Exodus, Book of
Exodus, Book of
Exodus is the name given in the LXX. to the second book of the Pentateuch (q.v.). It means “departure” or “outgoing.” This name was adopted in the Latin translation, and thence passed into other languages. The Hebrews called it by the first words, according to their custom, Ve-eleh shemoth (i.e., “and these are the names”).
It contains, (1.) An account of the increase and growth of the Israelites in Egypt (ch. 1) (2.) Preparations for their departure out of Egypt (2-12:36). (3.) Their journeyings from Egypt to Sinai (12:37-19:2). (4.) The giving of the law and the establishment of the institutions by which the organization of the people was completed, the theocracy, “a kingdom of priest and an holy nation” (19:3-ch. 40).
The time comprised in this book, from the death of Joseph to the erection of the tabernacle in the wilderness, is about one hundred and forty-five years, on the supposition that the four hundred and thirty years (12:40) are to be computed from the time of the promises made to Abraham (Gal. 3:17).
The authorship of this book, as well as of that of the other books of the Pentateuch, is to be ascribed to Moses. The unanimous voice of tradition and all internal evidences abundantly support this opinion.
Fuente: Easton’s Bible Dictionary
EXODUS, BOOK OF
The books that we today refer to as the five books of Moses (or the Pentateuch) were originally one continuous volume. The Hebrews made the division into five sections so that the extremely long book would fit conveniently on to five scrolls. Exodus, being only one part of a much longer book, is therefore best understood in connection with what precedes and what follows it. (For the authorship of Exodus see PENTATEUCH.) The name Exodus, meaning a going out, was given by those who made the first Greek translation of the Old Testament. It refers to the central event of the book, Israels escape from Egypt.
Message of the book
God had promised that from the descendants of Abraham he would make a nation that would in a special sense be his people, and he would give them Canaan as their national homeland (Gen 12:1-3; Gen 13:14-16; Gen 17:6-8; Gen 22:17-18). The chosen descendants of Abraham settled in Egypt in the fertile region of the Nile Delta. There, over the next four centuries, they multiplied and prospered (cf. Gen 15:13; Exo 12:41), till the time approached when they would be strong enough to move north and conquer Canaan. They were sadly disappointed when the Egyptian rulers, fearing the growing Israelite power, made them slaves. Among the cities built by the Israelite slaves was Rameses (Gen 15:14; Exo 1:8-12; see EGYPT; RAMESES).
But God had not forgotten the covenant he had made with Abraham. He therefore freed Israel from Egypts power and set the people on their way to the promised land (Exo 2:24; Exo 6:6-8). After three months journey they settled for a time at Mt Sinai. There God formally established his covenant with Israel as his chosen people, giving them a law-code and a religious order to govern their national life. The instructions concerning these matters begin in Exodus and carry on unbroken through Leviticus and into Numbers. The book of Numbers goes on to record how the people, after almost one year at Sinai, resumed their journey to Canaan (cf. Exo 19:1; Num 10:11).
The events of the exodus from Egypt and the establishment of the covenant at Sinai are therefore the main issues of the book of Exodus. Israels experiences were part of the fulfilment of Gods covenant promises. God was in control of events and was directing them towards the goals that he had set (Exo 14:31; Exo 15:1-18; Exo 19:4-6; Exo 29:45-46; Exo 33:14). Through all these experiences the Israelites began to understand the character of this God who had chosen them. Above all they came to know him as their Redeemer (Exo 3:13-17; Exo 6:6-8; Exo 20:2).
Summary of contents
God saw how the Israelites were oppressed in Egypt (1:1-22), and prepared Moses to be the deliverer to save them. Moses was brought up in the Egyptian palace, but after forty years in Egypt he renounced his Egyptian status and spent the next forty years in the barren regions of the Sinai Peninsular (2:1-25). There God revealed himself to Moses as Yahweh, the eternal and self-sufficient God who would use Moses to save his people from Egypt (3:1-4:17; see YAHWEH).
