Exodus 1-2; Leviticus 1; Psalm 44;

Commentary on Exodus 1-2

Key themes:

The Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly. The new Pharaoh sees them as threat, so he enslaves them, making them work in rigorous jobs. The Pharaoh then enacts a plan to weaken the Hebrews: kill the male newborns by casting them into the Nile.
Moses is born and is adopted by the Pharaoh’s daughter. After killing an Egyptian that was beating up a Hebrew, he flees Egypt, as the Pharaoh wanted to kill him. He ends up in Midian, where he marries a daughter of a priest and has a son named Gershom.
The King of Egypt ,the Pharaoh, dies.

Allegorical sense:

Ex 2:11-12 Moses frees a Hebrew getting beaten up by an Egyptian, just as he frees the Hebrew people from Egyptian slavery. Just as Christ frees us from sin.
Ex 2:14 Moses indeed becomes a prince and a judge over the Israelites. Type of Christ: Christ is the prince and judge over everyone.

Moral sense:

Ex 1:21 Family and children are seen as rewards and blessings
Ex 1:18-21 God/Natural Law is above the Civil Law. It is ok to disobey (maybe lie?) the civil law if it is against God/Natural law.

Commentary on Leviticus 1

Instructions on how to make burnt offering to the Lord. The burnt offering is a sacrifice made for atonement (Lv 1:4).

Analogical sense:

The sacrifice of Jesus is the ultimate sacrifice. The laws concerning sacrifice in Leviticus is continued in the new testament through the Church’s liturgy, that has strict rules on how the sacrifice is represented to God, through the Mass.

It is composed of two parts:

Thanking God for being with them and giving them victory in their military conquest.
Begging God to help the people, because right now the people are suffering and afflicted.

Questions: