So God Was Kind to the Midwives
1: 15-22

So God was kind to the Midwives DIG: What did Pharaoh’s fear lead him to do? What did the midwives fear lead them to do? By disobeying Pharaoh, what were the midwives risking? What did God think of their disobedience? Compare the accounts of how the seed of the Serpent tried to kill both Moses and Jesus (Matthew 2:1-20).

REFLECT:  If you were a Hebrew midwife, what do you think you would have done? How were their actions justified in light of what the B’rit Chadashah teaches us about submission to authorities (Romans 13:1)? Why did God bless them?

When working the Hebrews ruthlessly didn’t stop them from multiplying, Ahmose put a second phase of his plan to work. Then the king of Egypt said to the two chief Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah. Judging from the names of these two midwives, they were probably of Hyksos origin. The name Shiphrah means beautiful, like Linda in Spanish. And Puah can also be a Semitic name. They were told, “When you help the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live” (1:15-16). The rabbis teach that Pharaoh, warned by his astrologers, schemed to safeguard himself against the birth of a child who might become the deliverer of the Israelites. Art by Sarah Beth Baca: see more information on Links and Resources.

Under biblical and ancient law, nationality was determined by father and not by the mother. So we can see why the daughters were allowed to live and the sons had to die. If your father was a Hebrew, you were a Hebrew regardless of what you mother’s nationality was. If your father was an Egyptian, you were an Egyptian regardless of what you mother’s nationality was. So by killing off the sons, the Hebrew population would be decreased because the daughters could be forced to intermarry with the Egyptians, and any subsequent children would be Egyptian because their fathers would be Egyptian. But this plan failed as well.

If Pharaoh’s command to the midwives had been carried out, it would have been a master stroke. The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do. They let the boys live (1:17). They feared God more than they feared Pharaoh. They committed themselves to obey His will rather than Pharaoh’s and allowed the boy babies to remain alive.⁹ This is one of the major themes of Exodus. Who were the Hebrews to serve – God or Pharaoh?

Pharaoh’s plan for Isra’el and God’s plan for Isra’el were exact opposites. Pharaoh’s plan for them was slavery, sorrow, poverty and death, while God’s plan for them was liberty, joy, plenty and life. A great contrast, for sure, but that is just the wide difference between Satan’s plan and God’s plan for every human soul. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 6:23a).¹⁰

It was obvious that his plan was not working, so the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live” (1:18)? Their response was not completely truthful, but they honored God before man. The midwives answered Pharaoh saying: Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vagarious and give birth before the midwives arrive (1:19). The question arises, is it ever proper to lie in a situation like this? There are times when believers are faced with this issue. For example, believers were faced with this situation during the Second World War when they had Jews hidden in their homes. The Dutch believers reacted differently than the Polish believers. When the Nazi’s came and asked the Poles if they knew where the Jews were hiding, they felt like they could not lie and they exposed the Jews sending them to their deaths in the Nazi gas chambers. But when the Dutch believers, including Corrie ten Boom, were asked the same question, they avoided the truth, saving Jewish lives. What would you do?

In the same manner, the Hebrew midwives saved families through disobedience to Pharaoh, so God rewarded them with families for their obedience to Him. So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. God protected them from Pharaoh’s wrath, and He gave them a reward. And because the midwives feared God, He gave them families of their own (1:20-21). The end result was that the Israelites continued to multiply in strength and numbers.

The rabbis teach that according to the Talmud (commentaries on the TaNaKh), Pharaoh’s astrologers warned him that a savior was about to be born. Thus, Pharaoh attempted to kill Moses as a baby. Thereafter, Pharaoh put the third phase of his sinister plan into operation. Totally frustrated and angry, Pharaoh gave this order to all the people of Egypt saying: Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live (1:22). Genocide, the killing off of an entire ethnic population, was Pharaoh’s solution to his problem. In a chillingly similar modern situation, Adolph Hitler called the same procedure the final solution.¹¹ But just as Satan tried to get rid of the children of Isra’el, God intervened and one in Pharaoh’s own household would draw a deliverer, Moses, out of the Nile.

Today we are obligated to obey YHVH before men. For example, if a government commanded that no one was allowed to present the gospel to others, believers in that country would have to disobey because Christ commands us to witness for Him (Matthew 28:19-20). Such was the response of the disciples in Acts 5. If a government ordered mandatory abortions for its people, believers would have a duty to resist. God will not tolerate His people committing murder (Exodus 20:13). This is a general principle for how a believer is to live: it is to be on the basis of God’s word.¹²

Now a Priest in Midian had Seven Daughters
2: 16-22

Now a priest in Midian had seven daughters DIG: How is the exodus foreshadowed in the deliverance of Reuel’s daughters? What other important men and women in the Bible meeting at a well? How did Moshe’s act of driving the shepherds away  serve as a microcosm of the later exodus deliverance?

REFLECT: Have you ever dropped out and sat on the spiritual sidelines for an extended period of time? How did this better prepare you for your future? How has ADONAI used you because of  it?

Moses fled to the land of Midian, which for the next forty years was his home. It is the area of the southern Sinai Peninsula, the same area in which Mount Sinai is located. The one in charge of that territory was not a king but a priest. His name is Reuel, which means the friend of God. When we get to 3:1 we are told: Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and some have seen a contradiction between the two accounts. But Jethro is not a proper name; it is a title like Pharaoh, Kaiser, Cesar or President.

However, Moses did not learn about the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob from this man; he learned about Him from his parents until the age of five. At this point Reuel is a polytheist, and is not convinced of monotheism until we get to 18:9-12.

Now a priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father’s flock (2:16). Women watering animals was very common in the TaNaKh (Genesis 24:11-19). Here is another biblical example of a guy meeting the right girl by a well. Isaac’s servant, Eliezer of Damascus, found Rebekah by a well (Genesis 24:15-16). Where did Rebekah finally meet Isaac? At Beer Lahai Roi, or the well of the Living One (Genesis 24:62). Jacob also met Rachel by a well (Genesis 29:1-14). And of course, Jesus talked with a Samaritan woman by a well (John 4:126).

Some shepherds came along and drove them away, but Moses got up and came to their rescue and watered their flock (2:17). This act serves as a microcosm of the later exodus deliverance. Here the women are victimized and oppressed by shepherds who drive them away from the water. Moses stands up for the persecuted and rescues them from the oppressors. The word rescue simply means saved or delivered. The same verb is generally used for the deliverance of the Israelites out of Egypt. That day ADONAI saved Isra’el from the hands of the Egyptians (14:30a). The word for drove away is also used later when Moses and Aaron were driven out of Pharaoh’s presence (10:11). The character of Moses is emphasized here. He was brave, loved justice, took the side of the weak and the oppressed. Those traits would serve him well in the later deliverance of the Hebrews.²⁷

When the girls returned to Reuel their father, he asked them: “Why have you returned so early today?” The watering of their father’s flock should have taken much longer. They answered and said: An Egyptian rescued us from the shepherds. At this point Moses probably dressed, talked and was clean-shaven like an Egyptian. The girls concluded by saying: He even drew water for us and watered the flock (2:18-19).

“And where is he?” he asked his daughters. “Why did you leave him? Invite him to have something to eat.” A man with seven daughters was anxious to find out who this guy was! During the course of the meal, an agreement was made and he would live with them from that point on. Moses agreed to stay with the man (2:20-21a). So ADONAI was working behind the scenes and this stranger was accepted into Reuel’s family.

Later, Reuel would give his daughter Zipporah, which means ladybird, to Moses in marriage. Normally the marriage proposal came from the family of the bridegroom. But occasionally, under unusual circumstances like this, the custom was reversed. The father, of course, had the authority to make such decisions, with their society being totally patriarchal in nature. Later, Zipporah gave birth to their first son, and Moses named him Gershom, a pun which means an alien there or banishment, and refers to Moses’ realization that he, at first somewhat homesick and lonely, was an alien in a foreign land (2:21b-22). He was a man in exile from his home country and the people of his birth. Moses was an alien, as were his Israelite countrymen in Egypt and he was finally experiencing their plight. His son’s name was a constant reminder of his banishment.²⁸

Two general points of application need to be made here for those who follow Christ. First, believers are called to understand and take to heart, the truth that God’s plan for the universe and eternity will come to pass despite sin. Do we think that in some way our sin will thwart ADONAI’s decrees from operating in the world? Not even Satan, at his most wicked and hateful moment, can hinder the providence of YHVH. Even the very gates of hell are powerless to block God’s purposes for the universe. May we hold to that truth.

