Old Testament Overview Exodus Last month, we looked at a survey of the entire OT - Reasons for studying the OT - Common themes that are repeated We also looked at the book of Genesis - The book of beginnings - The Abrahamic Covenant is a big deal in the book of Genesis Genesis ends on a bit of irony 1 - There is great joy because Joseph is reunited with his family - But it also reminds us that the children of Israel are in bondage to Egypt God is taking care of the nation of Israel - In His sovereign plan, He had Joseph in a position of prominence to supply their food The purpose of Genesis is to show God s compassion to a very sinful people in giving a Divine promise to Abraham and his Seed 2 Israel needs to be delivered from Egypt so they can return to the land of Canaan - This will be the focus of our study of the book of Exodus Exodus falls within the scope of the Pentateuch - five books - Also referred to as the Torah Let s pray and get started The Hebrew title for this book is translated And These Are the Names 3 - This tells us that Exodus picks up where Genesis left off - Exodus is 2 nd volume or chapter of the Book of Moses The Greek title is Exodus, which means exit, departure, or going out 4 - This is the main event in the book - The departure of Israel from Egypt 1 Bruce Wilkinson & Kenneth Boa, Talk Thru the Bible, 9. 2 TMS notes from Old Testament Studies, Professor Keith Essex, 9. 3 Wilkinson & Boa, 13. 4 Ibid., 13. Page 1 of 31
What are some common themes that emerge in the book of Exodus? - Redemption and deliverance o This will be a huge theme that occurs time and time again as Israel is redeemed out of Egypt - Yahweh o God, not Moses, is the central character of Exodus o It will ultimately be God, not Moses, who rescues Israel - The Ten plagues on Egypt 5 o We will discuss these a bit later o These ten plagues intensity as the story unfolds - Covenants o Abrahamic should not surprise us that God continues to be faithful to this covenant o Mosaic this is a new covenant that God makes with Moses - Passover o This will also play a huge role in establishing the foundation of the remainder of the OT o The Passover celebration ultimately points to the coming Messiah - The Ten Commandments o Chapter 20 will detail these o These Ten Commandments will be repeated throughout the entire OT and even into the NT o They are the means by which Israel is made distinct as a nation - The Tabernacle o This is the temporary meeting place that God instructs Israel to build o What does the Tabernacle teach us? That God meets with His people That God wants to communicate with His people on His terms 5 The MacArthur Study Bible, chart after the note for Exodus 7:22. Page 2 of 31
There are two main areas of focus in the book of Exodus - God s deliverance of Israel from bondage in Egypt in order to establish the Mosaic Covenant at Sinai 6 - Tracing the rapid growth of Jacob s descendants from Egypt to the establishment of the theocratic nation in their Promised Land 7 What is the purpose of Exodus? - God is continuing to fulfill His covenant to Abraham by multiplying his descendants into a great nation 8 - Just as He had promised back in the book of Genesis What are some important dates pertaining to Exodus? - This helps us to have a sense of context and perspective of when these events took place 1875 B.C. Jacob and his family enter Egypt - This is 430 years before the Exodus - Let s read Exodus 12:40, Now the time that the sons of Israel lived in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. 41 And it came about at the end of four hundred and thirty years, to the very day, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. 1804 B.C. While on his deathbed, Joseph speaks of the sons of Israel exiting Egypt - By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the exodus of the sons of Israel, and gave orders concerning his bones (Heb 11:22, emphasis mine) - This was 350 years in the future, dating from Joseph s death (ca. 1804 B.C.) 966/65 B.C. Solomon s 4 th year of his reign wherein the building of the Temple begins - Now it came about in the four hundred and eightieth year after the sons of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD (1 Kings 6:1) - This is 480 years after the Exodus By means of looking at some definite dates and lives of individuals, we can verify the date of the Exodus to be around 1445 B.C. - Moses wrote the book of Exodus around 1445-1405 B.C. 6 Essex, 12. 7 MacArthur, 22. 8 Gleason L. Archer, A Survey of Old Testament Introduction, 235. Page 3 of 31
