. Both Moses and Jesus could empower others. 7. Just before he dies, Moses climbs a mountain (Mt. Nebo) in order to give final instructions to the tribe leaders of Israel. After Jesus’ death and resurrection, he climbs a mountain in order to give final instructions to his remaining disciples, who symbolically represent the tribes of Israel. 8. Moses gave the people an elaborate Law that had the effect of making God seem remote. Jesus tried to simplify the Law without abandoning it, in order to make God accessible. So, you can see that Matthew was concerned with showing that moments in Jesus’ life echoed the life of Moses. But other ancient interpreters of the Bible thought of this in the reverse order. Even though Moses lived first, some said that Moses’ life was merely an echo of Jesus. This is an example of a way of thinking about people in the Bible, known as “typology”. In typology, it is thought that, for some characters and events in the Bible, the main reason they existed or happened was because they foreshadowed Jesus. It seems to me to be an awkward way to phrase it, but according to typology, one would say that Moses was a “type of Jesus”. Moses’ whole life was for the purpose of being an imperfect model for Jesus who was yet to come along. It is possible to get carried away with thinking like this, and proponents of typology did often get carried away. Yet even Jesus seemingly got in on this, saying in the gospel of John, “No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” (John 3:13-15) In the end, all this talk of needing to establish Jesus’ superiority over Moses is sort of a moot point. Moses only ever claimed to be a mortal man. Jesus claimed to be one with God. There really are no competing claims. Besides, in the story of the transfiguration (Matthew 17), Jesus is shown to be talking with Moses and getting along just fine. That’s enough for me.