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Through the Waters
244 pages, Hardcover
Published June 4, 2024
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December 13, 2024
The book is easy to read and very insightful. I appreciated the author’s observations and humility in not overstating his claims. Sometimes books on Genesis focus on a particular perspective on the date of creation, the age of the earth, evolution, or other scientific ideas. This book is not about that at all. Instead, this work looks at recurring patterns in the book of Genesis that prepare the reader to anticipate Israel’s exodus from Egypt and the Day of Atonement. My first thought as I began reading the book was that I didn’t recognize these literary structures but neither did I recognize the cosmic temple language throughout the Bible until I read John Walton’s “Lost World of Genesis One” and now I see this cosmology woven throughout scripture. So I took copious notes on the book and will include many quotes in this review to show you these patterns. I really think this book offers important insight and I highly recommend it.
The author cohosts The Bible in Context podcast, teaches at his church, and has a background in engineering. Each section of the book contains a table summarizing the motif being discussed and this work contains an impressive bibliography and extensive indexed scripture references. The elements of the motif are identified tagged in the stories as the author discusses them.
Introduction
The introduction sets the scope of the book, defines the elements in the Exodus and the Two-Goats motifs that will be the main focus of the book, and offers recommendations on how best to use the book.
Creation
“Because of the uniqueness of the creation narrative within the Bible, and because it is heavily laden with ANE [Ancient Near Easter] cultural imagery, it can be difficult to see the Exodus motif within (p1).” “As in the other exoduses, Yahweh begins his work of making a new humanity with an environment of disarray and destruction. As Yahweh continues and restrains the darkness and water, he is subduing the ruinous pre-creation elements, as he will later subdue the enemies of his people, and brings out a couple as a new humanity (p12).” “In ANE texts, creation takes place by a separation of part of the pre-creation material. This pattern is activated by various language used to denote the separation and naming/assigning of functions. This pattern will be seen in the creation narrative and throughout our discussion of the Exodus motif in Genesis (p13).” “When someone is brought through the waters, or through metaphorical waters, we ought to see them undergoing an act of re-creation from Yahweh (p14).” “Both the Biblical authors and the people of the ANE viewed creation accounts as the creation of temples (p15).” “Through our exploration of the world-creation narrative and the Israel-creation narrative, we have seen that the author has intentionally and sequentially modeled these events off one another (p21).”
Cain and Abel
“The story of Gen 3 sets up problems that the biblical narrative must resolve: separation from God and disunity among humans (p24).” “Before we can recognize these motifs in Genesis, we need to acquaint ourselves with the roles that the two goats play in the Day of Atonement (p25).” “One goat is then brought closer to Yahweh as it is slaughtered and its book is brought into the Tabernacle to purify Israel, while the other goad is sent out into the wilderness bearing the sins of Israel. … The role of the goat for Azazel within scripture is not to be punished on behalf of Israel or suffer as an embodiment of sin, but, rather, to be the means by which the sins are removed from the community of Israel (p26).” “In these parallels, Cain is linked with the goat for Yahweh in the Two-Goats motif (p33).” “The seed of the serpent is any enemy of Yahweh (p35).” And the seed of the woman is Yahweh’s elect or Yahweh’s firstborn.
Noah
“Whether it comes in the form of jealousy and anger, or in the form of ‘seeing’ and ‘taking’ what seems to be good, the desire to transgress the bounds of one’s current authority is a repeated motif throughout Genesis (p37).” In the flood account, “the world is being de-created on account of its violence, and it will be re-created in a purified state, with the seed of the serpent having been defeated (p37).” Yahweh’s cosmic temple, the Tabernacle, and Sinai have the same ordered structure: Yahweh’s dwelling (Most Holy Place, Garden), Holy Place (Eden), outer court (outside Eden), and beyond (wilderness, waters). “These conceptual links between the waters and wilderness will serve us in the flood narrative as we explore Noah’s election and the fate of those not elected (p40).” “The conceptual framework of the Two-Goats motif is still loosely at work: one is elected, blessed, and brought closer, and the rest are enemies of Yahweh that are sent further from his presence (pp40-41).” “The waters also finished receding from the earth on the day that the Tabernacle was erected (Gen 8:13; Ex 40:2, 17-19), signifying that the world was not simply drying, but rather that the temple-cosmos had been re-created (p43).” Noah’s son Ham “resolves to commit an atrocity to secure a place of preeminence and, just like Cain, it costs him any place in the family (p47).”