Secondly, may we grasp the truth that the LORD will use us, like He did Moses, despite our sin. That, of course, does not give us a license to sin, but God employs frail and weak vessels to proclaim the gospel to a dying world. Yeshua uses redeemed sinners to proclaim the excellences of Him who has called us out of the darkness! ADONAI uses His people, despite their weakness, failure and sinfulness, for His glory and His purposes.²⁹

Moses in Midian
2: 16-25

Moses lived in the land of Midian for the remainder of the reign of Thutmose III. The Midianites were primarily herdsmen, migrating with their livestock according to the seasons. They were also involved in international trade (Genesis 37:28).²⁴ Their founder was Midian, a son of Keturah, wife of Abraham, who had been sent to the east away from Isaac (Genesis 25:2-6). They lived in the southeastern Sinai and northwestern Arabia on both sides of the Gulf of Aqaba.²⁵ It goes without saying that the culture and lifestyle of Midian was drastically different than those of Egypt.

The long years he would spend in the desert were not wasted years, but a time of maturity and reflection on the things of God (Acts 7:29). He needed the discipline of physical toil and the lessons this kind of occupation conveys. ADONAI was preparing Moses to be a leader of men, so for forty years he received experience by leading the flocks of the Midianite priest.²⁶ He gained much knowledge of the Sinai area, which would later be useful as he would lead the nation of Isra’el in that wilderness land.

It seems that almost every great man of YHVH spends time in the desert preparing for his ministry. John the Baptist was a man of the desert eating locusts and wild honey. Rabbi Sha’ul was in Arabia for several years. Jesus spent time in the desert alone. So the LORD might prepare you for a ministry with a period of exile in some desert, and the thing that will interfere with your preparation is impatience.

It is significant that Thutmose III reigned for forty years after Hatshepsut’s death, and Moses lived in Midian for exactly the same amount of time. It is only after the death of Thutmose III that Moses returned to Egypt.

Moses in Egypt
2: 1-15

From Adam to Christ, there is none greater than Moses. He is one of the few characters of Scripture whose life is recorded from birth to death. He is one of the most commanding figures of the ancient world. In his character, in his faith, in his achievements, and in the unique position assigned to him as the mediator between YHVH and His people, Moses stands first among the heroes of the Hebrew Scriptures. All of God’s early dealings with Isra’el were transacted through Moshe. He was a prophet, priest and king in one person.¹⁵ He lived in Egypt for forty years, and what he learned was that he was not an Egyptian, but a member of the tribe of Levi, a Hebrew.

The Preparation and Call of Moses
2:1 to 4:31

The LORD’s response to Pharaoh’s murderous scheme was to raise up a man who would eventually lead the Israelites out of bondage and into freedom. That man was Moses, who is considered by many to be the greatest single individual in the entire TaNaKh, and who is the principal figure in the biblical narrative from Exodus Chapter 2 through the end of Deuteronomy.¹³

Moses spent his first forty years in Egypt and his second forty years taking refuge with the Midianites. Of the first forty years, the Bible just touches the highlights, chiastically paired with the second forty years, with D being the turning point. There is a parallelism, where the first letter is antithetical to the second letter.

A Marriage of Moses’ parents and his birth (2:1-4)

B Moses taken by a king’s daughter to her home (2:5-10)

C Moses rescues his Israelite brother (2:11-12)

D Moses betrayed by his fellow Hebrews (2:13-14)

C Moses rescues non-Israelite maidens (2:15-17)

B Moses taken by a priest’s daughter to her home (2:18-20)

A Moses’ marriage and birth of his son (2:21-22)

The life of Moses presents a series of striking antitheses. He was the child of a slave, and the son of a queen. He was born in a hut, and lived in a palace. He inherited poverty, and enjoyed unlimited wealth. He was the leader of armies, and the keeper of flocks. He was the mightiest of warriors, and the meekest of men. He was educated in the court of Egypt, and dwelt in the desert. He had the wisdom of Egypt, and the faith of a child. He was fitted for the city, and wandered in the wilderness. He was tempted with the pleasures of sin and endured the hardships of virtue. He was backward in speech, and talked with ADONAI. He had the rod of shepherd, and the power of the Infinite. He was a fugitive from Pharaoh, and an ambassador from heaven. He was the giver of the Torah, and the forerunner of grace. He died alone on Mount Moab (Jude 9), and appeared with Messiah in Judea (Luke 9:28-33). No man assisted at his funeral, yet God buried him.¹⁴

A Man of the House of Levi Married a Levite Woman
2: 1-10

A man of the house of Levi Married a Levite woman DIG: Why did Moses’ parents give him up for adoption? What does that say about them? What was the importance of Moses’ mother being able to nurse him until he was five? Where did Moses get his name?

REFLECT: How has race, riches, or your faith shaped you for God’s purposes? Where in your life are you looking for circumstances to favor you? Could you trust the Lord with your child?

Ahmose died and was succeeded by his son, Amenhotep I, who was later honored for founding the institution responsible for building the royal tombs, although he himself was not buried in the Valley of the Kings. He was the second Pharoah of the Eighteenth Dynasty. After his death, Thutmose I became the third Pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty.

Now a man of the house of Levi married a Levite woman (2:1). The names of Moses’ parents are not given here but in 6:20 we learn that his father was Amram and his mother was Jochebed, Amram’s aunt. This Levite couple had two older children: Aaron (6:20) and Miriam (15:20).¹⁶ It was significant that Moses was born a Levite. He descended from the Kohathite division of the Levites (see the commentary on the Life of David, to see link click Et – The Kothathites). This group was specially set apart at Mount Sinai to carry the holy objects of the Tabernacle upon their shoulders when the Israelites marched in the desert, especially the ark of the Covenant (Numbers 7:9). Thus, his genealogy was very special to the Hebrew reader; it pointed to the fact that Moses was being set apart for God’s special service, just as his tribe would later be set apart.¹⁷ Today the Muslims teach that Moses was not a Jew because he descended from the house of Levi rather than the house of Judah, but we know that all 12 tribes from Jacob make up the Jewish nation.

And Jochebed became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a beautiful and healthy child, she then hid him for three months because of the decree given by Thutmose I (2:2). She recognized that he was going to be no ordinary child and that God had a special future for him (Acts 7:20), but after three months she couldn’t hide him any longer, so she tried something different.

But when Jochebed could not hide him any longer, she and her husband defied Pharaoh’s decree and hid the baby (Acts 7:17-20). She got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch (2:3a). The Hebrew word for basket used here is the same word translated ark in Genesis 6:14. It was coated with tar and pitch just like Noah’s ark was and it was built for floating, just like Noah’s ark. The Hebrew word for pitch is kafar, and translated atonement elsewhere in the Bible. Because all Hebrew boys were supposed to be drowned in the Nile, placing him among the reeds along the bank of the Nile would seem to be a curious thing to do (2:3b). However, it was really an act of faith. The Bible teaches us that by faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict (Hebrews 11:23). They had to trust God with their child. More watchful than Miriam’s, His eyes neither sleep nor slumber (Psalm 121:1-8).

God’s protection is clearly seen in His care of the infant, but there is a human element also. Jochebed told Miriam, Moses’ sister, to stand at a distance to see what would happen to him (2:4). This was also an act of faith. Jochebed wanted to make sure that her son was discovered, so she placed him in a location where the royal court bathed frequently.

Pharaoh’s daughter Hatshepsut was about twenty when she went down to the Nile to bathe in a secluded spot. Her attendants were walking along the riverbank with her. There was the ark. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her slave girl to get it (2:5). The phrase, among the reeds, is the Egyptian word sup, which is used later in the proper name yam sup for the Red Sea in 13:19.

She opened the papyrus basket and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. God brought together two things that He has made, a baby’s cry and a woman’s heart. Pharaoh’s daughter could not pass this little baby by.¹⁸ She said to her attendants: This is one of the Hebrew babies. Then Moses’ sister Miriam asked Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?” Her offer was not out of place because Pharaoh had murdered so many of the Hebrew babies that there were many Hebrew women able to nurse such a child. She answered: Yes, go. And the girl went and got the baby’s mother (2:6-8).

The rabbis teach that the reason Pharaoh’s daughter recognized the baby to be Hebrew was because she had converted to Judaism. They believe the reason she went into the Nile alone was for Jewish purification purposes, a mikveh, not for a normal bath. They take this theory a bit further and say that she had some contact with Jews and especially with Jewish babies. This is also their explanation of why she decided to keep this baby and bring him to the palace and raise him as her own child. By taking this baby, keeping him alive, bringing him into the palace of the great Pharaoh, and raising the boy as her own son, she broke her own father’s edict to kill every Hebrew male child. 