The children of Israel were in Egypt for 430 years! - When the Abrahamic Covenant was ratified in Genesis 15, remember what God told Abram, Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years (Gen 15:13, emphasis mine) - The Exodus was mentioned alongside the Abrahamic Covenant! 9 The book of Exodus covers a large period of time - Beginning with the arrival of Jacob in Egypt (ca. 1875 B.C.) - Ending with the building of the Tabernacle some 431 years later (ca. 1445 B.C.) 10 Why is the book of Exodus important? - It records the history of Israel s redemption under the leadership of Moses - It exposes the falsehood and Divine consequences of idolatry - It highlights the need for obedience from God s people, making them distinct from other pagan nations 11 Unlike Genesis, Exodus has no direct messianic prophecies - It does, however, have some elements that point to Christ o Passover The actual event took place in Exodus Christ is referred to as our Passover (1 Cor 5:7) o Exodus Paul reminds the believers that baptism symbolizes death to the old and identification with the new (1 Cor 10:1-2) o The manna and water Paul writes that these both apply to Christ Manna (John 6:31-35, 48-63) Water (1 Cor 10:3-4) o The high priest Jesus Christ is referred to as our great High Priest (Heb 4:14-16; 9:11-12, 24-28) 9 Archer, 237. 10 Wilkinson & Boa, 13. 11 Wilkinson & Boa, 14. Page 4 of 31
One of the main human characters in the book of Exodus is Moses - He was born in 1525 B.C. - He was educated in all the learning of the Egyptians, and he was a man of power in words and deeds (Acts 7:22) - We can view his life in three different 40 year intervals 1 st 40 years - He grew up around the courts of Pharaoh (Acts 7:23) - Certainly, he was given all of the privileges of being brought up in the king s court 2 nd 40 years - He decided to visit his brothers - It was during this time that he murdered an Egyptian (Acts 7:23-35) - In response to this, he was in self-imposed exile for 40 years - During this time, he was a shepherd for his father-in-law, Jethro 3 rd 40 years - Leading the children of Israel out of Egypt to the Promised Land (Acts 7:36) Deuteronomy 34:7 tells us that Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died - He was never allowed to enter the Promised Land As we consider an outline for the book of Exodus, we can trace the geographical pilgrimage of Israel out of Egypt - 1:1-12:36 Israel in Egypt - 12:37-18:27 Israel on the road to Sinai - 19:1-40:38 Israel at Sinai 12 I want us to look at each of these sections this afternoon - Again, in a survey fashion I. Israel in Egypt (1:1-12:36) Chapter 1 we are given a brief glimpse into the growth of the children of Israel The people of Israel were increasing at such a number that they exceeded the Egyptians (1:9) - The Egyptians were concerned that in the event of a war, the Israelites might ally themselves against Egypt (1:10) 12 John MacArthur, The MacArthur Bible Handbook, 25. Page 5 of 31
Look back at 1:5 (70 men are listed) - By the time the Israelites leave Egypt, there would be over 600,000 males who were 20 years of age and older (12:37) God s promise to Abraham about having many descendants is becoming true 13 - God is faithful to His Word The solution was for the Egyptians to inflict hard labor on the Israelites (1:11) - But even this didn t stop the population increase of the Israelites (1:12) The increased hard labor wasn t bringing about the intended result - So the king of Egypt resorts to more desperate tactics In 1:15, he talks to the Hebrew midwives - He tells them to kill any son who is born - The daughters, however, are allowed to live Let s read Exodus 1:17 - These midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt had commanded them, but let the boys live The result of this decision was that God continued to increase the population of the Israelites (1:20) Chapters 2-4 in these chapters, we are introduced to Moses The birth of Moses and his early life is such a beautiful picture of a mother s love and God s sovereign control Notice that both of Moses parents were from the tribe of Levi - They had a son who was very beautiful - They hid Moses for 3 months, but then realized that they couldn t hide him any longer (2:3) 13 This lesson references material from Capitol Hill Baptist Church s core seminar on the Old Testament. http://www.capitolhillbaptist.org/resources/core-seminars/series/old-testament-overview/ Page 6 of 31
