Who Is The Lord?

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Exodus 16:4-12

4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. 5 On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” 6 So Moses and Aaron said to all the people of Israel, “At evening you shall know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, 7 and in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling against the Lord. For what are we, that you grumble against us?” 8 And Moses said, “When the Lord gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the Lord has heard your grumbling that you grumble against him—what are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the Lord.”

9 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.’” 10 And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. 11 And the Lord said to Moses, 12 “I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’”

 
 

At the burning bush, Moses asked the Lord, “Who are you?”

The Lord’s answer: “I am who I am.” In other words, you’ll know who I am because of the way I will be. You’ll know me from what I do.

One of the themes of Exodus is the Lord’s revealing of who He is, both to the Israelites and to the Egyptians.

Look what the Lord says:

“At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.” [16:12]

The Egyptians learned about the Lord through His power to liberate the slaves. The Israelites learn about the Lord through His power to provide.

P.S. “A day’s portion every day” [v. 4] is the exact same phrase in Hebrew as chapter 5:13 and 19 when Pharaoh orders the slaves’ daily quota of bricks to be the same, despite lacking straw. The contrast: Pharaoh orders a burden every day, but the Lord offers a blessing.

 

Getting The Egypt Out Of The People

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Exodus 16:1-3

16 They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. 2 And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, 3 and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

 
 

Remember, the theme of Exodus is the formation of God’s people into God’s nation, Israel.

The people are now out of Egypt.

But the Egypt is not out of the people!

Here, because of their hunger, they say that they would prefer to remain as slaves rather than have to face the challenges of the wilderness!

The people are out of Egypt but still living in bondage. The Lord’s task is to set them truly free.

Are there places in your life—between your ears—in which you are still living enslaved?

What would it mean for the Lord to truly set you free?

 

They Were Right By An Oasis All Along!

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Exodus 15:25b-27

There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, 26 saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.” 27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water.

 
 

Three days out from the Red Sea, the people run out of water and cry out to the Lord. He supplies it, thereby teaching them that He can be trusted. Here, the Lord makes the lesson explicit:

“If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.” [15:26]

The lesson: just obey my voice rather than assuming that you know what’s right by your own eyes, and things will go well with you.

And then, the very next place they come to is a desert oasis! If they had just trusted the Lord previously, they would have ended up there sooner.

A good lesson for us: the Lord’s way—obedience—is always the best way.

P.S. Note that the Lord calls the Egyptian plagues “diseases” and connects them to the Egyptians’ disobedience. In other words, the plagues were a consequence of the Egyptians’ rebellion against the Lord.

 

Exodus Part 3 Begins - Out Of The Frying Pan, Into The Fire?

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EXODUS PART 3 BEGINS TODAY!

Our reading plan in Exodus resumes today, with Exodus Part 3: The Road to Mt. Sinai and the Revelation of the Ten Commandments (chapters 15-20). Part 3 will run for six weeks, concluding on Friday, May 10.

The opening letter below appears in the print version of this reading guide.  We include it here. (Today’s scripture reading can be found after the MONDAY, APRIL 1 header below.)

 
 

WHAT’S FREEDOM FOR?

Everyone knows that Exodus tells the story of the miraculous deliverance of the Hebrew slaves from Egypt. The accounts in the early chapters of Exodus are some of the most memorable stories in the Bible: Moses in the bullrushes, the burning bush, the plagues, the Passover, and the parting of the sea. By the end of chapter 14, Pharaoh’s army lies drowned at the bottom of the sea, and Moses and the Hebrew people are on the far side of the Red Sea, ready to walk forward into freedom. But this is chapter 14, and there are 40 chapters total in Exodus. So, here’s the question:

What is their freedom for?

The whole purpose of the exodus from Egypt was to set free God’s people for a purpose. That purpose will be given to the people at Mount Sinai.

 
 

FIRST MOSES, THEN ISRAEL

Remember that everything that happens to Moses prefigures what will happen to Israel. Israel’s story expands and elaborates on Moses’s story.

For example:

  • Moses is oppressed by Pharaoh → Israel is oppressed by Pharaoh;

  • Moses is saved through water and the reeds → Israel is saved through water and the reeds;

  • Moses is shaped by his wilderness wanderings→ Israel is shaped by its wilderness wanderings;

  • Moses meets God on the mountain in the fire → Israel meets God on the mountain in the fire;

  • Moses is commissioned by God on the mountain and given a new identity → Israel is commissioned by God on the mountain and given a new identity.

 
 

ISRAEL RECEIVES ITS MISSION ON MOUNT SINAI

This reading guide covers Exodus chapters 15-20. Our account starts with Pharaoh’s army drowned in the sea and the children of Israel ready to move forward into the desert.

  1. We’ll first read about Israel’s journey through the desert to Mount Sinai.

  2. Then we’ll read how the Lord makes a covenant with the people at Sinai and gives them the Ten Commandments.

Their time in the desert will shape and make the Israelites into God’s people, but it is on Mount Sinai that Israel will receive its purpose from the Lord. That purpose is to represent the Lord to the nations, and the Ten Commandments and the laws at Sinai give Israel guidance on how to do that.

 
 

HOW THIS READING PLAN WORKS

Remember, consistency is more important than intensity! That is, don’t try to read the whole Bible in one sitting—rather, pace yourself and make a commitment to be consistent. To that end, the readings are parceled-out on weekdays only—if you get behind, catch up each weekend. Each day I’ve written brief commentary to help you get something out of your reading; the commentary is NOT the point, the Bible is the point. If the commentary helps you, great! If it doesn’t, no worries—just skip it.

 
 

WHY EXODUS MATTERS TO YOUR LIFE TODAY

As we will see, the Ten Commandments are guidance from God about how to live well. The Ten Commandments (and the other laws that follow) are revealed from God to His people so that they can be His representatives to the nations.

The church has that same purpose today (see 1 Peter 2:9-12)—we represent the Lord to the world. It’s my prayer that these readings will show us how to live well so we can be a blessing to our neighbors and to the nations.

 
 

P.S. What are we supposed to do with all the Old Testament laws? Are Christians supposed to follow all the those laws about fabrics and livestock and sacrifices? I’ll be teaching an All-Church Bible study on these questions on April 3, 6:30-8:00 PM in the Asbury Sanctuary. (Dinner available beforehand, 5:00-6:30 PM. 18 and under are free on Bible study evenings!) Going to be out of town? Catch the livestream: www.asburytulsa.org.


 

Monday, April 1

Exodus 15:22-25a

22 Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. 23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. 24 And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” 25 And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.

 
 

Our story resumes after Pharaoh’s army has been drowned at the bottom of the sea, and the Hebrews have walked through the waters on dry ground. They have praised the Lord and sung their songs of thanksgiving. Now it’s time to move forward in freedom—their first steps as free people.

And they immediately run into trouble! Just three days into the desert, and they find themselves without water. As everyone knows, if they go without water for three more days, they will all die. Why would the Lord bring them out of Egypt just to have them die of thirst in the desert?

Remember that the process is the point. That is, the entire point of Exodus is about the formation of God’s people into Israel, God’s nation. The people needed to be set free from Egypt, but they are not yet ready to bear their charge as God’s people. And, perhaps the essential lesson they will need to learn is to trust God.

So, they run out of water, and they begin to panic. The Lord does not immediately supply the water—they have to wait for it. Note that Moses is forced to turn to the Lord, and the Lord then promptly provides relief.

How does it shape a people for them to have to learn to wait on God?

What about you? Could there be a lesson for you today when you find yourself with a gap between what you have and what you need?

P.S. A fun note: the Nile was drinkable until the Lord—using Moses’s staff—turned it into blood during the first plague and made it undrinkable; here, the water is undrinkable until the Lord—using a piece of wood—makes it drinkable.

 

The Logic Of Good Friday

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Exodus Part 3 begins MONDAY! Part 3 of our Exodus plan will look at the Ten Commandments and will run for six weeks: from April 1 to Friday, May 10. (It will cover chapters 15-20.) Here’s how to get your copy:

  • Pick up a book at one of our Easter services this Sunday at Asbury;

  • Email Sandie Tomlinson, and she’ll mail you a copy;

  • If you live in Dallas, email Sandie and she’ll tell you how you can pick yours up for yourself there in town.

 

Don’t forget about our All-Church Bible study this coming Wednesday, 6:30-8:00 PM. “Are Christians supposed to follow Old Testament Laws?”

 
 

Exodus 15:19-21

19 For when the horses of Pharaoh with his chariots and his horsemen went into the sea, the Lord brought back the waters of the sea upon them, but the people of Israel walked on dry ground in the midst of the sea. 20 Then Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women went out after her with tambourines and dancing. 21 And Miriam sang to them:

“Sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.”

 
 

Today is Good Friday, the day we mark the crucifixion of the Son of God.

On the one hand, Good Friday looks like a victory for evil.

But on the other hand, what looks like a victory for evil is actually its decisive defeat.

This is the logic of Good Friday:

The Lord allows evil to overreach and thereby destroy itself.

The Cross is a sign of the victory of God because the Lord won through losing. This is the way of Jesus, the taking up of the Cross.

What happened with Pharaoh at the Red Sea is a sign of things to come. All along, the Lord has been allowing Pharaoh to choose his own destruction, and that choice culminates in the destruction of the Egyptian army in the Red Sea.

The reason this encourages me is because it means that the reason the Lord is still permitting evil because He is working it into His plan.

It’s Friday, but Sunday’s coming.

 

The Purpose Of Freedom Is Worship

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Exodus 15:1-18

15 Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the Lord, saying,
“I will sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously;
    the horse and His rider He has thrown into the sea.
2 The Lord is my strength and my song,
    and He has become my salvation;
this is my God, and I will praise him,
    my father's God, and I will exalt him.
3 The Lord is a man of war;
    the Lord is his name.
4 “Pharaoh's chariots and his host He cast into the sea,
    and His chosen officers were sunk in the Red Sea.
5 The floods covered them;
    they went down into the depths like a stone.
6 Your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power,
    your right hand, O Lord, shatters the enemy.
7 In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries;
    you send out your fury; it consumes them like stubble.
8 At the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up;
    the floods stood up in a heap;
    the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea.
9 The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake,
    I will divide the spoil, my desire shall have its fill of them.
    I will draw my sword; my hand shall destroy them.’
10 You blew with your wind; the sea covered them;
    they sank like lead in the mighty waters.
11 “Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods?
    Who is like you, majestic in holiness,
    awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?
12 You stretched out your right hand;
    the earth swallowed them.
13 “You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed;
    you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode.
14 The peoples have heard; they tremble;
    pangs have seized the inhabitants of Philistia.
15 Now are the chiefs of Edom dismayed;
    trembling seizes the leaders of Moab;
    all the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.
16 Terror and dread fall upon them;
    because of the greatness of your arm, they are still as a stone,
till your people, O Lord, pass by,
    till the people pass by whom you have purchased.
17 You will bring them in and plant them on your own mountain,
    the place, O Lord, which you have made for your abode,
the sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands have established.
18 The Lord will reign forever and ever.

 
 

What is freedom for?

This is one of the questions the Book of Exodus is answering. From the very beginning, we see that the purpose of the exodus is to allow the people of God to freely worship:

Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’” [5:1]

And now, after their deliverance and the Red Sea crossing, the first act of the newly-freed people is to worship.

Most people around the world do not enjoy the civil freedoms that we enjoy as Americans. We are remarkably free.

So, what are you doing with the freedoms the Lord has given you?

