Moses in the New Testament

Most references to Moses in the New Testament:

• Refer to something Moses commanded

• Appeal to traditions about him in order to teach

• Compare him to Jesus in order to make the case that Christianity is the fulfillment of Judaism

Moses is most often mentioned in connection with something he commanded or the “Law of Moses.” In the Synoptic Gospels, these references are concerned with laws regarding:

• Matt 8:4; Mark 1:44; Luke 5:14—Skin disease

• Matt 19:7–8; Mark 10:3–4—Divorce

• Matt 22:24; Mark 12:19; Luke 20:28—Levirate marriage

• Mark 7:10—Treatment of parents

• Luke 2:22—Dedication of the firstborn

• John 8:5—Adulterers

• John 7:22–23; Acts 15:1, 15—Circumcision

• 1 Cor 9:9—Oxen

• Heb 7:14—Priestly lineage

Charges brought against Stephen (Acts 6–7) include speaking “blasphemous words against Moses and against God” (Acts 6:11) and proclaiming that Jesus will destroy the temple and “change the customs Moses handed down” (Acts 6:14). Before Stephen is stoned to death, he appeals to the story and character of Moses (Acts 7:20–44) as part of his defense of Christianity.

Some Jews refer to themselves as disciples of Moses; this is in contrast to disciples of Jesus (John 9:28–29). Jewish Christians maintain that forsaking or rejecting the Law of Moses has negative consequences (Acts 21:21; Heb 10:28). Jesus encourages Jews to keep the Law, saying “the scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so practice and observe whatever they tell you—but not what they do. For they preach, but do not practice” (Matt 23:2–3 ESV). James argues that Gentile converts to Christianity should not be forced to follow the law “for from ancient generations Moses has had in every city those who proclaim him, for he is read every Sabbath in the synagogues” (Acts 15:21 ESV).

John refers to Moses as the person through whom God gave the Law (7:19; 8:5), but contrasts the Law through Moses with “grace and truth” through Jesus Christ (John 1:17). Paul argues that the work of Christ supersedes the Law of Moses (Acts 13:39) and that righteousness based on Moses’ law is inferior to righteousness based on faith (Rom 10:5). However, Paul continues to appeal to Moses’ authoritative words in order to make a case for Christianity (Rom 9:15; 10:19). The author of Hebrews argues that Jesus is greater than Moses (Heb 3:1–5; 10:28), but includes him in the famous “Hall of Faith” as an exemplary character (Heb 11:23–28). Other arguments for Jesus superseding Moses include discussions of Moses’ veil (2 Cor 3:7–15) and manna from heaven (John 6:32).

Moses is also mentioned alongside the prophets (Luke 16:29, 31; 24:27), and both are said to have spoken about Jesus (Luke 24:44; John 1:45; Acts 3:22; 26:22; 28:23). Moses also appears alongside Elijah during the transfiguration (Matt 17:3–4; Mark 9:4–5; Luke 9:30–33).

Some references in the New Testament reflect traditions about Moses not previously expressed:

• Jude 1:9 states: “when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, ‘The Lord rebuke you.’ ” The Church fathers attribute this statement to a book entitled the Assumption of Moses, but no such tradition is attested in any surviving Jewish legend concerning the death of Moses (Graupner and Wolter, Moses in Biblical and Extra-Biblical Traditions, 180).

• John 5:45–46—Moses is described as the accuser of unbelievers.

• John 7:22–23; Acts 15:1, 5—He is described as the originator of circumcision.

• 1 Cor 10:1–6—Paul describes baptism “into Moses in the cloud and in the sea” (ESV).

• Rev 15:3—The author of the Revelation records a song of Moses that is unattested elsewhere in the Bible.

• 2 Tim 3:8—The magicians who oppose Moses in Egypt (Exod 7–8) are mentioned by the names Jannes and Jambres, a tradition found in several non-biblical texts including the Dead Sea Scrolls (Graupner and Wolter, Moses in Biblical and Extra-Biblical Traditions, 211–26; Abrahams et al., Moses, 533).