Month: <span>January 2016</span>

The previous chapters of Exodus have portrayed God’s jealousy in a positive light. But when Israel forgot His goodness, God’s jealousy took on a corrective tone. God reprimanded His people within a covenantal framework so that their behavior would reflect His call on their lives. When Aaron and Israel constructed the golden calf, they sinned against God by exhibiting a lack of patience and forgetting God’s holiness (contra Ps 119:33-56). Despite Aaron’s excuse in Exod 32:24, “When I threw it (gold) into the fire, out came this calf!” he and Israel designed the object of their worship. Further, while worshipping the golden calf, the people committed immorality.

Moses felt God’s pain and implemented a purification strategy to cleanse Israel of those who were defiled among the people (Exod 32:25-29). Moses’ intercession in Exod 32:11-14 showed that he was faithful to God’s commands, praying, “Oh, this people has committed a great sin; they have made for themselves a god of gold. Now if You would only forgive their sin. But if not, please erase me from the book You have written” (Exod 32:31-32). While God recognized Moses’ plea and did not destroy the entire population (Exod 32:10), the Lord did not immediately affirm that He would accompany the people to the land (Exod 33:3-5).

Even though these events had proven costly for Israel, the bulk of Exodus 32-33 reinforces the belief that God’s word of rebuke is never His final word to those who reform their ways. The pillar of cloud, representing God’s presence, remained over the tent of meeting—a phenomena that elicited the worship of the people (Exod 33:7-11). God affirmed that He would personally accompany His people to Canaan, a pledge He confirmed by showing Moses His glory (Exod 33:12-23). God again came upon Mount Sinai, re-issuing the stone tablets and covenant stipulations (Exod 34:1-28). Moses’ face was illuminated, confirming for the people that their leader had a special relationship with God (Exod 34:29-35)—by listening to him they would hear God’s words. Over and over, God was gracious to His people.

But in time, Israel’s idolatry reached new depths and God annulled His covenant with them (2 Kings 17; Jer 31:31-35; Heb 8:13). Israel’s idolatry and Moses’ response in Exodus 32-34 provided a framework for New Testament authors to explain Israel’s depravity and the glory of the new covenant.

(1) In Acts 7:40-41, 51, Stephen cited Israel’s worship of the golden calf to illustrate Israel’s spiritual dullness. When Stephen defended himself in the presence of the Sanhedrin in Acts 7, he provided an historical review of God’s relationship with Israel. Stephen noted that God called Abraham and demonstrated His faithfulness to the patriarchs and to Moses, leading Israel out of Egypt. Despite God’s loyalty to His people, they worshipped the golden calf and intended to follow idols (Acts 7:39-41; Exod 32:1, 23). Because Israel persisted in the pattern of idolatry established by those who worshipped the golden calf, God turned them over to worship created things (Acts 7:42-43; Amos 5:25-27). Israel’s covenant had been broken.

(2) In 1 Cor 10:7, Paul cited Israel’s revelry in worshipping the golden calf as an activity to be avoided. In 1 Corinthians 8-10, Paul urged his readers to forgo their freedom to eat at idols’ temples so that they might avoid hindering those weaker in faith among them. Paul was concerned with the corporate bonds that are formed in worship. Though Paul and the Corinthians knew that idols were nothing (1 Cor 8:4-6), Paul knew that those weak in faith could stumble by fraternizing with those who were sacrificing food to false gods. Because idolaters believed differently than followers of Christ, their behavior differed. Paul knew from Israel’s history that idolatry leads to sexual immorality. He thus cited Exod 32:6 in 1 Cor 10:7 to warn the Corinthians to avoid Israel’s example of idolatry lest some among their number walk in the immoral patterns that he exhorted them to avoid in 1 Corinthians 5-6.

(3) In 2 Cor 3:7-18, Paul described the glory of Moses’ shining face in Exod 34:29-35 to accentuate the unfading glory of the new covenant. When Moses returned from Mount Sinai the second time, God illuminated Moses’ face. The people were afraid to come near to him, so Moses had to urge them to draw near and listen as he told them the Lord’s instructions. Moses removed his veil when he entered the tabernacle to speak with the Lord. Paul drew two themes from Exod 34:29-35. First, Moses’ face was illuminated only for a time. Eventually Moses’ face returned to its normal color. Paul wrote that the fading glory of Moses’ face symbolized the fading glory of the old covenant. Paul countered that the new covenant, including the ministry of the Spirit who enabled him, endures in unfading glory (2 Cor 3:7-11). Second, Paul noted that Moses’ unveiled face before the Lord symbolized the transparent relationship God’s people enjoy with Him in the new covenant. Paul wrote that believers, with unveiled faces, reflect the glory of the Lord as they are being transformed by the work of the Spirit (2 Cor 3:12-18).