 

Red Sea Road

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Exodus 14:19-31

19 Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, 20 coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.

21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. 22 And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. 23 The Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. 24 And in the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, 25 clogging their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily. And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from before Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.”

26 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.” 27 So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared. And as the Egyptians fled into it, the Lord threw the Egyptians into the midst of the sea. 28 The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen; of all the host of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea, not one of them remained. 29 But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.

30 Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. 31 Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.

 
 

Finally, the trap the Lord has set is sprung, and Pharaoh and all his army are destroyed through their own arrogance and hubris. Egypt will never again enslave God’s people.

What I find beautiful are the ways the biblical author wants us to see parallels between the Red Sea parting and the creation of the word. Just as the Lord caused dry ground to appear in Genesis 1:9, so do the people of Israel walk through on dry ground at the Red Sea (v. 22). Just as it is the Spirit-breath-wind of God that moves over the waters of creation and brings forth life, so here it is the Spirit-breath-wind of God that drives back the waters and makes life possible for the Israelites. And, just as each night ends with a morning in Genesis 1, so here the night of the Red Sea crossing ends with a new dawn:

So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared. [14:27]

All along, the Lord has been shaping His people. The result of the astounding miracle of the Red Sea Road is that Israel has been saved from Egypt and acknowledges the Lord and His servant Moses.

30 Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. 31 Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses. [14:30-31]

What if one of the ways that the Lord uses difficulties in our lives is to get our attention so we will acknowledge him?

 
 
 

"Tell The People To Go Forward"

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Exodus 14:10-18

10 When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. 11 They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” 13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

15 The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. 16 Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. 17 And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. 18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

 
 

The people are understandably afraid.

Pharaoh’s army is bearing down on them, and their backs are to the sea. They are trapped.

And so what does the Lord say? “Go forward.”

The Lord will fight for them and the Lord will defeat Pharaoh, but they still have to move forward.

I think there is a lesson here for us. The Lord is inviting us into His work, and though the battle is His, we aren’t meant to be merely passive passengers, but active participants.

Go. Move. Take the next step.

 

The Lord Sets A Trap

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Exodus 14:1-9

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon; you shall encamp facing it, by the sea. 3 For Pharaoh will say of the people of Israel, ‘They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.’ 4 And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord.” And they did so.

5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, “What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?” 6 So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him, 7 and took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. 8 And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. 9 The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon.

 
 

Why does God permit evil?

It is the question of existence. And, the Bible never really answers that question, though the implication is that without the freedom to turn aside from God, love would not be possible for God’s rational creatures. That is, we have to be free to say “No” if we are to be free to say “Yes.” But, these are just suggestions and speculations—the answer to the question of evil is still a mystery.

What is not a mystery, however, is how evil is defeated. In the biblical story, the Lord allows evil to fall into the pit of its own digging, so to speak. The account of Pharaoh in Exodus is a good example of how this plays out: Pharaoh’s stubborn, rebellious heart and murderous rage lead him right into the heart of the sea and to his own destruction.

Israel is here the bait, and the Lord sets the trap. And Pharaoh, who has refused every possible opportunity to repent, is about to choose his own destruction.

Lord, save us from such a fate.

 

When The Circuitous Route Is Best

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Exodus 13:17-22

17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” 18 But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here.” 20 And they moved on from Succoth and encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 21 And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.

 
 

The Lord takes Israel out of Egypt by a circuitous route. Why? Because the direct route wouldn’t have worked.

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” [13:17]

What if the same idea applies to your life? What if the Lord has been leading you on the route that’s actually best?

P.S. Note that though the Israelites are taking the circuitous route, they are not lost: they follow the Lord for each step.

 

The Firstborn Belongs to God

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Exodus 13:1-16

13 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”

3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the Lord brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. 4 Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. 5 And when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month. 6 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. 8 You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 9 And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. 10 You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.