Moses then returned to Egypt. With his brother Aaron, who was his assistant, he tried to persuade Pharaoh to release the Israelites, but without success (4:18-6:27). This began a long conflict between Moses and Pharaoh, which resulted in repeated plagues upon Egypt (6:28-10:29; see PLAGUE). In the end God destroyed the eldest in each family in Egypt. He passed over the Israelite households, because they had already sacrificed a lamb in the place of the person under judgment. The Passover was Gods great act of judgment for Egypt and redemption for Israel (11:1-13:16; see PASSOVER). The Israelites at last were free. When the Egyptians persisted in pursuing them, they were overthrown in the Red Sea (13:17-15:21).
In spite of the complaints of the journeying Israelites, God graciously preserved them through all their dangers and hardships, whether from thirst, disease, hunger or war (15:22-17:16). Because of the peoples demands upon him, Moses appointed responsible men to help in the administration of Israel (18:1-27).
Once the people had established their camp at Mt Sinai, God prepared them for the formal establishment of his covenant with them (19:1-25; see COVENANT). He gave the basic principles of the covenant in the form of the Ten Commandments (20:1-17), and added miscellaneous laws that were collected in a document known as the Book of the Covenant (20:18-23:33). The covenant was sealed in a blood ritual (24:1-18), after which God gave Moses instructions for the building of the tabernacle and the establishment of the priesthood (25:1-31:18; see PRIEST; TABERNACLE).
Before Moses had passed on these instructions to the people, they had already broken the covenant through their idolatry. God threatened to destroy the nation, but Moses pleaded with him for mercy. God heard Moses prayer and, in response to further pleas, gave the assurance that he would not desert the people on their journey to Canaan (32:1-33:23). The covenant was then renewed (34:1-35) and the people got to work and built the tabernacle as God had instructed (35:1-40:38).
Fuente: Bridgeway Bible Dictionary
Exodus, book of
Exodus, the second book of Moses, so called from the principal event recorded in it, namely the departure of the Israelites from Egypt. With this book begins the proper history of that people continuing it until their arrival at Sinai, and the erection of the sanctuary there. It transports us in the first instance to Egypt, and the quarter in which the Israelites were domiciled in that country. We do not find in the Pentateuch a real history of the people of Israel during this period. Such a history, in the more strict acceptation of the term, has no place in an historical sketch of the kingdom of God, where the mere description of the situation and condition of the people is all that is requisite. From that description we learn satisfactorily how the people of the Lord were negatively prepared for the great object which God had decreed with regard to them. This is the important theme of the history of the Pentateuch during the whole long period of four hundred years.
Exodus is very circumstantial in its account of the life of Moses, which, instead of partaking of the character of usual biography, manifests in all its details a decided aim of evincing how, by the miraculous dispensation of the Lord, Moses had been even from his earliest years prepared and reared to become the chosen instrument of God. In this book is developed, with particular clearness, the summons of Moses to his sacred office, which concludes the first important section of his life (Exodus 1-6). No human choice and no self-will, but an immediate call from Jehovah alone could decide in so important an affair. Jehovah reveals Himself to him by His covenant-name, and vouchsafes him the power to work miracles such as no man before him had ever wrought. It was not the natural disposition and bent of his mind that induced Moses to accept the office, but solely his submission to the express will of God, his obedience alone, that influenced him, the lawgiver, to undertake the mission. The external relation of Moses to his people is also clearly defined (comp. ex. gr. Exo 6:14, sq.). This furnishes the firm basis on which is founded his own as well as Aaron’s personal authority, and the respect for his permanent regulations.
A new section (Exodus 7-15) then gives a very detailed account of the manner in which the Lord glorified himself in Israel, and released the people from the land of bondage. This section of the history then concludes with a triumphal song, celebrating the victory of Israel.
