CHAPTER II
THE MOSAIC AUTHORSHIP OF THE PENTATEUCH
BY PROFESSOR GEORGE FREDERICK WRIGHT, D. D., LL. D., OBERLIN COLLEGE, OBERLIN, OHIO During the last quarter of a century an influential school o te f m c p r t i i t n ic g s t h o as pr d o e v lu e g t e h d at th t e he w P or e l n d ta w te it u h ch ar d ti i c d le n s o a t n o d ri v g o in lu a m te es du a r t ing the time of Moses, and that most of the laws attributed to him did not come into existence until several centuries after his death, and many of them not till the time of Ezekiel. By these critics the patriarchs are relegated to the realm of myth or dim legend and the history of the Pentateuch generally is discredited. In answering these destructive contentions and d te e r fe t n h d a i n ng to th g e iv h e ist a or b y ri w ef hi s c u h m t m he a y ry di o sc f re t d h i e t a w r e gu c m an en d t o s o n f o b M et r . Harold M. Wiener, a young orthodox Jew, who is both a well established barrister in London, and a scholar of the widest attainments. What he has written upon the subject during the last ten years would fill a thousand octavo pages; while our condensation must be limited to less than twenty. In ing the subject it comes in place to consider approach I. THE BURDEN OF PROOF The Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch has until very recent times been accepted without question by both Jews b a r n o d ke C n hr l i i s n t e ian f s r . om Su th c e h a e c a c r e li p e t s a t nc ti e m , e c s om o i f ng wh do ic w h n w to e u h s av i e n a u n n y information, gives it the support of what is called general c p o e n ls se t n h t o , s w e h w ic h h o , ww o h u il l e d p d e i r s h c a re p d s it no it t t a o bs p o r l o u d te u l c y e c i o n n c c o l n u t s r iv ov e, er c t o ib m le opposing evidence. But the evidence which the critics produce 43
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker