Exodus (Apollos Old Testament Commentary | AOT)
Overview
Recounting the greatest event of divine salvation in the Old Testament, the book of Exodus is not merely a story about the Lord God rescuing enslaved Israelites from the power of a despotic and xenophobic dictator. More importantly, it highlights how a compassionate and justice-seeking God transforms the lives of victimized people so that they may experience life in all its fullness in his holy presence. This transformation involves a unique process that includes redemption, ransoming, cleansing, and consecration. The story of Exodus illustrates an all-important paradigm for understanding the nature and goal of divine salvation, anticipating an even greater exodus that will come through Jesus Christ. In this Apollos Old Testament Commentary volume, Desmond Alexander grapples with the many and varied complexities of the carefully constructed literary collage of Exodus. As an integral part of the longer narrative that runs from Genesis to 2 Kings, Exodus recounts a dramatic and unified story of how the Israelites come to a deep and close relationship with the Lord God. Narrating past events, Exodus speaks to contemporary society, revealing a God who passionately desires to draw people into an intimate and exclusive relationship with himself. This detailed commentary sheds fresh light on one of the most influential books ever written.
Top Highlights
“Knowing YHWH relationally lies at the heart of the covenant or friendship treaty ratified at Mount Sinai, paving the way for YHWH to come and reside among the Israelites. The overall movement in Exodus underlines that knowing God is not confined merely to intellectual knowledge. YHWH moves from being a distant deity to becoming a close neighbour.” (Page 2)
“As YHWH takes the initiative in making himself known, Moses is transformed from someone who fears to look at the divine presence (3:6) to someone who desires to see the very face of God (33:18–23).” (Page 2)
“As the broader story reveals, the events at Mount Sinai represent a partial restoration of the relationship between God and humanity that was broken when Adam and Eve betrayed YHWH and were expelled from the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:1–24). All that happens at Mount Sinai anticipates something better still to come.” (Page 2)
“In Exodus redemption entails much more than liberation from oppression. The Israelites are not just set free from slavery to a tyrant, but are granted the privilege of potentially becoming priestly monarchs, who will fulfil the original commission given to humanity by God at creation (see comments on 1:7 and 19:6).” (Page 3)
“Exodus ought to be read as part of the larger story that runs from Genesis to Kings. When this wider canvas is taken into consideration, YHWH’s coming to live among the Israelites has every appearance of reversing, in part at least, the consequences of Adam and Eve’s betrayal of God in the Garden of Eden. Exodus anticipates that this reversal will ultimately result in God’s dwelling with the Israelites on a holy mountain in the land of Canaan (15:17). Yet before this happens, YHWH will encounter the Israelites at another holy mountain, Mount Sinai, and enter into a covenant relationship with them in the hope that they will become a holy nation.” (Page 5)
- Title: Exodus
- Author: T. Desmond Alexander
- Series: Apollos Old Testament Commentary
- Volume: 2
- Publishers: Apollos, IVP
- Print Publication Date: 2017
- Logos Release Date: 2018
- Era: era:contemporary
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subject: Bible. O.T. Exodus › Commentaries
- ISBNs: 9780830825028, 9780830891917, 9781783594344, 9781783595617, 9780801092145, 0830825029, 0830891919, 1783594349, 1783595612, 0801092140
- Resource ID: LLS:AOT02EX
- Resource Type: Bible Commentary
- Metadata Last Updated: 2024-01-20T00:49:52Z