Where in Scripture are we told of a strange argument between the devil and St. Michael over Moses' body; and what do most scholars make of this?

BRY2K

In the New Testament, Letter of Jude (Jude 1:9) the Archangel Michael is described arguing with the Devil over the body of Moses. This dispute is shown in the painting by Guido Reni called "St. Michael the Archangel" showing Satan being crushed underfoot. http://wapedia.mobi/en/Devil_in_Christianity Aug 31 09, 12:32 PM

star_gazer

Aside from Jude 9, there is no biblical record of any “contention” or meeting between the devil and Michael the archangel. Many scholars, based on the writings of Clement, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Origin, and Didymus (Guthrie, 1962, p. 918; Earle, Blaney, and Hanson, 1955, p. 411), assume that Jude 9 is a reference to an apocryphal book called The Assumption of Moses, a work that is extant only in fragmental form (in Latin and in a translation from Greek). The fragment now known as The Assumption of Moses presents the account of Moses’ appointing of Joshua as his successor, and a description of the future of Israel during the conquest of the Promised Land. According to Richard Lenksi, scholars believe that the missing portion of The Assumption included “an elaboration” of Deuteronomy 34:5, the biblical account of Moses’ death, showing how God used angels to bury Moses (1966, pp. 601-602). It is thought that The Assumption of Moses, at this point, used Zechariah 3:1-2 as its basis for the use of the phrase “The Lord rebuke you!” It has not been proven, however, that Jude intended to quote from The Assumption of Moses. If Jude intended to reference it, it cannot be determined that Jude actually quoted the apocryphal book, because the material Jude allegedly quoted does not exist. If The Assumption of Moses did indeed contain material about Moses’ burial, then Jude independently wrote the same thing that the writer of The Assumption wrote. Thus, Jude confirmed that this particular portion of The Assumption is historical. That is very different from stating that any portion of The Assumption was inspired. It may be that Jude simply intended to reference an oral tradition (which was true) that became the basis for The Assumption (Guthrie, 1962, p. 918). http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/print/2235 Aug 31 09, 1:47 PM

gmackematix

This is probably the most famous work inspired by St Michael and the Devil by Jacob Epstein outside the 1962 Coventry Cathedral. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Statue_of_St_Michael_and_the_devil_-_Coventry_Cathedral_14d06.jpg Aug 31 09, 5:57 PM