Exodus Motif Research Articles

“Exile on narrow paths”

The Hungarian word bujdosás originally referred to both exile and travel in general; thus, peregrination was understood as “bujdosás or travel in foreign lands”. This was not without a reason, as public safety, harsh travel conditions and unfamiliar foreign customs made exile and travel similar to each other. The genre of the exile song, which deals with wandering and leaving one’s homeland, already in the Middle Ages was connected to the image of hopelessness caused by leaving and saying farewell, as well as with the encounter with the unfathomable nature of one’s fate. The real model for later Hungarian farewell and exile songs is two poems by Bálint Balassi (cca. 1589). Seventeenth–eighteenth century complaint songs were increasingly concerned with the private sphere, turning more and more towards the lyric self. This is the experience that connects political and religious refugees, people in exile for private reasons, travellers and peregrines. Therefore, the genres of the complaint song and the exile song are markedly present in early modern popular poetry. The genre of exile song occurs with an increasing frequency already in the first half of the seventeenth century. In the early eighteenth century, the emigration waves following the end of the Rákóczi Insurgence turned exile into an everyday experience for both the exiled and those staying behind. Biblical reminiscences and the exodus motif known from the Old Testament were increasingly frequent, at times even at the expense of description of personal life. The exile song is an important and complex genre in Hungarian migration literature. These songs discuss central questions of several centuries, from fleeing personal problems to religious and political persecution, from the peregrine student’s desire for freedom to the risks taken for one’s worldview. They present all this in an empathetic, personal and rewritable way, constantly modifying the model at the same time.

L. Michael Morales. Exodus Old and New: A Biblical Theology of Redemption. Essential Studies in Biblical Theology.

L. Michael Morales. <i>Exodus Old and New: A Biblical Theology of Redemption</i>. Essential Studies in Biblical Theology.

The History of Bronze and Iron Age Israel

The History of Bronze and Iron Age Israel

A Redactional Study of the Book of Isaiah 13–23. By Jongkyung Lee

In this clearly written volume, Jongkyung Lee makes an argument for viewing Isaiah 14:1–2, 14:26–27, 14:32b, 16:1–4, 18:7, 19:16–17, and 23:8–9, 11 as late-exilic texts written for their role within the Oracles Against the Nations (chs. 13–23). The monograph unfolds by examining passages in subsequent chapters that fit into two groups—those that are positive about the nations (14:1–2; 14:32b; 16:1–4a; 18:7) and those that speak of YHWH’s plan to judge the nations (14:26–7; 19:16–17; 23:8–9, 11). This is the revised version of his Ph.D. dissertation under Hugh Williamson and fits within the scholarly stream of his supervisor, who pioneered a new phase in Isaiah scholarship that aims to show affinities between First Isaiah and Second Isaiah. There are several layers to Lee’s methodology as he examines each of the seven texts listed above in turn: (1) establish dissimilarity between the text and its surrounding passage; (2) explain how the text functions as a redactional insertion; (3) argue that late-exile is the most likely date for the text. Since the crux of Lee’s thesis rests upon no. 3, this review will focus there. In Isaiah 14:1–2, he draws upon a list of affinities with Isaiah 40–55 from Williamson: Jacob/Israel pair (rare in First Isaiah; not found in Third Isaiah); YHWH’s compassion (most common in Second Isaiah); בחר to choose a people (exclusive to Second Isaiah); similarity to 49:22–3; role reversal (prominent in Second Isaiah). In 14:32b, he argues that the verb יסד and the moral use of עני are most at home in Second Isaiah. In 18:7, he notes the mention of Cush in 45:14 and the combination of YHWH of hosts with שׁם. In 16:1–4a, he suggests that affinities with 14:1–2, 14:32b, and 18:7 indicate a late-exilic setting (presuming he already established this). In 14:26–7, after dismissing strong affinities with 5:25–6 and 9:7–10:4, he points to the stylistic use of מי in 46:5, 45:21, and especially 43:13. In 23:8–9, 11, again, he appeals to the shared use of מי with Second Isaiah. Finally, in 19:16–17, he argues circuitously that because it uses the exodus motif in a way similar to Psalm 105, which has affinities with Second Isaiah, then it is late-exilic.