Hatshepsut said: Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you. So Jochebed took her own baby and nursed him (2:9). The royal decree of killing the Hebrew boy was no longer applicable because he had the royal protection of Hatshepsut herself. In the past, Job spoke to Eliphaz about ADONAI, saying: He catches the wise in their craftiness (Job 5:13), and that’s what happened with Moses. Pharaoh’s own scheme to kill the Hebrew boys was not only thwarted, but his enemy was brought into his own household to become a member of his family! So both Noah and Moses underwent watery trials in which they both survive and become deliverers of God’s people.¹⁹

When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. The normal age of weaning a boy in ancient Egypt was five. Our self-image is set by the age of five; therefore, by the time Jochebed took him to Pharaoh’s daughter to become her son, his Jewishness was already part of his personality. He would never forget his roots. It would be the basis of a life changing decision he would make thirty-five years later (2:11-12). Hence, after being weaned for five years he was legally adopted by Hatshepsut, who was probably in her mid-twenties, to be raised as her son in the royal court of Egypt.

She named him the family name of mose or Moses (which means son of), saying: I drew him out of the water (2:10). Therefore, Moses was adopted and given the Egyptian name mose, the typical name of the Eighteenth Dynasty. There was Ahmose (son of Ah), Kamose (son of Ka) and Thutmose (son of Thut). Every name before the word mose was the beginning of an Egyptian deity. That probably meant that originally Moses had a longer name, beginning with the name of an Egyptian deity and ending with mose. But later, when he rejected his upbringing in the culture and religion of Egypt, he probably dropped the first part of his name because he wouldn’t allow himself to be named after an Egyptian god (Heb 11:24-25).

Historians have called Hatshepsut’s story the Thutmose family feud because it reads like a soap opera. Thutmose I had four children by his great royal wife; however, all died in childhood except the little princess Hatshepsut. He also had a son, Thutmose II, by a woman in his harem. Later, when Thutmose I found himself nearing death, he married his daughter Hatshepsut, then about thirty, to her younger half-brother Thutmose II, who became the fourth Pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty. It was the custom for royal brothers and sisters to marry each other to preserve the royal line. She and her sickly husband had two daughters, but just like his father before him, Thutmose II had a son from his harem. Therefore, when Hatshepsut’s husband, Thutmose II, died prematurely, this son of the harem, Thutmose III, officially became Pharaoh of Egypt when he was only nine years old. What a mess!

Once again, to keep the royal line pure, this boy Pharaoh was married to one of Hatshepsut’s daughters. The situation had become unmanageable. Hatshepsut herself, now about thirty-eight, was named to a group of regents to govern Egypt until Thutmose III was old enough to assume the awesome responsibilities of the Pharaoh of Egypt. He was the fifth Pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty.

Theoretically, Hatshepsut should have faded into the background. And indeed, for the next few years that is just what she seemed to do. She must have walked submissively behind the boy-Pharaoh on all state occasions. And she deferred in every way to her daughter, the Queen. But she resented the young Pharaoh, her half-nephew. Her father had been the mighty Thutmose I. Her great grandfather, Ahmose the Liberator, had driven the dreaded Hyksos from Egypt. She believed that the purest royal blood flowed through her veins, whereas the boy Pharaoh, Thutmose III, was virtually a commoner. He was the son of a harem nobody and Hatshepsut’s husband, was himself only half royal. Thutmose III could only claim one-quarter royal blood. She must have believed with all her heart that despite the fact that she was a woman, she alone, by birth and by blood, was entitled to the throne.

Therefore, early in the young king’s rule, Hatshepsut usurped her half-nephew’s position. She must have donned the most sacred of Pharaoh’s official costumes, a ceremonial dress that went back to the predynastic kings of Egypt. Wearing only a short kilt with a lion’s tail hanging to the ground in the back, carrying the royal scepter in one hand and the sacred crook in the other, and with a square-cut false beard attached to her chin, Hatshepsut mounted the throne and proclaimed herself Pharaoh of Egypt and ruled it for the next twenty-one years. She was not only one of the most remarkable women in the history of Egypt, but also one of the most remarkable women in the history of the world. Her temple dedicated to Amun-Re at Dayr al-Bahri is especially impressive. It included her own funeral monuments as well as chapels dedicated to Osiris, Re, Hathor, Anubis and her royal ancestors.

The moment she seized the throne, Hatshepsut must have banished Thutmose III to the vast and gloomy interior of the temple of Amon. There his head would have been shaved and his royal garments exchanged for a simple linen kilt. He was put into training as an apprentice priest, the court saw him no more, and his name was never mentioned in Hatshepsut’s presence again.²⁰

At that time Moses was born, and he was no ordinary child. For three months he was cared for in his father’s house. When he was placed outside, Pharaoh’s daughter took him and after five years of being weaned by his own mother, Moses was brought up as her own son. Between verses 10 and 11 there is a time gap of about thirty-five years. These thirty-five years represent the period of Moses’ training when he was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action (Acts 7:22). But during the years of his ouster, Thutmose III never forgot and he never forgave. He just bided his time, and waited for the opportunity to take revenge on Hatshepsut – or anyone associated with her.

The Oppression of Isra’el
1: 8-22

Isra’el’s blessing, however, became Pharaoh’s problem. The new king, who did not know about Joseph, was Ahmose, who expelled the Hyksos invaders from Egypt and founded the Eighteenth Dynasty, which was probably the most brilliant age in all Egyptian history. The Eighteenth Dynasty lasted from 1570 to 1090 BC, beginning as Egypt reached its height of glory and ending in one of its weakest positions. Egyptian history will not tell what caused its downfall from such glorious heights. But ADONAI explains it in great detail here in the first third of Exodus. Ahmose did not want the Israelites to become so strong and numerous that they might win their freedom by joining forces with the Semitic Hittites and fight against Egypt. Pharaoh’s plan of oppression had three phases, each more ruthless than the one before it.³

Already at this early stage we see the real antagonist in the book of Exodus, which will become much more pronounced later on. This is not a battle of Isra’el versus Pharaoh, or even Moses verses Pharaoh, but of ADONAI verses Pharaoh. The Egyptian king, as we will see in the following chapters, is presented as an anti-god figure; he repeatedly places himself in direct opposition to God’s redemptive plan, and this behavior is already anticipated here. Pharaoh’s sin was not simply making slaves of God’s people. This is merely his solution to get at a much more basic problem: The Israelites are becoming too numerous, and are as such, a possible military threat to Egypt.⁴ When he tried to reduce their number even though the LORD said He would make them very fruitful (Genesis 17:6), he violated universal spiritual principles: Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God and it is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (James 4:4 and Hebrews 10:31).

The Descendants of Jacob Numbered Seventy in All
1: 1-7

Parashah 13: Sh’mot (Names) 1:1-6:1
(See the commentary on Deuteronomy, to see link click Af – Parashah)

The Key People are descendants of Jacob, a new Pharaoh, midwives, Moshe, Mariam, Zipporah, Pharaoh’s daughter, and Jethro.

The Scenes include Egypt, Midian, and Mount Horeb in Sinai.

The Main Events include Jacob’s family multiplying, enslaved in Egypt; baby Moshe hidden in a basket, rescued, raised in the palace of the king of Egypt, killing an Egyptian, fleeing to Midian, and marrying; God’s call from the burning bush, identified as YHVH; staff, signs, wonders, and Aaron as spokesman; the first encounter with Pharaoh and tougher slavery without straw for bricks.

In the book of Exodus, we see the history of the children of Isra’el progress from being a family of a couple of hundred who descended into Egypt, to becoming a nation of about three million strong. The themes of exile and redemption come to the forefront. We learn that the first generation of Israelites to live in Egypt died. Then a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know of Joseph. That king put the children of Isra’el under harsh servitude. This was done in fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham when He said that He was going to take his descendants down to Egypt to be foreigners in a land that is not theirs. They will be slaves and held in oppression there four hundred years (Genesis 15:13).

Moshe, the human author, opens the book of Exodus with the Hebrew word and, or waw. This conjunction is not reflected in most English translations. It is, however, important to recognize its existence because it connects the exodus story to the preceding material of Genesis. The first six words of Exodus are the same exact words of Genesis 46:8. And these are the names of the sons of Isra’el who went to Egypt with Jacob, each with his family (1:1). The names do not appear in order of birth, but according to their respective mothers. The children of Leah and Rachel come first, and then the children of Bilhah and Zilpah. They are listed as: Ruben, Simeon, Levi and Judah; Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin; Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher (1:2-4).

The descendants of Jacob numbered seventy in all. The Hebrew readers would have immediately noticed that there were only eleven tribes listed above, so the writer now explains that Joseph did not enter the land with Jacob because he was already in Egypt (1:5). But seventy is merely a symbolic figure (see the commentary on Genesis, to see link click Km – All Who Went to Egypt with Joseph Were Sixty-Six in Number). The daughters-in-law and others were not numbered among the seventy. Thus the number of people who accompanied Jacob to Egypt must have amounted to hundreds, at least.

