Jesus in Exodus

Genesis ends with Jacob’s family moving to Egypt and thriving under the protection of Jacob’s son, Joseph’s, protection. Exodus picks up with a new king in Egypt who knows nothing of Joseph and how he, under God’s direction and provision, saved Egypt from famine. The descendants of Jacob/Israel (called the Israelites) have grown extremely numerous. This new king feels threatened by them and oppresses them with forced, harsh slave labor.

God raises up and calls a deliverer for His people, the Israelites. The man under God’s providence was saved from death (as all Israelite newborn boys were directed to be killed), raised in the home of Pharaoh, then banished to the wilderness for 40 years to escape the wrath of a murder he committed. He was raised in the Pharaoh’s home and learned to survive in the wilderness. Two things that would serve useful for his calling.

Moses remains the main character in Exodus. He is the one called to deliver the Israelites from slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land set apart for them. I see a foreshadowing of you as our perfect deliverer whose life, death, and resurrection ushers all who believe into the promised land of eternity with Him.

Pharaoh is stubborn and unwilling to let his free labor go when Moses presents his requests. God displays His power though a series of plagues to convince Pharaoh – the Nile water is turned to blood, frogs literally everywhere, gnats in all the land, swarms of flies, death of livestock, boils breaking out on man and beast, heavy hail, locusts covering the face of the land, complete darkness for three days.

Pharaoh digs in his heels. He won’t let them go. The tenth plague will be devastating. They are warned. Every firstborn in the land of Egypt will die. God tells Moses that Pharaoh won’t listen. His heart is hardened, but through it God’s wonders will be multiplied.

God instructs the Israelites to take and kill a male lamb without blemish. They are to take some of the blood from the lamb and put it on the two doorposts around their houses.

In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord's Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. ¹³ The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt. Exodus 12:11-13

As promised, the angel of death shows up. All firstborn sons – including livestock – are struck dead. All the houses with the blood over the doorposts are passed over. You better believe Pharaoh lets them go. And sends them on their way with gifts. They plundered Egypt on the way out…gold, silver, clothing. God provides for their journey.

This is the beginning of the Passover celebration.  The “last supper” celebration that you will participate in with with your disciples just before you become the ultimate lamb without blemish sacrificed to save us all.

This is a taste of what is to come. We are hopeless in our mess and pride and disobedience, but God provides a way out for us. God loves us so much, He wants to save us from the death and destruction that is sure to come when we dig in our heels, harden our hearts, and insist on doing things our own way. He wants us to be “passed over” from death and instead have eternal life with Him.