Was It a Reformation or Innovation? Moses’ achievements would be a fabulous innovation if monotheism had never existed prior to his coming on the scene. The Bible points to the patriarchs being monotheists. This occurs in: a) Genesis 24:3 which says: And I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that thou shall not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell. The God of heaven and earth is the One Abraham’s servant is to swear by. If Abraham’s God is the God of heaven and earth, then it leaves no other place for any other god to rule. Thus, Abraham did not believe there were other gods like the One he worshipped. b) Exodus 3:6 which says: More over he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. The One who appears before Moses is the same God that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob worshipped. The expression ‘God of thy father’ supports the view that monotheism predated Moses as it claims Moses’ father was a worshipper of the One who came and revealed himself to Moses at the ‘burning bush’. Therefore, Moses’ introduction of monotheism onto the world scene should not be regarded as an innovation. If it …show more content…
The proclamation by the God of Sinai of His name to Moses does not stop with the words YHWH, YHWH but goes on to describe in some detail the character of the God who bears the name YHWH (v6-7) and its implications for Israel. The statement in v14 that says ‘for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God’ shows that the name YHWH is expressive of God’s nature. Consequently, the declaration that God was not known to the Patriarchs by the name YHWH may properly be taken to mean that the redemptive significance of the name was not known. Moses now reveals this redemptive fact, so one can see the outworking of progressive revelation with the name