MOSES (מֹשֶׁ֔ה; LXX, Μωυσῆς, Vulg. Moyses). Meaning uncertain. If Heb., as suggested by Exodus 2:6 and by the explanation given in v. 10, the name is derived from the rare Heb. verb mashah, which occurs only in 2 Samuel 22:17 (Ps 18:16). If Egyp., it may be derived from the word ms meaning “child,” or else from mw-s (“water-son”). Perhaps this is a wordplay, the word “draw forth” suggesting both the taking out of the river beside which the little ark was found and the bringing forth of a child by natural birth. While the name occurs more than 750 times in the OT, no further explanation is given; and like the names of some other prominent OT characters, it is given to only one person, the great leader and lawgiver of Israel.
I. Background
With the word “now” the historian passes from the death of Joseph, who saved the patriarchs from starvation in Canaan by bringing them down into Egypt, to the time of Moses who led their descendants forth from bondage. He first lists the tribes who were in Egypt and stresses their amazing fruitfulness (Exod 1:7), the rise of a king who knew not Joseph, the fears aroused in the heart of the reigning pharaoh by their increase, the steps which he took to control it, the refusal of the midwives to obey his command to destroy the male infants, and finally the command to his own people to drown them (v. 22). Thus the stage is set for the birth of Moses, which occurred nearly 300 years after the death of Joseph. This background is sketched very briefly. Nothing is said about Egypt except what directly concerns Israel. The names of the two Heb. midwives and of the two cities which the Israelites built for pharaoh are given, but the name of the pharaoh who knew not Joseph nor of the pharaoh who oppressed Israel, nor of the princess who became the foster mother of Moses, is not mentioned. As immaterial to his story the writer omits them.
II. The first forty years
A. Birth. Moses is introduced to the reader in a striking way. Sometimes the ancestry of a person is given in some detail; here it is stated in the broadest of terms: “a man from the house of Levi went and took to wife a daughter of Levi.” From the words which follow, “the woman conceived and bore a son,” one might infer that Moses was their first child. This inference is promptly corrected by the mention of a sister whose name is not mentioned until Exodus 15:20, but who was old enough to watch over the babe in the little ark and shrewd enough to seize upon the remark of the royal princess concerning the parentage of the babe and produce the mother of the foundling to serve as its nurse. There is a touch of irony in the result, that the Heb. mother was paid by Pharaoh’s daughter to nurse her own child. Pharaoh aimed to destroy every male child born in Israel, with the result that his own daughter took under her protection the Heb. baby who was to become the future deliverer of his people, and she even adopted him as her son.
B. Infancy. “And the child grew” (lit. “became large”), an indefinite statement. The mother prob. kept the child for two or three years (cf. 1 Sam 1:19-24). Perhaps she kept him longer, bringing him frequently to the princess, who must not be allowed to forget him, while at the same time cultivating in his young heart a love and loyalty to the race from which he sprang. Regarding these formative years nothing is related. Moses had an older brother, Aaron, who was proposed to Moses as his spokesman (Exod 4:14) and sent to meet him at the mount of God (v. 27). Aaron was three years Moses’ senior (7:7), a statement of special interest because it implies that the command that all male children be drowned (1:22) was not given until after Aaron was born. The names of Moses’ father and mother are mentioned later (6:20). All these facts which are gradually introduced serve to show how much is omitted in the brief statement with which ch. 2 begins.
C. Life in Egypt. “When Moses had grown up” (2:11). Nearly forty years lie between the “grew” of v. 10 and the “grown up” of v. 11. About this period Stephen stated that Moses “was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was mighty in his words and deeds” (Acts 7:22), which implies that Moses received an education befitting an Egyp. prince. The parents “were not afraid of the king’s edict” (Heb 11:23), which may indicate that they were willing to risk the danger of detection before the baby was hidden in the bulrushes, or else that after his adoption by the princess, they used every opportunity to instill in the heart of their child a love for his people and his God. The Biblical account devotes only 15 vv. to this formative period of Moses’ life.
Five vv. now suffice to describe its dramatic and unhappy conclusion, yet they are significant because of the light which they throw on the development of Moses’ character. “One day, when Moses had grown up” introduces two closely related incidents which marked the close of the first forty years of Moses’ life (Acts 7:23). Moses “went out to his people and looked on their burdens; and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people” (Exod 2:11). This is the first expression of what became a master motive in Moses’ life, his love for his Israelite brethren (Heb 11:23f.). His love may have been aroused suddenly by the act of injustice which he imprudently punished too severely, but it seems more probable that it was only the sudden unleashing of a passionate desire which he had long cherished and which came to sudden expression. Probably this was not a sudden act on Moses’ part. He may often have watched the Hebrews, toiling at their burdens, and the word “people” indicates how powerfully kinship and parental teaching had influenced this adopted son of an Egyp. princess. It reveals Moses as a man of powerful emotions, impulsive in action, yet he was now a mature man of forty, to whom such a scene must have been quite familiar. He saw an Egyp. “beating” a Heb., “one of his people”; Moses “killed” the Egyp. (the Heb. uses the same word to describe both acts), but Moses’ blow was deadly and he buried his victim in the sand. His act was not one of uncontrollable anger, for before he struck, “he looked this way and that, and seeing no one” (Exod 2:12), he assumed the role of deliverer. Furthermore, he endeavored to cover up his act by hiding his victim in the sand, a prudent afterthought following upon an act of sudden passion.
