Exodus and Leviticus
Welcome to the 2nd & 3rd Books of the Law:
Exodus and Leviticus are the second and third books Moses wrote after Genesis to help Israel understand her identity as a nation set aside by God to reach the rest of the world for His Messiah. God offers all nations through Israel the salvation from punishment for their sin and an eternal relationship with the Creator. To accomplish this, the Lord uses Genesis 1-11 to document what is wrong with the world and the remainder of the Pentateuch (or Torah) to document exactly what He is going to do about it. This is very much like Paul did in his letter to the church at Roman. While Paul tells us that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Ron 3:23). Moses illustrates for us how humankind has disobeyed and fallen short of every form of rule God documented for us. When God gave us only one Law, "Thou shalt not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil," we ate the fruit of that tree. When God required blood sacrifice of Adam's children, one obeyed and the other offered vegetables. When God gave the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20, we were blatantly disobedient to the foundational first commandment, "Thou shalt not have any other gods before you" (Ex 20:1-3).
What God was going to do about our disobedience was to bring us back to Him through His mercy, grace and love. In the Older Testament, He established a sacrificial system by which humankind could acknowledge their sins, confess those sins over the heads of various beasts and have that sinned atoned for through the spilling of the blood of those beasts. In the Newer Testament, God eliminates the penalty of sin by "loving the world so much that He sacrificed His only begotten Son, that whoever would believe in Him, would not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).
In Exodus (leaving or departing), God sums up how a great relationship between Egypt and Israel went bad because "...there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph" (Ex 1:8). God had used Joseph to rescue Egypt from certain starvation as recognized be the Pharaoh in establishing him as second in command of the entire nation. But after 14 prosperous years and several iterations of leadership, a king was installed who did not remember what Joseph had done and why Israel was in Egypt at all. So, after 400 years in Egypt, God led Moses to convince Egypt to ":Let My people go." The releasing of Israel establishes the "Exodus."
In Leviticus, the name of the Book has nothing to do with the Tribe of Levi, at all. It is simply the priestly view of how the people must institute or actualize the Law given in Exodus to establish the sacrificial system discussed earlier. It answers the question of how living the Law looks in the practical application, that is, "living the Law."
Escape from Bondage
Israel was in harsh slavery under Egypt after they had saved their entire nation from hunger and death. The difference? "Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph" (Ex 1:8).
Combined Schedule of Studies
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These Bible Studies were written over many years through many ministries. They are complied here to facilitate Bible students getting data and information to more easily follow the teachings of our God and Father. Question can be input into the system via email and will be answered in the order of receipt. Enjoy!!
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Seen and Heard (Ex 2:23-25, 3:7-15, 12/01/2024)
Understand the Context (Ex 1:1-4:31)
Understand the Context (Ex 1:1-4:31)
Understand the Context (Ex 1:1-4:31)
Understand the Context (Ex 1:1-4:31)
The Book of Exodus opens with a summary of history after the fact that “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Gen 1:1). We see the names of the twelve sons of Jacob or Israel (Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, Dan, and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher) with the total of 70 souls entering Egypt, given Joseph was already there. These were invited by Joseph and the Pharaoh to live in Egypt because Joesph was appointed to be second only to Pharaoh in the country. At the beginning of Exodus, it is 400 years later, just as God told Abram long before the prophesy was fulfilled (Gen 15:13). Israel multiplied quickly and became a fruitful and mighty nation, that is, a threat to Egypt.
Joseph and his brothers had passed away and the knowledge of what Joseph did for Egypt grew vague as the generations passed. Verse 1:8 expresses the transition point of the threat their size and strength now posed to Egypt, “Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.” The question of how to repay them had evolved into how to prevent them from taking over Egypt. Harsh measures resulted to get and maintain sure control over all Israel.
Egypt established rules that included terminating the lives of all male children born to Israel to control their population and power. One such male child was born and floated in a basket in the Nile River to where the Pharaoh’s daughter and her servants bathed. That rescued child was raised and educated as a member of the Pharaoh’s family. His name was Moses, and he would be the man God calls to demand of the Pharaoh to “Let my people go.”
