NOGO

Did the laws of Moses exist before the exile?

The following is one of several statements which bring some doubt

Nehemiah 8:17
The entire assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and lived in them.
The sons of Israel had indeed not done so from the days of Joshua the son of Nun to that day And there was great rejoicing.

"The days of Joshua of Nun" means about 600 years past.

In 2 Chron 34 we are told that the book of the law was found in the temple
however this story also talks about the dispersion of the people as punishment for having ignore the law for so long. I conclude that this was written after the exile.

Does anybody have more information on this topic?

Thank you in advance.

Clivedurdle

I had assumed - with Bible Unearthed - that that was very likely (that it is all post exile). I do see monotheism as a post exilic import.

NOGO

I read the book. It does not directly address the subject. Unless I missed something.

From the exile came the idea that God handed down his laws.
Monotheism I believe was more a repudiation of other nations gods as false gods more than an idea in itself. On the other hand you can't have a chosen people if you have many gods.

John Kesler

If you haven't already done so, you may want to familiarize yourself with the Documentary Hypothesis, which teaches that the Torah was composed over hundreds of years, with the Priestly ("P") source dating to the fifth or sixth century BCE, after the exile.