These verses bring the reader up to date. Now Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died (1:6). It appears that there is no real leadership of Isra’el after the deaths of the twelve sons of Jacob. We find no key names between them and the rise of Moses four centuries later. From a human perspective, they seem to be in real danger of being absorbed by the Gentiles and disappearing. Nevertheless, Isra’el remained distinct and multiplied greatly, growing from about two hundred people to approximately two million.

But the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land of Goshen was filled with them (1:7). All five verbs Moshe uses in this verse remind us of the command to be fruitful and increase in number in Genesis 1:28 and 9:7. Moses does this to show that YHVH had blessed the Hebrews in Egypt. ADONAI’s promise to Abraham was that He would make his descendants as numerous as the stars of the sky and as the sand on the seashore (Genesis 22:17). Therefore, even though it was many centuries after the promise had been given, God kept His promise to Abraham. He always does His work according to His own timetable.

Then a New King
Who Did Not Know Joseph
Came to Power
1: 8-14

Then a new king who did not know Joseph came to power DIG: How could someone rise to power in Egypt and not know about Joseph? Why is the story of Egypt’s rule over Isra’el tied to the story of Joseph’s rule over Egypt (and God’s rule over Joseph)?

REFLECT: The Psalmist lamented when he saw the prosperity of the wicked compared to his own trials, until he entered the sanctuary of God; then he understood their destiny (Psalm 73:17). When the ungodly seed of the serpent is oppressing you, do you recognize him for who he is? Or do you blame God?

Then a new king from another dynasty, who did know Joseph, came to power in Egypt (1:8). As prime minister, Joseph had risen to second in command in Egypt. Only Pharaoh was greater. But there was not merely a change in pharaohs, there was a change in dynasties altogether. Ahmose was the new Hamitic king, and the first king of the Eighteenth Dynasty. He hated the Semites, and he threw out the Hyksos rulers (see the commentary on Genesis, to see link click Jv – Joseph as Prime Minister). As Stephen pointed out in his speech before the Sanhedrin: Then another king, who knew nothing about Joseph, became ruler in Egypt (Act 7:18). This Greek word in the Septuagint for another is heteros, and means another of a different kind. So this was not a Hyksos king, he was a different kind of  king. He was an Egyptian king, who overthrew the hated Hyksos that ruled Egypt during the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Dynasties.

After Ahmose had gained control of Egypt, what would he do with the Semites who were now in the land as a result of the Hyksos rule? Some Semites he expelled from the land (such as the Hyksos), but other Semites he enslaved. So under the rule of Ahmose, the enslavement of Isra’el began. Notice that mose is the particular name for the Eighteenth Dynasty.

Pharaoh did not trouble himself with the past, and did not want to remember the good things that Joseph had done for Egypt, nor did he feel any indebtedness to him or his descendants. So the new king of the new dynasty spelled out the problem when he said: Look, the Israelites have become much too numerous for us (1:9). Even though the Israelites had lived in Egypt for four generations by this time, they had remained distinct. They had not assimilated into the Egyptian population, nor would they be assimilated into the Babylonian population in their captivity there. Neither the dispersion in 70 AD after the fall of Jerusalem, or Nazi Germany could destroy them. Even until the present day, the Jews have not been assimilated into the Gentile population. God will never let the Israelites disappear as a race.

King Ahmose said to the royal court: Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous. The war against the Hyksos had just recently been won, but the Egyptians worried that if war with the Hittites broke out, the Israelites would join their enemies, fight against the Egyptians and leave the country (1:10). Egypt responded to Israel’s growth with enslavement. As evil Cain killed his righteous brother Abel, so didEgypt try to destroy Isra’el by reducing their numerical strength. The ungodly seed of the serpent (Genesis 3:15) acts the same way in every generation.

First, he appointed slave masters over the Israelites to oppress them with forced labor (1:11a). The beating of a slave by such an overseer is vividly portrayed on a wall painting in the Theban tomb of Rekhmire (dated to the time of Thutmose III), and an associated inscription uses the Egyptian equivalent of the Hebrew word used here for slave master or sar.⁵  The slavery in Egypt is compared to an iron smelting furnace (Deuteronomy 4:20).

This slave labor was used to build Pithom and Rameses as treasure cities for Pharaoh (1:11b). They became centers for Egyptian idolatry. Pharaoh said: Come, we must. . . These are the same introductory words that were used by the men of Babel who conspired to build a city (Genesis 11:4). Here, the Israelites are pictured as building cities out of brick and mortar just like the people of Babel. The point is that the ungodly act the same way throughout history. They reject God and build structures to their own glory and honor.⁶ Although Pharaoh’s slave masters made their lives bitter (a fact later remembered in the Passover meal), the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread. So the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites and worked them ruthlessly (1:12-13). The reaction of the Egyptians shows that sin, as it were, creates its own momentum: the feeling of dread did not cause them to leave the Hebrews alone. Rather, they now became ruthless in their oppression and made the Israelites’ lives bitter by increasing the demands placed on them, both in building and in the fields. And along with all of this, they mistreated them.⁷

They made their lives bitter, later to be remembered with bitter herbs (12:8), with hard labor in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the field. In all their hard labor the Egyptians used them ruthlessly (1:14). The word hard is used later in the book of Exodus when ADONAI hardens Pharaoh’s heart (7:3). Because Pharaoh made the Israelite’s labor hard, God made his heart hard. More on that later.

Peter told the early community of believers: Do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange was happening to you (First Peter 4:12). Persecution is the way that the unbelieving world treats the children of God. Let’s not be naive in this matter; if we do not see it in our own first-hand experience, it is because of the Lord’s restraining, gracious hand. Even then, the hatred is there, festering and ready to pounce. We would be foolish to think otherwise. Yet ADONAI will bless His righteous ones, either in this world or the next, in times of adversity, as he blessed those who believed in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob during the time of the Exodus.⁸

Slavery in Egypt
1:1 to 12:51

Exodus is the story of an enslaved people. As part of their slavery, Isra’el was forced to build two of Egypt’s greatest cities, Pithom and Ra’amses (1:11). It was in this inhuman treatment of this nation of slaves that we find some of the factors compelling the LORD to bring them up out of Egypt. When we come to one of the great climaxes of Exodus, the miraculous deliverance though the Sea of Reeds, we will see how Pharaoh’s army was devastated by YHVH while Isra’el escaped. Egypt would never again have the power it once had.

Introduction to the Book of Exodus from a
Messianic Jewish Perspective

To my Uncle Dale and Aunt Pat Cain who have been a positive example to me my entire life. My Uncle Dale was a meat cutter who volunteered to pastor very small churches, built them up to where they could afford to hire a permanent pastor, and then he moved on to do it again. That was his ministry when he returned home from serving in World War II. My Aunt Pat is a wife of noble character; her children arise and call her blessed (Proverbs 31).

The Outline of Exodus

I have not organized the book in the traditional way. From Exodus  Ae – Slavery in Egypt to Eo – The Sh’khinah Glory Settled on Mount Sinai, the book is in chronological order as you see it in the Bible. However, from Ep – The Camp of the Twelve Tribes of Isra’el to Hh – The Glory of the LORD Filled the Tabernacle, the book is organized in a topical manner (the Tabernacle, then the Levitical Priesthood, and then the Renewal of the Nation of Isra’el) because Chapters 27 and 38 repeat themselves, and are historically out of order. Therefore, I have taken a different approach to the book so the reader is not jumping around trying to make sense of it all. As a result, the different Parashah (see the commentary on Deuteronomy, to see link click Af – Parashah), Haftorah and B’rit Chadashah readings are listed correctly in the chronological section, but they are out of order in the topical section, so the reader should keep this in mind when reading this commentary.

The Title of Exodus

Hebrew Scriptures name the book of Exodus differently than the NIV, the New American Standard, or any other Bible. The Jewish tradition is to call the names of the books by its first or second words. Therefore, the Hebrew name of this particular book is: And these are the names of, which are the first two Hebrew words.

Around 250 BC, a group of seventy Jewish scholars in Alexandria, Egypt translated the entire Hebrew Scriptures into the Greek, which was the common language of the day. This translation became known as the Septuagint, but they titled the book based upon its content, and named it Exodus, which means to go out. Thus, the English title comes from the Greek title.

The Author of Exodus

Both Scripture and tradition agree that Moses was the human author of Exodus. God, working through Moses, inspired him to write the first five books of the Bible, or the Pentateuch (Exodus 17:14; Leviticus 1:1-2; Numbers 33:2; Deuteronomy 1:1). This was enough to satisfy most people in the synagogue and the church for centuries. He sat down and wrote the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. He was the human originator and source of these books; however, as far as Genesis is concerned he was a compiler and editor of eleven family documents because he was not an eyewitness of the events of Genesis. He had not been born yet, although he was an eyewitness to almost everything in Exodus, and all of Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy (Joshua 1:7; Matthew 8:4; Mark 12:26; Luke 16:29; John 7:19; Acts 26:22; Romans 10:19; First Corinthians 9:9; Second Corinthians 3:15). Therefore, there is a long list from both testaments declaring that Moses is the human author of the Torah, or the first five books of the TaNaKh, of which Exodus is a part.

