Board index ‹ Specific Bible verses, texts, and passages ‹ Exodus

[Do Good]

how do you interpret Exodus 4:11? do you believe it is to be taken literally?

[jimwalton]

It was the perspective of the ancients that all things came from God. There was no division between the natural and supernatural. Their perception was that God or the gods were involved in every detail of life. Thus anything that happened was considered to be an act of God. It's not surprising that they word it this way. Everything was perceived as an act of God. It is very active language that shouldn't be taken in a modern sense.

In our modern way of thinking (whether it's more accurate or not is impossible to say), we would not word it this way or understand it this way. We would say people are born with certain conditions, or they develop them in the course of life. They would say, “God makes them this way.” We should not take this to mean God creates all impaired, handicapped, or ill children or people.