THE MEANING AND TYPES OF FREEDOM
Freedom is a state of being unbound; it is a condition of being without hindrance in the pursuit of ones goals. The Israelites were a good example of people who sought for freedom when they were under the Egyptian bondage. The Israelites were used as slaves and they were cruelly oppressed. God saw their suffering and promised to free them. Moses was used as an instrument of God to achieve this. He was accompanied by Aaron who interpreted for him
This topic introduces us to the book of Exodus. The word Exodus means departure, exit, or going out in large numbers. It is the title of a book in the Old Testament which describes the account of going out of Israel from Egypt after 430 years of suffering. Because of the famine in Canaan, Israel (Jacob), and his children went down to Egypt. Seventy souls made up of Jacob, his sons and grandsons along with their wives and daughters came to Egypt.
As the Israelites continued to multiply, The Egyptians were offended. After the death of Joseph, there was a new Pharaoh in Egypt who never knew Joseph and was probably not interested in the historical account of events that took place in the time of Joseph. He started to oppress the Israelites. Three reasons were responsible for the oppression:-
First, they wanted to stop them from multiplying and thereby weaken them. Secondly, they wanted to prevent them from growing to a point whereby they could get freedom and leave Egypt. Thirdly, they were afraid that the Israelites will join their enemies to fight them and drive them out of their empire.
METHODS OF OPPRESSION
- Affliction of task master
- Slavery: They were denied freedom in every area.
EVALUATION
- What is Exodus?
- Why were the children of Israel oppressed?
- Mention five (5) different methods employed by the Egyptians to oppress the Israelites.
THE BIRTH OF MOSES (EXODUS 2:1-24)
Moses parents were both of the tribe of Levi. The fathers name was Amiram, his mother was Jochebed. The other chidren of Amiran and Jochebed were Aaron and Miriam.
When Moses was born, his mother saw that he was a goodly handsome child. She hid him for three months and when she could no longer hide him, she kept him at the brink of the river. He was in a basket made of an ark of bulrushes. The daughter of pharaoh discovered him later when she came to bath. She paid the mother unknowingly to nurse the baby for her. He was later returned to the princess when he grew up.
When Moses grew up, he murdered secretly an Egyptian who was fighting with a Hebrew he could not tolerate an Egyptian oppressing an Israelite. Besides, on another occasion he tried to intervene in a misunderstanding between two Israelites, he was faced with the question of whether he was a prince or Judge. Realizing that the crime was known, he fled to Midian and was in the service of Jethro, the priest of Midian who became Moses father-in-law.
In Midian, as he sat down by the well, he met seven daughters of the priest of Midian who came to draw water for their fathers sheep. At this point, they were harassed by the shepherd and Moses defended them and helped them. Moses’ act of mercy made Jethro, the father of the girls to provide him accommodation, occupation and family. Moses became a shepherd and married a daughter of the priest of Midian. The name of his wife was Zipporah, she gave birth to a son called Gershom meaning. I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.
EVALUATION
- Discuss the circumstances in which Moses was born.
- Discuss his stay with Jethro.
THE CALL OF MOSES EXODUS 3:1-22, 4:1-17
When Moses was keeping the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, at mount Horeb, also called Sinai which is described as the mountain of God. On this occasion, God appeared unto Moses at Horeb in a flame of fire. He saw a bush burning with fire, and the bush was not consumed. Moses decided to look at what was happening, it was then God called him and asked him to put off his shoes for where he was standing is a holy ground. It was then God disclosed his identity as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
God instructed Moses to go and deliver the Israelites from the bondage of the Egyptians telling him that he had seen the affliction of his people under the task masters of the Egyptians. They were his own, He had heard their cry, knew their sorrows and had come down to deliver them from the hand of Pharaoh. He would take them to a large and good land flowing with milk and honey [the land of Canaan].
Moses asked God for his name and God said, I am that I am. Moses complained that he was not eloquent in speech, God told him to make Aaron, his brother, his interpreter. God gave him some signs which eventually came to pass. Moses then had to lead the children of Israel to their freedom from the hand of the taskmasters.
EVALUATION
- Describe how God spoke to Moses in the field where he was fending the flock of Jethro?
- Why was Moses chosen as the leader for the freedom of his people?
GENERAL EVALUATION
- Give the meaning of the name Gershon.
- What did Moses mother do to prevent him (Moses) from being killed?
- Give the meaning of the name Moses
- What is freedom?
WEEKEND ASSIGNMENT
- God appeared to Moses on mount ____ (a) Everest (b) Horeb (c) Kilimanjaro (c) Carmel
- Moses was asked to put off his shoes because the ground is ____ (a) Beautiful (b) Holy (c) Slippery (d) Water logged
- Moses complained that he is not ____ (a) eloquent in speech (b) Fluent in speech (c) Brilliant in speech (d) Good in speech
- ____ is to be the interpreter for Moses (a) Aaron (b) Miriam (c) Jacob (d) Zipporah
- God promised to take the children of Israel to the land of ____ (a) Canaan
(b) Haran (c) Jericho (d) Galilee
- How old was Moses when God called him (a) 40 (b) 80 (c) 120 (d) 100
- ____ is described as the mountain of God (a) Sinai (b) Haran (c) Carmel (d) Everest
- The Israelites were in bondage for ____ years (a) 4000 (b) 40 (c) 430 (d) 100
- ____ was the prophetess that mobilized the woman to praise God after their freedom (a) Deborah (b) Miriam (c) Esther (d) Ruth
- ____ is the spokesman of Moses (a) Aaron (b) Joshua (c) Elijah (d) Joseph.
- All the souls who left Canaan for Egypt were __ in number (a) 70 (b) 50 (c) 60 (d) 80
- Shiprah and Puah were the Hebrew ____ (a) Stewards (b) Midwives (c) Slaves (d) Mothers
- Moses was from the tribe of ____ (a) Judah (b) Levis (c) Benjamin (d) Moab
- The name of the father of Moses is ___ (a) Jacob (b) Amiran (c) Jerusalem (d) Jethro
- ____ is the name of Moses mother (a) Miriam (b) Rachel (c) Jochebed
THEORY
- How did Moses get to the palace of Pharaoh?
- Explain the call of Moses.
See also
PAUL BEFORE THE CIVIL AUTHORITY