Exploring Exodus by Desi Alexander

7/29/2019 Exploring Exodus by Desi Alexander

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(D

by

r Desi Alexander rector of Christian Training)



Contents

Session Title Page

1 Introduction to Exodus 4

2 Trusting in the promises of God 7

3 Responding to the call of God: Part 1 11

4 Responding to the call of God: Part 2 15

5 Witnessing the power of God: Part 1 20

6 Witnessing the power of God: Part 2 25

7 Journeying to the mountain of God 29

8 Surviving the testing of God 33

9 Obeying the words of God: Part 1 38

10 Obeying the words of God: Part 2 42

11 Experiencing the presence of God: Part 1 46

12 Experiencing the presence of God: Part 2 50



Introduction to Exodus

Why study Exodus?

1. Exodus addresses one of life’s most important issues:

how can I know God?

One of the central themes of the book is ‘knowing God’.

2. The book of Exodus introduces a variety of concepts that

are significant for understanding the rest of the Bible:

the origin of the Passover

the giving of the Ten Commandments

the making of the covenant at Sinai

the establishment of the Levitical priesthood

the construction of the tabernacle

The book of Exodus also introduces various concepts

associated with the nature of God:

holiness

sovereignty and justice

compassion and mercy

3. The book of Exodus provides a paradigm or model for

understanding the concept of divine salvation.

Exodus describes a process by which God rescues

people from oppression and brings them through alife-transforming experience into a new relationship

with their Creator-God.

What Jesus Christ achieves through his death,

resurrection and ascension is explained in terms thatderive from Exodus.

The Israelites were instructed to recall regularly their deliverance from Egypt.

The celebration of the Passover played an important role in

the cultic calendar of ancient Israel.

Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and

summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and theofficers of Israel. And they presented themselves before

God.And Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the

LORD, the God of Israel, 'Long ago, your fathers lived

beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham andof Nahor; and they served other gods. Then I took your

father Abraham from beyond the River and led him

Notes



through all the land of Canaan, and made his offspring

many. I gave him Isaac.And to Isaac I gave Jacob and

Esau. And I gave Esau the hill country of Seir to possess, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. And I

sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt with what I

did in the midst of it, and afterward I brought you out.

Then I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you cameto the sea. And the Egyptians pursued your fathers withchariots and horsemen to the Red Sea.And when they

cried to the LORD, he put darkness between you and the

Egyptians and made the sea come upon them and cover

them; and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. And you

lived in the wilderness a long time.’” (Joshua 24:1-7;ESV).

God’s words to Joshua’s contemporaries make them

participants in events that took place before many of them

were born:

‘you came to the sea’;‘your eyes saw what I did in Egypt’.

Something very similar is found in Deuteronomy 5:2-5:

The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.

Not with our fathers did the LORD make this covenant, but with us, who are all of us here alive today. The

LORD spoke with you face to face at the mountain, out

of the midst of the fire,while I stood between the LORD

and you at that time, to declare to you the word of theLORD. For you were afraid because of the fire, and you

did not go up into the mountain (Deuteronomy 5:2-5).

This experience in the past continues to have contemporary

relevance for all of the Israelites, regardless of their age.

The unique events associated with the exodus have anongoing relevance.

What is parti cularl y unusual about how God descri bes the exodus to Joshua’ s contemporar ies?

Notes



The events associated with the exodus from Egypt were

important for establishing and defining the ongoing identity

of the people of Israel.

However, the exodus has a significance that goes beyond this.

The deliverance of Israel as a nation is presented as a

paradigm or model for the divine redemption of the whole

world.

The contents and structure of Exodus

Whereas chapters 1-15 are focused mainly on Egypt, the rest of

the book centres on the Sinai peninsula, with chapters 19-40reporting events that took place at Mount Sinai.

It is open to debate whether the last part of the chapter 15,

along with chapters 16-18, should be viewed as a separate

section or be taken along with chapters 19-40.

1:1-2:25 The oppression of the Israelites in Egypt

3:1-4:31 God commissions Moses to deliver the people

5:1-11:10 Moses challenging Pharaoh with Signs and

Wonders

12:1-13:16 The Passover and future commemorations

13:17-15:21 The destruction of the Egyptian army and

subsequent celebrations

15:22-18:27 The Israelites’ trek to Mount Sinai

19:1-24:11 The making of the covenant at Mount Sinai24:12-31:18 Instructions for the building of the tabernacle

32:1-34:35 Rebellion in the camp and Moses’ mediation

for the people

35:1-39:43 The manufacture of the tabernacle and priestly

garments

40:1-38 The LORD comes to dwell in the newly

erected tabernacle

When we come to biblical texts we need to be prepared to

work hard to grasp the literary conventions used by ancientwriters.

Can you think of any contemporary examples?

Notes



Trusting in the promises of God(Exodus 1-2)

The remarkable increase of the Israelites

Exodus has to be read and interpreted as part of a larger literary work.

Exodus is part of a longer narrative that begins in Genesis

and ends in the book of Kings.

Exodus presupposes all that has been said in Genesis and

occasionally anticipates material that comes in the books of

Leviticus to Kings.

These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to

Egypt with Jacob, each with his household: Reuben,Simeon, Levi, and Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and

Benjamin,Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. All the

descendants of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph wasalready in Egypt. (Exodus 1:1-5; ESV)

Much of the material recorded in Exodus is closely tied to

what has been recorded in Genesis, although contemporary

scholarship does not always recognise this sufficiently.

And Joseph died and all his brothers and all that

generation.But the Israelites were fruitful and swarmed

and became numerous and grew powerful very

exceedingly, so that the earth was filled with them(Exodus 1:6-7; my translation).

Can you spot anythi ng in t hese openi ng words that requires a knowledge of Genesis?

Notes



This remarkable increase is linked into the book of Genesis intwo closely related ways.

Firstly, it appears to fulfil various promises made by God to

the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, regarding numerous

descendants.

"I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a

company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall

come from your own body” (Genesis 35:11).

Elsewhere in Genesis 12-50, God promises the patriarchs that

their descendants will be a numerous as the stars of the sky

(Genesis 15:5) or the sand of the sea shore (Genesis 22:17).

Secondly, most of the verbs used in Exodus 1:7 are firstfound in close proximity in Genesis 1:

be fruitful

swarm/teem

become numerous/multiply

fill (the earth)

However, the closest parallel to Exodus 1:7 in Genesis comes

in God’s speech to Noah, after the flood.

And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them,

"Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. …7

And you, be fruitful and multiply, teem on the earth and multiply

in it" (Genesis 9:1, 7).

The opening and concluding words of this speech, however,

echo Genesis 1:28:

1. What is interestin g about the contr ast between verses 6 and 7?

2. Why is it i mportant to note that verse 7 is closely li nked to the book of Genesis.

Notes



And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be

fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and

have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birdsof the heavens and over every living thing that moves on

the earth" (Genesis 1:28).

The author of Exodus very deliberately associates theremarkable increase of the Israelites with God’s instructionsto humanity when he created them.

The Israelites are initially presented as fulfilling God’s

creation mandate for humanity. They are being fruitful and

multiplying and filling the earth.

Why does God want people to increase in number and fill the

earth?

Underlying Genesis 1 and 2 is the idea that God created theearth in order to build a temple-city, populated with people

who are holy.

Human beings are to fill the earth, bringing it under God’s

control by exercising authority over other creatures.

God’s plan for the earth is overturned when Adam and Eve

betray their Creator and follow the promptings of the serpent.

Humanity is punished by being excluded from God’s presence and forced to live in an environment that is

hostile towards them.

God intimates to the serpent that he will not abandon his

project, but rather seek to rescue it by defeating those powers that now stand in opposition to him.

Within the book of Genesis the restoration of God’s plans for

the earth is linked to the patriarch Abraham and his

descendants.

Through Abraham and his descendants, God’s blessing

will be mediated to the nations of the earth. In this way,

God’s creation plan will eventually be fulfilled.

The plot of Exodus develops around a conflict between God’s

plans for the world and those of the Egyptian pharaohs.

The Egyptian kings are presented as archetypal enemies

of God.

Their actions are a cruel perversion of what Godintended when he created human beings.

Notes



Firstly, they do all in their power to prevent the numerical

increase of the Israelites.