As Egypt’s slave masters became more brutal, they unjustly abused one of the slaves in the presence of Moses and Moses killed the slave master. While the murder was initially covered up, it resurfaced to the Egyptians. The Pharaoh removed Moses from the royal family and banished him to the wilderness, forever. Forty years later, God would call Moses out from exile and commission him to confront the Pharaoh commanding him to set the Israeli nation free.
Heard (Ex 2:23-25)
Understand the Context (Ex 1:1-4:31)
Understand the Context (Ex 1:1-4:31)
Heard (Ex 2:23-25)
There was a brief moment of hope for Israel when the current Pharaoh died. They thought the new king might rethink the harsh treatment against Israel. Israel was groaning under the current king because of the torture and the murder of their male children. As they cried out in horror and helplessness, they prayed that God would intervene and bless them with release. So, they cried out to Him in anguish and need. When hope is gone and the persistent pain becomes unbearable, the reaching for God is most real. It was no longer the compulsory blessing said almost as a memorized poem or song. There was no longer a search for the words that would best fit the need. Somehow the words, “God, help me!” could come through our lip with meaning that only God would know. He knows the hearts of all men and can easily separate the real need from the flowerily request prayed habitually for blessing over the meal. It was the kind of cry only a mother knows as her child yells out for het. Not the “time to change my diaper,” or the “I have a pin sticking me,” but the “I have fallen and I am hurt” kind of pray.
It is no surprise that “God heard” this prayer. With His people yielding to false gods and the many prayers they could hear all around them; some to false gods with no ears or something made from cement or dead wood. And from God’s point of view, He remembered how things used to be. In those days, He was our God, and we were His people. The conversation was rich, the prayers were out of concern for real need for ourselves or for our friends and family. The answers were quick and easily understood because they were to sincere and needy people and helpless believers.
Jehovah remembered the Covenant He had made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The relationship was rich and real then. Abraham was to be the father of many nations, and it was his faith in God that was accounted unto him for righteousness. Faith in God was not the same as vain repetitions and memorized praises from someone else’s prayers. They were personal prayers from the one who had the need and contained the original, needy prayers from people who loved God and prayed from the hearts, not the prayerbook. They were firsthand prayers of dire need.
Called (Ex 3:7-10)
Understand the Context (Ex 1:1-4:31)
Promised (Ex 3:11-12)
Called (Ex 3:7-10)
In these verses, the Lord responds directly that He has personally seen the affliction of His people who are stuck in Egypt (vs. 7). He speaks to the prayers and tells them that He has heard their words and the expressed torture, both physical and spiritual. Not only does He hear the prayers, but He gives heed or understands the intent of those who are praying. Further, He knows of the taskmasters and is aware of the sufferings they inflict and the grave sorrow they cause among His people.
Verse 8 tells us that he does not stop by hearing and understanding the prayers, He also has some actions in mind that will help us see that He responds with tangible results with measurable outcomes. The first measurable outcome is that He is coming down to the people involved. It is easier to see results when the One causing those results is nearby. Second, He will deliver them from the power of the hand of Egypt. They will have far less impact on Israel if their power is reduced or removed altogether. Third, He will remove Israel from Egypt and place them in a promised land where they can find what they truly desire. The land currently belongs to the Canaanite, Hittite, Amorite, Perizzite, Hivite and Jebusite, but these nations have lost the land.
The fourth part of God’s actions requires that He restate the facts that He has heard the cries of the sons of Israel in His ears, further, that He personally has seen the Egyptians oppressing His people. It was not hearsay information; He saw the abusive acts take place and will terminate it.
Next, the Lord switches to address Moses directly. He tells Moses that because of all He has said, it is necessary for him to come to Him now so, He can send him to Pharaoh with the message that he must let God’s people free so that Moses can bring those people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt. We have already studied the results of this mandate. God will have to issues plagues and severe punishments upon Egypt to get their attention, the Pharaoh will agree to get the plague stayed and then he will change his mind forcing God to issue even more serious punishment until He issues the most severe of all and promises death for the first born son of all families in Egypt.
