[And He Walks With Me] Exodus 1
1-6 The opening verses of Exodus make clear that this is a continuation of the Genesis account. That account followed the human race from its origins to the descendants of Abraham, highlighting God’s relationship with them and actions on their behalf. In Genesis 46:27, Jacob and his seventy descendants went to Egypt to join Joseph. In fact, this connection is made clear in that the first six words of Exodus 1:1 are the exact same as the first six words of Genesis 46:8.[1] In the final verse of Genesis, Joseph died. Now, the account continues.
1 In this verse, Egypt is a critical clue to the historical, culturally, political, and geographical contexts of Exodus. Geographically, the nation was located in the northeastern corner of the African continent. Its population was concentrated along the Nile River and could be divided into Upper Egypt in the higher elevations to the south and Lower Egypt on the Nile delta in the north. The Nile River guaranteed a constant water supply which enabled them to have plentiful food even during times of drought, and many neighbors became dependent on Egypt for survival, especially during famines. This allowed them to exert significant influence throughout the Ancient Near East and opened the door for them to grow into the world’s first superpower even as their neighbors were largely nomadic herdsmen.
There is ample evidence that the nomadic peoples living throughout the Ancient Near East were frequent visitors to Egypt as they searched for better pastures for their flocks and herds. The Egyptians called these visitors shasu, and archaeologists have found records of at least one large group of Bedouins (i.e., not Israelites) passing through the border fortress at Tjeku c. 1200 BCE.
2-4 The sons of Jacob are listed according to their mothers rather than birth order. Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun were all sons of Leah. Benjamin was the son of Rachel. (Joseph is excluded from this list because he was already in Egypt (5).) Dan and Naphtali were the sons of Rachel’s slave Bilhah, and Gad and Asher were the sons of Leah’s slave Zilpah. See Genesis 35:23-26.
5 By the time Jacob’s family arrived in Egypt, each of these sons was grown, and several already had families of their own. Thus, the total number of Jacob’s descendants was seventy. It is almost certain, however, that the household included a number of servants and their families, thus making Jacob’s footprint much larger than seventy. All this explains why Israel was able to grow into such a large number of people during their time in Egypt.
6-7 The book of Genesis was characterized by large time jumps, each of which was marked by a genealogy. The centerpiece of these genealogies was Abraham. Consequently, they remained relatively focused and concise. At the beginning of Exodus, however, we have one more time jump to what was, for Moses, recent events for the current generation. This time jump does not include a genealogy because the descendants of Abraham were now blossoming into a full family tree with myriad branches shooting off that main trunk. Thus, there is no detailed, extended genealogy. Rather, the author trusted that his readers could now recount their own family records to trace their lineage back to the tree.
7 That the Israelites were fruitful, multiplied, and filled the land indicated that the descendants of Abraham were at least on their way to fulfilling humanity’s original mandate to be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it (Genesis 1:28).[2] That is, despite the original sin of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3), the rejection of God by all the people (Genesis 6), and the turbulent obedience of Abraham’s line, there were still some faithful, and God was still blessing.
8 The Egyptian empire thrived for approximately 3,000 years before it was folded into the Roman Empire in 30 BCE. Modern archaeologists divide this into nine periods and a total of 33 distinct dynasties. The shift between these periods and dynasties was often marked by chaos and upheaval as the remnants of the former period or dynasty were supplanted by the new. Consequently, it is not surprising that a new king would rise and not know about Joseph. Regardless of how one dates the exodus, the time between Joseph and Moses included at least one of these seismic transitions and possibly two. The transition from the Second Intermediate Period (c. 1800-1550 BCE) to the New Kingdom (c. 1550 – 1075 BCE) was especially turbulent as the rulers of the former were foreigners, and after expelling them from the kingdom, the new dynasty rejected anyone and anything associated with their predecessors.[3]
Memory is a two-edged sword. On the one hand, remembering the past allows one to learn key lessons and honor established relationships. On the other, it can lead one to cling for too long to a status quo that prevents growth and advancement. As in many things, the trick is to find a balance between these extremes.
9-10 The same increase which was interpreted by the Hebrews as the fulfillment of God’s mandate and outpouring of God’s blessing was perceived as a threat by the new king. Often, the same events and circumstances are seen by different groups of people, and especially by the godly and the ungodly, in ways that are diametrically opposed to each other.
11 Pithom is probably the Hebrew translation of the Egyptian phrase meaning “House of Atum” (i.e., one of the Egyptian deities). Scholars suggest it may refer to Tell el-Retabeh, a key military installation on the kingdom’s eastern border during the reign of Rameses II.[4]
Rameses refers to modern Tell ed-Dab’a in the eastern portion of the Nile River Delta. Almost certainly named for Pharaoh Rameses II, who reigned throughout the mid-thirteenth century BCE, it is the site of both the most extensive building projects in Egyptian history and a large Semitic settlement.[5]
12 The growth and expansion of the Israelites in spite of Egyptian oppression is one example of one of history’s greatest ironies. Adversity often compels groups to solidify their identity, clarify their priorities, and intensify their efforts. Consequently, the short-term losses caused by the adversity often become long-term gains. Moreover, God often uses disruptions such as adversity to demonstrate his power and catapult our faith and progress forward.
The Hebrew word for dread (CSB) can alternatively be translated grieved (KJV), disgusted, made anxious by, or loathed.[6] Bullies are almost always driven by such things. They either loathe their victim, or they are terrified of what will happen to them if their victim becomes greater than they are. In fact, many bullies are driven by an underdeveloped sense of self-worth which can be upset by even the slightest criticism or perception of weakness.
13-14 Exactly how much time passed between the Egyptians’ decision to deal shrewdly with the Israelites and the actual enslavement of the Israelites is a matter of some debate.
15-21 The Hebrew midwives were two of the most educated people in the community.[7] Also, because two women likely could not serve all of the pregnant Israelite women, it is most likely they were the leaders of a much larger organization of midwives.[8] Moreover, the faith and courage of these women is made clear when they defied the pharaoh’s command to kill the sons born to Israelite women because they feared God more than the threat of pharaoh. It is difficult to assess the veracity of the claim that the Hebrew women give birth before the midwife can get to them. If there really were only two midwives serving the entire Hebrew population, this may well have been true. However, the midwives may also have intentionally delayed their arrival until after the baby was born so they could circumvent the king’s decree. Perhaps they sent others with instructions to act as proxies. Alternatively, it is plausible that they were present for the delivery, refused to kill the baby, and simply lied to pharaoh altogether. At any rate, the result of their courageous defiance was that the people multiplied and became very numerous despite the oppression. Consequently, pharaoh was compelled to issue the order, which was so grotesque he gave it initially only to the Hebrew midwives (15), publicly to all his people (22).
[1] Durham, 3
[2] Livingston 1995, Kindle Loc 3008
[3] Livingston 1995, Kindle Loc 3008
[4] Keener and Zondervan 2016, Exodus 1:11
[5] Keener and Zondervan 2016, Exodus 1:11
[6] “H6973 – qûṣ – Strong’s Hebrew Lexicon (KJV)”, n.d.
[7] Vos 1999, 521
[8] Livingston 1995, Kindle Loc 3037