Exodus

Bible Survey

02-Exodus

I. The Emergence of Moses (Exodus 1-4)

Israel in Egypt, the historical setting (Exodus 1)

Joseph helped the rest of his family, the infant nation of Jacob/Israel, enter Egypt (c. 1876 B.C.) and settle in the area of Goshen, where they lived for several centuries (until 1446 B.C.). After Joseph had been dead for some time, Egypt was conquered by Semites - the "Hyksos" (c. 1730 B.C.). By the time the Hyksos were expelled by the native Egyptians and their 18th dynasty rulers (c. 1550 B.C.), Joseph would have been long forgotten and Semites, generally, would not have been viewed favorably (Ex. 1:8). Israel's population grew until it was seen as a threat to Egypt's security (Ex. 1:9-10), so they instituted two modes of population control: (1) hard labor (Ex. 1:11-14) and then infanticide (Ex. 1:15-22 – remember who wants the messianic lineage of Judah terminated – Genesis 3:15). Hebrews named their books by the first words, so in Hebrew this book we call “Exodus” was known as “These are the names” (1:1).

The Rise & Call of Moses (Exodus 2:1 - 4:17)

2/ God’s providential work in and through Moses began with him preserved from death (2:1-6), returned to his mother under royal protection (2:7-9), protected by Pharaoh's daughter (Hatshepsut?) and then educated in all of the wisdom of Egypt (2:10; cf. Acts 7:22). Moses chose to side with/protect the Jews in Egypt (2:11-14) and was forced to leave Egypt, but found a home & wife in Midian, and became very familiar with the Sinai wilderness as a shepherd (2:15-25). See: Hebrews 11:23-29

3:1 - 4:17/ Moses was called to God's service at the "burning bush," but was hesitant and tried to excuse himself from service (he had tried to help his Jewish brothers and was rejected, now settled peacefully elsewhere). His excuses are noteworthy.

(1) "Who am I?" (3:11) - Moses was focusing on himself, his own "worthiness." Ignoring Moses' personal abilities and 80 years of training (he grew up in Pharaoh’s house and was very familiar with the Sinai wilderness), God promised to be with him and told him to bring the people back to the mountain (3:12).

(2) "What if I am asked a tough question?" (3:13-22) - Does the great Creator have a "name"? Moses was given the memorial Name - YHWH or "I AM" (3:14-15) to pass on to the elders of Israel. He was to be accompanied by the elders when they approached Pharaoh (vv. 16-18), was told to expect some opposition, but that God would apply pressure and Israelites would depart Egypt with great wealth (vv. 19-22).

(3) "What if no one believes me?" (4:1) - Moses is worried about his own credibility, even though God had already promised that they would listen (3:18) and he gave him three miraculous signs (4:2-9) to credential him as God's spokesman.

(4) "I can't speak well" (4:10) - Moses was no longer a confident public speaker (cf. 6:12,39). However, God has given us more ability than we may want to use and provides the message (4:11-12), whereas Moses had been trained and once had been a powerful speaker (Acts 7:22).

(5) "Send someone else" (4:13) - the bottom line is that Moses doesn't want to do it! God became angry and made provisions to assist Moses - Aaron would speak and the Rod was given over to God’s use (4:14-17,20).

II. Moses Returns to Egypt (4:18 - 13:16)

Obstacles Dealt With (4:18-31)

A number of items that seemed to be obstacles for Moses, were removed: (1) Moses received Jethro's permission to depart for Egypt (4:18), (2) he was told of the death of the Pharaoh who had sought his life (4:19), (3) God confronted Moses about his lack of obedience to the covenant with Abraham for his sons (4:24-26). This may have been a point of contention between Moses and Zipporah also, but how can Moses lead others into a covenant relationship with God when he was not obedient himself? (4) Initially, Moses was accepted by the leaders of Israel (4:27-31).

Struggle With Pharaoh (Exodus 5 - 10)

5/ Considering his status as a “living god” in Egypt and the role Israelites were playing in the labor force, it is expected that Pharaoh would not willingly allow them to leave. Chopped straw released chemicals that made clay bricks stronger, so perceiving this as laziness, Israelites must now gather and chop their own straw. Israel’s leaders complained to Moses, who, in turn, complained to God.

