Exodus 13:14
In the future, when your son asks you, 'What does this mean?' you are to tell him, 'With a mighty hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
In the future
This phrase sets the stage for a perpetual remembrance and teaching moment. The Hebrew root for "future" (מָחָר, machar) implies a time to come, emphasizing the importance of passing down the account of God's deliverance to future generations. It underscores the continuity of faith and the responsibility of each generation to educate the next about God's mighty acts.

when your son asks you
The act of questioning by the son is significant. It reflects a culture of inquiry and learning within the family unit. The Hebrew word for "asks" (שָׁאַל, sha'al) suggests a seeking or inquiring, which is encouraged in the Jewish tradition. This interaction between parent and child is a divine opportunity to impart spiritual truths and historical identity.

‘What does this mean?’
This question is central to understanding and internalizing the significance of God's actions. It invites explanation and reflection. The Hebrew phrase (מָה זֹאת, mah zot) is a prompt for storytelling, ensuring that the miraculous events of the Exodus are not just historical facts but are imbued with meaning and relevance for the present and future.

you are to tell him
This directive emphasizes the role of the parent as a teacher and storyteller. The Hebrew verb (וְאָמַרְתָּ, ve'amarta) is a command to speak, indicating the importance of verbal transmission of faith. It highlights the responsibility to communicate God's deeds accurately and faithfully.

‘With a mighty hand
The phrase "mighty hand" (בְּיָד חֲזָקָה, beyad chazakah) is a powerful metaphor for God's strength and intervention. It conveys the idea of divine power and authority. Historically, this expression is used to describe God's miraculous acts, emphasizing His ability to deliver and protect His people against overwhelming odds.

the LORD brought us out of Egypt
This statement is a declaration of God's deliverance. The name "LORD" (יְהוָה, Yahweh) is the covenant name of God, signifying His eternal presence and faithfulness. The act of bringing the Israelites out of Egypt is central to their identity as a people chosen and redeemed by God. It is a foundational event that defines their relationship with Him.

out of the house of slavery
This phrase (מִבֵּית עֲבָדִים, mibbeit avadim) describes Egypt as a place of bondage and oppression. The term "house of slavery" is a reminder of the Israelites' past suffering and God's gracious deliverance. It serves as a contrast to the freedom and new life they are given, symbolizing the spiritual liberation that God offers to all who trust in Him.

Persons / Places / Events
1. The LORD (Yahweh)
The covenant-keeping God of Israel, who delivered His people from slavery in Egypt with great power.

2. Moses
The leader chosen by God to bring the Israelites out of Egypt and to communicate God's laws and instructions to them.

3. The Israelites
The descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who were enslaved in Egypt and delivered by God.

4. Egypt
The land where the Israelites were enslaved, representing bondage and oppression.

5. The Exodus
The event of God delivering the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, a foundational moment in Israel's history.
Teaching Points
The Importance of Remembrance
Remembering God's mighty acts is crucial for maintaining faith and obedience. Just as the Israelites were to recount their deliverance, Christians are called to remember Christ's sacrifice and resurrection.

Passing Down Faith
Teaching the next generation about God's works is a biblical mandate. Parents and leaders should actively engage in sharing their faith accounts to instill a strong spiritual foundation in their children.

God's Deliverance
The Exodus is a powerful reminder of God's ability to deliver His people from bondage. In our lives, we can trust God to deliver us from spiritual and personal struggles.

The Power of Testimony
Sharing personal testimonies of God's work in our lives can encourage others and strengthen their faith. Like the Israelites, we should be ready to explain the hope we have in Christ.

Living in Freedom
Just as the Israelites were freed from physical slavery, Christians are freed from the bondage of sin. We are called to live in the freedom Christ provides, not returning to our former ways.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the command to explain the meaning of the Exodus to future generations apply to us today in sharing our faith with others?

2. In what ways can we ensure that the accounts of God's deliverance in our lives are passed down to the next generation?

3. How does the concept of God delivering the Israelites with a "mighty hand" encourage you in your current life circumstances?