When God endowed human beings with the ability to

rule this world, he desired that they should do so in a

manner that would reflect his divine nature.

Unfortunately, due to the rebellion of Adam and Eve,human nature becomes perverted, resulting in behaviour

that is the antithesis of what God wants.

We witness this perversion of human nature most clearly

in the terrible atrocities that people commit againstothers.

The story of Exodus is about being freed from the

tyranny of corrupt and destructive human authority.

It may also be viewed as typifying a much greater

conflict that is occurring between God and powers that

are opposed to him.

Secondly, the king of Egypt oppresses the Israelites byhaving them build store-cities.

The city-building of the Egyptian king is a further

perversion of God’s plan for the earth.

The motif of building also dominates Exodus 25-40.

The Israelites receive instructions for constructing a

royal tent that will become God’s dwelling place on the

earth.

Before the tabernacle can be constructed, God has to

intervene and deliver his people from their enslavement

to the king of Egypt.

The book of Exodus is about the divine deliverance of peoplefrom earthly powers that are opposed to God and their

reinstatement to participate in God’s plans for the world.

This is a story about divine redemption.

The enslavement and deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt

is presented as typifying the plight of all human beings.

People need to be redeemed from the power of God’sarchenemy, the devil.

Jesus Christ is the one who defeats Satan, bringing liberty

and new life to those who believe in him.

Notes



Responding to the call of God: Part 1(Exodus 2-6)

Introduction

Exodus provides vital information about the origins of various important religious beliefs and institutions.

Exodus provides a model for understand divine salvation, that

is the process by which God restores human beings to a rightrelationship with himself.

The opening verses record Pharaoh’s opposition to the

remarkable increase of the Israelites.

Pharaoh’s treatment of the Israelites is a vivid reminder of

how human beings have perverted the authority originallyentrusted to them by God.

The heart of God goes out to those who are the victims of oppression and his righteous anger causes him to oppose

those who perpetrate such injustices.

The author of Exodus compares and contrasts Pharaoh’s

actions with what God intended when he created people.

People were to govern the earth on God’s behalf.

Pharaoh, however, governs Egypt without regardfor the Lord God.

People were to build and populate a temple-city in

which God himself would dwell. Pharaoh, however,

builds cities that are designed to promote his own

reputation.

The misuse of wisdom

Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did notknow Joseph. And he said to his people, "Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us.

Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply,

and, if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight

against us and escape from the land.” (Exodus 1:8-10)

The Hebrew verb translated ‘deal shrewdly’ rarely has the

connotation of acting in a cunning way.

The Authorised Version reads, ‘Come on, let us deal wisely

with them, …’

Notes



Wisdom is linked with both God’s creation of the earth and

the fulfilment of his purposes.

It is he (God) who made the earth by his power, who

established the world by his wisdom, and by his

understanding stretched out the heavens. (Jeremiah

10:12; compare 51:15)

Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I

was brought forth, before he had made the earth with its

fields, or the first of the dust of the world. When he

established the heavens, I was there; when he drew a

circle on the face of the deep, when he made firm theskies above, when he established the fountains of the

deep, when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the

waters might not transgress his command, when he

marked out the foundations of the earth, then I was

beside him, like a master workman, and I was daily hisdelight, rejoicing before him always, rejoicing in his

inhabited world and delighting in the children of man.

(Proverbs 8:25-31)

Wisdom is closely associated with king Solomon and the building of the temple in Jerusalem.

Solomon, as king, uses wisdom to create a temple-city that

resembles in a limited way God’s blueprint for the earth.

People were intended by God to use wisdom in the process of

creating the temple-city that would be his dwelling place.

In Exodus 1 the Egyptian king uses wisdom to thwart God’s

plan for the earth.

Outwitted by women

Exodus 1 reports how Pharaoh’s plans for the elimination of

the new-born Hebrew boys are nullified by two mid-wives

who fear God.

The actions of the mid-wives signal that Pharaoh is far from

omnipotent and omniscient.

Whereas they are named, the identity of the king is not

disclosed.

Shiphrah and Puah are the ones who gain recognition because

of their willingness to defy the Egyptian king and serve theLord God.

Notes



The early life of Moses

Determined to pursue his policy against the Israelites,Pharaoh commands his own people to cast every new born

boy into the Nile (1:22).

In chapter 2 the narrative jumps rapidly forward in verse 11to the time when Moses is an adult.

One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his

people and looked on their burdens, and he saw an

Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. He

looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. When he

went out the next day, behold, two Hebrews were

struggling together. And he said to the man in the wrong,

"Why do you strike your companion?" He answered,

"Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do youmean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?" Then

Moses was afraid, and thought, "Surely the thing is

known."When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill

Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and stayed in the

land of Midian. And he sat down by a well. Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came and

drew water and filled the troughs to water their father's

flock. The shepherds came and drove them away, but

Moses stood up and saved them, and watered their flock.

When they came home to their father Reuel, he said,"How is it that you have come home so soon today?"

They said, "An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of

the shepherds and even drew water for us and watered

the flock." (Exodus 2:11-19)

The narrator highlights three incidents involving Moses:

Moses kills an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew

(2:11-12).

He intervenes in a fight between two Hebrews andreprimands the one in the wrong (2:13-14).

Following his flight from Egypt he aids the

daughters of Reuel who are being bullied by other shepherds (2:16-19).

What i s noteworth y about the actions of M oses? Do you obser ve a patter n to what M oses does?

Notes



First, in each of these incidents Moses is portrayed as

defending the weaker party.

Secondly, the incidents abound in ironies.

Thirdly, although his actions reveal a positive concern for

the weak and oppressed, Moses does not yet qualify for therole of national deliverer.

It is only when God intervenes that the forces of tyranny are

defeated.

During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and

cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery

came up to God. And God heard their groaning, and God

remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and

with Jacob.God saw the people of Israel - and God knew(Exodus 2:23-25).

God, like Moses, cares for the oppressed.

God hears, remembers, sees, knows.

The reference to the divine covenant with Abraham, Isaac

and Jacob is especially important.

Abraham had received a specific promise:

“Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners

in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and

they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and

afterward they shall come out with great possessions.”

(Genesis 15:13-14).

The time has now come for the deliverance of Abraham’sdescendants from bondage and oppression in Egypt.

Notes



Responding to the call of God: Part 2(Exodus 2-6)

Introduction

In Exodus 1 and 2 the scene is set for all that is to follow.

The author of Exodus then proceeds to describe how Moses

is called by God to confront Pharaoh.

The theme of knowing God is developed in chapters 3-15.

After responding to God’s call, Moses, along with his older

brother Aaron, goes to meet Pharaoh.

Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh,

“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Let my peoplego, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’”

But Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey

his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD,and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” (Exodus 5:1-2)

Pharaoh has no knowledge of the LORD.

In chapters 7-14 there are seven direct references to knowingthe LORD: 7:5, 17; 8:10, 22; 10:2; 14:4, 18.

“The Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when Istretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the

people of Israel from among them.” (Exodus 7:5)

And he said, “Tomorrow.” Moses said, “Be it as you

say, so that you may know that there is no one like the

LORD our God.” (Exodus 8:10)

The expression “I am the LORD” is used twelve times in

chapters 6-14 (Exodus 6:2, 6-8, 29; 7:5, 17; 8:22; 10:2;

12:12; 14:4, 18).

The English translation ‘I am the LORD’ does not conveyvery well the Hebrew original.

The Hebrew text consists of two words. The first is the

ordinary word for ‘I’, in Hebrewănî .

The second word is more problematic. It consists of four

consonants y – h – w – h.

Notes



It seems likely that the original pronunciation of this

word was Yahweh.

The word Yahweh is a proper name.

From possibly as early as the 5th

century BC onwards, out of

reverence for God, the Jewish people stopped pronouncinghis divine name and substituted the word ădōnāy whichmeans ‘lord’.

About the 8th

century AD, the vowels of ădōnāy were used

with the consonants of Yahweh.

While it was never intended that this hybrid word should be

pronounced, at some later stage this happened creating the

name Jehovah.

Most English translations of the Bible use LORD, often incapitals, to translate the Hebrew word Yahweh.

When we read LORD we tend to view it as a title and not as a

proper name.

And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the

LORD: 3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and

unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my

name JEHOVAH was I not known to them. (Authorised

Version)

God spoke to Moses and said to him, ‘I am Yahweh. 3

To Abraham, Isaac and Jacob I appeared as El Shaddai,

but I did not make my name Yahweh known to them.’

(New Jerusalem Bible)

God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the LORD. 3

I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God

Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make

myself known to them.” (English Standard Version)

These translations illustrate the use of the terms, LORD,

JEHOVAH and Yahweh to translate the same Hebrew word.

I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as GodAlmighty, but by my name the LORD (Yahweh –

JEHOVAH) I did not make myself known to them.

(Exodus 6:3)

Notes



While God reveals himself to the patriarchs as El Shaddai or

God Almighty, see Genesis 17:1 – ‘I am God Almighty’, we

also find the name Yahweh associated with the patriarchs.

And he (God) said to him (Abraham), “I am the LORD

(Yahweh) who brought you out from Ur of the

Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.” (Genesis15:7)

What are we to make of God’s comment to Moses in Exodus

6:3?

One approach involves the belief that the present books of

Genesis to Deuteronomy were composed from earlier documents.

It is argued that there must have been a document about the patriarchs that did not use the divine name Yahweh.

In Genesis itself some passages refer to God as Yahweh, but

others use the generic term God.

While this general approach enjoyed considerable support

among academic scholars in the 19th and 20th centuries, in

recent decades fewer and fewer scholars seem to be following

it.

The second approach to Exodus 6:3 involves adopting an

alternative translation.

“I am Yahweh. I made myself known to Abraham, to

Isaac and to Jacob as El Shaddai. My name is Yahweh.Did I not make myself known to them?”

I s there anything in Exodus 6:3 that strik es you as parti cularly strange?

Discuss.

Notes



The issue of God’s name has already been highlighted in

Exodus 3.

Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and

say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to

you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what

shall I tell them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO IAM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AMhas sent me to you.’” God also said to Moses, “Say to

the Israelites, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers--the

God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of

Jacob--has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:13-15; NIV)

Observe in particular the expression ‘I AM WHO I AM’ and

the subsequent phrase ‘I AM’.

Both of these phrases involve a word play on the divine name

Yahweh.

In Genesis God is variously called: El Shaddai, El Roi and El

Olam.

El Shaddai means God Almighty (Genesis 17:1).

El Olam means God Eternal (Genesis 21:33).

El Roi means God of Seeing (Genesis 16:13).

Yahweh would appear to means ‘the one who is’ or ‘the one

who causes to be’.

As a proper name Yahweh emphasises the personal nature of

God.

The name Yahweh conveys the idea that ‘he is who he is’.

The association of God’s nature with the verb ‘to be’ is

developed in a special way by the apostle John in his account

of the life of Jesus.

One of the hallmarks of John’s Gospel is the special attentionthat is given to various ‘I am’ statements made by Jesus.

I am the bread of life (6:35)

I am the light of the world (8:12)

I am the door (10:7, 9)

I am the good shepherd (10:11)

I am the resurrection and the life (11:25)

I am the way, the truth and the life (14:6)

Notes



Elsewhere Jesus occasionally uses ‘I am’ without a predicate

(John 8:24, 28, 58; 13:19).

So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old,

and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them,

“Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”

So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hidhimself and went out of the temple. (John 8:57-59)

Like many other elements within the Gospels, the ‘I am’

sayings contribute to our understanding of Jesus as divine.

Conclusion

One of the important elements of the Book of Exodus is the

way in which God makes himself known.

Seeing our plight and need of redemption, he intervenes torescue.

Notes



Witnessing the power of God: Part 1(Exodus 7-15)

Introduction

Exodus provides an important paradigm for understandingdivine salvation.

Epitomizing those powers that are arrayed against God, the

Egyptian kings use their royal authority and wisdom to defythe Lord of all creation.

Yahweh summons Moses, himself a fugitive from Egypt, to

return and lead the Israelites to freedom.

His mission involved confronting not just a monarch who had

absolute power, but one who was considered to be divine.

Here, by way of illustration, is what Ramesses II (1290-1224

BC) writes about himself:

Utterance of the divine king, Lord of the Two Lands,

lord of the form of Khepri, in whose limbs is Re, who

came forth from Re, whom Ptah-Tatenen begat, King

Ramses II, given life; to his father, from whom he cameforth, Tatenen, father of the gods: "I am thy son whom

thou hast placed upon thy throne. Thou hast assigned to

me thy kingdom, thou hast fashioned me in thy likenessand thy form, which thou hast assigned to me and hast

created. I shall do again every good thing that thoudesirest, while I am sole lord, as thou wast, to settle the

affairs of the land. I have created Egypt for thee anew, I

have made it as at the beginning, I have wrought the

gods' forms from thy limbs, even to their color and to

their bodies; I have equipped Egypt according to their desire, I have built it up with temples."

Ramesses II claims that he has been fashioned in the likeness

and form of ‘Tatenen, father of the gods’.

Whereas in Egypt, royal status was given only to the pharaoh,

in Genesis 1 it is bestowed on all human beings.

Ten plagues?

The account of the confrontation between Moses and the

Egyptian king centres on a series of signs and wonders that

God performs in Egypt.

Notes



7:8-13 Moses’ staff becomes a snake

7:14-25 Water becomes blood

8:1-15 Proliferation of frogs

8:16-19 Dust becomes gnats

8:20-32 Proliferation of flies

9:1-7 Death of the livestock

9:8-12 Outbreak of boils

9:13-35 Downpour of hail

10:1-20 Invasion of locusts

10:21-29 Coming of darkness

11:1-10 Death of the firstborn announced

The final episode listed here, which is expanded upon inchapters 12-13, introduces the Passover.

The designation ‘ten plagues’ is not very accurate for two

reasons.

First, the Hebrew text of Exodus describes them as ‘signs’

(7:3; 8:23; 10:1, 2) or ‘wonders’ (4:21; 7:3; 11:9, 10; cf.

‘miracle’ in 7:9).

A more accurate title is ‘signs and wonders’ (seeExodus 7:3).

Secondly, there are eleven miraculous events recorded inExodus 7–12.

The first of these, Moses’ staff becoming a snake (7:8–

13), is generally not included in the list of ‘plagues’.

The report of each miraculous sign begins with the phrase,

‘the LORD (Yahweh) said to Moses’ (7:8, 14; 8:1, 16, 20; 9:1,8, 13; 10:1, 21; 11:1).

Each episode concludes with an explicit reference to the

hardening of Pharaoh’s heart (7:13, 22; 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7, 12,35; 10:20, 27; 11:10).

The signs and wonders performed in Pharaoh’s presence

begin with Moses’ staff being turned into a snake. This is

then followed by water being changed into blood.

These same signs are given to Moses in Exodus 4 when he

expresses to God his concern that the Israelites will not

believe him.

Then Moses answered, "But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, 'The

Notes



LORD did not appear to you.'" The LORD said to him,

"What is that in your hand?" He said, "A staff." And he

said, "Throw it on the ground." So he threw it on theground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it.

But the LORD said to Moses, "Put out your hand and

catch it by the tail"-so he put out his hand and caught it,

and it became a staff in his hand … (Exodus 4:1-4)

The second sign given to Moses involves his skin becoming

leprous. Following this, God says to Moses:

“If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your

voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it onthe dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the

Nile will become blood on the dry ground.” (Exodus 4:9)

Exodus 4 ends with this brief observation:

Aaron spoke all the words that the LORD had spoken to

Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people. And the

people believed; and when they heard that the LORD had

visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their

affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped. (Exodus4:30-31)

When Moses performs before the Israelites the signs given to

him by God they respond positively and believe.

The Israelites’ reaction to the signs stands in marked contrast

to that of Pharaoh.

Pharaoh’s unwillingness to believe is at odds with other

developments that occur in the narrative.

While those around him gradually recognise Yahweh’s

power, Pharaoh remains stubbornly resistant.

Here and there, we encounter indications that Pharaoh

may be about to recognise Yahweh’s power.

In spite of all that happens, Pharaoh persistently refuses to let

the people go.

Pharaoh’s stubborn refusal to let the people go underlines his

hardness of heart.

Notes



The hardening of Pharaoh’s heart

The hardening of Pharaoh’s heart is described in twodistinctive ways.

In the initial stages it is reported that Pharaoh hardened his

own heart (Exodus 7:13, 14, 22; 8:15, 19, 32; 9:34, 35).

But when Pharaoh saw that there was a respite, he hardened

his heart and would not listen to them, as the LORD had said.

(Exodus 8:15)

As the episodes progress the narrative begins to graduallyintroduce the idea that Yahweh hardens Pharaoh’s heart

(9:12; 10:20, 27; 11:10; 14:4, 8, 17).

But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let

the people of Israel go. (Exodus 10:20)

At one level, it seems very strange that God should cause

Pharaoh to remain stubbornly opposed to Moses and Aaron.

At another level, is it morally acceptable that God shouldharden Pharaoh’s heart and then punish him?

First, by stating frequently that Pharaoh hardened his own

heart, the narrative emphasises that responsibility rests with

him.

When God hardens Pharaoh’s heart he merely strengthens the

king’s resolve to stick by what he has already chosen to do.

Secondly, the references to God hardening Pharaoh’s heartunderline the sovereign power of God.

Not only has Yahweh control over the elements of nature, but

his power even extends over Pharaoh himself.

Signs and wonders

These signs were designed to encourage the people to

believe.

Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against

the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they

believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.

(Exodus 14:31)

Throughout the Bible signs are rarely used by God in order to

encourage belief.

Notes



Signs play an important part in the apostle John’s account of

the life of Jesus.

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the

disciples, which are not written in this book; but these

are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the

Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you mayhave life in his name. (John 20:30-31)

John records, apart from the resurrection, seven signs that

underline the uniqueness of Jesus.

water to wine 2:2–11

healing of an official’s son 4:46–54

healing of paralysed man 5:1–15

feeding of 5,000 6:1–14

walking on water 6:15–21

healing of blind man 9:1–41

raising of Lazarus 11:1–45

1. The ‘signs’ performed by Jesus are all positive in nature;

people are helped by them.

2. The first and last signs in both books have much in

common.

The transformation of water into blood and the death of the

first-born in Exodus are replaced in John’s Gospel by water being changed into wine and a dead first-born man being

raised to life.

Given John’s interest in presenting Jesus as bringing about a

new exodus, it seems reasonable to conclude that the use of signs is significant.

The account of the Passover reinforces the idea that theexodus from Egypt provides a model for understanding a

greater exodus that comes through Jesus Christ.

Notes



Witnessing the power of God: Part 2(Exodus 7-15)

Introduction

The Passover brings to an important climax the signs and

wonders.

“You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians,

and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to

myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voiceand keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured

possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine;

and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy

nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the

people of Israel." (Exodus 19:4-6)

The phrase ‘kingdom of priests’ indicates that each Israeliteis to enjoy both a royal and a priestly status.

Before the fall Adam and Eve enjoyed a royal and holy statusthat enabled them to live in close communion with God.

Although through disobedience Adam and Eve forfeited their

royal and priestly status, this same status is now being

bestowed on the Israelites as they come out of Egypt.

The Passover enables the people to go free and it transforms

them into priest-kings.

The PassoverThe final demonstration of God’s power to Pharaoh and the

Egyptians involved the death of all first-born males.

It is possible to view the death of the firstborn Egyptian

males as a just punishment given that the Egyptians had previously put to death the Israelite male children.

The Israelites must undertake a complex ritual in order to

safeguard their sons from death.

Underlying this ritual is a number of important theological

concepts: atonement, purification, consecration and

redemption.

The Passover ritual consists of three distinctive parts:

the slaying of a lamb or young goat as a sacrifice;

the smearing of its blood on the doorposts of the

houses; the eating of its meat (Exodus 12:6–11, 21–22).

Notes



The first part of the Passover ritual was clearly a sacrifice, as

Exodus 12:27 confirms: ‘It is the sacrifice of the LORD’s

Passover.’

The animals die in the place of the worshippers in order to

atone for their wrongdoing.

The sacrificial animal’s blood is smeared on the sides andtops of the doorframe of the house (Exodus 12:7, 22).

This may have been designed to ward off hostile

powers (cf. Exodus 12:13, 23).

The blood may have been used to purify the Israelite

houses, a proposal strongly supported by the

mention of hyssop (Exodus 12:22).

For each animal slaughtered there has to be an adequatenumber of people to eat all of the meat.

The three elements that make up the Passover ritual are also

found in the account of the consecration of the Aaronic priests in Exodus 29 and Leviticus 8.

The Passover ritual is about consecrating the people as

‘priests’.

The sacrifice of the animal atones for the sin of the

people.

The blood smeared on the doorposts purifies thosewithin the house.

The sacrificial meat sanctifies or makes holy all who

eat it.

The book of Exodus also draws attention to the concept of

redemption.

Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the LORD,

and I will bring you out from under the burdens of theEgyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them,

and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with

great acts of judgment (Exodus 6:6; cf. Deut. 7:8).

You have led in your steadfast love the people whomyou have redeemed; … (Exodus 15:13).

"When the LORD brings you into the land of the

Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and

shall give it to you, you shall set apart to the LORD all

that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the LORD's. Every

firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if

Notes



you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every

firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. And

when in time to come your son asks you, 'What does thismean?' you shall say to him, 'By strength of hand the

LORD brought us out of Egypt, from the house of

slavery. For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us

go, the LORD killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the LORD all the males

that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons

I redeem.' (Exodus 13:11-15).

In the book of Numbers the Levites become a substitute for the firstborn Israelites.

Dr Tom Holland observes,

The Levites, man for man, were to be substituted for thefirstborn of Israel who had been spared by the Lord.

Because they had been spared, the Lord claimed them as

his own. Strictly speaking, that meant as a sacrificial

offering, but that would have defeated the purpose of the

protection of the blood of the lamb. Instead, the Lordclaimed them as living sacrifices, as priests, to serve him.

But in order to allow them to remain with their families,

the Lord arranged for the tribe of Levi to become priests

in their place. They were the ransom (Contours of Pauline

Theology, p. 183).

From whom are the Israelites being redeemed?

The people are redeemed from death.

The Passover was viewed as a central component of God’s

redemptive activity.

In order to restore the holy or priestly status of human beings

there had to be atonement, purification, consecration and

redemption.

New Testament

All four Gospels link the timing of Jesus’ death to the annual

celebration of the Passover.

When Jesus was put to death on the cross not one of his

bones was broken.

John indicates that this ‘took place that the Scripture might befulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken”’ (John

19:36).

Notes



Paul comments to the Christians in Corinth, ‘Cleanse out the

old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are

unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has beensacrificed’ (1 Corinthians 5:7).

The idea of Christ’s death being a ransom is clearly

expressed in Mark 10:45:

‘For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to

serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’

The apostle Peter writes:

…you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited

from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as

silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like

that of a lamb without blemish or spot (1 Peter 1:18-19).

ConclusionThe movement from being slaves of Pharaoh to servants of

the Lord involves the divine redemption of the Israelites from

death’s control.

For the people to become priest-kings of Yahweh, a process

of consecration must take place.

The Passover provides a model by which God redeems and

consecrates people for his service.

Jesus Christ is our Passover and with his precious blood we

are redeemed.

Notes



Journeying to the mountain of God:(Exodus 14-15)

The events described in Exodus 14-15 bring to a climax the

first half of the book.

Pharaoh’s callous treatment of the Israelites exemplifies what

human beings do when divorced from God and under the

control of the archenemy, Satan.

Powerless to help themselves, the Israelites are rescued from

Pharaoh’s control by God himself.

The final episode is the destruction of the Egyptian chariots

in the Red or Reed Sea.

First, most of the English translations use the designationRed Sea.

This reflects the earliest Greek translation of Exodus,

where the Greek text reads: evruqra qalassa (eruthra

thalassa).

The original Hebrew text of Exodus calls the sea yam suph, which literally means ‘Sea of Reeds or Rushes’.

Second, the Hebrew term yam suph in some biblical passages

clearly designates the Gulf of Suez and elsewhere the Gulf of Aqaba.

It is possible that it originally referred to a region of water

that included some or all of the lakes that run between the

Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Suez.

After the final act in the divine deliverance of the enslaved

Israelites from Egyptian control, the Exodus narrative records

how Moses and the people celebrate in song the majesty and

power of Yahweh (15:1–18).

Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to

the LORD, saying, “I will sing to the LORD, for he has

triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider he has

thrown into the sea. The LORD is my strength and my

song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God,and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt

him. The LORD is a man of war; the LORD is his name.

Pharaoh's chariots and his host he cast into the sea, and

his chosen officers were sunk in the Red Sea. The floods

covered them; they went down into the depths like astone. Your right hand, O LORD, glorious in power,

your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy. In the

Notes



greatness of your majesty you overthrow your

adversaries; you send out your fury; it consumes them

like stubble. At the blast of your nostrils the waters piledup; the floods stood up in a heap; the deeps congealed in

the heart of the sea. The enemy said, 'I will pursue, I will

overtake, I will divide the spoil, my desire shall have its

fill of them. I will draw my sword; my hand shalldestroy them.' You blew with your wind; the sea coveredthem; they sank like lead in the mighty waters. Who is

like you, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like you,

majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing

wonders? You stretched out your right hand; the earth

swallowed them.” (Exodus 15:1-12)

As you reflect on this song of praise to God, you cannot

easily escape the way in which it emphasises the role of God

as a warrior.

“The LORD (Yahweh) is a man of war; the LORD(Yahweh) is his name.” (Exodus 15:3)

For many people, the picture of God as a warrior is likely to

be problematic.

It may be difficult to reconcile this image of God with the

statement, “God is love.”

Firstly, in the context of Exodus 14-15, the action of God in

defeating the Egyptian army is entirely defensive.

“The enemy said, ‘I will draw my sword; my hand shall

destroy them.’” (Exodus 15:9)

God is prepared to take up arms in order to protect anddeliver those who are being unjustly attacked.

Secondly, of necessity God has to be a warrior in order to

bring peace.

Peace and harmony can never exist on the earth while evil

powers continue to exercise their influence.

H ow is God portr ayed in thi s song? I s there any aspect of th is por trayal that makes you feel

uncomfortable?

Notes

Notes



The paradigm or model of salvation found in Exodus includes

the defeat and destruction of those who oppose God.

New TestamentIn the New Testament considerable use is made of the divine

warrior tradition, drawing especially on the Exodus account

of God’s defeat of Pharaoh.

Jesus Christ is presented as the one who overthrows the

forces of evil.

Jesus’ conflict with demonic forces is reflected in the

prominence given to his response to Satan’s temptations(Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:13; Luke 4:1-13).

There are also recurring references to Jesus driving out

‘unclean spirits’ (Mark 1:23, 26; 3:30; 5:2, 8; 7:25; 9:25) and

‘demons’ (Mark 1:32, 34, 39; 3:15, 22; 5:18; 6:13; 9:38).

A man, possessed by an unclean spirit, cries out, ‘What have

you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to

destroy us? I know who you are - the Holy One of God’

(Mark 1:24).

Jesus has come to destroy the forces of evil.

The theme of Jesus’ conflict with Satan surfaces again when

scribes from Jerusalem accuse Jesus of being possessed byBeelzebul, the prince of demons.

And he called them to him and said to them in parables,

"How can Satan cast out Satan?If a kingdom is divided

against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a houseis divided against itself, that house will not be able to

stand.And if Satan has risen up against himself and is

divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. But no

one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his

goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed

he may plunder his house (Mark 3:23-27).

Jesus has come to bind the strong man, Satan, and plunder his

house.

From an eschatological perspective, Jesus was carrying

out a new Exodus and Conquest, routing the enemy that

had occupied the land and held individuals in his thrall.

God's reign could not be established apart from defeating

the occupying forces. By binding the strong man and plundering his property, Jesus actually advanced the

kingdom (Tremper Longman and Dan Reid, God is aWarrior , p. 109).

Notes



Mark indicates that the religious authorities are at one with

Satan in opposing Jesus, as are, to a lesser extent, Jesus’ own

disciples.

Peter is linked to Satan when he rebukes Jesus for claiming

that ‘the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected

by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and bekilled’ (Mark 8:31).

Jesus says to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For you are not

setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of

man’ (Mark 8:33).

Since Jesus has come to defeat the powers of evil, his death

on the cross appears to be a decisive victory for Satan.

Apparent defeat is dramatically turned into victory with the

resurrection of Jesus.

The theme of Jesus’ conflict with Satan lies at the very heart

of the apostle Paul’s writings.

As Longman and Reid rightly observe, underlying therhetoric of Paul’s letters is a story of Christ that displays ‘the

progressive pattern of warfare, victory, kingship, temple

building, and celebration.’

The author of Hebrews also observes that ‘through death’Jesus destroys ‘the one who has the power of death, that is,

the devil’ (Hebrews 2:14).

Just as a criminal justice system is exposed in its short-

comings when it executes an innocent person, so muchmore were the cosmic powers exposed and defeated

when they crucified the sinless Lord of glory. The

victory celebrated is, at its heart, not the victory of a

more powerful being over less powerful beings (as if it

were a cosmic struggle of strength against strength in

which salvation was achieved by a tour de force); it isthe victory of holy, righteous, and creative love over the

destructive forces of evil (Longman and Reid, God is a

Warrior , p. 150).

It is only out of love that God takes up his sword of justice

against the oppressive powers of evil.

He does this in order to rescue and redeem those who have been enslaved by the evil one and his followers.

Notes



Surviving the testing of God(Exodus 16-18)

The theme of God defeating the powers of evil is an

important component in the model or paradigm of divine

salvation that underlies the exodus from Egypt.

Egypt and Rahab

In the Old Testament an unusual link is made between God’sdefeat of Pharaoh’s army and the destruction of a terrifying

sea creature, known as Rahab.

One of the names applied to Egypt in the Old Testament is

Rahab.

Egypt's help is worthless and empty; therefore I have

called her "Rahab who sits still." (Isaiah 30:7)

Ezekiel 29:3 links the Egyptian Pharaoh with a ‘great dragon’or ‘monster’.

… speak, and say, Thus says the Lord God: "Behold, I

am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon

that lies in the midst of his streams, that says, 'My Nile ismy own; I made it for myself.' (Ezekiel 29:3)

A connection between Rahab and Egypt is also found in

Isaiah 51:9-11.

Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD;

awake, as in days of old, the generations of long ago.

Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces, that pierced the

dragon? Was it not you who dried up the sea, the watersof the great deep, who made the depths of the sea a way

for the redeemed to pass over? And the ransomed of the

LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing;

everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shallobtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shallflee away. (Isaiah 51:9-11; cf. Psalm 89:10; Job 26:12)

By associating Egypt with Rahab, the exodus story possibly

anticipates the destruction of Satan, the ancient serpent.

Isaiah looks forward to a new and even greater exodus.

Notes



In Isaiah 51 exodus imagery is closely linked to a return to

Zion or Jerusalem.

You have led in your steadfast love the people whom

you have redeemed; you have guided them by your

strength to your holy abode. The peoples have heard;

they tremble; pangs have seized the inhabitants of Philistia. Now are the chiefs of Edom dismayed;trembling seizes the leaders of Moab; all the inhabitants

of Canaan have melted away. Terror and dread fall upon

them; because of the greatness of your arm, they are still

as a stone, till your people, O LORD, pass by, till the

people pass by whom you have purchased. You will bring them in and plant them on your own mountain, the

place, O LORD, which you have made for your abode,

the sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands have

established. The LORD will reign forever and ever."

(Exodus 15:13-18)

In this song of praise to Yahweh, the emphasis is not upon

the prospect of entering a fertile and prosperous land but

upon coming to God’s abode.

People are inclined to be drawn towards material comfortsrather than God himself.

First, God’s abode is associated with his holiness.

To enter God’s abode, they need to be holy.

Secondly, God’s abode is linked to a mountain.

You will bring them in and plant them on your own

mountain, the place, O LORD, which you have made for your abode, the sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands

have established. (Exodus 15:17)

As you r ead Exodus 15:13-18, what is signi fi cant about how the fi nal destin ation is descri bed?

Notes

Notes



The motif of God’s abode being a mountain runs throughout

the whole of the Bible.

