Answer
The book of Numbers, named for the population counts inside the story, records the 40-year journey of the Israelites from their stay at Mount Sinai to their encampment near the Promised Land. Details found in Numbers, along with references made elsewhere in the Bible, suggest that Moses wrote the book toward the end of these 40 years, around 1400 BC.
There are two specific references in Numbers that help determine the date of its composition. The first is found in Numbers 33:2, which describes Moses recording God’s itinerary for Israel’s journey north: “Moses wrote down their starting places, stage by stage, by command of the Lord, and these are their stages according to their starting places” (Numbers 33:2, ESV). This verse indicates that Moses began writing Numbers as the Israelites’ trek from Mount Sinai to the Promised Land began around 1440 BC.
The second reference that helps determine when Numbers was written describes Moses recording God’s commandments to Israel while they were on the brink of the Promised Land: “These are the commandments and the rules that the Lord commanded through Moses to the people of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho” (Numbers 36:13). The context of this verse, found in the final section of Numbers, chapters 20—36, covers a one-year period—the final year of Moses’ life.
This conclusion about the timing of Moses’ writing is derived from harmonizing two dates in Numbers and Deuteronomy. Numbers 20:1 says, “And the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And Miriam died there and was buried there.” Numbers 33:38 further clarifies that the “first month” refers to the fortieth year after Israel’s departure from Egypt: “And Aaron the priest went up Mount Hor at the command of the Lord and died there, in the fortieth year after the people of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, on the first day of the fifth month.” Thus, these verses reveal that Moses finished writing toward the end of Israel’s 40-year journey, during the final year of his life.
The book of Deuteronomy, which follows Numbers in the Bible, supports the idea that Moses wrote Numbers around 1400 BC. First, it’s clear that the events in Numbers precede those in Deuteronomy. Specifically, Deuteronomy 1:3 refers to the second-to-last month in the fortieth year after Israel left Egypt: “In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses spoke to the people of Israel according to all that the Lord had given him in commandment to them.” This time indicator suggests that Moses wrote Numbers before these events. Second, the last verse in Deuteronomy—Moses’ final writing—refers to all five books he wrote, including Numbers: “When Moses had finished writing the words of this law in a book to the very end” (Deuteronomy 31:24). Taken together, these verses strengthen the contention that Moses wrote Numbers around 1440 BC.
The theme of Numbers is Israel’s disobedience and God’s response to it (e.g., Numbers 14:1–45). God’s purpose in recording these events was for future generations of Israelites to learn from these shortcomings and fully commit to obeying God: “And these things shall be for a statute and rule for you throughout your generations in all your dwelling places” (Numbers 35:29). Moses wrote the book as the events occurred. He saw the consequences of their sin firsthand, making Numbers an eyewitness record.
