Page 37 - Pentateuch

Chapter 6: The Pentateuch Part III
Bringing Israel out of Egypt: Exodus 1:1-15:21

Connect…

It is one thing for God to work with one person: Abraham, Jacob, or Joseph. It is another matter entirely to
work with an entire nation. How can God rescue an entire people from bondage? How can God purify these
same people from years of living in a completely pagan culture? They know only Egypt. Who really is this
God that they have heard about only in stories from parents and grandparents?

Exodus backs up in time to remind us of events in Genesis. In total, seventy people moved to Egypt in the
days of Joseph. The number included the eleven brothers and their families. They are called “the sons of
Israel” (Exod. 1:1) and “the descendants of Jacob” (1:5) as if to remind us of the dual nature of the nation.
Like their father's ancestor Jacob/Israel, they are both deceivers and those who wrestle with God. God’s
desire for the nation is the same as it was for Jacob, to refine them and bring them to himself.

God’s goal in the beginning chapters of Exodus is two-fold. He wants to bring Israel out of bondage. He had
promised Abraham the land of Canaan to succeeding generations. The greater goal is to teach both Israel
and Egypt about Himself. When Moses first asks Pharaoh to let Israel go into the desert to worship their
God, Pharaoh responds, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the
LORD (5:2).” As the plagues progress, this becomes the key issue. This is the lesson for Israel. “Then you will
know that I am the LORD your God (6:7). This is the lesson for Egypt. “And the Egyptians will know that I am
the LORD (7:5).” The lessons come in rapid succession (8:10, 22; 9:13-14, 29-30; 10:2; 11:7; 14:4, 18).

The Lesson ...

Yahweh is a completely different God.

Within the time-space of about four hundred years (Gen. 15:13), these original families are fruitful and
multiply until they become a threat felt by the king of Egypt. The years have passed over silently, in contrast
to the detail we read in Genesis about three or four generations. The focus is on their growth, a record that
reflects the promises God made to Adam (Gen. 1:28), Noah (Gen. 9:1,7), Abraham (Gen. 13:16; 15:5; 17:2),
and Jacob (Gen. 28:14; 46:3). Egypt’s king witnessed the faithfulness of God to his people even in a foreign
land.

The Egyptian king reacts to God’s blessing on Israel by making them work as slaves. He “worked them
ruthlessly” (1:13). He also tries to stop their numerical growth by instructing the Hebrew midwives to kill all
baby boys. (1:16). They refuse, citing as an excuse the healthy nature of the Hebrew women (1:19), and the
king orders every Hebrew boy to be thrown in the Nile. As we might expect, God favors the midwives with
children because of their greater fear of him than of Pharaoh. The central theme of Exodus is exposed on a
personal scale in their decision. The issue is service. Who is the master, the God who is “life-taking and
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oppressive, or the God who is life-giving and liberating?

44 Hamilton, Handbook, p. 139.
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