Posts from — November 2008

November 23. 2008

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CHAPTER 10

THE TENTH PLAGUE

DEATH OF THE EGYPTIAN FIRST BORN

ACCOMPANYING RITUALS

            The tenth plague is climactic not only by its position outside the triplet series but also by the preparatory prediction that in 11:1 Pharaoh will at last let them go. 

            The spoiling of the Egyptians was the last act of the scenario given to Moses in 3:21-22.

            That Pharaoh will drive them out (11:1), an unusual strong and reiterated phrase, echoes the last verse of the first commission narrative in 6:1 

            “with a strong hand, He will send you forth and, with a strong

Hand, He will expel you.”

            Further, 4:21-26 had condensed all the plagues into the tenth plague. 

            Such reference back to the divine prediction signaled the completion of the rescue of the Hebrews. 

1.      Vs. 4-9 are addressed to the Pharaoh

2.      This is shown in verse 8.

3.      Yahweh will go forth in the midst of Egypt, present more forcefully than in any other plague. 

4.      Moses leaves Pharaoh in hot anger – a mark of his obduracy: but also of Moses’ increasing mastery.

12:1-20

            Before the occurrence of the climactic plague of deliverance for Egypt, P introduces the rites of the Passover lamb.  (VV3-13)

1.      And of the unleavened bread, massot (VV: 14-20).

The true rites were originally separate.  The first was the rite of herders to propitiate the gods when they moved from the well-watered winter pastures to the arid summer ones. 

The second was the rite of farmers, a kind of spring cleaning of the previous years old leaven.

The text connects the lamb sacrifice with the exodus (VV11-13).

The unleavened bread is made a memorial of the exodus in the narrative itself (12:34) and in an accompanying instruction

1.      (13:3-10), 12:1-20 are the words of Yahweh to Moses

2.      and VV21-27 are the transmission of those commands to the elders,

3.      such divine commands and their transmissions being a favorite P device.

P includes the rituals for the Passover lamb and the unleavened bread (12:1-28, 43-51; 13:1-16) within the tenth plague, between announcement and fulfillment. 

Celebrated at the spring new year, the rituals enabled Israelites of each succeeding generation to participate in the escape from Pharaoh’s dominion.

P is the first of his twelve rubrics for the journey;

            1.  A journey to Canaan begins within Pharaoh’s Egypt

            2.  An instance of Yahweh’s mastery over every land.

THE DIVINE PLAN

1.      Genesis 3:14-15.  The initial covenant of God with Adam and Eve.

2.      Genesis 9:8-17.  The household of Noah, including his wife and sons and their wives.

3.      Genesis 15:18-21, Genesis 17:1-8; Genesis 22: 15-18.  Abraham and Sara and the covenant now extends to a tribe. 

4.      God makes a covenant through Moses that encompasses now a nation made up of twelve tribes: Israel.

In these covenant agreements, incidents of malfeasance still happen.

1.      Cain kills Abel and is cast out.

2.      Hope is reborn with the birth of Seth (Genesis 5:3)

3.      Following Seth, the human race falls away from keeping the covenant made with Adam and Eve. 

4.      The family of Noah is preserved.  A New Covenant with Noah and his descendants.

5.      Only the line of Shem remains faithful to this Covenant.

6.      The story then focuses on Abraham.  God establishes an important three-fold Covenant with him.

7.      From Abraham, the covenant is preserved through Isaac. 

a.      Abraham has other descendants born of Hagar and Keturah (Ishmael, Midiam).

8.      Isaac and to his son, Jacob – who is named later by God,  Israel - and not to his brother, Esau.

9.      Jacob, before he dies, passes the covenant to his son, Judah (Genesis 49:8-12).

10. From the line of Judah, God establishes the New Covenant in Jesus Christ.

In the Old Testament, the importance of “Fatherhood” is a true key to understanding the drama in the book of Exodus. 

1.      Patriarchal religion is established with the creation of Adam and Eve.

2.      It’s renewed in the Covenant with Noah.

3.      It is expanded through Abram - this name means “exalted father”.

4.      God changes his name to Abraham – whose name means “father of a multitude.”

5.      The goal of the covenant:  to establish unity of a divine covenant family.

6.      In the Old Testament there is a repeated crisis that does happen.  The crisis is this.  Every once in a while the first born son lacks fidelity to God.  Therefore, lacks fidelity to the Covenant.  This causes a split in the family. 

In the tenth plague of the book of Exodus – the death of the firstborn – paints a biblical picture of the terrible judgment that happens when some members of the family turn away from God and worship idols.  The tenth plague is probably the most significant of all the plagues.