A Baptism of Judgment in the Fire of the Holy Spirit: John's Eschatological Proclamation in Matthew 3 by Daniel Wayne Mcmanigal

Reviewed by: A Baptism of Judgment in the Fire of the Holy Spirit: John's Eschatological Proclamation in Matthew 3 by Daniel Wayne Mcmanigal Charles Nathan Ridlehoover daniel wayne mcmanigal, A Baptism of Judgment in the Fire of the Holy Spirit: John's Eschatological Proclamation in Matthew 3 (LNTS 595; London: T&T Clark, 2019). Pp. xv + 208. $102.60. Daniel W. McManigal is senior pastor at Hope Presbyterian Church in Bellevue, Washington. The book is a thorough examination of Matt 3:11, ἐν πνεύματι ἁγίῳ καὶ πυρί, in its Matthean form. As M. states, "This study will argue that the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire is the eschatological judgment that will come upon the unrepentant nation in Jesus's generation, upon Jesus himself as he hangs upon the cross for the sins of his people, and upon the wicked on the last day, when the judge returns in glory" (pp. 2-3). To accomplish this task, M. arranges his argument into thirteen chapters. In chap. 1, M. establishes the issues, defines the terms, justifies the study, and gives the plan of the volume. In chap. 2, he deals with the grammatical points in Matt 3:11, arguing that the phrasing refers to one baptism as opposed to two separate baptisms and that this baptism refers to a future event. This issue is important for his conclusion. From this point forward, M. begins to work from the broadest angles of inquiry toward an understanding of his specific test case. Chapter 3 details the various interpretive options for Matt 3:11; this chapter functions as a survey of the relevant scholarship. Chapters 4 through 6 closely examine Isaiah 11, Malachi 3–4, and Daniel 7, respectively. These texts are chosen because [End Page 715] of their close ties with the message of John and the life of Jesus as well as sharing the theme of future judgment. In chap. 7, M. examines the use of OT quotations in Matthew's opening chapters (1–3), providing in this overview the background of John's proclamation. In chap. 8, M. discusses the time, location, and identity of John the Baptist, arguing that Matthew's presentation of John and his role as prophet emphasize the significance of Jesus as the future king and fulfillment of the Abrahamic and Davidic promises. In chap. 9, M. turns to the preaching of John against the backdrop of the OT prophets. This comparison is helpful for emphasizing the shared judgment motifs. Chapter 10 works inwardly from John's preaching in general to the specific emphasis on baptism. Like chap. 2, this chapter begins with a brief survey of the interpretive options. M. opts for a hybrid of the options to emphasize the harmonization of John's preaching of future-oriented judgment with a baptism that also concerns future-oriented judgment. In chap. 11, M. examines the baptism of Jesus in light of his earlier conclusions concerning John's baptism of spirit and fire. He contends that this baptism was an acting-out of the "royal son's messianic mission as the faithful embodiment of Israel" (p. 141). The baptism's main point was conceivably a messianic judgment which makes way for a new and repentant Israel to secure their promised new exodus. Chapter 12 gives an overview of the judgment motifs that follow Matthew 3 to show the consistency of Matthew's message. Chapter 13 concludes the volume with a review of the argument. McManigal's study is a fascinating analysis of the historical John and his message. Although the information on John is limited in the Gospel accounts, M. is able to provide a thorough analysis of John's preaching and baptism. Taking cues from N. T. Wright and others, M. finds an extensive new exodus motif underlying Matt 3:11. His conclusions seem reasonable given the extensive backgrounding and exploration of Matthew's typological recasting of Jesus and John. Yet, one often wonders how much of these readings are Matthew's intentions versus the reader's interpretation. M. footnotes a conclusion from John Nolland that seems appropriate for these occasions: when analyzing Jesus's baptism, the various options are typically "little more than projections from understandings of the historical...

