• : Exodus Chapters
• 13, 14, 15:
• 22-27
• , 16, 17:
• 1-7
• , 18:1
• 3-27
• Crossing the Red Sea
• Freedom from Egypt
• Manna from Heaven
• Water from the rock
• Moses appoints 70 elders
• Key Verses and Themes
• Chapter 13
• First-born:

Exod. 13:2,12,14-15

An explicit reason as to the importance of the first-born at that time, particularly among Israelites.

• Joseph’s bones:
• Exod. 13:19
• Recall Joseph’s oath with the Israelites in

Gen 50:25.

• Chapter 14
• CROSSING THE RED SEA
• Crossing the Red Sea:
• Exod. 14:21-29

The Israelites escape from the pursuing Egyptians.

• Following God’s appointed:

Exod. 14:31

The Israelites believed in the Lord by believing in Moses, because Moses was God’s "representative" for them, meaning Moses was only commanding those things that God commanded to him!

• Chapter 15
• 12 & 70 (*72) in Elim:

Exod. 15:27

The Israelites find rest in Elim, where there are 12 wells of water and 70 palm trees.

• Chapter 16
• Bread from Heaven:
• Exod. 16:14-15, 31, 35

Manna rains down from heaven and feeds the Israelites daily for 40 years.

• Chapter 17
• The Rock:
• Exod. 17:6

Moses strikes a rock and waters flow out, as the Lord commanded him.

• Chapter 18
• Appointing Helpers:

Exod. 18:13-27

Moses and Jethro’s dialogue about Moses judging the people’s smaller matters, so he could focus on bigger matters, i.e. leading the Israelites in their journey.

References to the New Testament & our Church practices

• BAPTISM

1 Corinthians 10:1-2

Read about the crossing of the Red Sea, and what St. Paul describes it as, in the verse above and in the discussion questions!

• Following God’s appointed

Matthew 10:40/Luke 10:16

Christ explicitly states His will for His apostles to be believed, as a requisite in accepting God. Notice the similarity between Moses being believed by the Israelites alongside their belief in God, and what Jesus (God incarnate!) is stating in these verses above.

• 12 & 70 (*72)

Mark 3:13-14 & Luke 10:1

Christ appoints 12 disciples and 72 other apostles. These figures are almost identical to what we saw in Elim with the wells and palm trees… refer to the discussion questions!

• Bread from Heaven

John 6:48-51

Christ calls Himself the living bread which gives life forever, unlike Manna. See the discussion questions for more.

• The Rock
• 1 Corinthians 10:3-4
• St. Paul says the rock we read about in
• Exod. 17:6
• was Christ. Christ gives such comparison in
• John 7:38

John 4:14

. The rock is struck, as Christ is struck on the cross, to bring forth the fountains of the New Testament. We discuss this idea of spiritual waters more in the discussion questions, seeing what role the Disciples/Apostles have too.

• Appointing Helpers

Acts 6:1-4

The apostles and the early church had a similar issue as Moses did in chapter 18. See discussion questions to see what we learn from both!

• Discussion Questions
• EXODUS 13

Why did God say to consecrate all first born MALES in Exod 13:1-2

• See verses 14-15
• firstly. Note that
• consecrate
• or
• sanctify,
• the verb used here, is
• ܩܲܕܸܫ

(Qad-dish),

meaning literally to sanctify/consecrate, but it comes from the word holy, meaning these males that opened the womb were “set apart” or “holy”.

So God is foreshadowing this idea that “Someone (or something) must die in the place of another”, and that firstborn males are holy, those who open the womb. This is another foreshadowing of Christ, who truly fulfills this, as He is the firstborn of all creation, see Nicene Creed, or

Colossians 1:15

, a male who truly opens His mother’s womb, because all other women (others beside Holy Virgin Mary) open their womb via intercourse with a man, and because Christ died in place of our sins as the Lamb of God,

1 Corinthians 5:7.

Why did God not lead the Israelites by the land of the Philistines?

As was stated in verse 17, “Lest they see war…” God is accommodating for human weakness, knowing that if the Israelites saw battle immediately after leaving Egypt, they would FREELY CHOOSE to return to the safety of Egypt (strongest empire). Church fathers go further saying the long path of the desert was to prepare the Israelites spiritually. Remember, leaving Egypt symbolized leaving sin, and so if one is not spiritually prepared, encountering “war” (spiritual struggle) too early may cause the soul to retreat to old sinful habits. Think of how Christ fasted for 40 days and nights before being tempted by Satan, or how He left Jerusalem after John the Baptist was imprisoned because He knew there would be physical dangers and threats there

• (Mark 1:14)

, teaching us the same idea here.

How did God lead the Israelites on their journey?

A pillar of fire during the night time, and a pillar of cloud during the day time,

• Exod. 13:21

EXODUS 14

Why did God say to Moses “Why do you cry to me?” if Moses had not said anything (v. 15)?

• Cry
• here means the same as the

outcry

from Sodom and Gomorrah, that is the internal sufferings and supplications of prayer that Moses would have had after the Israelites were complaining in

verses 10-12

. God “hears” the inner sufferings of mankind, especially His faithful, as Christ stated in

• Luke 18:7

CROSSING THE RED SEA & BAPTISM

Why does St. Paul say in Corinthians 10:1-2 that the Red Sea crossing was a baptism?

Firstly, let us once and for all remember, baptism is being put to death in Jesus Christ, having a part in His death, so that we may have a part in His resurrection from the dead as well, from the words of St. Paul!

