I have slowly and carefully read The Rational Bible: Exodus: God, Slavery, and Freedom by Dennis Prager over the past month or so. Having it as an e-book, I can read it at odd times and places. As I mentioned in a review of the volume on Genesis, this volume was published first. This was because, in the author's words,
"…Exodus contains the Ten Commandments, the most important moral code in world history, and the central moral code of the Torah. If people lived by those ten laws alone, the world would be almost devoid of all man-made suffering." – p.xxii
I would add that this book describes the transition of a family into a nation.
The volume begins with a series of essays, and there are essays throughout, in addition to shorter comments. As I read I made notes; not too many, only 32. However, I will confine myself to the content of just a few of them for this review. To me the most important essay is "The Torah is not Man-Made". In this essay Dr. Prager presents a number of matters that were first presented to the world by the Torah, including:
- A God Who is universal
- A God Who is invisible and incorporeal
- A God Who is moral, and Who judges morally
- A God Who created nature, and therefore is not a part of nature
- A God Who loves and desires to be loved
- Universal human worth
- Universal human rights
Other matters found in the Torah and in no other ancient writings include the importance of kindness to strangers, that women are free agents as men are, and that "slaves" (actually indentured servants with an exception I'll mention anon) are to be treated well and to enjoy a Sabbath rest along with everyone else including strangers (foreign visitors) and working animals.
It is often noted that the Torah doesn't explicitly demand the abolition of slavery. As the author notes in a few places, the relevant Hebrew word can be translated either "slave" or "servant". The difference can only be elicited by noting the context. In principle, a servant works for wages, while a "slave" works not for present wages but to pay off a debt. The way an Israelite became such a slave was by going broke, and then selling himself to another Israelite for certain funds, either to pay of a debt or to feed his family. Such slavery was not permanent; slaves were to be set free at the time of the Sabbatical year. The Torah has stipulations about the price to be paid for a slave's work according to the years remaining until a Sabbatical year.
The exception to temporary slavery (indentured servitude) was if a slave had married during his tenure, and proclaimed to his master, "I love my master, my wife, and my children. I will not go out free." He was taken to the doorpost and had an earlobe pierced through with an awl. He was then to be his master's servant "forever".
To other matters: there is a lovely comment about the daughter of Pharaoh, who took in Moses and raised him. It is very likely that she knew the young girl who offered to find a nursemaid for the infant was related to him, and that the "nursemaid" would be the boy's mother. But she agreed, and paid wages to Moses's mother to care for him until he was weaned. The author comments, "Biology is not destiny; you can be the child of an evil person and be a good person." Also regarding women, the daughter of Pharaoh is one of six prominent women who influenced Moses.
I am a little puzzled about a statement I found in a couple of places that "Abraham was the first Jew." Also, in one place it states that Abram was "not born a Jew but became one late in life". This is in contrast to several instances in which Abram/Abraham violated kashrut (Kosher laws), such as when he served meat and milk together to the three visitors, who turned out to be God and two angels. In this and other instances, the author properly notes that the patriarchs who lived before the giving of the Law cannot be expected to follow its precepts. A relevant and more accurate comment is found with Exodus 1:7, about Abraham's descendants:
"This group was first known as Hebrews, then as Israelites, then as Jews"
The first mention of the term "Jews" is in 2 Kings 16:6, "At that time Rezin king of Syria … drove the Jews from Elath…" This was an aftermath of a battle between Ahaz king of Judah and Pekah king of Israel, which occurred about 732 BC. This was 200 years after the division of the kingdom of Israel and between eleven and thirteen centuries after the death of Abraham, depending on which chronology of ancient history you accept. My own study of the usage of the three ethnic terms indicates:
- Abraham was called "the Hebrew". His descendants are Hebrews, and the descendants of Jacob/Israel in Egypt were usually called Hebrews.
- Jacob's descendants were called "children of Israel" (first mention Genesis 32:32) and later "Israelites" (Exodus 9:7).
- After the division of the kingdom between Solomon's son Rehoboam, who became king of the Judah, the southern kingdom, and Jereboam, who became king of Israel, the northern kingdom, over time the "southerners" became known as Jews.
Perhaps these distinctions are more important to a Christian than to a Jew. It is clear from statements made in the first five books of the New Testament, and statements by Paul in two of his letters, that descent from Abraham was very important to the Jews of the First Century. For Jews to count Abraham as "the first Jew" makes sense in this context.
I was very affected by the explanation of "taking the name of the Lord in vain." The author explains that "take" in this verse really means to "carry" or even "bear". Those who affirm their belief in God "bear" His name; they represent God to the world. If anyone, in the name of God, does evil, so that the name of God is impugned, that is to "take" His name in vain. The last phrase of the verse is, "…the Lord will not hold guiltless him who takes His name in vain." This is the only one of the Ten Commandments with an explicit penalty. To misrepresent God is utterly serious!
Those who claim to follow God, the God of the Torah, whether Jews or Christians, represent Him. The world sees them as His representatives. To a Christian a relevant term is "ambassadors for Christ" (2 Corinthians 5:20). To a Jew it is "a people called by the name of the Lord" (Deuternomy 28:10). Among world religions, none claim that their god is the God of the Torah, though the Muslims imply that Allah is the God of Jews and Christians (it is not so!). The author doesn't mention Islam or Allah in this book, but it is clear he has them in mind in his discussion of Exodus 20:7, decrying those who kill innocent people in the name of their god.
I will mention one more matter, Theodicy, or "vindication of God." Specifically, it is a common question: "Why does God permit unjust suffering?" In the two volumes of The Rational Bible so far published, Dr. Prager turns this question into a proof of the afterlife. Along with statements of this or that Biblical figure being "gathered to his fathers," we have also Exodus 23:7, "…do not kill the innocent and righteous; for I will not justify the wicked man." Since we see that the wicked frequently seem to "get away with it," such a passage can only mean that God reserves some to future punishment in the afterlife. We also read,
"The believer has to account for the existence of one thing—unjust suffering; the atheist has to account for the existence of everything else." – commentary on Exodus 2:24
Whereas most books I read are from the library, I am glad to own e-book copies of this volume and its companion, so I can re-read them, and I eagerly await publication of the other three! Considering the time and work involved, I thus wish Dennis Prager a long and fruitful and fulfilling life.
Whether you are a believer or not, The Rational Bible has wisdom for you, in a generation in which wisdom is very scarce.
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