PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — Exodus — Volume 1
George Rawlinson [1812-1902] · 322,442 words · 351 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — Exodus — Volume 1 — Section 1
THE PULPIT COMMENTARY, EDITED BY THE VERY REV. H. D. M. SPENCE, D.D., DE.lN OF GLOUCESTER; AND BY THE REV. JOSEPH S, EXELL, M.A. WITH INTRODUCTIONS BY THE VERY REV. F. W. FARRAR, D.D., F.R.S., DEAN OF CANTERBURY. RIGHT REV. H. COTTERILL, D.D., F.R.S.E. VERY REV. PRINCIPAL J. TULLOCH, D.D. REV. CANON G. RAW…
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extent an Egyptian tinge, and involves philological inquiries of considerable difficulty and importance. Altogether the Book is one of extraordinary and diversified interest, and necessitates a number of disquisitions of a more or less abstruse character. § 2. DIVISIONS. It is usual to divide Exodus into two portions…
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§ 3. UNITY OF THE won.K. Much the same arguments have been employed to disprove the unity of Exodus, and to establish the theory that it is the work of at least two authors, as have been already examined in this COMMENTARY with respect to Genesis. " The Elohist " and " the J ehovist " are again paraded before us, as i…
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legislation is introduced (e.g. eh. xii. l-20; 43-50; eh. xiii. 1-16; eh. xx.), the style and modo of expression recall the general tone of the Book's later sections. Style indeed is so much a matter of instinctive perception and fooling, and unity of style is a thing so little admitting of proof, that no writer can do…
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Ilasis-adra, his" Noah," consigned to writing the learning of the old world boforo the Flood, impressing it on tablets of baked clay, which he buried at Sippara, and exhumed after the Flood had subsided. 1 Existing Babylonian inscriptions upon bricks and gems 2 are believed to date from before n.c. 2000. Ewald remarks,…
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o. high statue and reputation ; their compositions were engraved upon temple walls; 1 and it passed into a proverb that literature was the first ancl best of all employments. 2 Moses, educated at the court under one or other of these dynasties, and intended doubtless for official life, would necessarily receive a liter…
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posHiLility of the revival of this line of attack; but the counter-evitlenco ::ontinually accumulates. Not a year passes without the discovery of fresh passages in Egyptian literature, which harmonise with and illustrate the narrative delivered to us in Exodus. It is further observable that the writer, who has this…
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diminished by Joshua or Caleb being its author instead of Moses. Could we suppose it written by a mere ordinary Israelite, the case would be some- what different; but it is evidently impossible, considering the circumstances of the time, to ascribe a work of such high literary merit, and one evidencing such varied …
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and e,en of the personal conduct of the great leader. From first to last he is never praised; once only (in the passage objected to) he is said to have come to be" very great in the sight of Pharaoh's servants" and the Egyptian people. His faults are set forth without any disguise or extenuation: his hastiness and u…
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that St. Paul reckonod no more than 430 years from the call of Abraham to the Exodus (Gal. iii. 17). Now, certainly, if the genealogies are complete, and especie.lly that of Moses and Ae.ron, the longer term of years cannot have been reached, since even if Kohath was but a yoar old at the time of his being carried …
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affairs, or even how it is to be united with the later chronology of the Je"'1Sh nation. If complete reliance could be placed on the genuineness of a particular text (1 Kings vi. 1 ), the difficulties indeed of this latter problem would in a great measure disappear; for, having fixed the date of the commencement of…
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the time of King Apophis, who was the lMt king of the seventeenth or great Shepherd dynasty. Joseph probably outlived Apophis, and saw the commencement of the eight:eenth dynasty, so that the founder of that dynMty, Aahmes, cannot be the "king that knew not Joseph" (Ex. i. 8). Nor could the Israelit:es have been by…
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architecture and of her sculpture, carried to perfection her complex system of hioroglyphics-and attained very considerable proficiency in most of the useful and ornamental arts. The period of this civilisation was designatocl by Manetho that of "the Old Empire; " and the phrase has been preserved by some modern hi…
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2150 Accession of the Usurtasen I Obelisks erected at Heliopolis and 12th Dynasty in the Fayoum. Great Temple of (Theban). Karne.k commenced Usurwenill Ethiopia conSuered. Frontier advanced to the econd Cataract. Amenemhat m. Construction of the Labyrinth, and the artificial Lake Mmris. 1960 Aceession of the Egy…
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Leipzig, 1875. An English translation of the work is appended to the' Histo17_of Eg_ypt,' by the same writer, translated by the late Mr. H. Danby Seymour and Mr. Philip Smith, and published by Mr. Murray, London, 1879. 1 See an article by Mr. Greville Chester in the ' Quarterly Statement of the Palestine Exploration …
