The Berean Bible Study Project

The Completion of the Old Testatment.

The Completion of the Old Testament: When Did It End, and What Did Jesus Receive?

Introduction

One of the most important questions for any student of Scripture is this:

When did the Old Testament come to an end?

The answer matters because it shapes how we understand the ministry of Jesus, the authority of the Scriptures He quoted, and the relationship between the Old and New Testaments.

This chapter provides a concise overview of the completion of the Torah, the completion of the Old Testament, and the significance of these facts for Christian interpretation.

The Torah: A Completed Work

The Torah consists of the first five books of the Bible:

  • Genesis
  • Exodus
  • Leviticus
  • Numbers
  • Deuteronomy

Its narrative concludes with Deuteronomy 34, the account of the death of Moses.

The next biblical book, Joshua, begins:

“After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD…”

This marks a clear transition. The Torah ends with Moses’ death, while the historical books begin with Joshua leading Israel into the Promised Land.

Many Jewish and Christian interpreters have long understood that the account of Moses’ death was written by Joshua or another inspired author after Moses died. Others maintain that Moses himself wrote the Torah under divine inspiration, with only the final verses added later. Regardless of which view one adopts, the Torah is presented as a complete body of Scripture.

Was the Torah Still Being Written in Jesus’ Day?

No.

By the time Jesus began His public ministry, the Torah had already existed as an authoritative collection of Scripture for many centuries.

Even scholars who propose a later editorial process generally agree that the Torah had reached its final form no later than the fifth century BC. Traditional Jewish and Christian belief places its completion much earlier, during Moses’ lifetime, with only the final account of his death added afterward.

In either case, by the first century AD the Torah was universally regarded within Judaism as sacred Scripture.

Jesus never suggested that additional books should be added to the Torah.

Instead, He repeatedly appealed to it as God’s authoritative Word.

Were Jewish People Continuing to Write the Old Testament?

No.

After the completion of the Hebrew Scriptures, Jewish teachers continued to produce an enormous body of religious literature.

These writings include:

  • the Mishnah
  • the Jerusalem Talmud
  • the Babylonian Talmud
  • Midrash
  • countless rabbinic commentaries

These works explain, interpret, and apply Scripture.

They are not additions to the Torah or to the Hebrew Bible.

Thus, Judaism continued to write about Scripture, but not new Scripture.

When Does the Old Testament End?

In the Christian ordering of the Bible, the Old Testament concludes with the book of Malachi.

Malachi ends by promising that God will send a messenger before the coming of the Lord.

Christians understand this prophecy to point forward to John the Baptist and ultimately to Jesus Christ.

Historically, Malachi is generally dated to approximately 430 BC.

Between Malachi and the appearance of John the Baptist lies a period of roughly four centuries during which no new prophetic books were added to the Old Testament.

Why Is the Jewish Bible Arranged Differently?

The Jewish Bible (the Tanakh) contains essentially the same books as the Protestant Old Testament but arranges them differently.

Its three divisions are:

  1. The Torah (Law)
  2. The Prophets (Nevi’im)
  3. The Writings (Ketuvim)

The final book of the Tanakh is 2 Chronicles, which ends with King Cyrus inviting the Jewish exiles to return and rebuild Jerusalem.

The difference is one of arrangement, not of entirely different Scripture.

Did Jesus Receive a Completed Old Testament?

Yes.

Jesus inherited a body of Scripture that had already been recognized and revered for centuries.

Throughout the Gospels He refers to:

  • “Moses”
  • “the Law”
  • “the Prophets”
  • “the Scriptures”

as already existing and fully authoritative.

He never speaks as though the Old Testament were still being written.

Instead, He consistently treats it as the Word of God.

Is Christianity Simply Interpreting the Interpreters?

In many respects, yes.

Much of Jesus’ ministry involved correcting interpretations of Scripture rather than correcting Scripture itself.

His disagreements with some religious leaders generally concerned:

  • the meaning of the Law,
  • the application of the Law,
  • and traditions that, in His judgment, obscured God’s intention.

However, Christianity makes a further claim.

The New Testament teaches that Jesus is not merely another interpreter of Moses but the promised Messiah in whom the Law and the Prophets find their fulfillment.

Therefore, Christians read the Old Testament through the person and work of Jesus Christ while continuing to affirm its divine authority.

What Is an Inspired Writer?

From the Christian perspective, an inspired writer is someone whom God uniquely guided through the Holy Spirit to write Scripture.

This does not require that God dictated every word mechanically.

Rather, God worked through each author’s language, personality, education, historical setting, and literary style so that what was written is truly God’s Word while remaining genuinely the author’s own writing.

The Bible itself states:

“All Scripture is breathed out by God…” (2 Timothy 3:16)

and

“Men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:21)

Historical scholarship can investigate authorship, dating, language, and transmission.

Whether an author was divinely inspired, however, is ultimately a theological conviction rather than a conclusion that historical methods alone can establish.

How Certain Are We?

Well Established

  • The Torah ends with the death of Moses in Deuteronomy 34.
  • By the time of Jesus, the Torah had long been regarded as authoritative Scripture.
  • Jewish teachers continued producing commentaries and legal discussions but did not continue adding books to the Torah.
  • Jesus consistently appealed to the existing Scriptures as God’s authoritative Word.

Widely Accepted but Discussed

  • The account of Moses’ death was likely written by Joshua or another inspired writer after Moses’ death.
  • The book of Malachi is generally understood to be the final prophetic book of the Christian Old Testament.

Debated

  • The precise process by which the Torah reached its final literary form.
  • The extent of editorial activity after Moses.
  • The exact historical stages by which the Hebrew canon came to be recognized within ancient Judaism.

Scripture as Our Final Authority

The Berean Bible Study Project seeks to distinguish carefully between three different categories:

  1. The biblical text itself
  2. Interpretations of the biblical text
  3. Modern scholarly conclusions about the biblical text

Historical, archaeological, linguistic, and literary scholarship provides valuable insight into Scripture and deserves careful consideration.

At the same time, this project follows the conviction expressed throughout the New Testament that Scripture itself remains the final authority for faith and practice.

Like the Bereans of Acts 17:11, we seek to examine every claim—including our own—in the light of God’s written Word.