These chapters of Exodus emphasize God’s jealousy for His people. God’s desire to be recognized among the people of Israel was His motivation for ordaining the Old Testament tabernacle. As Israel traveled toward Canaan the tabernacle would remind them of God’s special dwelling with them.

While God’s presence on Mount Sinai was manifested through lightning and thunder and a dark cloud, His on-going presence with Israel was manifested in the beauty of the tabernacle—beauty that was costly (Exod 25:1-7). The various elements of the tabernacle all had one purpose: to be places/instruments through which God reminded Israel that He was with them. The sanctuary was inaugurated to provide Israel with a physical structure for enjoying God’s special presence among them (Exod 25:8). The Ark of the Covenant housed the tablets of testimony (Exod 25:16). The mercy seat—where God would meet with Israel—rested upon it (Exod 25:22). The table for the bread of the Presence was arranged to remind Israel of the manna they received after the exodus (Exod 25:30; see Exodus 16). The tabernacle, the altar of burnt offering, the courtyard, and the lampstand oil were to help Israel understand God’s holy presence among them (Exodus 26-27).

The bulk of Exodus 25-31 emphasizes the servants who would construct and care for the tabernacle. Just as the physical objects of Israel’s worship were described in great detail, so too the attire and activities of the priests received significant attention. God provided servants, both priests and artisans, who could serve the worship functions and structures of the nation—so that Israel would remember the nearness of the Lord.

In the unfolding plan of redemption, the instructions in Exodus 25-31 are a precursor to the new covenant ministry of Jesus Christ.

(1) In Heb 8:5, the author quoted Exod 25:40 to argue that Israel’s tabernacle was built upon a pattern whose reality is Christ’s priestly ministry in the heavenly tabernacle. In Heb 8:1-6, the author contrasted the earthly ministry of Israel’s priests in the tabernacle and the heavenly ministry of Jesus. Jesus would not be able to serve as a priest in Israel’s earthly tabernacle because He could not offer a sacrifice according to those prescribed in the law. And that law was fixed; Moses copied the pattern of ministry that God showed him on Mount Sinai (Heb 8:5). But Jesus is the High Priest of a better covenant (Heb 8:6). Jesus serves as the High Priest of the new covenant and the heavenly tabernacle that is always open so that His followers can approach God and ask for help in their times of need (Heb 2:17-18; 4:14-16; 6:20; 7:26-8:2; 9:11-25; 10:19-25; 12:21-24; 13:20-21).

(2) In Heb 4:1-13, the author proposed that Sabbath rest, described in Exod 31:12-17, is available only through faithful allegiance to Christ. After describing the intricacies of the tabernacle and the priesthood, Moses commanded Israel to observe the Sabbath. The day of rest may be considered the pinnacle of God’s jealous desire for glory in His people. In their dependence and rest, God was seen as the One who provides for His covenant partners. This command anticipated Israel’s rest from war in the land of Canaan. Initial rest was thought to have been secured when Joshua cleared the Promised Land. Joshua 21 records the allotment of the land to the various tribes of Israel and concludes, “So the LORD gave Israel all the land He had sworn to give their fathers, and they took possession of it and settled there. The LORD gave them rest on every side according to all He had sworn to their fathers” (Josh 21:43-44). But that rest was not realized. The Lord removed Israel and Judah from the land because of their idolatry (2 Kings 17, 24-25). The author of Hebrews equated spiritual rest with faithfulness to Christ. He noted that if Joshua had given Israel rest in the Promised Land, David in Psalm 95 would not have spoken about the need for the people of Israel to seek rest in the Lord. The author exhorted his readers to hold fast to their confession of Christ that they could enjoy the Sabbath of Jesus (Heb 4:8-16).

