Question from a Site Viewer
Jude verse nine mentions the archangel Michael fighting with Satan over the body of Moses. In Deuteronomy chapter 34, it is written that God buried Moses in a valley in Moab in an unknown location. My question is: what did Satan want with the body of Moses? And why would God have to hide Moses’ body?
Tim’s Answer
You ask a couple of good questions. We may speculate on the answers but the bottom line is that God does not give us the answer in Scripture. Accordingly, anything we say is only our opinion, and not definitive truth.
What did Satan want with the body of Moses? I think the answer to this has to do with the way we wrongly view the body. Many believe, based on 2 Corinthians 5, that our bodies are simply empty shells in which we live and that once we die these shells are no longer of any value to anyone. This view, however, is hard to reconcile with the rest of Scripture. A consistent theme of Scripture is that our bodies are important to God. Thus, we have a consistent pattern of respect for the body, beginning with the need to have proper burials (see Abraham, Sarai, Isaac, Jacob, Rachel, Joseph, the kings of Israel, the prophets, and Christ). The resurrection is of the body. God is not going to leave these bodies and make new ones. For a reason known only to God, He has chosen to resurrect these bodies and change them into something new. In 1 Thessalonians 5, Scripture says that God will sanctify our spirit, soul, and body. A sign of God’s curse was when the body after death was not treated with respect (see Ahab and Jezebel). The desecration of the bones was a sign of displeasure (see Josiah and the prophets at Gibeon).
Because the body is important to God, even after death, it should not be a surprise to us that God was unwilling to let Satan have the body of Moses. I find this the easy side to the question. The more difficult side for me was, “why did Satan want the body to begin with?” What would he want to do with the body of Moses? This is a question for which I have no suggested answer. I don’t think it is because he wanted to devour the body and I doubt if he wanted it simply to mutilate it. Perhaps, he wanted only to deprive God of the body, but that also seems like a far-fetched supposition. I have no answers.
Why God hid Moses’ body I think is for the same reason that He hides us in Himself. The concept is that God is protecting the body from Satan. God has claimed Moses for Himself and God is not about to let Satan get to the body. This, of course, sets forth a powerful argument that Satan is not all-knowing. He does not know where God hid Moses’ body. We should never fear Satan. Rather, our only fear should be towards God. As God hid Moses’ body, so God is able to hide us in the cleft of the rock and to protect us fully from Satan’s attacks. Thus we have Christ’s prayer in which He taught His disciples to ask for protection from the evil one.
I apologize for not having better answers, but there are many questions that God has not chosen to provide us with answers. But what He has given us is sufficient for us to live lives full of the fruit of the Holy Spirit and abundant in richness.
May the Lord Jesus bless you.
tim
Tim,
I believe that the Israelites may have built an alter to Moses body and worshipped there much like they erected the bronze serpent in the promised land, built an altar, gave the serpent a name. That would be idolatry. Satan loves to get people off of worshipping God and onto other things instead.
To answer the question of why Satan wanted Moses’ body, I too, can only speculate. But if we are to look at the bones of a dead Elisha that were able to bring someone from the dead years after his death, one can only imagine what kinda power Moses’ body could possible possess, seeing as this was the guy who talked to God on the mountain and his face came back blinding…
Like I said, it’s only speculation.
As far as i know , GOD did not bury only moses. Do u have any idea about this ?
Deuteronomony chpt 34,v 6; And He buried him in a valley in the land of Moab,over against Beth-peor:but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day.” King James
I think most Christians do not know that there are spiritual legal rights (spiritual laws). Please bear in mind that Moses lived under Pharoh pass through idol worshipping Egpyt practiced. Even though he later knew God, as long as that matter as not been dealt with before God, satan has right over his body, not his soul and no wonder went satan can to confront Micheal over moses body, he understood this right and imployed on the lord by saying,” may the lord rebuke theehttp://revelationalknowledge.blogspot.com/2015/03/evil-altars-foundational-altars.html”
I think one, not all reason satan wanted Moses body so bad is because it was less contaminated back then. The DNA was less contaminated with sin as well as all of Moses qualities, of loyalty, obedience and His whole make-up. Look how His face was transfigured on the Mountain before the Lord. I think He, Moses was changed in the presence of the Most High, God and satan wanted that for later on DNA purposes.
very enlightening thanks
What a tender loving gesture the LORD gave to his servant, this absolutely awed me
Moses embraced salvation by faith. By faith Moses when he came to age refused to be called son of Pharaohs daughter, choose to suffer affliction with the people of God rather than enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. Christ was tempted by Satan with all the kingdoms of this world and the glory of them and Christ refused and kept his body pure from sin unto God and death could not hold His body in the grave. Moses enbraced this same purity from sin through faith in Christ, therefore the ruler of this world had no hold on Moses’ body for God had hid it from him and he thought he had some legal hold on it. Satan has no hold on a christians body either, the grave will not hold it.
I w ant to thank you for your answers first! My thoughts on this is that he planed to use Mose’s body as a means to fool people when he is allowed to start his (reigne) satan,,,here on earth for a little while.
