The Academy for Christian Thought Thinking Things Through in a Theological Safe Space

1. The Academy for Christian ThoughtThinking Things Through in a Theological Safe Space Project Timothy Session 2 of 30 Exodus

2. Genre of Exodus – Primeval Historical Types of Information based on Archaeology 1. History (artifacts & original documentation) 2. Prehistory (artifacts only) 3. Primeval History (no artifacts or original documents) Genres of the Pentateuch based on Theology 1. Mythical (fictional accounts to explain phenomena: e.g., Zeus of Mount Olympus) 2. Mythological (non-fictional accounts weaved into memorable stories: e.g., Adam & Eve, Noah’s Rainbow, Towel of Babel) 3. Primeval Historical (non-fictional accounts from secondary documentation: e.g., Abraham, Moses, the Exodus, settlement of Canaan) 4. Prehistorical (artifacts: e.g., Temple Mount of Jerusalem) 5. Historical (written artifacts: e.g., Silver Amulet of Numbers 6:24-26, Merneptah Stela)

3. Exodus The Pentateuch of 5 books Author: Unknown Audience: The returning Jews from the Babylonian exile Date of composition: c. 1000-500 BC Location of composition: Unknown Purpose: To give direction to the new community in Israel on how to live as a people of God

4. Distinctive message of Exodus It is all about God, not just a god but the God Specifically: It is about the ‘name’ of God This is a god for all the world God is not a national God – tell all the nations God is active in the world God wanted to build a model nation

5. Genre – The Laws Characteristics Instructional rather than legal Law was not a means to salvation Sin was not in failing but in not trying to keep the law Forms of Law Apodictic: Unconditional, direct commands Casuistic: Conditional, case by case

6. The national story of Israel The Torah looked back to the time before Israel became a people, a kingdom and two nations and retold the story by reverse engineering. Why are we here in Babylon? Because God allowed us to be captured as punishment for infidelity. Infidelity to what? To the true king of our nation – YHWH. Our human kings failed to lead the people and God sent the Assyrians and the Babylonians to punish us. But now, God has sent Cyrus of Persia to liberate us so we may return to the land that God gave our ancestors. Where did we come from? In the beginning, God created everything that now exists (including all the Babylonian ‘gods’). God created humanity with the gift of choice - within the limits of human freedom. The conflict that arose from the poor judgment of choice led to much conflict and God destroyed the world and started again with a new family. One of Noah’s sons became our chief ancestor. In time, God found in Abram, a man with whom a new people may arise. Born in Mesopotamia, God called him to Canaan and later, to Egypt. His grandson was named Israel and his great-grandson, Joseph, rose to become the prime minister of Egypt itself. But after 400 years, things did not look good for our people and God sent Moses, a fugitive Hebrew Prince of Egypt to rescue us from pharaoh.

7. The national story of Israel (cont’d) Other tribes from Egypt joined us into the Sinai desert. There, God gave Moses the Laws by which we are to live by. Aaron led them into idolatry of other gods and YHWH nearly started all over again with a global destruction. But Moses stayed God’s hand. Under God’s command, he executed fellow Hebrews who dissented. God told us to take the land by killing its inhabitants but to welcome those who worshipped YHWH with us. Together, tribes from Egypt, from the desert and even from Canaan itself, formed the people of Israel. Thus the Hebrews of Abraham the Mesopotamian became the Israelites of Canaan. It was political chaos. The tribes were ruled by Judges, men and women of war who imposed discipline, even though most of them were not disciplined themselves. Our people demanded of Judge Samuel, a monarch to rule over us. God relented and gave us Saul. Neither he nor his successors, David and Solomon succeed and the nation was split into two kingdoms. In time, we forgot YHWH our God and worshipped as the pagans do. This led to the breaking of our covenant with God and we were duly punished for a season. But now the time has come and our punishment has reached the fullness of time. So gird up your loins and fulfill your destiny as God’s chosen people whom he loves above everyone else.

8. Q&A Workshop - Exodus Let us consider the book of Exodus as an example of how one might attempt to interpret a difficult passage

9. Q&A: Exodus 4, 7-11, 14 Q. Pharaoh hardened his heart (8:15, 32; 9:34), pharaoh's heart became hardened (7:13, 22; 8:19; 9:7, 35) & God hardened pharaoh's heart (4:21; 7:3; 9:12; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:4, 8)? Was it fair for God to punish pharaoh when it was God who hardened pharaoh’s heart? What lesson can we draw from this with respect to the nature of habits of the sinful heart? 3 Steps to Biblical Interpretation 1. Context (background) 2. Exegesis (text analysis) 3. Hermeneutics (text application)

10. Step 1: Context At issue is whether God’s sovereignty is compatible with pharaoh’s free will. We read that pharaoh hardened his heart, had his heart hardened, and subsequently God hardened pharaoh’s heart. In Egyptian mythology, the heart was where the soul resides. In the Egyptian Book of the Dead, the heart of the dead will be weighed against a single feather from Ma’at (goddess of truth, morality & justice) on a scale calibrated by the god Anubis - to ensure accuracy. Anyone with a heavy heart, signaling a hardening, will be consumed by the goddess Ammit. The pure in heart will arise into paradise. .