Promised (Ex 3:11-12)
Promised (Ex 3:11-12)
Promised (Ex 3:11-12)
Promised (Ex 3:11-12)
For when the Lord surfaced the idea that Moses would be the spokesperson for the Creator of the Universe, the great Jehovah whose name no one in Israel was permitted to speak and the One whose name could only be represented by the four consonants JHVH or YHWH, Moses felt far outside his areas of expertise. How could he possibly stand before the great Pharaoh of Egypt, let alone to command him to release Israel to a mere herdsman? Moses shuddered at the thought. Certainly, those days of such great authority were well passed and forgotten. Further, once he got Israel released from Pharaoh, how could he possibly provide sufficient leadership for all those millions of people? God must certainly have come up with the wrong man for this job. Moses could only sum up his feelings by asking the Lord, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” (Ex 3:11).
Just a word of biblical use of the names of God here. In most of our versions of the Bible, when the word “God” is used, it is the Hebrew male, plural word Elohiym as in Genesis 1:1, the Creator of the Universe. When the word “LORD” is used (all caps intentional), it is the Hebrew word Jehovah or Yahweh. These two words are interchangeable because of the difference between the two sets of four letters mentioned above. When we see the words “LORD our God,” or “the LORD God,” it is specifying that Jehovah is our Elohiym or Jehovah Elohiym.
But God persisted in His certainty that Moses was the right man. He started by assuring Moses that He would be with him throughout the whole process of getting Israel released. God said the tell-tale sign of his leadership would be that Israel would follow him to worship at this very same mountain where they were kneeling this day. He was specifying the Mount Sinai where the Lord would lead Israel, and Moses would receive the Ten Commandments at His hand (Ex 20).
Moses was having some difficulty understanding that “Who Moses was” was not the question here, because Moses was making this trip as called by the Creator of the Universe. There were no substitutions or replacements required because the Sender of Moses is the Lord God of the world.
Revealed (Ex 3:13-15)
Promised (Ex 3:11-12)
Revealed (Ex 3:13-15)
Revealed (Ex 3:13-15)
Moses makes the conversation even more complex by not only asking God, “Who am I,” now he wants to know, “Who are You?” He says to God that when he stands before the sons of Israel and tell them that the God of their fathers sent me, they may well ask me, “What is His name?” When they ask me that question, what shall I say to them? (vs. 13). God responds to Moses quite simply by saying that he can say to them, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he continued that Moses could say to the sons of Israel that “I AM has sent me to you” (vs. 14). This is the Hebrew word Hayah which means the accomplished, the altogether, the one, the self. It is as if the Lord is saying to tell the sons of Israel that “I AM all there is ever needed to be, I AM complete, I AM all encompassing.”
I AM is the response that Jesus gave the Pharisees when they challenged Him on how a person as young as He could suggest that he knew Abraham. Jesus said simply, “Before Abraham was, I AM!” (John 8:58). Every time I read that account; it causes chills in my spine. The question is oft asked, “Did Jesus ever claim He was God?” The answer is yes, here and many other places, but certainly here.” Did the Pharisees understand what He said? They tried to stone Him!
Verse 15 continues that response to Moses saying, “Thus you can say to the sons of Israel, ‘The LORD (Jehovah), the God (Elohiym) of you fathers, the God (Elohiym) of Abraham, the God (Elohiym) of Isaac, and the God (Elohiym) of Jacob has sent me to you’” (vs. 15). The Lord goes on to explain that this is His name forever, and this is the name to all generations. It is written as if the Lord wanted to settle the question of who He was/is forever. That everyone who might have need to know who the Lord is, they must know He is all there is. He is fully Him and there is no need to search for something or someone greater than He. He is the great I AM and there is nothing greater in this creation. As He said in John 8:58, “Before Abraham was, I AM” is the whole story, “Before Abraham was born, I already lived!” In fact, the way the word Elohiym is place in Genesis 1:1, if Moses meant a singular, it would have been the word El, two was Eloi, Elohym was three.