Viewing the Bible as a storyline of redemptive history provides an appreciation for the way God has revealed Himself. God did not choose to reveal Himself and His activity in the world through a book of disjointed doctrines, but rather through the historical development of the nation of Israel, the coming of His Son in the flesh, and the development of a new, international community assembled to witness to His glory. When one considers the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments in this fashion, one gains a fondness for those texts that do not make the cut for popular, topical sermons of the day. For the devout Israelite, the significance of texts like Exodus 23-24 is seen in the celebration of the law in Psalm 119.

Exodus 23-24—in accord with the life of Israel between Exodus 15 and Joshua 3—is part of the preparation manual for fruitful living in the land of Canaan. The first nine verses of Exodus 23 encompass the justice God required from His covenant partners. This section further applies much of the Decalogue (Exod 20:1-17) to the everyday situations of Israel. The reader should take note of the emphasis God placed on justice and mercy in human relationships—both within the covenant family, and toward the foreign resident.

These covenant commands should be read with a view to how they would be implemented in Canaan. Exodus 23:10-33 makes this clear. God commanded Israel to sow their land for six years and then gather its produce. This was a command that they looked forward to since their present diet was manna (Exod 23:10-12; see Exod 16:35-36). In Exod 23:20-26 the Lord commanded the people to follow His angel. The Lord’s angel would lead Israel to Canaan and wipe out those who inhabited the land. God promised both produce from that land and security for Israel’s lineage in the land. Exodus 23:27-33 concludes the chapter, detailing how God would drive the foreign nations from His land and how His people should live faithfully in His covenant there.

Exodus 24 places an exclamation point on the covenant loyalty and affection that was to characterize the relationship between the Lord and Israel. The text emphasizes Moses’ special role as the shepherd of God’s people (Exod 24:2, 12-18), Israel’s oath of faithfulness (Exod 24:3-4), the effectiveness of Israel’s leadership structure (Exod 24:9-14), and God’s personal presence in table fellowship with these leaders—“they saw Him [God], and they ate and drank” (Exod 24:11).

Exodus 23-24 records God’s desire for His people to live a certain way in His special land. With the coming of Christ and the arrival of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, God’s dwelling place shifted from the geographical locale of Canaan to wherever His people are gathered (see Acts 2, 7; 2 Cor 6:14-7:1). The author of Hebrews recalled the covenant ceremony that Moses instituted in Exodus 24. Although Moses sprinkled the blood of animals on the people, the tabernacle, and all the objects used for worship, these were only earthly copies of the heavenly realities that the Lord had shown Moses (Heb 9:23). According to the author of Hebrews, Jesus entered the true tabernacle in Heaven offering His own blood for the purification of the people of heaven (Heb 9:24-25).

In Exodus 20, Moses began to write what the Lord revealed to him on Mount Sinai. In Psalm 119, the psalmist wrote of his love for the books Moses wrote, including the commands recorded in Exodus 20-23. Though the commands Moses wrote in Exodus-Deuteronomy might seem variegated, themes can be identified in many portions of these books. It is thus best to avoid imposing an external structure upon the text. Attempting to organize the individual commands of the law based upon topical categories (e.g., moral, ceremonial, and civil) proves too superficial. Many of Moses’ commands overlap these kinds of classifications. For instance, the command to keep the Sabbath had moral, ceremonial, and civil implications.

The Ten Commandments provided a framework that explained God’s demands for His covenant-partner, Israel. The first commandment, “Do not have other gods besides Me” (Exod 20:3), provided an organizing principle for some of the material in Exodus 20-23 In Exod 20:22-23, this command (closely associated with the command against idolatry) was repeated and qualified: Israel should have no image gods. God had spoken to Israel from Mount Sinai in such a dramatic fashion, what image could do Him justice? The Lord’s absolute holiness was the foundation of the command. The supremacy of God— displayed in His frightening presence on Mount Sinai—was to cause Israel to fear Him and turn from sin (Exod 20:20). The command to worship God alone and avoid idolatry was the organizing principle of all that Moses wrote.

The Ten Commandments stated in Exod 20:1-17 were written again in Deut 5:6-21. Jesus and the authors of the New Testament interpreted the Ten Commandments as part of God’s progressive revelation of Himself in Scripture.

