The Arm of the LORD (Part 1)

As Old Testament scholars of the past several centuries have assimilated the results of countless archaeological discoveries related to their field, they have directed their specific areas of expertise along avenues which previous generations failed to travel. Among the numerous branches of interest which spring from the study of the Old Testament, perhaps none have progressed more rapidly than the understanding of the Hebrew language. These appreciable advancements serve the purpose of better illuminating critical concepts such as Old Testament figures of speak and their theological significance. Once such phrase that is worthy of examination is the expression the “Arm of the LORD.”[1]

The first reference to the “Arm of the LORD” appears in Exodus 6:6 in the context of a divine speech that God addressed to Moses. Previous to this encounter, God had sent Moses and Aaron to petition Pharaoh so that he might allow the sons of Israel to celebrate a feast dedicated to the LORD in the wilderness (Ex. 5:1,3). When the ruler of Egypt refused to make this allowance (Ex. 5:2,4-5) but instead increased the workload of his slaves (Ex. 5:6-9), the God of Israel proceeded to punish the Egyptians. 

Before striking Egypt with the ten plagues and delivering His people from slavery, God expressed His intentions to liberate the Israelites:

“Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians’” (Ex. 6:6-7).

This reference to the “Arm of the LORD” serves as the foundation for a serious of theological revelations concerning God, and tomorrow we will examine both the origin of the phrase and the way that the Old Testament authors employed it to make a number of assertions concerning the character and might of the LORD.

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[1] The Hebrew rendering of “Arm of the LORD” is זְרוֹעַ יהוה (zĕrôa‘ YHWH). Although this exact phrase occurs only a handful of times in the Hebrew Old Testament, numerous texts associate the arm with God. In this study, the “Arm of the LORD” will serve as shorthand for the miscellaneous descriptive terms which the Old Testament writers applied to God (e.g., “holy arm,” “outstretched arm,” “powerful arm,” etc.).