D. The flight. “He went out the next day” (v. 13). Was it to find out whether his act had been discovered? If so, he soon found out the facts. For an attempt to play the role of “peacemaker” between two of his fellow Hebrews brought upon him the accusation of murder: “Do you mean to kill me, as you killed the Egyptian?” (v. 14). The tragedy in this charge is brought out by the words of Stephen: “He supposed that his brethren understood that God was giving them deliverance by his hand,” but they did not understand (Acts 7:25). So Moses fled for his life. It may seem a little strange that Moses made no effort to excuse or justify his conduct. He was a man of princely rank among the Egyptians and his victim apparently was not a man of any prominence, possibly at most only an Egyp. “taskmaster.” It would certainly seem that he might have been able to “brazen it out” before Pharaoh. Apparently Moses did not think so; and he already may have shown his sympathy with his oppressed people too plainly for his own safety. At any rate his fear was fully justified, Pharaoh sought to slay him. So Moses “fled from Pharaoh.”
III. The second forty years
A. Moses in Midian. Forty years passed swiftly (7:23). This adopted son of an Egyp. princess sat by a well in the land of Midian, an exile from the court of Pharaoh and with a price on his head. Again the situation serves to reveal the man. While he was resting, seven maidens came to the well and he watched them draw water for their flock. Then he saw a group of shepherds come and drive the girls away from the troughs. Moses might well have said to himself, “This is no concern of mine. I am sitting here a wanderer and fugitive as a result of meddling with other people’s affairs. These girls and their sheep are nothing to me.” Instead Moses stood up and “helped them” from the roughness and violence of the shepherds (Exod 2:17). Moses’ act was not merely an expression of kindness and sympathy but also an evidence of high courage. It also indicates that there was something in his appearance and bold intervention which overawed the shepherds, who had courage enough to deal with seven girls, but quailed before a single unknown stranger who had the manhood to oppose them.
The daughters may have thanked him, but they left him. They called him “an Egyptian” and prob. were wary of foreigners, so their father had to make amends for their lack of oriental hospitality. In this incident there is not the slightest suggestion of any prior connection or contact of Moses with Jethro or the Midianites. It was as a total stranger that this Egyp. came to this locality and he was treated as such.
B. Moses and Jethro. “And Moses was content to dwell with the man” (2:21). “Content” renders the Heb. adequately; content, but not altogether happy. “And he gave Moses his daughter, Zipporah,” apparently one of the seven. When the marriage took place is not stated. Her name, Zipporah, meaning “bird” or “sparrow” is no clear indication as to her character. The name given his first child, Gershom, which Moses explained with the words, “I have been a sojourner (ger) in a foreign land,” may suggest that Moses was far from happy in his new environment. This second period of forty years (Acts 7:30) concludes with a reference to the homeland from which Moses had been forced to flee: “in those many days” (as the Heb. puts it) the king of Egypt died. The date is not given, but it was prob. toward the end of the forty years since it was his death which prepared the way for Moses’ return to Egypt.
C. Moses at the bush. The first two forty-year periods of Moses’ life, both of which end in a startling and climactic event, have been largely covered by a single ch. of Exodus; but this second period ends with an event which introduced and determined the whole of the third period of forty years which was to follow. It begins by describing what may have been Moses’ chief occupation for forty years: “Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro.” And he led them by slow stages as a shepherd leads his flock “to Horeb, the mountain of God” (3:1). Perhaps he had led them here many times before, but now something wonderful happened. The call of Moses is perhaps the most revealing, as it was the most momentous event in his entire life. Whether the name “mountain of God” is used proleptically or not is uncertain. The angel of the Lord appeared to Moses “in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush (seneh)” called in the NT “bush,” (batos). Moses prob. had noticed often that a thorn bush burns rapidly and with a great crackling (Eccl 7:6), so he marveled that the bush kept on burning. “I will turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn up” (Heb.). When he approached, God called to him and warned him that he was on sacred ground. Moses not only put off his shoes as commanded, but also hid his face “for he was afraid to look at God”—an act of reverence and awe.
Then God revealed Himself as the God of Moses’ forebears, of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and told Moses that He had heard the cry of their descendants and had come to deliver them. He then made a truly amazing proposal to Moses: “Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring forth my people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt” (Exod 3:10). Forty years had gone by since Moses, an important figure at Pharaoh’s court, had slain one Egyp. for mistreating one Heb. and had tried to make peace between two of his fellow Israelites. Now suddenly he was challenged to undertake on a vast scale what he had so signally failed to achieve in a small way. Little wonder that Moses replied, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” (3:11). If Moses’ reply was exactly what one should expect from a man in Moses’ position, the answer of the Lord was quite startling: “But I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you.” Jehovah continues: “When you have brought forth the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God upon this mountain” (3:12).