4. What are some practical ways you can incorporate the remembrance of God's works into your daily life?

5. How can the account of the Exodus inspire us to trust in God's power and faithfulness in our own spiritual journey?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Deuteronomy 6:20-25
This passage also instructs the Israelites on how to explain God's commandments and their history to future generations, emphasizing the importance of remembering God's deliverance.

Psalm 78:4-7
Highlights the importance of passing down the accounts of God's mighty works to the next generation, ensuring they set their hope in God.

1 Corinthians 10:1-4
Paul refers to the Exodus as a spiritual lesson for Christians, illustrating the importance of learning from Israel's history.

Hebrews 11:29
The faith of the Israelites during the Exodus is commended, showing the significance of trusting in God's deliverance.
The Sanctification of the First-BornJ. Orr Exodus 13:1-3, 11-17
How to Declare God's SalvationJ. Urquhart Exodus 13:3-16
Imparting KnowledgeElihu Burritt.Exodus 13:14-16
LessonsG. Hughes, B. D.Exodus 13:14-16
Meaning of Ordinances to be ExplainedG. Hughes, B. D.Exodus 13:14-16
People
Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Hivite, Hivites, Israelites, Jebusites, Joseph, Moses, Pharaoh
Places
Etham, Red Sea, Succoth
Topics
Asketh, Asks, Bondage, Egypt, Hast, Hereafter, Mean, Mighty, Powerful, Prison-house, Reason, Saying, Says, Servants, Slavery, Strength
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Exodus 13:14

     1265   hand of God
     5246   captivity

Exodus 13:1-16

     7410   phylactery

Exodus 13:11-15

     5688   firstborn

Exodus 13:11-16

     4442   firstfruits
     5724   offspring

Exodus 13:14-15

     5666   children, needs
     5707   male and female

Exodus 13:14-16

     7797   teaching

Library
Thought, Deed, Word
'It shall be for a sign unto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the Lord's law may be in thy mouth.'--EXODUS xiii. 9. The question may be asked, whether this command is to be taken metaphorically or literally. No doubt the remembrance of the great deliverance was intrusted to acts. Besides the annual Passover feasts, inscriptions on the door-posts and fringes on the dress were appointed for this purpose. And the Jews from a very early period, certainly before our Lord's
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Fifth Day. Holiness and Redemption.
Sanctify unto me all the first-born.'--Ex. xiii. 2. 'All the first-born are mine; for on the day I smote all the first-born in the land of Egypt I sanctified unto me all the first-born in Israel: mine they shall be: I am the Lord.'--Num. iii. 13, viii. 17. 'For I am the Lord your God that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.'--Lev. xi. 45. 'I have redeemed thee; thou art mine.'--Isa. xliii. 1. At Horeb we saw how the
Andrew Murray—Holy in Christ

June the Tenth Pillars of Cloud and Fire
"The Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud." --EXODUS xiii. 17--xiv. 4. I need His leadership in the daytime. Sometimes the daylight is my foe. It tempts me into carelessness. I become the victim of distraction. The "garish day" can entice me into ways of trespass, and I am robbed of my spiritual health. Many a man has been faithful in the twilight and night who has lost himself in the sunshine. He went astray in his prosperity: success was his ruin. And so in the daytime I need the
John Henry Jowett—My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year

The Personality of Power.
A Personally Conducted Journey. Everyone enjoys the pleasure of travel; but nearly all shrink back from its tiresomeness and drudgery. The transportation companies are constantly scheming to overcome this disagreeable side for both pleasure and business travel. One of the popular ways of pleasure travel of late is by means of personally conducted tours. A party is formed, often by the railroad company, and is accompanied by a special agent to attend to all the business matters of the trip. A variation
S.D. Gordon—Quiet Talks on Power

