362 - Exodus

Exodus

By Terence E. Fretheim

Louisville, Westminster/John Knox Press, 1991. 321 Pp. $21.95.

This commentary, which is part of the Interpretation series, begins with a short introduction, presents a discussion of the consecutive

364 - Exodus

sections of the book of Exodus, and concludes with a short bibliography. The author's aim is to help the intended audience of Christian teachers, students, and clergy understand the book of Exodus and see how its message is revelant for Christian communities today.

Readers will find this commentary insightful because of the author's skill at the theological and hermeneutic probing of biblical texts. Fretheim, Professor of Old Testament at Luther Northwestern Seminary, provides a sensitive reading of the final form of the book of Exodus.

As Fretheim shows, God is no "unmoved mover" in Exodus, but rather, works within the limitations that humans have and creatively shapes history with a subtle hand. God interacts with the nitty-gritty of human life, adjusts divine actions according to the human possibilities available and is changed in the process.

The author shows how the divine activity of liberation takes place within the context of the divine activity of creation. "God's work in creation provides the basis for God's work in redemption; God's work in redemption fulfills God's work in creation." God's liberation serves the larger goals of the giving, preserving, and sustaining of human life. God's activity in liberating a particular people, Israel, becomes a paradigm for how God will act toward all people.

Fretheim is at his best when he analyzes the narratives in chapters 1-20 and 32-34. Most of the commentary focuses on these chapters. Some 217 pages are devoted to chapters 1-20, while chapters 21-40 are covered in 78 pages (34 of these pages are devoted to the narrative section in chapters 32-34).

The major weakness of the book is the meager attention given to law and tabernacle. While Fretheim is not insensitive to the importance of law and tabernacle, little of his commentary is devoted to these chapters. He argues that law and tabernacle are seen as gifts from God. They are both given so that Israel can live a well-ordered life before God. Yet, while Fretheim does present broad themes related to law and tabernacle, he does not elaborate the details of these texts as he did the details of the narratives. Presumably, the details of narratives have much potential for meaning, but details related to tabernacles and laws do not.

Fretheim's lack of attention to the laws and tabernacle is not because of a negative perception of law as opposed to gospel. Neither is it based on the fact that many scholars think that much legal and ritual instruction was added later to the Sinai pericope. It is more because modern readers (at least Christians) do not find the extensive details of these texts very interesting and/or relevant.

The revelation of God to Moses at Mount Sinai is central not only for the book of Exodus but also for the Pentateuch as a whole. The Israelites arrive at Mount Sinai in Exodus 19 and do not leave until Numbers 10. Not only does the narrative shape how one understands the law, but also, the law shapes how one understands the narrative.

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Liberation from oppression and possessing the land are important, but freedom in one's own land by itself is not the goal of the Pentateuch, rather, a well-ordered life lived in the presence of God. Arguably, in the Pentateuch, law, and tabernacle are more important than the exodus or the promised land.

Many Christians are more interested in narrative than law or tabernacle and are quite happy to have an abridged version of Exodus 20-40. One wonders, however, if we really understand the book of Exodus, as well as the Pentateuch, if we cannot engage these texts. Furthermore, for the sake of Jewish-Christian dialogue, it behooves us to look carefully at these texts which, historically, have been given great attention by Jewish exegetes.

STEPHEN A. REED

Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center
Claremont, California