Moses mother makes the most incredible decision - She makes a basket for Moses to sit in - Then she set the basket in the reeds of the Nile River - She posted her daughter, Moses sister, on guard to see what would happen In God s providence, the daughter of Pharaoh came down to the Nile River to bathe - She saw the baby, noticing that he was a Hebrew As if on cue, Moses sister asks if Pharaoh s daughter wanted her to go get a nurse for the baby (2:7) - The sister went and fetched her mom to be the baby s nurse - So mother and baby were reunited! Furthermore, Pharaoh s daughter agrees to pay Moses mother to take care of him for her! Verse 10 specifically says that Moses was the son of Pharaoh s daughter - This undoubtedly came with great privileges and wealth - One of these blessings must have been a world class education The book of Hebrews sheds some light on Moses mindset of his upbringing - Hebrews 11 says this, By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh s daughter, 25 choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin (11:24-25) - Moses identified with the people of Israel vs. the Egyptians - It helps us to see who he considered to be his real family Many years of Moses life are skipped from verse 10 to 11 - We fast-forward to his adult life Moses observed an Egyptian beating a Hebrew - When no one was looking, Moses killed the Egyptian, hiding him in the sand The next day, two Hebrews were fighting with one another - When Moses asked a question, one of the Hebrews made it known that he was aware of Moses murder of the Egyptian from the day prior The king of Egypt knew what had happened - Moses knew he wasn t safe - So he fled to the land of Midian Once again, Moses stands up for others - In this case, it was Moses standing up for the daughters of Reuel against some shepherds - Reuel ends up giving Moses one of his daughters (Zipporah) to be his wife Page 7 of 31
Note how chapter 2 ends - Israel cried out because of their bondage and hardship Follow along with me as I read Exodus 2:24 - So God heard their groaning; and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob God had not forgotten His covenant - But He was about to do something about the hardship of His people - And what He was about to do involved Moses As chapter 3 opens, we find that Moses is pasturing the flock of Jethro - Shepherding would play a pivotal role in his life God appears to Moses in a burning bush - A bush that was on fire, but was not being consumed God spoke to Moses from this burning bush - He revealed Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob In 3:10, God tells Moses that He would send him to Pharaoh, to bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt - Moses doesn t respond with immediate faith Moses begins by raising a series of questions - Who am I? - What is Your name? After this, of course, Moses resorts to excuses - What if they don t believe me? - I can t speak very well Lest we be too hard on Moses, we oftentimes make excuses as to why we don t need to trust God in our circumstances - But in the end, we, like Moses, need to trust the Lord Chapter 5 the scene switches back to Egypt Just like in a good movie, there are different plots going on simultaneously - We have been so focused on Moses over the past few chapters - Now we are reminded that Israel is still in bondage! Page 8 of 31
What we see in chapter 5 is the first of many conversations Moses will have with Pharaoh - These two will clash over the upcoming chapters Moses and Aaron tell Pharaoh to allow Israel to go a 3 days journey into the wilderness in order to worship the Lord - Of course, Pharaoh refuses to allow Israel to go As a result, Pharaoh tells the taskmasters not to give the Israelites straw for the bricks - Thus, their job is made much more difficult The Israelites are not happy about this - They voice their displeasure to God - Moses, in turn, takes these concerns to the Lord Chapter 6 God promises action In this chapter, God promises that He will bring about the deliverance of Israel from the hand of the Egyptians - God is the same God who appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (6:2) - God has heard the groanings of Israel (6:5) - God would bring Israel to the land that He promised to Abraham (6:8) You see, God is promising to be faithful to the Abrahamic Covenant that we saw way back in Genesis 12 - Land, seed, and blessing Look with me at Exodus 6:9 - So Moses spoke thus to the sons of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses on account of their despondency and cruel bondage - The burden of the Israelites overshadowed the great promises of God This response rattled Moses - Behold, the sons of Israel have not listened to me; how then will Pharaoh listen to me, for I am unskilled in speech? (6:12) Page 9 of 31
Chapters 7-12:29 the ten plagues sent by God on Egypt Over the next few chapters, we are going to see God bring a series of ten (10) plagues upon Egypt The Plague The Effect 1. Blood (7:20) Pharaoh hardened (7:22) 2. Frogs (8:6) Pharaoh begs relief, promises freedom (8:8), but is hardened (8:15) 3. Lice (8:17) Pharaoh hardened (8:19) 4. Flies (8:24) Pharaoh bargains (8:28), but is hardened (8:32) 5. Livestock diseased Pharaoh hardened (9:7) (9:6) 6. Boils (9:10) Pharaoh hardened (9:12) 7. Hail (9:23) Pharaoh begs relief (9:27), promises freedom (9:28), but is hardened (9:35) 8. Locusts (10:13) Pharaoh bargains (10:11), begs relief (10:17), but is hardened (10:20) 9. Darkness (10:22) Pharaoh bargains (10:24), but is hardened (10:27) 10. Death of firstborn Pharaoh and Egyptians beg Israel to leave Egypt (12:31 33) (12:29) God was displaying His power - He had the power to do as He willed - Pharaoh was not match for the sovereign, all-powerful hand of the Lord In some of these earlier plagues, Pharaoh s magicians were able to replicate the miracle - But by the 3 rd plague, the magicians had acknowledged the hand of God (8:19) Now it is common knowledge that much of the Egyptian literature does not record the ten plagues and the defeat of Pharaoh s elite army - How would you respond to this? - Does this discredit the Biblical account? Not at all! - It is a well-known fact that the Egyptians did not record their embarrassments or failures 14 - They wanted their history to be about positive victories, not about negative defeats The final plague included the death of the firstborn of the Egyptians - But for the Israelites, God would pass over their home - This is where Pass-Over originates 14 MacArthur, 23. Page 10 of 31
The Passover ultimately would point to Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross - Paul would refer to Jesus as Christ our Passover (1 Cor 5:7) This final act was such a blow to the Egyptians that Pharaoh finally told Moses and Aaron to take the Israelites and go worship the Lord as they had requested (12:31) - No more bartering or delay Throughout these chapters, you may remember that there two perspectives that seem contradictory - Pharaoh hardens his heart - The Lord hardens Pharaoh s heart 10x the Lord is said to have hardened Pharaoh s heart - 4x Pharaoh is said to have hardened his own heart Pharaoh can t blame God as if he was completely innocent - But the Lord shows His power and sovereignty in directing Pharaoh s heart in accordance with His plans The Exodus begins as Pharaoh expels the Israelites out of Egypt - They have to leave in a hurry - Their bread was unleavened This is the beginnings of the Feast of Unleavened Bread - It is associated with Passover This is the first major section of Exodus - Israel in Egypt II. Israel on the road to Sinai (12:37-18:27) In this phase of Exodus, Israel will leave Egypt and travel to Sinai - As you might expect, there will be a few bumps on the road The remainder of chapter 12 gives us some helpful data points to remember - The 70 people who traveled to Egypt are now over 600,000 men (may be close to 2 million people including women and children) - The time that Israel was in Egypt was 430 years to the very day (12:41) - Restrictions for eating Passover are given Page 11 of 31
Chapter 13 God leads the sons of Israel out of Egypt Israel is finally leaving Egypt - This is the great exodus - This great event is the very title of the book Note in 13:17 that God did not lead Israel by the way of the Philistines - Otherwise, the sons of Israel may have been fearful when confronted with seeing war Also notice 13:21, The LORD was going before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead them on the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night - God led the people with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night - This must have been amazing to see! Chapter 14 Pharaoh and his army pursue the children of Israel After some time, Pharaoh realizes his mistake of allowing the sons of Israel to leave Egypt - So he takes 600 chariots and pursues Israel It seems that God led the Israelites into a dead end - On one side was the Red Sea - On the other side was the Egyptians So what kept the Egyptians from overtaking the Israelites? - Look with me at 14:19 The Angel of the Lord had been going before the sons of Israel - Now the Angel of the Lord moves behind the sons of Israel The cloud concealed the entire nation of Israel as Moses raised his staff to divide the waters of the Red Sea - In the words of 13:20, Egypt and Israel didn t come near one another all night! In a display of miraculous power, God pulled back the waters of the Red Sea - The sons of Israel passed through on dry ground (miracle!) - But when Egypt was crossing, God brought the waters down on them Page 12 of 31