11 “When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, 12 you shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the Lord's. 13 Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 14 And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. 15 For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ 16 It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.”

 
 

Note again the importance of deliberate remembering: Israel must deliberately remember that they were slaves in Egypt, and that the Lord brought them out. Here the Lord gives Moses specific practices Israel must adopt so that they will remember.

There are two implications:

1. It’s really easy to forget. This is one of the reasons why weekly worship is so important for God’s people—you have to build practices into your life that help you remember the truth.

2. The purpose of this remembering is to help Israel keep the law—to live rightly (v. 9).

What practices do you need to build into your life today? What have you been neglecting?

 

7 Rules

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Exodus 12:43-51

43 And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the statute of the Passover: no foreigner shall eat of it, 44 but every slave that is bought for money may eat of it after you have circumcised him. 45 No foreigner or hired worker may eat of it. 46 It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the flesh outside the house, and you shall not break any of its bones. 47 All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48 If a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised. Then he may come near and keep it; he shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. 49 There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you.” 50 All the people of Israel did just as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. 51 And on that very day the Lord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their hosts.

 
 

The Lord gives seven rules here to make it clear to the Israelites how they should keep the Passover, and why it matters. Note that only the covenant people are to keep it—either you are all-in, or you’re not. Did you see that note about not breaking the bones of the lamb? In the Gospel of John, the author makes a point of connecting that verse to the sacrificial death of Jesus:

31 Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. 32 The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. 33 But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.34 Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. 35 The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. 36 These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken,” 37 and, as another scripture says, “They will look on the one they have pierced.” [John 19:31-37]

This reference back to Exodus in the Gospel of John is a great example of the principle that every word in scripture matters.

 

The Exodus

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Exodus 12:37-42

37 And the people of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. 38 A mixed multitude also went up with them, and very much livestock, both flocks and herds. 39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because they were thrust out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves. 40 The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years. 41 At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. 42 It was a night of watching by the Lord, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a night of watching kept to the Lord by all the people of Israel throughout their generations.

 
 

I love the note in v. 38 that “a mixed multitude also went up with them.” To me, this detail is a mark of the Lord’s desire to save all people—here you have non-Hebrews who have joined themselves to God’s people. It’s a beautiful forerunner of what will happen with Jesus—how people from every nation, tribe, people, and tongue will be drawn to Him (Revelation 7:9).

 

The Plunder Of The Egyptians

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Exodus 12:33-36

33 The Egyptians were urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, “We shall all be dead.” 34 So the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in their cloaks on their shoulders. 35 The people of Israel had also done as Moses told them, for they had asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing. 36 And the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.

 
 

The exodus is the formative event in the history of Israel, and the Israelites’ experience as slaves, liberated by God, shapes their future laws. Here, when they are delivered from slavery, the Israelites take with them some of the wealth of Egypt. Years later, note the law that Moses gives them regarding freed slaves:

13 And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed. 14 You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of your threshing floor, and out of your winepress. As the Lord your God has blessed you, you shall give to Him. 15 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today. [Deuteronomy 15:13-15]

In the same way, we ought to always remember that the Lord has been merciful to us, so we ought to show mercy to others.

To whom can you be merciful today?

 

The Terrible Tenth Plague

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Exodus 12:29-32

29 At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock. 30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians. And there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead. 31 Then he summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, “Up, go out from among my people, both you and the people of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as you have said. 32 Take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!”

 
 

From the very beginning, Pharaoh’s actions have been all leading to this moment: the death he caused by ordering the Hebrew boys to be murdered in the Nile was always going to bring back death onto himself. This is the logic of sin—it ultimately and always leads to death.

To take a contemporary example, the very moment Adolf Hitler took power in Germany on January 30, 1933 was the moment that Germany’s defeat and destruction was assured. This is because evil always ends up leading to death and destruction on those who perpetuate it. Now, sometimes the time between the act and its consequences seem long, but always the consequences will come. In the specific case of the Nazis, it was 12 years between Hitler’s assumption of power and his suicide in a Berlin bunker.

