Bound for Freedom: The Book of Exodus in Jewish and Christian Tradition

by Göran Larsson

Bound for Freedom demonstrates that the book of Exodus presents a defining act of liberation not only in Judaism, but also in the Christian understanding of salvation history. That defining act, Larsson argues, takes place at Sinai with the giving of the Torah. Thus Exodus is not about unconditional freedom; rather, as the title of this book suggests, there is no freedom without boundaries. While doing justice to the historical setting of Exodus, Larsson stresses the history of theological interpretation, beginning with early Jewish interpretive traditions. The results illustrate both the vitality of those traditions and the spiritual and moral relevance of Exodus for today's reader.

334 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1999

About the author

Göran Larsson (born May 21, 1949) is a Swedish Theologian, ordained in the Church of Sweden and best known for his knowledge about and contacts with Judaism.

Larsson studied theology at Lund University receiving his Bachelor of Theology in 1973 and his Ph.D. in 1980. He was the director of the Swedish Theological Institute in Jerusalem 1979-1993 and Senior Research Fellow at the University of Chicago Divinity School 1991-1992. He has published several books and articles about the relationship between Christianity and Judaism. (wiki)

Reviews

[Jeremy Manuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I started reading this, I didn't quite realize that this is basically a commentary on the book of Exodus. It is a bit more readable than most commentaries as this isn't so much of a verse by verse commentary and more about taking larger sections of the text and commenting on them more scene by scene.

One interesting thing about this commentary is that Larsson refers to the Jewish Tradition in his interaction with the book of Exodus which I found very helpful. While I know that as a Christian some Jewish thought won't be helpful, I wish that more commentaries and Christians in general interacted more with Jewish interpretation and thought on the Old Testament. I very much enjoyed it here.

I found this to be a useful little commentary, but I can see how some may not like it over much. While it is a little easier to read than your average commentary, it is still a commentary and won't be for everyone. Since this isn't a verse by verse or very technical commentary it may make people pass over it since it may be harder to find what they're looking for here. I think the organization is good enough that this shouldn't be a problem, but some may disagree.

While there were some parts of the book that did drag a bit, particularly the part on the tabernacle and priestly garments and such, I found far more interesting about the book than not. It may not be an exhaustive commentary on Exodus, but one that could give a different perspective by trying to come at it both from the Jewish and Christian traditions.

[Nancy Sell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great resource for teaching Exodus. A differernt perspective that considered Jewish tradition. Very insightful!

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of my supplemental books for Biblical school.