Chapter 15 Moses and the people of Israel sing The Song of Moses - This is to praise and to honor God for His miraculous deliverance from Egypt - 15:11, Who is like You among the gods, O LORD? While on the road to Sinai, God provides everything they need - Water (15:22-27) - Manna (16:1-7) - Meat (16:8-21) Can you imagine how much water and food would be required to feed such a large gathering of people? - Yet God provided for all of their needs! Chapter 17 water from the Rock - This is the famous story of how God provided water from a rock - Moses was told to strike the rock (which he did) and God provided water for the children of Israel Chapter 18 good advice from Jethro - Moses father-in-law counseled him to delegate some of the workload to other capable men - Instead of judging every single case, he should focus one the more severe ones (18:21-23) At this point, Israel is at Sinai - They will remain here for the remainder of the book of Exodus III. Israel at Sinai (19:1-40:38) For the last 22 chapters of the book of Exodus, Israel will be at Mt. Sinai Chapter 19 is preparation for God speaking to Moses - The people were to consecrate themselves (19:10) - The people were told not to go near the mountain (19:12) - Not even animals were to go near the mountain (19:13) Page 13 of 31
Look with me at 19:16 that sets the tone for this context - So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. 17 And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire o Thunder o Lightning o Thick cloud o Loud trumpet sound o Fire No wonder the people trembled! - Moses was about to meet with God In chapter 20, God gives the famous Ten Commandments (20:1-17) - You shall have no other gods before Me - You shall not make yourself an idol - You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain - Remember the Sabbath to keep it holy - Honor your father and mother - You shall not murder - You shall not commit adultery - You shall not steal - You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor - You shall not covet your neighbor s house The people of Israel witness the sights and sounds of God meeting with Moses on Mt. Sinai - In verse 19 they tell Moses, Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, lest we die We are familiar with these ten commandments - But there are many other commandments in the book of Exodus - We are not as familiar with them Exodus 21-23 list various laws - How to treat slaves - Personal injuries - Property rights - Rules relates to virgins and sorcerers - Laws about those who lie with an animal or offer sacrifices to any god other than the Lord - Rules about false reports, how to treat your enemy s animals - Laws about the Sabbath Page 14 of 31
- Rules about the feasts Most of us don t think about these types of laws - But they would have been a part of everyday life for the Israelites Even today, we have laws in place that are similar to what the Lord told Israel - Property rights - Personal injury - Etc. In the latter half of Exodus 23, God promises to bring the people of Israel to the Promised Land - They would need to obey the Angel that the Lord would send before the people In Exodus 24, Moses told the people all that the Lord had told him - Look at their response in verse 3, All the words which the LORD has spoken we will do! (repeated in verse 7) Furthermore, Moses sprinkled blood on the people after reading the book of the covenant - The people were pledging and committing themselves to the stipulations outlined in God s Word In chapters 25-31, God tells Moses the plans of the Tabernacle - This would be the place where He would meet with His people God gives very specific instructions on how to build the various pieces of the Tabernacle God even selects the people He wants to help build the various pieces of the Tabernacle - He had gifted certain individuals to work with metals, wood, etc. The camera lens now shifts in chapter 32 - Moses has been on the mountain for a long time - What is going on with the people of Israel? We see in Exodus 32 the heart of the people - Impatient - Idolatrous Moses had left Aaron in charge back in 24:14 - So the people go to Aaron with a request - Come, make us a god who will go before us (32:1) Isn t this ridiculous? - This was breaking at least two of the Ten Commandments - God had repeated that He didn t want the people worshipping other gods Page 15 of 31