(1) Paul and John warned their audiences of the danger of idolatry, reflecting Exod 20:4-6 and Deut 5:8-10. When Paul was speaking in Athens during his second missionary journey, he confronted the people of the city because they worshipped even unknown gods (Acts 17:23). He explained God’s revelation of Himself in Christ and urged all to repent before the day when the resurrected Jesus would judge humanity (Acts 17:30-31). Later during Paul’s third journey, he preached in Ephesus and so many people turned from their idolatry that a leading silversmith raised a riot against him (Acts 19:8-41). In 1 Corinthians 8-10, Paul challenged the Corinthians to avoid idols’ temples lest they cause a less mature believer to stumble in their commitment to Christ. So potent was the command against idolatry that after several chapters of Christian teaching, John ended his epistle by warning his readers to keep themselves from idols (1 John 5:21).

(2) Jesus, Paul, and the author of Hebrews interpreted the Sabbath command (Exod 20:8-11; Deut 5:12-15) as a marker pointing forward to the day of salvation in Christ. The Jewish leadership opposed Jesus when He allowed His disciples to pick grain in the fields and eat it on the Sabbath, but He countered with the claim that He is Lord of the Sabbath (Matt 12:1-8//Mark 2:23-28//Luke 6:1-5). When on the Sabbath Jesus healed the lame man at the pool of Bethesda, he told the Jews that His Father was working, and He was working also (John 5:1-17). Paul urged his readers to see their salvation as a daily reality rather than the observance of specific days (Rom 14:1-12; Col 2:16). The author of Hebrews argued that God’s intention in the Sabbath command could only be experienced by faithful commitment to salvation in Christ (Hebrews 3-4).

(3) Paul reinforced the command that children honor their parents (Exod 20:12; Deut 5:16). Addressing households in Ephesus and Colossae, Paul wrote that the Lord is pleased when children obey their parents (Eph 6:1-3; Col 3:20).

(4) Jesus and Paul coordinated the commands against murder (Exod 20:13; Deut 5:17), adultery (Exod 20:14; Deut 5:18), theft (Exod 20:15; Deut 5:19), deception (Exod 20:16; Deut 5:20), and covetousness (Exod 20:17; Deut 5:21) to expose human depravity and exhort their audiences to walk in accord with their salvation from God. In Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, He cited the commands against murder (Matt 5:21-26) and adultery (Matt 5:27-30) to expose hatred and lust in men’s hearts. He confronted the Jewish leadership because their lax view of marriage led to rampant adultery (Matt 19:3-12//Mark 10:2-12). Paul in his lists of ethical exhortations echoed various statements in the Ten Commandments, urging his readers to walk in moral uprightness in light of their salvation in Christ and the Spirit (Rom 13:8-14; Gal 5:16-26; Eph 4:25-32; Col 3:5-10).

These chapters of Exodus form a bridge between the exodus event (chs. 13-15) and the giving of the law at Mount Sinai (chs. 20-31). These events prepared Israel for life under the law. Three themes surface here. First, God is jealous to be known as the Provider for His people (Exod 15:22-17:16). God prepared Israel for life under the law by testing their faith, and the level of their dependence upon His providence. But just as God’s test of Abraham had a purpose (see Genesis 22), so too He had an agenda in testing Israel’s faith. By miraculously meeting their needs and protecting them from enemies, He further taught Israel of His character. He provided the people with an objective evaluation of their level of trust in Him and prepared them for obedience to His law as it would be given through their leader, Moses (Exod 15:26). When God thus beckoned Israel to trust Him for water (Exod 15:22-27; 17:1-7), food (Exod 16:1-35), and protection (Exod 17:8-16), He was preparing Israel to become a trusting people—those who would recall His providence for generations (see Psalm 105).

Second, God instructs His people in the ways He wants them to live (Exodus 18). Jethro’s visit to Moses prepared Israel for the law by establishing a leadership organization that would eventually serve as the means for instructing Israel in the Sinai covenant. While the text is informative of the importance of leadership delegation, Jethro’s visit goes far beyond providing Moses with some needed help. Rather, God used Jethro’s advice to configure spiritual leaders in such a way that they would be able to apply the Sinai covenant to the every-day life of the nation (Exod 18:21-23).

Third, God is holy (Exodus 19). The atmosphere at the foot of Mount Sinai was so dreadful that boundaries were to be observed simply to avoid instant death in God’s presence (Exod 19:12). The repetition of the command for the people to keep their distance reveals the severity of the situation for any who came near without divine invitation (Exod 19:20-25). The terrifying scene at Mount Sinai had at least three purposes, to: portray for Israel the absolute holiness of the God who would soon instruct them in covenant living (chs. 20-23); provide Israel with an experiential foundation for the call to be a holy nation (Exod 19:6); and cause Israel to fear Moses as the mediator of the law (Exod 19:9).

