The Hebrew laws given in the Old Testament are generally known as
the laws of Moses, and the assumption of many readers in earlier
years has been that the different codes were practically formulated
by Moses himself. The subsequent study of the Old Testament long
ago suggested to many that this view may be mistaken. The oldest
records of his work and the fact that, as creator of the Hebrew
nation after the Exodus and as leader and prophet be rendered
important judicial decisions, have well justified the belief that
he was the real founder of what is called the Mosaic Law. As
stated in Exodus 18, he did actually formulate the principles by
which decisions were made by the rulers whom he appointed over
thousands and over hundreds, fifties and tens. He may have even
put into form the principles found in the earliest decalogues.
Moreover, as the Israelites in their later history were led to
formulate new rules of action, they based these upon the principles
of justice, religion and civil equality found in the earlier
decalogues. While the specific rules of living must have changed
materially, as the Israelites changed their habits of living from
those of wanderers in the wilderness to those adapted to their
early settlements in Canaan and afterward to the settled conditions
under the monarchy, they would still base their laws upon these
earlier principles. Hence it was not unnatural to ascribe the
origin of these laws to Moses, nor is it to-day inaccurate to speak
of them as the Mosaic code, even though they may have been put into
their present form at different periods remote from one another,
and by rulers, prophets and priests whose occupations and attitude
toward life were widely different. Back of practically all these
laws are the fundamental beliefs that the Israelites are the people
chosen of God, that to him they owe allegiance and that from him
they derive, in principle at least, the laws under which they live.