The Word of Fraud: Disproving the Destructive Illusion of the Bible’s Divine Origins

by Moshe Granot

The ultimate case for the bible’s man-made origins.

How did one priest in biblical Jerusalem claim to find “the word of God” – and change the world forever? In The Word of Fraud, author Moshe Granot exposes the scam of historical proportions perpetrated by the author of the Book of Deuteronomy. A lifelong researcher and an expert in Bible and Hebrew literature studies, Granot sheds new light on the book's true, man-made origins and the dogma of greed, zealotry, persecution, and the terrible bloodshed that followed its assimilation into the biblical canon.

With historical evidence drawn from extensive analysis, the book outlines the sinister financial motives behind the creation of Deuteronomy, cross-referencing its own verses to pinpoint its historical errors and embarrassing fallacies. From women’s rights to a literal war on education, The Word of Fraud makes a compellingly educated case for how the corruption of biblical men paved the way for the most atrocious acts of modern religions.

118 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 18, 2024

Reviews

[Tom Schulte · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was interested to read this book for the promise of scholarship on the authorship of the Old Testament. There is a fair amount, focusing on the political aims of "The Deuteronomist" and authors of some of Chronicles as well as explaining how textual analysis identifies various other authors. After really just a longish article on this topic, there is a right turn into layout out to Jews (I am not the target audience here) an unexpected anti-Zionist view.

The author points to beginnings of Old Testament compilation in

...the days of King Josiah (approximately 609-629 BC), when the book was read to the king and he – surprised by that which was written – tore his clothes (Second Kings, 22:11). The king then ordered a daunting reform that centered around consolidating the worship to Jerusalem, dismissing the worship of God outside Jerusalem (high place worship), eradicating any vestiges of idolatry – images, groves, places of worship, and shrines. There’s only one belief that could exist – believing in the Lord...

In that sudden, hard turn, it is pointed out the violence and prejudice promoted by the O.T. God:

...and the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, seven nations greater and mightier than thou; and when the LORD thy God shall deliver them up before thee, and thou shalt smite them; then thou shalt utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them; neither shalt thou make marriages with them: thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.

Building on this isolationist view, much quoting of Yeshayahu Leibowitz is done. He was an Israeli Orthodox Jewish public intellectual and polymath known for his outspoken views on ethics, religion, and politics. Leibowitz cautioned that the state of Israel and Zionism had become more sacred than Jewish humanist values and went on to describe Israeli conduct in the occupied Palestinian territories as "Judeo-Nazi" in nature while warning of the dehumanizing effect of the occupation on the victims and the oppressors. The author adds to that line of through casting shade on YHWH:

I add to Leibowitz’s words: When did this God save us? Only when we stopped believing in Him and His promises, when we gave up on the Messiah who is supposed to redeem us in a miraculous way, and took our fate into our own hands.
...
The ruin in the time of King Zedekiah didn’t happen because he “did wrong in the eyes of the Lord,” but because he stupidly trusted God’s help and that of the nearest people and rebelled against the Babylonian Empire. The destruction of the Second Temple came since the zealots were certain of God’s help and rebelled against the Roman Empire. We then experienced exile of about 1,900 years since we believed in two baseless legends: that we presumably swore not to rebel against the gentiles and conquer the homeland, as well as trusted that the messiah would miraculously salvage us. A small part of the people felt, as early as the end of the 19th century, that the yoke of faith is a barrier for a normal life as a nation...

..and shade on the ancient religious practices themselves:

rituals have a historic and literary meaning and do not obligate any “reasonable” person today. On the other hand, I cannot show the same “archeological” attitude (once again, stated by Ehad HaAm) toward a biblical law that still binds me today by “rabbinical” interpretation. For this reason, I cannot show an objective attitude toward an act of a glorified biblical character that’s classified as “right in the eyes of the Lord.”
...
Yeshayahu Leibowitz, as promised, whom I believe to be a believer without a god and bases his belief only on following the mitzvahs without the practical repercussions of whether God exists. Well, he stated his thoughts on morality’s inferior position in the Bible and rabbinical literature, and I believe this is the reason he’s declared total war on morality, on those who believe in it, and moreover on those who base their Judaism on “Jewish morality.”
...
many donations to the Temple, its facilities and accessories; a daily routine of sacrifices as well as holidays and events; sorting the sacrifices (burnt offering, sacrifices, offering of sin, guilt offering, offering of well-being), the gifts and libations; performing the holidays and the rituals; the roles and uniforms of the Levites and Cohens, poets, and gatekeepers — this is all detailed in a multitude of chapters, laying a terrible burden on the Israelite farmer, one they couldn’t possibly ever carry.

