What was the purpose of the Seat of Moses?
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples:
“The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.”
Matthew 23:1-2
Jews gathered in the synagogue or house of assembly, where the people met for worship and instruction just like a church today. The synagogue leader or rabbi would sit in the Seat of Moses and read from the Torah, which is the law of God that was given to Moses. This can be found in the first five books of the Bible, or the Pentateuch as we’ve mentioned. Tradition holds that there are 613 commandments, or mitzvoth, contained in these five books.
As you can imagine, the Seat of Moses has its origin in the life of Moses. In Exodus 18:13-27, Moses sat down, much like a judge sits in a courtroom today, to make decisions “between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions”. Over the centuries, the Israelites took this need to have a seat literally, and so it became an integral part of Jewish congregations.
On one of the Christian mission tours our ministry led to the Holy Land, one of the places we visited was the ancient town of Chorazin. This was in the northern region of Galilee just a couple of miles from Capernaum and Bethsaida, where Jesus spent much of His public ministry. Chorazin is one of the three cities that Jesus cursed for their lack of faith in Him (Matthew 11:20-24).
Today, there are still remains of this village, including the synagogue that dates back to the 3rd or 4th century. Placed in the synagogue is a copy of the Seat of Moses made from one complete block of basalt (igneous rock). The original is in a museum in Jerusalem.
In this passage where Moses’ seat is mentioned in Matthew 23, Jesus is criticizing the Pharisees and teachers of the law for their hypocrisy. In essence, He was telling the crowd and His disciples to do as the teachers said, not as they did. This advice is certainly applicable to us. If Jesus were to sit in the front of your church today, what would He say to you?
Heed these words from Jesus’ brother:
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.
Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror
and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—
not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.
James 1:22-25