Book Of Exodus Essay
Exodus
Prince Henry Snal
1st Year, 1st Semester-2013
Origin: The Hebrew title for the second book of the Pentateuch is We’ ēlleh Šemôt (“and these are the names”)- the opening words of the Masoretic text. The Greek version took its title from the subject matter of the opening chapters – ‘Éξοδος’ {(the going out (from Egypt)}. The title of the book in the Vulgate and English Version- Exodus- is a literal rendering of the Greek title.
Exodus: The second book of the Old Testament; it tells of the departure of the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, made possible by the ten plagues of Egypt and the parting of the Red Sea. Moses led them, and their destination was the Promised Land. God guided them by sending a pillar of cloud by …show more content…
day and a pillar of fire by night, to show them the way they should go. God also fed them with manna and gave them water out of a solid rock. Because of their frequent complaining and failure to trust him, however, God made them stay in the desert for forty years before entering the Promised Land. God gave them the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Mosaic law on Mount Sinai during the Exodus. Exodus is a Greek word meaning “departure.”
Writer of the Book: The traditional view is that the Book of Exodus was written by Moses.
Based on the traditional date for the death of Moses, that would mean that it was written about 1400 BCE.
However, the view of biblical scholars now is that Moses did not write, and could not have written, Exodus. Exodus was compiled over a period of centuries, before it reached a more or less identifiable form, and was then redacted into substantially the form we know today. So, the answer to this question depends on the level of the book 's evolution at which you would finally consider it to be 'Exodus '. Arguably, that would be somewhere around 500 to 600 BCE.
The book is based on input from several sources. Because we do not know the actual names of those sources, we generally call the major contributors: J, E, D and P.
Based on the archaic Hebrew and other evidence, J and E appear to be from around 800 to 1000 BCE. D (the Deuteronomist) lived a little before 600 BCE. P (the Priestly source) probably lived during the Babylonian …show more content…
exile.
There are some evidences found in the Bible which show that Moses was the author of the book of Exodus.
These are:
Exodus 17:14 "Then the Lord instructed Moses, 'Write this down as a permanent record... '"
Exodus 24:4 "Then Moses carefully wrote down all the Lord 's instructions."
Exodus 34:27 "And the Lord said to Moses, 'Write down all these instructions, for they represents the terms of my covenant with you and with Israel. '"
Contents: The book Exodus may be divided into six sections-
1. The first section (1.1 – 12.36) tells the story of Israel in Egypt.
2. The Second section (12.37 – 18.27) treats the Exodus, itself, and the wandering in the desert.
3. The Third section (19.1 – 24.18) deals with the covenant.
4. The Forth section (25.1 – 31.18) is concerned with instructions for the establishment of worship.
5. The rather fifth section (32.1 – 34.35) tells of the chosen people breaking faith with Moses and their creation of the golden calf.
6. The sixth and final section (35.1 – 40.38) describes the fulfillment of the divine
instructions.
Bibliography
The New Catholic Encyclopedia, 2003, v.5, ed. 2nd, s.v. “Exodus, Book of”, by J.E. Huesman.
NICHOSON, E.W.: Exodus and Sinai in History and Tradition. Atlanta, John Knox Press, 1978.
Links: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exodus_
Prince Henry Snal
1st Year, 1st Semester-2013
Origin: The Hebrew title for the second book of the Pentateuch is We’ ēlleh Šemôt (“and these are the names”)- the opening words of the Masoretic text. The Greek version took its title from the subject matter of the opening chapters – ‘Éξοδος’ {(the going out (from Egypt)}. The title of the book in the Vulgate and English Version- Exodus- is a literal rendering of the Greek title.
Exodus: The second book of the Old Testament; it tells of the departure of the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, made possible by the ten plagues of Egypt and the parting of the Red Sea. Moses led them, and their destination was the Promised Land. God guided them by sending a pillar of cloud by …show more content…
day and a pillar of fire by night, to show them the way they should go. God also fed them with manna and gave them water out of a solid rock. Because of their frequent complaining and failure to trust him, however, God made them stay in the desert for forty years before entering the Promised Land. God gave them the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Mosaic law on Mount Sinai during the Exodus. Exodus is a Greek word meaning “departure.”
Writer of the Book: The traditional view is that the Book of Exodus was written by Moses.
Based on the traditional date for the death of Moses, that would mean that it was written about 1400 BCE.
However, the view of biblical scholars now is that Moses did not write, and could not have written, Exodus. Exodus was compiled over a period of centuries, before it reached a more or less identifiable form, and was then redacted into substantially the form we know today. So, the answer to this question depends on the level of the book 's evolution at which you would finally consider it to be 'Exodus '. Arguably, that would be somewhere around 500 to 600 BCE.
The book is based on input from several sources. Because we do not know the actual names of those sources, we generally call the major contributors: J, E, D and P.
Based on the archaic Hebrew and other evidence, J and E appear to be from around 800 to 1000 BCE. D (the Deuteronomist) lived a little before 600 BCE. P (the Priestly source) probably lived during the Babylonian …show more content…
exile.
There are some evidences found in the Bible which show that Moses was the author of the book of Exodus.
These are:
Exodus 17:14 "Then the Lord instructed Moses, 'Write this down as a permanent record... '"
Exodus 24:4 "Then Moses carefully wrote down all the Lord 's instructions."
Exodus 34:27 "And the Lord said to Moses, 'Write down all these instructions, for they represents the terms of my covenant with you and with Israel. '"
Contents: The book Exodus may be divided into six sections-
1. The first section (1.1 – 12.36) tells the story of Israel in Egypt.
2. The Second section (12.37 – 18.27) treats the Exodus, itself, and the wandering in the desert.
3. The Third section (19.1 – 24.18) deals with the covenant.
4. The Forth section (25.1 – 31.18) is concerned with instructions for the establishment of worship.
5. The rather fifth section (32.1 – 34.35) tells of the chosen people breaking faith with Moses and their creation of the golden calf.
6. The sixth and final section (35.1 – 40.38) describes the fulfillment of the divine
instructions.
Bibliography
The New Catholic Encyclopedia, 2003, v.5, ed. 2nd, s.v. “Exodus, Book of”, by J.E. Huesman.
NICHOSON, E.W.: Exodus and Sinai in History and Tradition. Atlanta, John Knox Press, 1978.
Links: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exodus_