These scenes of Exodus have implications for understanding the storyline of Scripture.

(1) In Heb 12:18-24, the author of Hebrews contrasted the image of Israel cowering in fear at the foot of Mount Sinai with the bold access his readers enjoyed as they approached God under the auspices of the new covenant. The author’s point was that through Christ participants in the new covenant enjoyed unique access to God—unknown to the generations of Old Testament saints. Those in the new covenant do not stand afar, fearful of God’s presence (Heb 12:18-18-21). Rather, those in the new covenant enjoy free access to God through Jesus’ blood. Access to God through Christ provides believers in the new covenant resources to obtain grace from God that they might persevere in their present Christian trials (Heb 3:14-16; 7:26-28; 10:19-39).

(2) In Rev 7:9; 15:3-4, John heard heavenly choruses singing lyrics that recalled Moses’ song in Exodus 15. Early in Moses’ song in Exodus 15, he wrote, “The LORD is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation” (Exod 15:2). During the great tribulation, John witnessed an international multitude in heaven crying out, “Salvation belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!” (Rev 7:9). John heard the seven angels holding the bowls of judgement singing the song of Moses and of the Lamb (Rev 15:3-4).

In the narrative of Exodus, the final plague is set off by a formal introduction: “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you out of here” (Exod 11:1). The introduction to the tenth plague fulfills the word of the Lord to Abraham in Gen 15:3-4, that Abraham’s descendants would be oppressed in a foreign land for 400 years and then the Lord would bring them out with great prosperity. The bulk of Exodus 11-15 contains God’s instruction for ceremonies that Israel was to faithfully observe so that the tenth plague of Egypt would be remembered from generation to generation (Exod 12:24-27).

God was not interested in simply freeing an oppressed people. The exodus was a significant event in nation building. While midway through Exodus 12 the text abruptly shifts from ceremonial instruction to the description of the tenth plague (“Now at midnight the LORD struck every firstborn male in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the prisoner who was in the dungeon, and every firstborn of the livestock” [Exod 12:29]), the end of the chapter returns again to the ceremonial description (“This same night is in honor of the LORD, a night vigil for all the Israelites throughout their generations” [Exod 12:42]). The final paragraph of Exodus 12 and most of the following chapter contain ceremonial instructions for how Israelites were to remember the Passover.

In Exodus 14, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart to pursue Israel. This naturally led to fright amongst the Hebrews (Exod 14:10-12), and further displays of God’s glory. There was a ‘secondary deliverance’ through the parting of the waters (Exod 14:13-22; see Ps 77:19-20) followed by the destruction of Pharaoh and his army (Exod 14:23-30). The vision of the perishing Egyptians was no doubt a comfort for Israel—Pharaoh could never harm them again. It is no wonder that in Exodus 15 Moses records a song of praise for all that God had done.

The Passover ceremony instituted in Exodus is formative for the storyline of Scripture.

(1) In the context of celebrating the Passover, Jesus instituted the Lord’s supper as the commemorative meal of the new covenant (Matt 26:26-29//Mark 14:22-25//Luke 22:15-20). Luke wrote that on the night Jesus was betrayed, “When the hour came, He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him. Then He said to them, ‘I have fervently desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God’” (Luke 22:14-16). There are points of continuity between the Passover of Israel and the Lord’s Supper. But the discontinuity between the two is no small matter. Believers under the new covenant can appreciate God’s sovereignty in being redeemed from the dominion of Satan, sin, death, and law (see Rom 5:12-21; Col 1:13-22; Heb 2:14-18). Believers recall the broken body of Christ, His shed blood, and His resurrection.

(2) In 1 Cor 5:7, Paul wrote that Christ was the Passover sacrifice for the church, compelling believers to live purely unto God. Paul confronted the Corinthians because they flaunted their freedom in letting a man sleep with his step-mother. Paul urged the church to have a Passover-like celebration and cleanse out the old leaven and their old lifestyle of pagan immorality, since Christ had already been sacrificed for them. In Paul’s mindset, what God had done in Christ should have full sway in the ethics of the church.

