The death of Moses is described in the Book of Deuteronomy, chapter 14, and is in fact the last event before the entry of the Israelןites into the land of Cnaan. Before his death, Moses gave the tribes his blessing. There is a known question of who buried Moses, and where is he buried. Today we will try to elaborate on the issue.
According to the main opinion of Chazal, Moshe was born and died on the 7th of Adar. This day was declared by the Government of Israel as a memorial day for IDF soldiers or terror victims whose burial place is unknown, as Moses is considered “the first Jewish whose burial place is unknown”.
Chazal, an acronym for the Hebrew “Ḥakhameinu Zikhronam Liv’rakha” (חכמינו זכרונם לברכה, “Our Sages, may their memory be blessed”), refers to all Jewish sages of the Mishna, Tosefta and Talmud eras, spanning from the times of the final 300 years of the Second Temple of Jerusalem until the 7th century CE.
Where is Moses Buried?
The bible does not reveal much about the circumstances of Moses’ death. There are several references in the Bible to the death and burial of Moses, and each of them contributes to the mystery surrounding the story of the great prophet. We know that he was 120 years old when he died, “yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone” (Deuteronomy 34:7). According to the Bible, Moses climbed Mount Nebo where “God showed him the whole land of Israel”, to which he was not allowed to enter due to his past sins from the times of Israelites in Egypt. It is later specified that he had died there on the summit.
Scholars have suggested God buried Moses secretly and without a grave marker to prevent the grave from becoming a shrine or a place of worship. As the Israelites were prone to idolatry, this seems plausible. Others believe that there was no grave at all, and that Moses was ascended to heaven in the manner of Enoch and Elijah. These scholars point to the appearance of Moses with Elijah on the Mount of the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1–10).
According to scholars Yair Zakowitz and Avigdor Shenan, there are hints of an ancient tradition that Moses did not die at all, but ascended to heaven. Evidence of this tradition is found in the book of Josephus, “Jewish Antiquities“:
And suddenly a cloud stood over him and he disappeared near one valley. However, in the Scriptures he wrote about himself that he died, out of fear, lest they dare to say that because of his great righteousness he ascended to God.
There is also an explicit opinion in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses ascended to heaven. The problem with this latter view is that the Bible specifically says Moses “died” and “was buried” (Deuteronomy 34:7).
According to tradition, Moses was buried on the mountain, although his place of burial is not specified (Deuteronomy 34:6).
Who Buried Moses?
In the context of the burial of Moses, two things were said in the Torah: first, “And he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor” (Deuteronomy 34:6), and then “but no one knows the place of his burial to this day.” Most scholars simply say that Moses was buried in the valley, but the question is who buried him. It is clear that if there was a person who buried him, then he should know his burial place.
This led to a very bold legend, presented in various forms and also in the Gemara itself, that God is the one who buried his faithful servant Moses, and hence there is no contradiction with the second part of the verse: “but no one knows the place of his burial to this day”.
On the other hand, there is some estimations that Moses buried himself, and was later moved by God to the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron. The Kabbalistic book “The Picture Book” reads: “And 5 Couples were buried in a cave”.
That is, that in the Cave of the Patriarchs “five couples” were buried – ten people. The visible ones are: Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, Jacob and Leah. And the hidden ones are: Adam and Eve, Moses and Zipporah”. It is claimed that Moses was transferred there and buried by angels.
This interpretation has raised many difficulties and has swept many to debate it for generations. The 2014 article ‘And Nobody Knew’ by David Shapiro documented a comprehensive study on the subject. At the end of the article, Shapiro was able to summarize the issue. And attached the views of sages, that Moses buried himself (or God buried him) across the Jordan and then transferred by angels through a tunnel that passed from his tomb across the Jordan to the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron.
Read Further: What Tribe of Israel Did You Descend From?