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of the place, since (1) the Lake Serbonis contains no weeds, sedge, or rueheR of any kind, 1 and (2) it ie, and always must be, eo long ae it ie a lake, fed by a deep channel connecting it with the Mediterranean, eo that the tongue of land ie not continuous, and cannot be used ae a road, unlees by an army carrying pont…
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the Gulf of Suoz at the time of tho Exodns is open to question. On the whole, it is perhaps most probable that tho Bitter Lakes were then a portion of the Red Sea inlet, 1 being connected with it by a narrow and shallow channel, which is now dried up. We should ourselves place the passage somewhere near the present sit…
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and they removed from the Red Sea and encamped in the wildemeAs of Sin." 'fhis makes it certain that Wady Ghunmdel was reached at some distance inland,1 and that after leaving it the route was defkctcd towards the right, and the coast of the Red Sea reached, probably either at the mouth of Wady Ethal or of Wady Shu…
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practicable routes, but the former the easier. It is a reasonable suggestion that both may have boen utilised, and that the two portions of the congrega- tion, reuniting where the above-mentioned wadys converge, thus entered the Wady er Rahah, "the enclosed plain in front of the magnificent cliffs of Ras SufsMeh," 1 wh…
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'l'he Book of Exodus is so closely connected with the remainder of the Pentateuch that it has but seldom, comparatively speaking, been made the subject of distinct and separate comment. The great bulk of those who have written upon it, have been either composers of "Introductions" to the whole of the Old Testament, …
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with book in the closest possible way by t iui CHAPTER I. simple copnlative "and." (Compare Josh. i. ] , Vers. 1-6.-The Book of Exodus, being Judg. i. 1, Ruth, Samuel, Kings, Ezra, Nehe- miah, and Esther.) This practice, so unlike written in continuation of the history recorded that of secnlar writers, can only be e…
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HOMILETICS. Vers. I-5.-The patriarchal names. I. THE NA.MES IN THEMSELVES. Nothing seems to the ordinary reader of Holy Scripture so dry and uninteresting as a bare catalogue of names. Objections are even made to reading them as parts of Sunday or week-day " lessons." But "ALL Scripture," rightly viewed, " is profi…
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Atrongth, in knowlcdgo, 1md experience, rightfully claims respect, submission, reverence from those younger than himself. In a properly regulated family this principle will be laid down and maintained. Age, unless by misconduct it forfeits its privilege, will bo assigned the superior position; younger children will be …
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Ver. 1.-Removal to Egypt. This early instance of emigration shows- I. How the CALL to leave the land of one's fathers may sometimes bo-1. Unexpected Jacob little expected to end his days in Egypt. 2. Trying. Canaan, the land of promise, where were the graves of his ancestors, etc. 3. My…
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describe them I Recall Reuben's incest; Simeon 11.nd Levi's cruelty; J uda.h's lewdness. the "evil report" which Joseph brought to his father of the sons of the hand.maids'. The :picture in the later c~apters of Genesis is crowded with s~adows, and it is chiefly the sills of these men which are the causes of them. Jose…
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wh~ch s~parnted_ Joseph fr~m his father, raised him to power in Egypt, wrought for tho punficat1on of his brethren s character, and prepared the way for the ultimo.ta Battlement of the whole family in Goshen. It laid the foundation for new historical developments. '.l'here is now to be a pause, a breathing space, wh…
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glorious experience in the future. It was a name not to be forfeited even in the greatest u.postnsies, and perhaps its chief splendour lay in this, that it pointed forward to a. still more glorious fatherhood enjoyed by those who through the gracious work of him who taught Nicodemus concerning recrenera.tion, are permi…
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such a time," not much. If I say," William, a great warrior; Arthur, a great inventor," we feel at once that with them elements are introduced which may prove important. 1n these early times names are connected with the characters of the men who bear them. All these names are signifioont. Illustrate from their meani…
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Ueehor'e dates, inserted into the margin of eo are expressly mentioned as not included among many of onr Bibles, a.re the private specu- them ( fb. ver. 26). If we add the wives of lations of o.n individual on the subject of 67 males, we shall have, for the actual fom.11y of Jacob, 137 persons. Further, it is to be mu…
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One-third of this number would be from Behold, the ohildren of Israel are more 2,300,000 to 2,600,000. and mightier than we. Literallr,, " great Th!' writ.er 0£ Exodus does not, however, 8.9 and strong in compo.rison with us. ' Actual vet, me.kc e.nything like e. definite calcule.tion. numerical superiority is not, …