"The Lord Hath Need of Him. " Mark xi, 3
What! of an Ass? Yes, "God hath chosen the foolish things of the world." He gets renown to Himself by "using things which are despised." Let us never despair of the most foolish of men, if he become the servant of Jesus. It is said of the great John Hunt, that when a young man, he gave no promise of the talents he shewed in the work of the Ministry. We have spoken with one who knew him before his conversion, who made us smile as he described his gait and style of life. Yet this ungainly ploughboy
Thomas Champness—Broken Bread

Entangled in the Land
"For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, They are entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in."--Exodus 14:3. ISRAEL WAS CLEAN escaped from Egypt. Not a hoof of their cattle was left behind; nor foot of child or aged man remained in the house of bondage. But though they were gone, they were not forgotten by the tyrant who had enslaved them. They had been a very useful body of workers; for they had built treasure cities and storehouses for Pharaoh. Compelled to work without wages,
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 37: 1891

Letter xxxvi. To Pope Damasus.
Jerome's reply to the foregoing. For the second and fourth questions he refers Damasus to the writings of Tertullian, Novatian, and Origen. The remaining three he deals with in detail. Gen. iv. 15, he understands to mean "the slayer of Cain shall complete the sevenfold vengeance which is to be wreaked upon him." Exodus xiii. 18, he proposes to reconcile with Gen. xv. 16, by supposing that in the one place the tribe of Levi is referred to, in the other the tribe of Judah. He suggests, however, that
St. Jerome—The Principal Works of St. Jerome

Letter xxxv. From Pope Damasus.
Damasus addresses five questions to Jerome with a request for information concerning them. They are: 1. What is the meaning of the words "Whosoever slayeth Cain vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold"? (Gen. iv. 5.) 2. If God has made all things good, how comes it that He gives charge to Noah concerning unclean animals, and says to Peter, "What God hath cleansed that call not thou common"? (Acts x. 15.) 3. How is Gen. xv. 16, "in the fourth generation they shall come hither again," to be reconciled
St. Jerome—The Principal Works of St. Jerome

Epistle xxviii. To Augustine, Bishop of the Angli .
To Augustine, Bishop of the Angli [136] . Gregory to Augustine, &c. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will (Luke ii. 14); because a grain of wheat, falling into the earth, has died, that it might not reign in heaven alone; even He by whose death we live, by whose weakness we are made strong, by whose suffering we are rescued from suffering, through whose love we seek in Britain for brethren whom we knew not, by whose gift we find those whom without knowing them we sought.
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great

Jesus Living at Nazareth and visiting Jerusalem in his Twelfth Year.
(Nazareth and Jerusalem, a.d. 7 or 8.) ^C Luke II. 40-52. ^c 40 And the child grew [This verse contains the history of thirty years. It describes the growth of our Lord as a natural, human growth (compare Luke i. 80); for, though Jesus was truly divine, he was also perfectly man. To try to distinguish between the divine and human in Jesus, is to waste time upon an impracticable mystery which is too subtle for our dull and finite minds], and waxed strong [His life expanded like other human lives.
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Healing of the Woman - Christ's Personal Appearance - the Raising of Jairus' Daughter
THERE seems remarkable correspondence between the two miracles which Jesus had wrought on leaving Capernaum and those which He did on His return. In one sense they are complementary to each other. The stilling of the storm and the healing of the demonised were manifestations of the absolute power inherent in Christ; the recovery of the woman and the raising of Jairus' daughter, evidence of the absolute efficacy of faith. The unlikeliness of dominion over the storm, and of command over a legion of
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

Jesus' Last Public Discourse. Denunciation of Scribes and Pharisees.
(in the Court of the Temple. Tuesday, April 4, a.d. 30.) ^A Matt. XXIII. 1-39; ^B Mark XII. 38-40; ^C Luke XX. 45-47. ^a 1 Then spake Jesus ^b 38 And in his teaching ^c in the hearing of all the people he said unto ^a the multitudes, and to his disciples [he spoke in the most public manner], 2 saying, ^c 46 Beware of the scribes, ^a The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat: 3 all things whatsoever they bid you, these do and observe: but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Old Testament Canon from Its Beginning to Its Close.
The first important part of the Old Testament put together as a whole was the Pentateuch, or rather, the five books of Moses and Joshua. This was preceded by smaller documents, which one or more redactors embodied in it. The earliest things committed to writing were probably the ten words proceeding from Moses himself, afterwards enlarged into the ten commandments which exist at present in two recensions (Exod. xx., Deut. v.) It is true that we have the oldest form of the decalogue from the Jehovist
Samuel Davidson—The Canon of the Bible

