Key Themes in Exodus

Outline

Outline of Exodus

Israel in bondage in Egypt

1:1-14              The enslavement of Israel

1:15-22            The order to kill all male Israelites at birth

2:1-10              The birth of Moses and his adoption by Pharaoh’s daughter

2:11-25            Moses leaves Egypt for Midian

3:1–4:17          God calls Moses at the burning bush

4:18-31            Moses returns to Egypt

5:1–6:27          Increased oppression of Israel by Pharaoh

6:28–7:7          Aaron as Moses’ spokesman

7:8–10:29       The first nine plagues of Egypt

11:1-10            Moses’ warning of the tenth plague

12:1-30            The institution of the Passover and the death of the Egyptian firstborn

The exodus

12:31-42         The flight from Egypt

12:43-51         Regulations concerning the Passover

13:1-16            The consecration of the firstborn

13:17–15:27   The crossing of the Red Sea

Israel in the desert

16:1-36            Israel feeds on manna and quail

17:1-7              Water from the rock

17:8-16            The battle with the Amalekites

18:1-27            The visit of Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law

Israel at Sinai

19:1-25            The arrival at Sinai

20:1-21            The Ten Commandments

20:22–23:19   Regulations concerning everyday life

23:20-33         God’s promises to his people

24:1-18            The covenant confirmed

25:1–31:18     Instructions regarding worship and sacrifice

32:1-35            The golden calf

33:1-17            Moses pleads for the life of his people

33:18-23         Moses sees the glory of God

34:1-35            The covenant between God and his people

35:1–39:43     Instructions concerning the Sabbath and worship

40:1-38            Setting up the tabernacle

Background and setting

At the opening of the book, the Israelites are resident in Egypt, where their numbers have expanded considerably (1:7) since their arrival at the invitation of Joseph in about 1700 bc. It is now about 1300 bc (or maybe about a century earlier – the archaeological evidence is indecisive and the pharaoh is unnamed) and the Egyptian authorities have become pathologically nervous about this increase in the immigrant population, determining on a policy of persecution and then ethnic cleansing and genocide (1:9, 11, 22).

Chapters 1–15 pit God and Moses against the pharaoh of Egypt, the superpower of the Ancient Middle East. This first section ends with the Israelites making a dramatic escape through the Red Sea as the Egyptians drown in the sea behind them. From 19:1 through to the end of the book, Israel is camping at the foot of Mount Sinai for a period of about a year (19:1-2; Nu 10:11-12). Exodus sets the story of this Sinai period in the framework of the seven ascents of the mountain by Moses into the presence of the Lord. The Israelites are given the law and the instructions for the tabernacle, and the book closes with God’s glory filling the newly erected tabernacle (40:34-35).

Exodus is a skilful blend of different types of material (e.g. prose, poetry, genealogy, speeches, regulations, laws) which have been brought together to produce a unified work. The narrator makes no attempt to give a comprehensive picture of all that took place in the period covered by the book; on the contrary his account is quite selective.

Themes and relevance

The covenant is the mainspring from which the action of Exodus flows. God heard the cries of the Israelites in Egypt and remembered his covenant with Abraham (2:24). The God who pledged himself to Abraham and his descendants remains the faithful God. He had made promises and intended to honour them, and when his moment came, honour them he did. He claims Israel as his own (4:22), delivers them from Egyptian bondage, cares for them through the long wilderness years and finally gives them the land which, centuries before, he had pledged to their ancestors (Ge 15:7; 26:3; 28:13; Jos 21:43-45). This is a book of the grace of the God who first saves (1–12), then accompanies (13–17) and finally indwells (29:42-46) his people.

The first half of the book is dominated by the theme of coming to know God. At the outset Moses meets with God at the burning bush, learning his divine name, the Lord (3:1–4:17). Pharaoh’s ignorance – Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? (5:2) – is answered as the different signs unfold and the Egyptians gradually come to acknowledge the Lord’s sovereign power (14:4, 18). With the defeat of Pharaoh, the Israelites sing: Who among the gods is like you, Lord? Who is like you – majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders? (15:11).

The second half of Exodus focuses on the establishment of a close and lasting relationship between the Lord and the Israelites. The narrative concentrates on two major topics: the making of the covenant and the construction of the tabernacle. The covenant sets out the conditions under which the Israelites must live in order to enjoy an ongoing relationship with God; the tabernacle becomes the focal point of the Lord’s presence in the midst of the people, reminding them, through its materials and structure, of God’s sovereign, holy nature.

Holiness, signified by fire (3:1-5; 19:16-19; 40:34-38) is another significant theme. On the one hand, Exodus reveals that God alone is innately holy and that human beings, because of their sinful nature, can come into his presence only in certain circumstances (3:5; 19:12-13, 21–24; cf. Heb 12:14). On the other hand, Exodus stresses that the Israelites should share God’s holy nature; they are to be a holy nation (19:6). The instructions and laws point to those qualities associated with God’s holy nature. However, since perfection of character is beyond human attainment, Exodus underlines the importance of sacrifices which can both atone for sin and purify that which is unclean.

Exodus gives first expression to the standard Old Testament revelation of God’s way of salvation and explains the meaning of blood and sacrifice; it is a book of the grace which reaches down from heaven and of the law which teaches redeemed sinners to live in heavenly terms. While some of these great biblical truths are foreshadowed in Genesis, Exodus pulls them all together, giving them a shape and definition that the rest of the Bible will not alter. In a nutshell, Exodus reveals the Lord’s redemptive work in bringing his people out of servitude and into his service. It has much to teach us about the wonder of salvation, the awesome reality of God’s presence with us, and the outworking of God’s grace in a life of responsive obedience.

This blog post is extracted from the study notes of the NIV BST Study Bible, ahead of the publication of The Message of Exodus, in the newly refreshed Bible Speaks Today Old Testament Series. Below you'll find some resources for digging in to Exodus!