Babel and Abram
“The tower of the Tower of Babylon was not an attempt to reach heaven but rather an attempt to bring deity down to the city to make it fruitful and great (p52).” The dispersion of people at the Tower of Babylon is an exile judgment thematically similar to other exile narratives. “Abram, similar to Israel at Sinai, is separated from the nations and given a new function: to be a new nation which is to be a blessing to the rest of the nations (p56).” “The narrative section [the exodus cycle of Abram] ends with the elect character as a new creation in a figurative Garden of Eden [Canaan], having set up his dwelling, functioning as a priest, and possessing the promises of kingship (p59).”
Abram and Sarai in Egypt
Abram “falls” when he leaves Canaan during the famine and goes to Egypt. The Pharaoh “saw” and “took” Sarai, Abram became wealthy, Pharaoh and his house experienced plagues, he sent Abram and Sarai and their people/stuff away (into exile), and they returned to Canaan. “Abram has again been brought back to Yahweh’s dwelling and worships and purifies those coming out of this new exodus (p65).” Lot “saw” and “took” the land to the east that seemed good to him. “Lot chose a place which seemed to have the blessings of the Garden but he only found uncleanness there since he relied on appearance rather than Yahweh’s promises (p66).” “Abram fulfills the role of the goat for Yahweh while Lot fulfills that of the goat for Azazel. The Two-Goats motif continues in the brothers of the covenant family (p68).”
Lot Captured
“As one reads of Chedorlaomer and his armies, one sees a representative of the oppressive kings of the world; the oppressive kings who trample Yahweh’s people (p71).” “Lot gets swept away in the defeat of Sodom and taken by the opposing confederacy of kings, similar to Sarai being taken by Pharaoh. Out of this defeat comes a survivor who finds Abram dwelling in an Edenic setting (p72).” “Through Abram’s defeat of Chedorlaomer’s forces, Lot is given exodus from this oppressive army and comes out with ‘his possessions, and the women and the people’ (Gen 14:16)(p73).” “As readers, we should be expecting her [Sarai] to be the mother of the promised seed by token of her exodus (p77).”
Hagar
Hagar, who was oppressed by Sarai, “is in the wilderness on the way to Shur [where the Israelites went after they left Egypt], and by a life-giving spring in the midst of her own exodus (p79).” Hagar’s “exodus cycle concludes in a similar way as Sarai’s exodus out of Egypt (p80).” “This similarity [in their blessing] between Ishmael and Isaac shows Yahweh’s love for the nonelect (p82).”
Lot in Sodom
“Neither Israel nor Lot were meant to fear and flee, but seeing the fire of Yahweh raining down on Sodom and resting on Sinai should have inspired both to understand the end of Yahweh’s enemies and remain loyal to him, to fear him (p86).” “Just as Cain falls, is exiled, becomes a nation, and disappears from the story, so does Lot (p89).” “The hope of the exiled nation, cast out to pear their sins, finds their hope in the deliverance and blessings of the elect one of Yahweh (p89).”
Sarah and Abimelech
This is the second time Sarah has been seen and taken by a Pharaoh/king to better Abraham’s situation. “This, also, not only mirrors Sarah’s exodus out of Egypt but also Israel’s as each acquire possessions, are sent out with a mixed multitude, and are brought to their respective covenant partners (p92).” The exile narrative of Hagar and Ishmael after Isaac’s birth “is part of the Two-Goats motif as the culmination of the strife between Sarah and Hagar and their sons (p94).”
The Climax of the Abraham Narrative
“Isaac becomes a sacrifice of purgation and communion on Mount Moriah at the climax of Abraham’s narrative and exodus just as the goat for Yahweh at the Day of Atonement (or Purgation) is the purging sacrifice at the climax of Israel’s narrative and exodus within the Torah (p102).” The book examined several instances where loyalty to the elect was rewarded but in this case, Abraham was not loyal to the elect/seed/Isaac Why didn’t Abraham plead with God to spare Isaac as he did with Sodom and Lot; or like Abimelech did? “Abraham acquires a lush piece of land near his Edenic dwelling of Mamre [to bury Sarah]. This land is the first of the fulfillment of Yahweh’s promise that Abraham would possess the land, and this is where Sarah would lie until the resurrection (p107).” “This description of Abraham’s exodus journey will be paradigmatic for the journey of the bride [for Isaac] within this narrative (p109).” “Within the Torah we see three betrothal journey narratives, each of them within an exodus cycle (p110).”
