The New Testament refers back to the Exodus journey that they Israelites took from Egypt to the Promised Land. There are many who believe, myself included that these events are very much a type and shadow of a gentile believer’s journey from being a captive to sin, self and the god of this world to the true freedom of living as a child of God according to the principles and truths of His Kingdom.
So here is what I see right now. I share in the hopes that it will springboard you into your own study and also for those who might enjoy this kind of study. I personally find the parralels AWESOME and so so encouraging!!!! This post may never get “finished” but I will keep building it as i have time and as I see new things in His Word.
I would in every case far rather let my Heavenly Father teach me through studying the lessons learned by those who went before me, than have to learn with the rod of correction to my own back.
Here is a list of verses from the New Testament that someone else has compiled listing some specific and direct references to the Exodus journey:
John 3:14-17 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert,[1] so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
1 Corinthians 10:1-11 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers [2] were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.[3] Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert. Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry.”[4] We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did-and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died.[5] We should not test the Lord, as some of them did-and were killed by snakes.[6] And do not grumble, as some of them did-and were killed by the destroying angel.[7] These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
John 6:32 Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 6:33 For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 6:34 “Sir,” they said, “from now on give us this bread.” 6:35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life.[8] He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
Acts 7:36-41 He led them out of Egypt and did wonders and miraculous signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea and for forty years in the desert. “This is that Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will send you a prophet like me from your own people.’[9] He was in the assembly in the desert, with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers; and he received living words to pass on to us. “But our fathers refused to obey him. Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt. They told Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who led us out of Egypt-we don’t know what has happened to him!’ That was the time they made an idol in the form of a calf. They brought sacrifices to it and held a celebration in honor of what their hands had made.
Romans 9:15 For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”[10]
2 Corinthians 3:7-18 Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses [11] because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts! Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away. But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts.[12] But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
Hebrews 3:15-19 As has just been said: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.”[13] Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? And with whom was he angry for forty years?[14] Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert? And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.
Hebrews 12:18-25 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned.”[15] The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.” But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.[16] See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven?
These verses were compiled and copied from http://www.hfbcbiblestudy.org/index.php?option=com_content&id=386
I don’t think even a lifetime will be enough time to plumb the abundance of wisdom that we can gain in studying these out. But I will start with a semi brief summary of some of the junctures, types and shadows that we can see in Exodus when we compare it to our own journeys and also that of the way the Kingdom of God was preached by the Lord Himself.
Moses is appointed but received his calling with less than enthusiasm. Aaron also called but hearing God through Moses and not for Himself.
The Kingdom was introduced with and confirmed by a series of miraculous events.
| The ten plagues , signs that convinced Pharoah and the Israelites that Moses really was God’s ambassador in the midst of false signs and wonders (those performed by Pharoahs magicians)(Example Exodus 7:3) | Jesus announced His ministry to the Word by miraculous signs, wonders, healing all and even ressurecting the Dead (Acts 2:22) | The Disciples were sent out and commanded to preach the gospel and heal the sick (in the midst of warnings that many will also perform signs and wonders but be false)
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The death of the Passover Lamb
| An unblemished passover lamb was sacrificed for each family (sometime more if could not eat the whole lamb), | Jesus the spotless unblemished lamb is offered up as a sacrifice for all mankind |
Exodus 12 KJV “Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: 4 And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: 6 And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.
1 Corinthians 5:7 English Standard Version (ESV) “7 Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.”
The blood of the passover lamb
| Was applied to the lintel of the Lord so that the judgement of death of the first born would passover each household that was under the blood. | Jesus blood acts as a covering for anyone who believe in Him so that the judgement of eternal death and sin against them required by the law now passover them , His blood and death and resurrectino are the reason the penalty for our sins has been paid in full |
Exodus 12 Easy Read Version “You must collect the blood from these animals and put it on the top and sides of the doorframe of every house where the people eat this meal. 8 “On this night you must roast the lamb and eat all the meat. You must also eat bitter herbs and bread made without yeast. 9 You must not eat the lamb raw or boiled in water. You must roast the whole lamb over a fire. The lamb must still have its head, legs, and inner parts. 10 You must eat all the meat that night. If any of the meat is left until morning, you must burn it in the fire. 11 “When you eat the meal, you must be fully dressed and ready to travel. You must have your sandals on your feet and your walking stick in your hand. You must eat in a hurry, because this is the Lord’s Passover. 12 “Tonight I will go through Egypt and kill every firstborn man and animal in Egypt. In this way I will judge all the gods of Egypt and show that I am the Lord. 13 But the blood on your houses will be a special sign. When I see the blood, I will pass over[b] your house. I will cause bad things to happen to the people of Egypt. But none of these bad diseases will hurt you.”
