Exodus Bible Study

The Second Book of Moses Called Exodus
Chapter 13

The Exodus Bible Study Lesson
The Exodus From Egypt Explained

It's so good to have you back again to find out what happens next as the children of Israel begin their exodus from Egypt. We learned about the unleavened bread and a little bit about the Passover celebration that God told the Hebrews to observe each year, and now it's time for another Daily Bread Stick!

When God told Moses how He wanted Passover to be celebrated each year by the Hebrews, He said, This month will be the first month of the year to you (Exodus 12:2). Now that wasn't in January. In Hebrew, it's called Abib. The Hebrew calendar has 360 days in the year. Over the centuries mankind (not God) has found it necessary to create a calendar for their own convenience and have disregarded the plan that the creator of time had in mind. The "new and improved" calendar has even been changed a number of times and it seems that because nobody knows the exact calculations of when one calendar was retired and another implemented, it makes it very difficult to figure some things out concerning dates.

The Exodus Bible Study Prophecy
The Exodus From Egypt Timeline

This much, we do know ... The current calendar that we use has 365 days in a year. Over a period of 6000 years, which is an approximation of how long it's been since the creation of man, you can understand why adding 5 days per year to God's time clock of 360 days/year would cause the seasons to be out of place.

Now many say that it was necessary to "adjust" God's calendar because of the moon or some such reason. Do you think "Father Time" didn't consider those things when He created the world? Does He not know everything? He does. This is just an example of how man can never, no matter how smart he thinks he is, improve what God has done (1 Corinthians 1:25).

Now, back to our story. The Lord said to Moses, Sanctify unto me all the firstborn, among the children of Israel, both of man and of beast: it is mine. What does that mean ... Sanctify? Sanctify means to set apart for a sacred purpose. It also means to free from sin or to purify. Moses will explain this better in just a moment.

The Exodus Bible Study Questions
The Exodus From Egypt Answers

Moses spoke to the people and told them again about keeping the service of the Passover and the unleavened bread. He told them to pass this on to their children and when their children ask why, to tell them it's because of the greatness of the Lord when He brought the children of Israel out of Egypt.

Moses' way of relating to the Hebrews, what God said, was just so awesome. Here is an example of that, concerning Passover. "And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the Lord's law may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath the Lord brought thee out of Egypt. Thou shalt therefore keep this ordinance in His season from year to year."

Moses then explained in detail about sanctifying the firstborn. God saved the firstborn of the Israelites during the Passover, so every firstborn belongs to Him. Of every firstborn that comes from a beast, the males are the Lord's. They must be sacrificed to God. Every firstborn mule should be substituted with a lamb to sacrifice, and if they didn't, the mule's neck must be broken. Of course, God didn't want them to kill the children as a sacrifice to him, as the lambs are but for every firstborn child a sacrifice must be made. Leviticus 12:6-8 explains that a firstling lamb and a young pigeon or turtledove was redeemed for the child and offered to God, but if a lamb couldn't be given, then two turtledoves or two pigeons would be offered.

The Exodus Bible Study Research
The Exodus From Egypt Events

Now when Pharaoh let the people go, God didn't lead them through the land of the Philistines even though it was the shortest route. God thought that if the Hebrews saw war there they would regret and return to Egypt. Instead, God led the people through the way of the wilderness of the Red Sea and they went out of the land of Egypt armed.

Listen to this. This shows the integrity that the man of Moses possessed. When he left Egypt, Moses took the bones of Joseph (Jacob's son) with him because before Joseph died, he made an oath with his children saying that God would surely come to visit (help) them and "ye shall carry up my bones from hence." (Genesis 50:25) You may remember that, and think, "That is so considerate of him," but when you think of the responsibility that Moses had on his shoulders and to do all that it involved to exhume and transport a man's bones who died over 400 years past, is truly admirable.

They left Succoth and camped in Etham at the edge of the wilderness. The Lord led the way in front of them in a pillar of a cloud and by night in a pillar of fire so they could travel day and night.

The Exodus Bible Study Summary
The Exodus From Egypt Conclusion

Just imagine it. You are with 600,000 of your relatives and people. You've just been freed from slavery that your family and people have endured for 430 years. You have taken the Egyptians riches with you and you're on your way to the Promised Land with the Lord leading the way in front of you in a cloud by day and fire by night. You have no food except unleavened bread. You're about to follow an 80 year old man who is going to take you (on foot) about 600 miles. It's quite a scenario.

If you hadn't seen the wonders that God performed in Egypt with your own eyes, you might be thinking about finding a new travel agent, but with bricks and no straw on the one hand, and a land flowing with milk and honey on the other, traveling with God looks like the definite choice to make.

Let's continue following Moses and the children of Israel as they travel through the wilderness in our next Daily Bread.