11. Step 1: Context (cont’d) In Egyptian religion, one’s hardened (heavy) heart was the responsibility of the heart’s owner. This was the context in which the story of Moses and the Exodus took place. The Hebrews (Israel) had lived there for 400 years and would be familiar with this belief. Perhaps many of them also adopted this belief system. The imagery of the hardening of pharaoh’s heart would have great significance for the Hebrew Egyptians.

12. Step 2: ExegesisWhy did God hardened pharaoh’s heart? Was the answer… 1. God’s judgment upon pharaoh? The text tells us that the reason was not to punish pharaoh but so that • pharaoh will not let the Hebrews (Israel) go to worship God (4:21), • giving God the reason to display his power to the Egyptians (7:3-4) • so that the Israelites can tell their children who God is (10:1-2). 2. God intensified an already hardened heart? But God told Moses that he would harden pharaoh’s heart. It was a pre-emptive hardening so that pharaoh will not let the Hebrews go (4:21; 7:3-5). So God actually made it difficult for pharaoh to please God.

13. Step 2: ExegesisWhy did God hardened pharaoh’s heart? (cont’d) 3. God passively hardened pharaoh’s heart? Pharaoh first decided to harden his heart and God simply did not restrain this decision. But there is no textual support. 4. God’s good intention justified the means? Was pharaoh merely a pawn in God’s evangelistic drama. But this would make God arbitrary and not holy.

14. Step 2: ExegesisCan a hardened heart be softened? Yes. In chapter 5, pharaoh became defiant and imposed punishment upon the people of Israel to express his determination to disobey God even if the Lord became known to him (v.2). Pharaoh determined his conditioning and rejected ‘an out’ that was given to him. Even knowledge of God would not move him. In chapter 10, even though their hearts were hardened, pharaoh and his officials relented and allowed Moses to bring his people out of Egypt to worship God. So even a hardened heart can reverse course or change its inclination. Conclusion: We are free to resist any temptation or conditioning to sin.

15. Step 2: ExegesisDid God cause pharaoh to sin? The Book of the Dead shows that Egyptian religions will not excuse pharaoh from his sins. In the Hebrew worldview, it is possible for pharaoh’s heart to be hardened by an external source without compromising his own free will, and thus remain responsible for his actions. This is because to harden one’s heart merely creates a higher probability of an outcome. It conditions but does not determine behavior. God will not make pharaoh sin.

16. Step 3: HermeneuticsApply the text totally to yourself God will not harden a heart that is not open to be hardened. Thus we need not fear or hold to the excuse that God is the cause of our sin. Neither should we blame the Devil. The gift of freedom that God gave us as made in the imago Dei carries with it consequences for our decisions. Our attitude to the message of the Gospel betrays the rebellion that already exists in our desire for autonomy.

17. Sample Answer-Context At issue is whether God’s sovereignty is compatible with pharaoh’s free will. We read that pharaoh hardened his heart, had his heart hardened, and subsequently God hardened pharaoh’s heart. In Egyptian mythology, the heart was where the soul resides. One’s hardened (heavy) heart was the responsibility of the heart’s owner. This was the context in which the story of Moses and the Exodus took place. After living there for 400 years, the imagery of the hardening of pharaoh’s heart would have great significance for the Hebrew Egyptians.

18. Sample Answer-Exegesis Why did God hardened pharaoh’s heart? 1. God judged pharaoh. The text tells us that the reason was not to punish pharaoh but so that pharaoh will not let the Hebrews (Israel) go to worship God (4:21), giving God the reason to display his power to the Egyptians (7:3-4) so that the Israelites can tell their children who God is (10:1-2). 2. God intensified an already hardened heart. But God pre-emptively hardened pharaoh’s heart so that he will not let the Hebrews go (4:21; 7:3-5). God actually made it difficult for pharaoh to repent. 3. God passively hardened pharaoh’s heart. Pharaoh first decided to harden his heart and God simply did not restrain this decision. But there is no textual support. 4. God’s good intention justified the means. Was pharaoh merely a pawn in God’s evangelistic drama? But this would make God arbitrary and not holy.

19. Sample Answer-Exegesis In chapter 5, pharaoh became defiant and imposed punishment upon the people of Israel to express his determination to disobey God even if the Lord became known to him (v.2). In chapter 10, even though their hearts were hardened, pharaoh and his officials relented and allowed Moses to bring his people out of Egypt to worship God. We are free to resist any temptation or conditioning to sin. Egyptian religions will not excuse pharaoh from his sins. In the Hebrew worldview, it is possible for pharaoh’s heart to be hardened by an external source without compromising his own free will, thus remain responsible for his actions. To harden one’s heart merely creates a higher probability of an outcome. It conditions but does not determine behavior. God will not make pharaoh sin.

20. Sample Answer-Hermeneutics God will not harden a heart that is not open to be hardened and even a hardened heart does not make us sin. We need not fear or hold to the excuse that God is the cause of our sin. The gift of freedom that God gave us as made in the imago Dei carries with it consequences for our decisions. Our attitude to the message of the Gospel betrays the rebellion that already exists in our desire for autonomy. (Less than 500 words)

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