Exodus 13: Group Study Handout

How to use: read Exodus 13 aloud together, then take the questions in order. One page is enough for an evening.

Overview

Yahweh instructs Moses to sanctify all firstborn males among the Israelites and their animals (vv. 1-2). Moses tells the people to remember the day they left Egypt and to avoid leavened bread during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which lasts seven days (vv.

Key verse

“that you shall set apart to Yahweh all that opens the womb, and every firstborn that comes from an animal which you have. The males shall be Yahweh’s.”
Exodus 13:12 (WEB)

Outline

Exodus 13:1–2 Sanctifying the Firstborn
Exodus 13:3–10 The Feast of Unleavened Bread
Exodus 13:11–16 Setting Apart the Firstborn
Exodus 13:17–18 Divine Guidance in the Journey
Exodus 13:19–20 Carrying Joseph's Bones
Exodus 13:21–22 God's Presence in Guidance

Discussion questions

In v2, what is said to be 'mine' by Yahweh?
What must be eaten for 'seven days' according to v6?
In vv. 12-13, why does Yahweh require the 'firstborn' to be set apart?
In v17, why does God choose not to lead the Israelites by the way of the Philistines?
When have you felt the need to remember a significant act of deliverance in your life?

Go deeper

Passages that echo Exodus 13: Deuteronomy 4, Exodus 12, Deuteronomy 6.

Before next time: read Exodus 14.