1. Exodus People in the Bible Top 55

There are five people closely associated with Exodus who are ranked in the top 55 people in the Bible. They are Moses (#3), Aaron (#8), Joshua (#12), the Pharaoh of the Exodus (#21), and Eleazar, Aaron's son (#33). There is a one-page Bible study on each of them in the Top 55 booklet. The one on lesser-known Eleazar (Click below.) may be most needed.

2a. Survey: Questions Asked in Exodus

This is a great summary chart and outline of Exodus which is linked to the Question Studies page. It can be used to study selected questions through the book. (See 2b below for one way to do so.)

2b. Exodus Questions & the DESCRIBE-IT-YOURSELF Cards

Cards from the Describe-It-Yourself set are used below to describe the answer the Hebrew midwives gave to Pharaoh about why they had not killed the Hebrew boy babies (Exodus 1:18-19). They said it was, "Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are lively and give birth before the midwives come to them."

This is a famously difficult answer, since God blessed the midwives for fearing him (1:20), yet it seems highly unlikely that every single boy among the Hebrews was born before a midwife could come to help with the delivery.

The explanation represented below is that the midwives answer was honest but somewhat incomplete. Thanks to a special wonderful work of the Lord, the Hebrew women truly were more lively than the Egyptian women. So Hebrew babies really were born comparatively quickly. The midwives' answer therefore was honest and factual, even though it was probably a generalization. (Notice the special hand-written "general statement" card in the center of the "house" (1:21) below.)

If the midwives' answer applied equally to every single Hebrew mother and baby boy, why would God have rewarded them for doing nothing? No faith or courage would have been required if they ALWAYS arrived late. Their fear of God would not have been praised unless they at least occasionally arrived on time and protected the boy whom they helped deliver.

MAKING YOUR OWN STUDIES -- with Describe-It-Yourself cards

You can make your own Descriptive Bible Studies using Describe-It-Yourself cards. All you need to do is: 1.) decide what passage(s) you wish to study, 2.) decide whom or what you wish to describe, and then 3.) use a DIY card set to help you describe what or whom you chose.

3. Survey: Things that God DID in Exodus

The many things that God did in Exodus are very important. So several points based on passages in Exodus are made in the great GOD 101 list of things that God did, does, and will do. Studying the list and noting these points is a great way to think through the entire book. -- Here are some of the points on the 101 list. God sent his prophet, Moses (3:1-4:17). He saved Israel out of Egypt (12:28, 20:2). He did amazing things at the Red Sea (14:29). He limited evil in the world by establishing the rule of law (20:1-17). He upheld the value of human life (20:13).

4. Moses' Mother

Moses's mother, Jochebed, is featured in a study in the Lesser-Known but Significant Women series. The main point in the study is that God was in charge rather than Pharoah. This truth was not apparent to everyone, however, least of all to Pharaoh himself. Yet it was still true.

5. The Plague of Frogs

6. The People at the Red Sea

This is a Knowing-Doing Gap study on overcoming the problems associated with the people's panic at the Red Sea as the army of Pharaoh approached. Their knowledge of God's previous wonders in Egypt might have kept them from panicking, but it did not. Even so, God still gave victory in the end.

Questions
1.) Why were the people so afraid of the Egyptians in Exodus 14:10? 2.) Why didn't they properly remember the wonders that the Lord had performed earlier in Egypt? 3.) Why did Moses speak to the people about the future rather than just reminding them of the past? 4.) How is knowledge of the God's working in the past different from knowledge of the what he will do in the future? (How are these two also alike?) 5.) What great future event involving Israel and its enemies was the crossing of the Red Sea much like? (How will the Messiah be involved?)

The worksheet above shows the authors' answers, and the one below is blank for use for group or personal study. What did the people know? What did they do? What was the basic problem? How was it overcome?

7. Moses & the Thirsty Rebels

This study on Ex. 17:1-7 is part of the Double-Top Bible study series in which social interaction is stressed. In this case, Moses faith and prayer is contrasted with the angry, group-think of the mob. The bottom line in the study, however, is about the rock that was struck prefiguring Christ (1 Cor. 10:4). One of the two worksheets in the study is shown below. Which lines are incorrect?

8. Jethro's Advice

Jethro's advice to Moses was of the Lord and a good I.D.E.A., because it satisfied the four aspects of all such. It involved (I) Insight, (D) Details, (E) Energy or Enthusiasm, and (A) Assurance. Moreover, the insight Jethro had was not just practical. Notice for instance, that he did not give his advice in Ex. 18:14-23 until after the worship (burnt offering, etc.) in 18:12.

9. The Tabernacle Artisans

The two little-known artisans, Aholiab and Bezalel, who led the work on the tabernacle in Exodus help bring out the stress upon worship and the importance of the tabernacle which prefigures Christ. The bottom-line point in the study is that skills are necessary and can lead to good jobs, but being a spiritual person is far more important. Which of the worksheet lines below are incorrect?

Encouraging a Future Artisan?

Grandfather Jon doing a little building with our grandson, Kaichi, in late 2019. I wonder how the tabernacle artisans got started.