YOU CAN UNDERSTAND THE BIBLE! The Exodus of Israel from Egypt: God Fulfills His Promise to Abraham Exodus 1-24; 32-34; 35 BOB UTLEY PROFESSOR OF HERMENEUTICS (BIBLE INTERPRETATION) STUDY GUIDE COMMENTARY SERIES OLD TESTAMENT, VOL. 2A BIBLE LESSONS INTERNATIONAL MARSHALL, TEXAS 2014 www.BibleLessonsIntl.com www.freebiblecommentary.org Copyright ©2014 by Bible Lessons International, Marshall, Texas All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any way or by any means without the written permission of the publisher. Bible Lessons International P. O. Box 1289 Marshall, TX 75671-1289 1-800-785-1005 ISBN 978-1-892691-29-3 The primary biblical text used in this commentary is: New American Standard Bible (Update, 1995) Copyright ©1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation P. O. Box 2279 La Habra, CA 90632-2279 The paragraph divisions and summary captions as well as selected phrases are from: 1. The New King James Version, Copyright ©1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 2. The New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Copyright ©1989 by the Division of Christian Education of National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U. S. A. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 3. Today’s English Version is used by permission of the copyright owner, The American Bible Society, ©1966, 1971. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 4. The New Jerusalem Bible, copyright ©1990 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd. and Doubleday, a division of Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. FREE BIBLE COMMENTARY YOU CAN UNDERSTAND THE BIBLE! THE EXODUS OF ISRAEL FROM EGYPT: GOD FULFILLS HIS PROMISE TO ABRAHAM By Dr. Bob Utley, retired professor of hermeneutics (biblical interpretation) TABLE OF CONTENTS Brief Explanations of the Technical Resources used in this Commentary Brief Definitions of Hebrew Verbal Forms that Impact Exegesis Abbreviations Used in this Commentary A Word from the Author: How Can this Commentary Help You? A Guide to Good Bible Reading: A Personal Search for Verifiable Truth The Old Testament As History OT Historiography Compared with Contemporary Near Eastern Cultures Genre and Interpretation: Old Testament Narrative Commentary INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS I. NAME OF THE BOOK A. In Hebrew (MT) it is the first phrase of the book, “and these are the words (names),” which links the book of Exodus to Genesis, where the very same words appear in Gen. 46:8. B. In the LXX translation it is ek ‘odos which means “a way out” or “a road out.” C. In the Latin Vulgate of Jerome it becomes “exodus.” II. CANONIZATION A. It is part of the first section of the Hebrew Canon called “The Torah” or “teachings” or “Law.” B. The section is known as the Pentateuch (five scrolls) in the LXX. C. It is sometimes called “The Five Books of Moses” in English. D. It includes a continuous historical account by Moses, from creation through Moses’ life, Genesis - Deuteronomy. III. GENRE – The book of Exodus includes four literary genres. A. Historical narrative, Exodus 1-19; 24; 32-34 B. Poetry, Exodus 15 C. Law, Exodus 20-23 D. Specifications for the Tabernacle, Exodus 25-31, and its construction, Exodus 35-40 IV. AUTHORSHIP A. The Torah is one unified account. Exodus starts with the CONJUNCTION “and.” See lengthy discussion in Genesis online (www.freebiblecommentary.org). B. There are several places in Exodus where it says that Moses wrote: 1. Exod. 17:14 2. Exod. 24:4, 12 3. Exod. 34:27, 28 C. Joshua 8:31 quotes Exodus 20:25 and attributes it to Moses. Jesus quotes Exod. 20:12,17 and attributes it to Moses, Mark 7:10. 1 D. I have been so impressed by a new book that presents the orality of the ANE culture. I think it will solve many of the issues related to authorship and manuscript variants. It is by John H. Walton and D. Brent Sandy, The Lost World of Scripture. V. DATE OF THE EXODUS A. There have been several scholarly opinions on the date of the Exodus: 1. from I Kings 6:1, which says, “480 years from the Exodus to the building of Solomon’s Temple” (see Archer, Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties, pp. 191-198). a. Solomon’s reign began in 970 B.C. This is figured by using the battle of Qarqar (853 B.C.) as a certain starting date. b. The Temple was built in his fourth year (965 B.C.), then the Exodus occurred about 1445/6 B.C. ±. 