Exodus, the second book in the Hebrew Bible, is foundational to Israel's creed, poetry and narrative, and to western civilization. Exodus also inspired enslaved Africans in the United States and gave them hope.
This SDG proposes to approach this ancient document on numerous levels: first, as a beautiful work of literature; second, we will attempt to understand who is the god of Exodus; third, we will compare the code of law in Exodus with other ancient Near Eastern Codes; finally, we will discuss its revolutionary aspects.
Additionally, when appropriate, we will discuss art associated with some of the topics in the book and the artist's understanding of the topic.
Our text will be Robert Alter's translation and commentary of Exodus as well as a few chapters in the Book of Numbers.
Coordinator: Ruhama Goldman
1. Exodus ch 1-4, Isaiah ch 6, Jeremiah ch 1, article by Israel Knohl about the origins of the name YHWH (will be provided), legend of Sargon (will be provided).
2. Exodus ch 5-8, Psalms ch 78: 42-51, ch 105: 28-36.
3. Exodus ch 9-12, 2 Kings ch 22: 8-13, Ch 23: 21-24,
4. Exodus ch 13-16
5. Exodus ch 17-20, Deut. ch 5:6-18, ch 29:8-14, Ezekiel ch 18:1-4.
6. Exodus ch 21-24.
7. Numbers ch 11-14.
8. Numbers ch 22, 23, 24, 25, 27.