The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning

Judah and Jerusalem. It shall come to pass in the latter

days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall

be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flowto it, and many peoples shall come, and say: "Come, let

us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of

the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that

we may walk in his paths." For out of Zion shall go the

law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. Heshall judge between the nations, and shall decide

disputes for many peoples; and they shall beat their

swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning

hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation,

neither shall they learn war anymore. (Isaiah 2:1-4)

In the Bible, God’s abode is seen as the source of life. One

way in which this is symbolised is through the supply of

water.

A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and

there it divided and became four rivers. (Genesis 2:10)

In chapter 47 Ezekiel sees a stream flowing out from the

heart of the sanctuary and bringing life wherever it goes.

Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised in the city

of our God! His holy mountain, beautiful in elevation, is

the joy of all the earth, Mount Zion, in the far north, the

city of the great King. (Psalm 48:1-2)

Yahweh’s deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt is meant to

bring them into his abode.

The wilderness journey

Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and

they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three

days in the wilderness and found no water. When they

came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. And

the people grumbled against Moses, saying, "What shall

we drink?"And he cried to the LORD, and the LORD

showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the

water became sweet. There the LORD made for them astatute and a rule, and there he tested them, saying, "If

you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear

to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put

Notes



none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians,

for I am the LORD, your healer." (Exodus 15:22-26)

In Exodus 15-17 three separate incidents focus on the

Israelites complaining to Moses regarding the lack of water

and food.

And the whole congregation of the people of Israelgrumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness,

and the people of Israel said to them, "Would that we

had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt,

when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full,

for you have brought us out into this wilderness to killthis whole assembly with hunger." (Exodus 16:2-3)

When thirst and hunger come, their praise of God easily turns

to grumbling.

There the LORD made for them a statute and a rule, and

there he tested them, saying, "If you will diligently listen

to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is

right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and

keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases onyou that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, your

healer." (Exodus 15:25b-26)

First, note the references to a ‘statute’, a ‘rule’,

‘commandments’ and ‘statutes’.

What God requires of them will be communicated in various

forms, including statutes, rules and commands.

Secondly, God intended the desert experience to test the faithand obedience of the Israelites.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I am about to

rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go

out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may test

them, whether they will walk in my law or not. (Exodus16:4)

God gives instructions or rules in order to test the obedience

of the Israelites.

However, although God tests the obedience of the people, it

was they who, through disobedience, test God.

Therefore the people quarrelled with Moses and said,"Give us water to drink." And Moses said to them, "Why

do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the LORD?"(Exodus 17:2)

Notes



And he called the name of the place Massah and

Meribah, because of the quarrelling of the people of

Israel, and because they tested the LORD by saying, "Isthe LORD among us or not?" (Exodus 17:7)

Thirdly, Exodus 15:26 emphasises that if the people obey

him, God will not bring upon them any of the diseases whichcame upon the Egyptians.

You can bring the people out of Egypt, but you cannot bring

Egypt out of the people.

Although we have here a model of divine salvation, themodel has limitations; it lacks the heart transforming

dimension that is such a vital part of the NT Gospel

experience.

While the new exodus instituted by Jesus Christ is the realthing, it too involves a process of testing.

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of

various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith

produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have itsfull effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking

in nothing. ... Blessed is the man who remains steadfast

under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive

the crown of life, which God has promised to those who

love him. (James 1:2-4, 12).

Notes



Obeying the words of God: Part 1(Exodus 19-24)

The covenant

Exodus 19-24 describes the ratification of a specialcovenant between God and the Israelites at Mount Sinai.

The making of this covenant is a further element in the whole process by which the Israelites are transformed from slaves of

Pharaoh into holy viceroys of Yahweh.

The Israelites arrive at Mount Sinai, probably 70 days after

the Passover.

Leaving the people at the foot of the mountain, Moses goes

up alone to meet with God once more.

The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying,"Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the

people of Israel: You yourselves have seen what I did to

the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and

brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed

obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be mytreasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth

is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and

a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel." (Exodus 19:3-6)

First, it begins with what God has already done.

In the process of establishing a special relationship withthe Israelites, God has taken the initiative.

Secondly, God offers the Israelites the unique opportunity to

become 'a kingdom of priests and a holy nation'.

This represents a return to the status which human beingshad prior to the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the

Garden of Eden.

What stri kes you about the nature of th e r elationshi p bein g establi shed by God?

Notes



Thirdly, there is a conditional aspect to God’s invitation.

(a) At the outset they have to accept the conditions under

which the offer is made.

God invites the Israelites to embrace his lordship; hedoes not force himself upon them.

(b) The Israelites must continue to give their exclusive

allegiance to God.

For the Israelites to remain as God’s viceroys they must bewilling to obey him constantly.

God's initial words to the Israelites represent a proposal.

They appear to accept it very willingly.

All the people answered together and said, "All that the

LORD has spoken we will do." And Moses reported the

words of the people to the LORD. (Exodus 19:8)

Later in chapter 24 we read something quite similar.

Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD

and all the rules. And all the people answered with one

voice and said, "All the words that the LORD hasspoken we will do." And Moses wrote down all the

words of the LORD. (Exodus 24:3-4)

Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the

hearing of the people. And they said, "All that the LORDhas spoken we will do, and we will be obedient."

(Exodus 24:7)

At this point in the process we have reached the equivalent of

the wedding ceremony.

Knowingly the Israelites agree to the obligations placed upon

them.

The obligations

The obligations that God sets before the Israelites fall into

two parts.

The Decalogue or Ten Commandments (Exodus 20)

The Book of the Covenant (Exodus 21-23).

Notes



The Ten Commandments are given their own special

designation.

They are called the Ten Words or Decalogue (Exodus

34:28); in Greek ‘ten words’ is deka logoi.

The Ten Words are spoken directly by God to the people; Moses does not act as an intermediary (Exodus20:1, 19; cf. Deut. 4:12-13; 5:4-5, 22-27).

The Ten Commandments are inscribed on stone tablets

by the ‘finger of God’ (Exodus 31:18; cf. 24:21; 32:15-

16; 34:1, 28).

The Decalogue is not an open-ended collection of principles,

nor is it intended to be fully comprehensive.

It is designed to be an executive summary of the mainobligations that God places before the people.

The Ten Words are principles, not laws or statutes.

The Ten Commandments are formulated in the second person singular, addressing each Israelite individually.

The Ten Words are given without any punishments

being detailed.

The individual prohibitions of the Decalogue

consistently have the broadest and least specific

formulation.

The fifth ‘word’ requires the Israelites to ‘honour’ their parents.

To honour one’s parents is more demanding than merely

obeying them, for, as B.S. Childs observes, to honour ‘is

“to prize highly” (Prov. 4:8), “to show respect”, to

“glorify and exalt”; it is akin to worship (Ps 86:9).’

The Decalogue was the foundation-document or constitution

of the Israelite community.

Anyone breaking these ‘words’ would ‘set himself

outside the established life of God’s people’ (Childs,

Exodus, p. 396).

The seventh obligation is: You shall not commit adultery.

Adultery entails the breaking of solemn vows, deceit, afailure to love, possibly lust, not to mention the damage

inflicted on personal relationships.

Notes



Where marital unfaithfulness exists, you have a society

that is essentially corrupt, a society that lacks

faithfulness in relationships.

Without faithfulness all relationships become

considerably less than what God intended them to be.

The same kind of thinking is reflected in Jesus’ commentsabout the sixth obligation: You shall not kill.

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You

shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to

judgment.' But I say to you that everyone who is angrywith his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever

insults his brother will be liable to the council; and

whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire.

(Matthew 5:21-22)

The Ten Commandments are not laws but moral principles.

They are intended by God to establish the ethos that should

mark out the Israelites as a royal priesthood and holy nation.

They still remain relevant for us today because they reflect

God's standards for his kingdom and the world as he intends

it to be.

Notes



Obeying the words of God: Part 2(Exodus 32-34)

The covenant ratification ceremony

To conclude the ceremony Moses and other Israelite leadersascend the mountain.

Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy

of the elders of Israel went up, and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of

sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. And

he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of

Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank. (Exodus

24:9-11)

First, others apart from Moses come into the presence of

God.

Secondly, we are told twice that these men ‘saw’ the God of Israel.

The text implies that they ate and drank in the divine

presence.

This incident symbolises the goal underlying the whole

exodus experience.