Jacob and Esau
“The narrative of Jacob and Esau is full of unexpected inversions but the narrative will bear out that the intimations were not an inversion, as Esau will indeed show hostility to the elect, leave the land of Canaan, go to Seir, and become a hostile people. Meanwhile, Jacob will be brought through an exodus and brought into Yahweh’s presence (p117).”
Rebekah and Abimelech
“In both narratives [Abraham and Sarah and Isaac and Rebekah], the elect’s wife is given exodus in Gerar, the elect is blessed, there is contention over wells, the elect complains to Abimelech, and peace is made through covenant on account of Yahweh’s blessings (121).
Jacob in Paddan-Aram
“In her selfishness, Rebekah has used the means of the serpent to secure her favorite son’s blessing (p124).” “This narrative contains two brothers as the others do, but neither seems to be ‘elect material’ (p125).” “Despite the deception and oppression through which it came, Yahweh has given Jacob a bride, two, in fact, in the midst of his exile from his land (p127).” Jacob, his family, and his possessions leave Laban in an exodus cycle which includes fleeing oppression, offering a sacrifice on a mountain, and settling at Yahweh’s camp.
Jacob Wrestles
“Jacob is facing the consequence of his past failures and, unlike Cain, humbles himself before his brother and seeks peace so that Esau may lift his face (p135).” “Despite his craftiness, Yahweh has brought this deceiver through an exodus and blessed him according to his promises (p136).”
Dinah
Sheckem “saw” and “took” Dinah in the same pattern as Eve saw and took the forbidden fruit and kings saw and took Sarah and Rebekah. “Jacob’s sons have acted deceptively in order to bring about Dinah’s deliverance, making them look much like their father (p142).” “At Bethel, he [Jacob] has his new-creation status re-inaugurated [in being re-named Israel], receives the blessing of Abraham’s seed, and erects a house for Yahweh. All this is as Israel will do at Sinai, once they have been brought out of their exodus and to Yahweh’s presence (p144).”
Esau’s Journey to Seir
“In this brief note about Esau coming out of Canaan with a mixed multitude to the land of his inheritance (cf Deut 2:5), the author associates Esau with the Exodus motif. By itself, Gen 36:6 may not be enough to convince that the author is indeed employing the Exodus motif, but given that the mixed multitude and great possessions is one of the most used exodus characteristics and that the other non-elect brothers were associated with the exodus motif, it seems plausible that the author has intended to apply the motif to Esau here (p146).”
Joseph
“As Joseph is brought out of the pit by his brothers, he is portrayed as coming out of Sheol and back to the land of the living (p152).” Joseph is associated with both goats in the Two-Goats motif. The story of Judah and Tamar parallels the stories before it, including Joseph’s, Jacob’s, and the twins Esau and Jacob. Joseph is again exalted to second in command. “Adam and Eve were to rule with Yahweh’s wisdom, not try to be Yahweh. Joseph is to rule on behalf of Pharaoh, not as Pharaoh (p159).” “At the end of an exodus, a chosen one will often receive his wife. This was true for Adam, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (p160).”
Israel Comes to Egypt
“Joseph, as the exalted elect one, who has been tested and vindicated through his own exile and exodus, tests and refines in brothers in the midst of the famine (p166).” Israel and his family come to Egypt to escape famine.
Jacob Out of Egypt
“Yahweh promises Jacob that his place of exile will be a place of multiplication and that he will bring Jacob back to Canaan, to Yahweh’s land, after he dies in peace with Joseph (p169).” Jacob’s body is brought back to Canaan to be buried, Joseph lives to “the ideal Egyptian age of 110 signifying fullness of life and righteousness (p173),” and passes “his hope of the coming exodus to the next generation (p173).”
Moses
Moses’ mother “saw” he was good (similar to Eve seeing the fruit was good) and put him in an ark (similar to how Noah put family and animals in an ark to save them). “The author has created the expectation that Moses is going to be delivered through the waters and Noah was (p175).” After his exile, Moses is reunited with and accepted by his family and will lead them in their exodus.
