Exodus - The Israelites escape from Eqypt... (with a little help)

Exodus:

I think it is interesting that, in the first chapter, the pharaoh doesn't talk about the people of Israel like they are slaves, which they weren't really. They where more like a serf, living on the land they worked, but being bound to the land and its owner. This is different then being considered property and having no rights, like the Africans were here in America. This is a medieval idea of lordship and serfdom, but they certainly weren't treated like property, This isn't to say that they weren't persecuted or at least mistreated by the Egyptian people.

• Side-note: Genesis 47:24 - “...And it shall come to pass in the harvest that you shall give one-fifth to Pharaoh. Four-fifths shall be your own, as seed for the field and for your food, for those of your households and as food for your little ones...” - This is where I get the idea of serfdom, when do slaves keep anything they cultivate? Plus, on a lighter note, they only have to give the Pharaoh 20% of what they grow. Hell, I'd love to only give 20% to the people in charge of my lands.

Anyway, the story of the exodus is a common one,and an important one to read often, so I'll move on to the first thing I caught that troubled me.

• Exodus 6:20 - “...Now Amram took for himself Jochebed, his father’s sister, as wife; and she bore him Aaron and Moses...”

So, if I'm reading this right, Moses' mom is also his aunt... I guess that isn't to bad when you consider that 21 states allow first cousins to marry, more if you count the ones where you can't get married in, but they recognize out of state weddings. It's a shame that only 20 states allow/recognize same sex marriage or civil unions. The problem I see with these numbers is that same sex marriage is a hot topic issue, where as first cousin marriage is just something that has been allowed for years. How stupid does this sound? You can marry your dads sisters daughter, but not the cute guy down the street... Not to jump to far ahead but in the next book, Leviticus, Chapter 18, Verse 12, has a little something to say about this, and many other sexual acts.

• Leviticus 18:12 - “...You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister; she is near of kin to your father...”

How is it that the sins of Amram, Moses' father, didn't fall unto Moses? Later in Exodus I will point out that the sins of the father are suppose to fall on his descendants.

Moving on...

• Exodus 7:3,4 - “...And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt. But Pharaoh will not heed you, so that I may lay My hand on Egypt and bring My armies and My people, the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments...”

When you read this story, remember that God hardened the Pharaoh's heart. So no matter what, no matter how much the Pharaoh wants to, and his does want to after awhile, no matter how many wonders Moses shows him, Pharaoh can't let them go until God decides to let him let them go. This seems fundamental wrong in every sense. Why would God torment the Egyptians like this? True that the Egyptian king had not been good to the Israelites, but does it really warrant all of these plagues? Especially the last one, killing all the first born children and livestock.

Of all the activities that happen in the beginning of the book of Exodus, this is the worst. What did the Egyptians do to deserve this type of retribution? At the worst, the Egyptians made the Israelites build things through hard labor, but building anything back then would have been hard labor. The Pharaoh also tried to get the midwives to kill the just born males, but they didn't. So what did the Egyptians do to deserve the ten plagues? Every time I read this story, I picture a child pulling the legs off a grasshopper. It's that level of puerileness that God would need to prove himself to the Egyptians.

Chapter seven is where the plagues begin. I thought it was curious that the first two plagues didn't phase the Pharaoh. His magicians could change the rivers to blood and make frogs appear, not a problem for them. But when the plague of lice came around, the magicians saw the finger of God at work. However, God hardened Pharaoh's heart and that was that. Then the plague of flies, and Pharaoh promise to let them go, but along comes the hardened heart. Then diseased livestock, leading to dead Egyptian livestock, and another hardened heart. The sixth plague is boils, and another hardened heart. The seventh is hail, and there is a part in this story where the Pharaoh repents and claims God as the almighty, but God still hardened the Pharaoh's heart and punished him.

Exodus 9:27,28 - “...And Pharaoh sent and called for Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “I have sinned this time. The Lord is righteous, and my people and I are wicked. Entreat the Lord, that there may be no more mighty thundering and hail, for it is enough. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” If I repent will God listen to me, or just continue on with the punishments?

There are three more plagues just like this one, until God has had enough fun, apparently, and after He has killed all of the first born, from Pharaoh's son to even the livestock, God lets Pharaoh let the children of Israel leave Egypt. If you remove God hardening Pharaoh's heart from this story, then the Egyptians look really bad, but in the end the Pharaoh couldn't do anything about it, and he loses his son because God has to make a point. What all powerful, all loving, god does this to make a point. What perfect being has to torture His creation to show power? I don't understand this story as allegory, or a moral tale, or as anything helpful in exploring the existence of God. It's just makes me sad.

Moving on...

• Side-note: Exodus 15:11- “...Who is like You, O Lord, among the gods...” Here, they are singing to the lord, but again, God allows or at least doesn't dispute that there are other gods. I would be interested in what these people believed before God came to them; they were nomads and obviously they were polytheist of some sort.

• Also: Exodus 16:29 - “... See! For the Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day...” How are you suppose to go to church on the sabbath, if God doesn't want you to leave your place? Just a little food for though, some denominations worship on Saturday and literally do nothing on Sunday.