The sign was a double challenge to Moses: to his faith in the God of his fathers and to his love of his people, a people who on his first attempt to serve them had met him with hostility and rejection. Moses at first apparently parried the challenge by asking what name he should give to the God whom he was to represent to the people as their deliverer. He asked the question as if he meant to imply that he knew the name of the God of his fathers, but was not sure just how he should speak of Him to the people when they ask the name of this God who will deliver them. Perhaps he was asking the question as much for himself as for them. The answer is, “I am who I am” (3:14). The Heb. word is ’ehyeh, which also may be rendered, “I will be what I will be.” The one tr. suggests the immutable God, who is unchangeable in His being, the same yesterday, today and forever, the same as when he called Abraham to go forth from Ur of the Chaldees to the land of promise. Or it may stress rather the activity and energy of this God of the fathers, who will act sovereignly and effectively in behalf of His people in the future as He has done of old. Then the Lord at once used the well-known name, “The Lord, the God of your fathers” (3:15), and added: “This is my name for ever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.” Hence the Tetragrammaton (or four-letter word YHWH) is properly called the Memorial or Covenant Name of the God of Israel.
The command then was repeated that Moses go to the Israelites and announce to them God’s promise of deliverance and of entrance into the good land promised to their fathers. Moses was given the assurance that they would obey and that he would go with them to Pharaoh to request permission for a three days’ journey into the wilderness to worship the God of their fathers who had appeared to them through Moses. The request which they proposed was modest, designed to show the unreasonableness of Pharaoh’s refusal; and they were to make it as a request, not as a demand: “And now, we pray you, let us go” (v. 18). But they were to be told that Pharaoh would not let them go “unless compelled by a mighty hand.” Then God’s purpose to use force to affect the deliverance is plainly stated, and the result would be that Pharaoh would let the people go (3:20).
Moses raised the natural objection that the people would not believe that God had sent him to deliver them from Pharaoh. The Lord gave him three signs: his rod becomes a serpent, his hand becomes leprous, and the water turns into blood. There is a striking difference between these signs for the people and for Pharaoh, and the sign given Moses for himself (3:12). These signs appeal to the physical senses; they are ocular proof of the power of God; they are intended to compel belief, to certify Moses as the servant of a higher power, the God of their fathers. Moses’ sign was a challenge to faith in God and to love of man. Furthermore, these signs also represented a definite challenge to Moses. The venomous serpent terrified Moses and he “fled” from it. Yet he obeyed, apparently without demur, the command to take it by the tail; and the wriggling, hissing snake became again his familiar shepherd’s rod. Leprosy is a terrible disease. The sight of his leprous hand must have filled Moses with loathing and fear. Yet he put it again into his bosom, and it became clean. Water turned to blood was a disgusting thing, undrinkable as it was later to prove (Exod 7:20f.). Fear, courage, and obedience all were involved in these simple tests and Moses stood the test. One need not argue for the reality of these signs. They are represented as supernatural and form an integral part of that series of mighty acts by which the God of Israel delivered His people from seemingly hopeless bondage (Deut 34:11).
Moses raised still another objection: he was not qualified for the task to which God was calling him. He never had been eloquent (Heb. “a man of words”) and this call to extraordinary service had not changed this in any way. God’s answer was that human speech is God-given, as are all man’s faculties. Despite this indisputable fact, which is supported by the promise that God will teach him what to say, Moses still resisted with the words, “Oh, my Lord, send, I pray, some other person” (Exod 4:13), meaning, “send anyone but me.” So God in anger and also in compassion gave him as a spokesman his brother Aaron, who should be to him “a mouth” while Moses is to him “as God” (4:16). That is what a true prophet says in the name of God. God says (as is strikingly illustrated by Isa 7 where the “Thus says the Lord God” of v. 7 is followed in v. 10 by “Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz” where obviously both messages come from the lips of Isaiah). Finally, Moses was to take the rod, the serpent rod, with him in order to perform these signs, and others far greater than he had yet performed (Exod 4:17).
D. Return to Jethro. Moses returned to Jethro, told him nothing of the divine commission that he had received, offered a plausible and adequate excuse (cf. 1 Sam 16:2f.) for a visit to Egypt, received Jethro’s consent, and God’s assurance that it was safe for him to return. He set out for Egypt with the rod of God in his hand; and although he was forewarned that his attempt to secure Pharaoh’s consent to his mission would fail, yet he also was told what would be God’s final word to Pharaoh—the slaying of the first-born.
E. Departure for Egypt. “So Moses took his wife and his sons and set them on an ass, and went back to the land of Egypt.” The fact that he mounted both wife and sons on a single donkey indicates that both children were quite young, the younger a mere babe in arms. This may mean, as already suggested, that Moses did not receive Zipporah as his wife until toward the end of the forty years, or else that like Rachel, Zipporah had to wait many years until the crown of motherhood was given her.
F. The bloody husband (4:24-31). When Moses was returning to Egypt a strange thing happened, which throws a little more light on Moses’ life in Midian and supports the view that Moses’ children were very young at that time. The incident at the inn is best understood as indicating that Moses had failed to circumcise the baby before leaving home. This may have been due partly to haste and preoccupation with the mission which had been given him. But it was more prob. due to Zipporah’s objection to the performance of the rite. Whether she had objected in the case of Gershom, we do not know. Here at the inn, when she realized that Moses’ life was in danger and apparently felt that she was responsible, she performed the rite herself, but evidently with great reluctance (as is shown by her words, twice repeated, “you are a bridegroom of blood to me”). Whatever the reason, Moses had sinned in failing to perform the covenant rite which was required of every Israelite under penalty of death (Gen 17:13, 14).
G. The meeting with Aaron (Exod 4:14, 27). The Lord sent Aaron (first mentioned in v. 14) to meet Moses. It is perhaps significant that they met at the mount of God. This apparently involved a considerable detour. It may mean that Moses wanted to visit again the spot where God had called and commissioned him and so to gain fresh confidence and strength in preparation for the conflict which lay ahead of him. There at the mount of God Aaron met Moses “and kissed him,” an act of affection not often mentioned in the OT, and which showed the strong feeling of kinship which united these brothers who had been parted for forty years. Moses had much to tell Aaron, even “all the words of the Lord with which he had sent him, and all the signs which he had charged him to do” (v. 28).
IV. The third forty years
If Moses’ slaying of the Egyp. and his flight from Egypt marked the close of the first period of Moses’ life, the call which he received at the mount of God may be regarded as marking the ending of the second period. If so, the third period begins with the return to Egypt and Moses’ entering upon the God-assigned task of delivering Israel from Egyp. bondage. This period then consists of two parts which somewhat overlap. The first is the conflict with Pharaoh which ends with the triumph song of Exodus 15. The second phase is the contest with Israel, which aptly is described and summarized by Moses’ own words, “You have been rebellious against the Lord from the day that I knew you” (Deut 9:24). This struggle fully occupied Moses’ mind and heart from the day of his call to the day of his death.
A. Moses and Pharaoh
1. The first request. After Moses and Aaron had accredited themselves to the elders and people of Israel (Exod 4:29-31), and Aaron had performed his proper role, acting and speaking for Moses, they at once presented themselves before Pharaoh with the Lord’s demand: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’” The demand is not expressed as courteously here as in 3:18. There the “now, we pray you, let us go,” is a request. It is a summary demand, and the verb which is used is in the imperative “send forth” or “send away.” The demand was at first a moderate one— “that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.” It was met with disdain and flatly denied: “Who is the Lord, that I should heed his voice and let Israel go?” (i.e. “send away,” as in all the cases which follow). “I do not know the Lord, and moreover I will not let Israel go” (5:1, 2). So send away becomes the issue, the mot de combat between the God of Israel and Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Pharaoh’s first step was to charge the Hebrews with idleness and to make their task more arduous; they were not to be supplied with straw, but were to make just as many bricks as before. When the Israelite “officers” (i.e. scribes or tally-keepers) are thus ill-treated they complain to Moses and Aaron. Moses carries the complaint to the Lord (5:22f.), and bitterly complains that instead of the Lord helping Israel as promised they are worse off than ever. Moses lost the preliminary skirmish!
2. The contest with Pharaoh. “But the Lord said to Moses, ‘Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, yea, with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land’” (6:1). That the conflict is now to begin in earnest is indicated by the fact that, as if in answer to Pharaoh’s contemptuous words, his opponents are now carefully identified.
First is the God of Israel, with the words, “I am the Lord (Yahweh): I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty (El Shaddai), but by my name the Lord (Yahweh) I did not make myself known to them” (6:3). This statement seems clearly to imply that the God of the fathers is now to manifest His redemptive power by deeds of covenant faithfulness mightier than any which the patriarchs had known or experienced. The meaning of these words has been much debated. In 1924 Dr. R. D. Wilson, after a thorough study of this passage in the original Heb. and in the VSS, both ancient and modern, reached the following conclusion:
“...the writer would suggest the following renderings: And God spake unto Moses and said unto him: I am Jehovah and I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob in the character of the God of Might (or, mighty God), and in the character of my name Jehovah I did not make myself known unto them. Or, if the last part of the verse is to be regarded as a question, the rendering should be: And in the character of my name Jehovah did I not make myself known unto them? Either of these suggested translations will bring this verse into entire harmony with the rest of the Pentateuch. Consequently, it is unfair and illogical to use a forced translation of Exodus 6:3 in support of a theory that would destroy the unity of authorship and the Mosaic origin of the Pentateuch” (PTR, XXII, p. 119).
In view of the failure of their first meeting with Pharaoh, the Lord reaffirmed His promises to the people, assuring them of His entire awareness of their distressing situation and His purpose to rescue them. When Moses gave this reassurance to the people they were too dispirited to listen to him. When Moses was again told to demand the release of Israel, he complained that it was useless to do so. For if the people would not listen to him, how could he expect Pharaoh to do so? Yet the Lord simply repeated His purpose of deliverance.