Echoes of Exodus: Tracing a Biblical Motif

Echoes of Exodus: Tracing a Biblical Motif

Echoes of Exodus: Tracing a Biblical Motif by Bryan D. Estelle

Reviewed by: Echoes of Exodus: Tracing a Biblical Motif by Bryan D. Estelle Matthew Seufert bryan d. estelle, Echoes of Exodus: Tracing a Biblical Motif (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2018). Pp. xiv + 392. Paper $40. "This book is about the continuing thread of the exodus motif in the Old Testament and New Testament" (p. 2). It has an introduction, eleven chapters, and a conclusion; its appendix (25 pp.) sketches the views of Julia Kristeva, Mikhail Bakhtin, Umberto Eco, and Ferdinand de Saussure and means "to introduce the reader to some of the significant hermeneutical issues to be faced in intertextuality" (p. 351). Estelle espouses his own hermeneutical position in chap. 1: "The centrality of Scripture is Christ." "The exodus motif is one important way that the Bible tells us about Christ. … [It] offers a way of explaining God's grand narrative … of redemption for sullied, sinful men, women, and children" (p. 5). For E., the Bible (consisting of the Old and New Testaments) is God's inspired, unified word with Christ at the center; chaps. 4–11 track the language, themes, and theology of the exodus as they recur throughout the Psalms, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Ezra-Nehemiah (exile and postexile), Mark and Matthew, Luke-Acts, Paul, 1 Peter, and Revelation. The motif climaxes in the NT with the spiritual reality of God's delivering the people from their spiritual slavery through the work of Christ and bringing them through the wilderness of this world into the divine presence to worship God forever in the world-to-come. "The exodus motif is much bigger than … liberation of the Hebrews from the iron furnace of the Egyptians" (p. 93). "It includes in story format, and with broad brush strokes, the whole matrix of Christian salvation" (p. 104). The second chapter contextualizes all of this by starting with the biblical account of creation. E. interprets Adam as a priest-king in the sanctuary of God who was banished because of disobedience; "all the subsequent covenantal eras or epochs, including the role of the exodus within those patterns of interim structures, serve the unfolding development and plan of God's salvation of a people for himself" (pp. 69-70), returning humanity to and establishing them in their original dwelling with God. "Creation is therefore the foundation for salvation and election, the creation of a royal priesthood people of God" (p. 69). [End Page 309] In the third chapter, E. examines the exodus material itself and identifies the main elements of the event: liberation/deliverance, the divine warrior, the sea crossing, which "may be seen as a new creation or rebirth" (p. 109), wilderness wanderings, Sinai, the mountain of God, "representing God's presence to these liberated Hebrew slaves" (p. 103), the land, and union and communion with God, "the ultimate bliss envisioned by the story" (p. 104). On E.'s reading, the exodus echoes creation and is typological of Christian salvation. At creation, God subdued the waters of chaos to bring forth order and created humanity to dwell in God's presence. In the exodus, he subdued Pharaoh and his army, "an incarnation of the chaos dragon" (p. 117), to bring forth a people to dwell with God and sing God's praises, typical of the final redemption, "the original redemption writ large" (p. 208), "liberation from the bondage of Satan and sin and release from the curse of death so that Christians could receive their inheritance" (p. 250). The value of this book is in its view and presentation of the unified whole. For those committed to or interested in the developing story line of the OT into the NT, from creation to new creation, the book is worth the read. E. also brings together, engages, and builds upon previous exodus studies; much of the book interacts with secondary literature. I found this to be helpful when dealing with the exodus theme itself, as these other studies confirmed a lot of what constituted the foundational material for E.'s study—seeing the exodus motif in a particular book. But E. also touches on many significant issues that are not directly concerned with how the exodus is used by the biblical writers (e...

Prorocka interpretacja exodusu. II. Ezechiel, Deutero-Izajasz

There is a different view of the exodus in the prophetic books. The aim of the article is to verify the use of the exodus topos by the prophets, especially the significance of this event for their teaching. In the first part of the article the author examined the exodus motif in Amos and Hosea. The second part concerns with the exodus in Ezekiel and Deutero-Isaiah. For both prophets exodus is a structural element claryfying the history of Israel. Ezekiel believes that the people have not yet reached the Promised Land on account of their unfaithfulness, therefore the exiles are still in the way to the land of the covenant. Deutero-Isaiah announces the new exodus, but his understanding of this future event reaches beyond its material dimension. The predicted return from Babylonia to Jerusalem is identical with the inner conversion of the people to God.

