that they attended to, the mood that they associated with the person, and so forth. Representing past events in history writing involves selection and interpretation. Writers cannot report every detail of an event, but must be selective, including only what is important to the message they are communicating. The presentation of a historical event is shaped by the interpretive lens that the writer adopts. We must then ask what is the purpose of the book of Exodus. What is the author trying to communicate?