A big thank you to instructor Cathryn Torgerson-Wade, for these great answers to your questions on the Bible and the Patriarchs!
Q: Who wrote the Bible? How many people?
A: Catholics consider God to be the primary author of the Bible, working through human authors inspired by the Holy Spirit. The number of human authors is unknown. Some books are probably by one person, but others, especially the Psalms and Proverbs, have been authored by perhaps dozens, with God later inspiring the people who edited those collections into the books we have today. In the New Testament, Paul wrote several letters himself, while others seem to be dictated by him and written by an assistant, so both people could be considered inspired authors working with God.
Q: Are there any contradictions in the Bible?
A: Lots! In Matthew Gospel, Jesus gives “the sermon on the mount” whereas in Luke’s, it takes place on a plain. Which words Jesus speaks from the Cross vary by Gospel. Some proverbs contradict each other because they apply to different circumstances (for a modern-day example, think of “too many cooks spoil the broth” compared to “many hands make light work”). The length of the reigns of some kings varies between the Books of Kings and the Books of Chronicles. Even the names of Kings can vary. In the Noah narrative, in one place we read that Noah took a pair of each animal, and in another place we read that he took 1 pair of unclean and 7 pairs of clean animals. All that being said, these examples do not deal with the theology of Who God is and how He calls us to live in relationship with Him. That message is consistent, even if the details surrounding it vary, and it develops over time as God’s people grow and mature.
Q: Was Joseph in Genesis considered a prophet, or only a man blessed by God with wisdom?
A: Joseph definitely can be considered a prophet because of his ability to interpret dreams, which is a gift prophets may have. Prophets do many things: intercede, interpret dreams, call people to repentance, and communicate God’s Promises of the future depending on people’s choices of today. So if someone is doing any of those, he is exercising the role of prophet. The next great biblical leader, Moses, is considered perhaps the greatest prophet of the Jewish Scriptures, and Jesus fulfills God’s promise for a “prophet like Moses” in the New Covenant.
Q: Genesis 35:11 speaks of a “company of nations” – who is this?
A: The word for “company” can mean assembly, multitude, or congregation. It’s another way to say there will be countless descendants. The full quote is, “be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall spring from you.” So we see a reiteration of the idea of being fruitful and multiplying, and also perhaps a connection that while there is one nation, within that one nation will be comprised of different “companies”, what we later call tribes. These also show how God is fulfilling His promise to Abraham that Abraham would have multitudes of descendants.
Q: Do we know where the Patriarchs are buried?
A: The ancient custom (dating back to the 500 or 600’s B.C.) is that they are buried at a site in Hebron. Whether this is the literal site or not, it is where people have been commemorating them for thousands of years. The same is true for many holy sites – ancient customs led to pilgrimage sites, and we still use those today.
Q: Why did Abraham’s descendants not return to the land of Abraham after the famine in Egypt?
A: This is one of the places where Bible does not explain all of what is going on. It seems logical that they would want to return to their family roots, but there must have been something about Egypt that made it easy to stay. Perhaps they were fearful of what the famine might have done to the land, while in Egypt, the flooding of the Nile helped restore everyone once the famine ended. You may have some other ideas for why they stayed put – what causes us to resist change? Later, the need for God to rescue His people from Egypt will be a witness to the world of God’s power.
Q: Did Moses have any idea of his ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and their relationship with God?
A: Again, the Bible does not give these details, but we can assume he had some knowledge. He was with his mother until at least toddler age, and he seems to know he is not Egyptian. The family he marries into are descendants of Abraham through his second wife, Kitura, so they would definitely know Abraham’s Covenants with God and possibly some about their distant relatives of Sarah’s line, from which Moses is descended. God’s words to Moses at the burning bush suggest that Moses has at least passing knowledge of who the God of his fathers is.