Week 15 (Apr 6–12): Exodus 7–13 — “Remember This Day, in Which Ye Came Out from Egypt”

Orientation: The Week’s Governing Puzzle

Exodus 7–13 unfolds as a theological contest over recognition and remembrance: the Lord repeatedly declares His purpose that Egypt (and Israel) “accept ‘that I am the Lord’” and that there is “‘none like me in all the earth’” (Exodus 7:5; 9:14). The narrative escalates from public signs (plagues) to a covenantal ritual (Passover) that transforms deliverance into a perpetual memorial (Exodus 12:14, 24–27; 13:1–16). Come, Follow Me frames the culminating pattern: “in every case of spiritual captivity, there truly is only one way to escape. It is only the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Firstborn—the blood of the Lamb without blemish—that will save us.”

Doctrinal Architecture (Three-Lens Analysis)

1) Ancient Context (Exodus 7–13)

The Lord’s power is displayed through “plague after plague,” yet Pharaoh repeatedly refuses to yield.
Israel watches “with awe,” learning to trust prophetic leadership and divine power.
Deliverance is sealed by a commanded pattern: precise obedience to Passover instructions (Exodus 12).

2) Modern Application (Come, Follow Me emphases)

Agency and the heart: “I can choose to soften my heart.”
Christ-centered deliverance: “Jesus Christ can save me because of His Atonement.”
Covenantal remembrance: “The sacrament helps me remember my deliverance through Jesus Christ.”

3) Eternal Principle

God reveals His incomparable power not merely to impress, but to invite covenantal recognition (“that I am the Lord,” Exodus 7:5) and to establish ritual remembrance that anchors faith across generations (Exodus 12:14, 24–27; 13:1–16).

Historical & Cultural Matrix: Building a “Temporal Bridge”

Exodus 7–13 is not only history; it is a ritualized theology of liberation. The plagues function as escalating disclosures of divine sovereignty, while Passover becomes Israel’s annual embodied curriculum—teaching that deliverance is received through God-given signs, God-given instructions, and God-given protection.

Come, Follow Me explicitly frames Passover as symbolic instruction about redemption: “The Passover teaches us through symbols that just as the Lord delivered the Israelites from bondage in Egypt, He can also deliver us from the bondage of sin.”

Textual Archaeology: 9 Key Passages (Layers of Meaning)

1) Divine Purpose of the Signs — Recognition of the Lord

Text: The Lord gives Pharaoh opportunities to accept “‘that I am the Lord’” and “‘there is none like me in all the earth’” (Exodus 7:5; 9:14).
Layer: The plagues are not random calamities; they are revelatory acts aimed at covenantal knowledge of God’s identity.

2) Pharaoh’s Pattern — The Anatomy of a Hard Heart

Textual focus (assigned): Exodus 7:14–25; 8:5–32; 9:1–26; 10:12–29; 12:29–33.
Layer: Come, Follow Me invites close observation of repeated resistance and the consequences of hard-heartedness, alongside the invitation: “I can choose to soften my heart.”

3) The Tenth Plague and the Crisis of Firstborn

Text: The tenth plague is “the death of the firstborn, including Pharaoh’s firstborn.”
Layer: Come, Follow Me interprets this as fitting typology: “It is only the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Firstborn—the blood of the Lamb without blemish—that will save us.”

4) Passover as a New Beginning — A Calendar Reordered

Text: “The beginning of months” (Exodus 12:2, as cited in the lesson’s symbol chart).
Layer: Come, Follow Me explains: “This was to be a new beginning for Israel. They were to be ‘born again.’” Deliverance is not merely escape; it is re-creation.

5) The Lamb — A Prophetic Object Lesson

Text: “The lamb” (Exodus 12:3–5, as cited).
Layer: Come, Follow Me directs study through New Testament witnesses: “See John 1:29; 6:54; 1 Peter 1:19.” The Passover lamb is a Christ-centered signpost.

6) Blood on the Doorposts — Marked Protection

Text: “Blood of the lamb on the doorposts” (Exodus 12:7, 13, 23, as cited).
Layer: Come, Follow Me links this symbol to covenantal deliverance (see Mosiah 4:2; Revelation 12:11, as cited). The ritual teaches that deliverance is received through God’s appointed token.