Prorocka interpretacja exodusu. I. Amos, Ozeasz

There is a different view of the exodus in the prophetic books. The aim of the article is to verify the use of the exodus topos by the prophets, especially the significance of this event for their teaching. In the first part of the article the author examines the exodus motif in Amos and Hosea. Hosea develops the exodus theology existing the North Kingdom. Whereas for Hosea the exodus is the fundament of the identity of the chosen people, Amos distances himself from this idealizing lecture of exodus and announces the reversal of exodus as a punishment for Israel’s infidelity

The Making of Gershom’s Story: A Cameroonian Postwar Hermeneutics Reading of Exodus 2

My analyses proceed on two basic assumptions. First, exodus story's interregional and intergenerational identity, as well as its ethics and cultural values, are significantly shaped by and violence-real or anticipated-and by communal responses to such violence.1 Second, consistent with canonical practice in biblical hermeneutics of using cultural as a resource and context for interpretation,2 analyses of postwar and geography are vital to biblical interpretation in nation-state. My focus is on intersection of war, violence, and biblical interpretation in colonized and independent Cameroon. On basis of these assumptions, will read Exodus 2 as a postwar narrative.Central to postwar hermeneutics is prioritized attention to forms of power that facilitate access to and control of individual, communal, and cosmic life-what Bafut of Cameroon call nchuwi-nt? (literally, life force).3 The of this hermeneutic, much like cradle of nation-to evoke Julius Wellhausen's popular phrase-is not just war camp but also birth stool, 4 both of which evoke two primary impulses in individual and collective identity formation, survival, and memory: (1) trauma from cognitive and material alienation and threat of extinction, which Jacob Wright calls the fear of defeat and defeat itself 5 and (2) communal drive for survival, restoration, and integration, which Desmond Tutu calls African Weltsanschauung constructed around concepts of lifeaffirming hospitality and compassion: ubuntu in Nguni languages6 or akwaaba in Twi languages. The use of historical, cultural, contextual, and religious perspectives in biblical hermeneutics7 connects human bodies, communities, and geographies; it combines ecologies, ideologies, and economies of life. Thus, postwar hermeneutics engages what Patrick Manning calls history through culture ... expressed in verbal and nonverbal media, at level of whole societies and individuals.8 For Cameroon and biblical story, and violence (re)define communal identity around gender, ethnicity, politics, religion, and region, and therefore impact narrative ethics and cultural values. These identity markers and their associative values are deployed here not as a menu of hermeneutical options but as interpretive clusters that illumine postwar hermeneutics in Exodus 2-the deployment of compassion, resistance to exploitation, and hospitality as tropes for regenerative transformation of dislocated identity into trauma-promise.I. Gershom: An Intergenerational and Interregional StoryIn his first articulation of self-definition-though not his first identity-forming moment-in Exodus, Moses describes himself in genealogical and geographical terms: I have become a in a foreign (Exod 2:22). The bearer of that identity and memory, however, is not Moses but Gershom; that is, ideas sojourner and foreignness function less as person-specific and boundaryspecific tropes than as intergenerational and interregional presences. In this interpretive episteme where geography, sociology, and genealogy are integral to narrative and existential meaning, paradox emerges: although narrative nomenclature designates his spatial location as foreign, Midian is not foreign land to Gershom. Moses's intergenerational and interregional interpretive act creates a narrative and embodied character-Gershom-whose inherited story illustrates an exodus motif of dislocated identity reclaimed as trauma-promise. But how and why does Gershom happen? What processes, events, and places provide structure, meaning, and purpose to his narrative genealogy and its interpretive relevance? What virtues shape social interaction and discourse about communal identity, ethics, and governance? What memories infuse and galvanize this story?Exodus begins as a story of profound shifts in communal identities-political, gendered, ethnic, religious, and regional-centrally linked to a new pharaoh's hypothetical, but deeply impactful, wartime policies and ideologies (1:8-22). …

'Deep is the well of the past': Reconsidering the origins of the Exodus motif in its cultural context

The article shows, that the stories of the Patriarchs as well as the Exodus-story are allochthonous traditions of origin. We find comparable stories in the neighboring cultures of Israel. Egypt as origin of human culture was of utmost importance in the Levant. Herodotus reports a myth of origin of the Phoenicians which is of particular interest in this respect. As far as it can be seen there are affinities between this tradition and the Exodus motif from the Hebrew Bible. This raises the question if we should read the Biblical traditions as part of the comprehensive cultural context of the Levant.

