The Bible Book

given to Moses on Mount Sinai,

“You shall have no other gods

before me,” is ambiguous. Early

biblical scholars, convinced that

monotheism was not present from

the start of the Bible but developed

over time, believed that this

suggested henotheism, effectively

a middle stage between polytheism

and monotheism in which one god

is paramount among multiple gods.

However, the text of the Book

of Deuteronomy (the “second law”),

which follows Exodus, is clear. Not

only does it proclaim that there

is only one deity, but it establishes

a creed, the Shema (“hear”), to

reinforce the idea: “Hear, O Israel,

the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy

6:4), a daily declaration of belief.

Deuteronomy is a retelling of the

Law, which sets out to reestablish

the Mosaic covenant. According

to Jewish tradition, the Book of

Deuteronomy was found in a dusty

corner of the Temple in the 7th

century BCE.

Building a religion

Whenever the Israelites ignore

God’s laws, disaster ensues. When

they worship a false god in the

form of the golden calf soon after

receiving the Ten Commandments,

they are condemned to wander

aimlessly through the desert

for 40 years. During this time,

they formalize their religion,

establishing its structure and

liturgy. The Tabernacle, built

according to God’s instructions, is

a moveable version of the Temple

that will later be built by Solomon

in Jerusalem, and Moses’s brother

Aaron founds a hereditary

priesthood through his bloodline

(the Levites). The text of the

Pentateuch, or Torah, ends with

Moses dying on the threshold of

the Promised Land of Canaan.

After his death, the Israelites, led

by Joshua, Moses’s appointed

successor, are ready to retake the

land promised to them by God

from the polytheistic Canaanites.

As religious scripture, the

Torah is significant to Judaism,

Christianity, and Islam, and is

highly influential on Western

culture. For Jews, the Torah is

the most important of the biblical

texts because it establishes God’s

relationship with His Chosen

People, while for Christians, Moses

foreshadows the coming Messiah.

In the Qur’an, the Torah is referred

to as al-kitab (“the book”) and

Moses (Musa) is mentioned more

times than any other prophet. ■

EXODUS TO DEUTERONOMY

EXODUS

34:1–27

LEVITICUS

8:1–36

NUMBERS

14:33–35

DEUTERONOMY

4:39

DETEURONOMY

31:1–34:12

NUMBERS

10 :11– 3 6

NUMBERS

22:21–41

DEUTERONOMY

5:1–8:20

Moses’s brother

Aaron and his

sons are ordained

as priests.

God sentences

the Israelites

to 40 years of

wandering in

the desert.

Moses reminds

the Israelites

that there are

no gods except

God Himself.

Moses introduces

Joshua as his

successor, blesses

the tribes of

Israel, and dies.

Moses

records the Ten

Commandments

on stone tablets for

the second time.

The Israelites

leave the desert

of Sinai.

Balaam and his

donkey encounter the

angel of the Lord

in the road.

Moses gathers

all of Israel and

recites the Ten

Commandments.

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