Exodus Chapter One Opening Genealogy Exodus 1: 1 Now these are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob; they came each one with his household: 2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah; 3 Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin; 4 Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. 5 All the persons who came from the loins of Jacob were seventy in number, but Joseph was already in Egypt. 6 Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. 7 But the sons of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly, and multiplie d, and became exceedingly mighty, so that the land was filled with them. (NASB95) This opening paragraph in the book of Exodus serves as a connection to what Moses wrote in the final chapters of the book of Genesis. This is indicated by the fact that this paragraph summarizes the final chapters of the Genesis narrative. This provides the reader that which is essential to understand in what is presented in the book of Exodus. This paragraph anticipates the fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to make them a great nation. These promises also state that the Savior of the world would be an Israelite. They serve as the framework for God’ s actions in history to glorify Himself. Douglas Stuart writes “ These opening verses provide an obvious co nnection to what Moses said in the latter chapters of Genesis, in that they contain a brief recapitulation of the story of how Jacob and his sons entered Egypt and were reunited with Joseph (esp. Gen 46) as well as the death of Joseph in the context of his association with his brothers (Gen 50:22 – 26; note how vv. 25 – 26 implicitly reflect the concept of ‘ all that generation ’ in Exod 1:6). Thus there is a conscious concern here to be sure the reader understands that Exodus is not strictly a self - contained nar rative but a segment of a narrative on a grander scale, that is, the full Pentateuch. In other words, the story continues smoothly from Genesis into Exodus. 1 John Durham writes “ This opening passage of Exodus functions as a compact transitional unit that summarizes that part of the preceding Genesis narrative that is essential to what follows, states a new and discontinuous situation, and anticipates the progress of the family of Jacob/Israel toward their birth, in exodus and at Sinai, as the people of God . ” 2 1 Stuart, D. K.; Volume 2: Exodus (electronic ed.); page 56; Logos Library System; The New Am erican Commentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers 2 Durham, J. I. (2002). Vol. 3: Word Biblical Commentary: Exodus. Word Biblical Commentary. Dallas: Word, Incorporated 2011 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 1 Title of the Book of Exodus “ Now these are the names ” in Exodus 1:1 is the Hebrew expression w ʾ ēl·l ě(h) which is the title for the second book in the Pentateuch. The , ( וְאֵ֗ לֶּה שְׁ מוֹת֙ ) š e mô ṯ English title “Exodus” for the second book in the English Bible is not a translation of the title of the second book in the Hebrew Bible . This English titl e “a departure, exit” transliterates the title in the Septuagint, which named the book for its central focus, which was the departure of the Israelites from Egypt. The Septuagint title is the origin of the Latin Vulgate’s term “Exodus.” In fact, the first six words in the Hebrew text of Exodus 1:1 w ʾ ēl·l ě(h) a š e mô ṯ Now these are the names of the sons of “ , ( וְאֵ֗ לֶּה שְׁ מוֹת֙ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָ אֵ֔ ל ) b e nê yi ś·rā· ʾ ēl Israel ” are an exact quotation of the first six words of Genesis 46:8. This is a clear indication of the continuity intended for the narrati ve as well as to remind the reader that God is keeping His promises to the patriarchs and is control of their lives. So these six words tell the reader that the book of Exodus is a direct continuation of the book of Genesis. The Sons of Israel yis - raw - ale), which means, “ one) ( יִשְׂרָ אֵ ל ) Israel ” is the proper noun yiś ·r ā ·ʾ ēl “ who fights and overcomes with the power of God” since the Lord states the reason for the name is that Jacob has fought with both God and men and has prevailed. This name was bestowed upon Jacob and c onstituted the essence of the blessing that he requested from the Lord recorded in Genesis 32:26. The expression “ sons of Israel ” was first used in the Hebrew Bible in Genesis 32:32. In this passage, this was a designation for the