Week 13 (March 23–29): Exodus 1–6 — “I Have Remembered My Covenant”

Orientation: The Covenant Question That Drives Exodus

Foundational problem (raised by the text): Israel is covenant people, yet enslaved by a pharaoh who “knew not Joseph” (Exodus 1:8). The Come, Follow Me framing names the spiritual questions this produces: “Did He remember the covenant He had made with them? Were they still His people? Could He see how much they were suffering?” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29. ‘I Have Remembered My Covenant’: Exodus 1–6”).

Doctrinal anchor (divine self-disclosure): The Lord answers not first with explanation, but with covenant identity and promised redemption: “I will redeem you with a stretched out arm,” and “I am the Lord your God, which bringeth you out from under [your] burdens” (Exodus 6:6–7; cited in Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29. ‘I Have Remembered My Covenant’: Exodus 1–6”).

Doctrinal Architecture (Three-Lens Analysis)

1) Ancient Context (Exodus 1–6)

Covenant people in affliction: The narrative begins after a long memory-gap: a new ruler “knew not Joseph” (Exodus 1:8), and the covenant family becomes a threatened minority.
Deliverance as covenant action: The Lord’s redemptive promise in Exodus 6:6–7 is framed as covenant fidelity, not mere political liberation (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).

2) Modern Application (Come, Follow Me prompts)

The lesson explicitly bridges Israel’s question to contemporary discipleship: “There may be times when you’ve felt like asking similar questions. You might wonder, ‘Does God know what I’m going through? Can He hear my pleas for help?’” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).
The text offers Exodus as an interpretive key: “Israel’s deliverance from Egypt answers such questions clearly: God does not forget His people. He remembers His covenants with us and will fulfill them in His own time and way.” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).

3) Eternal Principle (Covenantal Theology)

Covenants create a divine “remembering”: Not that God forgets, but that covenant language frames how God binds Himself to act—redemption is presented as the outworking of sworn relationship (Exodus 6:6–7; Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).
Deliverance can be delayed yet certain: The lesson prepares readers for the tension between obedience and immediate outcomes: “The Lord’s purposes will be fulfilled in His own time.” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).

Historical & Cultural Matrix (Temporal Bridges from the Bundle)

Egypt as refuge turned furnace

The bundle highlights the reversal: “The invitation to live in Egypt saved Jacob’s family. But after hundreds of years, their descendants were enslaved and terrorized…” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).
Temporal bridge: Many disciples recognize seasons when earlier “provision” becomes later “pressure,” raising the same covenant questions.

Women as covenant protectors in a death-decree world

The lesson foregrounds the women of Exodus 1–2 as decisive agents: “Moses had a major role in freeing Israel from bondage. But he wouldn’t have been able to accomplish this if his mother, his sister, Pharaoh’s daughter, and other faithful women hadn’t protected and cared for him.” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Teaching Children,” March 23–29).
Temporal bridge: God’s deliverance often begins long before the public miracle, through hidden, faithful preservation.

Holy ground and embodied reverence

Moses’s encounter (Exodus 3:1–6) becomes a template for approaching sacred things: “I can show reverence for holy things and places.” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).
Temporal bridge: Reverence is not only emotion; it is enacted response in the presence of God (Exodus 3:1–6).

Textual Archaeology: 9 Key Passages with Layered Meaning

Method: Each passage is explored as (1) textual claim, (2) covenant pattern, (3) discipleship application—using only bundle-provided prompts and citations.

1) Exodus 1:8 — The danger of forgotten deliverance

Text: a pharaoh “knew not Joseph” (Exodus 1:8).
Pattern: societal amnesia produces oppression.
Application: the bundle frames the resulting spiritual questions about whether God remembers (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).

2) Exodus 1:15–20; 2:2–10 — Quiet heroism that preserves the deliverer

The “Teaching Children” section explicitly links these women to God’s plan (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Teaching Children,” March 23–29).
Pattern: covenant history turns on faithful, often unseen, protectors.

3) Exodus 2:23–25 — Prayer rising from bondage

The bundle directs attention to “how the children of Israel sought deliverance and how the Lord responded (see, for example, Exodus 2:23–25; 3:7–8).” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Jesus Christ is my Deliverer.”)
Pattern: suffering becomes supplication; supplication meets divine response.

4) Exodus 3:7–8 — God sees, hears, and “come[s] down”

The prompt highlights the Lord’s response: “How has the Lord ‘come down to deliver’ you?” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Jesus Christ is my Deliverer.”)
Pattern: deliverance is personal and covenantal, not abstract.