• Exodus 19:5 - “...Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, than you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine...”

This is a simple idea, outside of the creation story, there is no point at which God claims to have created all existence. Even in the creation story, God never speaks about the act of creation, the narrator simply attributes the creation to God. I only bring this up as an idea because of the plural gods of the Old Testament. Maybe He has all of the earth, but other gods rule other worlds. Also, and probable the best example of this idea is in Exodus 20:3 which says “...you shall have no other gods before Me...” This is leading into the first commandment, but God doesn't say that there aren't other gods, just that you shouldn't worship any other god before Him.

Also, there are a few points like this one in the Old Testament. This verse (19:5) is a request. It is not a law, order, or commandment, but just a simple request. I like that. Of all the anger, jealousy, or vengeance of the Old Testament God, it is refreshing to see that God is willing to ask of us obedience, instead of demanding it, like everywhere else in this book.

Alright, we have arrived at Exodus 20, better known as the ten commandments, and right off the bat, we have a bit of a quandary. The first commandment, like I just said, doesn't remove the idea of multiple gods existing. I have developed a thought on this that I will but into another writing I have done on the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas.

The second commandment is quite detailed. You can't even carve an image of a fish or dolphin, or anything else that is in the water. It is also the time when God says “...for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God...” There are people, including the greats, like Thomas Aquinas, that say you can't put human emotions on God, but there are numerous times in the Bible that speak of Gods emotions, so I would say it is ok to think that God has similar emotional states than humans. The second commandment also says the the iniquities of the fathers will follow the children to the third and forth generations. This is the punishment of the Old Testament. It isn't hell or any type of ever lasting damnation, but passing your sins on to your children for four generations

The rest are self explanatory, so I'll skip to number ten, do not covet. The only thing I want to say about this one is that it is good that no one observes it. This is the basis of our free market. I'm not sure how Bible thumping, free market, conservatives reconcile their political view with their religious view on this one. Keeping up with the Jones' is what runs our economy.

Now, allow me to change directions for just a minute. These commandments are a bit of a sticking point between atheists and Christians. Christians use the ten commandments as a basis for morality, and atheists suggest that the main ideas of do not murder, commit adultery, steal, or lie are more self evident. I think the atheists have a point. As Christopher Hitchens says, If these people where living against these commandments up to this point, then they wouldn't have survived. If they had freely murdered or had no idea of a sacred relationship, or stole from each other freely, or lied without consequences, then these people wouldn't have been creating social groups, or lived in close proximity to each other. Again, I will have an expanded blog on morality to come soon. But in the end I see morality as something that has evolved and changed with our culture. Socially except able behavior is driven by group think and less by religious conviction. I justify this because of moral questions outside of the ten commandments or religious doctrine. Things like slavery, woman’s rights, or teenage marriage. These three are just a few examples of moral changes within our culture, that have differing outdated views within the Bible.

Moving on...

From the end of chapter 20 (the law of the alter) to chapter 22 (responsibility for property) is very interesting to read. Here are a few of my favorites.

• 21:4 - “...if his master has given him a wife, and she has borne him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself...” So if a servant was given a wife by his master then God says that the wife and their children belong to the master. But don't worry, if the servant doesn't want to leave, than the next verse states how the servant can serve the master forever to stay with his wife and children. Not become free, or set his wife and children free, but become a slave forever. That's compassionate isn't it?

• 21:15 - “...and he who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death...” Like that would be a plausible defense in court today. Yeah, my son struck his mother so I killed him. Do you agree with that?

In chapter 22, verse 16, it talks about what should happen if a man has sex with a virgin, who is not betrothed. Is it stoning, or death, or a sin like modern culture would suggest? No, just pay to make her your wife, and if her father refuses the man, then just pay the money and forget about the marriage part. So where does this whole idea of teen age sex being immoral come from?

Next is the all important witchcraft verse, kill them all, right??? What about the commandment not to murder? I guess killing a witch isn't murder because they were worshiping other gods, right? I guess I'm a little confused about what murder is and what killing is? When God lays down a rule, like 21:17, “...he who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death...”, then I have to assume that being put to death is different then murder. Not to mention the strictness of such an idea. If you curse your father, or strike him then you should be put to death. So much for the timeout chair Super Nanny.

In chapter 23 there is a verse (22) that talks about God being an enemy to your enemies. Isn't all of creation His? Why choose one people over another? Why not lift up all of his creation?

The rest of Exodus deals, in large part, with the details of the Tabernacle and other such constructions. Who decided that the exact construction of the tabernacle was important to the understanding of God? Or that the garments of the priesthood would make for interesting reading?

Anyway, I will end this with a sobering thought. This is stated many times in the Exodus. Over and over again, God says that he will kill you for working of the Sabbath. So, do you take the Bible literally? Do you work on the Sabbath? I can only assume three answers to this question. (Trilemmas are fun)

No, I don't take the Bible literally.

No, I don't work on the Sabbath.

Or your not reading this because your dead already...

Next time will be the book of Leviticus.