This critical review of the ancient ways supports an anti-Zionist view:

This great burden, in light of the many drought and sabbatical years, makes life in the Land of Israel impossible, and those who believe that these words were taken down from the Heavens and given to Moses, has to comply with these draconian laws. This is one of the main reasons that the People of Israel preferred exile over their homeland, despite the humiliations, banishments, blood libels, pogroms, and eventually the attempts to completely exterminate the entire People of Israel throughout the world. The fear of returning to live in the land of their forefathers was so big that they invented a fairy tale about being redeemed by a messiah, and about an oath that the People of Israel allegedly swore to not make Aliyah to the Land of Israel or rebel against the Gentiles (Talmud, Ketubot, 110-111), and hence it’s clear that Aliyah to the Land of Israel — and especially Zionism — is considered rebelling against God.
...
None of the believers ever thought to themselves that this terrible burden of religion and its prohibitions perhaps weren’t from the Heavens, but rather from people of interest who’d formulated them hundreds of years after the time Moses was supposed to have lived and served as the mediator between God and His people. The first one to sense this scam was Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra (1092-1167), a biblical interpreter, poet, linguist, philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician, who explicitly hinted that Moses couldn’t have written the Pentateuch. He was followed by Baruch Spinoza, and other Bible researchers who didn’t feel committed to this religious fabrication.
...
Well, the thing that has attracted many generations of Jews to the blood-soaked Exile is the fact that there are no obligations there as what exists in the Holy Land, and there is no fear of work during sabbatical years or drought years — this has been all taken care of by the Gentile, the sabbath Gentile who is a year-round Gentile. And here, in the Land of Israel? Here, we have secular people to step in for the Gentile, and the ultra-orthodox are saved.

And, even more broadly, a romantic appeal seen in old school polytheism?

Any sensible person knows that the belief in a single god or plural gods – both a figment of human creation, as much as the tribes spread out across the world – equals the variations of divine creation. What is made clear, in light of the historical facts, is that idol-worshiping – at least in the Western world – has caused far less malfunctions than monotheism.

[Píaras Cíonnaoíth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exposing Divine Deception...

In "The Word of Fraud: Disproving the Destructive Illusion of the Bible's Divine Origins," Moshe Granot makes a persuasive case against the Bible's divine beginnings. Granot, a Bible and Hebrew literary expert, carefully deconstructs the Book of Deuteronomy, alleging that it was a deliberate composition by a priest in biblical Jerusalem with ulterior objectives.

According to Granot's argument, Deuteronomy was not a heavenly revelation, but rather a fiction designed to consolidate power and money. Using historical facts and thorough textual analysis, he exposes historical inconsistencies and logical flaws in the text, making his argument both engaging and intellectually sound.

Granot also looks at the broader socioeconomic implications of Deuteronomy's inclusion in the biblical canon. He claims that the dogmatic zealotry and persecution it promoted resulted in significant historical tragedies, such as the suppression of women's rights and wars against intellectual advancement. Granot's goal in exposing these man-made roots is to shatter the damaging illusion of Deuteronomy's divine character and promote a more educated approach to religious beliefs.

"The Word of Fraud" is a daring, intellectually interesting book that forces readers to reexamine their beliefs about the Bible. Granot's hard study and elegant style spark intellectual discussion and debate, providing a meaningful viewpoint for anyone interested in the nexus of history, religion, and power. Highly recommended. I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

[Esther Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intriguing

A scholarly read where the author boldly confronts subjects in Deuteronomy that we were taught that is inaccurate. He lays it out excellently