The Exodus Period

The Exodus is the defining event of Israelite identity—God’s dramatic deliverance of His people from slavery. Moses, raised in Pharaoh’s court but forced to flee after killing an Egyptian, encounters God in a burning bush and receives his commission to free Israel. Through ten devastating plagues, God demonstrates His power over Egypt’s gods and Pharaoh’s stubbornness. The final plague—death of the firstborn—establishes Passover as Israel’s central commemoration. The people cross the Red Sea on dry ground while Pharaoh’s army drowns. At Mount Sinai, God gives the Law, including the Ten Commandments, establishing Israel as a covenant nation with a distinctive identity, moral code, and worship system. Yet the people repeatedly rebel, resulting in forty years of wilderness wandering until the exodus generation dies.