Moses and the Gathering of Israel : The First Attempt at Fulfilling the Abrahamic Covenant 1. A Nation of Size The book of Exodus tells the story of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob’s posterity–often called Israel, the children of Israel or I. The seed of Abraham become a nation: a people of the House of Israel–going to Egypt where they became a large size. people of size, were brought into bondage, and their redemption from bondage in preparation for their return to Recall that when Jehovah entered into the covenant He the promised land. made with Abraham, He told Abraham that his posterity When Jacob and his family came to Egypt, Pharaoh gave would a foreigner “in a lnad that is not theirs,” and that in that to him and his sons the land of Goshen–a region in the land they would brought into bondage “four hundred years.” eastern portion of the Nile delta. They made Goshen the But the Lord promised Abraham that “in the fourth permanent place of residence for the next 400-plus years generation” he would bring them back again to the promised (Gen. 15:13-16; Ex. 12:40; Acts 7:6). During this time “the land” (Gen. 15:13-16) children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and Also Recall that when Jacob (Israel) was invited to move multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was to and live in Egypt (Gen. 45:16-25), the spoke to him “in the filled with them” (Ex. 1:7). visions of the night” and said: “fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation.” He was II. The Children of Israel are brought into bondage. also promised, “I will also surely bring thee up again” (Gen., Abraham’s posterity had now become a people of great size. 46:4). That was the good news. But there was also bad news. The Egypt, Sinai, and the Promised Land from Space Egypt is on the left side of this picture with the Nile River emptying into the Mediterranean Sea. Goshen, where the children of Israel were held in bondage, was in the eastern region of the delta of the Nile River. The Sinai Desert is the peninsula on the north end of the Red Sea. The Promised Land is the green area along the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea to the north of Sinai. The nearest rout to the Promised Land from Goshen would have been to follow the coast line from Goshen to the Promised Land. However, the Lord lead Israel through the Red Sea into the Sinai Desert. In the desert was a mountain named Horeb–known as the mountain of God. It is often called Mt. Sinai. It was to here that Moses was to lead the children of Israel (see Ex. 3:12; 19: 1-2) Egyptians began to fear the size of the Israelites, yet, at the Jethro, the priest of Midian and a descendent of Abraham same time, they saw Israel as a valuable commodity of through Keturah, Abraham’s third wife (Gen. 25:1-4). Jethro laborers who could build their cities. They forced them into gave to Moses one of his daughters to marry (Ex. 2:21). He bondage and to build “for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom also conferred upon Moses the Melchizedek priesthood and Raamses.” The account says that “their lives bitter with including the keys of the kingdom (D&C 84:6). hard bondage” (Ex. 1:8-14). III. Moses called to redeem Israel from bondage and III. The Children of Israel lose the fulness of the gospel. bring them back to the promised land. Though we are not specifically told when or how, during Some forty years after fleeing Egypt and living with the their time in bondage, the children of Israel lose the fulness Midianites, the Lord called Moses as His servant, priesthood of the gospel administered by the “greater priesthood” which leader, to redeem Israel from bondage. This calling came holds the “key of the knowledge of God” (D&C 84:19). when he was shepherding his sheep near the base of a Though they were descendants of Israel they were no longer sacred mountain known as “the mountain of God” and called “the covenant people” of the Lord. They were hard in heart Horeb, often simply Mt. Sinai. While shepherding, the Lord and “a people that [did] err in their heart, and they [did] not called to Moses from a bush that appeared to be on fire but know my ways” (Ps. 95:6-11). They were like salt that has “was not consumed.” He told Moses, “Draw not nigh hither: lost its savor. The Lord has said: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou When men are called unto mine everlasting gospel, standest is holy ground.” Truly this was no ordinary mountain and covenant with an everlasting covenant, they are but the “mountain of God” or the Lord’s holy temple or accounted as the salt of the earth and the savor of men; dwelling place (Ex. 1:1-5). The Lord introduced himself to Moses, saying, “I am the They are called to be the savor of men; therefore, if God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, that salt of the earth lose its savor, behold, it is and the God of Jacob.” recalling the Abrahamic covenant. thenceforth good for nothing only to be cast out and He then told Moses that he was to return to Egypt and bring trodden under the feet of men. (D&C 101:39-40; emphasis the Israelites out of bondage and lead them to the very added) mountain Moses was standing upon (Ex. 3:6-12). Elder Carlos E.. Asay of the Seventy explained what it At the sacred mountain of Sinai, the children of Israel were means to “lost its savor”: to meet with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and sacrifice unto him, or in other words, they were to come to A world-renowned chemist told me that salt will not the temple and enter into a covenant with their God (Ex. lose its savor with age. Savor is lost through mixture 3:13-18). All this would be preparatory to the children of and contamination. Similarly, priesthood power does not Israel going to the promised land. dissipate with age; it, too, is lost through mixture and contamination.“ (Ensign, May 1980, p.42) 4. Israel Redeemed from Egyptian Bondage IV. God remember’s the covenant made with Abraham, I. Moses comes before Pharaoh who questions who Isaac, and Jacob. Jehovah is. The plagues were the Lord’s devise to teach The Lord was not going to allow this situation to continue. both Egypt and Israel who Jehovah is. The account reads: “God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. And God looked upon Moses returned from Sinai to the court oanf Pharaoh in the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them” (Ex. Egypt. To Pharaoh, Moses said, “Thus saith the Lord God 2:24-25). In other words, according to the promises made to of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob–that he would bless Abraham’s me in the wilderness” (Ex. 5:1). To no surprise, Pharaoh posterity with the gospel and a land where they could refused the request. Under the direction of God, Moses worship God (Abr. 2:6-11)–the Lord would now set his hand levied a series of nine plagues upon Egypt (Ex. 7-9). to restore Israel to the knowledge of the gospel and to the It appears the plagues were intended to accomplish two promised land. To do this, a man with priesthood authority things: (1) to show to both Egypt and Israel that the gods of and keys whereby His government could be administered Egypt were false, and thus (2) to soften Pharaoh’s heart so was needed. that he would follow the only true and living God and allow the children of Israel leave Egypt. Each plague was designed to accomplish this by showing 3. Moses, the First Gatherer of Israel that the God of the Hebrews had power over the various I. The early years of Moses elements that the Egyptians believed were controlled by their false gods. Through the progression of each plague, Egypt About 1300 B.C., the man ordained of God to restore the and Israel were shown that the god of Israel was not limited gospel to Israel and free them from bondage was born. His in power but in fact the god over all the earth. name was Moses. Bruce R. McConkie (1915-85) of the Pharaoh refused to be impressed by these events but Quorum of the Twelve Apostles stated that, “Moses, the man hardened his heart not allowing Israel to leave Egypt (JST of God, continued the work of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in Ex. 9:12; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10). The Lord then sent a tenth standing as a father and friend and founder of the family of and final plague upon all Egypt. This was the plague of the Israel.” (A New Witness for the Articles of Faith [1985], p. 522) death of the first born (Ex. 11). Moses was born a Hebrew but raised an Egyptian in Pharaoh’s court. We are told in the New Testament by II.The tenth plague, the death of the firstborn, would free Stephen that he “was learned in all the wisdom of the Israel from bondage.