At this point (6:14-27) the Lord’s champions were introduced by means of a brief genealogy showing the descent of Moses and Aaron from the “heads of their fathers’ houses,” ending with the twice repeated statement, “These are...Aaron and Moses” (v. 26) and “this Moses and this Aaron” (v. 27). Similarly the repetition in the words: “On the day when the Lord spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, the Lord said to Moses, ‘I am the Lord; tell Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say to you” (6:28f.) makes them emphatic. Yet again Moses pleads his incompetence: “Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips; how then shall Pharaoh listen to me?” (v. 30). “Uncircumcised” recalls the giving of the covenant sign to Abram (Gen 17) and perhaps indicates also that Moses remembers the near tragic episode at the inn (Exod 4:24ff.). The use of the word here in a fig. sense is noteworthy. Then follows the amazing statement: “See, I make you as God to Pharaoh; and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet,” i.e. “spokesman,” an excellent definition of the meaning of the word “prophet” (נָבִיא, H5566); for what the God says, the prophet says.
“But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart” (7:3), was first referred to in 4:21, and now was to be repeated more than a dozen times. Sometimes it was used of the state of Pharaoh’s heart (7:14, 22; 8:19; 9:7). Sometimes it is stated that Pharaoh hardened his heart (8:15, 32; 9:34); more often, that God hardened or would harden it (4:21; 7:3; 9:12; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:4, 8). The best commentary on this subject is the Biblical one which is given in Romans 9-11, ending with the wonderful doxology which celebrates the “wisdom and knowledge of God” (Rom 11:33).
The ten plagues then were sent upon Egypt to show the omnipotence of the God of Israel, His sovereign control over nature, and to convince Pharaoh and the Egyptians of the folly of resisting His will. It is pointed out again and again that the aim of these divine judgments was that Pharaoh and His people might “know” (i.e. come to understand) the power of the God of Israel (7:5, 17; 8:10, 22; 9:14, 29; 11:7; 14:18) and that Israel might know it also (6:7; 10:2; 11:7; 14:31; cf. 29:46; 31:13). Pharaoh’s first reply to the demand that he free the Israelites was, “Who is the Lord, that I should heed his voice? I do not know the Lord, and moreover I will not let Israel go” (5:2). The plagues were sent to enlighten his ignorance and to break down his stubborn will. Furthermore it was no mere chance that brought about this confrontation of Pharaoh with the God of Israel. To this very God whom he defied Pharaoh owed his throne and power (9:16; cf. Rom 9:17).
The last plague was the most terrible of all. It is introduced by the words, “Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt.” It would accomplish what all the others had failed to do. Not merely would Pharaoh let Israel go; “When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely” (11:1). That matters had come to a head is indicated by what had just taken place; Pharaoh had dismissed Moses and threatened him with death if he came before him again.
In the case of all the plagues which preceded, Moses and Aaron played an important but a rather impersonal role; here appear two personal touches. One is the statement that “the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants, and in the sight of the people” (11:3; cf. v. 8). The other is that Moses “went out from Pharaoh in hot anger” (11:8). Moses had been greatly tried by Pharaoh’s vacillation, by his persistent refusals to yield to the demands made of him in the name of Moses’ God. Finally Moses’ wrath found vigorous expression. If Pharaoh would not yield, his people would implore Moses to leave. Pharaoh would not yield. The Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart in order that he might not yield until the sovereign power of the God of Israel was fully manifested in the last and most terrible plague (11:9f.), the death of the first-born.
3. The Exodus. The death of all the first-born children evoked such a popular reaction that Pharaoh was compelled to release the Israelites. Under Moses’ leadership they celebrated the Passover (see Passover; Feasts), and marched out of Egypt, taking with them their children, cattle, household goods, and the bones of Joseph.
The statement that “Moses took the bones of Joseph with him” (13:19), throws an interesting light on the situation. The words “and Moses took,” suggest that this was an act of piety which Moses performed without receiving special instruction from God. Amid all the confusion and the many demands upon his time and leadership, Moses thought of the oath which Joseph, looking forward confidently to this event, had imposed on his brethren; now after a lapse of centuries Moses fulfilled this sacred obligation. This mention of what Moses did, apparently on his own initiative, is esp. interesting and significant as affording a glimpse into his sense of personal responsibility.
4. The pillar of cloud and of fire (13:21). At this point the supernatural guide is first mentioned which was to lead the children of Israel on their journeyings to the land of promise. This pillar represented the manifested presence of God; and three times the angel of the Lord is referred to as being in it (14:19; 23:20; 32:34). Apparently the pillar varied greatly in size. In 14:19 it is said to have separated the Israelites from the army of Pharaoh; in 33:9 it stood at the door of the Tabernacle and the Lord talked with Moses from it. In Numbers 12:5 it is called the “pillar of cloud” through which the Lord spoke to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. More frequently it is referred to as “the cloud”; and in Numbers 9:15-23 occurs the fullest account of it (cf. 10:11f., 33-36; Deut 1:33). The chief purpose of the cloud was guidance, or rather the manifested presence of God. The mention of the Ark in that connection (Num 10:33) indicates that the cloud then hung suspended above the Ark. There are frequent allusions to the “glory” of the Lord as manifesting itself to Israel in the cloud (Exod 16:10). Numbers 10:33-36 describes impressively how Moses at the beginning and ending of each journey sought the guidance of the Lord during the years of wandering. This manifestation in the cloud and pillar was continuous (Exod 13:22) and prepared for and followed the tremendous theophany at Sinai.
