When Matthew wrote his Gospel, he was probably familiar with several richly elaborated versions of the Moses story from Exodus 1–2. Matthew may well have been influenced by these versions—including those of historians Josephus and pseudo-Philo—in writing his own account of the infancy of Jesus and of events later in Jesus’ life. The result is a fascinating series of parallels between the life of Moses and the life of Jesus, not only in sequence, but in character and plot as well. In “From Moses to Jesus: Parallel Themes,” John Dominic Crossan guides us through the subtleties of these parallels. […]
