Exodus continues the story begun in Genesis, picking up generations after Joseph's death with Israel grown into a great people yet enslaved in Egypt. Its very name (from the Greek for "going out") names its great event: the LORD's mighty deliverance of His covenant people from bondage, His meeting with them at Sinai, and His coming to dwell in their midst.
Author, Date, and Audience
The Bible consistently presents Moses as the author of Exodus and the rest of the Pentateuch, a witness affirmed by Jesus Himself (Mark 12:26; Luke 24:44) and by long Jewish and Christian tradition. Most who hold to Mosaic authorship date the events to the second millennium BC. A traditional reading of 1 Kings 6:1 places the exodus around 1446 BC, while others, weighing the archaeological and historical evidence, favor a later date near 1260 BC under Rameses II; both positions are held by faithful scholars. Whatever the precise date, the book was first given to Israel itself, the redeemed nation standing at the threshold of covenant life, to tell them who their God is, who they are, and how they are to live as His people.
Purpose and Major Themes
Exodus reveals the LORD as the covenant-keeping Redeemer who remembers His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (2:24). At the burning bush He discloses His personal name, Yahweh ("I AM WHO I AM," 3:14), and through the plagues, the Passover, and the parting of the sea He shows Himself sovereign over Egypt and its gods. The book's great themes flow from this: redemption by blood and power; the giving of the Law at Sinai and the making of the covenant; the call to holiness; God's grievous patience with a stubborn people in the golden-calf rebellion; and, supremely, the presence of God, as the tabernacle is built so that the Holy One may dwell among sinners.
Structure
Exodus moves in three broad movements. Chapters 1 through 18 recount redemption: Israel's slavery, Moses' call, the plagues, the Passover, and the deliverance through the sea. Chapters 19 through 24 record the covenant at Sinai, including the Ten Commandments and the laws that govern Israel's life with God. Chapters 25 through 40 concern the tabernacle and God's dwelling presence, with the sobering interlude of the golden calf (chs. 32-34) and the climactic descent of God's glory to fill the tent (40:34-38).
Exodus and the Story of Redemption
Exodus stands as the Old Testament's defining picture of salvation, and it points beyond itself to Christ. The Passover lamb, whose blood shelters from death, finds its fulfillment in Jesus, "our Passover lamb" (1 Corinthians 5:7) and "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). The deliverance from Egypt prefigures the greater exodus Jesus accomplished at Jerusalem (Luke 9:31), redeeming His people from sin and death. The Law given at Sinai exposes our need for a Savior and is perfectly kept by Christ on our behalf, while the tabernacle anticipates Him in whom God's glory tabernacled among us (John 1:14) and through whom we are made the dwelling place of God. To read Exodus is to see the gospel in shadow and to be led to the One who is our Redeemer, our Mediator, and our God-with-us.