In Exodus 16-18 we find the introduction to the second principal part of this book, in which is sketched the manifestation of God in the midst of Israel, as well as the promulgation of the law itself, in its original and fundamental features. This preparatory section thus furnishes us with additional proof of the special care of God for His people; how He provided their food and water, and how He protected them from the assaults of their foes. In Exo 15:22, sq., not all, but only the remarkable resting-places are mentioned, where Jehovah took special care of his people. In the account (Exodus 18) of the civil regulations framed by the advice of Jethro, a strong line of demarcation is drawn between the changeable institutions of man and the divine legislation which began then to be established, and which thenceforth claims by far the greatest part of the work.
At the commencement of the legislation is a brief summary of the laws, with the Decalogue at their head (Exodus 19-23). The Decalogue is the true fundamental law, bearing within itself the germ of the entire legislation. The other legal definitions are only farther developments of the Decalogue. These definitions manifest the power and extent of the law itself, showing what an abundance of new regulations result from the simple and few words of the Decalogue. Upon this basis the covenant is concluded with the Israelites, in which God reveals Himself in agreement with the understanding and the exigencies of the people.
Not until this covenant was completed did it become possible for the Israelites to enter into a communion with God, confirmed and consecrated by laws and offerings, and thereby to receive further revelations from Him (Exodus 24). Whatsoever after this, in the twenty-fifth and in the following chapters, is communicated to the people, concerns the dwelling of God in the midst of Israel. By this dwelling of God among Israel it is intended to show, that the communion is permanent on the part of God, and that on the part of the people it is possible to persevere in communion with God. Consequently there follows the description of the sanctuary, the character of which is symbolical. The sacred symbols are, however, not so much expressed in formal declarations, as contained in the whole tenor of the descriptions. The symbolics begin with the central point, the holy of holies, which unites in itself the impeaching law and the redeeming symbol of divine mercy, and thus sets forth the reconciliation of God with the people. This is followed by the description of the sanctuary, representing those blessings which through the holy of holies were communicated to the subjects of the theocracy, and serving as a perpetual monument of Israel’s exalted destiny, pointing at the same time to the means of attaining it. Last comes the description of the fore-court, symbolizing the participation of the people in those blessings, and their sanctified approach to the Lord.
The description then proceeds from the sanctuary to the persons officiating in it, the priests, characterized both by their various costumes (Exodus 28), and the manner of their inauguration (Exodus 29). Then follows, as a matter of course, the description of the service in that sanctuary and by those priests, but merely in its fundamental features, confining itself simply to the burnt and incense offerings, indicating by the former the preparatory inferior service, and by the latter the complete and higher office of the sacerdotal function. But, by contributing to the means of establishing public worship, the whole nation shares in it; and therefore the description of the officiating persons very properly concludes with the people (Exodus 30). As a suitable sequel to the former follows the description of the use and nature of the implements requisite for the service of the priests, such as the brass laver for sacred ablutions, the preparation of the perfume and anointing oil (Exo 30:17-38).
These regulations being made, men endowed with the Spirit of God, were also to be appointed for making the sacred tabernacle and all its furniture (Exo 31:1-2). The description of the sanctuary, priesthood, and mode of worship, is next followed by that of the sacred times and periods (Exo 31:12, sq.). Of the sacred times there is here only appointed the Sabbath, in which the other regulations are contained as in their germ. God having delivered to Moses the tables of the law, the construction and arrangement of the tabernacle might thus at once have been begun, had its further progress not been interrupted by an act of idolatry on the part of the people, and their punishment for that offence, which form the subject of the narrative in Exodus 32-34. Contrary and in opposition to all that had been done by Jehovah for and in the presence of Israel, the formidable apostasy of the latter manifests itself in a most melancholy manner, as an ominously significant prophetic fact, which is incessantly repeated in the history of subsequent generations. The narrative of it is therefore closely connected with the foregoing accountsJehovah’s mercy and gracious faithfulness on the one hand, and Israel’s barefaced ingratitude on the other, being intimately connected. This connection forms the leading idea of the whole history of the theocracy. It is not till after the narrative of this momentous event that the account of the construction and completion of the tabernacle can proceed (Exodus 35-40), which account becomes more circumstantial in proportion as the subject itself is of greater importance. Above all, it is faithfully shown that all was done according to the commands of Jehovah.