Freedom Promised (Ex 5:1-4, 6:2-9, 12/08/2024)
Understand the Context (Ex 5:1-7:13)
Understand the Context (Ex 5:1-7:13)
Understand the Context (Ex 5:1-7:13)
Understand the Context (Ex 5:1-7:13)
The Scripture makes it obvious that God fully blessed Moses with all he needed to deliver the message of rescue to Israel and release to Egypt. God gave him the ministry and monetary resources, full and complete answers to all his questions, advanced notice of any unexpected situations coming up during the effort and the encouragement and motivation to execute the tasks (Ex 1-4). Upon God agreeing to add Moses’ brother, Aaron to the team, they began the work, confronted the obstacles they met with power and poise, faced the many false accusations from the naysayers and recognized the failures as opportunities to learn better processes and procedures (Ex 5-7). For example, the first attempt at getting the people freed was met with accusations that the Israeli work force was simply too lazy to do the work. The Pharaoh countered Moses direction with orders to stop supplying the hay used to hold the clay together for making the bricks. This multiplied the difficulty of making the bricks, but Pharaoh refused to change the quota of bricks required. Moses and Aaron began to doubt if they were on the right path for getting the people freed. God assured them that test from Pharaoh would only make the people stronger for the next test. God was also reminded of the Covenant He had with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
The apparent competition Israel’s God and the Egyptian gods proved that God had an orderly process in mind for winning. His objective for teaching His people to follow Him was exactly what would be required once they were freed and required to travel for miles each day. The longer-term objective was to show the followers of God (and later, Jesus) that learning of Him was absolutely essential for successfully accomplishing His objectives. Recall that God already knew they would reject entering the Promised Land for fear of the obstacles reported there. He knew they would be required to wander in the wilderness for 40 years as the result of that rejection and have to face having to find, hunt or grow everything they needed off the land. They would have to transition from being dependent on their captures to being dependent on themselves.
Confronted (Ex 5:2-4)
Understand the Context (Ex 5:1-7:13)
Understand the Context (Ex 5:1-7:13)
Confronted (Ex 5:2-4)
The start of verse 1 (“Now afterward”) refers to the joining together of Moses and Aaron to accomplish the approaches to Israel’s leadership and later the Pharaoh to get Israel’s people free from slavery. Notice however, that they spoke to Pharaoh saying that God wanted permission to take Israel to “celebrate a feast to Me in the wilderness” (vs. 1). It was not to tell Pharaoh that they wanted Israel to be set free entirely. Pharaoh’s response in verse 2 was to find out more about this God. He asked, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know this Lord, and besides, I will not let Israel go.” Verse 3 shows that Moses and Aaron want to rephrase the request to ask the Pharaoh again. This time they ask, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please, let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God , otherwise He will fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword.”
The response from the Pharaoh is short and direct just as his earlier response. He said, “Moses and Aaron, why do you draw the people away from their work? Get back to your labor!” (vs. 4). This was somewhat surprising because Moses was certainly not a part of the Pharaoh’s workforce to order one way or another. Moses had been banished from Egypt into the wilderness more than forty years earlier. There is no evidence that Moses’ situation had changed.
In the rest of Chapter 5, we see the result of Moses and Aaron’s request was that people were punished by taking away the hey used to hold the bricks together while they were drying. Without the straw, the bricks would break before they dry and reduce the number of usable bricks being made. But the Pharaoh directed that the quota of bricks would not be reduced and worse, all the Israeli foremen of the slaves were beaten because their workers were producing fewer usable bricks for construction (vs. 5:14). So, the foremen went to Moses and Aaron and asked the Lord to look upon them and judge them for making their task odious or hateful. Of course, Moses asked the Lord why He had brought such harm upon these people? (vss. 5:22-23). He said ever since he spoke His name to Pharaoh, things are worse and the people have not been delivered at all!.
Reminded (Ex 6:2-5)
Reminded (Ex 6:2-5)
Reminded (Ex 6:2-5)
Reminded (Ex 6:2-5)
In verse 1 of chapter 6, God reveals to Moses what His plan is. He says, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh, for under compulsion he will let them go, and under compulsion he will drive them out of his land.” So, God’s mold is set; He will make life so completely unacceptable to Pharaoh that he will force the people of Israel out of his land.
