In both Exodus and the movie “The Ten Commandments,” God’s power is depicted as something that should be feared rather than admired. Instead of reveling in His power, the masses are shown fearful of His might. Therefore, the audience can conclude that we are not truly shown God’s love until He gives Moses the Ten Commandments.
In the book of Exodus, when discusses God’s power, many People describe it as something to be fearful of. During the time of the enslavement of the people of Israel, when the Pharaoh tells all the handmaids to kill their child if it is born a boy, they choose not to because the “midwives feared God” (Exodus 1:17). Although the midwives fear God, He did treat them well for keeping the children born male alive. However, we are shown in Exodus 4:14 that God can be perceived as fearful, stating “And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses.” In every CCD class I attended, God was always described as all loving and all kind. Therefore, it was quite odd reading Exodus and seeing God painted as a feared leader. A reasonable explanation for why God might have seemed fearful at the time is because the Pharaoh was also seen as a godly figure, and people may have just confused their fear of the Pharaoh’s wrath with a fear of God himself. However, we can see a shift in language after Moses received the Ten Commandments. Because the people were given freedom and true structure, they are able to see all the good God has done for them.
We also see this resemblance in the film “The Ten Commandments.” At minute 3:13, we see the Pharaoh depicted as almost sympathetic because his first and only son died by the wrath of God. Not only do we feel sorrow for the Pharaoh, but the entire scene where Moses sits with family throughout the night, hearing the screams of mothers losing their first child, is gruesome. The Holy Spirit looks haunting as it covers the entire sky over the town (3:03). However, after the night is complete, we see the people of Israel rejoice after finally being allowed to evacuate Egypt and find the Holy Land. But unfortunately, the people of Israel still feared the Lord’s power and could not fully accept Him. Not until Moses delivered the Ten Commandments were the people of Israel fully true to the Lord’s word. After the revealing of the Ten Commandments, the audience is shown a turning point within the people of Israel. Everyone was finally able to rejoice in the word of God, without feeling fear.
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