Custom Search
|
To receive notice of each days Bible Study,
please go to my Twitter and Facebook pages and sign up.
Facebook -
| Daily Bible Study | ||
 You can help people worldwide. Please make a small donation. Make a difference in someone elses life. |
Subscribe Daily Bible Study Mailing List 
Receive Daily Bible Studies directly into your email inbox. |
Express your comments, opinions, questions, etc. |
| Exodus 2:23-25 |
|
Lesson # Exodus 2:23-25 Study Material - Exodus 2:23-25 You must be in fellowship prior to your Bible study, so that the spiritual information you receive can become a source of blessing to your soul and produce spiritual growth. Ex. 2:23-25 23 Now it came about in the course of those many days that the king of Egypt died. And the sons of Israel sighed because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry for help because of their bondage rose up to God. 24 So God heard their groaning; and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 25 And God saw the sons of Israel, and God took notice of them. 'After many days...', is a reference to the 40 year period from the time when Moses left Egypt, until the present time noted within the context. When was this, and who was the Pharaoh? This is not mentioned, and there is quite a debate as to who the Pharaoh of the Exodus really was. Several commentators like the period surrounding 1300 BC, but that doesn't fit the time frame referred to for the beginning of the Temple construction which was 480 years following the Exodus. This was in the 4th year of Solomon's reign and that is pretty much set near 1000 BC, by most later commentators and historians. If so, and I personally agree with it, then the time frame for the Exodus is nearer to 1500 BC. Now the Pharaoh of that period is still in question. There are 32 dynasties generally recognized for Egypt if you consider and include the last one being from Alexander's general, the Ptolemy dynasty. These dynasties are said to begin around 3000 BC, but there again we have a conflict with the calendar of Genesis, that places the flood of Noah around 2700 BC. See the 'Generations' chart on the Bible Index page. If we choose to believe the Bible then the Egyptian dynasties probably began around the first century or even the second century following the flood or around 2500 BC, and all of the dates for the various Pharaoh's can be adjusted accordingly in the various historical records that guess as to the dates when they ruled. Most of the earlier dates are guesstamates anyway. Ok, for whatever that is worth. Now Hapshepsut was the daughter of Thutmose I, and is perhaps the Pharaoh who ordered the death of all male new born children, and the daughter that pulled Moses out of the Nile. Thutmose I died after 14 years rule, and his son by his wife Queen Ahmose, Thutmose II became Pharaoh. He married his stepsister Hapshepsut. She had a different mother. They (Hapshepsut and Thutmose II) had a son Thutmose III. Now Thutmose II died early, after ruling 8 years, leaving the mother, Hapshepsut and the child. Hapshepsut made herself Queen Pharaoh as Thutmose III was a minor. He became Pharaoh when he grew up, and she mysteriously disappeared from history. Thutmose III ruled 54 years. Eventually they were replaced by Amenhotep II. Most believe that Amenhotep II was the Pharaoh of the Exodus. Now there is another line of thought and that is that Hapshepsut ruled closer to the 1700's BC which would make the rulers around 1500 BC, Seti I followed by Rameses II. The problem with these two rulers is that Seti I ruled for only about 14 years so he could not have seen the birth and exile of Moses at Moses' age 40. So if Moses left under Rameses II then Rameses II could not have ruled 68 years as presumed. The Pharaoh who pushed Moses into exile died prior to Moses return. So the most likely Pharaoh's to have ruled during these times is the series beginning with Thutmose I, because we need 80 years to cover the time from Moses birth to his exile (40 years) to his return (40 more years). So if you add Thutmose I years of 14 to the 8 of Thutmose II, then you have 22, plus 18 of the rule of Thutmose III, and you have the 40 years from Moses birth to his exile under Thutmose III. Queen Hapshepsut's rule was simultaneous with that of Thutmose III. Thirty six years later Thutmose would die and Amenhotep II will become ruler. Four years later Moses will return and the plagues will begin, etc. Does this all make any sense??? You can choose which Pharaoh you prefer. Might have to wait for an updated 'History' channel documentary on ancient Egypt. So intrigue and politics surrounded the Pharaoh successions, and the Israelites were caught in the middle. They were the worker bees for the ever growing appetite for construction of the various cities and pyramids and such. The Hebrews were a negative lot, as we have already seen. They rejected Moses when it was clear that he might be of help some 40 years earlier. Moses was rejected and Moses left. We might consider this as a rejection of God as well. When Moses left, God left as well in a manner of speaking. The passage in Lev. 26:42 clarifies for us that God was waiting on the Israelites to change their minds, to confess their sins and to call out to God for help. Num. 20:16 tells us that they eventually did this. People who are out of fellowship, who are uncircumcised in their hearts (not saved), are not heard by God. Things changed in Egypt. One Pharaoh died, or perhaps several, and things got worse for the Israelites. So much so that they finally have decided to call out to God. This call for help took over 40 years since they originally rejected Moses, and over 400 years since they rejected the idea of returning to Canaan. Now the stage is set for the final spiritual preparation of Moses. What has occurred? Pharaoh has progressed from a very deceitful and mean Pharaoh to a very defiant and stubborn Pharaoh. The Hebrews have come full circle from their apathy of returning to Canaan centuries before, to their worship of the Egyptian idols (they will still carry some with them in the Exodus), to their increased hardships, to their repentance to God - finally. All things are coming together. The last verse is a reference to God seeing the sons of Israel, who is Jacob, but they are referred to as the sons of Israel or the beginning of the nation which is about to be formed. In our individual spiritual lives we often postpone our blessings because of our stubborn attitude toward God. Too, some of our blessings may be postponed because we must wait on other events in history to take place. Therefore, patience is called for. Moses was in Midian and was blessed with his family, with his flocks, with his life in general. He had been removed from the influences, pressures, and distractions of Egypt, and given an opportunity to learn Bible doctrine and to grow up in his spiritual life as well as stabilize himself spiritually. 
Now is the time to post a prayer. End Of Lesson Study to show thyself approved (mature) unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing (studying/discerning), the Word of truth. |
|