(3) In 1 Cor 11:17-34, Paul wrote that when believers partake of the Lord’s Supper and remember His sacrifice they are also to remember the needs of the church body. Perhaps the most striking difference between Israel’s Passover and the celebration of the Lord’s Supper is that the latter includes an additional aspect of devotion that was not mandated in the Passover instructions. Nowhere in Exodus 11-15 were the children of Israel commanded to remember one another for community edification—the very matter that became the point of emphasis for Paul when he applied the Lord’s Supper to the community of the church. To the Corinthians—a church steeped in selfishness—Paul wrote that when the church gathers to partake of the Lord’s Supper, they should recall Jesus’ cross and anyone needy among them, seeking to build up the body of the church (1 Cor 11:27-29).

(4) In Revelation, John’s references to the Lamb of God echoed the slaughtered lamb of the Passover celebration. In John’s vision of the heavenly throne room, John saw one like a slaughtered lamb approach the throne and take the scroll from God’s hand (Rev 5:6). There John heard a heavenly throng sing to the Lamb saying, “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals; because You were slaughtered and You redeemed people for God by Your blood from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev 5:9). John saw an international multitude in heaven and the angel told him that the multitude had washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb (Rev 7:14). When the Devil was thrown out of heaven, John heard a voice proclaim that the multitude in heaven had conquered the Devil by the blood of the Lamb (Rev 12:11).

In the initial stage of the plagues, Pharaoh seemed like a mighty foe. Pharaoh’s magicians were able to copy the first miracle, and ‘the score’ was tied one-to-one (Exod 7:22-23). In the second plague, Pharaoh’s magicians mimicked Aaron’s miracle of sending frogs out of the Nile and over the land. Pharaoh yet thought himself superior to Israel’s God (Exod 8:1-7; see Psalm 10). But when the score appeared to be tied two-to-two, Moses displayed the Lord’s supremacy by allowing Pharaoh to decide the time that the frogs would depart from Egypt. Thus, in an eerie sort of way, God showed Pharaoh that He is both mighty and personal; while Pharaoh’s magicians mocked Moses and Aaron by sending frogs out of the Nile, it was the Lord alone who would eliminate them—according to the word of Pharaoh.

While the first two plagues showed Pharaoh to be a formidable opponent, God used plagues three to six to make a distinction between Himself and Pharaoh—and correspondingly, Israel and Egypt. In the third plague (Exod 8:16-19) God showed His supremacy in that, for the first time, Pharaoh’s magicians were not able to match the miracle. The score was now three-to-two, and Pharaoh would never catch up. Here God’s distinction over Pharaoh was even stated by Pharaoh’s magicians: “This is the finger of God” (Exod 8:19a). The fourth plague (Exod 8:20-32) further manifested God’s supremacy over Pharaoh—and the land of Egypt. God showed the distinction between Israel and Egypt in that all the land, save Goshen, swarmed with flies (see Gen 47:5-6, 27). By the time of the fifth plague (Exod 9:1-7), the reader may grow accustomed to the distinctions God made between the Israelites and the Egyptians—and the death of Egyptian livestock further ‘introduced’ the God of the Hebrews to the Pharaoh of Egypt. In the sixth plague (Exod 9:8-12), the distinction was between the Lord’s messengers and Pharaoh’s magicians—the latter were covered with boils and the former were unaffected by the plague (Exod 9:10-11).

God revealed Himself further in plagues seven-through-nine. The record of the seventh plague specifically states both the power and grace of God. The Lord commanded Moses to tell the Pharaoh: “I have let you live for this purpose: to show you My power and to make My name known in all the earth” (Exod 9:16; see 5:2). Further, in this plague the Lord gave a specific warning so that people of Egypt could protect themselves and their livestock from the plague—this warning is a ‘gospel-like’ grace (Exod 9:18-20). The eighth plague (Exod 10:1-20) revealed that God was sending these wonders so that all would know and recognize Him as supreme over the king of Egypt, and His people Israel (Exod 10:1-2). The ninth plague (Exod 10:21-29) is memorable in that it foreshadowed the crucifixion and burial of Christ; a three-day darkness covered the land (see Luke 23:44-45).

The final verses of Exodus 10 are the concluding bracket to ideas introduced in Exodus 4. In both passages, the Lord claimed absolute sovereignty over the condition of Pharaoh’s heart. Before the first plague (Exod 4:21), after the ninth plague (Exod 10:27), and four other times in the story (Exod 9:12; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:8), the author recorded that Pharaoh’s heart was in God’s hands.