Aaron gives into their request - He asks for gold - He fashioned the gold into a calf (32:4) - They he said, This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt (32:4) To make matters worse, they offer sacrifices to this calf - They eat and drink, then commit sexual sin (32:6) The camera lens shifts once again - This time, back to Moses as he meets with the LORD The LORD tells Moses that the people had made a calf, had worshipped it, and were giving it credit for delivering them Moses then intercedes for the people of Israel - God had mentioned that he would destroy the nation Israel and make a great nation from Moses (32:10) What is the major argument that Moses uses in speaking with God? - Verse 13 is a quote of the Abrahamic Covenant that we saw back in Genesis - Moses reminds God of His own word We read in verse 14, So the LORD changed His mind about the harm which He said He would do to His people - This idea of God changing His mind has caused some people to be confused - Due to this being an overview class, I will deal with this only briefly This text keeps two themes in balance - God s absolute sovereignty - God s response to prayer On the one hand, God is eternal and knows His plans and future decisions - However, He also is moved by the prayers of His people - In this case, Moses We also see in this context that God never promised that He would wipe out the people of Israel and start over with Israel - God wanted to see how Moses would respond to His statement So we might say that God never had a plan B - Although it seems like that from our perspective - He is eternal and knows all things Page 16 of 31
Moses goes down from the mountain - Verse 19 says that his anger burned, and he threw the tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain - He also ground up the golden calf and made the people drink it When Moses confronted Aaron over the whole incident, how did Aaron respond? - He blamed the people as being prone to evil (32:22) - Aaron also claimed that the golden calf just appeared out of the fire (32:24) We laugh at this because of the obvious lack of responsibility that Aaron took in this entire episode - But we have all attempted to cover up the obvious truth of our sin - We manipulate with our actions in order to make ourselves seem more righteous Moses intercedes yet again for Israel - It shows the true heart of this leader, to pray for God s kindness instead of His judgment to fall upon His own people God is gracious to have the two tablets replaced - Remember, Moses broke them in his anger at the golden calf episode - He also renews the covenant with His own people In chapter 34, Moses is allowed to see part of God - What is interesting to me is that Moses does not record what he SAW - Rather, he records what he HEARD As God passes by, look at what He proclaims to Moses in 34:6 - The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations. God is proclaiming His own nature and character - Compassionate and gracious - Slow to anger - Abounding in lovingkindness and truth - Keeps lovingkindness - Forgives iniquity, transgression, and sin - But He won t leave the guilty unpunished Page 17 of 31
This statement is made in the wider context of God giving instructions on the building of the Tabernacle - Where God would meet with His people - His sinful people! The remaining chapters of Exodus deal with the Tabernacle - The people give more than enough for the Tabernacle to be funded - Then in Exodus 40, the Tabernacle is setup Exodus is a remarkable book - It shows God s power over the gods of the Egyptians - It reminds us of God s promises of land, seed, and blessing In some ways, this book pictures God s salvation for New Covenant believers - The people are in slavery to a cruel master - God single-handedly delivers His people - God leads His people on a journey toward the Promised Land Why did God redeem Israel from Egypt? - What would have been lost if God had not done this? The ultimate motivation was God s own glory and nature being put on display - It wasn t about the slavery of Israel - It wasn t about the heroism and leadership of Moses 9 times in the book of Exodus we find this phrase, know that I am the LORD - That Israel may know that the Lord is their God - That Egypt may know that the Lord is the ultimate God God s glory is on display in this book - Through the plagues - Through judging Egypt Let s take a 5 minute break - Then we will come back to discuss the book of Leviticus Page 18 of 31