Two Goats
A ritual with two birds is used to declare a leper or home is cleansed from disease. This ritual is very similar to the Two Goats motif where one is slaughtered and its blood sprinkled while the other is sent away symbolically carrying away impurities. In the Two Goat motif, “each non-elect brother is exiled from their elect brother, from the promised land, whether by force or by choice, where they are made into a fruitful and hostile nation (p183).”
Reflections on the Exoduses in Genesis
“Exodus and creation are generally thought of as two separate events, however, our study would suggest they cannot be disconnected. A majority of the exodus cycles discussed contain new creation elements; renaming, new purpose, beginning or promise of a new nation, or an actual (re)creation of the cosmos (p189).” “Biblical creation is not about the creation of material out of nothing, but rather about the creation of nations through the separation of one family from their native people and designating them to be a new people (p189).” “Exodus is the means by which Yahweh saves and separates a people and creates them into something new (p190).” “This pattern [of creation through water and Spirit] continues throughout scripture up to Jesus’ baptism, in which he emerges from the Jordan (which has its own significance from Josh 3, which recalls the parting of the waters at Israel’s exodus) and God’s spirit comes on him (Matt 3:16) (p191).”
Conclusion
“Jesus first passed through the waters of the Jordan and was tested, preparing him to lead the exodus from death to life. … He enacted the Day of Atonement cleansing that was needed and led (and still leads) any who follow him from death to life (p197).” “Genesis has created the expectation that the resolution to the problem it presents will come through these narrative and literary features. … By the end of the book of Genesis, the Exodus and the Two Goats motifs have not only been made an integral part of the book, but an integral part of the narrative expectations and eschatological hopes of the reader (p198).”
Appendix: “Desire” in Gen 3:16
The author examines the translation and meaning of “desire” in Gen 3:16 and suggests this verse is best understood as “And to your husband shall be your devotion (or submission) and he shall rule over your (p200).”
I found this book very valuable and now that I have been alerted to these motifs, I readily see them in the biblical text. This book highlights 21 examples of the exodus pattern. It seems that the biblical author(s) have very deliberately crafted these accounts to communicate more than just historical events but to foreshadow the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and the Day of Atonement as well as serving as a prelude to Jesus, the Messiah. Once again I realize the importance of understanding the literary genre and ancient Near Eastern context of the Bible. People are people but their culture really is not the same as ours and we need to see through their eyes rather than our own to best understand the authors’ intent and inspired meaning. I highly recommend this book!
The author cohosts The Bible in Context podcast, teaches at his church, and has a background in engineering. Each section of the book contains a table summarizing the motif being discussed and this work contains an impressive bibliography and extensive indexed scripture references. The elements of the motif are identified tagged in the stories as the author discusses them.
Introduction
The introduction sets the scope of the book, defines the elements in the Exodus and the Two-Goats motifs that will be the main focus of the book, and offers recommendations on how best to use the book.
Creation
“Because of the uniqueness of the creation narrative within the Bible, and because it is heavily laden with ANE [Ancient Near Easter] cultural imagery, it can be difficult to see the Exodus motif within (p1).” “As in the other exoduses, Yahweh begins his work of making a new humanity with an environment of disarray and destruction. As Yahweh continues and restrains the darkness and water, he is subduing the ruinous pre-creation elements, as he will later subdue the enemies of his people, and brings out a couple as a new humanity (p12).” “In ANE texts, creation takes place by a separation of part of the pre-creation material. This pattern is activated by various language used to denote the separation and naming/assigning of functions. This pattern will be seen in the creation narrative and throughout our discussion of the Exodus motif in Genesis (p13).” “When someone is brought through the waters, or through metaphorical waters, we ought to see them undergoing an act of re-creation from Yahweh (p14).” “Both the Biblical authors and the people of the ANE viewed creation accounts as the creation of temples (p15).” “Through our exploration of the world-creation narrative and the Israel-creation narrative, we have seen that the author has intentionally and sequentially modeled these events off one another (p21).”
Cain and Abel
“The story of Gen 3 sets up problems that the biblical narrative must resolve: separation from God and disunity among humans (p24).” “Before we can recognize these motifs in Genesis, we need to acquaint ourselves with the roles that the two goats play in the Day of Atonement (p25).” “One goat is then brought closer to Yahweh as it is slaughtered and its book is brought into the Tabernacle to purify Israel, while the other goad is sent out into the wilderness bearing the sins of Israel. … The role of the goat for Azazel within scripture is not to be punished on behalf of Israel or suffer as an embodiment of sin, but, rather, to be the means by which the sins are removed from the community of Israel (p26).” “In these parallels, Cain is linked with the goat for Yahweh in the Two-Goats motif (p33).” “The seed of the serpent is any enemy of Yahweh (p35).” And the seed of the woman is Yahweh’s elect or Yahweh’s firstborn.
