Who wrote the Old Testament?
All of the authors of the books of the Old Testament should be classified as prophets. That term refers to messengers, and that is exactly what these authors were doing—delivering the message of God to the people of God. Some books specifically name the author, other books imply or point to a person as the author, and still other books are anonymous.
One of the most important issues of authorship regards the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament. The traditional view is that Moses is the author of these books. This has been held by Jews since the Pentateuch was written and by Christians since the first century.
Even though the Pentateuch itself does not directly state that Moses is the author, there is evidence that indicates this is the case. For example, Moses did receive many of the laws recorded in these books directly from God on Mount Sinai (Exodus 19ff.). Also, several books begin with the statement that God spoke to Moses and that Moses was to pass the message on to the people of Israel (Leviticus 1:1–2; Numbers 1:1; Deuteronomy 1:1–3). Finally, several times it is said that Moses wrote down what God had told him (Exodus 17:14; 24:4; 34:27).
There is also evidence in other Old Testament books that content in the Pentateuch came through Moses (e.g., Judges 3:4; Ezra 6:18). Most important, Jesus and the authors of the New Testament books also believed that Moses wrote these books (e.g., Luke 24:44; Acts 13:39; 2 Corinthians 3:15–16). These are just a few of the many verses that support the traditional view.
Beginning about 200 years ago, some scholars rejected the traditional view and suggested what has come to be called the Documentary Hypothesis. This theory is that the first five books of the Old Testament were written by a number of different authors living at different times from the ninth century BC (600 years after Moses lived) through the fifth century BC (1,000 years after Moses lived).
There is also evidence in other Old Testament books that content in the Pentateuch came through Moses (e.g., Judges 3:4; Ezra 6:18). Most important, Jesus and the authors of the New Testament books also believed that Moses wrote these books (e.g., Luke 24:44; Acts 13:39; 2 Corinthians 3:15–16). These are just a few of the many verses that support the traditional view.
Beginning about 200 years ago, some scholars rejected the traditional view and suggested what has come to be called the Documentary Hypothesis. This theory is that the first five books of the Old Testament were written by a number of different authors living at different times from the ninth century BC (600 years after Moses lived) through the fifth century BC (1,000 years after Moses lived).
Furthermore, the theory claims that yet another group (editors) took bits and pieces of what these authors had written and stitched them together to form what we now know as the Pentateuch. This cut-and-paste theory has been much challenged and sufficiently refuted, but it is still held by some biblical scholars and is often simply assumed in popular books on the Old Testament.
The issue here is important, because the idea that Moses did not write these books calls into question the knowledge and integrity of Jesus Christ as well as the New Testament authors. Fortunately, there is strong evidence that Moses did indeed write these books, and the traditional view can be held with confidence.
All of the Old Testament historical books are anonymous. There are no clear references to authorship. The titles do not necessarily reflect the authorship. For example, the death of Samuel is recorded in 1 Samuel 25:1, therefore he could not have written the rest of 1 Samuel or 2 Samuel. Rather, it seems, the titles reflect one of the main characters in the book. It is likely, however, that these main characters may have played a role in the composition of the book in some way. But any conclusion regarding the authorship of these books should be held with a degree of tentativeness, and nothing crucial rests on one’s conclusion (unlike the authorship of the Pentateuch).
Authorship of the books of poetry is a mixed bag. The book of Job is anonymous. Suggestions range from Job himself, Elihu (one of the characters in the book), Moses (according to Jewish tradition), and Solomon (because Job is considered wisdom literature and Solomon wrote other wisdom literature).
Some of the psalms have superscriptions that name their authors. According to these, David wrote seventy-three (nearly half of the psalms), Asaph wrote twelve, the sons of Korah wrote twelve, Solomon wrote two, and Moses and Ethan each wrote one. It seems that Asaph, the sons of Korah, and Ethan were Levites who were responsible for leading Israel in worship. It makes sense that they would write psalms, which is the Greek word meaning “songs,” for that purpose. The remaining forty-nine psalms are anonymous.
The book of Proverbs names Solomon as its author (1:1; 10:1). Solomon is known as one of the wisest persons to have lived, and the proverbs are evidence of that. The last two chapters of Proverbs, however, are authored by Agur (chap. 30) and Lemuel (chap. 31). Not much is known about these two authors, other than that they seem to be Gentiles who probably lived east of Israel. The book of Ecclesiastes is “the words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem” (1:1). Technically, this book is anonymous since no specific name is attached to it. Jewish and Christian tradition is that Solomon is the author; however, some scholars believe that someone later than Solomon wrote it. Since it is anonymous, we should remain tentative regarding its authorship.
Regarding the Song of Solomon, 1:1 could be translated “The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.” Therefore, the traditional Jewish and Christian view is that Solomon is the author. He is mentioned numerous times as a character in the book. However, 1:1 could also be translated “The Song of Songs, which is for/about Solomon.” It is possible, then, that this was written by someone else, probably during Solomon’s reign, in order to honor Solomon. Again, the authorship here is ambiguous.