6-10/ As a whole, the ten plagues on Egypt had several clear purposes. The plagues (1) were pressures applied to secure Israel's release (3:19,20), (2) were a testimony to the supremacy of YHWH as Creator over Pharaoh and the created things the Egyptians worshipped (9:13-17), which Pharaoh's magicians discerned early (8:18,19), and (3) were evidence that Egypt’s “gods” could not save them from anything (12:12).

The "hardening" of Pharaoh's heart involved both Pharaoh’s own will/choices, as well as God’s sovereign power. With good reason, we would expect Pharaoh to be stubborn (3:19) and his early responses were his own doing (7:13-14,22-23; 8:15,32). Also, God had promised to "harden" Pharaoh's heart, beyond Pharaoh’s own choices, so that He could multiply the signs (7:3), demonstrating that God can even use the rebellious to accomplish his will (10:20).

The Last Plague and Passover (Exodus 11 - 12)

The final plague brought on the death of the first born of Egypt, animals and people, which would reach into Pharaoh’s own family as well as priestly families and sacrificial animals. Through all of the plagues, Israel had been spared (8:22,23; 9:4,26; 10:23). With this 10^th plague, each Israelite house was protected by a covering of blood that pointed ahead to the Messiah (12). The Passover Memorial was to be an annual remembrance, with participation limited to "covenant members" – although a door was open for any outsider to become a covenant member (12:42-49).

III. The Exodus (Ex. 13:17 - 15:21)

Israel was given the “First-born Consecration” ceremony to remind later generations of God’s deliverance of Israel’s first-born (13:1-16). As Israel departed Egypt, they took Joseph's bones with them (13:19; Genesis 50:24-26) and God led them by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire at night (13:21-22; Numbers 9:15-22). After 430 years of bondage in Egypt (12:40-41), Israel left their bondage (1446 B.C.) through water (14; see 1Corinthians 10:1-4).

IV. Testing in the Wilderness (15:22 - 18:27)

15/ God provided water (vv. 22-25) and promised Israel that obedience to the covenant would bring good health (v. 26)

16/ God provided food (manna) in the Wilderness, but Israel complained about it as nostalgia kicked in. Meat was also provided.

17/ Moses brought water from a rock (1-7) and Amalek was defeated in a Messianic typological picture (vv. 8-13)

18:13-26/ Moses selected 70 men to help with administration (origins of the Sanhedrin?

V. The Covenant at Sinai (Ex. 19-24)

19/ Arrival & Preparations at Sinai. It took 3 months of travel to reach Mt. Sinai (vv. 1-2). At the mountain, God expressed His “kingdom/covenant intentions” for Israel - "If you obey and keep covenant," then you will be to Me "a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (vv. 5-6). Israel heard the terms and agreed, then prepared to meet God (vv. 7-17). God's Presence at Sinai (vv. 18-25) was expressed by a shaking, smoking mountain, plus the people heard God's voice.

20/ The Mosaic/Sinaitic Covenant specifically included the "10 Commandments" or Decalogue (Ex. 20:1-17) which defined God-Man and human-to-human relationships (see: Matthew 22:36-40; Romans 13:8-10). After the Decalogue (lit. “Ten Words”) came what was called the "Book of the Covenant" (Ex. 20:22 - 23:33). By Jewish count, the Law included a total of 613 commandments, statutes, and ordinances (recorded in Exodus - Deuteronomy). These laws were not divided into "moral, civil, ceremonial" elements – it was a covenant package.

The Covenant Formulary included: (1) the Parties, which were specified as being YHWH, Moses, & Israel (Ex. 34:27,28), (2) the Terms (ongoing duties), which were to keep the Law, conquer & dwell in Canaan, worship God at the selected site, support Levites thru tithe, observe the Sabbaths, and remain separate from polluting contact with Gentiles, (3) the Promises/Curses, which were the enjoyment or loss of material conditions in Canaan (Deuteronomy 28), and (4) the Oathswearing - "walking between the halves" of the sacrifice providing the "blood of the covenant" and formally entering the arrangement (Ex. 24:3-8; Jer. 34:18-20). The “Treaty Document” was the core of the covenant, written on durable material and stored in a safe place for later reference (the 10 Commandments in the ark of the covenant, to be read publicly every seven years – Deuteronomy 31:10-13).