• Romans 6:3–4
• Colossians 2:12

Galatians 3:27

Knowing that, also remember that Christ’s death was a harsh, bloody one, including blood and water flowing out from His pierced side,

John 19:34

Red Sea- “Just as the sea is known as Red, so the baptismal water can be labeled red, for it came forth mixed with blood from the Lord Savior’s side”.

• in the sea waters

(waters of baptism).

Going further...

This water the Israelites passed through was to escape the Egyptians and leave Egypt, who we have confirmed to stand in for as sin and a life in slavery to it. In Baptism, our old flesh, the Adamaic, which has original sin, is put off, and we put on Christ, turning away from our old life of sin, which is Egypt.

The Egyptians followed after them even after seeing God’s plagues God taking off their chariot wheels, knowing their attempts were futile because they were fighting the Lord, just as demons try and attack us and cause us to sin, though they know Christ has defeated their power.

Baptism washes away our sin and frees us from our enemy the devil, as the Egyptians (sins) were washed away by the waters returning, and the Egyptians were freed from the Pharaoh (the devil) and his slavery.

The people followed Moses, that is the law of God, and received their salvation. We follow Christ, the Word of God, and receive our salvation through Him.

EXODUS 15 (verses 22-27 only)

What could Moses casting the tree into the bitter waters to make them sweet mean?

The bitter waters represent the Old Testament Law, which is harsh and tough to observe, but which was made sweet by the Tree, which represents Christ’s cross, which is the essence of the Gospel. So the bitter law turned into the Christ’s Gospel by Christ’s cross.

• 12 & 70 in Elim:

What do the 12 wells of water and 70 palm trees represent?

The bitter waters turned sweet by Christ’s cross are the Gospel, and these 12 trees and 70 palms are the 12 disciples and 72 apostles (with the 70 elders, plus Moses & Aaron making 72), who gave rest and life to the world in preaching the Gospel of Christ, just as these wells and palm trees gave life and rest to the weary Israelites.

Does Christ not liken himself to life-giving water in

• John 4:13-14
• and

John 7:37-39

? See how Christ’s cross sweetened the bitter waters, and his disciples are likened to wells, because they

hold

that lifegiving water, although they themselves did not sweeten it, but allow others to draw that life-giving water from it. The Israelis camped (rested) in Elim by these wells and palm trees; is it not similar to how our parishes are named after the disciples who preached the Gospel and allowed us to rest in Christ?

EXODUS 16

Why did God send down Manna and then quall (bird meat) to the Israelites in the Wilderness?

They were complaining that in Egypt “we sat by the pots of meat and… ate bread to the full!”

• Exod. 16:3

Why did they gather twice the daily amount of Manna on the 6th day of the week?

That was the day before the Sabbath, think our Sunday, and God had commanded them to do no manner of work on that day; they were to rest, like how God rested on the 7th day of creation. The double portion did not ruin by the next day because God preserved it for the Sabbath, but on the other days, it would rot.

Preserving some of the Manna:

How can the Lord’s instructions in Exod. 16:32-34 relate to one of our 7 Sacraments?

The Lord commands the Israelites to keep some Manna for future generations.

The Holy Leaven, that is Malka, as the Church Fathers say, is passed down from St. John, who received a second portion of the bread Christ blessed during the Mystical Supper, which he held under the Cross of Christ, where Christ’s blood dripped onto it. He then gave this to the other disciples to use as well to mix in whenever making the Eucharist bread.

This is where our Holy Leaven, mixed into ALL the bread used for communion, has come down from. There the Manna from heaven was kept for future generations, here the Bread (Christ) from heaven was kept for future generations.

Christ purposely adds that their forefathers ate in the wilderness to remind them that once they entered the promised land, it stopped coming, but this Bread, Christ and His Holy body, is with us forever

• (Matthew 28:20)

a greater blessing than those in the wilderness eating Manna.

Why did the leftover Manna rot?

Moses had commanded them to not leave it until the morning, and the Lord had said for everyone to only gather according to their need. The fact that it rotted showed them two things:

They must heed to Moses’s instructions as he is God’s prophet and their appointed leader!

They must not be gluttonous; the Lord commanded them to gather only according to their needs, not more!

Exod 16:16.

This shows that it was truly a food given to them.

• Compare to the 5,000 fed in

Luke 6:41-44

, where there are 12 baskets of leftovers. Why did those not rot? Because, Jesus, as Lord and Master, provides an overabundance, as compared to Moses, a prophet. And so he also see there is no gluttony when it comes to pursuing the Word of God, Christ, but He “rewards those who earnestly seek him”

Hebrews 11:6.

• EXODUS 18

Appointing Helpers:

What do the characteristics of those chosen to help Moses and/or the Apostles tell us?

• Characteristics:
• Exodus:

able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness.

• Acts

: full of the Spirit and wisdom,

That those believers who know their Faith, i.e, knowing Scripture, and who also LIVE it, are those who are fit to appoint as helpers in the church, like in a committee or sub-committee. Also, we learn that we SHOULD have the non-clerical believers helping in church affairs, so that Bishops, Priests, Deacons (clergy) can focus on spiritual matters, which is what they have been called to do first and foremost!

So we have a responsibility to strive to be these able men, so that we can relieve each other in the Church, strengthening our congregation and relieving clergy (especially priests and above) so that they in return maximize the spiritual blessings and treasures they can administer to the faithful!

• This Week's Study
• —Watch the

short video on the sacrament of the Holy Leaven (Malka)