The golden calf (Exodus 32-34)

Exodus 32 records the making of the golden calf.

First, the making of the calf is clearly a major breach of the

obligations that the Israelites had earlier promised to keep.

The making of an image or idol of Yahweh was prohibited by

the second of the Ten Words.

Why does the author of Exodus record this? What is the signif icance of this event?

Notes



This point is then reinforced right at the start of the material

linked to the Book of the Covenant.

And the LORD said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the

people of Israel: 'You have seen for yourselves that I

have talked with you from heaven. You shall not make

gods of silver to be with me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. An altar of earth you shallmake for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and

your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen.

(Exodus 20:22-24)

Secondly, the Israelites’ actions mimic what God had previously instructed them to do.

Their actions closely parallel what occurred when the

covenant ceremony was ratified.

And he (Aaron) received the gold from their hand and

fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf.

And they said, "These are your gods, O Israel, who

brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" When Aaron

saw this, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made proclamation and said, "Tomorrow shall be a feast to the

LORD." And they rose up early the next day and offered

burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the

people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.

(Exodus 32:4-6)

This incident portrays the people eating and drinking in the

supposed presence of their God.

Centuries later the apostle Paul comments on this event whenhe writes to the church at Corinth:

Nevertheless, with most of them (the Israelites) God was

not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

Now these things took place as examples for us, that we

might not desire evil as they did. Do not be idolaters assome of them were; as it is written, "The people sat

down to eat and drink and rose up to play."

(1 Corinthians 10:5-8)

In the aftermath of the Israelites’ idolatry, the special

relationship between God and the Israelites almost comes to

an end.

Against this background of betrayal, Moses seeks reassurancethat God will continue to go with the people and fulfil his

plans through them.

Notes



The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The

LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to

anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity

and transgression and sin, but who will by no means

clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the

children and the children's children, to the third and thefourth generation." (Exodus 34:6-7)

First, this is probably ‘the fullest depiction of the name and

nature of God within the whole Bible.’

Second, this is God’s description of what he is like, not somehuman assessment.

Third, this formula is often quoted or alluded to in the rest of

the Old Testament (Num. 14:18; Neh. 9:17; Ps. 86:15; Ps.

103:8; Ps 145:8; Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2).

Exodus 34:6-7 echoes closely what God said earlier in the

second Commandment.

You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or anylikeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in

the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the

LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity

of the fathers on the children to the third and the

fourth generation of those who hate me, but showingsteadfast love to thousands of those who love me and

keep my commandments. (Exodus 20:4-6)

Why does Exodus 34:6-7 repeat much of what God says inthe second Commandment?

Although he is willing to forgive the Israelites, God has not

forgotten that he had prohibited them from making images.

Observe also how God’s comments about showing steadfastlove and visiting the iniquity are reversed in the two

passages.

This has the effect of saying that God views both actions asequally important.

God’s forgiveness does not diminish the importance of the

obligations that he places upon the people.

Far from turning his back on the obligations which the

Israelites had failed to keep, God reminds the people of thecommitment they have made to be a holy nation.

Notes



Exodus 34 teaches us that forgiveness and discipleship, grace

and law, go hand in hand.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And

this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,not a

result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his

workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk inthem. (Ephesians 2:8-10)

We are saved by grace, not good works.

We are saved by grace for good works.

In writing to the church in Rome, Paul poses the question,

obviously echoing what others have said, “Are we to

continue in sin that grace may abound?” (Romans 6:1).

Maintaining the correct balance between forgiveness anddiscipleship is not easy.

The two roles of saviour and king lie at the heart of the book

of Exodus.

The deliverance from Egypt is about God as saviour.

The covenant at Sinai is about enthroning God asking.

Seeing God as both saviour and sovereign is vital for healthy

Christian living.

Notes



Experiencing the presence of God: Part 1(Exodus 25-40)

The tabernacle is to be God’s dwelling place in the midst of

the Israelites.

Chapters 25-31 record God’s description of how the tent and

its furnishing should be manufactured.

Chapters 35-40 describe the actual construction.

Chapters 35-39 repeat almost verbatim much of chapters 25-

31.

In Exodus, three different Hebrew terms are used to denotethe tabernacle.

a dwelling (mishkan);

a sanctuary or holy place (miqdash);

a tent of meeting (’ohel mo`ed ).

A dwelling

An important theme in the final part of Exodus is God’sintention to dwell among the people.

I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their

God.And they shall know that I am the LORD

(Yahweh) their God, who brought them out of the landof Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the LORD

(Yahweh) their God. (Exodus 29:45-46)

Like his people, Yahweh will live in a tent.

From the inventory of precious metals and bluish coloured

fabrics (Exodus 25:3-7; cf. 35:5-9, 22-27), it is apparent that

this is no common tent; it is for a royal occupant.

According to Exodus 38:21-31, approximately one ton of gold, four tons of silver and two-and-a-half tons of bronze

was needed to make the tabernacle and its furnishings.

Initially, Moses is instructed to make three items of furniture

for inside the tent.

The first of these is a rectangular wooden chest or box,

covered ‘with pure gold, both inside and out’ (Exodus 25:10-

11).

Inside this container Moses would later place the stone tabletswhich were the ‘Testimony’ or ‘terms of agreement’ for the

covenant between God and Israel (Exodus 25:16, 21).

Notes



The chest is called the ‘ark of the Testimony’ (e.g., Exodus

25:22) or the ‘ark of the covenant’ (e.g., Deuteronomy 10:8).

While some scholars suggest that the golden chest was the

throne itself, the ark is clearly designated a footstool in

1 Chronicles 28:2.

‘The glory of Lebanon shall come to you, the cypress,the plane, and the pine, to beautify the place of my

sanctuary, and I will make the place of my feet glorious.’

(Isaiah 60:13)

Psalms 99:5 and 132:7 offer an invitation to worship at God’sfootstool.

Understood as a footstool, the ark of the covenant extends the

heavenly throne to the earth; this is where the divine king’s

feet touch the earth.

The second piece of furniture was a wooden table, overlaid

with gold, and fitted with rings and poles (Exodus 25:23-28).

The third main fixture to be constructed was a goldlampstand with seven lamps (Exodus 25:31-40).

The lampstand was to be made in the pattern of a

growing tree, decorated with ‘flowerlike cups, buds and

blossoms’ (Exodus 25:31).

Detailed instructions are provided in chapter 26 for the

construction of the actual tent or tabernacle.

The bluish fabrics and gold fittings are once again indicativeof royalty.

The rectangular tent structure was divided by a curtain into

two rooms, one probably being twice the size of the other

(Exodus 26:31-33).

In the smaller of these rooms, in the western half of the

tabernacle, was the ark of the Testimony.

This part was called the ‘Most Holy Place’ or ‘Holy of Holies’ (Exodus 26:34).

The larger room, to the east, was designated the ‘Holy

Place’; it was furnished with the golden table and

lampstand (Exodus 26:35).

Notes



A holy tent

The tent and courtyard are sometimes designated a

‘sanctuary’.

And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in

their midst. (Exodus 25:8)

The Hebrew term miqdash, translated into English assanctuary, points to the holy nature of the construction.

Separated from the rest of the Israelite encampment, the

courtyard was a holy area; only the tent, in which God dwelt,

was considered to be more sacred.

Only those who are holy can come into the divine presence;

to approach God otherwise has fatal consequences.

Since the area within the courtyard was holy ground, the priests assigned to serve there also had to be holy.

As high priest Aaron was to wear a breastplate, an

ephod, a robe, a woven tunic, a turban and a sash

(Exodus 28:4); his sons were to be given tunics, sashesand headbands (Exodus 28:40).

Moses was also told to make a bronze basin (Exodus 30:17-

21).

A tent of meetingThe tabernacle was also a tent of meeting.

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the

glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. (Exodus 40:34)

The idea of meeting is highlighted in God’s comments in

Exodus 29:43: ‘There ... I will meet with the Israelites, and

the place will be consecrated by my glory.’

Exodus mentions two tents of meeting.

the tabernacle itself

the other was only used while the tabernacle was being constructed (Exodus 33:7 -11)

The temporary tent of meeting was set up outside the

Israelite camp. Moses went inside and then God’s presence

surrounded it.

