[Originally posted in 2012, time for a repost. This article is part of a doctoral dissertation entitled, Dramatic Ironies and Illusions in the Book of Exodus: A Profile of a Nation’s Identity, Responsibility, and Destiny, written by Sinaite ELZ@SK6.]
————————-
Destiny is the purpose or end to which anything is appointed. The destiny of the nation of Israel is examined on God’s intention for its election as the chosen people of God and the consequences of their performance in fulfilling the divine plan.
Israel as God’s firstborn, is to be a blessing to the Gentiles because of their obedience and worthiness. Their communal experience with God would result to an understanding of the feasts of the Lord that they are required to celebrate. It is the destiny of Israel to share to the world the knowledge and salvation of God. The chosen people are destined to a life of sacrifice, preserved by God to reflect His redemptive plan.
The redemptive context of Exodus expressed itself in two realms, because the slavery of God’s people was both external and internal. The implied external redemption is from slavery to the alien power known as Egypt. The implied internal redemption is from the temptation to worship other gods. Despite Israel’s knowledge of the one true God, and of the ten plagues of God’s judgment on all the gods of Egypt including the Egyptians themselves, the Israelites usually broke their pledges of loyalty to God almost as soon as they made them.
Down through the centuries, they were destined to be punished by God because of their rebellion against Him. The prophets warned them that they would be enslaved by foreign powers if they did not repent and cry out to God for mercy. Exodus reverberates the Lord as the redeemer who will plead the cause of His enslaved people.
It is apparent that in human communities, there stands the story of a people who are bound together primarily by shared experiences rather than natural factors like blood and soil. National self-consciousness finds expression in the remembrance of events that people had lived through and that have given them a sense of identity and destiny. The meaningful events are retold and relived from generation to generation. The people have always been diverse – in theology, in culture, and even in racial characteristics.
The Exodus account is retold and relived many times over to countless generations. It defines their destiny as a nation, chosen by the “God of their fathers” to accomplish his divine plan in history. As they were redeemed from the bondage of slavery, their way of life becomes their worship as an act of thanksgiving to the God who had done numerous miracles throughout their national history. The religious ceremonies and customs of Israel, the creation of the tabernacle, the formation of the priesthood, the Mosaic Law, and the sacrificial system all point to the redemption plan of God in human history. Exodus portrays the birth of Israel as a nation that would bring God’s rule on earth. The redemption and deliverance of Israel from the bondage of slavery requires the obedience to God. However, the redeemed people need to understand the meanings of the Passover, the Exodus, Moses, the Law, and the Tabernacle in the spiritual plane in order to accomplish God’s purposes.
The instructions for the dedication to God of the firstborn are interwoven with the description of the permanent celebration of the Passover. God had a special claim on the firstborn, both because He had spared them on the night of the Passover in Egypt, and because He had adopted Israel as His firstborn son: “Thus said the Lord, Israel is my son, even my firstborn.” (Exodus 4:22) That Israel is called “the firstborn” signifies the role of the nation in bringing future blessing to the Gentiles. But judgment must begin at the household of God, and no one is fit to be employed as an instrument for God who in any way lives in neglect of His commandments.
The plan of God to make Israel a kingdom of priests and a holy nation describes the character of God’s people and their destination. The mission of Israel is to act as priests to the nations, mediating between God and man, to be the intermediary of the knowledge and salvation of God. Israel is to be made holy through the covenant with God, which provided forgiveness and discipline of His law. If God showed His greatness and glory in creation, the way of His holiness was among the chosen people.
On the one hand, God fulfilled the destiny of the Hebrews by preserving them and their faith and leading them to “a land flowing with milk and honey,” (Exodus 3:17) just as He had promised. On the other hand, it was Moses’ personal destiny to lead the Hebrews out of Egyptian bondage. He was saved from the Pharaoh’s genocide so that he could fulfill that destiny. His life was then filled by God with many rich and valuable experiences that served him well as God’s appointed deliverer.
ELZ@S6K
In Memoriam
Reader Comments