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"I am Jehovah, the Almighty God who appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob - though I did not reveal my name, Jehovah, to them."
- 6 : 2-3, The Living Bible, see link below.
Remember: at the end of Chapter Five Moses is accusing GOD of stirring up a bunch of trouble for the people, and He hasn't delivered them from Egypt. And, oddly enough, both statements were true.
1
"way yomer" (and said) YHWH to Moses, "attah" (now) you will see "aser" (what) I "asah" (do / make / act (the word implies action with intent)) to Pharaoh - "ki" (for) with "yad" (hand) "chazaq" (strong / mighty / powerful) 'he will let them go', and with a hand strong he will "garasg" (expel / drive out / cast out (includes the idea of 'divorce')) of his "erets" (land).
God has said before, see chapter 4 : 21-23, that Pharaoh would need some 'persuasion'.
There's a 'divorce' here, and a 'marriage' in a few verses, stand by.
2
"way" (and) "dabar" (said / spoke) "'Elohim" to Moses "way yomer" (and said) to him "ani" (I) 'am' "YHWH".
3 Summary and Comment:
Then God goes on to say that he appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as "El Shadday" (God Almighty) but that His name "YHWH" was unknown to them.
That is an interesting fact when you consider that all through Genesis, beginning in the second creation sequence in chapter 2, that is part of the name used: "YHWH 'Elohim" (LORD GOD) and it appears throughout most of the book, with some interesting exceptions as we observed in the study.
4 Summary and Comment:
God continues to explain the Covenant and the Promised Land.
Keep one finger on the end of this verse and flip back to Exodus 2, verse 22, and see what Moses says after he named his son. There's more than a little similarity to the two phrases.
5 Summary:
Then God states that He has heard the "neaqah" (groan / lamentation) from the people in Egypt in slavery, and that He has remembered the covenant.
6
"ken" (thus / so / therefore) say to the Sons of Israel, "ani" (I) 'am' YHWH "way" (and) I will "yatsa" (bring forth / come out) you from "tachath" (under / place (the 'bottom')) "siblah" (burden / load / suffering) of Egypt, and I will "gaal" (ransom / redeem / deliver) you with "zeroa" (arm (implies strength and power) "natah" (extended / stretched out), 'and with' "shephet" (justice / 'judicial' decisions (this is the first use of this term in the OT)) "gadol" (great / important).
The idea that God is "ransoming" Israel begins here. We later see this topic in depth in the middle of Leviticus, see chapters 25 - 27 in light of human interactions (a blood relative who pays the price), and more to the point, in Isaiah 43 : 1 - 3, and then in 44 : 22 - 23 where God reminds Israel how he has paid for (redeemed) them. In the New Testament, this payment is explained in depth in several places (see Romans 6, Ephesians 1, Hebrews 2, and more). Of course all this comes into sharp focus when "the Redeemer" comes to Israel, as is conveyed in the song "Veni, Veni, Emmanuel", which we know as "Come, O come, Emmanuel". See partial lyric and link below.
Except for the very last statement about judgment against Egypt, the last few verses have been a restatement of what we've already covered. That changes somewhat in the next verse.
7
'and I will' "laqach" (receive / acquire / accept (includes the idea of marriage)) you to me as my "am" (people), and I will be "'Elohim" (God) to you - then you will "yada" (know) that "ani" (I) 'am' YHWH 'Elohim (in this usage: YHWH your GOD).
God has told Pharaoh that Israel is His firstborn son. Now the relationship is redefined in light of the 'divorce' in verse 1. Something we just saw echoed in our Revelation study in chapter 19 where the church is the Bride of Christ, but here, the 'bride of God' is the older group. Which was seen in our study of the Minor Prophets in Hosea 2, which is also mentioned in Jeremiah 31.
8 Summary:
God goes on to tell him, once again, about bringing them to the land that was promised as a "morashah" (possession / inheritance (implies that it is to be passed down to future generations)) "ani" (I) 'am' YHWH.
The repetition is for emphasis. Moses has heard all this before, from the Same Source. However, we're reading the text he wrote while he wasn't doing anything else, which was to be read out loud to the people every so often.
