One of the most unusual passages in the New Testament appears in Epistle of Jude 1:9:
“Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil, disputed about the body of Moses…”
This raises an immediate question:
👉 Where does this story come from?
When we return to the Torah, the account of Moses’ death contains no such dispute.
This study examines:
what the Torah actually says
what Jude describes
Greek terminology in the verse
parallels in rabbinic literature
and the role of Second Temple traditions
The Torah Account: No Dispute Described
The death of Moses is recorded in Deuteronomy 34.
The text states:
Moses dies in the land of Moab
God Himself buries him
the location of the grave is unknown
There is:
no mention of Satan
no mention of Michael
no conflict or dispute
The account is concise and controlled, leaving no indication of any supernatural contention over the body.
Jude 1:9: A Different Narrative
Jude presents a scene not found in the Torah.
Let’s look at key Greek terms:
διακρινόμενος (diakrinomenos) — disputing, contending, engaging in argument
διάβολος (diabolos) — the accuser, adversary
σῶμα Μωϋσέως (sōma Mōuseōs) — the body of Moses
Jude describes:
a dispute
involving Michael the archangel
concerning Moses’ body
Yet Michael does not pronounce judgment himself, but says:
“The Lord rebuke you”
This restraint becomes part of Jude’s larger argument about authority and speech.
The Zechariah Connection
The phrase:
“The Lord rebuke you”
appears in Book of Zechariah 3:2.
In that passage:
Satan stands as an accuser
God rebukes him directly
Jude appears to echo this judicial language, placing Michael in a similar but more restrained role.
Second Temple Tradition and the Assumption of Moses
The most widely accepted explanation is that Jude is drawing from:
👉 Assumption of Moses
Although the exact passage is no longer preserved, early writers confirm its existence.
Origen
States explicitly that Jude’s reference comes from this text.
This places Jude within the context of Second Temple Jewish tradition, where:
narratives expanded on Torah events
additional details were preserved outside canonical scripture
Rabbinic Parallels (Not Identical, But Related)
While the exact Jude narrative is not found in the Talmud, related themes appear in rabbinic literature.
1 Babylonian Talmud Sotah 13b
Describes:
Moses’ death
God burying him
the presence of divine involvement
However:
❌ No dispute with Satan
❌ No mention of Michael
2 Midrash Tanchuma
Includes traditions where:
angelic or opposing forces appear
figures such as Samael are involved
3 Devarim Rabbah
Expands on:
Moses’ death
divine protection
resistance from opposing forces
Important Distinction
These rabbinic texts:
✔ preserve similar themes
❌ do not reproduce Jude’s exact account
This suggests a shared tradition environment, rather than direct quotation.
Greek Nuance: Why Jude’s Language Matters
Jude’s use of διακρίνω (diakrinō) is significant.
It implies:
a formal dispute
a judicial or argumentative context
Combined with:
“the Lord rebuke you”
reference to the devil as accuser
the scene resembles a legal confrontation, not a physical struggle.
This aligns closely with the pattern seen in Zechariah.
Text vs. Tradition
At this point, we can identify three layers:
1 Torah (Deuteronomy 34)
simple account
no dispute
2 Second Temple traditions
expanded narratives
likely source of Jude
3 Rabbinic literature
preserves related motifs
not identical to Jude
A Careful Conclusion
Jude 1:9 does not quote the Torah.
It reflects a tradition that:
was known in Jewish interpretive circles
existed outside the written Torah
may have been preserved in texts no longer fully extant
At the same time:
later rabbinic literature contains echoes of similar ideas
but does not preserve the exact same narrative
Final Thought
The key question is not simply:
👉 “Is this in the Torah?”
But:
👉 How do we understand a text that draws from both scripture and tradition?
Jude presents a scene:
grounded in recognizable themes
expressed with language tied to earlier prophetic texts
yet not recorded in the Torah itself
Discussion
How do you understand Jude 1:9?
Do you see it as:
preserving an earlier Jewish tradition
drawing from non-canonical sources
or something else entirely?