"At that time Yahweh said to me, Hew two tables of stone like unto the
first, and come up to me into the mount, and make an ark of wood. And I
will write on the tables the words that were on the first tables which you
broke and you shall put them in the ark. So I made an ark of acacia wood,
and hewed two tables of stone like unto the first, and went up into the
mount, having the two tables in my hand" (Dt. 10:1-3).
Notice that this passage is explaining something that happened early in the
exodus right after the Israelites had left Egypt and gone into the
wilderness. The text continues with more information about the replacement
of the broken tablets:
"And he [Yahweh] wrote on the tables, according to the first writing,
the ten commandments, which Yahweh spoke to you in the mount out of the
midst of the fire in the day of the assembly; and Yahweh gave them to me.
And I turned and came down from the mount, and put the tables in the ark
which I had made, and they are as Yahweh commanded me" (vs:4-5).
Now notice that at this point, the narrative jumps forward about 40 year to
Aaron's death at the end of the wilderness wanderings:
"And the children of Israel journeyed from Beeroth Benejaakan to
Moserah. There Aaron died, and there he was buried, and Eleazar his son
ministered in the priest's office in his stead" (v:6).
Notice that this verse not only jumps forward 40 years but also switches
from a first-person to a third-person narrative. It continues that way
throughout the interpolation:
"From thence (Moserah) they journeyed to Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah to
Jotbathan, a land of brooks of water. At that time Yahweh set apart the
tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, to stand before
Yahweh to minister to him, and to bless in his name, unto this day.
Wherefore Levi has no portion nor inheritance with his brethen; Yahweh is
his inheritance, according as Yahweh your God spoke to him" (vs:7-9).
Now the interpolation ends, so the text jumps back 40 years to end the
first-person narrative of events that happened in Sinai, which was
interrupted by the third-person interpolation:
"And I stayed in the mount, as at the first time, forty days and forty
nights, and Yahweh hearkened to me that time also; Yahweh would not destroy
you..." (v:10).
And it continues with a narration of events that happened at Sinai.
It is rather obvious that this is an example of an interpolation that
someone, for reasons unknown, inserted into the text. Such as this gives
little reason to believe that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant word of
god, for who knows how many textual alterations exist in the Bible? An
altered text can hardly be considered an inerrant, infallible text.
Farrell Till
Skepticism, Inc.
jftill@midwest.net