Yes, there has been that speculation, that Moses would be one of the two “witnesses” during the tribulation. These 2 witnesses have the power to stop it from raining, and no one can harm them for 3.5 years. Some think these witnesses could be Elijah, Enoch, or Moses.
Satan thought he was entitled to Moses body because Satan was the angel who gave Moses the law at Sinai. Acts 7:53; Gal 3:19-20; Heb 2:2; 2 Cor 11:11-13. The law is a curse on mankind which Martin Luther called an enemy of the Christian as much as Satan is an enemy. The law kills. 2 Cor 3:6 to end chap. Satan has the power of death. Heb 2:14. The law causes sin to increase, not decrease. Rom 5:20. The law arouses sinful passions. Rom 7:5. The strength of sin is the law. 1 Cor 15:56. It is as important for the Christian to die to the law as it is for him the die to sin. Compare Rom 6 with Rom 7. The law is and ministry of death and condemnation. 2 Cor 3:6-9. It is no surprise Moses laid claim to the body of Moses.
This is excellent. Thank you.
Hi Tim on the body of Moses Micheal had to get the body so that Moses could appear with Christ on the mountain and also with Elijah. Moses was in Hades (Seoul) at that time.
Can I offer a possible explanation as to why God need the body of Moses. I would be needed at the Mount of Transfiguaration as Elijah was there and God had his body “for God took him” so is it reasonable to believe that this is a reason for God wanting to keep Moses’ body intact for that day.
I think Satan wanted Moses’s body to duplicate it or take on the form of his looks so he could deceive many by making them think he was appearing to them.
Carla Lewis God Bless you real Good You are in The Spirit! I totally agree with you satan will have stopped at nothing in using the body to reappear to the distract the stiff necked isrealites
Me too. I agree with this.
I believe we are the body of Christ and that’s why Jesus gave himself for his church, His body. So in reference with Moses since he was faithful and humble before God, his body belong to Jesus. Jesus paid the penalty of the sin when he gave his body to be killed for our benefit. His planes was to redeem mankind from sin since the foundation of the world because of Satan. The Bible doesn’t mention when Satan wanted the body of Moises. If you know let me know.
Our Pastor taught us about this in leadership meetings, sermon, sunday school etc… It was the Glory that satan wanted off of his body. Even during the transfiguration. it wasn’t moses or elijah they were seeing but the representation of it. fire and power coming full circle into one with jesus.
If the body is what is resurrected, does that mean anyone who has been vaporized my a bomb, burned up in a fire, or cremated can never be raptured? Does this mean our souls are nothing— worthless without our bodies?
Satan was the angel who handed Moses the law at Sinai and thought Moses was one of his own therefore he should have the right to his body. See these scriptures on angels handing down the law, a body of law which arouses, and does not suppress, sinful passions. acts 7:38, 53; Heb 2:2; Gal 3:19-20; Rom 7:5; Rom 5:20; 1 Cor 15:56.
I have read these reference scripture. I do not understand how these scriptures indicate that Satan gave Moses the law?
Thank you Sir. This was very good.
Satan’s will is often manifested in the misguided nature of man. It was common practice to take body parts of patriarchs to give those who had them unjust credence and authority, thus bringing attention on the man and not the manifested will of God in the man’s life. His body may have been hidden, so it did not end up church relics and divert attention away from the power of God and erroneously focus it on the assumed sovereignty of those who possess the body parts. Just thoughts in consideration of rituals and relics that become false idols upon which many bestow power in the relic. Mosses and Abraham are very significant patriarchs of the old testament. Our bodies will decay into absolutely nothingness over time.
All scriptures are interpreted correctly by the Bible. The “body of Moses” is similar to the “body of Christ”, except that they follow the “laws of Moses” instead of the simplicity that is in Christ (grace through faith…Ephes. 2:8-9)
See I Cor.10:2 vs Romans 6:3 as body of Christ vs body…
It is my belief Satan wanted Moses body to make individuals worship him. The body would have been wrapped, put on display and then people would have idolized it until this day. In furtherance, the enemy is so evil only God knows the true reason the deceiver wanted the body.
I concur with the idea Satan may have wanted to use Moses’ body to tempt the Jews, that would have been very effective based on what we know of them and how they tended to almost seek out false idols.
Perhaps Satan thought he might use Moses’ body as the anti-Christ person after the rapture of the Church aka Body of Christ, in order to gain the complete following of the Jews.
Why Satan would contend with Michael for Moses’ body could be to thwart Moses’ resurrection and glorification. At the Transfiguration, Elijah and Moses were there in glorified bodies to represent not only the Law and the Prophets (pre-Jesus) but also to represent those who died in the LORD (Moses) and will be raised but also those still living when Christ comes again (Elijah). Also, we don’t know who the two witnesses are mentioned in Revelation. Satan hates God. If God wants the body for some reason or reasons that is enough reason for Satan to fight giving God what He wants.
Why did god taken Elijay body and Enoch body but buried Moses body