The Supreme Lawgiver

Jesus is the Greater Moses who interprets the Law and the Prophets and brings the covenant promises to completion.

The life, words, and deeds of Jesus parallel key events from the History of Israel. He brings the things God began in the past to their intended conclusion. He is the Supreme Lawgiver prefigured in the story of Israel’s Exodus from Egypt and the receipt of the Law by Moses while on Mount Sinai.

By presenting parallels between Moses and Jesus, the Gospel of Matthew prepares us for the teachings of Christ, especially as represented in his ‘Sermon on the Mount’. Moses delivered the Law to Israel at Mount Sinai. Likewise, on “the Mount,” Jesus pronounced his interpretations of “the Law and the Prophets” in his ‘Sermon on the Mount’ – (Matthew 5:17-20).

[High Mountain - Photo by David East (London) on Unsplash]

After the “wise men” told King Herod of their quest to find the one “born King of the Jews,” the duplicitous ruler asked them to inform him when they identified the child so he could also pay homage to him. However, the “wise men” were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, for he intended to kill Jesus.

Likewise, when Moses was born, the Egyptian king ordered the Hebrew midwives to kill all male infants when they were born, but they “feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt commanded them” - (Exodus 1:17, Matthew 2:1-12).

The angel warned Joseph to take the infant to Egypt, “for Herod will seek to destroy the child,” which is what the king did when he ordered the slaughter of all males under the age of two in Bethlehem. Joseph remained in Egypt until Herod died in fulfillment of the prophecy of the Book of Hosea, a passage applied originally to Israel’s deliverance from Egypt:

• “And Joseph arose and took the young child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: Out of Egypt I called my son” - (Hosea 11:1, Matthew 2:13-16).

Moses fled Egypt because Pharaoh sought to slay him, and he remained in Midian until Pharaoh died. Only then did God “hear the groanings of the children of Israel and remember his covenant with Abraham.” God then sent Moses back to Egypt to deliver Israel from bondage - (Exodus 2:15-25, 3:14).

After his baptism in the Jordan River, the “Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to be tested by the Devil.” The temptation as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew echoes the tests that Israel faced in the wilderness, only Israel failed each test, whereas Jesus overcame them all.

After overcoming Satan’s temptations, Jesus returned to Galilee, where he began to proclaim the Gospel to all men and women who would hear him - (Matthew 4:1-17).

THE WILDERNESS

The Israelites complained in the wilderness. They missed the “fleshpots of Egypt.” God responded by sending them “manna” to eat. Moses reminded the nation years later what God did for the nation despite the complaints of the people:

• “And he humbled you, and suffered you to hunger, and fed you with manna, which you knew not, neither did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread only, but by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of Yahweh” - (Deuteronomy 8:3).

• “And the Tempter came and said to him, If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread. But he answered and said, It is written, Man will not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” - (Matthew 4:3-4).

Jesus cited the passage from Deuteronomy when he rejected the Devil’s proposition. It is noteworthy that he changed the original “everything” to “every word” that comes from God. Presumably, Jesus did this on his own authority.

At Massah, the Israelites grumbled about the lack of water. In so doing, they “tempted Yahweh.” Before entering Canaan, Moses reminded them of the incident when he warned Israel, “Do not tempt Yahweh your God as you tempted him in Massah.” Jesus referred to the same passage when Satan challenged him to throw himself down from “the pinnacle of the Temple” - (Deuteronomy 6:16, Matthew 4:6-7).

When the Devil offered Jesus political power, the Son of God responded by again citing words of Moses given to Israel:

• “Beware lest you forget Yahweh who brought you forth out of the land of Egypt. You will fear Yahweh your God, and you will serve him” - (Deuteronomy 6:12-13).

• “Again, the devil took him to an exceeding high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory. And he said to him, All these things will I give you if you will pay homage to me. Then Jesus said to him, Depart from me, Satan, for it is written, You will worship the Lord your God, and him only will you serve. Then the devil left him. And behold, angels came and ministered to him” - (Matthew 4:8-11).

Jesus returned to Galilee from the wilderness and began preaching the Good News of the Kingdom of God. According to the Gospel of Luke, after rejecting Satan’s temptations, Jesus was empowered by the Holy Spirit. It was then that “great multitudes from Galilee, Decapolis, Jerusalem, and Judea” began to follow and hear him - (Matthew 4:18-25, Luke 4:14 – “And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee”).

The place names indicate that the crowds included Gentiles. The description of the “multitudes” parallels the “mixed multitude” that “came up with the children of Israel” when God brought them out of Egypt, “with signs and wonders.” The Decapolis was a confederacy of ten Greek-speaking cities comprised of largely Gentile populations.

However, some members of the “multitude” followed Jesus because of his miraculous healings and exorcisms. They were not interested in his teachings or his call for repentance and discipleship. “You seek me because you ate of the loaves, and were filled” – (Exodus 12:38, Deuteronomy 26:8, John 6:26).

The background from the books of Exodus and Deuteronomy prepares us for the first major block of Christ’s teachings in chapters 5 through 7 of the Gospel of Matthew. After “seeing the multitudes,” Jesus led his disciples “up onto the mountain,” where he sat down and began to teach them.

The Greek text uses the definite article or “the” with “mountain.” It was “THE mountain.” The passage does not provide any information about the identity of the mountain. The description is a deliberate echo of the story of Moses when he “ascended the mount” at Sinai to receive the Law from the hand of God.

The Gospel of Matthew wants us to connect Christ’s story to that of Moses. While Israel was encamped on the plain, Moses “went up to Yahweh” and received the “ten words” inscribed on the stone tablets. In the Greek Septuagint version of Exodus, Moses “ascended onto the mount” (‘anebé eis to oros’). The same clause is found in the Greek text of Matthew when it describes how Jesus “ascended onto the Mount” (‘anebé eis to oros’).

When Moses received the commandments of God, only Aaron accompanied him. Not even the sanctified priests were allowed on the mountain – “Let not the priests and the people break through to ascend up unto Yahweh, lest he break forth upon them.” - (Exodus 12:12-25).

So also, Jesus, having ascended the “Mount,” taught the words of God to his closest disciples. However, he went beyond Moses by giving the definitive interpretations of the Law’s statutes and revealing the will and desire of his Father behind the written legal code.

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SEE ALSO:

• Forgive your Persecutor - (How we react to hostility and persecution demonstrates exactly whose disciple we are, and whose kingdom we serve)

• "Rejoice and Exult!" - (The followers of Jesus are called to rejoice when they are found worthy to suffer for him and his Gospel)

• Wise or Foolish? - (At the end of his 'Sermon on the Mount', Jesus claimed absolute authority for his words. Disciples who ignore them risk his rejection – Matthew 7:21-28)

• His Authority - (He is the Son of Man foreseen by Daniel, the Messiah who has absolute authority from Yahweh over the Earth)