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senao on the monument representing brick- which "expresses e. mixture of loathing and muking, which has been supposed by some to alarm"(' Speaker's Commentary,'vol. i. pt. I, be o picture of the Hebrews at work. (See p. 251). Kalisch translates forcibly, if in- Cook, in the' Speuker'e Commentary,' vol. i. elegantly-…
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HOMILETICS. Vers. 7 1md 12.-God the Protector of his poople. I. THE MULTIPLIOATION OF IsnAEL. All increase is of God, and comes to man by his blessing. As he gave the original command, "Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth" (Gen. i. 28), so he in every case gives the new li"Ves by which the earth is r…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers. 7-11.-.A multiplying people and a king's fears. The increase of Israel in Egypt excited Pharaoh's jealousy. They were a useful people, and he dreaded their departure (ver. 10). But their staying was almost equally an occasion of uneasiness. Their position in Lower Egypt, so near the …
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Vers. 11-14.-The bondage. I. How EFFECTED? Doubtless, partly by craft, and partly by force. To one in Pharaoh's position, where there was the will to enslave, there would soon be found the way. 1. The Israelites were politicaJ,ly weak. " The patriarchal family had grown into a horde ; it must have lost its domestic …
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seven times purified. 3. As a moral preparation. It is now manifest, though it could lnrdly have bean seen then, how needful was this affliction, protracted through succes- sive genere.Uons-(1) 'fo wean the people's hearts from Egypt. (2) To make them willing to leave it. (3) To make the thought of Canaan sweet to them…
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EXPOSITION. Vers. 15-22.-Some time---say five or six births ? The midwives mentioned must there- years-ha-ring ele.psed and the Pharaoh's first fore be regarded as "superintendents," chiefs plan having manifestly failed, it was necessary of the guild or faculty, who were expected t.o for him either to give up his p…
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Ilebrow mole child of whose birth ho bas cog- He made them hoUBeB, He blessed them by nisance. The object is o national one-to giving them children of their own, who grew secure the public eo.fety (see ver. 10): the up, o.nd gave them the comfort, support, and happiness which children were intender! to whole nation …
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obt.aine~ ~n lln?ther_. Like Balak (Num. xxii. x.xiii.), they would outwit God; or rathor not reahsmg Ins ex1st.en?e, they would force fortune by a combination of inventiveness, perseverance, and audamty. Whe1;1- one means fail_s, they do not lay aside their design, hut_ seek another means. And their second plan 1s …
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to the noble band, who, when the crisis came, have "obeyed God rather than man" and takon their chance of the consequences I Not that the final consequences to them:ielves can bo doubtful. "But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, blessed are ye!" 1 Pet, iii. 14). In this life, the consequence may be success, sev…
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certainty of the Church surviving under the worst that :nan can c.o aaainst, it. The more Pharaoh pel'l!ecured, the more the people multiplied. and grew (~crs. 12, 20).- J. O. Vers. S-22.-T7ie policy of Pharaoh. I. THE PRINCIPLE OF THE POLICY, This iii indicared in vers. 9, 10. It was a policy of se7fishfcar, proceed…
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oven whilo he cannot explain it, and proceeds to a more direct method of action, which surely cannot fail in EL perfectly efficacious result. He co=ands the men-children of Israel to be sin.in from the womb. But here he fails even in a more conspicuous and humiliating way than before. He was EL desr,ot, accustomed to h…
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Vers. 15-21.-The conduct of the midwives. I. NOTICE WHAT WAS PRAISEWORTHY IN THEIR C01'"DUCT. "They did not as the king of Egypt commanded them but ~aved the men-child:en alive," and this conduct was made possible because b~hind it there was a praiseworthy feeling. "The midwives feared God." They saw how real was t…
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EXPOSITION. CHAPTER II time before, and ta.ken to wife a daughter of Levi." Miriam must have been fonrteen o, Vers. 1-10.-Tm: BIRTH, ESCAPE, AND fifteen at the time of the exposure of Moses. EDUCATION OF MOSES. Some years before the By a daughter of Levi, we must not Ullder- Phare.oh issued hls edict for the gener…
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in Goshen-not perhaps in any great numbers, p. 695). Her ma.idena. Egyptio,n ladies of but still so that no Hebrew felt himself so.fe high rank are represented on the monuments from observation. as attended to the bath by a. number of hand- Ver. 3.~he took for him an ark of bul- me.idens. As many B.!I four are seen in…
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Moses' life WPS saved, and yet he WPS not hieratic, was generolly studied, and all toler- sepo.rnted from his na.turol guardian, nor given ably educated persons could read it e.nd write over to the tender mercies of strangers : the it. Style was cultivated, and though no great child went be.ck to hie own home, to his o…