The Theme of Exodus

The establishment of God’s chosen people of Isra’el as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (19:6) is the major theme of Exodus. The story is here told of: how God fulfilled one of His promises to Abraham by making him very fruitful (1:7), how God freed Isra’el from Egyptian slavery, how God renewed the Abrahamic Covenant with them at Mount Sinai, and how He provided them with rules for life and worship. The story of Exodus is the story of how God bought back, or redeemed His people.¹

Egyptian History

The rulers of the Second Intermediate Period of Egypt were the Hyksos. They were a people of mixed Semitic-Asiatic descent and definitely not Egyptian. Because of their superior military technology, the Hyksos, using iron chariots and Asiatic bows, dominated Egypt for five hundred years. After conquering Egypt, the first thing they did was to invite other Semites into the land of Egypt to help them subdue the Hamitic Egyptians. They welcomed these fellow Semites with open arms and even gave them portions within Egypt to live. It was no accident that Joseph arose to power when the Semitic Hyksos controlled the country. Therefore, the Hyksos king, in keeping with this policy, gave Joseph’s family the choice area of Goshen in which to live. However, gradually the Egyptians gained power and an Egyptian named Ahmose led a revolt against the Hyksos and overthrew them, and, in doing so, established the Eighteenth Dynasty. This was one of the most brilliant periods in Egyptian history. Egypt emerged as an international power and extended her influence beyond the Euphrates River. It was during the Eighteenth Dynasty that the events of Exodus took place. This was a time when a new wave of nationalism had supplanted the older Hyksostolerance of foreigners. The Egyptians embarked on empire building as a means of defense, pushing their borders into Palestine. The Egyptian Pharaohs used the Hebrews as slave labor for building defense projects and royal palaces.² There were nine kings in the Eighteenth dynasty.

The first king was Ahmose. He led the revolt that expelled the Hyksos out of Egypt and was the first of whom came to be known as the Warrior Pharaohs. After Ahmose followed them into Canaan and destroyed them and their capital, the Hyksos faded into history. He had a brother named Kamose. Eventually there would also be an Egyptian king named Thutmose, so mose was the typical name of the Eighteenth Dynasty.

The next Pharaoh was Amenhotep I. He was the son of Ahmose, and made several raids into the land of Canaan, but he died childless.

The third Pharaoh of this dynasty was Thutmose I, who was the son-in-law of Ahmose. He was married twice. He produced a famous daughter, Hatshepsut, by the first marriage and a son, Thutmose II, by the second.

After his father died, Thutmose II became the fourth Pharaoh. He gave birth to a son, Thutmose III, who was about nine years old when his father, Thutmose II, died.

Technically, Thutmose III was the fifth Pharaoh. But because he was a young boy in the earlier years of his reign, the throne was actually controlled by Queen Hatshepsut. He was her half-nephew and later would marry her daughter, but he hated her with a passion. He did not like the fact that he was under her control and she was the real power behind the throne. After her death, he liquidated the entire royal court in an attempt to obliterate her name from all the monuments in the land. All of her statues were smashed to pieces and her name was desecrated in such a way that it was as if she never existed. In fact, anyone associated with her after her death was in danger of execution. After killing those close to her, he invaded Canaan several times and put them totally under Egyptian rule. He was called the Napoleon of Ancient Egypt. He had three successive chief queens in his lifetime, and while he had a veritable flock of daughters, he only had five sons.

After him comes the sixth Pharaoh, Amenhotep II. He was the son of Thutmose III and he also made raids into Canaan. He experienced the ten plagues, including the death of his firstborn son and was the Pharaoh of the Exodus. He was not, however, the firstborn of Thutmose III’s five sons, so he did not die on the night of the Egyptian Passover.

Amenhotep II’s son, Thutmose IV, was the seventh Pharaoh. He was the second born son of Amenhotep II, and his older brother was killed on the night of the Egyptian Passover. Because he was not the firstborn son, he desperately tried to legitimize his position of Pharaoh and his right to rule over Egypt by inventing a story called the Dream Stella. He said that the Egyptian god Harem-akht appeared to him one night in a dream and promised that if he would uncover the Sphinx that was buried in the sand, he would become Pharaoh. That he did, so by uncovering and restoring the Sphinx, he claimed that the gods of Egypt gave him the right to rule. During the remainder of his reign, Isra’el was in her wilderness wanderings.

The eighth Pharaoh was Amenhotep III. He was a weak king and the son of Thutmose IV. During his rule, Egypt began to lose control over the land of Canaan, which is why Joshua begins his conquest of the Promised Land.

This decline continued under his son, Amenhotep IV, the ninth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty. Later he changed his name to Akhnaton, meaning the sun disk, because he tried to change Egypt’s religion and move to monotheism, the worship of only one god, the sun disk. This was met with much resistance and a civil war broke out. The result was that Egypt lost control over Canaan altogether. It was during his reign that we have the period of the Judges. So the Eighteenth Dynasty is crucial for an understanding of what is happening in Exodus.

Biblical History

The Book of Genesis is the history of the three patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God said to them on several occasions that to them and their descendants He would give the Promised Land. Therefore, the children of Isra’el were destined to possess Canaan. The question then becomes: Why did God have the Jews spend over four hundred years in Egypt? The Bible gives us two reasons.

First, because the sin of the Amorites had not yet reached its full measure (Genesis 15:12-16). YHVH does not punish a nation until its measure of sin is full because: He is patient with them, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (Second Peter 3:9b). Secondly, Isra’el served other gods while they were in Egypt (Joshua 24:14; Ezeki’el 20:5-10, 23:2-3, 8, 19, 21, 27). Being involved in deliberate, active sin separates us from the LORD and can delay His acting on our behalf.

But God had told the patriarchs that He would bring them back again to the Promised Land. As Jacob prepared to leave the land of Canaan for Egypt he stopped at Beersheba, which was the southern most point of the Promised Land. But Jacob was reluctant. He had left the Land once before without God’s blessing. Both Abraham and Isaac were told not to leave the Land, but to live in it where God would bless them. Would Jacob be out of God’s blessing again if he left the Land? That night he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. And God spoke to Isra’el in a vision at night and said: Jacob! Jacob! He replied: Here I am. Then God said: Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. I will go down to Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again (Genesis 46:1-4). ADONAI promised to bring them back to the Promised Land.

As Joseph lay on his deathbed, he said: I am about to die. But God will surely come to your aid and take you up out of this land to the Land He promised in an oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And Joseph made the sons of Isra’el swear an oath and said: God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up from this place (Genesis 50:24-25). Even before the Egyptians would make slaves of them, the Jews viewed their stay in Egypt as temporary. Joseph was so sure of this that he made his descendants swear an oath that they would carry his bones back to thePromised Land for his final resting place.

Lastly, the book of Exodus shows us the outworking of the Abrahamic Covenant. God had said to Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse” (Genesis 12:3a). Consequently, those who bless Isra’el are blessed, and those who curse Isra’el are cursed. As we go through the book of Exodus, we will find the Israelites coming in contact with various Gentile nations or tribes. Those who bless the Jews find themselves blessed, and those who curse the Jews find themselves cursed.

The Use of the Hebrew name ADONAI for YHVH

A basic problem in Judaism is that God’s personal name is never spoken. When Moses saw a bush that burned without being consumed in the wilderness of Midian, God revealed Himself to Moshe and told him His own personal name. That Hebrew name consists of four letters. It is forbidden to speak the four-letter name of God, YHVH (Yud-Hay-Vav-Hay), also known as the Tetragrammaton meaning four-letter writing. Today, ADONAI is a word that is commonly used by many people of the Jewish faith instead of YHVH, which simply means, the Name.

The Talmud (Pesachim 50a) made it a requirement not to pronounce the Tetragrammaton, the four-letter name of God, and this remains the rule in most modern Jewish settings. In deference to this tradition, which is unnecessary but harmless, I will be using ADONAI or Ha’Shem where YHVH is meant. In ancient times when the scribes were translating the Hebrew Scriptures, they revered the name of YHVH so much that they would use a quill to make one stroke of the name and then throw it away. Then they would make another stroke and throw that quill away until the name was completed. His name became so sacred to them that they started to substitute the phrase the Name, instead of writing or pronouncing His Name. Over centuries of doing this, the actual letters and pronunciation of His Name was lost. The closest we can come is YHVH, with no vowels. The pronunciation has been totally lost. Therefore, the name Yahweh is only a guess of what the original name sounded like. Both ADONAI and Ha’Shem are substitute names for YHVH. ADONAI is more of an affectionate name like daddy, while Ha’Shem is a more formal name like sir.