9
So said Moses to the Sons of Israel, but "lo" (not) "shama" (listened / heard) Moses, "qotser" (anguish / 'weakness') "ruach" (spirit / breath), "abodah" (bondage / servitude) "qasheh" (severe / cruel / harsh).
10
"way dabar" (and spoke) YHWH to Moses "amar" (saying / said)...
11 Summary:
.... go in and tell Pharaoh to let the Sons of Israel out of his land.
12 Paraphrase and discussion:
"Moses says to GOD, 'look, Israel won't listen to me, why should Pharaoh, for I am of 'Gentile' lips?'"
Moses knows he's a Hebrew. His cohort in all this is his brother who stayed behind as a Levite. He's been in front of the Elders and if he wasn't one of them they'd have told him about it then.
Moses's statement here could mean anything from the fact that Egyptian was his native language, or that he grew up on the good side of town, or that both sides see him as an outsider, or that he perhaps even stuttered a bit when under stress, or some pleasant combination of all of the above? While there is a very old Jewish tradition that says that Moses was born circumcised (see link below), there is no textual evidence in Exodus, or anywhere else in the Bible, or the Apocrypha, that he had been 'cut' or that he hadn't. What we do have is that strange 'bloody' story in chapter 4 where it says his wife did their son.... while this statement here could even mean that he himself hadn't been 'done' properly according to their customs of the time. Which, given the circumstances of his birth, is quite possible.
13 Summary:
This is almost an exact restatement of verse 11, and several others.
14 - 20 Summary:
Genealogy from some of the '12 sons of Israel' to Moses and Aaron. An accounting of the parents of Moses and Aaron. Such as that their father lived to be 137.
21 - 25 Summary:
The lineage from Aaron. Crucial for the establishing of the Priesthood later. This becomes Very Important when in the period of the Maccabees the line of High Priests is corrupted, which, of course, Christ notices later. See links below to that study.
26 and 27 Examination of the text.
This passage is written from the point of view of a narrator, or even an historian, as an explanation of who Moses and Aaron are and what they are doing. Which isn't a bad idea when you think about it... so we will do that a few verses into the next chapter.
"Meanwhile, back at the ranch...."
28 Summary:
GOD has spoken to Moses in Egypt....
29 Summary:
... and HE told Moses who to talk to and what to say....
30 Statement:
Go back and read verse 12.
No, really, what was said there is what is said here. Probably because whoever the scribe was that Moses was dictating to (perhaps Joshua) thought that we wouldn't believe that the great Moses of Song and Story, and epic movie, would say something like that to GOD Himself.
End Chapter 6
Selected Resources:
All links will open in a new tab/window, all were working as of original date of posting:
Interlinear English / Hebrew: Chapter 6 https://biblehub.com/interlinear/exodus/6.htm
https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_Exodus-Chapter-6/
The Living Bible https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%206&version=TLB
The song mentioned above: "O come, O come, Emmanuel" (traditional spelling in lyrics)
"O come, O come, Immanuel,https://hymnary.org/text/o_come_o_come_emmanuel_and_ransom
and ransom captive Israel
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel
shall come to you, O Israel."
One of the Midrash teachings that say Moses, and others, were born circumcised.
"This suggests that he was one of the seven men born circumcised" ... Midrash Tanchuma, Noach 5:3
https://www.sefaria.org/Midrash_Tanchuma%2C_Noach.5.3?ven=english|Midrash_Tanhuma-Yelammedenu,_trans._Samuel_A._Berman&lang=en" target="_blank
And a reference to the source: https://thegemara.com/article/when-moses-was-born-the-house-was-filled-with-light/
also:
The "400 years of silence" that weren't so quiet after all, and paved the way for Christ:
"Malichi to Matthew history" https://centralparkchurchofchrist.org/minorprophets/maccabees1.htm
-and-
The High Priesthood being for sale to the highest bidder... or rather, for the biggest bribe to the king. See discussion of 1 Maccabees 7:
https://centralparkchurchofchrist.org/minorprophets/maccabees2.htm
NOTE: The Bible Study Lesson presented above is posted as a reference document to begin a conversation of the topic. And that's it. Please accept it at such.
http://centralparkchurchofchrist.org
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