2. This would make it occur in the 18th Egyptian Dynasty. a. The Pharaoh of the oppression would be Thutmose III (1490-1436 B.C.). b. The Pharaoh of the Exodus would be Amenhotep II (1436-1407 B.C.). (1) Some believe evidence from Jericho based on the fact that no diplomatic correspondence occurred between Jericho and Egypt during the reign of Amenhotep III (1413-1377 B.C.). (2) The Amarna texts record diplomatic correspondence written on ostraca about the Habiru over-running the land of Canaan in the reign of Amenhotep III. Therefore, the Exodus would have occurred in the reign of Amenhotep II. (3) The period of the Judges is not long enough if the 13th century (i.e., 1290 B.C.) is the date of Exodus. 3. The possible problems with these dates are: a. The Septuagint (LXX) has 440 years not 480. b. It is possible that 480 years is representative of 12 generations of 40 years each, therefore, a figurative number. c. There are 12 generations of priests from Aaron to Solomon (cf. I Chronicles 6), then 12 from Solomon to the Second Temple. The Jews, like the Greeks, reckoned a generation as forty years. So, there is a 480 year period back and forward (symbolic use of numbers, cf. Bimson’s Redating the Exodus and Conquest). 4. There are three other texts that mention dates: a. Genesis 15:13,16 (cf. Acts 7:6), 400 years of bondage b. Exodus 12:40-41 (cf. Gal. 3:17) (1) MT – 430 years of sojourn in Egypt (2) LXX – 215 years of sojourn in Egypt c. Judges 11:26 – 300 years between Jephthah’s day and the conquest (supports 1445 date) d. Acts 13:19, exodus, wanderings, and conquest – 450 years 5. The author of Kings used specific historical references and did not round numbers (Edwin Thiele, A Chronology of the Hebrew Kings, pp. 83-85). B. The tentative evidence from archaeology seems to point toward a date of 1290 B.C., or the 19th Egyptian Dynasty. 1. Joseph was able to visit his father and Pharaoh in the same day (i.e., Exod. 2:1-10). The first native Pharaoh who moved the capital of Egypt from Thebes back to the Nile Delta, to a place called Avaris/Zoan/Tanis which was the old Hyksos capital, was Seti I (1309-1290). He would be the Pharaoh of the oppression. 2 a. This seems to fit two pieces of information about the Hyksos reign of Egypt. (1) A stele has been found from the time of Rameses II that commemorates the founding of Avaris four hundred years earlier (1700's B.C. by the Hyksos) (2) The prophecy of Genesis 15:13 speaks of a 400 year oppression b. This implies that Joseph’s rise to power was under a Hyksos (Semitic) Pharaoh. The new Egyptian dynasty is referred to in Exod. 1:8 (i.e., “now a new Pharaoh arose over Egypt”). 2. The Hyksos, an Egyptian word meaning “rulers of foreign lands,” were a group of non- Egyptian Semitic rulers. They controlled Egypt during the 15th and 16th Dynasties (1720- 1570 B.C.). Some want to relate them to Joseph’s rise to power. If we subtract the 430 years of Exod. 12:40 from 1720 B.C., we get a date of about 1290 B.C. 3. Seti I’s son was Rameses II (1290-1224). This name is mentioned as one of the store cities built by the Hebrew slaves, Exod. 1:11. Also this same district in Egypt near Goshen is called Rameses, Gen. 47:11. Avaris/Zoan/Tanis was known as “House of Rameses” from 1300-1100 B.C. 4. Thutmoses III was known as a great builder, as was Rameses II. 5. Rameses II had 47 daughters living in separate palaces. 6. Archaeology has shown that most of the large walled cities of Canaan (Hazor, Debir, Lachish) were destroyed and rapidly rebuilt around 1250 B.C. In allowing for a 38 year wilderness wandering period this fits a date of 1290 B.C. 7. Archaeology has found a reference to the Israelis being in southern Canaan on a memorial stele of Rameses’ successor Merneptah (1224-1214 B.C. [cf. The Stele of Merneptah, dated 1220 B.C.]). 8. Edom and Moab seem to have attained strong national identity in the late 1300's B.C. These countries were not organized in the 15th century (Glueck). 