The tenth plague represents a judgment against Pharaoh himself. 

You may have noticed that Exodus never refers to the Pharaoh by name.  It only refers to him by the office he holds. 

Pharaoh was not seen as a mere man whose job was to run the administrative functions of Egypt. 

Pharaoh is a symbol and source of the nation’s fertility. 

He is the source of its prosperity.

He is a symbol of its power.

The office of Pharaoh is both political and sacred. 

At the time of Moses, Pharaoh was considered to be a god-king.  He was believed to be a divine figure who embodied and manifested RE, the sun god.

What happens here in Egypt in their culture of pagan idolatry is their anticipations of life after death are clouded by notions that fix their hopes on the present world than on the world to come.  Their hope is fixed on a false god rather than on the one true God.  Pharaoh directs worship from God to himself. 

The cult which surrounds the Egyptian development and practice of mummification envisions eternal life as a type of endless earthly life.  The entire Egyptian civilization becomes directed to the building of the pyramids and the production of goods to be placed in those elaborate tombs.  The idea of fatherhood is perverted from that of life-giving father raising up sons to share in the divine life of God to legions of slaves laboring to prepare the nation for the death of one man. 

Pharaoh is an embodiment of Egypt itself.  The word “Pharaoh” means “house”.  In both Hebrew and Egyptian culture, a “house” refers to a dynasty. 

Before he died, the Egyptian Pharaoh was expected to hand the kingdom over to his first-born son so as to provide greater stability to the nation in the time of succession. 

After the kingdom of Israel is established, the rulers of both Israel and Judah will follow the same practice. 

For the Egyptians, who believe that Pharaoh is their god-king, the first-born son represents a “deity” waiting in the wings. 

The plague on the first-born is a massive cultural decapitation.  It has catastrophic consequences for the country. 

It is not only a judgment against the house of Pharaoh; it is also a judgment against Osiris.  Osiris is the Egyptian god of life. 

The economic, psychological and spiritual devastation caused by the death of the first-born son of Pharaoh would have deep and wide ranging ramifications. 

The hint in the biblical text focuses on the fact that the tenth plague will be spiritually fruitful for Egypt.  

Moses is told that the Egyptians will show Israel “favor”. 

We translate the word as “favor” which normally describes divine grace.  Perhaps some Egyptians recognize the wrong done to Israel or are aware that the god of the Hebrews is the true God.

12:37.

The first stage of the journey was from Rameses to Succoth. 

Succoth has been identified by some scholars with Tell el-Maskhutah and with Tell el-Ratabah, two cities in the Wadi Tumilat within ten miles of each other and 25 miles southeast of Rameses.

Succoth is said to be a Hebrew adaptation of the Egyptian Tkw(T) the civil name of the eighth lower Egyptian gnome.

Recent archeological studies and work from those studies offers a possible reconstruction of the route they took.  

For the Hebrews escaping from Rameses, there was virtually only one route that avoided the Egyptian observation post south of Lake Balah, an important fortress at Zilu astride the Way of the Philistines. 

That route led through the swampy regions of Lake Balah. 

This shallow lake has the best claim to be Yam Sup.  Literally, that means “Sea of Reeds”.  This has been conventionally and wrongly translated since the Septuagint “Red Sea”. 

In 14:1, the people are directed back to Pi-ha-hiroth (unidentified) which is in front of Baal-Zephon.  Baal-Zephon may be modern BESENNE (in Greek Daphenne). 

Exodus 14:4 suggests that the Hebrews turned back to Baal-Zephon deliberately to provoke Pharaoh to chase them through the swampy areas of Lake Balah and set the stage for the ultimate battle and victory.

Biblical literature identified the places on the basis of geography of its time.  Some 78:12, 43, e.g., uses the residence of the Pharaohs of the 21^st Dynasty (1065-935 B.C E.) but it is an anachronism for the 13^th century. 

Other books and the Septuagint used the geography of their time.  The Septuagent of 1:11 identifies one of the store cities as Heliopolis.  This is a city on the Wadi Tumilat.  So a literary tradition of the northern and southern route developed within the Bible.  It seems that the northern was the actual one. 

12:38.

This is a mixed multitude, not only the Hebrews, but others, necessitated the adoption of the Passover for outsiders in VV 43-49. 

40-42.

The 430 years probably reflects the “P” chronology of generations in Egypt.  In Genesis: 15:16 and presupposed an Exodus 6:14-20. 