nation of Israel in Mos es’ day and is not simply a designation for Jacob’s sons. Moses informs the reader that the Israelites in his day made it a rule not to eat the sciatic muscle of slaughtered animals as a reminder to them of this encounter that Jacob had with the Lord. Mos t of the time in the Old Testament, the designation “ the sons of Israel ” emphasizes the national identity of Israel/Jacob’s sons and not their personal identity as Jacob’s sons. However, in Exodus 1:1, the expression b e nê yi ś·rā· ʾ ēl the sons of Israel ” refers to the individual sons of Israel, aka, Jacob “ , ( בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָ אֵ֔ ל ) since they are named in verses 2 - 4. yah - ak - obe), which) ( יַﬠֲקֹ ב ) The name “ Jacob ” is the proper name y ǎ ·ʿ ǎ qō ḇ means, “heel catcher . ” This name implies someone who is a “deceiver” an d a “supplanter,” which is a person who takes the place of another by force, scheming or strategy. “ Reuben ” was the first child that Leah bore to Jacob and his name means, “behold or see, a son” and his birth is recorded in Genesis 29:32. “ Simeon ” was 2011 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 2 the second child that Leah bore to Jacob and his name means, “the Lord has heard” and his birth is recorded in Genesis 29:33. “ Levi ” was the third child that Leah bore to Jacob and his name means, “My husband will be attached to me” and his birth is recorded i n Genesis 29:34. “ Judah ” was the fourth child that Leah bore to Jacob and his name means, “I will praise the Lord” and his birth is recorded in Genesis 29:35. “ Issachar ” was the fifth child that Leah bore Jacob and his name means, “reward” and his birth is recorded in Genesis 30:16 - 18. “ Zebulun ” was the sixth child that Leah bore Jacob and his name means, “honor” and his birth is recorded in Genesis 30:19 - 20. “ Gad ” was the first boy that Zilpah bore to Jacob, whose birth is recorded in Genesis 30:9 - 11 and h is name comes from “What good fortune” indicating that Leah attributed this child to fortune or good luck rather than God and his birth. “ Asher ” is the second son that Zilpah bore to Jacob, whose birth is recorded in Genesis 30:12 - 13 and his name means “wo men will call me happy” meaning that Leah thought she would be envied by other women because of this child. “ Benjamin ” was the last child that Rachel bore to Jacob and his name means, “son of my right hand” and his birth is recorded in Genesis 35:16 - 18. “ D an ” was the first child that Bilhah bore Jacob and his name means, “God has vindicated me” and his birth is recorded in Genesis 30:5 - 6. “ Naphtali ” was the second child that Bilhah bore to Jacob and his name means, “my wrestling” reflecting Rachel’s attitud e in which she viewed her relationship with her sister Leah to be like a wrestling match and his birth is recorded in Genesis 30:7 - 8. The name “ Joseph ” literally means, “He adds,” which is a play on the verb yasaph , “to add” and is also a prayer for anothe r child, foreshadowing the birth of Benjamin. He was the first son of Jacob and Rachel (Genesis 30:22 - 24). Jacob ’ s Family Bilhah Zilpah Leah Rachel Dan Naphtali Gad Asher Benjamin Joseph Reuben Simeon Levi Judah Issachar Zebulun Dinah 2011 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 3 Egypt ” .which means, “ double straits ,( מִצְרַ יִם ) Egypt ” is the proper noun mi ṣ·rǎ·yim “ Genesis 10:6 records that “Mizraim” was the second son of Ham and was the ancestor of the ancient Egyptians as indicated in that his name was the customary name for Egypt in the Bible. The Egyptians were not descendants of Ham’s son, Canaan but rather of his son Mizraim and thus t hey were not Canaanites. Genesis 10:13 - 14 records the genealogy of the sons of “ Mizraim ” better known as Egypt. Genesis 10:13 Mizraim became the father of Ludim and Anamim and Lehabim and Naphtuhim 14 and Pathrusim and Casluhim (from which came the Phil istines and Caphtorim). (NASB95) Egypt is situated along the southeastern shores of the Mediterranean and is bordered by the Red Sea on the east and Lybia on the west. Its southern boundary changed in different periods. Ancient Egypt stretched a distance o f about 550 miles from Aswan northward to the Mediterranean Sea, which would include the narrow Nile Valley, which was from Aswan to Memphis. It was divided into three geographical sections: (1) Upper Egypt in the south (2) Middle Egypt in the center (3) Lower Egypt or Delta in the north.