Exodus Part I

The pattern of God’s Work

God worked with simple flawed human beings to bring about his promise that we become a “light to the nations” the people through whom he will save the world. Our all-powerful God makes good happen, inspire of out sin and weakness.

Example of the pattern of God’s Work

God guided Abraham when Abraham did not trust God

Descendents of Jacob (Israel)

• living in Egypt

• around 450 years after Joseph

• Israelites living as slaves in foreign land (aka Egypt)

Polytheism

Egyptian Religion

Monotheism

Israelite religion

Israelites

Jacobs decedents

All Israelite males must be slain at birth

• New rule the new Egyptian leader made when he came to power

• Wanted to wipe out the Israelites (genoside)

Israelites felt…

• helpless, hopeless, and nameless

• Egyptians used Israelites for labor

freedom, self worth, hopeful future

The Israelites had no

Passover-Exodus-Covenant

• Main Event in the OT

• God has not forgotten his promise to the decedents of Abraham and Sarah

• God will rescue the Hebrews in a totally surprising, unexpected and unforgettable way

Age of Patriarchs

• Actions and discoveries laid important foundations

• the decedents began to interpret all of their past, present and future through the lens of the Passover-Exodus-Covenant

  • Example: Jacob, Joseph, Isaac, Abraham, etc

Moses

• Unlikely Hero

• Hot temper

• became a killer and fugitive after saving an Israelite slave from being beaten by Egyptian master'

  • flees to Midian

• Marries Zipporah

• Lives among Israelites

Moses’s Upbringing

• Raised in the comfort in court

• rescued by Pharaohs daughter

• Mother and sister know where he is, but keeps him safe

  • Mother nursed him

  • sister told him about his Israelite roots

Zipporah

Moses wife in Midian, daughter of Jethro

God Calls Moses

• Living in the country, shepherd

• burning bush does not go out

  • in awe and alarmed when goof asks to talk to him

• protests what God says

God referred to as El or Elohim

• title not personal or descriptive

• turning point in the OT

• new relationship-intimate and trusting

• “I am who I am”-Yahweh

God says to Moses…

• God directs Moses to return to Egypt to order Pharaoh to let Israelites go

• Moses still protests

• God sends Aaron with Moses to speak

  • Moses doesn’t think he is a good speaker

Miriam

Moses sister

Aaron

Moses brother who goes with Moses because Moses thinks he cannot speak well

Moses and Aaron Return to Egypt

• Give God’s message to the Israelites

  • “Let my people go!”

• Told the Israelites first, then the Pharaoh

Pharoah

• believes he is a god - why should I listen to Moses?

• Need for control

  • Doubles Israelites workload

• People cry out and resent Moses

• No longer know God

Ten Plauges

• way to get Pharoah attention

• With each plague, Pharaoh shows signs of weakening, but at the last minute he always changes his mind

• List:

  1. water to blood

  2. frogs

  3. Gnats

  4. Flies

  5. Pestilence

  6. Boil

  7. Hail

  8. Locusts

  9. Darkness

  10. Death of the 1st born

Water Turned to Blood

• God says he will strike water and it will turn to blood

• tells Moses to do so with his staff

• water in the Nile turns to blood, killing animals and water source

Frogs

• frogs overwhelmed Egypt

• there were all over the city including the palace

Gnats

• God told Moses to strike the dust of the Earth to turn it to gnats

• All dust turned to gnats

Flies

• God sent swarms of flies through the households of Egyptians and throughout the palace

Pestilence

• God struck the livestock in the fields, such as horses and donkeys, with a pestilence

• all livestock had died

Boils

• God told Moses and Aaron to take soot from the kiln and scatter across Egypt covering the skin off Egyptians

• This causes boils to form on their skin

Hail

• God told Moses to stretch his hand and hail will come

• Moses did so with his staff and the Lord sent thunder, hail, and lightening

Locusts

• Moses stretched out his hand bringing Locusts to eat up all the vegetation that the hail had not already destroyed

Darkness

Moses stretched out his hand bringing darkness so dense, nobody in Egypt could see for 3 days

Death of the First Born

• The Israelites were instructed to mark their doors with the blood of a lamb or kid so God would pass over their households when the last plague came

• God sent a plague were he killed the first born of all in Egypt, including the Pharoah