5) Exodus 3:1–6 — Reverence as covenant posture

The lesson asks what impresses readers about Moses’s experience and “What did Moses do to show reverence for God?” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence for holy things and places.”)
Extension references (for further study, not summarized here): “Remembering the Promises” in David A. Bednar, “Exceeding Great and Precious Promises” (Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2017, 91–93) (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”).

6) Exodus 3–4 — The divine pattern of calling and enabling

The bundle frames Moses’s reluctance and God’s empowering replies: “As you read Exodus 3–4, list Moses’s concerns and how the Lord responded to each.” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “God gives power to people He calls…”)
Pattern: God’s work proceeds through inadequate servants whom God equips.

7) Exodus 5:4–9, 20–23 — Obedience meets resistance

The bundle names the lived problem: “It can be discouraging when our sincere efforts to do good don’t seem to be working—when we’re trying to do the Lord’s will but we’re not seeing the results we expected.” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “The Lord’s purposes will be fulfilled…”)
Pattern: initial setbacks do not negate divine commission.

8) Exodus 6:1–13 — Divine reassurance in delayed outcomes

The prompt asks: “How did the Lord help Moses overcome his feelings of discouragement? (see Exodus 6:1–13).” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “The Lord’s purposes will be fulfilled…”)
Pattern: revelation stabilizes the prophet when circumstances destabilize expectations.

9) Exodus 6:6–7 — Covenant redemption declared

Key excerpt (quoted in the bundle): “I will redeem you with a stretched out arm,” and “I am the Lord your God, which bringeth you out from under [your] burdens” (Exodus 6:6–7; Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).
Pattern: deliverance is framed as redemption, identity (“I am the Lord your God”), and burden-lifting.

Cross-Reference Web Matrix (Doctrinal Threads Across Dispensations)

Primary Pattern: The Lord remembers His covenants and redeems His people in His time and way (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”)

├─ Ancient Foundations (Genesis through Malachi)
│ ├─ Exodus 1:8: “knew not Joseph” (Exodus 1:8)
│ ├─ Exodus 6:6–7: “I will redeem you with a stretched out arm,” … “I am the Lord your God, which bringeth you out from under [your] burdens” (Exodus 6:6–7; quoted in Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”)
│ └─ Prophetic type/symbol: Moses as deliverer-figure pointing toward Christ (see Deuteronomy 18:18–19; 1 Nephi 22:20–21, as cited in Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Jesus Christ is my Deliverer.”)
│
├─ Meridian Fulfillment (New Testament parallels)
│ ├─ Matthew 2:13–16 (parallel to Exodus 1:22; 2:1–10) — see comparison prompt (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Jesus Christ is my Deliverer.”)
│ ├─ Matthew 4:1–2 (parallel to Exodus 24:18) — see comparison prompt (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Jesus Christ is my Deliverer.”)
│ └─ Gospel fulfillment: Scripture invites seeing “parallels to the Savior’s life in the lives of prophets” (Teaching in the Savior’s Way, 7; cited in Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Look for symbols that testify of Jesus Christ.”)
│
├─ Restoration Revelation (D&C/Pearl of Great Price)
│ ├─ Doctrine and Covenants 6:10–12 — see also (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”)
│ ├─ Doctrine and Covenants 63:64 — see also (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”)
│ └─ Latter-day application: Reverence for holy things is reinforced by Restoration scripture (D&C 6:10–12; 63:64, as cited in the lesson).
│
└─ Living Prophets (From bundle sources only)
├─ Jeffrey R. Holland — see also “Waiting on the Lord,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2020, 115–17 (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “The Lord’s purposes will be fulfilled…”)
├─ Ulisses Soares — see also “In Awe of Christ and His Gospel,” Liahona, May 2022, 115–17 (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”)
└─ Gérald Caussé — see also “Is It Still Wonderful to You?” Ensign or Liahona, May 2015, 98–100 (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”)

Theological Discussion Points (Socratic Progression: Observation → Synthesis → Covenant Living)

