The history of ancient Israel

the long version

"Just as it seems more plausible to suppose that Moses existed than to believe that he did not, so, too, it is hard to believe that all the mass of religious institutions ascribed to Moses was really the work of other men, the anonymous product, that is to say, of natural, gradual growth over a period of centuries. After all, Zoroaster, Gautama Buddha and Jesus were historical figures, despite the legends attached to their names. And the Mosaic religion contained astonishing novelities, which look as though they reflect the thought of one single, decisive individual.