9. The book entitled Redating the Exodus and Conquest by John J. Bimson, published by the University of Sheffield, 1978, argues against all of the archaeological evidence for an early date. C. There is a new theory popularized on the History channel, called “The Exodus Decoded,” which basically asserts that the Pharaohs friendly to Joseph were Hyksos Kings. Josephus quotes Manetho’s history, which linked the Hyksos with the Israelites (i.e., Against Apion 1:73:7). The Hyksos controlled parts of Egypt from 1720-1570 B.C. ±. This would put the date earlier than option A. The route of the Exodus suggested would follow the coast of the Mediterranean on a highway called “the way of the Philistines.” Therefore, Mt. Sinai would be close to Kadesh-Barnea. D. Another recent theory suggests that “the darkness” and “the wave” that killed the Egyptians were caused by the volcanic eruption of Thera on the Island of Santorin, which is 500 miles northwest. The date would be 1477 B.C. This would make the Exodus slightly earlier than option A. See “Science,” 1986, which refers to evidence from Egyptologist Hans Goldicke of John Hopkins University and oceanographer Daniel Jean Stanley of the Smithsonian Institute. E. There is no mention in Egyptian records or pictographs of God’s plagues or Israel leaving. Remember, Egyptian history was for the purpose of supporting the monarchy (like Chronicles in the Bible). No negative events are recorded. 3 VI. OTHER UNCERTAINTIES RELATED TO THE EXODUS A. The number of people to leave in the Exodus is in doubt. 1. Numbers 1:46; 26:51 report that there were 600,000 men of fighting age (20-50 yrs. of age, cf. Exod. 38:26). Therefore, if one estimates women, children, and old men, a number of 1.5 to 2.5 million is possible. 2. However, the Hebrew term for thousand, eleph, can mean: a. a family or clan unit, Jos. 22:14; Jdgs. 6:15; 1 Sam. 23:23, Zech. 9:7 b. a military unit, Exod. 18:21,25; Deut. 1:15 c. a literal thousand, Gen. 20:16; Exod. 32:28 d. used symbolically, Gen. 24:60; Exod. 20:6 (Deut. 7:9); 34:7; Jer. 32:18 e. from the Ugaritic (a cognate of Semitic language), the same consonants as alluph which means “chieftain” (cf. Gen. 36:15). This would mean that for Num. 1:39 there were 60 chieftains and 2700 men from Dan. The problem comes when there are obviously too many chieftains for the number of men in some tribes. f. there is a good discussion in the NIV Study Bible, p. 186 3. Archaeology has estimated the size of the armies of Egypt and Assyria during this period in the tens of thousands. Some passages in Joshua seem to imply that Israel had an army of about 40,000, (cf. Jos. 4:13; 7:3; 8:3,11,12). B. The route of the Exodus is in doubt. 1. The location of: a. the Egyptian cities b. bodies of water c. early Hebrew camp sites are all uncertain. 2. The term “Red Sea” is literally Yam Suph (see Special Topic: Red Sea), which: a. means, “sea of weeds” or “sea of reeds.” It can refer to salt water, Jonah 2:5; 1 Kgs. 9:26 or fresh water, Exod. 2:3; Isa. 19:26. The LXX first translated it as “Red Sea,” followed by the Vulgate and then the King James Version. b. referred to the “sea to the south” or “sea at the end (of the earth).” It could have referred to the modern Red Sea, Indian Ocean, or Persian Gulf. c. had several usages in the OT (cf. Num. 33:8,10). 3. There are three possible routes involving three different bodies of water: a. A northern route – this was along the Mediterranean coast, following the commercial highway known as “the way of the Philistines.” This would have been the shortest way to the Promised Land. The body of water that they would have encountered would have been one of the shallow, marshy areas called: Lake Sirbonis or Lake Menzalch. However, one must take into account Exod. 13:17, which seems to negate this option. Also the presence of Egyptian fortresses along this route militates against this option. b. A middle route – this would involve the central lakes called: (1) “The Bitter Lakes” (2) “Lake Balah” (3) “Lake Timsah” This would also have been following a caravan route through the wilderness of Shur. c. A southern route – this would involve the large body of salt water we call the Red Sea today. There was also a caravan route from this area that linked up with the “King’s Highway” (the trans-Jordan road to Damascus) at Ezion-Geber. 4