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In a recent article in the Christian Courier, Wayne Jackson presented material concerning Jesus and Moses (Christian Courier, April, 2014, p. 15). I would like to expand on that material.
Unbelievable Quotes
T. K. Cheyne (1899) wrote that the books of Moses were written almost a thousand years after Moses and therefore, could not have been written by Moses (Encyclopedia Biblica, vol. 2, p. 2055). According to Cheyne, Moses could not have written anything about Jesus.
John Willis (2009) in the Transforming Word, (Abilene Christian University Press) said, “There is no unequivocal specific prediction of the coming of Jesus Christ and/or the church in the Old Testament.” Willis does not believe that there is any Messianic prophecy in the Old Testament.
Both of these statements betray the liberal theology of the men who wrote them.
The Statement of Jesus
In John 5:46-47, Jesus stated, “For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words.” Jesus believed that Moses wrote of Him. Jesus believed that Moses’ writings were Scripture (John 5:39). Jesus connected belief in Moses’ words with belief in His own words. Jesus words are also Scripture.
What Moses Wrote About Jesus
Moses wrote the first five books of the Old Testament (Luke 24:44). Consider the following passages that Moses wrote about Jesus.
First, Gen. 3:15 was written by Moses. “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” This is the first Messianic prophecy in Scripture. The prophecy relates to the “seed of woman” who would destroy the works of Satan (Heb. 2:14; I John 3:8). This is the beginning of the seed promise. “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law” (Gal. 4:4). God promised Abraham that through his seed all nations of the earth would be blessed (Gen. 22:18). Paul applies this promise to Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:16). The seed promise was also made to David (II Sam. 7:11-17). In Matthew 1:1, the word of God declares that Jesus was the son of David, the son of Abraham. This connects Jesus with the seed promise. Moses wrote concerning the physical line of descent that would be the means by which Jesus was brought into the world.
Second, in Gen. 49:10, Moses wrote, “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.” The sceptre denotes rule. Shiloh would be a descendent of Judah and would rule with authority and might. Shiloh would also be a lawgiver. Jesus was a lawgiver (Heb. 1:1-2). The word Shiloh means “rest-giver.” Jesus brought rest and peace (Matt. 11:28; John 16:33). John refers to Jesus as the “lion of the tribe of Judah” (Rev. 5:5). Jesus is the Shiloh mentioned in this text and this text was written by Moses!
Third, Moses wrote the book of Exodus. In Exodus 12:1-14, the details of the Passover are given to us. The Old Testament foreshadows the New Testament (Heb. 10:1). “For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.” The Old Testament forshadows or typifies things that were to come. The New Testament contains the antitype or substance (reality). The Passover lamb was a type of which Jesus is the antitype. Paul writes, “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us” (I Cor. 5:7). Jesus is the lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Moses wrote of our redemption through Jesus Christ by giving us the type of which Jesus is the antitype. This feature of the link between the Old Testament and the New Testament is just as important as prophecy and its fulfillment.
Fourth, the various sacrifices offered under the Old Testament foreshadowed the supreme sacrifice of Jesus for the sins of mankind. In Leviticus 1-7, Moses writes concerning the various sacrifices that comprised the sacriicial system under the law of Moses. One of these sacrifices was the burnt offering which was made in order to obtain atonement. However, the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sin (Heb. 10:4). Only the blood of Jesus purges the conscience from dead works (Heb. 9:14-15). Consequently, the atonement for sins committed under the Old Testament was secured by the sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross. Only the blood of Jesus remits/forgives sin. Jesus is a superior sacrifice for sin (Heb. 10:4). Once again, Moses foreshadows the utimate sacrifice for sin.
Fifth, in Numbers 21:4-9, we read that the Israelites were discouraged during their journey from Mount Hor to the land of Edom. They murmured against God. God sent “fiery serpents” (poisonous snakes) among them and many were bitten and died. God instructs Moses to make a fiery serpent and set it upon a pole. When the people looked upon it, they would be healed. In John 3:14-15, Jesus applies this historical event to His own death. “And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. And as Mosess lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up.” Jesus also said, “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me” (John 12:32). Jesus referenced His death upon the cross. Through His death, many would be healed spiritually (forgiven of their sins). Through type and antitype, Moses wrote of Jesus.
Finally, consider the prediction that Moses made in Deut. 18:18-20, “I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.” In Acts 3:22-23, Peter, an apostle of the Lord, said, “For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.” Peter states that Moses wrote about Jesus! Moses pointed to Jesus as a spokesman for God that all people must obey.
In every book that Moses wrote, i.e. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy, he said something about Jesus! Jesus said Moses wrote of Him. Peter said that Moses wrote of Jesus. You simply cannot appeal to a higher authority to prove this fact. In light of the unbelievable statements given above, we must affirm, “let God be true and every man a liar” (Rom. 3:4).