God’s sovereignty over people and nature in Exod 7:14-10:35 provided Paul and John historical references for explaining God’s greatness to their audiences.

(1) In Rom 9:17, Paul cited Exod 9:16 to explain God’s sovereignty in election of the Gentiles. In Paul’s day, many more Gentiles than Jews were coming to faith in Christ. This ingathering of Gentiles seemed to contradict the flow of redemptive history, since in fact it was the Jews who received the promises and the Law (see Rom 3:1-7; 9:1-5). Paul proposed that, “It is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel” (Rom 9:6). Paul distinguished between national Israel and spiritual Israel—only the latter of whom are chosen in Christ for eternal salvation. While some considered this unjust, Paul employed the events of Exodus 7-10 to vindicate the sovereignty of God. In Rom 9:17, Paul cited the Scripture of Exod 9:16, where the Lord told Pharaoh that He let him live so that He might show His power and glory over the Egyptian king. Paul concluded that just as God glorified Himself in hardening Pharaoh, He glorified Himself in hardening Israel—until the full number of the Gentiles would be gathered in (Rom 11:25).

(2) Judgement scenes in the Revelation reflected the plagues the Lord sent upon Egypt. In the first two trumpet judgements (Rev 8:7-9), hail, fire, and blood came upon the earth, recalling the first and seventh plagues (Exod 7:14-25; 9:13-35). When the fifth trumpet sounded (Rev 9:1-12), powerful, horse-like locusts—like the locusts God sent on Egypt in the eighth plague (Exod 10:1-20)—arose out of the abyss to torment those that did not have God’s seal upon them. The two witnesses that John saw in Rev 11:1-14 had the ability to turn water to blood, echoing the work of Moses and Aaron in the first plague (Exod 7:14-25). When the fifth angel poured his bowl upon the earth (Rev 16:10-11), sores came upon the people just as sores came upon the Egyptians and their livestock in the sixth plague (Exod 9:8-12).

After the following events recorded in Exodus 1-4, the reader begins Exodus 5 expecting to find an account of the plagues, the exodus, and the songs of praise for deliverance. Instead, the text reports further suffering and misery for the Israelites. It seems that there was an unexpected divine delay during which time Israel suffered and witnessed God’s glory.

During the events of Exodus 5, perhaps none suffered more than Moses. With bold speech he approached Pharaoh with God’s demand, only to be shunned with the mocking query: “Who is the LORD that I should obey Him by letting Israel go?” (Exod 5:2). After Pharaoh rejected Moses, his fellow Hebrews rejected him as well. Israel’s leader was to deliver God’s people but instead finds himself being accused of multiplying their despair (Exod 5:20-21).

Yet it is not as though God refused to help His people while they waited for His decisive intervention. In Exodus 6, one recognizes a glimpse of God’s motive for being so patient in redeeming the Israelites. Before He initiated the plagues, God wished to clarify two essential points for both Moses and Israel: His sovereignty and His call upon them as His people. Exodus 6 provides two lessons for faithful living in periods of divine delay:

(1) Remember the character of God (Exod 6:1-13). These verses are arranged to magnify two characteristics of God. First, He is sovereign over the chronological experiences of our lives. It is interesting that Exod 6:1 begins with a temporal conjunction, “Now…” Even a brief study of Exodus reveals that God is operating on a sovereign clock. At the beginning of the seventh plague, the Lord will say to Pharaoh: “By now I could have stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with a plague, and you would have been obliterated from the earth. However, I have let you live for this purpose: to show you My power and to make My name known in all the earth” (Exod 9:15-16). Second, God is faithful to redeem His people. In Exodus 6 there are two occurrences of the patriarchal sequence, “Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob…” (Exod 6:3, 8). God was reminding Moses that He was going to fulfill the promises of land and lineage for His people—but it would happen in His time.

(2) Remember God’s plan to call a people for His own glory in the world (Exod 6:14-27). On the surface, these verses may not seem significant, but in the storyline of Scripture this genealogy serves to fix Aaron and Moses in the family line of Levi (1 Chron 6:1-3), the priestly tribe of Israel. Though the Levites mediated Israel’s religion in the old covenant, the author of Hebrews noted that Jesus Christ serves as high priest and mediator of the new covenant. And the new covenant is not like the old. Jesus descended from the tribe of Judah (Heb 7:11-22), offering just one sacrifice to forgive the sins of His people after which He ascended to the true tabernacle in heaven and sat down at God’s right hand (Heb 7:26-28; 9:11-25; 10:11-18; 13:20-21). The author of Hebrews concluded his epistle by exhorting his readers to join him in identifying with Jesus, bearing His reproach in the world and confessing His name (Heb 13:13, 15).