The Exodus Tradition in the Psalms, Isaiah and Ezekiel

In order to identify the exodus tradition outside the book of Exodus – not an easy task –, we need to identify an exodus pattern in three phases – coming out of Egypt, walking in the desert, and entering into the promised land –, sometimes in two phases, without the coming out of Egypt. In the Psalms and the Prophets the exodus motif is used for hymnic or paraenetic-didactic purposes, i.e., to glorify the Lord and/or to invite the people to learn His mighty deeds of the past and to live according to His laws. This means that outside the narrative section of the book of Exodus, references to the exodus are not necessarily complete but only the facts that serve each purpose are evoked. To take notice of this difference is very important in order not put divergent references one against the other and not to put the basic narrative under doubt. The texts examined in this essay are Psalms 78, 80, 81, and 105, and the prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel, together with various parallel passages.

Psalm 118 (117 LXX) in Luke-Acts : application of a 'New Exodus Motif' : original research

This contribution explores the presence of Psalm 118 (117 LXX) in Luke-Acts. The Wirkungsgeschichte of Psalm 118 will be traced by means of a twofold approach: from a traditional-historical and a hermeneutical angle with regard to the reception history of Psalm 118. Firstly, in terms of a traditional-historical, otherwise known as a diachronic, approach, the background of Psalm 118 and evidence of the use and application of Psalm 118 in the tradition (namely in the ancient Jewish materials, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Targums, and Rabbinics, and the New Testament books of Mark, Matthew, Luke, Acts, John, Romans, 2 Corinthians, Ephesians, 1 Peter, Hebrews, Revelation, as well as in terms of Church Fathers 1 Clement and Barnabas and the Apocryphon Thomas) will be discussed. Secondly, on the hermeneutical level, otherwise known as the synchronic approach, the function and interpretation of the quotations of Psalm 118 in its new context of Luke-Acts will be examined. In terms of the latter approach, attention will be paid to investigating a possible underlying 'New Exodus Motif'.

The story of the Red Sea as a theological framework of interpretation

The exodus motif is widely agreed to be one of the central frameworks illustrating the salvational acts of God in both the Old and New Testaments. According to the Old Testament, the exodus motif was, to Israel, the paradigm of redemptive historical renewal. For this reason, the exodus motif provided the typological expression for all future hope of salvation and served as a theological paradigm to be used by Old and New Testament authors. In this article, the exodus theme in the Book of Revelation, chapters 12 to 13, is discussed in the following order: (1) Christ�s crucif xion and resurrection as the archetypal exodus; (2) the chronological fulf llment of the exodus theme in the Bible; and (3) the exodus theme in Revelation 12 to 13. To investigate the exodus theme in Revelation 12 to 13, the intertextual interpretation, as based on the redemptive historical interpretation, will be highlighted.�

Psalm 118 (117 lxx) in Luke-Acts: Application of a 'New Exodus Motif'

This contribution explores the presence of Psalm 118 (117 LXX) in Luke-Acts. The Wirkungsgeschichte of Psalm 118 will be traced by means of a twofold approach: from a traditional-historical and a hermeneutical angle with regard to the reception history of Psalm 118. Firstly, in terms of a traditional-historical, otherwise known as a diachronic, approach, the background of Psalm 118 and evidence of the use and application of Psalm 118 in the tradition (namely in the ancient Jewish materials, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Targums, and Rabbinics, and the New Testament books of Mark, Matthew, Luke, Acts, John, Romans, 2 Corinthians, Ephesians, 1 Peter, Hebrews, Revelation, as well as in terms of Church Fathers 1 Clement and Barnabas and the Apocryphon Thomas) will be discussed. Secondly, on the hermeneutical level, otherwise known as the synchronic approach, the function and interpretation of the quotations of Psalm 118 in its new context of Luke-Acts will be examined. In terms of the latter approach, attention will be paid to investigating a possible underlying �New Exodus Motif�.

