In the ninth perek of Kings I, the Exodus from Egypt is mentioned in reference to God’s promise to Shlomo, subsequent to the completion of the building of the Beit Hamikdash. God tells Shlomo that if he should uphold the Torah and all its commandments, He will preserve the Davidic dynasty. However, if he or the Jewish people should fail to uphold the Torah, God will destroy the Temple and the Land of Israel, such that when other nations pass by, they will wonder to themselves why the Jewish people suffered such misfortune. Ultimately, they will conclude that such has happened to the people of Israel because they abandoned their God, who brought their ancestors out of Egypt. God specifically uses the Exodus from Egypt to demonstrate His close relationship to the Jewish people. Granted, the Exodus from Egypt is a defining feature of the Jewish people’s relationship with God, but it would seem that God should have used the Torah as the singular defining feature of His relationship with the Jewish people. Ultimately, the fact that we, as the Jewish people, exclusively, were given the Torah is what makes us special; therefore, it seems odd that God chose to recount the Exodus from Egypt as the most salient feature of our relationship. This question becomes stronger given the fact that Amos, one of the later prophets, tells us (Amos 9:7) explicitly that we are not the only people who were redeemed by God. God also redeemed the Plishtim from Caphtor and Aram from Kir.

One explanation for God’s decision to invoke the Exodus from Egypt is that in a sense, the Exodus from Egypt is itself an allusion to Matan Torah but with an important new perspective. Though God’s decision to present the Jewish people with the Torah ultimately implies their active participation, namely their keeping of its commandments, the actual giving of the Torah and a reference to it implies a passive people, a people that simply received a document, possibly even against their will. Though the Exodus from Egypt would also seem to suggest a similar level of passivity, it is clear that a reference to the Exodus from Egypt does not exclusively refer to itself. Rather it reflects the reason the Jewish people were redeemed. The Jewish people are not special because they were redeemed; other nations were also redeemed. The Jewish people attain their uniqueness through the Torah; the Jewish people were redeemed for a purpose. The significance of recounting the Exodus from Egypt stems from the fact that it is the beginning of the process leading to Matan Torah and implies an active people. They did not simply receive it; they accepted it. Furthermore, it goes without saying that the Exodus also successfully exhibits an instance of God’s love for the Jewish people. The Exodus from Egypt thus captures and demonstrates the true relationship between God and the Jewish people. Simultaneously, it expresses God’s active commitment to the Jewish people and His love for them, while also expressing their active role in receiving the Torah, their acceptance of the Torah.