Moses: heroic man, man of God - 57

Dr Coats, widely recognized for his work over two decades on the Pentateuchal traditions, here presents us with his distinctive portrait of Moses.

George Coats identifies two strands in the Moses tradition, the tradition of the hero who represents the people of God, and that of the 'man of God', distinctly unheroic in folkloristic terms, who represents God to the people.

This duality in the portrayal of Moses becomes evident already in the call narrative of Exodus 3, a narrative that should not be divided between J and E but reflects the most ancient perception of the character Moses and his significance.