Exodus

A guy I met from church tonight told how his former pastor suggested taking a calculus book, turning to page 188, then back to 53, before reading 221.  You ‘d wonder why it didn’t make sense.  Yet we read the Bible that way. 

Here’s what I told my son to pay attention to before he read the book of Exodus.

The book of Exodus ends very differently than it begins.  At the beginning, the Israelites are slaves; at the end, they are free people. At the beginning they get no rest from their work; at the end they get a day of rest (Shabbat) every week. At the beginning they do not know God; at the end the Lord lives in the middle of their camp.

The ten plagues and the Red Sea are important because they show how God delivered his children. If Pharaoh had just let the Israelites go (and God could have arranged that), they would not have needed God, and God would not have received glory. This way, God actually “saved” Israel from Egypt.

Pay close attention to chapter 19 where God and the Israelites make a covenant. This means that they each agree to do certain things. God promises to protect and provide for his people. The Israelites agree to obey his commands.

Chapters 20-24 form the essence of the covenant. They begin, appropriately, with the ten commandments.

Chapter 25-40 is about building the tabernacle. In 25-31, God gives instructions. In 35-40, the Israelites follow the instructions (which is why it sounds repetitive). In the middle (32-34), Israel makes a big mistake, but don’t miss the some of the most important verses in the Bible when God reveals himself to Moses (34:6-7).