Exodus -- What I Learned

An Overview of Exodus; 
And what I learned from reading this book of the Bible

Exodus is broken down into six parts:

1.  Deliverance Chp. 1-15

2.  In the Wilderness Chp. 16-18

3.  Covenant & Law Chp. 19-24

4.  Blueprint (of the Tabernacle) Chp. 25-31

5.  Infidelity (Breaking and restoration of the Covenant) Chp 32-34

6.  Building the Tabernacle Chp 35-40

1. Deliverance

Moses was raised as an Egyptian Prince. 

Moses was a timid and meek man.  A rather insecure chap. 

Moses received instructions from God, in the form of the Burning Bush, to go back to Egypt and get his people. 

There were 10 plagues:

     a. Nile turned to blood. 

     b.  Frogs

     c.  Lice

     d.  Dog flies

     e.  Egyptians livestock killed (Not Hebrew livestock)

     f.  Boils

     g.  Hail

     h.  Locusts

     i.  Darkness (Not just nighttime, but an over powering sense of evil)

     j.  Death of all Egyptian firstborn  (Lambs blood on door post prevented the death of the Hebrew first born.  This was the 1st Passover). 

When Pharaoh's army followed Israel, Moses parted the Red Sea so that Israel could escape.  The Pharaoh's Army was swallowed by the sea when they tried to follow.  (This part I already knew, but it felt unfinished without noting it here.)

2.  In the Wilderness

• 40 Years were spent in Arabia wandering through the wilderness.  During this time, the Israelites had nothing to eat.  God sent manna from the heavens to the Israelites for sustenance.  They were to collect enough to eat each day, no more than they needed.  Except the day before the Sabbath.  This day they were to collect double, and only this day.  Any other day if they took more, it would spoil before the next day.  The day before the Sabbath, it did not.  
• There is manna, kept in a jar, inside the Ark of the Covenant.  For when the End Times come, there will be proof for all to see.  

3.  Covenant and Law

• Sometime after the bible was written, in 1300 AD, the archbishop of Canterbury (Stephen Langton) saw an advantage of breaking the Bible into bite-sized chunks for easier study.  He instituted the Book breaks, chapters and verses as they currently are today.  
• Between Chapters 20 & 21 of Exodus, there was an elimination of the word "AND" that would have been the beginning of what became chapter 21.  Chapter 20 was the first 10 Commandments (Words), AND chapter 21 continued with more laws.  
• This removal of the word "AND" made it easy for the Church to erroneously deem the first 10 Laws as more important than the following 603.  
• Some capital crimes include, but are not limited to, (a) premeditated murder, (b) attacking and harming your parents, (c) kidnapping, whether the victim is harmed or not, and (d) cursing parents.  In His holy eyes, all of these actions deserved the death penalty.  
• Principle of intention is validated by God.  The intention in a persons heart should dictate the consequences of his actions.  Exodus 21:12-14 states if it's not premeditated then sanctuary will be given, but premeditation warrants death. 
• There is no jail, prison, stockade, or other means of detainment.  Either an offense is severe enough for death, or there is compensation.  Compensation, NOT incarceration.  And death, for severe offenses that were pre-meditated. 
• Mutilation is NOT viable compensation. 
• Someone who causes loss, harm, or death to another person and does so intentionally is dealt with much more harshly than if the crime was unintentional or even negligent. 

The Ten Commandments (Words)

1.  I am ADONAI your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the abode of slavery.  

2.  You are to have no other gods before me.  You are not to make for yourselves a carved image or any kind of representation of anything in heaven above, on the earth beneath or in the water below the shoreline.  You are not to bow down to them or serve them; for I, ADONAI your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sins of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but displaying grace to the thousandth generation of those who love me and obey my mitzvot. 

3.  You are not to use lightly the name of ADONAI your God, because ADONAI will not leave unpunished someone who uses his name lightly. 

4.  Remember the day, Shabbat, to set it apart for God.  You have six days to labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Shabbat for ADONAI your God.  On it, you are not to do any kiund of work - not you, your son or your daughter, not your male or female slave, not your livestock, and not the foreigner staying with you inside the gates to your property.  For in six days, ADONAI made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them;p but on the seventh day he rested.  This is why ADONAI blessed the day, Shabbat, and separated it for himself. 