Therefore, God does not have many names, He has only one name – YHVH (Yud Hay Vav Hay). All the other names in the Bible describe His characteristics and His attributes. Hear, O Israel! ADONAI our God, ADONAI is One (Deuteronomy 6:4). The Jewish tradition, then, forbids the pronunciation of the Divine Name, and many choose to use ADONAI in its place.

The Use of the Hebrew word Torahrather than the Greek word Law

Most English translations use the word Law, from the Greek word nomos; however, those translations give the wrong idea for both interpretation and application of the Scriptures because nomos is not a correct rendering of the Hebrew word Torah. The legalistic element, which might rightly be called the Law, only represents one side of the Torah, which never has the perspective of the Jews in their history. To the Jew, the word Torah means a teaching or an instruction of any kind. As such, the true essence of Torah in the mind of the Jew is nothing more than teaching the Way (Acts 9:2). The Hebrew word Torah is derived from the Hebrew root yarah, which means to shoot an arrow or to teach. Torah means teaching or instruction that is true and straight as if the words of Torah are shot in a direct path like an arrow, with power and force for living life to the fullest. Therefore, to give the most accurate translation possible, I will be using the Hebrew word Torah throughout this devotional commentary.

The Use of the Hebrew term TaNaKh

The Hebrew word TaNaKh is anacronym, based on the letters T (for “Torah”), N (for “Neviim,” the Prophets), and K (for “Ketuvim,” the Writings). In the word TaNaKh, both A’s are silent, and the H at the end is also silent. TaNaKh is simply the Jewish term for the Old Covenant Scriptures. As a result, I will be using the Hebrew acronym TaNaKh instead of the phrase, the Old Covenant, throughout this devotional commentary.

The Use of the Hebrew word Messiah and the Greek word Christ

Messianic synagogues, and the Jewish messianic community in general, prefer to use the Messiah that means the Anointed One. The Greek word Christalso means the Anointed One. I use both Messiahand Christin this devotional commentary.

The Use of the Hebrew word Yeshua and the Greek word Jesus

Messianic synagogues, and the Jewish messianic community in general, prefer to use the Hebrew word Yeshua that means Jesus. Usually, I will be using both Yeshua and Jesus.

The Theology of Exodus

1. He is the God who exists. God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AMhas sent me to you”(3:14). Exodus never tries to prove God’s existence. His existence is assumed and the book goes on from there, but throughout the book there are constant references that ADONAI does exist.

2. He is the God who controls history. ADONAI said to Moses, “When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go” (4:21). Why does Pharaoh act the way he acts at times? Why do nations do what they do? It is because God controls history. The king’s heart is in the hand of ADONAI; He directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases (Proverbs 21:1).

3. He is the God who is holy. “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the palace where you are standing is holy ground” (3:5). The holiness of God will be brought out clearly in the book of Exodus. Even the Jews will be punished greatly when they violate God’s holiness, and His righteous standards.

4. He is the God who remembers. God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob (2:24 also see 3:16-17). God made certain promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and although four hundred years have passed since those promises have been made, His promises are always kept no matter how long it may seem from the human perspective. When He fulfills His promises, He does so completely. We don’t need to allegorize God’s promises away. What The LORD has said, He will do.

5. He is the God of salvation. Sometimes the salvation is physical, like with the Exodus (3:7-9), and sometimes it is spiritual as He works in the life of Moses.

6. He is the God who speaks. Later, the LORD will say that He will do nothing until He first reveals it to His prophets. YHVH speaks and has made known to us His word. Fortunately for us, God has chosen to put what He has said in the Bible (3:4-22).

7. He is a God who will act in judgment. So I will stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonder that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go (3:20 also see 4:22-23). ADONAI will act in judgment eventually, but He will be long suffering. Therefore, everyone who receives the judgment of God deserves it. The opportunity of repentance is always available until death.

8. He is a God of law. YHVH is not one who is chaotic, but He is a God of order, and if we love him – we will keep His commandments. As we go through the portions of the Torah contained in the book of Exodus, we will see that His commandments serve as a blueprint for living, not to attain salvation, but as a rule of life for those who have already been saved by God’s grace (Chapters 20 to 23).

9. He is the God who lives among His people. Then I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God (29:45). The reason that the Tabernacle needed to be built was within the Most Holy Place. God would live as the Sh’khinah glory, or the visible manifestation of God. Today, God has chosen a different way to live among His people. Now He lives among His people by means of the indwelling of the Ruach ha-Kodesh; but, God has always lived among His people.

10. He is a God whose anger may be turned aside. After the sin of the golden calf, God is ready to annihilate the entire nation with the exception of Moses. ADONAI said that for Moses’ sake He would make a completely new nation, but Moshe interceded for the nation even to the point of offering himself as a substitute for it, and because of the intercession of Moses, God’s anger was turned aside (32:9-14).

11. He is a God who transcends. He said: But you cannot see My face, for no one may see Me and live (33:20). Although God has spoken to mankind, (both verbally and in written form), and has become visible in various forms (as a man, an angel, a cloud, as fire, and as thunder), yet no one is able to see God in His full glory because the sinfulness of man would kill him. So while the LORD is as near as our breath, He is also very far from us.

The Importance of Exodus

It is also important in five other areas. First, it is important historically because it tells us how Isra’el became a nation, and how the Torah was given to Moshe. Secondly, it is important religiously because it gives us the origin of many Jewish practices such as the Passover. Thirdly, it is important from a dispensational standpoint because Exodus gives us a transition from the Dispensation of Promise (Genesis 12:1 to Exodus 18:27), to the Dispensation of Torah (Exodus 19:1 to Acts 1:26). Fourthly, it is important as a type, because the Passover Lamb (Exodus 12:1-28; John 1:29, 1:36 and Revelation 5:6), the Manna (Exodus 16:1-36; John 6:35, 6:48 and 6:51), the Rock (Exodus 17:5-7; Matthew 7:24-25; Romans 9:33; First Corinthians 10:4; First Peter 2:8) and the Tabernacle (Exodus 25:1 to 31:18; 35:1 to 40:38 and John 1:14) are types of Christ. Fifthly, it is important spiritually because while the events happening in Exodus are historically true, they contain spiritual lessons for believers today. In First Corinthians 10:1-13, Rabbi Sha’ul makes several references to Israel’s wilderness wanderings in the book of Exodus, but in verse 6 he says: Now these things occurred as examples, to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. Therefore, the story of Exodus was not just for the Jews of old, but there are spiritual lessons for us today.

The Outline of the Book of Exodus
From a Messianic Jewish Perspective

The basis for this commentary and outline is taken from the Exodus Tape Series
by Arnold Fruchtenbaum and Ariel Ministries in San Antonio, Texas.

The Book of Exodus From a Jewish Perspective (Ac)

I. The Slavery in Egypt – 1:1 to 12:51 (Ad)

A. The Descendants of Jacob Numbered Seventy in All – 1:1-7 (Ae)

B. The Oppression of Isra’el – 1:8-22 (Af)

1. Then a New King Who Did Not Know About Joseph Came to Power – 1:8-14 (Ag)

2. So God Was Kind to the Midwives – 1:15-22 (Ah)

C. The Preparation and Call of Moses – 2:1 to 4:31 (Ai)

1. Moses in Egypt – 2:1-15 (Aj)

a. A Man of the House of Levi Married a Levite Woman – 2:1-10 (Ak)

b. Moses Fled from Pharaoh and Went to Live in Midian – 2:11-15 (Al)

2. Moses in Midian – 2:16-25 (Am)

a. Now a Priest in Midian has Seven Daughters – 2:16-22 (An)

b. God Remembered His Covenant With Abraham – 2:23-25 (Ao)

3. The Call of Moses – 3:1 to 4:17 (Ap)

a. Flames of Fire from within a Burning Bush – 3:1-5 (Aq)

b. I Am Sending You to Pharaoh – 3:6-10 (Ar)

c. Who Am I That I Should Go to Pharaoh – 3:11-12 (As)

d. I Am Has Sent Me to You – 3:13-22 (At)

e. Put Your Hand Inside Your Cloak – 4:1-9 (Au)

f. I Am Slow of Speech and Tongue – 4:10-12 (Av)

g. I Know Aaron Can Speak Well – 4:13-17 (Aw)

4. Moses Arrives in Egypt 4:18-31 (Ax)

a. Go Back to Egypt, All Who Wanted to Kill You are Dead – 4:18-23 (Ay)

b. Surely You are a Bridegroom of Blood to Me – 4:24-26 (Az)

c. Moses’ Meeting with Aaron and the Elders of Egypt – 4:27-31 (Ba)

