EXODUS –LESSON 21
LEARN: Proverbs 3:3-6
3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
4 So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.
5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
READ: Exodus 12:51- 13:22
1. On what day did the LORD give Moses the command to sanctify the firstborn of all the males? 12:51
2. Define sanctify according to verse 2 and 12.
3. What specifics are given to carefully explain exactly what is meant by this designation of “firstborn”? vv 2, 12
4. In verse 2, it is the LORD giving instruction to Moses. In verse 3 we go to what Moses said to the people. What is the key word? What are the two specific things they are to remember? What is not to be done as they commemorate this event?
NOTE: Verse 5 tells us that the Israelites came out in the month of Abib. In Hebrew “ab” means “greenness,” and “abib” means “green ears of corn.”
5. Whose land was the LORD going to give to the children of Israel? v 5
6. What other tribe is not mentioned here that is listed in Exodus 3:8, 17
7. When did the LORD promise this land to the “fathers” of the nation of Israel? Genesis 14 and 15 especially note Genesis 14:14, 18, 19; 15:1, 2, 17, 18.
8. According to Exodus 12:40 (plus the 40 years from the Exodus until entering the land under Joshua), how long did the LORD take from the last confirmation of his promise to the fathers of Israel until finally bringing it to pass?
9. Use what you have learned of God’s timing concerning the amount of time which it took to finally see the realization of God’s promise to the fathers to teach how we should regard God’s promises of his future coming to judge and to set up his kingdom. Also see II Peter 3:8-13.
10. “Thou shalt keep this service” was previously given in the same words to the elders, but now it was given to the whole nation. What is this service called and what does it involve? vv 5-7
11. What are the people to do as they keep the service? v 8
12. What idea might a reader assume upon the reading of verse 9?
Note: There can be no doubt that the Jewish system of tephillin, or “phylacteries,” grew mainly out of this passage, and was intended as a fulfillment of the commands contained in it. The tephillin were strips of parchment with passages of Scripture written upon them and deposited in small boxes, which were fastened by a strap either to the left arm, or across the forehead. The Jews argue that they were what Moses intended, and that their employment began from this time. Some Christians agree, but the great majority argue, from the entire absence of any reference to the actual wearing of tephillin in the Old Testament, that the custom appeared later. It is generally supposed to have originated with other superstitious practices, in the time of the Babylonian captivity. PULPIT COMMENTARY Genesis Exodus, p. 299
13. What do the following verses say that may help decide whether verse 9 should be taken literally or metaphorically? Proverbs 3:3; 6:21; 7:3 See also Deuteronomy 6:8, 9.
14. Whether to be worn literally or not, what was the reason for keeping the words of the of what had done on their hand and between their eyes? v 9
15. Will the actual presence of words written down and carried upon one’s body bring about the right attitude towards the LORD? Explain. Use scripture.
16. In verse 12 they are reminded again that all first born males, whether of man or of the animals belonged to the LORD. What specific instructions are given concerning the firstborn in verse 13?
NOTE: The ass was the sole beast of burden taken by the Israelites out of Egypt. (See Exodus 20:17.) Neither the horse no the camel was among their possessions in the wilderness. This is agreeable to the Egyptian monuments, by which the camel appears to have been rare in Egypt at this time, and the horse as yet mainly used for war and by the nobles in their chariots. PULPIT COMMENTARY Genesis Exodus, p. 300
17. According to Numbers 3:46, 47, what was the price of redeeming a firstborn son?
18. What is the clear answer to be given in the future when a man’s son asks him why he sacrifices the firstborn of the cattle, but redeems the firstborn of his sons, and also of the ass? vv 14, 15
NOTE: Verse 16 again speaks of a token written upon the hand and for frontlets between the eyes. It is the custom among the Jews to write this entire passage- Exodus 13:1-16- on two of the four strips of parchment contained in the tephillin. The others have inscribed on them Deuteronomy 6:4-9, and Deuteronomy 11:13-21. PULPIT COMMENTARY Genesis Exodus p. 300.
19. What route did the LORD direct Moses to take the children of Israel, even though it was not the route that usually would have been taken when going to Canaan? vv 17, 18
20. Why did the LORD send them a different way? v 17
NOTE: Kalisch shows the wisdom of this course-how it gave time for the nation to be “gradually accustomed to fatigues and hardships by a long and tiresome march in the desert” to learn obedience to their chief- and finally to be “trained to military discipline and martial virtue by occasional expeditions against the weaker tribes of the desert.” PULPIT COMMENTARY Genesis Exodus, p. 306
21. What specific thing did Moses take with him on the journey out of Egypt and to the “Promised Land?” v 19
22. When Joseph had commanded way back at the beginning of the time of Israel in Egypt that his bones be carried back to Canaan, what was he declaring? Hebrews 11:22; Genesis 50:24, 25
23. The generals of the ancient armies often showed their leadership by use of smoke and fire. How did the LORD show the Israelites where they were to go and when they were to stop or start? vv 21, 22
24. The smoke and fire that human leaders would use, would have been nothing compared to God’s pillar, which stretched high so the 2 million Israelites could all see. How long did the LORD provide his guidance to the nation in this way?Nehemiah 9:19
25. According to I Corinthians 10:1-4, who was traveling with Israel, guiding them, and providing all their needs? Also see Exodus 17:5, 6.