5.  Honor your father and mother, so that you  may live long in the land with ADONAI your God is giving you. 

6.  Do not murder. 

7.  Do not commit adultery. 

8.  Do not steal. 

9.  Do not give false evidence against your neighbor.

10.  Do not covet your neighbor's house; do not covet your neighbor's wife, his male or female slave, his ox, his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

4.  Blueprint (for the Tabernacle)
There is a LOT a whole LOT of details on the specifications to build the Wilderness Tabernacle.  The template/ blueprint was shown to Moses on Mt. Sinai, 

I want to make a comment here.  God went to a LOT of detail on how he wanted things to be, how to make them, how to set them up, how they should run, the rituals, the building, the altar, all the way down to the lamps, robes, and every minuscule detail, God laid it all out, how to.   In my opinion, for God to go to this extensive detail indicates to me that God cares about details, routine, ritual.  We should all learn from this section of Exodus, and spend some time, learning what God wants from us, learning how to serve and please him, learning to worship him the way he deserves.  

5.  Infidelity (Breaking and restoration of the covenant)

Exodus 34:14  "because you are not to bow down to any other god; since Adonai --- whose very name is Jealous --- is a jealous god".  

Before Moses could bring the Covenant down to the people, they had already gotten weak and sinned.  They asked Aaron to make an idol for them to worship.  They gave to Aaron all of their gold earrings, and out of this a Golden Calf was created by the fire.  

Moses upon coming down from his 40 days on the mountain, dropped and broke the Covenant tablets.  Symbolizing the broken Covenant with God.  

Moses did return up the mountain, for another 40 days, and the Covenant was reinstated. 

6.  Building the Tabernacle

The Wilderness Tabernacle, Ark of the Covenant, 1st Menorah, as well as many other items were built exactly to the specifications that Moses received from God. 

Other things I learned from and while reading this book:

~ Our happiness, comfort, and success are all entirely secondary to God's divine purpose of bringing in His kingdom. 

~ God has given us three covenants:  Abrahamic, Mosaic, and Christ.  All three are still valid, and work in conjunction with each other.  Some are closer to fullfilment than others, but all three are still applicable. 

~ Man is given a free choice to stand on one side or the other.  If he stands on the side of God's principles, then he has unity with God but conflict with his fellow man.  If he stands on the other, he has unity with his fellow man but conflict with God.   

~ In Galatians 4:25 Saint Paul stated that Mount Sinai was in Arabia.  Josephus also stated that Mount Sinai was in Arabia, as did Philo.  "We looked at the route of the Exodus and the area where Paul and Josephus said Mount Sinai was located, and we found a place that not only matched the biblical description, but even archaeological evidence was found of the Israelites' stay there.  That place is in Arabia.  

~  A little over one hundred years ago the official Catholic newspaper said:

         Sunday is a Catholic institution, and its claim to observance can be defended only on Catholic principles.  

     ... From beginning to end of Scripture there is not a single passage that warrants the transfer of weekly public worship from the last day of the week (Saturday) to the first (Sunday).  

So why would the Catholic Church say such a thing when it sounds as if it's condemning itself for Sunday worship?  this was part of an ongoing argument against Protestants, who, of course, deny the all-important doctrine of the Catholic Church that the pope has special authority, given to him directly from God, to change or add or subtract from the scriptures.  ("special authority", by the way, is news to me, and warrants further research, WHEN did God give the pope this special authority)



There are many things that you hear today, and that you learn in church, but so many more things are just totally ignored by the church today.  Things dismissed as unimportant at the time, but may truly need to be known by ALL soon.  I totally recommend this journey that I am on.  Get a bible.  AND read it.  Start to finish.  I never dreamed that I would learn as much as I have from just the first two books of the Bible.  I sit in wonder as to what else I will learn as I go on.  And can't wait to get started on the next book.  

Leviticus I hear is a very hard read...  HERE I come!!!