D. God and the Struggle with Pharaoh – 5:1 to 11:10 (Bb)

1. Pharaoh as God and Upholder of Ma’at (Bc)

2. The First Encounter with Pharaoh – 5:1 to 6:27 (Bd)

a. You Are No Longer to Supply the People with Straw – 5:1-9 (Be)

b. You Must Produce Your Full Quota of Bricks – 5:10-21 (Bf)

c. Now You Will See What I Will Do to Pharaoh – 5:22 to 6:13 (Bg)

d. The Heads of the Families of Moses and Aaron – 6:14-27 (Bh)

3. Throw Your Staff Before Pharaoh, It Will Become a Snake – 6:28 to 7:13 (Bi)

4. The Ten Plagues of Egypt– 7:14 to 12:36 (Bj)

a. Strike the Nile and It Will Be Turned into Blood – 7:14-25 (Bk)

b. Stretch Out Your Hand and Make Frogs Come Up – 8:1-15 (Bl)

c. Strike the Ground and the Dust Will Become Gnats – 8:20-32 (Bm)

d. Dense Swarms of Flies Poured throughout Egypt – 8:20-32 (Bn)

e. The LORD Will Bring a Terrible Plague on Your Livestock – 9:1-7 (Bo)

f. Moses Tossed Soot in the Air, Festering Boils Broke Out – 9:8-12 (Bp)

g. So the LORD Rained Down Hail on the Land of Egypt – 9:13-35 (Bq)

h. The Locusts Devoured Everything in Egypt – 10:1-20 (Br)

i. Total Darkness Covered All Egypt for Three Days – 10:21-29 (Bs)

E. The Tenth Plague and the Passover – 11:1 to 12:51 (Bt)

1. I Will Bring One More Plague on Pharaoh – 11:1-10 (Bu)

2. The Egyptian Passover – 12:1-28 (Bv)

a. Christ and the Passover – 12:1-20 (Bw)

b. He Will See the Blood and Pass Over that Doorway – 12:21-28 (Bx)

3. At Midnight the LORD Struck Down all the Firstborn in Egypt – 12:29-36 (By)

4. Redemption – 12:31-42 and 13:17 to 15:21 (Bz)

5. At the End of the 430 Years, to the Very Day – 12:37-42 (Ca)

6. These are the Regulations for the Passover – 12:43-51 (Cb)

II. The Exodus – 13:1 to 15:21 (Cc)

A. Redemption of the Firstborn – 13:1-16 (Cd)

B. Salvation at the Sea of Reeds – 13:17 to 14:31 (Ce)

1. Moses Took the Bones of Joseph With Him – 13:17-19 (Cf)

2. After Leaving Succoth they Camped at Etham – 13:20-22 (Cg)

3. The LORD Will Fight For You, You Need Only To Be Still – 14:1-14 (Ch)

4. The Waters Were Divided and the Jews Went Through the Sea – 14:15-31 (Ci)

C. Songs of the Sea – 15:1-21 (Cj)

1. Then Moses and the Israelites Sang This Song – 15:1-18 (Ck)

2. Then Miriam the Prophetess Took a Tambourine in Her Hand – 15:19-21 (Cl)

III. The Journey From Egypt to Sinai – 15:22 to 19:2 (Cm)

A. When They Came to Marah the Water was Bitter – 15:22-26 (Cn)

B. Then They Came To Elim – 15:27 (Co)

C. The Wilderness of Sin – 16:1-36 (Cp)

1. If Only We Had Died by the LORD’s Hand in Egypt – 16:1-3 (Cq)

2. I Will Rain Down Manna from Heaven for You – 16:4-12 (Cr)

3. That Evening Quail Came and Covered the Camp – 16:13-36 (Cs)

D. The Preparation of the Israelites for Sinai – 17:1 to 18:27 (Ct)

1. Strike the Rock and Water Will Come Out of It – 17:1-7 (Cu)

2. The Amalekites Attacked the Israelites at Rephidim – 17:8-16 (Cv)

3. Moses and Jethro – 18:1-27 (Cw)

a. Now Jethro Heard Everything God Had Done – 18:1-12 (Cx)

b. Moses Chose Men From All Isra’el – 18:13-26 (Cy)

c. Jethro Returned To His Own Country – 18:27 (Cz)

E. The Dispensation of the Torah – Exodus 19:1 to Acts 1:26 (Da)

IV. The Revelation at Mount Sinai – 19:3 to 40:38 (Db)

A. The Arrival at Sinai – 19:1-2 (Dc)

B. The Mosaic Covenant – 19:3-25 (Dd)

1. The Calling of Isra’el – 19:3-9 (De)

2. Go to the People and Consecrate Them – 19:10-15 (Df)

3. Under the Chupah – 19:16-25 (Dg)

C. ADONAI and the Torah – 20:1-26 (Dh)

1. I Am the LORD, Who Brought You Out of the Land of Slavery – 20:1-2 (Di)

2. The Ten Commandments – 20:3-17 (Dj)

a. You Shall Have No Other Gods Before Me – 20:3 (Dk)

b. You Shall Not Make for Yourself an Idol – 20:4-6 (Dl)

c. You Shall Not Misuse the Name of the LORD Your God – 20:7 (Dm)

d. Remember the Sabbath Day by Keeping It Holy – 20:8-11 (Dn)

e. Honor Your Father and Your Mother – 20:12 (Do)

f. You Shall Not Murder – 20:13 (Dp)

g. You Shall Not Commit Adultery – 20:14 (Dq)

h. You Shall Not Steal – 20:15 (Dr)

i. You Shall Not Give False Testimony Against Your Neighbor – 20:16 (Ds)

j. You Shall Not Covet Anything of Your Neighbors – 20:17 (Dt)

D. Do Not Think That I Have Come to Abolish the Torah – Matthew 5:17-20 (Du)

E. The Book of the Covenant – 20:18 to 23:33 (Dv)

1. Do Not Have God Speak to Us or We Will Die – 20:18-21 (Dw)

2. Make an Altar of Earth and Sacrifice on It – 20:22-26 (Dx)

3. Moses and the Torah – 20:22 to 23:19 (Dy)

a. If You Buy a Hebrew Servant – 21:1-11 (Dz)

b. A Life for a Life, an Eye for an Eye – 21:12-32 (Ea)

c. A Thief Must Certainly Make Restitution – 21:33 to 22:15 (Eb)

d. Do Not Allow a Sorceress to Live – 22:16 to 23:9 (Ec)

e. The Festivals of Isra’el – 23:10-17 (Ed)

(1) During the Seventh Year Let the Land Lie Unused – 23:10-11 (Ee)

(2) Six Days Work, but on Seventh Day Do Not Work – 23:12 (Ef)

(3) Be Careful to Do Everything I Have Said to You – 23:13 (Eg)

(4) Three Times a Year Celebrate a Festival to Me – 23:14-17 (Eh)

f. A Holy People – 23:18-19 (Ei)

4. I Am Sending an Angel Ahead of You – 23:20-33 (Ej)

F. The Ratification of the Sinai Covenant – 24:1-18 (Ek)

1. The Sinai Covenant Oath of Allegiance – 24:1-3 (El)

2. Then Moses Read It to the People – 24:4-8 (Em)

3. They Saw the God of Isra’el – 24:9-11 (En)

4. The Sh’khinah Glory Settled on Mount Sinai – 24:12-18 (Eo)

G. The Camp of the Twelve Tribes of Isra’el – Numbers 2:1-34 (Ep)

H. Christ in the Tabernacle – 25:1 to 27:21; 30:1 to 31:18; 35:1 to 38:31 (Eq)

1. Observe the Sabbath Because It is Holy to You – 31:12-18; 35:1-3 (Er)

2. The Offerings of Materials for the Tabernacle (Es)

a. Make Tabernacle Exactly As I Show – 25:1-2, 8-9 and 35:4, 20-21 (Et)

b. The Atonement Money for the Tabernacle – 30:11-16 (Eu)

c. The Materials for the Tabernacle – 25:3-7, 35:5-29; 38:21, 24-31 (Ev)

3. The Appointment of Bezalel and Ohaliab – 31:1-11, 35:30-36:7, 38:22-23 (Ew)

4. Courtyard and Gate of Tabernacle – 26:1-37, 27:9-19, 36:8-38, 38:1-20 (Ex)

a. Make Courtyard for Tabernacle – 27:9-15, 18-19 and 38:9-13, 20 (Ey)

b. The Gate of the Tabernacle: Christ, The Way to God – 27:16-17 and 38:14-19 (Ez)

c. Build Altar of Acacia Wood Overlaid with Bronze – 27:1-8, 38:1-7 (Fa)

d. The Five Offerings of the Tabernacle: Christ, Our Sacrificial Offering – Leviticus 1:1 to 7:38 (Fb)