Noah
“Whether it comes in the form of jealousy and anger, or in the form of ‘seeing’ and ‘taking’ what seems to be good, the desire to transgress the bounds of one’s current authority is a repeated motif throughout Genesis (p37).” In the flood account, “the world is being de-created on account of its violence, and it will be re-created in a purified state, with the seed of the serpent having been defeated (p37).” Yahweh’s cosmic temple, the Tabernacle, and Sinai have the same ordered structure: Yahweh’s dwelling (Most Holy Place, Garden), Holy Place (Eden), outer court (outside Eden), and beyond (wilderness, waters). “These conceptual links between the waters and wilderness will serve us in the flood narrative as we explore Noah’s election and the fate of those not elected (p40).” “The conceptual framework of the Two-Goats motif is still loosely at work: one is elected, blessed, and brought closer, and the rest are enemies of Yahweh that are sent further from his presence (pp40-41).” “The waters also finished receding from the earth on the day that the Tabernacle was erected (Gen 8:13; Ex 40:2, 17-19), signifying that the world was not simply drying, but rather that the temple-cosmos had been re-created (p43).” Noah’s son Ham “resolves to commit an atrocity to secure a place of preeminence and, just like Cain, it costs him any place in the family (p47).”
Babel and Abram
“The tower of the Tower of Babylon was not an attempt to reach heaven but rather an attempt to bring deity down to the city to make it fruitful and great (p52).” The dispersion of people at the Tower of Babylon is an exile judgment thematically similar to other exile narratives. “Abram, similar to Israel at Sinai, is separated from the nations and given a new function: to be a new nation which is to be a blessing to the rest of the nations (p56).” “The narrative section [the exodus cycle of Abram] ends with the elect character as a new creation in a figurative Garden of Eden [Canaan], having set up his dwelling, functioning as a priest, and possessing the promises of kingship (p59).”
Abram and Sarai in Egypt
Abram “falls” when he leaves Canaan during the famine and goes to Egypt. The Pharaoh “saw” and “took” Sarai, Abram became wealthy, Pharaoh and his house experienced plagues, he sent Abram and Sarai and their people/stuff away (into exile), and they returned to Canaan. “Abram has again been brought back to Yahweh’s dwelling and worships and purifies those coming out of this new exodus (p65).” Lot “saw” and “took” the land to the east that seemed good to him. “Lot chose a place which seemed to have the blessings of the Garden but he only found uncleanness there since he relied on appearance rather than Yahweh’s promises (p66).” “Abram fulfills the role of the goat for Yahweh while Lot fulfills that of the goat for Azazel. The Two-Goats motif continues in the brothers of the covenant family (p68).”
Lot Captured
“As one reads of Chedorlaomer and his armies, one sees a representative of the oppressive kings of the world; the oppressive kings who trample Yahweh’s people (p71).” “Lot gets swept away in the defeat of Sodom and taken by the opposing confederacy of kings, similar to Sarai being taken by Pharaoh. Out of this defeat comes a survivor who finds Abram dwelling in an Edenic setting (p72).” “Through Abram’s defeat of Chedorlaomer’s forces, Lot is given exodus from this oppressive army and comes out with ‘his possessions, and the women and the people’ (Gen 14:16)(p73).” “As readers, we should be expecting her [Sarai] to be the mother of the promised seed by token of her exodus (p77).”
Hagar
Hagar, who was oppressed by Sarai, “is in the wilderness on the way to Shur [where the Israelites went after they left Egypt], and by a life-giving spring in the midst of her own exodus (p79).” Hagar’s “exodus cycle concludes in a similar way as Sarai’s exodus out of Egypt (p80).” “This similarity [in their blessing] between Ishmael and Isaac shows Yahweh’s love for the nonelect (p82).”
