Deuteronomy 34:10
And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,
And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses,.... Not in the times of Joshua, who wrote this chapter, at least the last eight verses, Deuteronomy 34:5, as say the Jews {p}; nor to the times of Samuel, whom others take to be the writer: of them; nor to the times of Ezra, as others; nor even throughout the whole Old Testament dispensation to the times of Christ, the great Prophet, like to Moses, that was to arise; and the Messiah is by the Jews owned, as by Maimonides {q}, to be equal to him, and by others to be above him: it is a well known saying of theirs {r}, that
"the Messiah shall be exalted above Abraham, and extolled above Moses, and made higher than the ministering: angels;''
but as to all other prophets he excels them, and therefore they call him the prince, master, and Father of the prophets, and say, that all prophesied from the fountain of his prophecy {s}: the difference between him and them is observed, by Maimonides {t} to lie in many things; as that they prophesied by a dream or vision, but he awake and seeing; they prophesied by the means of an angel, and saw what they did in parables and dark sayings; but Moses not by means of an angel, but the Lord spake to him face to face; they trembled and astonished, but not so Moses; they could not prophesy when they would, but he at any time, nor did he need to dispose and prepare his mind for it; some of which will not hold good, especially the last; the instances in which he really exceeded them follow:
whom the LORD knew face to face; owned, took notice of, and familiarly conversed with face to face, as a man with his friend; none were permitted to such familiarity with God as he; see Numbers 12:6; the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem paraphrase it,
"whom the Word of the Lord knew.''
{p} T. Bab. Bava Bathra, fol. 15. 1.
{q} Hilchot Teshuvah, c. 9. sect. 2.
{r} Tanchuma in Yalkut in Isa. lii. 13.
{s} Maimon. Yesode Hatorah, c. 7. sect. 6. & Vorst. in ib.
{t} lb. sect. 6, 7, 8, 9.