Each generation seems to be 100 years here as befits patriarchs and not the usual forty.

This is suggested by Genesis 15:13 which says that the oppression in Egypt will last four hundred years and by 15:16 which predicts that the people will come back in the fourth generation.  

November 9, 2008

SIGNS AND WONDERS

      The third major section describes the battle between Yahweh and

Pharaoh for the service of the Hebrews.  “Service” in both Hebrew and English

means both work and worship.  The redactor has skillfully arranged and

augmented old traditions about seven plagues (confer the seven in Psalm 78:43-

51; 105:26-36 and the fact that there are only seven plagues in J) into three

triplets and the climactic tenth plague is outside the series.   

1. Blood    4.  Flies  7.  Hail 10.  Death of First Born
2. Frogs   5.  Pestilence  8.  Locusts
3. Gnats    6.  Fever/Boils  9.  Darkness

   Each triplet has a similar structure.  In the first plague of each triplet, God tells

Moses to present himself to Pharaoh in the morning at the Nile to warn him of

the danger (7:15; 8:20; 9:13); 

   In the second, God sends Moses into Pharoah’s palace to warn him (8:1; 9:1; 10:1); 

   And in the third, God commands Moses and Aaron to start the plagues

without warning (8:16; 9:8; 10:21). 

   Each triplet has a distinctive motif alluded to by the charge made in the first plague: 

•  
  1. The superiority of God and His angels (7:17; 8:10,18-19);

•  
  1. God’s presence in the land shown by His shielding His people’s land

   from the plagues (8:22; 9:4, 6); 

•  
  1. God’s incomparability (9:14) suggested also by the statement that “the

     like of the plagues had never been seen before” (9:18, 24; 10:6, 14) 

         The plagues are both a punishment inflicted upon Pharoah for his refusal to

let the people go (The emphasis of J) in a demonstration of God’s power in Holy

War (The emphasis of P)

        Attempts have been made to find natural explanation for the plagues,

e.g., the bloody Nile is caused by red algae; the gnats are a natural

consequence of the festering bodies of the frogs, but the emphasis in the Bible is

on their stunning and unrepeatable character.  God’s manipulation of natural

events is a narrative way of revealing His sole divinity.  Instead of an objective

description of the miraculous phenomenon followed by interpretive remarks,

which a modern western historian might favor, the biblical author combines

events and interpretation by selecting and omitting narrative detail.  The

plagues are treated similarly in Psalm 78 and 105.   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

INTRODUCTION TO THE SIGNS AND WONDERS

7:8-13

      The P redactor sets the stage and introduces the actors for the ten-

act conflict.  Yahweh and his servants, Moses and Aaron, vs. Pharoah and

his servants, the magicians.  The servants of Pharoah by the third plague have

ceased to be rivals of Moses and “this is the finger of God” (8:15) and by the

sixth plague can no longer be in his service (9:11).  By the eighth plague they

have recognized that Yahweh has defeated Pharoah (10:7).  Pharoah,

however, hardens his heart in the Bible - the organ of decision – and refuses to

acknowledge that Yahweh is the sole God because of his signs and wonders.   

      THE FIRST PLAGUE: BLOOD

      As in the first sign of the other triplets, God sends Moses to Pharoah

in the morning to warn him of the danger, but Pharoah refuses to listen.  Now he

demands that Pharoah allow the people to go into the wilderness i.e. to leave

Pharoahs demand that they might offer him worship.  P characteristically

heightens the affects of the plague (Vs.19) human obedience and divine

foreknowledge (Vs.28, 22). 

      THE SECOND PLAGUE: FROGS

      (7:25-8:16) (J 7:25-8:4, 8-15a) (P8:5-7).

      Like the other second plagues in the triplets, God sends Moses into the

palace to warn Pharoah.  Pharoah entreating Moses to pray for removal of the

frogs is allowed to name the time of the removal to emphasize Yahweh’s

complete control (8:9-11).   

      THE THIRD PLAGUE: GNATS

      8:16-19 [P]

      In the third plague of each triplet, Yahweh commands Moses and Aaron

to initiate the plague without warning.  The magicians, hitherto, had been able

to duplicate the sign but now must confess their failure to claim acts of the first

third of the plagues.   

TRIPLET II

8:20-9:12 

            The fourth plague: flies (8:20 - 32[J]).  The motif of God’s presence

with His people is founded in the charge to Pharaoh (8:22, cf, 9:4,6). 