7) Unleavened Bread — Removing Corruption

Text: “Unleavened bread” (Exodus 12:8, 15, 19–20, as cited).
Layer: “Leaven, or yeast, can be a symbol of corruption because it spoils easily” (Come, Follow Me), with study links to Matthew 16:6–12; John 6:35 (as cited). The meal itself becomes moral pedagogy.

8) Bitter Herbs and Haste — The Taste of Captivity, the Urgency of Flight

Text: “Bitter herbs” (Exodus 12:8) and “Eating in haste, dressed to leave” (Exodus 12:11, as cited).
Layer: Come, Follow Me: bitter herbs are “A reminder of the bitterness of sin and captivity” (see Exodus 1:14; Moses 6:55, as cited). Haste signifies urgency “to leave the captivity of sin” (see Genesis 39:12; 2 Timothy 2:22, as cited).

9) Remembering as Covenant Practice — From Passover to Sacrament

Text: The Lord commands annual observance: “throughout your generations” (Exodus 12:14, 26–27, as cited); further instructions appear in Exodus 12:14–17, 24–27; 13:1–16.
Layer: Come, Follow Me connects this to sacramental remembrance: “What can you do to ‘always remember’ Jesus Christ? (Moroni 4:3; 5:2).”
- Full excerpt (Moroni 4:3): “O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this bread to the souls of all those who partake of it; that they may eat in remembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him, and keep his commandments which he hath given them, that they may always have his Spirit to be with them. Amen.” (Moroni 4:3)
- Full excerpt (Moroni 5:2): “O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this wine to the souls of all those who drink of it, that they may do it in remembrance of the blood of thy Son, which was shed for them; that they may witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they do always remember him, that they may have his Spirit to be with them. Amen.” (Moroni 5:2)

Cross-Reference Web Matrix (Doctrinal Threads Across Dispensations)

Primary Pattern: Deliverance through the Lamb, received by covenantal obedience and preserved by remembrance
├─ Ancient Foundations (Genesis through Malachi)
│ ├─ Exodus 7:5: “that I am the Lord” (Exodus 7:5)
│ ├─ Exodus 9:14: “there is none like me in all the earth” (Exodus 9:14)
│ └─ Exodus 12:14: “throughout your generations” (Exodus 12:14)
│
├─ Meridian Fulfillment (New Testament parallels)
│ ├─ John 1:29: see John 1:29 (cited in Come, Follow Me symbol study for “The lamb,” Exodus 12:3–5)
│ ├─ Matthew 16:6–12: see Matthew 16:6–12 (cited for leaven as corruption, Exodus 12:8, 15, 19–20)
│ └─ 1 Peter 1:19: see 1 Peter 1:19 (cited for the lamb, Exodus 12:3–5)
│
├─ Restoration Revelation (D&C/Pearl of Great Price)
│ ├─ Moses 6:63: “All things … are created and made to bear record of me” (Moses 6:63)
│ ├─ Doctrine and Covenants 89:18–21: see Doctrine and Covenants 89:18–21 (cited for “the destroyer,” Exodus 12:13, 23)
│ └─ Doctrine and Covenants 138:15–19, 31: see Doctrine and Covenants 138:15–19, 31 (cited for liberation and deliverance, Exodus 12:29–32)
│
└─ Living Prophets (From bundle sources only)
    ├─ Kevin W. Pearson, “Are You Still Willing?” (Liahona, Nov. 2022, 67–69): see also Kevin W. Pearson, “Are You Still Willing?,” Liahona, Nov. 2022, 67–69
    ├─ Christopher H. Kim, “Harden Not Your Heart” (Liahona, May 2025, 118–20): see also Christopher H. Kim, “Harden Not Your Heart,” Liahona, May 2025, 118–20
    └─ “Always Remember Him” (video), Gospel Library: see also “Always Remember Him” (video), Gospel Library

Modern Prophetic Synthesis (Bundle-Faithful)

The bundle provides citations to modern prophetic teachings and Church resources (Kevin W. Pearson; Christopher H. Kim; “Always Remember Him” video) without including their verbatim text. Therefore, faithful study should follow the bundle’s invitation to consult these sources directly (see references above) alongside the scriptural core: recognition of the Lord (Exodus 7:5; 9:14), deliverance through the lamb’s blood (Exodus 12:7, 13, 23), and covenant remembrance “throughout your generations” (Exodus 12:14, 26–27).