The Lord, however, desires that no man should perish. (2 Peter 3:9) And so, with each of the nine previous plagues, the Lord has given Pharaoh the opportunity to repent. However, in the deeply mysterious interplay between the Lord’s foreknowledge and our freedom, the Lord has also known that Pharaoh would never repent and has therefor given Pharaoh over to his own rebellious and stubborn desires.

Leadership matters. The leader’s actions affect the lives of others. (This is why leadership is such a weighty responsibility.) Here the leadership of Pharaoh has brought destruction on his own people. (The same thing happened with Adolf Hitler, whose murderous evil brought back evil on the German people as a whole, particularly as the Red Army made its terrible advance into Berlin in 1945.)

The best way to understand the tenth plague is to see that human rebellion always leads to death. But, the biblical story doesn’t end with the Passover; in fact, the story of Israel continues and then culminates with the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. So, whenever you think of the death of the firstborn and the tenth plague, you should also think about the mystery that God gave up His only Son for a sinful world.

 

Description Of Future Passover Feasts

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Exodus 12:14-28

14 “This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord; throughout your generations, as a statute forever, you shall keep it as a feast. 15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven out of your houses, for if anyone eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly. No work shall be done on those days. But what everyone needs to eat, that alone may be prepared by you. 17 And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day, throughout your generations, as a statute forever. 18 In the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19 For seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses. If anyone eats what is leavened, that person will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwelling places you shall eat unleavened bread.”

21 Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb. 22 Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. 23 For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you. 24 You shall observe this rite as a statute for you and for your sons forever. 25 And when you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service. 26 And when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ 27 you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of the Lord's Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses.’” And the people bowed their heads and worshiped.

28 Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

 
 

In 12:14, the Lord’s instructions change from telling the Israelites what to do on the actual first Passover night to telling them how to commemorate the Passover for all future generations. For the Lord, it is so important that Israel keeps the Passover memory alive that anyone who refuses to celebrate Passover will be cut off from Israel! (See vv. 15 and 19.)

Remember, the exodus is about the formation of God’s people, and central to their identity will be their acknowledgement that they were slaves in Egypt, but that the Lord brought them out with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. As the account plays out, we will see that this memory works in two ways:

  1. It means that Israel ought to be bold and grateful, because the Lord fights for them and has freed them for a purpose;

  2. But it also means that Israel ought to be humble and merciful, because they know what it’s like to be oppressed.

Here, as the tenth plague is about to strike, the experience of the previous nine plagues seems to have worked—the Lord’s demonstration of His power has changed Israel:

27And the people bowed their heads and worshiped. 28 Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. [12:27-28]

 

Time Begins With The Passover

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Exodus 12:1-13

12 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. 3 Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, 6 and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight.

7 “Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. 8 They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. 9 Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. 10 And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. 11 In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord's Passover. 12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. 13 The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.

 
 

Since Moses and Aaron confront Pharaoh in chapter 5, the account moves along and the plagues have fallen thick and fast. But without warning in chapter 12 the action is paused for as the Lord gives detailed instructions about the Passover. Why? Why are these details important?

Remember, the Lord’s objective is not merely to get His people out of Egypt, but also to get Egypt out of His people. That is, the purpose of their liberation is for the Lord to commission the Israelites to be His covenant people—His representatives to the nations—and the vehicle by which blessing would come to the entire world.

The first step is for Israel to learn to mark time by the Lord’s calendar and not their own. Note that the Lord tells Moses and Aaron that from then on, the Passover would mark the beginning of each new year.

As Christians, we believe that the exodus from Egypt was a sign of the greater exodus that Jesus would accomplish through His death and resurrection. Just as the lamb’s blood protects the people in Egypt, so the blood of the Lamb protects God’s people from the eternal consequences of sin.

I always imagine, therefore, that the Israelites marked their doorways with the sign of the cross.

