Book Of Exodus Essay

Question 1: Perhaps one of the first stories about oppression, the story of the book of Exodus describes the experiences of the people of Israel in their liberation from the slavery the Egyptians have subjected them to. It is important to primarily note that oppression is convoluted in the worst way, and it takes the agency of multiple forces in order to end it. In this case, one might discuss Moses and God’s roles as the most important in the liberation of the Israelites. However, it is also of great significance to address Pharaoh’s role as equally vital, albeit paradoxical, in the emancipation for a multitude of reasons. All in all, the lack of agency of the oppressed group in their own liberation speaks great multitudes to the themes so

In Exodus 2:23, the Israelites cry out and God remembers his covenant with them, which causes him to seek out Moses. This shows that they are capable of recognizing they aren’t deserving of the enslavement they are subject to, which speaks to how strong they are for dealing with it. Furthermore, even though they are strong, Exodus 6:9 reflects on the way they feel upon being again promised for liberation after having their spirits crushed by Pharaoh. It says that they “would not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and their cruel slavery.” It’s safe to say that, while they realize they don’t want to be enslaved, it still takes its toll on them. Other important evidence of this contention occurs in Numbers 13. When they speak on their supposed sighting of Nephilim in the promised land, they may be reflecting on how small they feel as opposed to accurately describing the people they saw. After liberation from slavery, they say, “[T]o ourselves we seemed like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them” (Numbers 13:33). This reflects just how affected they were by the hundreds of years of enslavement by the Egyptians as well as their view of their ability to unite as a group and fight another if the situation were to arise. However, their belief in God hardly wavers and the hope they get from this relationship is possibly what keeps them