Lot in Sodom
“Neither Israel nor Lot were meant to fear and flee, but seeing the fire of Yahweh raining down on Sodom and resting on Sinai should have inspired both to understand the end of Yahweh’s enemies and remain loyal to him, to fear him (p86).” “Just as Cain falls, is exiled, becomes a nation, and disappears from the story, so does Lot (p89).” “The hope of the exiled nation, cast out to pear their sins, finds their hope in the deliverance and blessings of the elect one of Yahweh (p89).”
Sarah and Abimelech
This is the second time Sarah has been seen and taken by a Pharaoh/king to better Abraham’s situation. “This, also, not only mirrors Sarah’s exodus out of Egypt but also Israel’s as each acquire possessions, are sent out with a mixed multitude, and are brought to their respective covenant partners (p92).” The exile narrative of Hagar and Ishmael after Isaac’s birth “is part of the Two-Goats motif as the culmination of the strife between Sarah and Hagar and their sons (p94).”
The Climax of the Abraham Narrative
“Isaac becomes a sacrifice of purgation and communion on Mount Moriah at the climax of Abraham’s narrative and exodus just as the goat for Yahweh at the Day of Atonement (or Purgation) is the purging sacrifice at the climax of Israel’s narrative and exodus within the Torah (p102).” The book examined several instances where loyalty to the elect was rewarded but in this case, Abraham was not loyal to the elect/seed/Isaac Why didn’t Abraham plead with God to spare Isaac as he did with Sodom and Lot; or like Abimelech did? “Abraham acquires a lush piece of land near his Edenic dwelling of Mamre [to bury Sarah]. This land is the first of the fulfillment of Yahweh’s promise that Abraham would possess the land, and this is where Sarah would lie until the resurrection (p107).” “This description of Abraham’s exodus journey will be paradigmatic for the journey of the bride [for Isaac] within this narrative (p109).” “Within the Torah we see three betrothal journey narratives, each of them within an exodus cycle (p110).”
Jacob and Esau
“The narrative of Jacob and Esau is full of unexpected inversions but the narrative will bear out that the intimations were not an inversion, as Esau will indeed show hostility to the elect, leave the land of Canaan, go to Seir, and become a hostile people. Meanwhile, Jacob will be brought through an exodus and brought into Yahweh’s presence (p117).”
Rebekah and Abimelech
“In both narratives [Abraham and Sarah and Isaac and Rebekah], the elect’s wife is given exodus in Gerar, the elect is blessed, there is contention over wells, the elect complains to Abimelech, and peace is made through covenant on account of Yahweh’s blessings (121).
Jacob in Paddan-Aram
“In her selfishness, Rebekah has used the means of the serpent to secure her favorite son’s blessing (p124).” “This narrative contains two brothers as the others do, but neither seems to be ‘elect material’ (p125).” “Despite the deception and oppression through which it came, Yahweh has given Jacob a bride, two, in fact, in the midst of his exile from his land (p127).” Jacob, his family, and his possessions leave Laban in an exodus cycle which includes fleeing oppression, offering a sacrifice on a mountain, and settling at Yahweh’s camp.
Jacob Wrestles
“Jacob is facing the consequence of his past failures and, unlike Cain, humbles himself before his brother and seeks peace so that Esau may lift his face (p135).” “Despite his craftiness, Yahweh has brought this deceiver through an exodus and blessed him according to his promises (p136).”
Dinah
Sheckem “saw” and “took” Dinah in the same pattern as Eve saw and took the forbidden fruit and kings saw and took Sarah and Rebekah. “Jacob’s sons have acted deceptively in order to bring about Dinah’s deliverance, making them look much like their father (p142).” “At Bethel, he [Jacob] has his new-creation status re-inaugurated [in being re-named Israel], receives the blessing of Abraham’s seed, and erects a house for Yahweh. All this is as Israel will do at Sinai, once they have been brought out of their exodus and to Yahweh’s presence (p144).”
Esau’s Journey to Seir
“In this brief note about Esau coming out of Canaan with a mixed multitude to the land of his inheritance (cf Deut 2:5), the author associates Esau with the Exodus motif. By itself, Gen 36:6 may not be enough to convince that the author is indeed employing the Exodus motif, but given that the mixed multitude and great possessions is one of the most used exodus characteristics and that the other non-elect brothers were associated with the exodus motif, it seems plausible that the author has intended to apply the motif to Esau here (p146).”
