Exodus

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Exodus, by Waldemar Janzen (Believers Church Bible Commentary)

Introduction

Relevance

Exodus is the name of the second book of the Old Testament as well as of the Torah (Pentateuch, Five Books of Moses). It means going out and was probably suggested by Exodus 19:1, where the Septuagint (LXX, the Greek translation of the Old Testament) uses exodou (Genitive: of the going out), which was also taken up by the Latin Vulgate as the name of the book Exodus. In Hebrew, this book is called šemot ("names"), following the tradition of naming biblical books by the first word, or one of the first, in the book’s opening; in this case, “These are the names of the sons of Israel” (Exodus 1:1).

Approach, Form, Style, Implied Reader

Canonical-Literary Approach. The approach taken in this article is a "canonical-literary" one. In other words, it regards the final, or canonical, text of the book to be a coherent literary unit. It studies this unit by way of literary analysis, using categories such as structure, form, character, plot, style, implied reader, and other literary aspects in search of the book's meaning(s). Since Exodus comes to us from the world of ancient Israel, however, historical, cultural, religious, legal, and other information regarding that world will often be required in the interpretive process. Further, the awareness that the present canonical text came into being through centuries of oral and written composition and transmission will also be kept in mind and will clarify some of the text's features. Form. Exodus is a complex book. Its framework is prose narrative. Into it are inserted: (1) One longer poetic text (the Song of the Sea, 15:1-18). (2) Two distinct law codes plus additional laws, the Ten Commandments, 20:1-17, and the Book of the Covenant, 20:22--23:33; the laws of Passover and Firstborn, 12--13; and the covenant renewal laws, 34:11-26. (3) A long account of Divine instruction to Moses for building the tabernacle (25--31). These inclusions, however, do not stand apart as separate blocks of material interrupting the flow of the narrative, but have been incorporated into it and are firmly anchored in it.

Narrative Style. The strictly narrative sections vary greatly in style. The stylistic variations become clear when we compare: (1) The terse, fast-moving vignettes of Pharaoh's oppression and Moses' early life (chs. 1--2). (2) The extensive dialogue between Moses and God (3:1--4:17). (3) The dramatic encounters between Moses (and Aaron) with Pharaoh (5--14). (4) The depressing sequence of rebellion scenes in the wilderness, always accompanied by God’s grace (15--17). (5) The relaxed and familial reunion scene with Jethro (18). (6) The awe-filled theophany at Mt. Sinai (19; 24), bracketing two law codes. (7) The staccato events of rebellion and reconciliation (32--34). (8) The detailed but enthusiastic account of tabernacle building by a chastened people (35--40). All these sections, to name but the major ones, thrust the reader up and down on a literary roller-coaster moving in variou direction snad at unpredictable speeds.

Implied Reader. Who is meant to be the reader of the final, canonical form of Exodus? The book itself does not make this explicit. There are various cues, however, that point to a person I have called the "repeat-reader." This repeat-reader stands in contrast to the "first-time-reader."

The first-time reader--sometimes called the "narratee" in literary theory--is an imaginary reader who knows the story only as far as he or she has read into the book of Exodus. Such a reader would run into repeated difficulties. He or she would be confused, for example, by terms and items assumed to be known before their proper introduction in the story (e.g. the "[ark of the] covenant," 16:34; or the "ephod," 25:7). Again, the first-time reader would be confused by an account of Israel's march through Edom and Canaan after the crossing of the sea (15:13-18), when Israel has only barely crossed the sea at that point in the story.

The repeat-reader, on the other hand, is someone who already "knows his/her Bible," i.e. someone who not only knows the story preceding Exodus (i.e. Genesis), but also the rest of Exodus, and much of Israel's later story. This reader has no problems of the kind just mentioned; he/she knows the ark of the covenant or the ephod as parts of the long tradition in which he/she stands. For this reader, the final author(s) can introduce various features before their logical time in the story. For example, Aaron can already put a jar of manna into the ark before its construction has been commanded and carried out (16:33-36). The advance of Israel into Canaan, to cite another example, can already be proclaimed just after Israel passed through the Red Sea (15:13-18).