This brief statement of the contents of the book of Exodus will show that in the descriptive history a fixed plan, in conformity with the principles above stated, is consistently and visibly carried through the whole of the book, thus giving us the surest guarantee for the unity of both the book and its author.
For neological criticism it was of the utmost importance to stamp this book as a later production, the miracles contained in its first part but too manifestly clashing with the principles in which that criticism takes its rise. Its votaries therefore have endeavored to show that those miracles were but mythological fictions which had been gradually developed in process of time, so that the very composition of the book itself must necessarily have been of a later date. Neither do we wonder at such attempts and efforts, since the very essence and central point of the accounts of the miracles given in the book are altogether at variance with the principles and the criticism of the rationalist system, which can by no means admit the rise and formation of a people under such miraculous circumstances, such peculiar belief, and, in a religious point of view, such an independent existence. Indeed, the spiritual substance of the whole, the divine idea which pervades and combines all its details, is in itself such a miracle, such a peculiar and wondrous phenomenon, as to lend natural support and undeniable confirmation to the isolated and physical wonders themselves; so that it is impossible to deny the latter without creating a second and new wonder, entirely adverse to the whole course of the Jewish history. Nor is that part of the book which contains the miracles deficient in numerous historical proofs in verification of them. As the events of this history are laid in Egypt and Arabia, we have ample opportunity of testing the accuracy of the Mosaical accounts, and surely we find nowhere the least transgression against Egyptian institutions and customs; on the contrary, it is most evident that the author had a thorough knowledge of the Egyptian institutions and the spirit that pervaded them. Exodus contains a mass of incidents and detailed descriptions which have gained new force from the modern discoveries and researches in the field of Egyptian antiquities. The description of the passage of the Israelites through the desert also evinces such a thorough familiarity with the localities as to excite the utmost respect of scrupulous and scientific travelers of our own time for the authenticity of the Pentateuch. Nor is the passover-festival, its rise and nature, less confirmatory of the incidents connected with it. The arrangements of the tabernacle, described in the second part of Exodus, likewise throw a favorable light on the historical authenticity of the preceding events; and the least tenable of all the objections against it are, that the architectural arrangements of the tabernacle were too artificial, and the materials and richness too costly and precious, for the condition and position of the Jews at that early period, etc. But the critics seem to have overlooked the fact that the Israelites of that period were a people who had come out from Egypt, a people possessing wealth, Egyptian culture and arts, which we admire even now, in the works which have descended to us from ancient Egypt; so that it cannot seem strange to see the Hebrews in possession of the materials or artistical knowledge requisite for the construction of the tabernacle. Moreover, the establishment of a tent as a sanctuary for the Hebrews can only be explained from their abode in the desert, being in perfect unison with their then roving and nomadic life. The extremely simple and sober style and views throughout the whole narrative afford a sure guarantee for its authenticity and originality. All the incidents related in it are described in plain and clear terms, without the least vestige of later embellishments and false extolling of former ages. The whole representation indicates the strictest impartiality and truth. On the literature of Exodus, see Pentateuch.
Fuente: Popular Cyclopedia Biblical Literature
Exodus, Book of
This book occupies the period from the death of Joseph to the setting up of the Tabernacle. Under the headings of ISRAEL IN EGYPT, the PLAGUES OF EGYPT, and the EXODUS these subjects are considered, which embrace the first fifteen chapters.