Joseph
“As Joseph is brought out of the pit by his brothers, he is portrayed as coming out of Sheol and back to the land of the living (p152).” Joseph is associated with both goats in the Two-Goats motif. The story of Judah and Tamar parallels the stories before it, including Joseph’s, Jacob’s, and the twins Esau and Jacob. Joseph is again exalted to second in command. “Adam and Eve were to rule with Yahweh’s wisdom, not try to be Yahweh. Joseph is to rule on behalf of Pharaoh, not as Pharaoh (p159).” “At the end of an exodus, a chosen one will often receive his wife. This was true for Adam, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (p160).”
Israel Comes to Egypt
“Joseph, as the exalted elect one, who has been tested and vindicated through his own exile and exodus, tests and refines in brothers in the midst of the famine (p166).” Israel and his family come to Egypt to escape famine.
Jacob Out of Egypt
“Yahweh promises Jacob that his place of exile will be a place of multiplication and that he will bring Jacob back to Canaan, to Yahweh’s land, after he dies in peace with Joseph (p169).” Jacob’s body is brought back to Canaan to be buried, Joseph lives to “the ideal Egyptian age of 110 signifying fullness of life and righteousness (p173),” and passes “his hope of the coming exodus to the next generation (p173).”
Moses
Moses’ mother “saw” he was good (similar to Eve seeing the fruit was good) and put him in an ark (similar to how Noah put family and animals in an ark to save them). “The author has created the expectation that Moses is going to be delivered through the waters and Noah was (p175).” After his exile, Moses is reunited with and accepted by his family and will lead them in their exodus.
Two Goats
A ritual with two birds is used to declare a leper or home is cleansed from disease. This ritual is very similar to the Two Goats motif where one is slaughtered and its blood sprinkled while the other is sent away symbolically carrying away impurities. In the Two Goat motif, “each non-elect brother is exiled from their elect brother, from the promised land, whether by force or by choice, where they are made into a fruitful and hostile nation (p183).”
Reflections on the Exoduses in Genesis
“Exodus and creation are generally thought of as two separate events, however, our study would suggest they cannot be disconnected. A majority of the exodus cycles discussed contain new creation elements; renaming, new purpose, beginning or promise of a new nation, or an actual (re)creation of the cosmos (p189).” “Biblical creation is not about the creation of material out of nothing, but rather about the creation of nations through the separation of one family from their native people and designating them to be a new people (p189).” “Exodus is the means by which Yahweh saves and separates a people and creates them into something new (p190).” “This pattern [of creation through water and Spirit] continues throughout scripture up to Jesus’ baptism, in which he emerges from the Jordan (which has its own significance from Josh 3, which recalls the parting of the waters at Israel’s exodus) and God’s spirit comes on him (Matt 3:16) (p191).”
Conclusion
“Jesus first passed through the waters of the Jordan and was tested, preparing him to lead the exodus from death to life. … He enacted the Day of Atonement cleansing that was needed and led (and still leads) any who follow him from death to life (p197).” “Genesis has created the expectation that the resolution to the problem it presents will come through these narrative and literary features. … By the end of the book of Genesis, the Exodus and the Two Goats motifs have not only been made an integral part of the book, but an integral part of the narrative expectations and eschatological hopes of the reader (p198).”
Appendix: “Desire” in Gen 3:16
The author examines the translation and meaning of “desire” in Gen 3:16 and suggests this verse is best understood as “And to your husband shall be your devotion (or submission) and he shall rule over your (p200).”
I found this book very valuable and now that I have been alerted to these motifs, I readily see them in the biblical text. This book highlights 21 examples of the exodus pattern. It seems that the biblical author(s) have very deliberately crafted these accounts to communicate more than just historical events but to foreshadow the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and the Day of Atonement as well as serving as a prelude to Jesus, the Messiah. Once again I realize the importance of understanding the literary genre and ancient Near Eastern context of the Bible. People are people but their culture really is not the same as ours and we need to see through their eyes rather than our own to best understand the authors’ intent and inspired meaning. I highly recommend this book!
July 15, 2025
This book takes a very interesting approach to the literary structure of Genesis, and there are some genuine insights (especially the exploration of the "two goats" motif), but I did struggle with the writing style and repetitive nature of the argument. Worth reading if you are deeply interested in Genesis from a literary perspective.
Video review here: https://youtu.be/gPfzwoG-56o
Video review here: https://youtu.be/gPfzwoG-56o
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