Biblical tradition holds that the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament, were written by Moses by around 1,400 BC.  Critics, on the other hand, believe that the Pentateuch was written over many centuries by a variety of authors and was potentially not completed until approximately 400 BC.  Since these are vastly different perspectives, what does the historical evidence tell us?

First, let’s examine the critics’ rationale.  Their assertions are based on textual criticism rather than historical evidence.  They see apparent differences in writing styles and varying names used for God throughout the Pentateuch and assume these indicate unique authors.  However, this rationale is weak at best.  Different names or titles for God may simply help illustrate different aspects of His nature.  For example, “Elohim” (literally “god”) emphasizes His power and sovereignty.  “Adonai” (“lord”) speaks to God’s authority and rightful role in our lives.  “Yahweh” (“I am”) relates to God’s eternality, self-existence, and necessity and is the “personal” name always used in conjunction with the covenants made with mankind.

Likewise, the use of unique styles in no way requires multiple authors.  The same author can use historical, poetical, narrative, and other styles to accomplish different purposes.  Also, Christianity claims the Pentateuch was written by one person, but not at one time.  Moses’ writing style could easily have evolved over the multiple decades required to compose the five books.  Finally, other ancient Semitic sources have multiple styles from a single author, so the Pentateuch isn’t unique in this sense.¹

There is significant historical evidence supporting, or at least consistent with, the traditional view of Moses’ authorship:

• In addition to the claims of Mosaic authorship within the Pentateuch itself, multiple, independent authors of other books in the Old and New Testaments unanimously agree, millennia before the claims of the critics, that Moses is the author (e.g. Joshua, 1 and 2 Kings, Ezra, Nehemiah, Daniel, Malachi, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, Hebrews, etc.). Citing support from other biblical books is not a circular argument of “using the Bible to prove the Bible.”  Historically, the Bible is composed of 66 independent books by at least 40 authors.  Their unanimous testimony represents consistent historical evidence, from multiple sources, of Mosaic authorship.
• Accurate and familiar descriptions of plants, wildlife, climate, and ways of life have led scholars to believe that the author was originally a resident of Egypt instead of Israel.²
• The Pentateuch uses a higher percentage of Egyptian words than any other part of the Bible³ and the name “Moses” is an Egyptian name rather than Hebrew. Both facts are fully consistent with Moses’ Egyptian upbringing.
• The Pentateuch contains words and phrases that are archaic and had become obsolete after the Mosaic age⁴. Their presence is inconsistent with the later writing claimed by critics.
• The author has a high degree of education, literary skill, and familiarity with both Egyptian and Hebrew ways of life⁵. This fact is consistent with the claim that Moses was a Hebrew raised and educated in a royal Egyptian household.
• Several cities mentioned like Laish and Salem later changed their names (to Dan and Jerusalem, respectively), implying the stories were written before the name changes occurred.⁶ These earlier dates are consistent with Mosaic authorship rather than critics’ claims of later composition.
• Likewise, many of the personal names (e.g. Abram, Jacob, Isaac, Joseph, Laban, etc.) are common to other writings from the Middle Bronze Age when the stories took place. Since personal names tended to change quickly by region and time period, the use of these names is also much more consistent with Mosaic authorship vs. a later forgery.⁷
• The Stele of Hammurabi, from approximately 1,750 BC, states that the standard price of a slave is 20 shekels. This is the exact price recorded for the sale of Joseph in Genesis 37:28, which biblical chronology places at roughly that same time.  By the 14^th century BC, the price had risen to 30 shekels and by the 8^th century, to 50 shekels.⁸  The pricing used is completely consistent with the actual time period being described as opposed to a later forgery.
• The Mari and Nunzi tablets from the 16^th-18^th centuries BC describe several of the customs mentioned in the Pentateuch from the same time period. Examples include the selling of a birthright (e.g. Esau to Jacob), a wife bearing children by proxy (e.g. Sarah and Rachel), and the custom of a deathbed blessing (e.g. Isaac to Jacob).⁹
• Archaeologists discovered the Ketef Hinnom scrolls that contained part of a blessing recorded in Numbers 6. These scrolls have been dated to the end of the 7^th century BC¹⁰, demonstrating that the writings of the Pentateuch were widely known and distributed by this time, disproving critics’ claims of composition in the 4^th or 5^th century BC.

As mentioned earlier, historical analysis is unlikely to prove when the Pentateuch was written or by whom.  But it can provide clues that are consistent with competing theories.  It is clear that the foundation of the textual critics’ claims is debatable at best.  However, the historical and archaeological evidence is 100% consistent with an early writing of the Pentateuch by an author that had many of the characteristics attributed to Moses.

Notes:

• Geisler, Norman and Holden, Joseph M. The Popular Handbook of Archaeology and the Bible.  Harvest House Publishers 2013. Pg. 58
• Pg. 59
• McDowell, Josh. The New Evidence that Demands a Verdict. Thomas Nelson 1999.  384-385
• Ibid, 385-386.
• Geisler and Holden, Op. Cit. Pg. 59.
• Kennedy, Titus. Unearthing the Bible.  Harvest House Publishers 2020.  27.
• Pgs. 27, 31.
• Pgs. 28-29.
• Pgs. 30-33.
• Turpin, Simon. Evidence for the Mosaic Authorship of the Torah. Answers in Genesis.  10, 2021. https://answersingenesis.org/bible-characters/moses/evidence-mosaic-authorship-of-torah/