Romans 5:9-10 Holman Christian Standard Bible” 9 Much more then, since we have now been declared righteous by His blood, f we will be saved through Him from wrath. g 10 For if, while we were enemies, h we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, then how much more, having been reconciled, will we be saved by His life! ”
Eating/Partaking of the whole Passover Lamb
| They were required to eat all, to cook a lamb only as big as they could eat all of or to share with another family so that none of the lamb remained (anything left at all even then had to be burned). This strengthened them for their journey and as a result, there was not one feeble one among them | We are required to discern and partake of the body of the lamb (Christ) via communion and can likewise be strengthened and healed through His body. | Jesus commanded the disciples to preach the whole gospel and make disciples but he also commanded them to heal the sick. The Lamb of God will always be more than enough for our family, we are called to go out and share Him with all people. He was the one lamb sacrificed for all, even if there is one left on the earth who has not been offered the lamb, there will be leftovers. |
Psalm 105:37 King James Version (KJV) “37 He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes.”
He sent HIS WORD and HEALED them, And delivered them from their destructions. (Psalm 107:19-20 NKJV)
Exodus 15:26 King James Version (KJV)
26 And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee.
John 6:53-58 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
53 So Jesus said to them, “I assure you: Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you do not have life in yourselves. 54 Anyone who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day, 55 because My flesh is real food and My blood is real drink. 56 The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood lives in Me, and I in him. 57 Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven; it is not like the manna[a] your fathers ate—and they died. The one who eats this bread will live forever.”
1 Corinthians 11:28-30 King James Version (KJV) ” 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. 30 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.”
***DO take note that not discerning the Lord’s Body, not separating it from the blood and recognizing the life and healing it provides for us is a biblical reason why MANY are weak and sickly and even dying among us. Even in the OT they had to eat the whole lamb. We must do all that we can to learn to partake of the fullness of all that Jesus was tortured and sacrificed and rose again for us to have*****
Luke 9:2 Good News Translation (GNT) “2 Then he sent them out to preach the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick,”
I think it is very very interesting that they ate the lamb and were healed even before leaving Egypt. The same things happened when Jesus came, He preached the gospel and healed the sick to announce that the Kingdom of God was among them. They were healed AND delivered even before leaving their old lives and/or right at the start of their new life. I truly believe this pattern is meant to be repeated today which is why the disciples were commanded to preach the gospel AND heal the sick. Many of those who minister healing will confirm that seeing unbelievers healed is far easier than to see those who have been established christians healed. Preaching the gospel and healing the sick are paired through much of the New Testament.
Reintroduction of Jehovah Jireh
| They left Egypt with all of their needs exceedingly met (gold and silver, food, water, clothes that never wore out etc) |
Crossing of the Red Sea / Baptism / an Impassible, impossible obstacle to cross between the Old and the New life
The promise to lead them night and day with the Pillar of fire / Holy Spirit / present day promise of Pentecost that we can now be baptised and filled with the Holy Spirit.
The transformation of the bitter waters into a place of sweet water
The need to live on every word God and not just on bread alone (accepting the food that feeds our soul as more precious than the food that satisfies are fleshly appetites, learning to crucify our fleshly appetites so we can truly feast on the provisions of God)
The need to function as a community with godly elders and leadership (delegating tasks, honouring leadership, God centred election of the elders, dangers of contentions and strife, godly order, the danger of excessive blood family ties and loyalties)
Receiving water from the rock (anticipating God’s faithful provision, hearkening to and obeying His instructions precisely, receiving His abundance, cultivating a dependence on God’s ongoing instructions and avoiding a formula mindset)
Learning to praise and be thankful in times of pressure instead of grumbling and complaining / The Job experience / Walking by Faith and Not by Sight / Worshipping God in Spirit and Truth
Learning to climb up the mountain with Moses, accepting that Jesus is now the only intermediary between God and man (learning to how to have our own relationship with God instead of putting this burden on another person and trusting in their revelation of God instead of receiving directly for ourselves). The invitation God extended to all but that was refused out of fear/intimidation.
Resisting the temptation to return to Egypt and her gods (the golden calf that they built and creditted as the God that delivered them from Egypt ) and the lie that Egypt is the land flowing with milk and honey.
A firm warning not to worship God according to the practices of the pagan nations, but only in accordance with HIS Word and His Word alone.
Believing God’s report over the reports of men, regarless of their excellent reputation
The places of the greatest hardship and greatest testing are the places in which God shows up with the greatest provisions and reveals Himself most faithfully
Whose report are we going to believe? The story of the twelve spies. the interesting thing about this story is the outcome for the Israelites was entirely tied to which report they believed. 10 of the human spies trusted in their own senses and let their perceptions colour their report. 2 of the spies, Caleb and Joshua, believed God’s perspective and Word. I pray that this truth sinks in so quickly for anyone reading this post. It will radically change the course and outcomes of our lives if we truly get a hold of this.
Following the facts as presented by our 5 senses = remaining in the wilderness indefinitely
Believing God’s report in spite of all the human reports = crossing the Jordan, taking down the giants, overthrowing Jericho and taking up our place in the Kingdom of God, the Promised Land.
Deuteronomy 32:47 New Living Translation (NLT) “47 These instructions are not empty words—they are your life! By obeying them you will enjoy a long life in the land you will occupy when you cross the Jordan River.”
Following God even if it means facing our giants
Letting God fight our battles (Jericho)
Entering the Promised land and living and walking in the blessings He planned out for us
Healing and Discipleship 