Seder 75: Avodah in the Book of Exodus

 A key Hebrew word in the book of Exodus is avodah, a word for work/slavery, service, and worship.  It appears in Exodus 1:14; 2:23; 5:9, 11; 6:6, 9; 12:25, 26, 13:5; 27:19; 30:16; 35:21, 24; 36:1, 3, 5; 38:21; 39:32, 40, 42.  

In episodes 96 and 97 of the Hebrew Bible Insights podcast, Matthew Delaney and Nathan French explain how this word brings out some key connections and themes in the book of Exodus.  The word helps bring out how the Israelites change masters in the Book of Exodus, going from being slaves of Pharaoh to being servants of God.  

In Egypt (20:2) the children of Israel were in the "house of slavery" (beit ebed), and they built cities (1:11) for storage (miskenah).  At Sinai the Israelites built the tabernacle (mishkan), a "house of service" that was a dwelling place for God and a place for the worship of God.  

The end of the book of Exodus describes the construction of the tabernacle. The text emphasizes Israel's obedience to God's instructions.  "According to all that the LORD had commanded Moses, so the people of Israel had done all the work" (Ex 39:42).  Here we see Moses, and the nation as a whole, acting as forerunners of the Messiah.  On the eve of the crucifixion, Jesus prayed, "I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do" (Jn 17:4).  

Seder 75: Psalm 15---Coming into God's Presence

 Psalm 15 begins with a repeated question:  "O Lord, who shall sojourn in your tent?  Who shall dwell on your holy hill?"

The mention of "tent" and "holy hill" makes us think of pilgrims going up to Jerusalem for a festival.  As these people were approaching God's presence, they would be examining themselves.  They might well ask, "Who am I to be approaching the holy God?"  

Some scholars suggest that this psalm was used in a liturgy for people coming to the Temple.  Perhaps a priest and a worshiper would alternate in saying the lines.  Such a ceremony would remind pilgrims that in physically climbing up to Jerusalem, they also wanted to ascend to a higher spiritual level.  They wanted their journey to make a lasting difference in their lives. 

The answer to the question in verse 1 is summarized at the beginning of verse 2:  "He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth in his heart."  The goal is integrity in all aspects of life---in doing and speaking.   

"Blameless" was the word used for Noah in his walk with God (Gen 6:9).  God directed Abraham to "walk before me and be blameless" (Gen 17:1).  Blamelessness does not necessarily mean "sinlessness," but it does mean being submitted to God and committed to following him.   

Psalm 15, a wisdom psalm, asserts that good results will follow from this way of living (v 5).  Such a person will "never be moved."  The faithful pilgrim ascending Mt Zion will become like Mt Zion.  Here we are reminded of another psalm:  "Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved" (Ps 125:1).    

The midrash on Psalm 15 reflects on how God himself embodies the qualities listed here.  For example, God does not "put out his money at interest," but gives freely (Isa 55:1).  It also cites examples of people who had these qualities.  Elisha was one who "swore to his own hurt" in refusing to take payment from Naaman (2 Kings 5:6).  So was Elijah when he predicted a 3-year drought (I Kings 17:1).

Seder 75: Exodus 39-40---Completing the Work of the Tabernacle

 Exodus 39:32 begins, "Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was finished...."  

We are reminded of Gen 2:1:  "Thus the heavens and the earth were finished...."  

Building the tabernacle was a kind of creation.  Humans are made in the image of God, and God has given us the ability to do some creating. 

When the work was done, Moses inspected the finished product.  Verse 43 says, "And Moses saw all the work, and behold, they had done it.  As the Lord had commanded, so had they done it."  Moses "saw that it was good" so to speak, reminding us of Gen 1:31.

Chapter 39 concludes by mentioning that "Moses blessed them."  According to the medieval Jewish commentator Rashi, the blessing Moses gave was the one in Ps 90:17:  "Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!"

In his Exodus commentary, Dennis Prager cites a saying that "a mitzvah is attributed to the one who completes it."  Lots of people begin projects, but projects are often left unfinished.  This was a project that was completed in fine style and in a timely manner.

Everything was finished, in fact, by the first day of the first month of year 2 of the Exodus (Ex 40:2), so the work of constructing the tabernacle had required about 6 months.  

God put his stamp of approval on the constructed by filling the tabernacle with his glory (v. 34).  Israel had been completely forgiven after the sin of the golden calf.  The Exodus could proceed as planned.

In a sermon on Seder 75 at Church of the Messiah on Oct 16, 2021, Kyle Kettering highlighted a motif that carries forward from Torah to Prophets to Gospels:

• When the work on the tabernacle was finished, the Israelites brought their work to Moses for inspection.  The tabernacle was made of treasures contributed by Egyptians.
• The treasures of the nations are brought to God's sanctuary in the prophecy of Isa 60---see vv 13-14.
• People in need of healing (another kind of treasure) were brought to Jesus during his Galilean ministry--Luke 4:40-41.

These readings from the Torah and prophets are another candidate for the readings on the day that Jesus preached in the Nazareth synagogue (Luke 4).