Exodus - an Authentic Record of Events

The Bible is the inspired word of God. This page is a continuation in a series of articles about the Bible as God’s word.

Part 1     Exodus - an Authentic Record of Events

The book of Genesis finishes the story of Jacob’s family leaving Canaan and entering Egypt. It reports the death of Joseph, who was the first member of the family to arrive there. The book of Exodus picks up that narrative to describe the growth of Jacob’s household into a nation in Egypt.

This band of seventy refugees prospered in the fertile delta district of Goshen and the local king was alarmed when “the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly, multiplied and grew exceedingly mighty; and the land was filled with them” - Exodus 1:7.

The king saw these descendants of the seventy as a threat to his power, and took measures to stem their phenomenal population growth. To prevent them from rebelling he enslaved them. “Now it happened in the process of time that the king of Egypt [who wanted Moses killed] died. Then the children of Israel groaned because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage. So God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob” - Exodus 2:23-24.

Many years before, God had promised Abraham after he had moved into Canaan, “all the land which you see I give to you and your offspring forever” - Genesis 13:15. But time went by until Abraham and his wife Sarah reached old age, but they still had no offspring. Then God reassured Abraham:

“...count the stars if you are able to number them...so shall your descendants be.” The next verse comments, even though Sarah was past the normal ability to bear children, “and he [Abraham] believed in the Lord, and He [the Lord] accounted it to him for righteousness” - Genesis 15:5-6.

God then revealed to Abraham what His immediate plans were for those descendants, that they “will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years....”

“But in the fourth generation they shall return here [Canaan]...” - Genesis 15:13-16. The end of that time is recorded in Exodus 12:40, “Now the sojourn of the children of Israel who lived in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years - on that very same day - it came to pass that all the armies of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt.”

The narrative continues to show that this day was commemorated each year from that time in the festival of Passover, and became an annual announcement to the world of the birth of Israel as a nation. “It is a night of solemn observance to the Lord for bringing them out of the land of Egypt... a solemn observance for all the children of Israel throughout their generations” - verse 42.

This occasion was recalled at the commencement of assembling the stones and timbers in constructing the temple of God in Jerusalem. “And it came to pass in the 480th year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the Lord” - 1 Kings 6:1.

A careful reading of Scripture shows these numbers, with several others, are all in harmony.

Reference Event Year B.C. (*=estimated)

Acts 7:2-4 Promise given, Abram 70 leaves Ur 1876 - Notes 1, 3

Genesis 12:4 Abram 75 to Canaan from Haran         1871

Genesis 15 Covenant confirmed, Abram 85         1861

Genesis 16 Ishmael born, Abram 86                         1860

Genesis 21:1-7 Isaac born, Abraham 100         1846 - Note 2

Genesis 46:6, 47:9 Jacob moves to Egypt, aged 130 1656 - Note 4

Exodus 12:31-42 The Exodus from Egypt                 1446 - Notes 1, 2 4, 5

1 Kings 6:1         Temple construction begins                966 - Note 5

                          in the 4th year of Solomon’s reign

Notes

1. Covenant to Abram to Exodus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 430 years 1876 - 1446

2. Birth of Isaac to Exodus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400 years 1846 - 1446

3. Covenant to Abram to Jacob enters Egypt . . . . . . 220 years 1876 - 1656

4. Jacob enters Egypt to Exodus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .210 years 1656 - 1446

5. Exodus to temple construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 480 years 1446 - 966