1. Identify and explain the significance of key terms, passages, people, and themes from this section including: Exodus 20 ("ten commandments"), Exodus 32 ("idolatry"), Deuteronomy 6 ("shema"), Moses, Joshua, Caleb, Aaron, Pharaoh, the ten plagues, the Passover, the Exodus, the golden calf, the Law, manna, Rahab, and the conquest of the Promised Land.
2. Locate on a map the key places in this section, including: Egypt, Sinai, Red Sea, Nile River, Jordan River, Canaan, Ai, Jericho, and Philistia.
3. Know the sequence of events and match them to the proper site for this period.
The Exodus - Ai
The call of Moses - The Jordan River
Spying out the land - Sinai peninsula
Receiving the law - Egypt
Israel marches into the land - Mt. Sinai
Israel is defeated - Canaan
4. Analyze the the concept of "Law" from the perspective of the Pentateuch and describe how it relates to Christians today.
Required Readings and Study Items
(Bible software upgrade may be required for "Dictionary" and "Study Bible Notes", see "Order" button on "Cover")
1. Discovering God, Philip Yancey, pp. 31-47, Zondervan Publishing House: Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1989 (click on the "Text" button).
2. Click on the "Text" button and then click on unfamiliar words or phrases in blue and bold type.
3. Click on the "Explore" button, open the Bible Dictionary, and do a search on the words, terms and people listed in Learning Objectives #1 and #2. Scroll through the search "hits" and read the key article(s) associated with each term.
4. Click on the "Explore" button, open the Study Bible Notes, and read the following:
A. "Title" and "Themes and Theology" to the book of Exodus
B. "Title" for Leviticus
C. "Title" and "Theological Teaching" for Numbers
D. "Historical Setting" and "Theological Teaching" for Deuteronomy
E. "Title and Theme" and "The Conquest and the Ethical Question of War" for Joshua.
5. Click on the "Study" button and learn:
A. Geography - "Major Areas" and "Moses to Samuel"
B. Books - Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, and Joshua
C. Chronology - "Slavery, Exodus, Wandering and Conquest"
6. Click on the "Library" button and read the "References" associated with the "Birthing a Nation" section.
7. Click on the “Links” button in this section and follow each link to other related areas of study.
8. Click on the "Facts" button and review the Bible facts associated with Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, and Joshua.
Suggested Readings
1. "Plagues" in the Study Bible Notes for the book of Exodus and "Plagues of Egypt" in the Bible Dictionary ("Explore" button).
2. "Canaan, Canaanites," (especially Part VI on "Canaanite culture"), pp. 163-166, in New Bible Dictionary, 2nd edition, Inter-Varsity Press: Downers Grove, Illinois, 1982.
3. "What the Old Testament Teaches Concerning War," Loraine Boettner, pp. 12-17 in The Christian Attitude Toward War, 3rd edition, Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company: Phillipsburg, New Jersey, 1985.
4. "Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, The Deuteronomic History, and Joshua," by John Sailhammer, pp. 63-201, in NIV Compact Bible Commentary, Zondervan Publishing House: Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1994.
5. "Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, and Joshua," by Raymond B. Dillard and Tremper Longman, pp. 57-118, in Introduction to the Old Testament, Zondervan Publishing House: Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1994.
6. "The Books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, and Joshua," by R.K. Harrison, pp. 566-679, in Introduction to the Old Testament, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1969.
For Further Review
Go to the next page and test yourself by taking the quiz over the material which you have studied. When you have finished, check your answers by clicking on the "Answers" button.
BIRTHING A NATION: QUIZ
1. In a paragraph or two using your own words, describe the purpose of the Old Testament law in the life of Israel.
2. Each plague inflicted by God on the Egyptians was a direct attack against:
A. Pharaoh
B. the immorality of Egyptian society
C. the different gods in the Egyptian pantheon
3. The ten commandments served as more than a moral code. They were also the terms of:
A. God's legalistic approach to human life
B. God's means of redemption for human sin
C. a binding treaty between God and Israel
4. God's intent in giving Israel the Levitical law was:
A. to demonstrate for them the demanding nature of his covenant
B. to demonstrate for them his priorities in only religious matters
C. to help them carve out a separate and godly culture that was different from the surrounding tribes
5. After the spies returned from surveying the promised land, they reported both good things and bad things. But only two said to take the land, while the others feared for their lives. Those two spies were:
A. Moses and Joshua
B. Rahab and Miriam
C. Aaron and Moses
D. Caleb and Aaron
E. Caleb and Joshua
6. The song which Moses gave to Israel to memorize, as recorded in Deuteronomy 32, is unique because it is a message of:
A. hope and glory
B. gloom and doom
C. sorrow and fear
7. The major theme of the book of Numbers is:
A. the numbering of the Israelites after they entered the Promised Land
B. the wanderings of Israel prior to entering the Promised Land
C. the number of years which the prophets predicted would lapse between Moses' death and Messiah's coming
D. the wars between the Israelites and the inhabitants of the land
8. God had the Israelites march around the city of Jericho so that:
A. they would know who was responsible for their victory
B. the people of Jericho would have time to repent
C. the people of Jericho would be confused by the unusual military tactics
D. it would allow time for an earthquake to develop, thereby destroying the walls of the city
9. The major theme of the book of Joshua is:
A. the conquest and establishment of Israel in the Promised Land
B. the nature of godly leadership
C. the corrupting influence of "sin in the camp"
D. God's sovereignty
10. Essay question: Using the book of Joshua and other aspects of the assigned and suggested reading as your guides, provide an explanation for God's command to Israel that the inhabitants of the promised land be utterly destroyed.
