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Appendix
Note 1, page 124:
One of the important reasons why the Lord
delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt was so that they could keep
His holy Sabbath. The Egyptians did not give them religious liberty,
so the Lord “brought out His people ... that they might observe His
statutes and keep His laws.”
Psalm 105:43-45
. Evidently Moses
and Aaron renewed the teaching about the holiness of the Sabbath,
because Pharaoh complained, “‘You make [the people] rest from
their labor!’”
Exodus 5:5
. This would indicate that Moses and Aaron
began a Sabbath reform in Egypt.
The Lord told the Israelites that in keeping His Sabbath day, they
should “‘remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and
the Lord your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and
by an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded
you to keep the Sabbath day.’”
Deuteronomy 5:15
.
But Sabbath observance was not to be a commemoration of their
slavery in Egypt. Observing it in remembrance of creation was to
include a joyful reminder of deliverance from religious oppression
in Egypt that made Sabbath observance difficult. In the same way,
their deliverance from slavery was forever to kindle in their hearts a
tender regard for the poor and oppressed, the fatherless and widows:
“‘Remember that you were a slave in Egypt, ... therefore I command
you to do this thing.’”
Deuteronomy 24:18
.
Note 2, page 132:
The plagues the Lord sent on Egypt humili-
ated their gods and cast contempt on their idol worship. The Egyp-
tians regarded the Nile River with religious reverence and offered
sacrifices to it as a god. The first plague was directed against it.
Exodus 7:19
.
The second plague brought frogs.
Exodus 8:6
. Heqa, one of
the Egyptian deities, was a frog-headed goddess, and frogs were
considered sacred. The Apis bull was dedicated to Ptah, the cow
was sacred to Hathor, and the ram represented Khemu and Amen.
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