Exodus 1 – Study

For those who may wish to ‘study’ this chapter, the following simple resources are provided for you. Each passage has a four-Part approach to help you take in and think further about what you have read.

Passage: Genesis 1:1-14

1 These are the names of the sons of Israel who went to Egypt with Jacob, each with his family: 2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah; 3 Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin; 4 Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher. 5 The descendants of Jacob numbered seventy in all; Joseph was already in Egypt.

6 Now Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died, 7 but the Israelites were exceedingly fruitful; they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers and became so numerous that the land was filled with them.

8 Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. 9 ‘Look,’ he said to his people, ‘the Israelites have become far too numerous for us. 10 Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.’

11 So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labour, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh. 12 But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites 13 and worked them ruthlessly. 14 They made their lives bitter with harsh labour in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields; in all their harsh labour, the Egyptians worked them ruthlessly.

A. Find Out:

1. How many of Israel’s family had come to Egypt? v.5
2. What had happened to them? v.6,7
3. What was the new king’s fear? v.9,10
4. So what did he do? v.11
5. What happened instead? v.12
6. What sort of life did the Israelites have? v.14

B. Think:

1. How was Israel ‘s success also their downfall?
2. What, do you think, is behind the Egyptian’s fear?
3. How do we sometimes see these two things today?

C. Comment:

      When Jacob had come to live in Egypt, he came with only seventy people. They were welcomed by the Pharaoh of that day, given land, and allowed to settle. Over the years they had grown and grown so that there were probably well over a million of them now. Success in one person often breeds envy, jealousy, or fear in others. Pharaoh’s fear is that this people in his land, clearly distinct from his own people, might get so strong that they could end up turning against Egypt. Pharaoh is a worshipper of demonically inspired idols and such people, not surprisingly, exhibit godless and unrighteous characteristics.

      We see Pharaoh from the start then, feeling defensive and antagonistic towards Israel, who he sees as a potential threat. When he seeks to suppress them, it seems to have exactly the opposite effect to what he wants, as Israel just grows more and more. Pharaoh has yet to learn that God has plans for His people, Israel. However, while they are content to remain in Egypt, He won’t be able to take them out. Life has got to get much more unpleasant yet before they will really be ready to leave. We very often accept second best because it is tolerable and will only cry to get out of it when it ceases to be easy.

D. Application?

1. Do we allow envy, jealousy, or fear of others to creep into our lives?
2. Ask the Lord for forgiveness if they are there.

Passage: Exodus 1:15-22

15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, 16 ‘When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.’ 17 The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live. 18 Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, ‘Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?’

19 The midwives answered Pharaoh, ‘Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive.’

20 So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.

22 Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: ‘Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live.’

A. Find Out:    

1. What did the king instruct the midwives to do? v.16
2. Why did they disobey? v.17
3. What excuse did they give? v.19
4. So what happened? v.20
5. How did God honour the midwives? v.21
6. What did the king next command? v.22

B. Think:

1. What 3 stages of oppression have we seen so far in this first chapter?
2. What two ways are the midwives blessed for disobeying the king?
3. How has the principle of 1 Samuel 2:30c been working in today’s passage?

C. Comment:

      Previously we read that the king of Egypt oppressed the Israelites by making them slaves in his endeavour to suppress them. Now he moves on two further stages. Stage 1 is to kill any baby boys as they are being born. If he can’t suppress Israel by hard work, he will do it by reducing the men in the next generation. Stage 2 is to kill any baby boys who have been born. Such activity is clearly demonic (see John 8:44).

      The response of the midwives is excellent! They fear God more than man and therefore they disobey Pharaoh and make excuses. The Lord then obviously blesses them, and this is seen in that, first of all, they are not killed by Pharaoh and, secondly, they are blessed with their own families.

      What is remarkable in all this, is that God doesn’t destroy Pharaoh. The Lord is going to make use of the godless activity of these Pharaohs to ease His people out of this land and back to their own. Was it a comfortable, materialistic lifestyle that had kept them there for so long? Why hadn’t they returned to the land of promise earlier????

D. Application?

1. As Christians, have we become more part of the comfortable, materialistic, godless world around us, than part of the kingdom of God?
2. Ask the Lord to show you the truth of this. Have you settled for second best?