The tabernacle was positioned at the centre of theIsraelite camp.

God was inside and Moses remained outside.

Notes



Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the

glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.And Moses was

not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloudsettled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the

tabernacle. (Exodus 40:34-35)

To enable sinful people to meet a holy God, it was necessaryfor them to be sanctified from their sin and uncleanness.

God instructed Moses to construct a portable bronze-plated

altar, which was to be situated in the courtyard near the

entrance to the tabernacle (Exodus 27:1-8).

The tabernacle as a microcosmThe tabernacle has various features that link it with Eden.

The tabernacle is linked with the creation of the earth.

The tabernacle was probably viewed as a model of thecosmos.

The blue, purple and scarlet fabrics of the tent represent the

variegated colours of the sky.

The lights of the tabernacle are designated by the Hebrew

term mā’ôr , which is also used to denote the sun, moon and

stars in Genesis 1:14-16.

On several occasions tent metaphors are used in the OldTestament to describe the created world.

The author of Psalm 104:2 states, ‘He stretches out the

heavens like a tent.’

Linked to both Eden and the cosmos, the tabernacle, as a

model, conveys the idea that the whole earth is to become

God’s dwelling place.

The tabernacle was a sign to Israel that God’s glorious

presence would eventually fill the whole world.

With its construction God took up residence on the earth.

While the building of the tabernacle is a positive step towardsthe fulfilment of God’s creation blueprint, his actual abode is

restricted to a relatively small area.

Like many other things in Exodus, the tabernacle points

forward to important future developments in God’s plans for the earth.

Notes



Experiencing the presence of God: Part 2(Exodus 25-40)

The account of the construction of the tabernacle in Exodus

contains allusions to the creation of the world.

The tabernacle itself is a microcosm, a model of the world.

Bezalel, who oversees the construction of the tabernacle, is

portrayed using terminology associated with the creation of the earth.

The LORD said to Moses,"See, I have called by name

Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,

and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, withwisdom and intelligence, with knowledge and all

craftsmanship, …. (Exodus 31:1-3; my translation)

As overseer of tabernacle construction, Bezalel is filled

(Exodus 31:3) with “wisdom” ( ḥokmâ), “understanding”

(t ĕ bûnâ), and “knowledge” (da’at), precisely the same

triad by which God is said to have created the world in

Proverbs 3:19-20. To this is added that Bezalel is filledwith “all crafts” or “all works” (kol-mĕ l ā’kâ), the very

phrase used in Genesis 2:2-3 for “all the works” that

God completed in creation. Therefore, not only does the

tabernacle replicate in microcosm the macrocosmic

sanctuary of the entire created order, but these verbalresonances suggest that Bezalel’s discerning artistry in

tabernacle-building images God’s own construction of

the cosmos (Richard Middleton, The Liberating Image,

p. 87).

As a model of the cosmos, the tabernacle creates the

expectation that one day the whole earth will resemble the

Holy of Holies (which we see fulfilled in Revelation 21-22).

The earth is to become God’s dwelling place, shared withhuman beings who are holy.

Later, the concept of the tabernacle as a microcosm is

transferred to the temple built by Solomon in Jerusalem.

In due course Jerusalem was probably perceived as being an

extension of the temple and consequently the city became a

microcosm of the cosmos.

Notes



A Song. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah. Great is the LORD

and greatly to be praised in the city of our God! His holy

mountain,2 beautiful in elevation, is the joy of all the earth,

Mount Zion, in the far north, the city of the great King. 3

Within her citadels God has made himself known as a

fortress. …11

Let Mount Zion be glad! Let the daughters of

Judah rejoice because of your judgments!12

Walk aboutZion, go around her, number her towers,

13consider well her

ramparts, go through her citadels, that you may tell the next

generation 14 that this is God, our God forever and ever. He

will guide us forever. (Psalm 48:1-3, 11-14).

However, the failure of the Davidic kings and the people of Jerusalem to remain obedient to God and fulfil their covenant

obligations, eventually results in the destruction of the temple

and the overthrow of the city.

With the destruction of Jerusalem the prophets of the exilelook forward to God doing something ever greater in the

future.

And when you have multiplied and increased in the land,

in those days, declares the LORD, they shall no moresay, "The ark of the covenant of the LORD." It shall not

come to mind or be remembered or missed; it shall not

be made again. At that time Jerusalem shall be called the

throne of the LORD, and all nations shall gather to it, to

the presence of the LORD in Jerusalem, and they shallno more stubbornly follow their own evil heart.

(Jeremiah 3:16-17)

The Jerusalem temple was considered a microcosm, a model

of the cosmos.

Although the model is destroyed, with good reason, the hope

survived that the model would be replaced by the real thing.

The model symbolised a world filled with God’s holy

presence and under his sovereign authority.

Why does Jeremiah say that the ark of the covenant wi ll not be missed?

Notes



Jesus Christ, among other things, comes as a new, living

temple to replace the Jerusalem temple.

Announcing the destruction of the sanctuary in Jerusalem,

Jesus anticipates the creation of a new, organic temple.

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but youare fellow citizens with the saints and members of thehousehold of God, built on the foundation of the apostles

and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,

in whom the whole structure, being joined together,

grows into a holy temple in the Lord.(Ephesians 2:19-

21)

Paul elsewhere in Ephesians speaks about the church being

filled with God’s presence.

… so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith-that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have

strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the

breadth and length and height and depth, and to know

the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge , that you

may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Ephesians3:17-19)

Paul prays here for the whole church, not individuals; we see

this reflected in the AV’s use of ‘ye’ (“that ye might be filled

with all the fulness of God”).

Paul has in mind the image of the Old Testament tabernacle

being filled with God’s glory.

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and theglory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was

not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud

settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the

tabernacle. (Exodus 40:34-35)

A similar picture is painted centuries later when God comesto dwell in the temple constructed by Solomon.

As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down

from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and thesacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple.

And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD,

because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD's house.

(2 Chronicles 7:1-2)

When we come to the NT period, the day of Pentecost

witnesses the filling of the early believers as the new templeof God.

Notes



Paul sees the new temple as a building that is still under

construction.

Paul relates the process of temple building to the way in

which individual Christians are equipped by God.

According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilledmaster builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is

building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds

upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that

which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:10-

12)

Paul alludes to the way in which God gifted Bezalel for the

task of constructing the tabernacle.

Paul saw his calling and Christian service as due to the ‘grace

of God’ given to him.

The gifts that God’s bestows on people for temple building

are always linked to the grace of God.

But grace was given to each one of us according to themeasure of Christ's gift. 8 Therefore it says, "When he

ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave

gifts to men." …11

And he gave the apostles, the

prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,12

to

equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building upthe body of Christ, … (Ephesians 4:7-8, 11-12)

Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 (and also to a lesser extent 1

Peter 4:8-11) broaden considerably the range of gifts that

may be used in the task of building up the church.

Having gifts (charismata) that differ according to the

grace (charis) given to us, let us use them: if prophecy,

in proportion to our faith;if service, in our serving; the

one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in

his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity;the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of

mercy, with cheerfulness. (Romans 12:6-8)

All Christians receive grace-gifts which they are to use in theconstruction of God’s temple.

Like the tabernacle and the Jerusalem temple, the church as

the present, earthly temple of God, points forward to a time

when this world will be replaced by a new earth, filled with aholy, temple-city, the New Jerusalem.

Notes



Conclusion

In the light of the macro-story that makes up the whole Bible,

the book of Exodus provides an interesting micro-story.

Slaves are redeemed by Yahweh from the tyranny of

evil and death to discover the steadfast love of a

personal God, who reveals himself through signsand wonders.

Disenfranchised labourers become priest-kings

through a process that involves atonement,

purification and consecration or sanctification.

People who have been forced against their will to

labour at building cities for a satanic dictator are set

free and gifted by God to create for him a dwelling

place on the earth.

Exodus is a story about knowing and experiencing God in all

his majesty and glory.

The exodus from Egypt provides a remarkable and unique

paradigm for understanding the Good News about JesusChrist.

While Exodus points back to what God has done in the past,

it provides a paradigm for understanding what God is doing

in the present, for we too can experience the liberating andtransforming power of God in our own lives.

Notes



he enclosed material is fro

raining by Dr Desi Alexan

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