A Summary of Exodus, Part 1
Pharaoh's Daughter Finding Baby Moses
Konstantin Flavitsky, 1855
Exodus
Using the English Standard Version...
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After Joseph and his brothers died, the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly in Egypt, becoming a strong and numerous people. A new king rose to power in Egypt who did not know of Joseph's contributions. This Pharaoh feared the Israelites might join Egypt's enemies in case of war due to their growing population. To control them, he enslaved them and burdened them with hard labor, building cities like Pithom and Rameses for Pharaoh. However, as the oppression increased, so did the Israelites' number and strength. Pharaoh then ordered the Hebrew midwives to kill all male Hebrew babies at birth, but the midwives feared God and did not follow the king's orders. God dealt well with the midwives, and the Israelites continued to multiply.
A Levite couple bore a son, and when they could hide him no longer, his mother put him in a basket on the Nile River. Pharaoh's daughter found the baby, named him Moses, and brought him up as her own, using Moses' own mother as a midwife - she taught him who he was. Moses grew up and, seeing an Egyptian beating a Hebrew (Moses cared, he stood up when others didn't), killed (sinned) the Egyptian and hid the body. When Pharaoh learned of this, Moses fled to Midian, where he helped (stood up, again. We see a pattern of character here) the daughters of the priest of Midian, Jethro, and married one of them, Zipporah. They had a son named Gershom. Meanwhile, the king of Egypt died, and the Israelites cried out to God because of their slavery. While Moses was tending Jethro's flock at Mount Horeb (also known as Sinai), God appeared to him in a burning bush. God revealed his name, "I AM WHO I AM," and instructed Moses to go to Pharaoh to bring the Israelites out of Egypt. Initially, Moses hesitated, questioning his ability and asking for God's name to tell the Israelites. God assured Moses of his presence and gave signs to prove God had sent him.
God provided Moses with a staff that turned into a serpent and his hand that turned leprous as signs. Moses complained of not being eloquent, so God appointed Aaron, Moses' brother, to speak for him. Moses returned to Egypt with his wife and sons, and God reminded him to perform all the miracles and warn Pharaoh that Israel is God's firstborn son. On the journey back, God sought to kill Moses because his son was not circumcised, but Zipporah intervened by performing the circumcision (women obeying God when men have overlooked). Moses and Aaron assembled the elders of Israel, performed the signs, and the people believed. Moses and Aaron asked Pharaoh to let the Israelites go into the wilderness to worship God, but Pharaoh refused and accused them of laziness. As a result, he increased their labor, forcing them to find their straw to make the same number of bricks. The Israelite foremen were beaten for not meeting the quota. They blamed Moses and Aaron for worsening their situation. Moses questioned God about why he had brought trouble on the people. In response to Moses' doubt, God promised to deliver the Israelites with mighty acts of judgment and affirmed the covenant (remember the three promises - a people, a land, and a Seed (Jesus)) He made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He instructed Moses to tell this to the Israelites, but they were too discouraged to listen. God commanded Moses to speak to Pharaoh again, but Moses expressed doubt due to his poor speaking skills.
God reiterated that Moses and Aaron would confront Pharaoh, and Aaron's staff would become a serpent. Yet, Pharaoh's heart would be hardened, and he would not listen (God's Will be done). As commanded, Aaron cast his staff before Pharaoh, and it became a serpent, but Pharaoh's magicians replicated this through their own secret arts, hardening Pharaoh's heart. God sent a series of ten plagues upon Egypt, each escalating in severity, to compel Pharaoh to release the Israelites. The plagues (Some effecting all of the inhabitants, some only the Egyptians) included the following:
- The Nile turned to blood, killing the fish and making the water undrinkable. (An attack on Egypt's livelihood, they also worshipped the Nile)
- A plague of frogs covered the land.
- Dust became gnats throughout Egypt.
- Swarms of flies filled Egyptian houses and land.
- Livestock of Egypt died from a severe pestilence.
- Boils broke out on Egyptians and their animals.
- A devastating hailstorm struck down all in the open fields, human and animal, and damaged the crops.
- Locusts came and consumed anything green that remained after the hail.
- Darkness covered the land for three days, a darkness that could be felt.
With each plague, Pharaoh's magicians could replicate the signs but eventually acknowledged the hand of God. Pharaoh repeatedly promised to let the Israelites go, only to change his mind each time the plagues were lifted, further hardening his heart.
God instructed Moses about the final plague, the death of all the firstborn in Egypt. Moses warned Pharaoh, but he would not listen. God told Moses that Pharaoh would drive the Israelites out completely after this last devastating plague. Instructions were given for the Passover feast: Israelites were to mark their doorposts with the blood of a lamb so that God would pass over their houses and not allow the destroyer to enter during the final plague. At midnight, the Lord struck down all the firstborn of Egypt, including Pharaoh's son, leading to a great cry in Egypt. Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron by night, urging them to leave with the Israelites. The Egyptians also encouraged them to go quickly. God established the Passover as a permanent ordinance to remember the deliverance from Egypt. The Israelites' depart, making up a large assembly of people and livestock, and after 430 years in Egypt, they left with great wealth given by the Egyptians (begging the Israelites to leave), fulfilling God's promise to Abraham. That Passover stands today, in the blood of Jesus Christ, and only through the blood of Jesus Christ.
We at The Word hope this series helps with your journey with God, Christ and the Holy Spirit. We urge you to read the Scripture, praying for understanding and aid in application of what you study. May God bless you.
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