As we begin a new sermon series working through the Old Testament book of Exodus, I thought it would be helpful to provide a primer on the book for this first reflection to help orient ourselves to it. To begin, the book of Exodus is composed of two main sections, chapters 1-18 and 19-40. A good summary of Exodus 1-18 is found in God’s commissioning of Moses in Exod 3:9-12 (ESV): “And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt." 11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?" 12 He said, "But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.” Exodus opens with a description of the subjugation of the Hebrew people but soon describes the great work of deliverance of God’s people out of Egypt so that they might worship God on Mount Sinai. To be sure, the path between slavery in Egypt and service to God on Sinai is a winding one with many twists and turns, but God is true to his word.
The second section of the book of Exodus details what might be called the establishment of the people of Israel into the nation of Israel. This formation from a people to a nation extends beyond the book of Exodus, but its foundation is the covenant that God makes with his people through Moses. That covenant includes the establishment of the general laws by which this new nation will be governed, which are summarized in the ten commandments (Exodus 20) and somewhat expanded in the following chapters. The remainder of the book of Exodus describes the design and construction of the dwelling place of God with his people, namely the tabernacle. Although there is a significant bump in the road when the people impatiently turn to idols of gold, the book of Exodus ultimately ends positively with the glory of God filling the correctly constructed tabernacle.
Taken together, these two main sections of the book of Exodus highlight God’s faithfulness to his covenant promises. He delivers his people from slavery in Egypt, just as he promised Abraham he would, and he begins to prepare them to return to the land of promise, just as he promised Abraham he would.
As we think about the ongoing significance of Exodus through the history of redemption, one crucial point is that this book communicates the truth that YHWH is God, and there is no other. Commentators have noted parallels between the story of Israel’s deliverance in Exodus and other stories of deliverance found in ancient Near Eastern cultures. Specifically, John Currid points out how the story of Moses being raised up as a deliverer parallels an Egyptian story about the god Horus.[1] When such parallels are approached from the foundation of the Scripture’s divine authorship, we can appreciate how God would so ordain the circumstances of his people’s deliverance as to exalt himself over against the stories of false religions that give meaning to their own existence. Indeed, God’s supremacy over the gods of Egypt is a key theme in Exodus 1-18, and each of the plagues brought against the Egyptians can be understood as the God of Israel overcoming one or another god of Egypt.[2]
Another aspect of the ongoing significance of Exodus is that it becomes paradigmatic for the work of Jesus Christ. Luke explicitly identifies the link between the exodus and Christ’s work of redemption in his account of Jesus’ transfiguration and discussion with Moses and Elijah (Luke 9:31). This reminds us that the state of humanity apart from Christ is one of bondage to powerful spiritual forces. However, it also reminds us that part of the purpose of Christ’s ministry is to demonstrate God’s supreme power over the powers and principalities of this present evil age. The Lord Jesus Christ put to open shame the rulers and authorities of this world by making peace by the blood of his cross between God and man. As we work our way through the book of Exodus, we will keep in mind that this book is a type, a shadow, of the great work of deliverance that our Lord has done for us.
[1] John D. Currid, “Exodus,” in A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the Old Testament: The Gospel Promised, ed. Miles V. Van Pelt (Wheaton: Crossway, 2016), 74–76.
[2] Currid, 76–77.
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