Exo 16. After the song at the Red Sea the Israelites were led into the wilderness of Shur, and their faith was put to the test by the bitter waters of Marah; but they were afterwards refreshed by the living waters and shelter at Elim: both are types of wilderness experience. Marah answers in the first place to the experience of 1Pe 4:1; then, the cross being accepted, Rom 5:3-8 becomes the happy experience of the soul. This is followed by Elim – the ministry of grace. God gave them bread from heaven, typical of the heavenly grace in Christ, the bread of life, to sustain the believer in life to God, during the wilderness. The manna was to be gathered daily . He sent them also quails to eat.
Exo 17. Moses smote the rock and there came water out of the rock – type of the Holy Spirit – and this was followed by conflict: they fought with Amalek (type of Satan seeking to act upon the weak flesh of the believer: comp. Deu 25:18. Power is not in the flesh, but in the Spirit): with Amalek there was to be continued conflict, because they touched the rights of God in His people.
Exo 18. Jethro brought to Moses his wife and his two sons: sacrifices were offered by Jethro, a Gentile, who ate with Israel. Judges were appointed that there might be order and righteous judgement among the people: type of the millennium.
Exo 19 – Exo 24. Here there was a change: up to this all had been grace, but now the people were put under law, and not knowing themselves they said, “All that the Lord hath spoken we will do.” The ten commandments and various laws followed until Exo 24 when the covenant was ratified by blood and inaugurated. On it being read the people again said, “All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient.” The people were sprinkled with blood, then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders ascended the mount; “they saw God, and did eat and drink.” They thus entered into relationship with God. The glory of Jehovah was like devouring fire.
Exo 25 – Exo 31. During these chapters Moses was in the mount: he remained there forty days, and received from God the pattern of the tabernacle, and all its accompaniments. See TABERNACLE.
Exo 32. While Moses was in the mount the people, under the plea of not knowing what had become of Moses, requested Aaron to make them ‘gods to go before’ them, and the golden calf was made. God threatened to destroy the people, but Moses pleaded for them, and asked God to remember Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. When Moses saw the calf he broke the two tables of the law: the people had already broken the law. The calf was destroyed and the idolaters slain.
Exo 33. God said He would send an angel, and not go Himself with Israel, for they were a stiff-necked people. Moses took the tabernacle and pitched it outside the camp, and those that sought the Lord went there to it: cf. Heb 13:12-13. (This ‘tent of meeting’ was probably a provisional one, for the tabernacle had not been made.) Moses continued to plead for Israel, and became their mediator. All being ruined, God would now act in His sovereignty, and show mercy to whom He would – a sovereignty which extends mercy to Gentiles as well as Jews: cf. Rom 9:14-15. God promised to be gracious, so that now mercy was added to law .
Exo 34. The two tables were renewed, but were to be placed in an ark (comp. Deu 10:1-3), and God proclaimed Himself as ‘Jehovah, Jehovah God’ – His name with Israel, but adding the characteristics of mercy and holy government. Moses was again in the mount for forty days, and when he came down his face shone. The sabbath was again rehearsed before them, as the token of this fresh covenant of mercy and holy government; but mercy will in the end rejoice over judgement. Psa 135:13-14 and Psa 136.
Exo 35 – Exo 40. The freewill offerings of the people were accepted for the tabernacle, and God gave skill to some for the work. The tabernacle was made and reared: the priests were sanctified and clothed, and all was finished. “Then the cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.” Moses was unable to enter the tent of the congregation because of the cloud. The cloud became their signal for movement: when that moved, they journeyed; and when that rested they abode in their tents. Thus the Israelites had God with them as Jehovah. How blessed would they have been, had they been able to keep the covenant under which God had put them, and which on their part they had promised to do, not, alas, knowing what their fallen nature really was: it was a trial of man under law.
In short, the Book of Exodus shows the redemption of the Israelites from slavery; their being brought into relationship with God, with a priesthood to maintain that relationship; and God leading and dwelling among them.