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Is Judaism the Religion of Moses? 87

In other words tradition originated in the period of the religious anarchy, when the Egyp-
tians were in control of Palestine.

"The reorganized Sanhedrin had to reckon with these NEW LAWS AND CUSTOMS,
NOW CONSIDERED AS TRADITIONAL because observed and practiced by the people
FOR A GENERATION OR MORE" (ibid., p. 206).

We should not suppose that this theory of the origin of the Traditional laws was wholeheart-
edly accepted by all the teachers and members of the Sanhedrin.

Some Teachers Disapprove of New Interpretation

"The theory of an authoritative traditional law (which might be taught independently of the
Scripture) WAS ALTOGETHER TOO NEW to be unhesitatingly accepted ... THE
THEORY WAS TOO STARTLING AND NOVEL to be unconditionally accepted" (ibid.,
p. 211).

The Jewish teachers who were the most prone to accept the new fictional interpretation were
the lay teachers. Some of the priests were not quite sure this was the way of handling the situation.
They maintained that the Sopherim of old had always relied upon the Scripture, and that they would
never have countenanced such interpretations which completely side-tracked the Word of God.

"In their [the priests'] opinion, the main thing was to observe the laws of the fathers as con-
ained in the Book of the Law, because the people had pledged themselves, by oath, in the
time of Ezra, to do so. If changed conditions required additional laws and new regulations,
the PRIESTS and RULERS were competent to decree them according to the authority given
to them in Deut. 17:8-13" (ibid., p. 209).

The priests, as a whole, declared that the Scripture was the only necessary code of laws to
obey.

"This apparently simple solution offered by the priestly group in the Sanhedrin DID NOT
FIND FAVOR WITH THE LAY MEMBERS OF THAT BODY" (ibid., p. 209).

The lay teachers, who outnumbered the priestly group, claimed the only way of reconciling
these new customs with the Scripture was to recognize them as Oral laws handed down from Mo-
ses.

They began to formulate methods of explaining how these laws were ordained by Moses
and transmitted to the Jews then living. Their explanations were not true, but they deliberately
taught them anyway.

Lauterbach says that these lay teachers of the Sanhedrin devised the "methods for connect-
ing with the Law all those new decisions and customs which were now universally observed by the
people, THUS MAKING THEM APPEAR as part of the laws of the fathers" (ibid., p. 210). Notice,
THEY MADE THEM APPEAR as if they were actual traditions of Moses!

The Berean Voice September-October 2002