 |  |
"THE SELF-SAME DAY"
(Exod. 12: 40 - 42)
As one reads the book of Exodus, especially that part which deals with Pharaoh's
opposition, the interplay of human fear and cupidity, of Divine forbearance and
judgment, the long period of Israel's bondage, or the policy of the new king that knew not
Joseph, all seem to move so naturally, cause and effect are so obvious, that the sovereign
will and purpose of God is not apparent on the surface. Yet through all the years of
Israel's changing fortunes, whether the inhuman hatred of Joseph's brethren, the famine
that forced Jacob into Egypt, the dreams of Pharaoh, or the change of dynasty, God's
great purpose was unfolding, and neither the premature advent of Moses, nor the
obstinacy of Pharaoh altered the prearranged plan by so much as one day:
"Now the sojourning the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and
thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, EVEN
THE SELFSAME DAY it came to pass, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the
land of Egypt. It is a night to be much observed unto the Lord" (Exod. 12: 40-42).
The sojourning of the children of Israel dates back beyond the birth of Jacob's
twelve sons, and includes the pilgrimage of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. From the call of
Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees, he became a `sojourner', and all his children were
sojourners too. Incidentally Exod. 12: says that they "dwelt in Egypt", but this did not
alter the fact that they were sojourners and away from the land of promise. Gal. 3: 17
gives the same period of time, namely 430 years, as covering the time that elapsed from
the promise given to Abraham in Gen. 15: until the giving of the law from Mount Sinai,
which took place soon after the Exodus from Egypt.
There is another period connected with the same event (the Exodus) that starts from
another point, and covers a period of 400 years. This prophetic utterance is given in
Gen. 15: 13-16, and it will be seen that not only did God speak of a definite period of
time, but of the chief features that led up to the Exodus. Let us enumerate them:
(1)
"Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs (and shall serve
them and they shall afflict them) 400 years.
(2)
And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge;
(3)
And afterward shall they come out with great substance.
(4)
In the fourth generation they shall come hither again.
(5)
For the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full."
How are we to account for the fact that Gen. 15: speaks of a period of 400 years,
whereas Gal. 3: 17 speaks of the same event as occupying 430 years? At the time of
writing this article, the writer endorsed the explanation of The Companion Bible which
makes the 400 years commence with the recognition of Isaac as the seed when Isaac was
five years old. Since writing, however, a beloved fellow-helper has suggested a much
simpler explanation which we gladly give in his own words:
This explanation (referring to that of The Companion Bible and also our own), I have always
personally regarded as unsatisfactory. Surely Isaac was `recognized as the seed' before his birth--
"In Isaac shall thy seed be called". Surely the point is that Gen. 12: 4 tells us that Abraham was