(1) The Sin Offering – Leviticus 4:1 to 5:13, 6:24-30; Numbers 15:22-31 (Fc)

(2) The Guilt Offering – Leviticus 5:14 to 6:7, 7:1-6 (Fd)

(3) The Burnt Offering – Leviticus 1:1-17 and 6:8-13 (Fe)

(4) The Grain Offering – Leviticus 2:1-16, 6:14-23 (Ff)

(5) The Peace Offering – Leviticus 3:1-17, 7:11-38 (Fg)

e. The Bronze Basin: Christ, Our Cleanser – 30:17-21 and 38:8 (Fh)

5. The Sanctuary in the Tabernacle – Chapters 25, 26, 30, 36, 37 (Fi)

a. The Outer Veil of the Sanctuary – 26:36-37 (Fj)

b. The Linen Curtains: Christ Our Righteousness – 26:1-6, 36:8-13 (Fk)

c. The Goat Hair Curtains on the Sanctuary – 26:7-14, 36:14-19 (Fl)

d. The Structure of the Sanctuary – 26:15-29 and 36:20-29 (Fm)

e. The Menorah in the Sanctuary: Christ, the Light of the World- 25:31-40, 27:20-21; 37:17-24, and Leviticus 24:1-4 (Fn)

f. The Bread of the Presence in the Sanctuary: Christ, the Bread of Life – 25:23-30; 37:10-16 and Lev 24:5-9 (Fo)

g. Altar of Incense in the Sanctuary: Christ, Our Advocate with the Father – 30:1-10, 22-38; 37:25-29 (Fp)

h. The Inner Veil of the Sanctuary: That is Christ, His Body – 26:30-35, 36:35-36 and 40:21 (Fq)

i. The Ark of the Covenant in the Most Holy Place: Christ at the Throne of Grace – 25:10-16 and 37:1-5 (Fr)

j. The Mercy Seat in the Most Holy Place: Christ at the Throne of Grace – 25:17-22; 37:6-9 (Fs)

I. The Levitical Priesthood – Ex 28:1 to 29:46; 39:1-31; Levi 8:1 to 9:24 (Ft)

1. The Introduction to the Levitical Priesthood – 39:1-2 (Fu)

2. The Selection of Aaron and His Sons as Priests – 28:1-5 (Fv)

3. The Clothing of the Levitical Priesthood – 28:6-43; 39:1-31 (Fw)

a. The Linen Undergarments of Aaron and His Sons – 28:42-43 (Fx)

b. Make the Robe of the Ephod – 28:31-35; 39:22-26 (Fy)

c. Make the Ephod of Gold, Blue and Purple Yarn – 28:6-14; 39:3-7 (Fz)

d. Fashion a Breastpiece for Making Decisions – 28:15-29; 39:8-21 (Ga)

e. The Urim and Thummim: The Means of Making Decisions – 28:30 (Gb)

f. Make an Engraved Plate: Holy to the LORD– 28:36-38; 39:30-31 (Gc)

g. Make Tunics, Sashes and Headbands for Aaron’s Sons – 28:39-41 (Gd)

4. The Dedication of Aaron and His Family – Ex 29:1-37 and Lev 8:1-36 (Ge)

a. Dedicate Aaron and His Sons So They May Serve Me as Priests – Exodus 29:1-9, 30:22-33, 40:9-16; Leviticus 8:1-13 (Gf)

b. Take Seven Days to Dedicate Aaron and His Sons – 29:35-37 (Gg)

c. Bring a Bull to the Front of the Tabernacle and Slaughter It There – Exodus 29:10-14; Leviticus 8:14-17 (Gh)

d. Take One of the Rams and Aaron and His Sons Will Slaughter It – Exodus 29:15-18; Leviticus 8:18-21 (Gi)

e. Take the Other Ram as Peace Offering – Ex 29:19-28; Lev 8:22-30 (Gj)

f. Aaron’s Sacred Garments Will Belong to His Descendants So They Can Be Ordained – 29:29-30 (Gk)

g. Take the Ram for the Dedication and Cook the Meat in a Sacred Place – Exodus 29:31-34 and Leviticus 8:31-32 (Gl)

5. The Priests Begin Their Ministry – Leviticus 9:1-24 (Gm)

6. I Will Dwell Among the Israelites and Be Their God – 29:42b-46 (Gn)

7. The Day of Atonement – Leviticus 16:1-34, 23:26-32; Numbers 29:7-11 (Go)

J. The Renewal of the Nation of Isra’el – 32:1 to 34:35; 39:32 to 40:38 (Gp)

1. The Golden Calf Incident – 32:1 to 34:35 (Gq)

a. Aaron Made an Idol in the Shape of a Calf – 32:1-6 (Gr)

b. Now Leave Me Alone So That My Anger May Burn – 32:7-14 (Gs)

c. It is the Sound of Singing That I Hear – 32:15-20 (Gt)

d. They Gave Me This Gold, I Threw It into a Fire 32:21-24 (Gu)

e. And All the Levites Rallied to Moses – 32:25-29 (Gv)

f. Please Forgive Their Sin, but if not, Blot Me Out of the Book You Have Written – 32:30-35 (Gw)

g. The People Began to Mourn, No One Put On any Ornaments – 33:1-6 (Gx)

h. Moses and the Tent of Meeting – 33:7-11 (Gy)

i. When My Glory Passes By I Will Put You in the Cleft – 33:12-23 (Gz)

2. Two New Stone Tablets – 34:1-35 (Ha)

a. The LORD said to Moses, Chisel Out Two Stone Tablets – 34:1-9 (Hb)

b. Moses Was There With The LORD For Forty Days – 34:10-28 (Hc)

c. The Radiant Face of Moses – 34:29-35 (Hd)

3. Moses Inspected the Work on the Tabernacle – 39:32-43 (He)

4. The LORD said to Moses: Set Up the Tabernacle – 40:1-16 (Hf)

5. The Tabernacle was Set Up on First Day of the First Month – 40:17-33 (Hg)

6. The Glory of the LORD Filled the Tabernacle – 40:34-38 (Hh)

Exodus, Where Life and the Bible Meet

1. To get the most out of this commentary look at the outline (Ab), and the Introduction (Ac) before starting on the commentary itself.

2. The DIG and REFLECT questions are in bolded gray, and will help to give you a deeper understanding of the book and make it more personal to you. Go slowly and give yourself time to answer these questions. They really strike at the heart of the commentary. What are the DIG questions for? To dig into the Scripture “story.” To find out what’s going on, to figure out the main idea, the plot, the argument, the spiritual principle, and so on. What are the REFLECT questions for? To apply the “story” in the Scripture to your own life; to take personal inventory and to decide what you are going to do about it! Many of the DIG and REFLECT questions are taken from the Serendipity Bible.

3. I would strongly suggest that you look up the references that are given in each section. Many times this will greatly enhance the background, and hence, your understanding of the scriptures that you are reading about on that particular day. Take your time, read only as much as you can digest.

There are times when I refer you to either another file in Exodus, or a file in another commentary that I have written, to give you more detail on a particular person, topic, concept or theology. An example might be something like the Great Sanhedrin (see the commentary on The Life of Christ, to see link click Lg – The Great Sanhedrin). If you feel you already know enough about the Great Sanhedrin, you can skip the reference and continue reading. But if it interests you, or if you don’t know what the Great Sanhedrin is, you can go to that file and read it first before continuing. It’s your choice.

4. All scripture is in bold print. The NIV is used unless indicated otherwise. But sometimes the purpose of the bold print is merely for emphasizing a certain point. When bolded maroon is used, it is for special emphasis. The words of Jesus are bolded in red.

5. When bolded teal is used, it is quoted from one of the two Jewish commentaries listed in the bibliography. This will give you the moderate Orthodox Jewish interpretation. It is useful for word studies, but its Christology is obviously entirely wrong. Where rabbinical interpretation is cited, I will add, “The rabbis teach. . .” in front of the passage. Although it is not a Christian interpretation, I think it is interesting to see how the rabbis interpret these passages.

6. Read the scriptures for that day first, then skim the DIG or REFLECT questions. Read the commentary and reflect on it; answer the DIG or REFLECT questions, then read your Bible again. Hopefully, it will have greater meaning for you the second time you read it. Then live it out.

7. If you come to a Jewish word or phrase you do not understand, see the Glossary at the end of the book (see Hi – Glossary).

8. To download a pdf file, click on the red rectangle on the top of any page.

9. You can download anything you want from this devotional commentary © 2009 but is to be used for devotional or Bible study only and not for profit, all rights reserved by Jay David Mack, M.Div