            Vs. 22. Goshen is the area in the northeast delta where the Hebrews

lived (Genesis 2:70).  The sign is not only the insect swarms but also the

protection of Goshen from the plague.  Yahweh begins to differentiate between

His own people and Egypt. 

      Vs. 25 - 29.  Moses shows his cunning; he genuinely wants to worship

Yahweh in the wilderness, outside of Pharaoh’s domain, but he wants a three

day head start. 

      The fifth plague: pestilence (9:1-7[J]).  In the pestilence affecting

livestock, God again makes the distinction between His people and the

Egyptians.   The sixth plague:  fever and boils (9:8-12[P]).  The concerns of P are

apparent:

            1.  Attention to Moses’ human counterparts, the magicians;

•  
  2.  To the sovereignty of the Lord, who hardens the heart of

•  
       Pharaoh;

•  
  3.  And to the divinely foreseen disobedience of Pharaoh. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

TRIPLET III

9:13-10:29 

      The seventh plague:  hail (9:13-35[J]).  The hail is part of a thunderstorm,

the appropriate context for the revelation of the storm - God Yahweh. 

      Vs. 27.  The language is forensic, not ethical: “I am guilty this time.  The

Lord is in the right and I and my people are in the wrong.” 

      Vs. 31.  The mention of the crops suggests an early spring date and also

explains why there were crops for the locusts of the next plague (10:5). 

      The eighth plague:  locusts (10: 1 - 20[J]).   

      Vs. 1-2.  Yahweh declares he has hardened Pharaoh’s heart to show His

power in the signs.  Vs. 3 and 4 stress the choice offered to Pharaoh and Vs. 7

and 16, his willfulness. 

      The ninth plague: darkness (10:21-29[J]).  Darkness in the Bible is terrifying,

the condition of the world before it was created (Genesis 1: 2); human life is

impossible without light.  Pharaoh still tries to force the Hebrews return by

retaining their cattle (Vs.24) as he had earlier tried to hold their children hostage

(10:10).  Moses is equal to his wiles; he claims he needs the cattle for sacrifice

(Vs. 25 – 26).   

      Vs. 27 – 29.  Pharaoh himself decides never to see Moses again, preparing

for the climax.   

      THE TENTH PLAGUE

      DEATH OF THE EGYPTIAN FIRST BORN AND

      ACCOMPANYING RITUALS 

      The tenth plague is climactic not only by its position outside of the triplet

series but also by its predictions in 11:1 that Pharaoh will at last let them go.   

      The scolding of the Egyptians was the last act of the scenario given to

Moses in 3: 21 – 22.  The Pharaoh will drive them out (11:1), an unusually strong

and reiterated phrase, echoes the last verse of the first commission narrative in

6:1.   

      “With a strong hand He will send you forth and with a strong hand He will

expel you.” 

      Further, 4: 21 – 26 had condensed all the plagues into the tenth plague. 

Such reference back to the divine prediction signaled the completion of the

rescue of the Hebrews.   

      Vs. 4 – 9 are addressed to Pharaoh, as vs. 8 shows.  Yahweh will go forth in

the midst of Egypt, present more forcefully than in any other plague.  Moses

leaves Pharaoh in hot anger, a mark of Pharaoh’s obduracy but also of Moses’

increasing mastery.   

      12: 1 – 20 Before the occurrence of the climactic plague of deliverance

for Egypt, P introduces the rite of the Passover lamb (Vs. 3-13) and of the

unleavened bread, massot (Vs. 14 – 20). 

      The P rites were originally separate.  The first was the rite of herders to

propitiate the Gods when they moved from the well-watered winter pastures to

the arid summer ones. 

      The second was the rite of farmers, the kind of spring cleaning of the

previous years old leaven.  The Paschal lamb sacrifice with the exodus (Vs. 11-

13).  The unleavened bread is made a memorial of the exodus in the narrative

itself (12: 34) and, in an accompanying instruction, (13: 3 -10). 

      12: 1-20 are the words of Yahweh to Moses and vs. 21 – 27 are the

transmission of those commands to the elders, hence divine commands and

their transmissions doing a favorite P device.  P includes the rituals for the

Passover lamb and the unleavened bread (12:1-28, 43-51; 13:1-16) within the

tenth plague, between announcement and fulfillment.  Celebrated at the

spring new year, the rituals enable the Israelites of each succeeding generation

to participate in the escape from Pharaohs dominion.   

      P gives the first of his twelve rubrics for the journey; the journey to Canaan

begins with Pharaohs Egypt, an instance of Yahweh’s mastery over every land.     

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