The prophetic books, for the most part, clearly state the author at the very beginning of the book. There are a few exceptions to this general rule. The book of Jonah is technically anonymous. It is also different from most of the other prophetic books in that it is the story of the prophet himself rather than the record of the messages the prophet was given. It may be by Jonah or based on the account as he told it. Lamentations, too, is anonymous. It has traditionally been attributed to Jeremiah, and for that reason it has been placed after the book of Jeremiah and among the prophetic books, even though it is technically a book of poetry.
A few relatively recent challenges regarding prophetic books should be noted, namely the authorship of Isaiah and Daniel. Both of these challenges are due to the amazing predictive prophecy in these books. Some scholars simply assume that no one can predict the future, and even if God can know the future, he doesn’t tell anyone what it is. Therefore, they feel compelled to “late date” predictive prophecy.
The issue here is important, because the idea that Moses did not write these books calls into question the knowledge and integrity of Jesus Christ as well as the New Testament authors. Fortunately, there is strong evidence that Moses did indeed write these books, and the traditional view can be held with confidence.
All of the Old Testament historical books are anonymous. There are no clear references to authorship. The titles do not necessarily reflect the authorship. For example, the death of Samuel is recorded in 1 Samuel 25:1, therefore he could not have written the rest of 1 Samuel or 2 Samuel. Rather, it seems, the titles reflect one of the main characters in the book. It is likely, however, that these main characters may have played a role in the composition of the book in some way. But any conclusion regarding the authorship of these books should be held with a degree of tentativeness, and nothing crucial rests on one’s conclusion (unlike the authorship of the Pentateuch).
Authorship of the books of poetry is a mixed bag. The book of Job is anonymous. Suggestions range from Job himself, Elihu (one of the characters in the book), Moses (according to Jewish tradition), and Solomon (because Job is considered wisdom literature and Solomon wrote other wisdom literature).
Some of the psalms have superscriptions that name their authors. According to these, David wrote seventy-three (nearly half of the psalms), Asaph wrote twelve, the sons of Korah wrote twelve, Solomon wrote two, and Moses and Ethan each wrote one. It seems that Asaph, the sons of Korah, and Ethan were Levites who were responsible for leading Israel in worship. It makes sense that they would write psalms, which is the Greek word meaning “songs,” for that purpose. The remaining forty-nine psalms are anonymous.
The book of Proverbs names Solomon as its author (1:1; 10:1). Solomon is known as one of the wisest persons to have lived, and the proverbs are evidence of that. The last two chapters of Proverbs, however, are authored by Agur (chap. 30) and Lemuel (chap. 31). Not much is known about these two authors, other than that they seem to be Gentiles who probably lived east of Israel. The book of Ecclesiastes is “the words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem” (1:1). Technically, this book is anonymous since no specific name is attached to it. Jewish and Christian tradition is that Solomon is the author; however, some scholars believe that someone later than Solomon wrote it. Since it is anonymous, we should remain tentative regarding its authorship.
Regarding the Song of Solomon, 1:1 could be translated “The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.” Therefore, the traditional Jewish and Christian view is that Solomon is the author. He is mentioned numerous times as a character in the book. However, 1:1 could also be translated “The Song of Songs, which is for/about Solomon.” It is possible, then, that this was written by someone else, probably during Solomon’s reign, in order to honor Solomon. Again, the authorship here is ambiguous.
The prophetic books, for the most part, clearly state the author at the very beginning of the book. There are a few exceptions to this general rule. The book of Jonah is technically anonymous. It is also different from most of the other prophetic books in that it is the story of the prophet himself rather than the record of the messages the prophet was given. It may be by Jonah or based on the account as he told it. Lamentations, too, is anonymous. It has traditionally been attributed to Jeremiah, and for that reason it has been placed after the book of Jeremiah and among the prophetic books, even though it is technically a book of poetry.
A few relatively recent challenges regarding prophetic books should be noted, namely the authorship of Isaiah and Daniel. Both of these challenges are due to the amazing predictive prophecy in these books. Some scholars simply assume that no one can predict the future, and even if God can know the future, he doesn’t tell anyone what it is. Therefore, they feel compelled to “late date” predictive prophecy.
That is, they claim that these “predictions” were written to appear as though they were written before the events, when in reality they were written afterward—history in the form of prediction. Specifically, some scholars believe that the latter part of Isaiah, chapters 40–66, was written by someone other than Isaiah. A significant problem with this suggestion is that Jesus and other New Testament authors quote from Isaiah frequently, including from chapters 40–66, and attribute the statements to Isaiah (Matthew 4:14–16; John 12:38; Romans 10:16, 20).
The same thing has been done to Daniel, due to his amazing vision of the future in chapters 7–12. Some skeptical scholars claim that this was written by someone about 400 years later. However, if we believe that God knows the future because the future is simply the outworking of his plan, there is no problem in believing that these prophets made these amazingly accurate predictions.
Aaron, D. (2012). Understanding Your Bible in 15 Minutes a Day (pp. 40–44). Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publisher.
Aaron, D. (2012). Understanding Your Bible in 15 Minutes a Day (pp. 40–44). Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publisher.
