Throughout the bible God is revealed as a great many of characteristics. One in particular that comes up in both the book of Exodus and Revelations is the God of History.

Kelly McHugh

Theology-200

Mary Doak

12-18-02

Essay Question #1

Throughout the bible God is revealed as a great many of characteristics.  One in particular that comes up in both the book of Exodus and Revelations is the God of History.  While there is great deal of differences in the two perceptions of God, they are some similarities that protrude as well.  Exodus is a history of God with man while the book of Revelations is more a history of God in man, and more essentially of God experienced by man.

We start out by examining Exodus in the Old Testament, which portrays the God of history to be a commander and lawgiver.  Throughout Exodus God supports and aids his followers through their missions of life.  Through his actions one can interpret it as God’s intention of creating a nurturing, fresh just world.  God appears to Moses in the burning bush, motivating him to go to Egypt and free his people.  When Moses tells God, “I can’t do it, send someone else” God does not accept this answer.  He stands by Moses side and provides him with the help that he needs to answer his call to God.  This includes the speaking endowment of his brother Aaron.  God remains by Moses side through out the entire battle with the cold-hearted pharaoh.  God’s power in controlling the future is further expressed as he continually hardens the pharaoh’s heart after every argument that Moses accomplishes to verify that God has sent him.  However, God stays with Moses the whole time, showing him that some tasks are more difficult and trying than others but he will always be there to help him through the rough periods.  Perhaps the most evident display of God as the lawgiver is in the chapters filled with rules of how people should conduct themselves in every day life.  The most famous of these rules are the Ten Commandments, establishing rules for both relations with God and relations with one another and society.  God is aiding the people, by providing them with an outline of how they should act in a just society.  Exodus displays God as a powerful lawgiver, who can control history with the wave of a hand, yet is primarily focused on helping his people as they continue to prosper and flourish in his newly established just society.