THE PENTATEUCH: Exodus The last chapter of Genesis 'sets up' the narrative arc of Exodus that describes how the Hebrew people will ultimately find their way back — back to their original God El (or YAHWEH, as He is now called) and back to Canaan, the 'Promised Land.'

Egyptian slaves laying bricks, from the miniature funerary holdings of a New Kingdom tomb, ca. 12th century BCE

The principal agent of this 'return' is Moses. Moses is a Hebrew child who was raised at the Court of Pharaoh as a prince. By this time, the Hebrew tribes have become enslaved, and are put to work baking bricks for the construction of the twin cities of Pithom and Per-Rameses. Moses takes pity on them, but he doesn't quite know what to do until he is suddenly forced to flee to the Midian (today in the Transjordan). It is here that he meets a priest called Jethro. Exodus intimates that Jethro's tribe has remained faithful to the Hebrew God YAHWEH all along. Indeed, it is after Moses has been taken into Jethro's family that YAHWEH reveals himself to Moses, and orders him to take 'My people' out of bondage and "into a land I will show thee."

After Moses successfully leads the Hebrew tribes out of Egypt, he receives a revelation on Mount Sinai in which YAHWEH seals his covenant with his people through a principal moral code known as the 'Ten Commandments.' YAHWEH also issues numerous other laws and instructions that will guide the Hebrew tribes as they slowly coalesce into a nation. These laws are the subjects of the last three books of the Pentateuch.

The Exodus is the most vivid example of God's compassion for his people. The rescue of the Israelites from the clutches of Pharaoh is proof of God's salvation and His commitment to the covenant that he entered into with Abraham so many years ago. As such, Exodus is the pivotal moment in the history of the Jewish people. Throughout the centuries to come, Hebrew prophets will invariably return to the theme of God's enduring faithfulness by extolling Him as "He who delivered you from Egypt" — particularly when the Hebrew themselves turn their back on their Lord in favor of pagan cults, which they are often inclined to do.