Does it matter whether God or Moses is the one speaking in the Pentateuch?
Prompted by a question on Exodus versus Deuteronomy, a viewer's query leads Robert to ask whether it makes a difference who is actually speaking in the text.
Answer
It does make a difference who is doing the talking. When Moses talks, you cannot always be guaranteed that he is telling the truth, or that he knows the truth he should tell, or that he is not confused. If God is doing the talking, we know that every word God says is true. Take Exodus 32. God says to Moses, step aside, I am going to destroy these people, and Moses intercedes with two arguments. The first is, what will you say to the Egyptians, that you brought them out only to kill them in the desert? That argument disregards God's integrity and tries to embarrass God, as if God has to cower to the Egyptians and make an excuse for what He does, so it is full of fluff. The second argument is the promise God made to Abraham to give the land of Canaan to his seed, and Moses slips in a word that should not be there, the word forever. If you search Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy where the land is specifically promised to Abraham's seed, his physical descendants, you will not find the word forever or everlasting possession anywhere. Moses either did not know what he was saying, or he made it sound like God could not renege, as if the land was promised forever with no conditions, and that is not true. So Moses said it, not God, and that is why it matters who is speaking.