The Book Of Exodus
Exodus 3:14 "And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and He said, Thus shalt thou say
unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you."
Verses 1-2: God’s command to Moses and the Israelites in verse 2 is another memorial of the Exodus from Egypt. Just as the Passover is to be held at this time every year for all future generations, so is the firstborn child of every Israelite family to be sanctified, or “set apart” for God’s service. Even though God had slain only the firstborn sons of Egypt, He does not say here that only the firstborn sons of Israel are to be set apart and consecrated for Him. It is any firstborn child, male or female, and this law doesn’t just apply to the Israelites, but to all their livestock as well. (Exodus 22:29, Leviticus 27:26, Numbers 3:13, 8:16, 18:15, Deuteronomy 15:19)
It should be noted, though, as you can see from those cross references, that God later places special emphasis on the firstborn sons. Also, after God established the Aaronic priesthood and set aside the tribe of Levi to serve in that role, Israelite parents could redeem their firstborn with a sacrificial lamb - or two turtledoves if they could not afford a lamb - rather than give their son over for lifelong service to God. Hannah chose to do the latter when God finally answered her prayer for a son (1 Samuel 1:27-28), while Joseph and Mary did the former when Jesus was born. (Luke 2:22-23) Verses 3-10: These instructions and reminders from Moses, as well as God’s command about the consecration of the firstborn, were probably all given to the Israelites at the same time as the instructions of the Passover in chapter 12. The subject of unleavened bread is again emphasized here, as is the command to pass on to each generation the story of the Exodus and what God did for His chosen people. (v.8-9) (Exodus 10:2, 12:26-27, Psalm 44:1) Note from my study Bible: “The word ‘sign’ has been the subject of some speculation. Due to this verse and Deuteronomy 6:8 and 11:18 the Jews have concluded that this meant literally wearing pouches called tephillin, a term explained to mean prayers. The Greek designation is ‘phylakterion’ (Matthew 23:5), from which the English word ‘phylactery’ is derived. Phylacteries were small pouches made from the skin of ceremonially clean animals, sewn to leather bands by which they were strapped to the forehead between and immediately above the eyes, and to the left arms, of males who had reached the age of 13. Inside the pouches, certain passages of the law were written.” Verses 11-16: Moses’ instructions circle back around to the consecration of the firstborn. In verse 12 he specifically states that “…males shall be the Lord’s.” According to the Believer’s Bible Commentary, “The firstborn sons became priests of God, until the tribe of Levi was later set apart for this service. The firstborn of clean animals were to be sacrificed to God within a year. The firstborn of unclean animals, such as a donkey, could not be sacrificed to the Lord; therefore, it had to be redeemed by the death of a lamb; that is, a lamb had to die in its place. If the donkey was not redeemed, then its neck had to be broken. It was a choice between redemption and destruction. Later, provision was made for the donkey to be redeemed with money (Leviticus 27:27, Numbers 18:15). The firstborn child, born in sin, also had to be redeemed, the payment being five shekels (Numbers 3:46-47, 18:16). This was a solemn reminder of man’s unclean moral condition before God.” Verses 17-18: Upon the immediate exodus from Egypt, God does not lead the children of Israel to the Red Sea by the most direct route. The reason for this is because it would have taken them through the land of the Philistines (v.17), and the Israelites are not prepared for a sustained military conflict. “…Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt.” God knows that the Israelites fledgling faith in Him is nowhere near as strong as needs to be – nor are their men as trained and ready to fight as they need to be – for this newly established nation to overcome and defeat the large numbers of the Philistine armies. He knows that as soon as the Israelites see what they’re up against, they will not hesitate to turn and flee back to Egypt. What’s interesting about verse 17, though, is that God had just demonstrated his awesome power and might through the ten plagues that He unleashed upon the Egyptians for all the world to witness. It seems improbable that, after witnessing firsthand such a wonderous and miraculous display, and then successfully escaping Egypt altogether with a bounty of spoil from the Egyptians, that the children of Israel would not have eagerly and wholeheartedly obeyed and followed God in something as ordinary as a war against their enemies. But God knows the hearts of His chosen people, and He also has one last, great miracle in mind for them that will prove His power and might for all generations to come. And yet, why wouldn’t God have just defeated the Philistine armies the same way that He would later on when the Israelites finally entered the promised land? There are multiple times throughout the OT when God intervened on behalf of His chosen people by defeating an attacking army through the use of direct, supernatural intervention. So why not do that here? Surely such a miraculous event would still achieve the same objective which is the glory, honor and magnification of God, His power, and His majesty, would it not? I believe the answer lies in the faith of the children of Israel. God had only just recently made Himself known to them. (Exodus 3 and 4) Yes, they had witnessed ten miraculous and jaw-dropping display of His judgment and power against their enemy, but their faith was still brand new. Just like newly saved Christians today, the faith of the Israelite nation in Yahweh was not strong enough to face a test of the magnitude of the Philistine army. There’s a wonderful and loving picture of God displaying His grace and mercy here in verse 17. Rerouting the children of Israel to the Red Sea accomplishes two things. One, it shows God’s mercy in that He is not going to test His children with a trial that He knows their fledgling faith will not be able to withstand; and two, He is leading them to an even greater opportunity to not only deliver them from the Egyptians but also demonstrate His power, might and majesty in a way that will be even more stunning and miraculous than if He had defeated the Philistine armies through some kind of supernatural means. This is proven by Rahab’s statement to the spies in Joshua 2:10. The same is true for us today. How many times has God demonstrated His omniscience and providence through some great miracle in our own lives, but then we quickly forget as soon as He gives us a direction towards a destination that we either don’t understand or think is impossible. We often think we know where God is leading us, only to be disappointed or discouraged when things don’t work out the way we expected, even though we followed God’s direction and obeyed. But then a different outcome altogether appears, and our original prayer is answered in a way we could have never anticipated! For the Israelites, they are about to be delivered from the hand of the Egyptians once and for all in a way that they could have never foreseen! At the same time, God will demonstrate His providence, His power, and His majesty in a way that will be forever recorded for all future generations, even today for you and me! Verse 19: In the process of observing the Passover and then preparing for the Exodus, Moses does not forget the bones of Joseph. (v.19) (Genesis 50:24-25, Joshua 24:32) Joseph’s dying request – as well as his prophecy to his children – is at last fulfilled. Verses 20-22: God leads His chosen people from Succoth to Etham where they stop to set up camp at the edge of the wilderness of Shur. (Exodus 12:37) He leads them by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. (v.21) (Exodus 14:19, 24, 33:9-10, Numbers 9:15, 14:14, Deuteronomy 1:33, Nehemiah 9:12, Psalm 78:14, 99:7, 105:39, Isaiah 4:5, 1 Corinthians 10:1)
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Click here to get back to the chapter links on the Bible study homepage.
Archives
March 2024
Categories
All
|