Exodus study section

Exodus chapter summaries

A one-line summary of every chapter, with the period it covers. Open any chapter for the full study.

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Chapter list

Chapter 1 (c. 1876-1446 BC): Israel multiplies in Egypt; a new Pharaoh enslaves them and orders the Hebrew boys drowned, but the God-fearing midwives spare them.
Chapter 2 (c. 1526-1486 BC): Moses is born, drawn from the Nile, and raised in Pharaoh’s house; he kills an Egyptian, flees to Midian, and God hears Israel’s groaning.
Chapter 3 (c. 1446 BC): At the burning bush God reveals His name, I AM WHO I AM, and commissions Moses to deliver Israel.
Chapter 4 (c. 1446 BC): God gives Moses signs and appoints Aaron as his spokesman, and Moses returns to Egypt.
Chapter 5 (c. 1446 BC): Pharaoh scorns the LORD and increases Israel’s labor, demanding bricks without straw.
Chapter 6 (c. 1446 BC): God reaffirms His covenant with a sevenfold promise of redemption.
Chapter 7 (c. 1446 BC): Aaron’s staff swallows the magicians’, and the first plague turns the Nile to blood.
Chapter 8 (c. 1446 BC): Plagues of frogs, gnats, and flies fall, and the magicians confess the finger of God.
Chapter 9 (c. 1446 BC): Plagues on livestock, boils, and devastating hail; Pharaoh’s heart hardens again.
Chapter 10 (c. 1446 BC): Locusts strip the land and darkness covers Egypt, yet Pharaoh will not relent.
Chapter 11 (c. 1446 BC): God announces the final plague, the death of every firstborn in Egypt.
Chapter 12 (c. 1446 BC): The Passover is instituted, the firstborn of Egypt die, and Israel leaves after 430 years.
Chapter 13 (c. 1446 BC): The firstborn are consecrated, and God leads Israel by the pillar of cloud and fire.
Chapter 14 (c. 1446 BC): God parts the Red Sea, delivers Israel through it, and drowns Pharaoh’s army.
Chapter 15 (c. 1446 BC): Moses and Miriam sing of God’s victory, and bitter water is made sweet at Marah.
Chapter 16 (c. 1446 BC): God rains down manna and quail to feed Israel in the wilderness.
Chapter 17 (c. 1446 BC): Water flows from the struck rock, and Israel defeats Amalek as Moses’ hands are held up.
Chapter 18 (c. 1446 BC): Jethro counsels Moses to appoint capable judges to share the burden.
Chapter 19 (c. 1446 BC): Israel reaches Sinai, and God descends in fire and calls them a kingdom of priests.
Chapter 20 (c. 1446 BC): God speaks the Ten Commandments amid thunder and smoke.
Chapter 21 (c. 1446 BC): The Book of the Covenant begins with laws on servants, violence, and justice.
Chapter 22 (c. 1446 BC): Laws of restitution and compassion for the vulnerable and the sojourner.
Chapter 23 (c. 1446 BC): Laws of justice and the three annual feasts, with the promise of an angel to lead Israel.
Chapter 24 (c. 1446 BC): The covenant is sealed with blood, and Moses ascends into the glory-cloud.
Chapter 25 (c. 1446 BC): God gives the pattern for the ark, table, and lampstand, that He may dwell among them.
Chapter 26 (c. 1446 BC): Instructions for the tabernacle’s curtains, frames, and the veil.
Chapter 27 (c. 1446 BC): The bronze altar, the courtyard, and oil for the continual lamp.
Chapter 28 (c. 1446 BC): The priestly garments for Aaron, made for glory and for beauty.
Chapter 29 (c. 1446 BC): The consecration of the priests and the continual daily offering.
Chapter 30 (c. 1446 BC): The altar of incense, the atonement money, the basin, and the holy oil and incense.
Chapter 31 (c. 1446 BC): Bezalel is filled with the Spirit, the Sabbath is given as a sign, and the tablets are given.
Chapter 32 (c. 1446 BC): Israel makes the golden calf; Moses intercedes and the tablets are broken.
Chapter 33 (c. 1446 BC): Moses pleads for God’s presence and asks to see His glory.
Chapter 34 (c. 1446 BC): The covenant is renewed, God proclaims His name, and Moses’ face shines.
Chapter 35 (c. 1446 BC): Israel brings freewill offerings and skilled labor for the tabernacle.
Chapter 36 (c. 1446 BC): The people give more than enough, and construction of the tabernacle begins.
Chapter 37 (c. 1446 BC): Bezalel makes the ark, table, lampstand, and altar of incense.
Chapter 38 (c. 1446 BC): The bronze altar, the basin, the courtyard, and the inventory of materials.
Chapter 39 (c. 1446 BC): The priestly garments are finished, and the work is inspected and blessed.
Chapter 40 (c. 1445 BC): The tabernacle is erected, and the glory of the LORD fills it.