Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;

2:11 when Moses was grown. Moses was forty years old at this time (Acts 7:23) and, although he had been raised from infancy in Pharaoh’s palace and in all the culture and wisdom of the mighty nation of Egypt (perhaps even being a prospective Pharaoh himself, as the “son” of Pharaoh’s daughter–Exodus 2:10), he still considered the Hebrews to be “his brethren,” and needed his protection. It seems very likely that he had, by this time, come into custody of the ancient tablets which he would later compile into the book of Genesis. Joseph had possibly deposited them in his own vaults for safekeeping.

2:14 Moses feared. According to Hebrews 11:27, Moses “fear[ed] not the wrath of the king.” He would rather suffer affliction with God’s people than to live as an Egyptian prince but, once he had made that choice, it was essential that he leave both the palace and his own people for a time, in order that his life might be spared and he would be able to prepare to lead them out of bondage.

12:7 take of the blood. The blood was to be “given” (same word as “strike”) on the sides and above, but not underneath, where it could be stepped on (Hebrews 10:29).

19:8 we will do. Moses, as the mediator between God and His people, is here a distinct type of the Lord Jesus Christ (I Timothy 2:5). Note that the people promised, both before and after the giving of the law (Exodus 24:3) to do everything the Lord commanded. 19:17 out of the camp. This is the first of more than thirty references to events that took place outside of the camp of the Israelites in the wilderness. Anything unclean was to be “burned without the camp” (Hebrews 13:11). As He bore our sins, the Lord Jesus “suffered without the gate,” and thus we are exhorted to “go forth therefore unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach” (Hebrews 13:12,13).

19:19 voice of the trumpet. There seems to have been a host of angels present around Mount Sinai as the Law was being given (note Acts 7:53; Galatians 3:19) and one or more were blowing loudly on the trumpet of God. This, along with the lightning and dark cloud and great quaking of the mountain, made an awe-inspiring spectacle which the people could never forget (or so it would have seemed). Compare the exposition of this scene in Hebrews 12:18-21.

21:6 bore his ear. This ordinance is very significant, being the first given after the ten commandments. This first ordinance and those that follow center first on the most humble members of society (the slaves–recognizing the then-universal existence of slavery, and ameliorating the practice), then on other people, then on property–thus establishing God’s priorities. Second, right at the beginning of the dispensation of Law, we are given a typological picture of God’s Servant, who would someday come to bear the curse of the Law for us, saving us by His grace. The slave, with full right to be set free in his seventh year, chooses rather to stay in the will of his master, listening to his voice only–symbolized and sealed by the opening in his ear. Just so, Christ said prophetically: “Mine ears hast thou opened:...Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart” (Psalm 40:6-8). The fulfillment of this prophecy is described in Hebrews 10:5-10. There, the opening of the ears of the servant is included in the preparation of the Lord’s human body “to do thy will, O God... By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:7,10).

25:17 make a mercy seat. The mercy seat was a “seat” only in the sense that it was, in effect, God’s throne when He would meet with His people. It served as a covering for the ark and also was where the sacrificial blood was sprinkled on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:14, 15). In the New Testament, the word for “mercyseat” (Hebrews 9:5) is the same word translated “propitiation” (I John 2:2; 4:10).

25:40 after their pattern. The details of the design and building of this very temporary dwelling of God, the wilderness tabernacle, occupies most of thirteen chapters of Exodus, indicating the importance of its symbology. Some of the latter is explained in the book of Hebrews (especially Hebrews 8 and 9). The tabernacle was actually to be a model of God’s “true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man” (Hebrews 8:2), where God will dwell with His people forever (Revelation 21:3). At that time, no doubt, we shall comprehend the full meaning of all its beauties.

26:1 make the tabernacle. In this chapter, God gave Moses the precise dimensions and details of the tabernacle where He would meet with him and the people of Israel during their time in the wilderness. It must be sufficiently strong and large to withstand the elements and to serve its various functions, yet also light and portable enough to be carried from place to place. It must also be a place of beauty, since it would be the temporary earthly dwelling place of the God of creation. In many wonderful ways, it would be a type of the temple of God in heaven and of the saving work of Christ (see Hebrews 9).

29:4 wash them with water. There are frequent references in the Mosaic writings to the importance of washing, especially for the priests who were continually handling and slaying the sacrificial animals. See also Exodus 19:10; Numbers 19:7,8,11; Leviticus 14:47,51; Exodus 40:31,32; etc. These various washings not only had ritualistic and spiritual significance, but also important hygienic benefits. The value of washing and bathing was not fully appreciated by most other nations until modern times. The practical value of “sprinkling the unclean...to the purifying of the flesh” is intimated in Hebrews 9:13.