The Book of Exodus
Introduction and Study Guide
If you have read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone then you know Harry was quite shocked to find out (from a half giant, named Rubeus Hagrid) that he was a wizard! He was amazed, in fact, to learn that wizards and magic were real at all. That is, of course, just a fictional story (entertaining though it may be) but there is another story, a true story from ancient history (c. 3,500 years ago), where a man named Moses received a similar startling revelation.
One day while Moses was tending his sheep in the wilderness of Midian the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, spoke to him from a burning bush (Exodus 3:1-6). That day God revealed himself to Moses by his personal name, “YHWH” (Exodus 3:14-15). He told Moses to go back to Egypt, from whence he had fled, and to oppose the Egyptian “god” on earth (Pharaoh) with nothing but his walking stick (Exodus 4:17). That stick God would soon make into a wizard’s staff which could turn into a serpent (Exodus 4:2-4), turn the waters of the Nile to blood (Exodus 7:20), and part the waters of the Red Sea (Exodus 14:21) among other miracles. Surprise, “you’re a wizard, Moses!”
Thus begins the exciting story of the Exodus. A story of Yahweh calling forth a prophet to declare His omnipotence over the impotent gods of Egypt, and over Pharaoh (who was worshipped as a god on earth). In Exodus we get to see the magicians of Pharaoh going toe-to-toe with Moses in a kind of wizard’s duel (c.f. Ex. Exodus 7:8-13; 20-22; 8:6-7) where they are forced to confess their inability to keep up, proclaiming, “This is the finger of God!” (Exodus 8:17-19) One by one the gods of Egypt fall to Yahweh’s might:
By these 10 Plagues Yahweh delivers his people, Israel, from the proud Egyptians. In the book of Exodus God transforms the Hebrew people from lowly slaves into a mighty nation. Egypt and its Pharaohs, whom God had prospered and made powerful under Joseph (Genesis 47:13-26) is now brought low and their wealth is plundered by the Israelites as they go out from among them (Exodus 12:36). Instead of giving the Hebrew people 10 plagues, Yahweh gives them 10 commandments (Exodus 20:2-17) to govern them as a people and to teach them how to live in fellowship with Him and one another. God establishes his covenant with the nation of Israel (the Mosaic Covenant) and separates them from all the other nations as his own holy people. Additionally he teaches them how to make the Tabernacle, an ornate but moveable house of worship wherein Yahweh manifests his unique presence among his people, hears their prayers, and receives their offerings of worship.
The Book of Exodus is full of excitement and it is incredibly important to the whole of Scripture. Moses is a “type of Christ”, a shadow of the greater savior to come (see Stephen’s speech in Acts 7). Just as Moses escapes the death dealing of a ruthless King during his infancy (Exodus 1-2) so does Jesus escape Herod’s murderous rage (Matt. 2:16-18). As God calls Israel, his son, out of Egypt (Exodus 4:22-23) so God calls Jesus out of Egypt (Matt. 2:13-15). As God gave the Law through Moses (Exodus 20) so God fulfilled it through the life and perfect obedience of Jesus (Matthew 5:17). Indeed the tabernacle itself, where God dwelt in the midst of his people, is but a shadow of the incarnation when God would become man in the person of Jesus of Nazareth and “dwell” or (as some translations render it) “tabernacle” among us. (John 1:14)
There is so much more to see than what can be mentioned in this brief introduction. So get your Bible, grab your pens for marking up the text, and jump into this great book. It is all at once a tale of magic and adventure, a historical record, and the foundation of all just law codes throughout all generations!