Reading Exodus: A Literary and Theological Commentary (Reading the Old Testament | RtOT)
Digital Verbum Edition
Overview
Exodus is perhaps best known for its rousing stories of Moses, the exodus from Egypt, and the theophany at Mt. Sinai: for its foundational themes of liberation and covenant. But it also includes instructions for constructing the tent-shrine known as the Tabernacle and recounts God’s glory descending on it.
This commentary invites the reader to examine how the stories of Exodus are told and the effects of its repetitions, digressions and differing perspectives. Drawing on critical and theological methodologies while prioritizing understanding the book in its received form and its ongoing relevance, the author addresses theological difficulties head-on, such as Pharaoh’s hardened heart, the Egyptian firstborns’ death, and divine punishment. The Tabernacle’s construction is made accessible, revealing fundamental insights into divine presence, absence, and the divine-human relationship.
- Invites the reader to examine how the stories of Exodus are told.
- Addresses theological difficulties head-on, such as Pharaoh’s hardened heart.
- Invites the reader to examine the digressions and differing perspectives.
Claire Mathews McGinnis has done a masterful job in presenting a most readable and insightful commentary. Fully aware of the complexity of scholarly issues—textual, historical, oral, literary, redactional—her focus is on the text as it has come to be, for what it is in its literary, narrative form. She brings close attention to the underlying nuances of the Hebrew text and to the theological rich- ness that continues to form and inform both Jewish and Christian communities of faith. This is another skillful addition to this helpful series for both lay and professional students of the Word.
—Andrew H. Bartelt, Professor Emeritus of Exegetical Theology, Concordia Seminary
McGinnis offers a masterful study of the sophisticated dynamics of this book, attending closely to literary detail yet avoiding speculative dissection. She works as the text itself does: building theological insight incrementally as the narrative develops. Drawing on a range of traditional and contemporary sources to address the hardest ethical questions it presents, she equips readers to make their own choices “about how to hear a text and what to do with it.”
—Ellen F. Davis, Professor of Bible and Practical Theology, Duke Divinity School
In Reading Exodus, Claire McGinnis gracefully leads us through the narrative of Exodus. She reads closely with curiosity and theological sensitivity. She accompanies readers on a richly detailed narrative excursion through Exodus, helping them ask new questions of the text and enabling them to see new insights and answers.
—Stephen Fowl, PhD, President and Dean, The Church Divinity School of the Pacific