Introduction to the second book of Moses, called Exodus.
The book of Exodus continues the story of God's promises that began in the book of
Genesis.
From the peoples of the world, God selected one man, Abraham,
and promised to make his descendants into a great nation.
Exodus describes the birth of that nation.
When the story of Genesis ends, we see Jacob and 70 of his descendants go
into Egypt to live.
When the book of Exodus begins, these descendants of Abraham have grown to
over 2 million people.
These people, called Israel or the Hebrews, became slaves under the Pharaoh
of Egypt.
The people prayed to the God of their fathers for deliverance.
Israel's deliverance from Egypt is perhaps the greatest miracle in the Old Testament.
This rescue is remembered annually by the Passover celebration.
The eyewitness, Moses, recorded all of the events in Exodus.
Moses was the man God used to lead his chosen people out of Egypt.
Then, at Mount Sinai, God gave the people of Israel their law code, or constitution,
which included the Ten Commandments.
Now all they needed to be a nation was a land of their own.
In order to guide them spiritually and physically, God gave them a portable
worship center where he dwelt among the people.
God was shaping this people into a great nation in order to be the source of truth
and salvation to the entire world.
And in the process, he was revealing more and more about himself.