The initial scenes of the book of Exodus were predicted in Genesis 15. Just after God instituted the Abrahamic covenant, He promised Abraham that though his descendants would be oppressed in a foreign land for 400 years, He would deliver them and bring them back to the land promised to Abraham (Gen 15:13-15).

By the time of Exodus 1, the expansion of Abraham’s lineage in Egypt had become so great that the Hebrews caused Pharaoh trepidation (1:7-9; see Gen 46:27). Pharaoh attempted to enforce an infant massacre to thwart the threat from the growing population of Hebrew people. As the story progresses, special emphasis is given to one member of this people, a Levite named Moses. The text offers few details regarding the Egyptian environs Moses enjoyed in his youth. Despite being raised in Pharaoh’s house, Moses did not lose appreciation for his own people (2:11-12; see Heb 11:24-26). While the account of Moses as a murderer shows his frailty and sin, it does more. Moses had an acute sense of justice, a desire to deliver his oppressed kin—and that uniquely qualified him as God’s agent of deliverance.

The account of Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3) contributes to the developing storyline of redemption from Genesis to Exodus. The miracle of a burning bush serves as a frame for what God said to Moses there. God revealed that He is the God of Moses’ father, and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Exod 3:6). Moses needed no introduction to the patriarchs (it is assumed that Moses knew of these men), and God identified Moses with the covenant family. In Exod 3:7-8, God reminded Moses that He had heard the cry of the Israelites, and now desired to fulfill the land-promise originally made to Abraham in Genesis 12 and restated again in Genesis 15.

The remainder of Exodus 3-4 sets out the character of Moses, the leader of the Hebrews, and their God. Exodus 3:11 records Moses’ peevish and fretful nature to approach Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of his land. God’s reply to Moses reveals that despite the trepidation of the leaders God establishes for His people, His purposes will stand. God revealed Himself to Moses as the eternal God—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Exod 3:14-15). He is the God who made promises of land and lineage to a specific people and, as one recognizes throughout Genesis, no threat is proficient to frustrate Him. To redeem His people, God would frustrate Pharaoh by employing all sorts of natural phenomena (Exod 4:1-17). In a spirit of humility, Moses gathered his family and left Midian for Egypt. The Lord told Moses that He would harden Pharaoh’s heart and show His justice. Moses was to tell Pharaoh that since he did not let Israel (the Lord’s firstborn son) go and worship the Lord in the wilderness, the Lord was going to take the life of Pharaoh’s firstborn son (Exod 4:21-23).

The events recorded in Exodus 1-4 provide believers much encouragement in God’s power. When followed down the storyline of Scripture one notices that God’s call upon Moses sets the stage for the days of fulfillment in the coming of Messiah. Exodus 4:22-23 surfaces in Hos 11:1 and then again in Matt 2:13-15. These texts form cohesive ties for redemptive history, explaining the breaking of the old covenant and the establishment of the new.

(1) In Hos 11:1, the prophet referenced Exod 4:22-23 to indict Israel. Hosea noted that even though God had delivered His people, His firstborn son, in the exodus and made them a nation, they had rebelled against Him time and again. God’s pejorative discipline upon Israel was just, Hosea proclaimed, because Israel had broken the covenant.

(2) In Matt 2:13-15, Matthew said that Joseph’s flight to Egypt with Mary and baby Jesus fulfilled Hos 11:1. An angel told Joseph to flee to Egypt so that Jesus would be protected from Herod’s wrath and in so doing fulfill Hosea’s statement in Hos 11:1. For Matthew, Mary and Joseph’s flight to Egypt was no accident, nor was it a matter to be overlooked: Jesus, the fulfillment of the promise to Israel, had come. Hosea referenced Exod 4:22-23 to indict Israel for their unfaithful response to God’s blessing of deliverance from Egypt. Matthew referenced Hos 11:1 to recall Exod 4:22-23 to cast a vision of God’s power and grace in the exodus and in the person of Jesus. A new day had dawned.