New Covenant View of "The Law" helps us to understand it better. The Mosaic Covenant was "fulfilled" by Jesus, not abolished (Mt. 5:17-18), for its proper use is "educational" and "legal" – (a) to identify "sin" (Rom. 3:20; 7:7) and warn Israel away from it (Ex. 20:20), (b) to guide/oversee Israel until Messiah came (Gal. 3:23f), (c) to make those under the Law accountable for sin (Rom. 3:19), (d) to control the unrighteous (ITim. 1:8-10), and it was written for "our instruction" (Rom. 15:4; 1Cor. 10:11). Rather than an alternative salvation system, the Mosaic Law/Sinaitic Covenant was a temporary addition to the earlier promise to Abraham leading to the Messiah (Gal. 3:17-19). According to the apostle Paul, the crucial choice on where one was to place their focus, discussed in the books of Romans & Galatians, was not "belief vs. action" (James 2:14-26), but between (a) Moses / Law/ personal performance of Law "works"/Sinaitic Covenant, or (b) Jesus / Gospel/ obedience of faith/ Grace New Covenant. The problem with "the Law" in Jesus’ time was not the Law itself, but in how some Jews had come to look at it: (a) as a means of achieving eternal righteousness (Gal. 2:21) & eternal life (Gal. 3:21) and (b) as an alternative to "righteousness by faith" (Rom. 9:30-33) & salvation through the promised Messiah.

VI. The Covenant Broken (32)

Israel did not want to hear God directly (Ex. 20:18-21), so they sent Moses off to Mt. Sinai Rabbinical Seminary to hear it all for them and while he was gone many decided to return to Egypt. Thinking a Golden Calf (Apis Bull?) would smooth over Egyptian hard feelings, Aaron soon caved into their request, oversaw the construction, and organized the feast (vv. 1-6). When Moses returned, he expressed the “breaking of the Covenant” (vv. 19-20) and Aaron minimized his part by claiming the calf magically emerged from the fire (vv. 21-24). The Levite’s first ministry task was to kill off their unrepentant Israelite brothers (vv. 25-29), although God declared that some punishment was being postponed (they had another generation to raise first) until later. By this event, the Sinaitic covenant was already broken (Jeremiah 31:31-32).

VII. The Tabernacle

The Tabernacle was a divinely-designated portable "Tent of Meeting,” intended to be a worship center and place of meeting between YHWH and Israel (Ex. 25:22). The writer of Hebrews called it a "symbol" (Heb. 9:9) and a "shadow" (Heb. 10:1) looking to something later. God provided the arrangement and furniture in a "pattern" (Ex. 25:9,40). The Tabernacle involved three distinct areas: (1) the outer court (containing the altar of sacrifice and Laver), (2) the Tabernacle "Holy Place" (containing the Lampstand, Table of Shewbread, and Altar of incense) and (3) the "Most Holy Place/Holy of Holies" (wherein stood the Ark of the Covenant). When first set up, God demonstrated His acceptance of the Tabernacle by filling it with a cloud of His Glory (Ex. 40:34-35).

The Levites - Although God’s stated intention was that all Israelites would be a holy, national, royal priesthood (Exodus 19:5-6), the tribe of Levi was given charge of the Tabernacle service. After the "golden calf" incident (Ex. 32:26ff), Aaron’s lineage was given the Priestly duty and God provided a “Division of Labor” (by families): (1) the family of Aaron was assigned the priesthood and packing of the sacred items (Numbers 4:5-20). Priests were ordained w/blood applied to their right ear, thumb, & toe (Ex. 29:20), so that their hearing, actions, and walk might be consecrated to God. (2) The family of Kohath was assigned the carrying of the furniture/ sacred items (Numbers 4:2-4,15). (3) The family of Gershon was assigned the duty of carrying the tabernacle curtains (Nu. 4:21-28). (4) The family of Merari was given the task of carrying the tabernacle frame (Numbers 4:29-33). The Levites were called to "holiness" (Ex. 28:36-38; Lev. 20:26), as are New Covenant people (lPeter 1:14f). The book of Leviticus is, essentially, a "priestly manual" to guide the Levites in their service.

-----------------------------------------------

Charles E. McCoy

3/23/2006