Exodus - Chapters 1-4

In chapters 1-4 of Exodus, we learn about the birth and calling of Moses. Exodus is the second book of the Pentateuch, also known as the Torah or the books of Moses. Joseph's family moves to Egypt due to a famine, and they prosper there. However, a new king who does not know about Joseph comes to power and oppresses the Israelites. The king orders the Hebrew midwives to kill the baby boys, but they disobey. Moses is born and hidden in a basket in the Nile, where he is found by Pharaoh's daughter and raised as her own. When Moses grows up, he defends a Hebrew and kills an Egyptian, so he flees to Midian. There, he meets the priest's daughters and marries one of them. Meanwhile, the Israelites cry out to God and he remembers his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God appears to Moses in a burning bush and tells him to go to Pharaoh and lead I am Julie Callio, your host, and thanks so much for taking time out of your busy schedules to tune in with me today. If by chance you want to contact me, you can do that at dab.bc.pc at gmail.com. Today with chapters 1 through 4 of Exodus, we are covering the birth and calling of Moses. Exodus is the second book of the Pentateuch, which means five scrolls, and it can also be called the Torah or the Torah, which is Hebrew for law. It can also be called the books of the law or the books of Moses, because it is believed that Moses wrote them. Jesus also suggested that Moses was the author in Matthew chapter 8 verse 4 and in Mark chapter 7 verse 10. The word Exodus comes from the Greek version of the Old Testament, which is called the Septuagint, and it means to go out or departure, or in my mind, exit. Dr. Bett said the key word for Exodus is deliverance. Genesis is beginnings. It was the beginning of the world, the beginning of humanity, the beginning of sin, the beginning of nations, and then in particular, the beginning of the Israelite nation, whose patriarchs were Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel. It is Israel's 12 sons who became the 12 tribes of Israel. Joseph was one of those sons, and even though his brothers sold him into slavery for evil, God meant it for good, Genesis chapter 50 verse 19, in order to save lives. There was a severe famine in the land, but God revealed it to Joseph, and Pharaoh placed Joseph in charge. The famine was severe in Canaan as well, and this brought Jacob and his family to Egypt. This begins with naming the sons of Jacob, and in chapter 1 verse 5, we learn that the number of Israelites who came to Egypt were 70 in all, including Joseph, who was already there. We learn in verses 6 and 7 that Joseph and this generation died, but the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied, so Egypt was full of them. When Jacob, who was in the land that God had promised him and his descendants, was heading to Egypt, he stopped off at Beersheba, which was where Abraham had dug a well and planted a tamarisk tree, and Isaac had built an altar and dug a well, and God spoke to Jacob here too. In chapter 46 verses 1-4 of Genesis, Jacob offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac, and God spoke to Israel in a vision at night and said, Jacob, Jacob, here I am, and he replied, I am God, the God of your father, he said, do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you a great nation there, I will go down to Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again, and Joseph's own hand will close your eyes. We learn that Joseph explained to his brothers and to Pharaoh that his family were shepherds, so they were allowed to live in Goshen, which was the best part of the land, Genesis chapter 47 verse 11. As the famine became even more severe in Genesis 47, we read that the Egyptians gave all their money to Pharaoh for food, then all of their livestock for food, and then they even sold their land and themselves for food, and then Joseph would give them seed, but the people had to give Pharaoh one-fifth of their crops, and they still declared that Joseph had saved their lives. It seems that Joseph did protect his family by placing them in an area where they could prosper, and they did, even in the midst of difficult times. Now verse 8 of Exodus 1 reads, Then a new king, who had not known about Joseph, came to power in Egypt. Look, he said to his people, the Israelites have become much too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them, or they will become even more numerous, and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us, and leave the country. This began the oppression of the Jews. Verse 12, But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread. As the oppression increased, then the king told the Hebrew midwives to kill the baby boys so that the girls could live. Verse 17 reads, The midwives, however, feared God, and did not do what the king of Egypt told them to do. They let the boys live. Ladies, this gives us an example of when authorities tell us to do something that disobeys God's directives, we are to obey God over the ungodly authority. We find in verse 20, And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own. Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people, Every boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live. Chapter 1 verse 22 In chapter 2 we find a Levite man and woman who gave birth to a son. They hid him until they could no longer do so, and then she made a basket of papyrus, the King James Version calls it an ark, and coated it with tar and pitch, and placed it among the bank of the Nile. His sister watched from a distance. Pharaoh's daughter had gone there to bathe, saw the basket, opened it, saw the baby, heard him cry, and then she felt sorry for him, for she knew he was a Hebrew baby. At this time the sister asked, Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you? Verse 7 Yes was the answer, so the daughter got the mother, and Pharaoh's daughter paid her to nurse her own baby. Pharaoh's daughter named the baby Moses, because she drew him out of the water. The word Moses sounds like the Hebrew word for draw out. In the New Testament book of Hebrews chapter 11 verse 23 the writer said, By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king's edict. By faith in God these parents acted. Exodus chapter 2 verse 11 shows us the young man Moses. We see here that Moses went to where his own people were, and that he had a heart for his people and their suffering. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, so Moses looked around, saw no one, stepped in and fought for the Hebrew and killed the Egyptian. Verse 13 tells us that the next day he went looking at his people, and this time it was two Hebrews fighting. So Moses stepped in again and tried to reason with them, reminding them that they are of the same people group. In verse 14 the man said, Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you did the Egyptian? At this Moses knew his actions were known, and that Pharaoh would find out. Moses ran for his life. He went to Midian, and verse 15 tells us that he sat down by a well. So far in Genesis we have seen a couple of things about wells. The first is that where there is water there is life, so the digging of wells and having water was essential to live. The second thing we have seen is wells are where the men of God have met their women. Isaac's servant found Rebekah at the well, Genesis chapter 24. Jacob met Rachel at a well, Genesis 29. And now Moses met the seven daughters of the priest of Midian at a well, Exodus 2. In this story some shepherds drove the ladies away, but Moses came to the rescue and watered their flock. This is now the third instance of Moses coming to the rescue. When the girls got home their dad asked, how did they get done so fast? And they told him about an Egyptian that came to rescue them and draw water for them and the flock. Where is this guy dad asked, and they had left him there. The father sent the girls to go get him, and he stayed with them. He ended up marrying one of the daughters, Zipporah, and they had a boy named Gershom, which sounds like the Hebrew for an alien here. As Moses said, I have become an alien in a foreign land. It's interesting that that is what Abraham was as well, and it's possible that that's what the word Hebrew means. Verses 23-25 say, During that long period the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help because of their slavery went up to God. God heard their groaning, and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them. Derek Kidner said, When the Old Testament says God remembered, it combines the idea of faithful love and timely intervention. Ladies, keep in mind that God's timing is absolutely perfect. Chapter 3 begins that timely intervention. Moses was tending the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. He came to Horeb, the mountain of God. Here is the story of the burning bush where it was not consumed. This was strange, so Moses went to investigate, and verse 4 says, When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, Moses, Moses, and Moses said, Here I am. Do you remember what God said to Jacob when he was about to leave the promised land in Genesis chapter 46 verse 2, Jacob, Jacob, and he replied, Here I am. Now there are different views as to the timeline of the exodus, and who was Pharaoh, and I don't waste my time arguing such things, but it is safe to say that there has been about a 250 to 300 years of silence by God, but it is interesting that the last recorded words by God with Jacob in Genesis are the first recorded words by God with Moses in Exodus. God is keeping his word, and how thankful that both men answered the Lord, Here I am. Moses was to take off his shoes because he was standing on holy ground. The Lord said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Each of the patriarchs had their own faith, and it is not inherited by their parents. Moses hid his faith. The Lord told Moses that he had seen the misery of his people, and he plans to rescue them by sending them Moses. Moses asked in verse 11, Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt? The Lord said he would be with them. Moses asked in verse 13, Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name? Then what shall I tell them? God said to Moses in verse 14, I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites. I am has sent me to you. Now it seems that there are a few meanings to this I am. The first is that God is always present tense. Right now, God is. He is beyond time. Second, according to my ESV study Bible, he is self-existent and therefore is not dependent upon anything or anyone else. Third, he is the creator and sustainer of all that exists. Fourth, he does not change. And fifth, he is eternal. This statement ties into the New Testament gospel of John because John focuses on the I am statements of Jesus. And in John chapter 8 verse 58, Jesus was talking with the Jews and he said, I tell you the truth, before Abraham was born, I am. John is showing us that Jesus is also this God that is speaking to Moses. My pastor said that I am also means that I am everything that you need. God explained to Moses that he was to go to Egypt, assemble the Jewish elders, and after they listened, then he was to go to the king of Egypt. Chapter 4, Moses asked another question. What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, the Lord did not appear to you? To this question, the Lord gives Moses different signs. First, Moses threw his staff on the ground and it became a snake. Moses was commanded to pick up the snake by the tail, which is usually a no-no because the snake can come around and bite you, but he obeyed and it became a staff again. Second, he put his hand in his cloak and it became leprous, then he was commanded to do it again and it was restored. Third, he was to take water from the Nile River and pour it on dry ground and it would become blood. Moses then said, O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past, nor since you have spoken to your servant, I am slow to speech and tongue. The Lord said, I will help you speak and teach you what to say. Then in verse 13, Moses said, O Lord, please send someone else to do it. This brought the Lord's anger and yet the Lord showed grace and allowed Moses' brother Aaron to come and be his mouthpiece. But Moses was still to take the staff and be the one who performed miraculous signs. Moses went back to his father-in-law and then he was sent in peace to go. Verse 20 reads, So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey, and started back to Egypt, and he took the staff of God in his hand. Moses' staff had now become the staff of God. Now Moses' sons were not circumcised as was the sign of the covenant of God with Abraham in Genesis chapter 17. Moses' wife circumcised their sons and touched Moses' feet with it and this spared Moses' wife. The Lord had sent Aaron to go and meet Moses and then Moses told him all that the Lord had said. They went to Egypt, brought all the elders of the Israelites together and told them what the Lord had said. And chapter 4 ends with verse 31, And they believed, and when they heard that the Lord was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshipped. So let me ask you ladies, God is speaking, but do you hear him? Are you saying like Moses and Jacob? Here I am. Or are you saying what Moses said, please send someone else? Do you have something in your hand that you are not willing to let go and give to God? Or are you willing to throw it down and see what God will do with it? Do you know that God sees you and cares for you? And the fact that you are listening to this podcast today is proof that the Lord is concerned for you. Will you bow down and worship him? If you hear his voice today, please oh please don't harden your heart. Instead, let's be women who hear God and obey. Until next time and thanks so much for listening.