The guiding cloud led the Israelite host into a situation in which they were trapped between the sea and the pursuing chariotry of Pharaoh; and when the latter drew near the Israelites were terrified and bewailed their perilous state (14:11f.; cf. 5:21; 6:9). Moses was not dismayed; he encouraged them with words of the utmost confidence: “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord” (14:13). Israel’s extremity was God’s opportunity! Israel was to go forward to the sea and Moses was to open up a path through the sea, a tremendous challenge to Moses’ faith! Israel would pass through it on dry ground. The Egyptians would follow after them to their own destruction. Israel passed through the sea safely; Pharaoh’s army was drowned in the returning waters. Israel saw “the great work” of the Lord and believed in Him and in His servant Moses (14:31). Then Moses and the people sang a paean of triumphant praise to the God who had so wonderfully delivered them.
. Moses and Israel. Pharaoh and the Egyptians were finally beaten; the chariotry of Egypt overwhelmed in the returning waters, never to trouble Israel again (14:13). Then began Moses’ struggle with Israel, signs of which had already plainly appeared (5:21; 14:11). This far longer struggle proved a greater testing of Moses’ patience and faith, of his love of God and for his people, than the one which preceded it.
1. The murmuring in the wilderness. Having seen the great work of deliverance and recognizing the hand of God in it under the leadership of Moses (14:31), three days later the people murmured against Moses saying, “What shall we drink?” (15:24). This time they were supplied from the waters of Marah. The trial of their obedience came again in the wilderness of Sin when they bemoaned their departure from Egypt (16:12); there they were provided with quail and manna; and they saw the glory of the Lord for the first time (vv. 7, 10). The quail were mentioned only briefly as a single occurrence (v. 13) while the manna which was their food for nearly forty years was fully described (vv. 14-36). Again they murmured because of thirst (17:1) and they were supplied with water from the rock at Horeb (v. 6). There they also were given a military victory over Amalek under circumstances which should have greatly increased their confidence in Moses as the servant of their God.
2. Jethro’s visit. At this point (ch. 18) Jethro came to see Moses, bringing Moses’ wife and sons with him, having heard of the Lord’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt. Jethro rejoiced and declared, “Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods; because he delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians when they dealt arrogantly with them” (18:11). Jethro’s joy in the Lord’s victory and his sharing in the communal meal with the elders of Israel does not imply, as some claim, that Jethro was a worshiper of Yahweh and that he at this time inducted Moses and the elders into the worship of his god. The advice which he gave Moses and which Moses accepted had to do entirely with secular affairs; and in following it Moses merely freed himself from the deciding of matters of minor importance. Then Jethro left Moses and returned to his home. He did not accompany Israel to Sinai. He had no part in the ratification of the covenant there.
3. The theophany at Sinai (ch. 20). The tremendous and terrifying scene which accompanied the giving of the law at Sinai provides further insight into the character of Moses. The awesomeness of the spectacle is described (19:18). When the Lord called Moses to come up to the top of Sinai, he obeyed; and when he came down from the mountain he again warned the people not to draw near to it. When the Lord uttered the Ten Commandments His voice so terrified the people that they asked that God speak to them only through Moses, “lest we die.” The NT states that so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear” (Heb 12:21). Of this fear in Moses’ heart nothing is said in the Exodus account. It simply states that Moses calmed the people and that while they stood afar off, “Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was” (Exod 20:21).
4. Aaron and the seventy elders (ch. 24). The difference between Moses and the rest of the people, even the Seventy and Aaron and his sons, is emphasized by the fact that while these representatives of the people were to come up and worship afar off, Moses alone was to come near to the Lord. This ceremony followed the solemn ratification of the covenant, which involved the reading of the book, the solemn acceptance by the people, and the sprinkling of “the blood of the covenant” (24:8). Then these representatives of the people went up into the mount. There “they beheld God” (v. 11), but all that they saw was apparently what looked like a sapphire footstool, “a pavement” under the feet of Deity; and they “ate and drank” (v. 11).
Moses then spent forty days in God’s presence and during this time he neither ate nor drank. Like his Lord, Moses had meat to eat that the people knew not of (John 4:32). The mention of Joshua in Exodus 24:13f. and in 32:17 indicates that Joshua was near Moses during the first forty days, while in the case of the second it is stated expressly that no one was to be with him or even on the mountain (34:3), during which time Joshua was left in charge of the tent (33:11).
