Exodus is a continuation of the story begun in Genesis, written by the same author (Moses) and for the same audience
(Israel). Whereas Genesis relates to Israel’s earliest beginnings, Exodus follows the growing nation. It is primarily
a rescue story: God rescuing His people from slavery in Egypt, bringing them to freedom with Him as their Ruler.
Genesis ends with Abraham’s descendants settled in Egypt. When Exodus opens four hundred years later, Abraham has so many descendants that Egypt has enslaved them out of fear. Moses’s birth is recorded in chapter 2, and so begins the beautiful story of God rescuing His people from slavery. It is a real-life picture and foreshadowing of the redemption from sin and death God has worked out for humanity through the death and resurrection of Jesus.
In chapter 20, once Israel is free, God reveals the law, a covenant-agreement with them. He gives Israel the Ten Commandments, along with other laws they must live by as He dwells among them—because they are sinful and He is not. It includes many rituals and ceremonies, including regular animal sacrifices to cover Israel’s many sins.
The law was a harsh system to live under but necessary because it did two things. First, it reminded the Israelites daily of the reality of their sin. Second, it showed them their inability to live up to God’s standards and fix their relationship with Him. Simply put, the law showed that humans were in desperate need of a Savior.
This system would govern God’s people—until Jesus arrived to fulfill the law. He offered the final sacrifice for humanity’s sin, bringing forgiveness and freedom for all who put their trust in His death and resurrection—in order to dwell forever with His redeemed people. This is the rescue story begun in Genesis and Exodus. • Michelle Isenhoff
• What similarities does a life lived in sin have to the Israelites’ slavery in Egypt? In what ways has Jesus freed us from such a life?
And they will know that I am the Lord their God. I am the one who brought them out of the land of Egypt so that I could live among them. I am the Lord their God. Exodus 29:46 (NLT)
Read Verses:
Psalm 46:1-3; Isaiah 41:9-10
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