Further, the repeat-reader understands the text more fully than the first-time reader. While the latter might perhaps think of the new Pharaoh's fears about Israel's growing numbers as legitimate political caution (1:8-10), the repeat-reader knows that an enemy will indeed come; that Israel will indeed join that enemy; and that Israel will indeed escape. This reader also knows that this enemy will be God, and that the new Pharaoh is embarking on a collision course with God here already, even though God has so far hardly been mentioned. The repeat-reader, standing in the worship tradition of his people, will also readily be in tune with the author when the latter blends historical experience with worship practice (e.g. in the Passover account, ch. 12; or in the theophany account, ch. 19). Readers will find the distinction between first-time reader and repeat reader helpful at various points where the text would otherwise make poor sense. [Narrative Technique]

Structure and Unity of Exodus

Can a unifying structure be discerned in the diversity of the final Exodus text? Commentators vary in their assessments. Historical critics focus on the prehistory of our extant canonical text, attempting to find explanations for the quiltwork of its formally and stylistically disparate sections in the coming together of various originally separate oral or written traditions [Source Theory]. More recently, many interpreters concentrate on the final, canonical text and find in it considerable literary cohesion, in spite of its obviously composite nature (e.g., Childs, Durham, Fretheim, and my own proposal below).

One test of unity is the ease or difficulty with which a clear structure can be discerned convincingly. Several plausible outlines suggest themselves immediately: Geographically, one could segment the story into 1) Israel in Egypt. 2) Israel wandering in the wilderness. 3) Israel at Mt. Sinai. Such a geographical structuring, however, remains external to the message. Or one could see a twofold division: 1) Exodus from Egypt. 2) Covenant conclusion at Sinai. Proponents of this structure tend to take either the Song of the sea (15:1-21) or the theophany at Mount Sinai (ch. 19) as the narrative’s dividing mid-point, and there are good arguments in favour of each. Yet a division into only two parts, whether correct or not, is insufficient to structure so long a book helpfully. Further, such a division tends to support the traditional but unfortunate theological separation of grace (exodus) and law (covenant). Several commentators have therefore chosen to sub-divide the book into a series of consecutive major sections, without attempting to discern an overarching and meaningful structural pattern (e.g. Childs, 1974).

To suggest an overarching structure is always a more or less convincingly super-imposed interpretive move (Janzen, 2009a). Without denying the validity of other approaches, I have taken my cue for the structure of Exodus from the twofold appearance of Moses' father-in-law, Jethro (or Reuel). Commentators have been baffled by his appearance in 2:16-22; 3:1; 4:18-19, and then not again until ch. 18, after which he disappears from the scene. In each case, Jethro plays the same role, namely that of the father figure and host receiving the fugitive(s) from Egypt--first Moses, and later Moses and his people--home into nomadic shepherd life (Janzen, 2000 [in further references, simply “Commentary”], on 2:16-22; 18:1-7,8-12; and Janzen, 2009a). In each case this homecoming is followed immediately by a theophany (at the burning bush, 3:1--4:17; and at Mt. Sinai, ch. 19) that catapults Moses and Israel, respectively, into a Divine commission for service not at all anticipated before. This pattern of events, as first experienced by Moses, clearly anticipates the fuller but parallel set of events experienced by Israel. These observations led me to discern the following structure of the book of Exodus: A. Anticipation (1:1--7:7) I. The Salvation (Deliverance) of Moses (1:1--2:25) II. The Commissioning of Moses (3:1--7:7) B. Realization (7:8--40:38) III. The Salvation (Deliverance) of Israel (7:8--18:27) IV. The Commissioning of Israel (19:1--40:38) (See Commentary, 18-22; Janzen, 2009a for fuller discussion). This outline highlights God as the main actor. God saves and then commissions to service; this is God's agenda. God, Israel's rightful Master, wrests his people from the grip of the illegitimate master, Pharaoh. God's agenda and Pharaoh's agenda run on a collision course. Israel's agenda, however, also stands in some tension to God's agenda, especially from 14:10-12 on, when the people repeatedly brace themselves against their own salvation. Instead of joyfully accepting God's new initiative, the people waver between moments of trust (e.g. 12:50; 14:30f.; 19:8; 24:3; 35--40) and a persistent tendency to look back to the oppressive but familiar security of Egypt (e.g. 5:20f.; 14:10-12; 16:1-3; 17:1-7; cf. 32:1-6).

    For two reasons, I have deliberately named two of the four major sections "The Salvation of Moses" and "The Salvation of Israel," avoiding the widely current term "liberation." First, "liberation" tends to suggest political-social freedom to be the aim of God's acting. Exodus is indeed a story of great political-social relevance, but it also transcends this as it leads Israel beyond liberation, into the new service of its rightful Master. Second, my use of "salvation"--a term occurring twice in Exodus: 14:13 (yeshu’ah; NRSV: "deliverance) and 15:2--is intended to link God's saving acts in the Old Testament to those in the New, for which Christians have often reserved the term "salvation." God's aim for Israel in Exodus is not of a lower order, but also aims at leading the people "all the way," as we read in the concise summary of 19:4:

You have seen what I [God] did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself.

Recommended Essays in the Commentary

Yahweh War in Exodus

Invitation to Comment

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—Waldemar Janzen