The texts preserved in the Bible reflect a tension that existed among different Judean diaspora communities concerning Israelite identity and its relationship to the promised land. While some biblical authors used traditions of the exodus to encourage those in exile to return to the land, the passages discussed here—which maintain a distinction between the Israelites and the Egyptians in the plague narrative and present the Israelites worshipping the first Passover in Egypt—highlight the possibility of forming an Israelite identity without the necessity of leaving Egypt.
This idea may have been particularly relevant to the Second Temple Judean diaspora in Egypt, who remained in Egypt while forming a distinct identity for themselves through their rituals and pilgrimages.
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