Echoes of Exodus

Alistair J. Roberts and Andrew Wilson, Echoes of Exodus: Tracing Themes of Redemption through Scripture (Wheaton, Illinois, Crossway, 2018)

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Over the last couple of days on holiday I have read this little book (176pp) and I really loved it. Short, readable chapters on how the Bible uses and develops the themes of the Exodus. Full of insights. Engagingly written. Doesn't waste words. Pastoral and doxological orientation too. The book will wow you with the Bible but it should also do your soul good and drive you to praise the Word who has brought us from slavery to sin and death that we might worship him with hearts and lives set free.

The authors advocate a musical reading of the Scriptures which is attentive to patterns, echoes, key changes, transpositions, crescendo and so on. The metaphor is worth reading about and dwelling on.

This book is extremely worthwhile for its specific content: it helped me to notice lots of things I had not seen before. But I find the whole approach convincing too: the Bible is surely meant to be read as a unity with differentiation, with attention to the use and re-use of themes and imagery. The argument for this kind of reading is made by hearing it done.

The book would repay close study with a re-reading of the passages mentioned. It will make you want to read the Bible more and again, I think. Sometimes you will have to track down the allusions yourself as not every single reference is given every time. Naturally the better you know the Bible the easier it will be to benefit from the book.

Whenever I am teaching a particular Bible book I might well check what Wilson and Roberts have to say about the Exodus themes in it. Genesis - Revelation is pretty much covered here, obviously in some cases very briefly, but their thoughts seemed on track and useful to me.

Incidentally, the book also shows off the wonderful unity, intricacy and artistry of the Bible. Although not a logical proof, the kind of reading offered here surely makes the case for the divine inspiration of Scripture. Only God could have caused such a number of different authors over such a variety of times and places to produce such a coherent masterpiece which speaks to all generations and cultures of the Redeemer.

There are helpful questions for review and further thought. Subject and Scripture index.

Get and read this brilliant book! I hope you can tell I really liked it and think it is fab.