Introduction to Exodus
About Exodus [1]
Exodus is a Greek title meaning “exit,” “departure,” or “going out.”
40 chapters, 1,213 verses, and 32,692 words.
300 years separate Genesis and Exodus.
During the time Israel was in Egypt, Egypt became a world empire.
At the time of the Exodus there were 600,000 men above the age of 20 besides the women and children.
Probably 3 to 4 million people left Egypt in the Exodus.
While it took God one night to get Israel out of Egypt, it took 40 years to get Egypt out of Israel.
Theme to watch for
Despite the enemy’s efforts, God’s promises always come to pass. His promise to Abraham was fulfilled, and His promise of a Messiah can be trusted.
When was it written
The first five books of the Bible (Torah) were written around the same time by Moses. For more information on the dates, please see the introduction to Genesis.
About the Author of Exodus
The person who wrote Genesis wrote Exodus. Since we determined Moses wrote Genesis, we agree he wrote Exodus too. According to Douglas Stuart, Moses had nearly thirty-nine years to write the book of Exodus.
“When he did so during that time period between the Israelites’ departure from Sinai and his death and exactly how many days or weeks he spent doing so is impossible to reconstruct. We may reasonably conjecture that the first audience for whom he wrote was the second post exodus generation, the one that had grown up in the wilderness during the days described in the book of Numbers.”[2]
About the Audience
See the introduction to Genesis.
Why did Moses write this book?
This book was intended for the Israelite generation who was able to enter the promised land. Like Genesis, it was written to serve as a reminder of their origins and the expectations of what their lives should look like. This is outlined in the covenant established by God with their ancestors.
When and where did Moses write it?
“Exodus would have been produced in writing sometime near the end of the forty-year period after the Israelites left Egypt and before they entered Canaan, that is, when Moses himself was nearing the end of his life.”[3]
Historical Facts to Consider
None of the pharaohs in Exodus were named, and it is possible that this was a way for Moses to reduce the greatest leader in the most powerful nation of the time to just a generic title.
