In light of the new Exodus movie, my favorite professor discusses the historical background to the movie.
Introduction to the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) (RLST 145) with Christine Hayes
The book of Genesis concludes with the story of Joseph and the descent of the 12 tribes into Egypt, setting the stage for the Exodus in which God is seen as redeemer and liberator. Moses is the first in a line of apostolic (messenger) prophets and Yahwism is initiated. Mark Smith's thesis describing the emergence of Israelite religion through a process of convergence and divergence is presented as an alternative to the evolutionary-revolutionary dichotomy presented in Lecture 2.
00:00 - Chapter 1. One Who Wrestles: The Significance of Jacob's Name Change
03:04 - Chapter 2. The 12 Sons of Jacob: Joseph and His Brothers
10:06 - Chapter 3. Exodus: Sequel to Genesis and Myth of Origins for a Nation
21:14 - Chapter 4. Moses's Legendary Birth Story and Early Life
26:43 - Chapter 5. Descriptions of God in the Bible
38:39 - Chapter 6. Smith's Convergence and Divergence Model
Complete course materials are available at the Open Yale Courses website: http://oyc.yale.edu