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at1 other children. True hist-0ry admits this. Legendary history conceals it, denies it, makes up a series of extraordinary events anterior to the birth, which shadow for:l,. the coming greatness of the mighty one, and warn the world what to expect of him. The legends attaching to Cyrus, to Romulus, to Pericles (Herod.…
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mutilation. Amram and Jochebed, but especially Jochebed, who must have been the ma.in a.gent in the concealment, braved these penalties-did not allow their fear ot them to influence their conduct-ba.d/aith in God that be would, somehow or other, give success to their endeavours to preserve their chilcl, and either save…
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"fell short in nothing of the teachings of Ch.istianity" (see Brugsch, • History of Egypt, vol. i. p. 20). '!'his is, no doubt, an over-statement ; but it is the fact, that correct and elevated ideas on the subject of morality were entertained by the Egyptian sages, and inculC3ted on the young by Egyptian teachers. …
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vere. 1-11.-.A child of provid~nce. This section recounts the birth, deliverance, and upbringing .at the court of Pharaoh, of the future Deliverer of Israel. In which we have to notice- . I. AN A0T OF FAITH ON THE PART OF MOSES' PARENTS. The faith of Moses' panmts is signalised in the …
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Vers. 1-9.-The infancy of Moses. I. WE HAVE, IN THIS EXPERIENCE OF THE INFANT A!\"D HIS MOTHER, A MOST AFFECTING ll.LO'STRATION OF THE MISERABLE STATE TO WHICH IsRAEL HAD BEEN REDUCED. We come down from the O'eneral statement of the first chapter to the particular instance of the second. Mose;' was born, in all lik…
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mind to faco tbo dread necessity of exposure I We can imagine her being driven to decisive action at last, by seeing the agonies of some neighbouring mother, M the scrvants of Pharaoh discover her child and ruthlessly extinguish its delicate life. Here, in the sufferings of the mother of Moses, and of all the rest whom…
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Vers. 1-10.-By works was faith made perfect. Bad times; harsh decrees against the Israelites ; doubts and misgivings which must have occurred to one in Amram's position; a hard experience and a dark prospect. Still the man believed in God, remembered the promises, and knew that God also must remember them; did not …
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for the preAervl\Uon of their children were crowned by God with complete success. [Illustrate from the history-Bll happening, all ordained to happen, just as they hoped.] 'l'hey had }_lrepared, by carrying out the plan which faith prompted, a channel through which Gods gracious and ready help might reach them; and God …
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Miriam and Aaron are not mentioned in vcrs. 1, 2 by name. But the motive and imJ_mlse of inspiration are to be ta.ken into account. 'l'he object was to give the event which led to the Exodus, and to the constitution of the Jewish Church. From this point of view interest concentrates on Moses. Hence we infer the extr…
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their treatment was, o.nd do his best to alle- a tough pliant wood imported from Syria" viate it. Ho bad as yet no Divine mission, (Che.bas,' Voyage d'un Egyptien,' p. 119). It no commo.nd from God to act as he did, but was their right to employ their rods on the hacks of the idle, e. right which was S11re to only a n…
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the education e.nd position of Mo~es might Egypti1tn ? " Moses fled, knowing wlmt ho ha,·e enabled him to exercise upon his nation had to expect, quitted Egypt, went to Midian ; was lost by the nry act to which he had been and the Egyptian monarch "sought to slay urged by his sympathy with them ; it "'88 him " too l…
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thought. The deed done, conscience reasserted herself: it was a deed of darkneRs; a thing which must be concealed: so Moses dug a hole in the eand, and hid the dreadrul evidence of his crime. It does not appear that the man whom he had delivered helped him; he was perhaps too much exhausted with what he had guffered, u…
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HOMILIES DY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Ve~s. 11, 12,;-:-7!1e cho~ of Moses. Underl~g this epi~e of killing the Egyptinn there 1s that cns1s m the history of Moses to which reference 1s made so strikingly in the eleventh of the Hebrews-" Dy faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daught…
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Mosos ohoee that which the multitudes shun BB almost worse than death itself, viz. (1) Poverty. (2) Reproach. Yet how many stumble at reproach in the service of the Saviour I A measure of reproach ie implied in all earnest religious profession. And it requires courage to face it--to encounter the moral crucifixion invo…
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Vers. 11-15.-Unpurified zeal. We must certainly attribute the killing of the Egyptian, not to Divine inspiration, but to the natural impetuosity of Moses' character. At this stage Moses had zeal, but it was without knowledge. His heart burned with indignation at the wrongs of his brethren. He longed to be their deli…
631 wordsSource & rights
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.