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

The lesson’s pedagogy models a seminary-grade method: symbol charting in Exodus 12:1–42 (symbol → possible meanings → God’s message to me). It also explicitly teaches a hermeneutic for Christ-centered reading:

Full excerpt: “‘All things,’ the Lord declared, ‘are created and made to bear record of me’ (Moses 6:63; see also 2 Nephi 11:4). In Exodus 12, symbols like a lamb, blood, unleavened bread, miracles, and deliverance all point to Christ. ‘Once we understand how these objects relate to the Savior, they can teach us of His power and attributes’ (Teaching in the Savior’s Way, 7).”

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

What repeated divine objective is stated in Exodus 7:5 and 9:14, and how does that objective shape the meaning of the plagues?
In the assigned plague narratives (Exodus 7:14–25; 8:5–32; 9:1–26; 10:12–29; 12:29–33), what patterns appear in Pharaoh’s responses?
Why does Come, Follow Me frame the tenth plague as culminating in the theme of “the Firstborn” and “the Lamb without blemish”?
How does Exodus 12:2 (“the beginning of months”) recast deliverance as a new creation for Israel?
What does the required precision of Passover instructions suggest about how deliverance is received?
How do the symbols listed in the bundle (lamb, blood, unleavened bread, bitter herbs, haste) function as a unified theology rather than isolated metaphors?
How does the bundle’s use of Moses 6:63 shape an approach to reading Exodus 12 as testimony of Christ?
What does it mean to preserve remembrance “throughout your generations” (Exodus 12:14, 26–27) in a covenant community?
What explicit covenant actions and promises appear in the sacrament prayers (Moroni 4:3; 5:2), and how do they echo Passover remembrance?
How does the concept of a “soft heart” (bundle theme) function as the moral opposite of Pharaoh’s pattern?
What “other things the Lord wants you to remember” are listed in the bundle (Helaman 5:6–12; Moroni 10:3; Doctrine and Covenants 3:3–5, 10; 18:10; 52:40), and how might they expand the Exodus theme of remembrance?
How does the bundle’s linkage between bondage in Egypt and “bondage of sin” reshape Exodus 7–13 into a personal discipleship text?

Teaching Applications (Reverent Discovery Methods)

Symbol-to-Covenant Mapping: Use the bundle’s chart model (Exodus 12:1–42) and require learners to anchor every meaning in the provided cross-references.
Remembrance Workshop: Read Exodus 12:14, 26–27; then read Moroni 4:3 and 5:2 in full, asking learners to identify shared covenant verbs: “witness,” “willing,” “always remember,” “keep.”
Soft vs. Hard Heart Demonstration (bundle method): Use the “rock and sponge” illustration (Teaching Children section) to make Pharaoh’s spiritual condition visible and discuss what “receives the word of the Lord” looks like in practice.

Personal Study Pathways (Progressive Depth Markers)

Foundational: Read Exodus 7:5 and 9:14 aloud; mark every phrase that describes the Lord’s intent.
Intermediate: Track Pharaoh’s responses across the assigned sections; label each response as delay, partial compliance, bargaining, or refusal.
Advanced: Work through Exodus 12:1–42 using the bundle’s symbol chart; constrain interpretations to the provided cross-references.
Covenantal: Study Moroni 4:3 and 5:2 in full; list the covenantal commitments and promised blessing (“that they may always have his Spirit to be with them,” Moroni 4:3; “that they may have his Spirit to be with them,” Moroni 5:2).

Research Extensions (Church-Approved, Method-Focused)

Primary-source deepening: Consult the bundle’s recommended resources directly: Kevin W. Pearson, “Are You Still Willing?” (Liahona, Nov. 2022, 67–69); Christopher H. Kim, “Harden Not Your Heart” (Liahona, May 2025, 118–20); “Always Remember Him” (video), Gospel Library.
Intertextual method: Follow the bundle’s explicit cross-reference prompts (John 1:29; Matthew 16:6–12; Moses 6:63; Doctrine and Covenants 89:18–21) and record how each passage constrains and clarifies Exodus 12’s symbols.

These ancient covenantal patterns invite deeper exploration of how deliverance and remembrance in Exodus 7–13 illuminate the Savior-centered meaning of covenant life (Exodus 12:14; Moroni 4:3; Moses 6:63).

Scholarly Study Guide: Exodus 7–13