Year 1, Day 62: Exodus 13

Transition of Exodus 13

Exodus 13 gives us the transitional material about the beginning of the Exodus.  The chapter is largely divided into two parts: the redemption of the firstborn and then the beginning of the movement of the camp.  We’ll look at each of these parts independently.

Redemption of the Firstborn

The first section initially sounds a little harsh.  Every firstborn male needs to be redeemed.  The word “redeem” literally means “to purchase with a price.”  Of course, we read that the price is set as a lamb.  That makes a bunch of sense, especially given what the Hebrew people have come through with respect to the Passover. 

Ultimately, this policy of redemption is about remembering that the Hebrew people are a “purchased people.”  The Hebrew people did not earn their freedom.  The Hebrew people did not fight for their freedom.  Rather, God “bought their freedom” through the great displays of the plagues and ultimately at the cost of all the first-born out of Egypt.  The Hebrew people came through the tenth plague unscathed because the Passover Lamb had purchased the life of their first-born.  The Hebrews had done nothing for their freedom, yet they were free.  They were indeed a purchased people.

The Hebrew people were purchased by God, and this practice of redemption helps them remember that all that they have is because God first gave it to them.  This practice reminds the Hebrew people that if they are truly grateful for all that they currently have then they should be willing to give back to God a portion of that which God has already blessed them.

The Christian Response to Passover

Of course, this should evoke a great swelling of emotion among Christians as well.  We, too, have been redeemed.  How fortunate are we that we don’t even need to offer God a lamb because God has already provided the lamb in Jesus Christ!  We get everything for free; all we need to do is receive it.   Oh, how fortunate a people we are.

Yet, what do we really give God as a response?  Do we show gratitude to God?  The Hebrews had to offer a lamb for their firstborn; we have to offer nothing for our redemption.  God has now even paid that price for us.  Do we really respond to this free gift of grace with as much gratitude as we should?

You see, the price of redemption was so much more than just a financial “tithe” on behalf of the Hebrew people.  This redemption process was about developing the core values within the Hebrew people that they would need to truly be in relationship with God.  This process was about making them understand God’s place in their life, what true gratitude looks like, and what a real relationship with God actually brings to the table. 

Unfortunately, we know that this process is a long and hard process and the humanity of the Hebrew people get the better of them.  This generation will wind up dying in the wilderness.  A few hundred years later and the Hebrew people end up going into captivity again.  Just because people are of a particular group does not ensure that the character will truly be developed within.

The same is true with us.  The redemption act of Jesus Christ as the Passover Lamb should also develop character within us, too.  The redemption process within us is about developing us as Christians, too!  However, we must be careful to not take this for granted.  Faith is developed within and it is an important process.  Relationship with God is the most significant thing in this life.  It is not to be taken for granted.

Pillars

As we turn to the second portion of this passage, we can look at the manner in which God plans to lead the Hebrew people through the Red Sea and by the means of a pillar of fire and smoke.  Notice that God does not lead them directly through the land of the Philistines because that would have meant enduring a battle for which the Hebrew people were not ready.  Instead, God takes them into Canaan by an indirect route.

What this tells us is that God does not often lead us through the quickest way or through the easiest way.  But God does lead us through the way that is best for us.  Sometimes we are better served by wandering through the desert rather than going directly into conflict.  Sometimes we are best served by struggling through the slower development of God’s plan (and learning the lessons along the way) than by meeting with quick success and learning little along the way. 

Indeed, God seldom lets us have the easy and quick victory.  Instead, God is more interested in getting us to the best place where we can be the most effective and through the means that will best prepare us along the way.  What is the cliché?  God’s ways are perfect, as is His timing.  We can see that truth even here as the people head towards the wilderness of Sinai instead of directly into the Promised Land. 

What does the Red Sea and the Wilderness offer that the direct route cannot achieve?  Well, Bible veterans know the beginning of that answer.  We’ll learn the answer to that very question in a few days.  We’ll continue learning that lesson until we have finished with Deuteronomy.  It is a great question to ask, and it is a great question to remember for the next few months.

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