Between Exodus and Egypt: Malcolm X, Islam, and the natural religion of the oppressed

Malcolm X's life and career offers a window through which to analyze the interactions between race and religion in the post-slavery experience of African Americans. This essay traces the trajectory of Malcolm's two religious conversions, and his evolving sense that Christianity is the backbone of white supremacy and western imperialism, where Islam is the natural religion of the oppressed. This journey, I suggest, features the eclipse of the Exodus motif that has been so central to much black religiosity since slavery to make way for the centralization of the Egypt metaphor; thus identifications with Jews are displaced by associations with black and Muslim diasporas. However, exploration of this movement from Exodus to Egypt illuminates not a smooth transition but rather a complex and ongoing interaction between the two motifs, interactions that question the notion that any singular religious identity offers an authentic experience for oppressed peoples. I suggest that Malcolm X's negotiation between what emerge as the competing modalities of race, religion and nation offer an insight into those forces that shape expressions of black religion today.

Leave Babylon: The Trope of Babylon in Rastafarian Discourse

This article explores the usage of the term "Babylon" in Rastafarian liberation discourse as distinct from the exodus motif normally associated with theologies of liberation. This usage comes mainly from Marcus Garvey's notion of a "Black Zionism" that pictured Zion as a place of restoration. In its usage in the prophetic books of Jeremiah and Isaiah, Zion serves as the foil for Babylon and in many instances the two topoi are paired. The article argues that the Rastafarian reading of the biblical texts, more so the prophets and not the book of Revelation, generated the notion of Babylon as the evil empire; any place outside of Africa as Babylon, and the British Empire as Babylon with Zion as its counterpoint. An exploration of the music of Bob Marley, as representative of Rastafarian discourse, also reflects the pairing of Babylon-Zion, as seen in the prophetic texts.

The Exodus Motif in 1 Kings 1–14

The appearance of the Exodus motif in several books of the Bible has been the subject of several studies. The present article examines the use of the Exodus motif in chs. 1–14 of the first book of Kings, first identifying explicit references, and concluding with more oblique ones. These allusions appear in passages attributed to various redactional layers, and are raised by a variety of figures (the narrator, God, the characters). Through their very appearance, the Exodus allusions contribute to the overall unity of the text. It is proposed that these references serve several different functions: to heighten the importance of the United Kingdom and its link to the Exodus; to abet the assessment of the characters of Solomon and Jeroboam, including the reversal of the assessment concerning them; to underscore the debt of fealty to God, and the justification of the punishment meted out against the sinners. Conversely, they highlight the commitment of God to his people, leading to their pardon.

The Exodus and Biblical Theology

Recent debates about the Exodus have centered on the shape of the story. One such debate concerned von Rad's attempt to separate the Exodus from the giving of the Law. Another concerns the use of the Exodus in Liberation Theology. Scholars who take a canonical approach (Childs, Levenson) argue that the "canonical shape" of the story in the final form of the Torah is decisive. Examination of the way the Exodus motif was used within the biblical tradition itself, however, suggests that the "canonical approach" is not the only permissible way to construe the tradition. The reformulation of the traditio-historical approach by such scholars as J. A. Sanders and M. Fishbane does more justice to the way in which the Exodus was understood by later biblical writers, and in much of Jewish and Christian tradition. The Liberation theologians can claim an authentic biblical basis just as well as the "canonical" interpreters, but neither can claim a monopoly on biblical authority.

Wanderers in the Promised Land: A Study of the Exodus Motif in the Book of Mormon and Holy Bible

Abstract Lehi’s exodus to the promised land is only the first of a series of exoduses occurring throughout the Book of Mormon. Indeed, Lehi’s exodus becomes mere precedent for later flights into the wilderness by Nephi, Mosiah, Alma, Limhi, and the Anti-Nephi-Lehites. For the Nephites, continuing exodus is not merely historical fact. Understanding the biblical exodus as a type and shadow, the Nephites come to see their wandering as a metaphor of their spiritual condition. Thus, even centuries after Lehi’s arrival in the promised land, Nephite prophets recognize their status as "wanderers in a strange land" (Alma 13:23). As Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Nephites looked beyond their temporal land of promise "for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God" (Hebrews 11:10).