P.S. Verse 12 makes explicit what has been implicit up to this point: this is a spiritual battle between the Lord and the so-called gods of Egypt. “I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord” [12:12].

 

Prediction Of The Tenth Plague

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Exodus 11:4-10

4 So Moses said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, 5 and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. 6 There shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again. 7 But not a dog shall growl against any of the people of Israel, either man or beast, that you may know that the Lord makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.’ 8 And all these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, ‘Get out, you and all the people who follow you.’ And after that I will go out.” And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. 9 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.”

10 Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, and the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land.

 
 

Finally, Pharaoh’s hard-heartedness—which has brought destruction upon Pharaoh’s nation—will now bring destruction into his own house.

Pharaoh’s willfulness is finally not animated by a public-spirited concern for his nation and its people. Indeed, he willingly abandons his country to ruin precisely in order to show his own godly supremacy; in defending this ruling principle of the Egyptian regime, Pharaoh unintentionally reveals its catastrophic meaning. As each plague passes, so does his concern for the damage it has left behind. At no point does he attempt to heal the wounded or succor his people. At no point does he pray to any Egyptian deity; at every point he acts as if self-sufficient and all-important. After the ninth plague has left his country in frightful darkness for three days, Pharaoh is at his most defiantly godlike: he says to Moses, “Get away from me; take heed to yourself: never see my face again; for in the day you see my face you will die” (11:28). Nothing that affects the land or its people moves him; only with the tenth plague, which attacks the royal family itself, will he personally feel threatened and impulsively surrender. In sum, the contest of the plagues demonstrates the deep truth of Pharaonic politics: to be Pharaoh means being certain of your own wisdom, means being indifferent to your own people’s dignity and well-being, and ultimately to their very existence. Adhering to his own wisdom and seeking ultimate control—and immortality—for himself, the resolute and self-sufficing Pharaoh is in fact an angel of death, unleashed finally against himself and his own. –Leon Kass, Founding God’s Nation: Reading Exodus

 

Favor In The Sight Of The Egyptians

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Exodus 11:1-3

11 The Lord said to Moses, “Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely. 2 Speak now in the hearing of the people, that they ask, every man of his neighbor and every woman of her neighbor, for silver and gold jewelry.” 3 And the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh's servants and in the sight of the people.

 
 

The effect of the nine plagues has been to raise the status of the enslaved Hebrews and of their leader, Moses, in the sight of the Egyptians. It’s a difficult situation they are in; nevertheless, the Lord uses it.

I think one of the ways that Christians can gain favor in our world today is through perseverance and joy in the face of difficulty. None of us wants difficulty, but it can be an important opportunity.

Don’t waste it.

 

The Ninth Plague: Darkness

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Exodus 10:21-29

21 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness to be felt.” 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was pitch darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. 23 They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the people of Israel had light where they lived. 24 Then Pharaoh called Moses and said, “Go, serve the Lord; your little ones also may go with you; only let your flocks and your herds remain behind.” 25 But Moses said, “You must also let us have sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God. 26 Our livestock also must go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we must take of them to serve the Lord our God, and we do not know with what we must serve the Lord until we arrive there.” 27 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let them go. 28 Then Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me; take care never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face you shall die.” 29 Moses said, “As you say! I will not see your face again.”

 
 

Each plague is increasing in intensity, and here we have the uncreating of the very first thing the Lord did when he created all things: separate light from darkness.

Note that Pharaoh still refuses to completely let the Israelites go:

“Go, serve the Lord; your little ones also may go with you; only let your flocks and your herds remain behind.” [10:24]

The plagues have forced Pharaoh to acknowledge the Lord’s power, but he still refuses to truly acknowledge the Lord’s authority. He is trying to hold onto his own power because he thinks he can outfox the Lord by being half-way or three-quarters obedient. But that’s not how it works: it’s all or nothing.

Where are you holding back from complete obedience today?