What changes in Israel’s situation are signaled by the phrase “knew not Joseph” (Exodus 1:8), and what does that imply about collective memory and moral obligation?
In Exodus 1–2, what forms of power operate (political, familial, covenantal), and how does God’s work advance through non-royal actors (Exodus 1:15–20; 2:2–10; Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Teaching Children”)?
What does the lesson’s question—“Does God know what I’m going through? Can He hear my pleas for help?”—assume about the nature of prayer and divine attention (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”)?
What do Exodus 2:23–25 and 3:7–8 (as highlighted in the lesson) teach about the sequence: suffering → crying → divine response (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Jesus Christ is my Deliverer.”)?
What actions by Moses in Exodus 3:1–6 model reverence as behavior rather than mood (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”)?
Why might reverence be prerequisite to commissioning (Exodus 3–4), and how does that relate to being entrusted with holy work (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “God gives power…”)?
How do Moses’s concerns in Exodus 3–4 function as a pattern for divine enabling (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “God gives power…”)?
What does Exodus 5:4–9, 20–23 (as assigned) reveal about the social cost of prophetic leadership before visible deliverance (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “The Lord’s purposes…”)?
How does Exodus 6:1–13 (as assigned) reframe discouragement, and what does it suggest about revelation as pastoral care for leaders (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “The Lord’s purposes…”)?
In Exodus 6:6–7, what is the relationship between “redeem,” “burdens,” and “I am the Lord your God” (Exodus 6:6–7; quoted in Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”)?
How does the lesson’s statement—God “will fulfill [covenants] in His own time and way”—shape expectations for discipleship outcomes (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”)?
What safeguards help prevent becoming “too casual about sacred things,” and how does reverence protect covenant relationship (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”; see also Soares 2022; Caussé 2015 as cited)?

Modern Prophetic Synthesis (Bundle-Limited)

The bundle does not provide verbatim excerpts from modern prophet messages, but it does direct readers to them as interpretive companions:

Patience in delayed deliverance: see also Jeffrey R. Holland, “Waiting on the Lord” (Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2020, 115–17) (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “The Lord’s purposes…”).
Reverence and awe as discipleship disciplines: see also Ulisses Soares, “In Awe of Christ and His Gospel” (Liahona, May 2022, 115–17) and Gérald Caussé, “Is It Still Wonderful to You?” (Ensign or Liahona, May 2015, 98–100) (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”).
Covenant “remembering” as a living theme: see also David A. Bednar, “Exceeding Great and Precious Promises,” section “Remembering the Promises” (Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2017, 91–93) (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”).

Seminary & Institute Integration (From the Bundle’s Teaching Helps)

Teaching in the Savior’s Way as a hermeneutic: “You can … find parallels to the Savior’s life in the lives of prophets and other faithful men and women in the scriptures. [Doing so] reveals truths about the Savior in places you might otherwise overlook” (Teaching in the Savior’s Way, 7; cited in Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Look for symbols that testify of Jesus Christ.”).
This becomes a disciplined method for reading Exodus: typology is not decorative; it is revelatory when governed by scriptural patterns the lesson itself names (Deuteronomy 18:18–19; 1 Nephi 22:20–21; Matthew 2:13–16; Matthew 4:1–2—each cited in the lesson prompt).

Teaching Applications (Reverent Discovery Methods)

“Covenant Questions” board: Use the lesson’s own questions (“Does God know…? Can He hear…?”) as headings; then place Exodus 2:23–25; 3:7–8; 6:6–7 beneath them as textual answers (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”; “Jesus Christ is my Deliverer.”).
Role-based reading of Exodus 3–4: Assign readers to voice Moses’s concerns and the Lord’s responses, following the instruction to “list Moses’s concerns and how the Lord responded to each” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “God gives power…”).
Reverence practicum: Read Exodus 3:1–6, then identify “holy things and holy places” and discuss how they are treated “differently from things that are common” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”).

Personal Study Pathways (Progressive Depth Markers)

Level 1 (Narrative): Track the movement from oppression (Exodus 1) to calling (Exodus 3–4) to discouragement (Exodus 5) to renewed promise (Exodus 6) (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).
Level 2 (Covenant language): Re-read the quoted promise “I will redeem you…” and “bringeth you out from under [your] burdens” (Exodus 6:6–7; Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”) and note how identity (“I am the Lord your God”) functions as the foundation of deliverance.
Level 3 (Typological reading): Follow the lesson’s directive to compare Moses’s story with Christ’s (Deuteronomy 18:18–19; 1 Nephi 22:20–21; Matthew 2:13–16; Matthew 4:1–2—cited in Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “Jesus Christ is my Deliverer.”).

Research Extensions (Church-Approved, Bundle-Cited)

Bible Dictionary: “For an overview of the book of Exodus, see ‘Exodus, book of’ in the Bible Dictionary.” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).
Deepen reverence theme: study the cited messages (Bednar 2017; Soares 2022; Caussé 2015) as companion texts (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “I can show reverence…”).
Patience and divine timing: consult Holland, “Waiting on the Lord” (Nov. 2020) for additional perspective (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “The Lord’s purposes…”).

These Exodus covenantal patterns invite deeper exploration of how the Lord’s promised redemption—“I will redeem you with a stretched out arm” (Exodus 6:6–7)—speaks to disciples who are learning to trust His “own time and way” (Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026, “March 23–29…”).

Scholarly Study Guide: Exodus 1–6