5. Moses and the Tabernacle. After the tremendous scene which attended the proclaiming of the Decalogue and the sight of the glory of their God which was given to Aaron and the Seventy, the glory abode upon Mount Sinai for seven days. Then Moses was summoned to come up into the mount. He left Aaron and Hur in charge (24:14), and they apparently returned with the elders to the camp; “And Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain.” He was there forty days and forty nights (v. 18). The purpose of his long stay there was that he might receive God’s instructions for the construction of the Tabernacle: “According to all that I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it” (25:9, 40: cf. Heb 8:5). Finally God gave Moses the tables of stone on which the testimony was “written with the finger of God” (Exod 31:18).
6. The first apostasy (ch. 32). Later, while Moses was in the mount receiving instructions as to the conditions under which their God would dwell in their midst, the people apostatized from this God, whom they had promised to obey. “Up, make us gods, who shall go before us” (32:1). They had lived in such an environment of idolatry for centuries that it had left its mark on them. And Aaron, Moses’ brother, whose glorious apparel and sacred duties had been, or were now perhaps, being described to Moses on the mount (chs. 28-30) tamely acquiesced (32:2), and made a molten calf. When they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt” Aaron “made proclamation and said, ‘Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord’” (v. 5). In this terrible situation, it was no wonder that the Lord at once revealed to Moses what had taken place and threatened to destroy Israel. Moses at once interceded with God for the deliverance of his people. When he descended the mountain, he was filled with great anger upon seeing what had taken place, and he destroyed the tables of the Decalogue, ground the golden image to powder, scattered it on the water and forced the people to drink it. Then he turned upon Aaron himself, demanding an explanation for this “great sin” (v. 21). After hearing Aaron’s lame and fainthearted explanation, Moses called for volunteers to execute the Lord’s judgment on the idolaters, an impartial judgment which would fall upon all who had been guilty, whether Levites or non-Levites. The men of Levi responded and they slew about 3,000 men, an act of loyalty to Jehovah for which they were later praised and rewarded (Deut 33:9). That Aaron himself was spared from death was due to Moses’ special intercession for him (9:20).
7. Moses’ intercession. Then Moses returned to the Lord, confessed Israel’s “great sin” (Exod 32:31), and requested that if it could not be forgiven he might be blotted out along with the rest of his people. Obtaining God’s pardon for chastened Israel, he received the command to lead the people to Canaan (v. 34). In this incident there is a deeper insight into the character of Moses. Moses did not try to minimize or excuse the sin of calf worship either for Aaron or for the people. It was a “great sin.” In reply to the Lord’s amazing offer to substitute him for Israel and make of him a great nation in place of unworthy Israel (a proposal which doubtless was intended to be a test of Moses’ love for his people) he proceeded to appeal to God’s love for the nation, as shown in His earlier deliverance of Israel from Egypt in fulfillment of the promises made to the patriarchs. Next he deplored the damage which would accrue to God’s own reputation if He should destroy Israel in the desert (v. 12). As for himself, he asked only that if Israel must be blotted out, he might perish with them.
Having received the promise that the Lord would send His angel to lead the people, Moses removed the tent (or perhaps it is his own tent) to a distance from the camp and there the Lord spoke to him “face to face, as a man speaks to his friend” (33:11). Moses secured God’s promise that His “presence” would go with Israel. Then he made a plea for himself, that the Lord would show him His glory; and when this privilege was promised to him, he hewed out two new tables of stone to replace the ones which he had broken, and ascended the mountain once more. There the Lord descended in a cloud and passed by before him and proclaimed the name of the Lord: “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (34:6). During this second stay of forty days on the mount with God, Moses pleaded that the Lord would continue to accompany Israel on their journey. He received and repeated further instructions for the people, notably a renewed warning against idolatry, because “the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God” (34:14). It is in his conduct with regard to this terrible apostasy of the people (as well as the one narrated in Num 14) that the true greatness of Moses, his humility, his love of his people, his love of God and zeal for his honor and glory, were most severely tested and most clearly revealed.
8. The veil on Moses’ face. After the second stay of Moses on the mount, as he came down his face “shone,” “gave off horns,” i.e. rays (34:29-35). The KJV has misunderstood the meaning of the Heb. The literal rendering of v. 33 should be: “and Moses finished speaking with them and he placed upon his face a veil.” The meaning is not that Moses covered his face because the people were afraid to look at him. The Apostle Paul gives us the true explanation of the use of the veil. It served to prevent the people from seeing the heavenly light gradually fade away from Moses’ face (2 Cor 3:13), since it was only when in the presence of God that the radiance of the divine presence was reflected in it (cf. Matt 17:2; Acts 9:3; Rev 1:14).
9. The Tabernacle and its ritual. In regard to the construction of the Tabernacle and all of the ritual vessels and vestments, it is important to recognize the emphasis which is placed on the heavenly origin of the pattern (Exod 25:9, 40; 26:30; 27:8; 39:32, 43; cf. Heb 8:5). Whether Moses learned much or little in Egypt about the plan and construction of Egyp. temples and their rituals of worship was immaterial: he was to follow the pattern shown him in the mount, during the twice-forty days spent there in communion with God. In chs. 39 and 40 which describe the construction and dedication of the Tabernacle, the words “as the Lord commanded Moses” become a kind of refrain, occurring about a dozen times. And the cloud and the glory which filled it (40:34) are the divine certification of the fidelity with which Moses “finished the work” (v. 33).
As the proclamation of the Decalogue (Exod 20) is followed by the law of the altar, so the dedication of the Tabernacle with which Exodus concludes is followed at once in Leviticus by instructions regarding the ritual of sacrifice. (See Tabernacle for details.)
10. The investiture of Aaron and his sons. Two chs. (8 and 9) are devoted to the ordination and investiture of Aaron and his sons, which was performed by Moses. In view of the provision which is made in chs. 1-7 for the physical needs of the priests, it is noteworthy that there is only one reference anywhere to Moses’ portion (8:29). Then the solemn installation of the priests who are to officiate there is described. Detailed specifications for the vestments of the priests and particularly of the high priest and of their sanctification already had been given (Exod 28; 29; 39:1-31, 41). The solemn ordination and installation was all performed by Moses (Lev 8; 9). The priesthood is a Mosaic institution. It is significant that nothing is said here or elsewhere about Moses’ apparel. Moses’ rod and his shining face were described, but unlike Aaron nothing is said about Moses’ vesture. The reason for this is that Aaron’s position was symbolical, ritualistic, and hereditary (6:22; 16:32). Before he died Aaron was stripped of his holy garments and they were placed on Eleazar his son (Num 20:22-28). Moses had no successor. He was the lawgiver; and the law which was given through him was not to change with the changing generations of men (Josh 1:7; Mal 4:4).
11. Nadab and Abihu (Lev 10). After this solemn rite, there occurred one of the most amazing events in Israel’s history, the sacrifice of Nadab and Abihu. Aaron had four sons; and he and they were all anointed, and they only, to the office of priest. Nadab and Abihu, however, “offered unholy fire before the Lord, such as he had not commanded them.” It might seem as if the wilfullness and disobedience of the nation found typical expression in this act which was so severely punished. Moses’ comment is: “This is it what the Lord has said, ‘I will show myself holy among those who are near me, and before all the people I will be glorified’” (10:3). Moses was so deeply impressed with the sinfulness of the act which had been committed, that he expressed no personal sorrow at the fate of his nephews. But he gave instruction that “your brethren, the whole house of Israel, might bewail the burning which the Lord has kindled” (10:6).
12. The departure from Sinal. The Book of Numbers begins with the numbering of the twelve tribes, then Levi, and it then gives their “stations” in the camp with reference to the Tabernacle. Following certain laws dealing with impurity and jealousy, Moses was given the words of the beautiful “Blessing” which the priests were to pronounce upon the people and, in so doing, “put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them” (Num 6:23-27).
The fullest statement regarding the manner in which Moses was accustomed to receive his instructions from the Lord is significantly placed after the record of the dedication of the altar (Num 7). It was when standing in the Tabernacle before the veil, that he was to hear the voice of God speaking to him, as if the voice came from one seated upon the Ark as His throne between the two cherubim (7:89). Compare Jeremiah 3:16 where the ark of the testimony is referred to as “the ark of the Covenant of the Lord.”
Chapter 9 deals with the passover celebrated a year after the Exodus, and in connection with it instructions are given regarding a second passover to be held a month after the regular one, for those providentially hindered from observing it at the proper time. When this problem first arose, Moses told those concerned to wait until he could inquire of the Lord about the matter. This shows clearly that Moses was given instructions when and as they were needed and that he constantly was seeking divine guidance (cf. Num 15:32-35). It may seem somewhat strange that in connection with the departure from Sinai (10:29f.) Moses invited Hobab to accompany Israel, urging him with the words: “Do not leave us, I pray you, for you know how we are to encamp in the wilderness, and you will serve as eyes for us” (10:31). This might seem to indicate lack of confidence on Moses’ part in the sufficiency of the divine guidance. It prob. means simply that Moses, fully conscious of the difficulties and perils of the journey which lay ahead for Israel, was eager to secure any assistance which Hobab, who presumably knew these regions well, might be able to supply. It shows Moses as a sensible believer in divine guidance. He was ready to use human skill where and when it might prove helpful or necessary.
13. The murmuring over manna. Scarcely had the journeying resumed when the murmuring began again (11:1). The reason for it was such as to arouse the anger of the Lord and cause Him to send a fire to punish them, a burning (taberah) in the outskirts of the camp. The complaint was not because of lack of food: but rather, they were tired of eating manna, the bread from heaven (cf. Exod 16), and demanded meat (Ps 78:18-31). This situation so distressed and distracted Moses that he offered an anguished plea (Num 11:11-15) that he might die rather than continue to suffer at the hands of a mutinous people. He evidently was brokenhearted and at his wit’s end. How could he furnish “meat” to feed “600,000 footmen!” The answer of the Lord was twofold. Moses was to be given the help of the seventy elders in judging the people; and the nation was to be given quail for a whole month and in such abundance that they would gorge themselves with it and be punished by illness and death for their greed.
14. Miriam and Aaron. An incident occurred which Moses must have felt most keenly, a personal attack by his own sister and brother. It is significant that Miriam is mentioned first. This, and the fact that it wa