Circumcision, Temple Service, and Naming of Jesus.
(the Temple at Jerusalem, b.c. 4) ^C Luke II. 21-39. ^c 21 And when eight days [Gen. xvii. 12] were fulfilled for circumcising him [The rite was doubtless performed by Joseph. By this rite Jesus was "made like unto his brethren" (Heb. ii. 16, 17); that is, he became a member of the covenant nation, and became a debtor to the law--Gal. v. 3] , his name was called JESUS [see Luke i. 59], which was so called by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. [Luke i. 31.] 22 And when the days of their
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Cavils of the Pharisees Concerning Purification, and the Teaching of the Lord Concerning Purity - the Traditions Concerning Hand-Washing' and Vows. '
As we follow the narrative, confirmatory evidence of what had preceded springs up at almost every step. It is quite in accordance with the abrupt departure of Jesus from Capernaum, and its motives, that when, so far from finding rest and privacy at Bethsaida (east of the Jordan), a greater multitude than ever had there gathered around Him, which would fain have proclaimed Him King, He resolved on immediate return to the western shore, with the view of seeking a quieter retreat, even though it were
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

Among the People, and with the Pharisees
It would have been difficult to proceed far either in Galilee or in Judaea without coming into contact with an altogether peculiar and striking individuality, differing from all around, and which would at once arrest attention. This was the Pharisee. Courted or feared, shunned or flattered, reverently looked up to or laughed at, he was equally a power everywhere, both ecclesiastically and politically, as belonging to the most influential, the most zealous, and the most closely-connected religions
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

Concerning the Communion, or Participation of the Body and Blood of Christ.
Concerning the Communion, or Participation of the Body and Blood of Christ. The communion of the body and blood of Christ is [1104] inward and spiritual, which is the participation of his flesh and blood, by which the inward man is daily nourished in the hearts of those in whom Christ dwells. Of which things the breaking of bread by Christ with his disciples was a figure, which even they who had received the substance used in the church for a time, for the sake of the weak; even as abstaining from
Robert Barclay—Theses Theologicae and An Apology for the True Christian Divinity

The Third Day in Passion-Week - the Last Controversies and Discourses - the Sadducees and the Resurrection - the Scribe and the Great Commandment - Question
THE last day in the Temple was not to pass without other temptations' than that of the Priests when they questioned His authority, or of the Pharisees when they cunningly sought to entangle Him in His speech. Indeed, Christ had on this occasion taken a different position; He had claimed supreme authority, and thus challenged the leaders of Israel. For this reason, and because at the last we expect assaults from all His enemies, we are prepared for the controversies of that day. We remember that,
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

Third Withdrawal from Herod's Territory.
Subdivision D. The Transfiguration. Concerning Elijah. (a Spur of Hermon, Near Cæsarea Philippi.) ^A Matt. XVII. 1-13; ^B Mark IX. 2-13; ^C Luke IX. 28-36. ^c 28 And it came to pass about eight days { ^a six days} ^c after these sayings [Mark agrees with Matthew in saying six days. Luke qualifies his estimate by saying "about." But if we regard him as including the day of the "sayings" and also the day of the transfiguration, and the other two as excluding these days, then the three statements
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Exodus
The book of Exodus--so named in the Greek version from the march of Israel out of Egypt--opens upon a scene of oppression very different from the prosperity and triumph in which Genesis had closed. Israel is being cruelly crushed by the new dynasty which has arisen in Egypt (i.) and the story of the book is the story of her redemption. Ultimately it is Israel's God that is her redeemer, but He operates largely by human means; and the first step is the preparation of a deliverer, Moses, whose parentage,
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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