Egypt to Canaan: A Comprehensive Study
By: Robert Surgenor
“Egypt to Canaan is sub-titled “A Comprehensive Study” of the 40-year journey that took Israel from slavery in Egypt to the land of milk and honey God graciously gave them. The Study is comprehensive in that it deals with the books of Exodus and Numbers and the early chapters of Joshua. The author states clearly in his Preface that his intention is to deal with the journey from Egypt to Canaan “more thoroughly than other books dealing with the same subject” and to avoid “intellectual coldness”. He adds that his approach is “warm, personal and faithful”.
Robert Surgenor’s looks to find applications to the issues of today’s assemblies and the saints who fellowship there, often illustrated by interesting personal experiences. He keeps the Lord Jesus before the reader’s eye, not only as he deals with the Passover or the manna or the red heifer offering, but as he applies the lessons arising from the eventful journey to Canaan.
The author’s approach is further evidenced in how he treats the Tabernacle. He does not deal with the curtains and their dimensions, or the various pieces of furniture, but concentrates on willing hearts, their liberal giving, and the gifted individuals whose labours produced the Sanctuary in which God was pleased to dwell. His particular focus is the role of women in the context of making that Sanctuary (Ex 25.8), whose example leads him to other godly women and their role in their day.
Egypt to Canaan is written in very accessible English. Its sections are relatively brief, enabling even a busy person to read its 754 pages in a relatively short time. Younger readers would find it helpful and the author’s experiences encouraging and challenging. They will not be stumbled by a level of detail provided, although occasionally they may ask for a little more information, for example when Robert Surgenor speaks of Moses’ sister as a fifteen-year-old when “the babe wept” at the edge of the Nile.”
~ This book review was originally published on in Believer’s Magazine, August 2010, by TW.
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