Trinity Harbor Church

In my Sunday school class last week, I hoped to both explain a major theme in the book of Exodus--"Who Is the Lord?"--and talk about the deliverance of Israel from Egypt. Since I didn't get to the deliverance part, and since we need to move on to the next subject in class on Sunday, I figured I'd post to the Web site what I didn't get to mention in class so that you'd have a better understanding of the Exodus.

Last Sunday, we began our 3-week overview of the book of Exodus. One of the major themes of Exodus is that it asks and answers the question, “Who is the LORD?” We spoke briefly about the fact that this question might be better put as “Who is this Yahweh?” or even, “Who is this I AM?” In Exodus chapter 3, God reveals his name to Moses as Yahweh, a Hebrew name meaning essentially “I am”, a shortened form of the phrase “I am who I am.” In this revelation of his own name, God is doing two things, which when taken together, are rather remarkable. First, God is revealing his utter independence, his self-existence, his complete “other-ness” with respect to the created world. But second, this completely “other” God is reaffirming that he has bound his existence together with the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God reveals his divine name to Moses in the context of promising to deliver his people from their slavery in Egypt. The God of the universe has committed himself to be the God, and therefore the rescuer, of the people that he has set his unfailing love upon.

God is revealing throughout the book of Exodus that he is present with Israel as their savior and king. In the first section of the book (chs. 1-18), God’s saving work is the focus. In chapters 19-24, God reveals himself as Israel’s king by covenanting with them and giving them his law. In the final section (chs. 25-40), the construction of the tabernacle points to God’s presence in the midst of his people. All three facets together contribute to answering the question, “Who is Yahweh?” In class on Sunday morning, we talked about how God answered this question for Moses, but did not discuss at length how God revealed himself to Pharaoh.

God Reveals Himself to Pharaoh
When he is confronted by Moses and Aaron, Pharaoh himself poses the question in Exodus 4:2, “Who is this Yahweh, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know this Yahweh, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” What are commonly called the “plagues” upon Egypt are better understood as signs and wonders that reveal God to Pharaoh and all of Egypt. Pharoah, who claims not to know Yahweh, will soon be acquainted with him by his deeds. Whenever God sends a new sign and wonder upon the Egyptians, he explains his purpose: “The Egyptians will know that I am Yahweh.”

In the overall context of the Pentateuch (the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy), the ten plagues call two features of Genesis to mind. First, God’s judgment upon Egypt suggests that he is “un-creating” them, moving them from the order that God originally brought to the universe toward chaos, a land that is formless and void (see Gen 1:2). The plague of turning the Nile to blood kills all the “fish of the sea” that God creates in Genesis 1. The flies, hail and locusts destroy the land and remove all vegetation. The livestock, or the “beasts of the earth”, are destroyed in the fifth plague. The God who spoke light into existence removes it from Egypt so they are once again plunged into darkness. And the God who created Adam as his firstborn son kills the firstborn of Egypt.

The second feature of Genesis echoed in the ten plagues is God’s covenant promise to Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse” (Gen. 12:3). When Joseph was well-treated in Egypt, God blessed the Egyptians with abundant grain that was stored up to provide for them during the coming famine. Now that the Egyptians have instead dishonored the descendants of Abraham by subjecting them to harsh labor, God is cursing them. The succeeding plagues reveal a distinction between the Egyptians and the Israelites. The Israelites’ land and their livestock do not suffer harm, and theirs is the only area in Egypt that still has light with the rest of the land is plunged into darkness. In the plagues, God is revealing that he has made a covenant with Abraham and his descendants to be their God. This relationship is intended to bring blessing to all the families of the earth, but only if others bless God’s covenant people rather than dishonor them. The ultimate distinction is made in the Passover during the tenth plague, the Death of the Firstborn.

The Passover
Exodus 12:1-3 establishes the Passover as both a meal and a sign. The Israelites are to eat the Passover lamb which has been slaughtered, and the blood from the lamb is applied to their door posts and sets them apart from the Egyptians, protecting them from Yahweh’s judgment. This Passover meal is established as the Feast of Unleavened Bread as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. It is the permanent commemoration of Yahweh’s deliverance of the Israelites from the judgment of death and their being brought out of bondage in Egypt. As the Israelites eventually flee Egypt and come to Red Sea, the Egyptians pursue them. The LORD again explains that what he is about to do is so that “the Egyptians will know that I am Yahweh.” He then parts the sea so that the Israelites pass through on dry ground, but when the Egyptians try to pass through the waters come crashing down upon them. The bringing down of the parted sea upon the Egyptians is the ultimate act of un-creation—the waters cover the Egyptians by wiping out the dry land. The Pentateuch affirms that God is sovereign over the act of creation and the creation itself in all its elements. God uses un-creating acts as judgment upon his creatures. Having been delivered in a dramatic way, Moses and the Israelites sing a song of praise to Yahweh (Ex. 15:1-3). This song affirms who Yahweh is and recognizes his eternal character, his saving acts and his authority as king.

New Testament Connections
We talked in class about how the “I AM” sayings of Jesus in the gospel of John relate to his revelation of his divine nature by echoing God’s revelation of himself in Exodus. John’s gospel also more than the other gospels emphasizes Jesus’ performance of signs and wonders. John therefore concludes his gospel by saying, “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” Like the book of Exodus, John’s gospel answers the question, “Who is Yahweh?” John’s surprising answer is, “Jesus is Yahweh.”

In addition, the crucifixion of Jesus, the central redemptive event of the New Testament, is linked in various ways with the Passover, the most important redemptive event of the Old Testament. Jesus crucifixion takes place at the time of the Passover in Jerusalem, and thus the Last Supper is a Passover meal that Jesus reinstitutes as the Lord’s Supper. Finally, Jesus’ death on the cross is linked to the Passover sacrifice. John alludes to the fact that Jesus’ bones weren’t broken (Jn 19:36), identifying him as the Passover Lamb.

Paul makes this identification explicit in 1 Corinthians 5:78 where he says, “Christ our Passover has been sacrificed for us. Therefore, let us keep the feast.” These should be familiar words, since we say them to each other whenever we observe the Lord’s Supper. This then is the significance for us today of participating in the sacrament of communion: God passed over his people when he brought his judgment upon the Egyptians because of the blood of the Passover lamb. Today, God is able to forgive your sins and pass over you in judgment because of the shed blood of Christ which covers over your sins. The Lord’s Supper is a reminder that the God who delivered Israel has saved you from your sins. It is both a memorial to God’s saving work through Christ, and a means of grace by which your faith is strengthened. Jesus calls you to feast on him in celebration.

God’s saving work in the book of Exodus points to the greater reality of the ultimate saving work of Jesus Christ. Jesus didn’t deliver us from a human ruler who made our lives difficult. Jesus delivered us from our ultimate enemies, sin and death. Moses’ song in Exodus 15 says that Yahweh is a warrior who hurled horse and rider into the sea to deliver his people and give them victory. The New Testament explains how this incident from Israel’s history foreshadows what Jesus will do for his people in 1 Corinthians 15:54-57:

Then shall come to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory.’ ‘O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the one who delivers us from the guilt of sin and from the power of sin in our lives. And ultimately he will grant us victory over death when we share in his resurrection at the last day. We will be raised with him to enjoy the new heavens and the new earth with glorious transformed bodies that are no longer liable to disease or death. And so we will enjoy being in the Lord’s presence forever, free from pain and sorrow and suffering. Thanks be to God!