Problem: The Bible states that there were roughly 600,000 men in Israel’s assembly (Ex. 12:37; Num. 1:45-46; 11:21; 26:51). If this number only included the men, then it would place the entire assembly of Israel (men, women, and children) at around two million people.
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Problem: Why are the people of Egypt held responsible for the actions of Pharaoh? Isn’t this cruel and unusual? They didn’t disobey God. Why would they be held responsible?
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Problem: Some critics of the Bible point to Exodus 9:1-7 and Exodus 9:18-21 as a contradiction in Scripture. The first passage seems to say that all of Egypt’s livestock were killed by the pestilence, but the second seems to indicate that there is still livestock in Egypt after the pestilence:
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Problem: Critics argue that the 10 plagues are mythical, because they seem so arbitrary. Did God have a reason for each of these plagues?
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Problem: None of these plagues exist in extra-biblical history. If supernatural events like this occurred on such a massive level, wouldn’t we have record of these events somewhere else outside of the Bible? One critical scholar writes, “The Odyssey… is basically a piece of children’s literature. So, in its way, is the story of the Exodus. It is the historical myth of an entire people, a focal point of national identity… The actual evidence concerning the Exodus resembles the evidence for the unicorn.”[1] This is an argument from silence. However, critics argue that this is a conspicuous silence. Is this a valid argument?
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Problem: The sorcerers of Pharaoh were able to perform supernatural signs, but they were clearly opposed to God. How can this be?
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Problem: If Moses is the author of these passages, then why does he write about himself in the third person, rather than the first?
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Problem: In some verses of Scripture, people see God. But, in other verses, it says they cannot see God? Is this a contradiction? It is not if you understand the Trinity and the context of those verses.
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Problem: In this passage, God tells Moses that he had not revealed his name (Yahweh) to Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob. But, throughout the book of Genesis, the name of Yahweh is used 162 times, and 34 of these uses are on the lips of the speakers.[1] Critics argue that this is a clear error. In fact, many argue that this is evidence for the JEDP theory of the OT (i.e. mixed sources of the Pentateuch).
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Problem: Moses tells Pharaoh that God “will fall upon [the Hebrews] with pestilence or with the sword” (v.3). Why would God kill his own people?
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Problem: Why would God want to kill Moses, if he selected him to lead his people out of slavery?
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Problem: God says that he would harden Pharaoh’s heart four times (Ex. 4:21; 7:3; 14:4, 17), and six verses claim that he does harden his heart (Ex. 9:12; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:8). Even though God hardens his heart, he then holds Pharaoh responsible for his actions. Critics argue that this is not fair or just.
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Problem: God said, “Thus you will plunder the Egyptians” (Ex. 3:22). This seems like a cruel command for God to give.
Solution: Actually, the text says that the women should “ask” the Egyptians for supplies before they leave. The Hebrews had been enslaved by the Egyptians for hundreds of years. These small gifts were hardly compensation for their years of unpaid service. In modern terms, we might call this getting your back wages –not stealing.
“But every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians. (Ex 3:22)
Problem: God cannot lie (Heb. 6:18; Titus 1:2), and yet, this statement seems to be deceiving. God wasn’t planning on taking them for “three days,” as this passage claims. Instead, he was planning on taking them permanently from the Egyptians.
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Problem: Scholars are conflicted over the meaning of God’s name. Whatever the meaning, Charles Gianotti explains, “To understand the meaning of the divine name is to understand the character of God revealed by that name.”[1] Kaiser comments, “His “name” was his person, his character, his authority, his power, and his reputation.”[2] Therefore, if we understand the meaning of God’s name, we understand something about who he is. There are multiple views regarding the meaning of “Yahweh.”[3]
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