In the verses for study, God continues speaking with Moses reminding him that He is the LORD (Hebrew Jehovah) (vs. 2). He says, “I appeared to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, as God Almighty (Hebrew El Shaddai), but by My name, LORD, I did mot make Myself known to them. So, the Lord is saying to Moses that He has not revealed Himself to anyone in the same way He has revealed Himself to him. Even when He revealed Himself to the Patriarchs, He did not reveal Himself as He did to Moses. The signal is that His relationship with Moses is unique.
But that is not all; He also tells Moses that He established a Covenant with Israel, to give them the land of Canaan, which was the land where they, the patriarchs, were currently living. Now, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob lived between 1813 and 1506 BC while Moses lived between 1527 and 1407 BC, so the memory of that Covenant might need refreshing. Nevertheless, the Covenant was made, and the land of Canaan was in it.
Now the Lord says He hears the groaning of His people because the Egyptians are holding them in bondage and treating them harshly. As He hears the cries of the people, He was reminded of the Promised Land and how it was soon to be available. The timing was right for Moses to make his move to talk with the Pharaoh and assure him that it was now time to let His people go. The issue before us is that Moses still felt unworthy or unable to speak to the Pharaoh the words that God said he was to speak. God has already assured him that He would be with him through the entire process and that he would not suffer loss in any way. Instead, God assured Moses that Pharaoh would be visited with such terrible grief that he would force Israel to leave Egypt.
Promised (Ex 6:6-9)
Reminded (Ex 6:2-5)
Reminded (Ex 6:2-5)
Promised (Ex 6:6-9)
Next, God wants Moses to encourage the people. He knows the first attempts at deliverance looked a lot more like deepening persecution than rescue. The people already felt helpless from the moment Moses promised deliverance, while the people received increased workload and watched their foremen beaten because they could not keep up the quota of bricks without the straw to hold them together until they dried. God told Moses to say to the people that “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 judgements” (vs. 6). “Then,” He continues, “I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the Lord (Jehovah) your God (Elohiym), who brought you out from under the burdens of Egypt” (vs. 7). And as He continued to encourage Israel, He reminded them of the Covenant He made with the Patriarchs and said, “Then I will bring you to the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and I will give it to you for a possession; I am the Lord” (vs. 8).
So, verse 9 says that Moses spoke these words to the sons of Israel, but they were not ready to accept his words. They were still living in the horrors of increased burdens and the recent sting of seeing their trusted foremen beaten for missing their quotas of bricks after the Pharaoh withheld their straw. The pain of the bondage and the associated hopelessness of being punished even while Moses promised deliverance was very hard to shake. Now, there were more promises, but the delivery on those promises continued to fall short.
Remember for a second that we are going to see the horrible, ten plagues God would inflict on Egypt to brake the will of the Pharaoh. There would be water turned to blood, frogs, lice, flies, livestock pestilence, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and finally the killing of the firstborn children. Each time Pharaoh would briefly change his heart and consider letting the people of Israel go. But then, he would change his mind and present a stiff neck to Moses and his God. And God would deliver the next of ever-worsening plagues for Egypt to endure. There seemed to be no end!
Delivered From Egypt (Ex 12:21-32, 12/15/2024)
Understand the Context (Ex 7:14-14:4)
Understand the Context (Ex 7:14-14:4)
Understand the Context (Ex 7:14-14:4)
Understand the Context (Ex 7:14-14:4)
Looking back, Chapters 3 and 4 were used for God to list the many works He did for Israel, His chosen people and His covenanted nation (3:1-4:23). Recall that God used the burning bush to get Moses’ attention to call him into service and to show him His holiness. He gave him the mission of going to Pharaoh and telling him to let God’s people go from Egypt’s bondage. He guaranteed His presence and support when Moses approached the Pharaoh. When Moses argued that he did not have the speaking capability for such an assignment, God allowed that Aaron could speak for him. In short, God gave Moses the call, the instructions, the advanced notice of Pharaoh‘s responses and all the supernatural gifts required to handle the assignment.
Now in Chapter 7, God shows Moses the battle of Himself against the over forty gods of Egypt (see slide below). The 10 plagues God promised would show the 40 gods of Egypt as inferior, weak, incapable, incompetent, powerless and falling far short of matching wits with Jehovah. But that is not all. Jehovah is the only God in the Universe Who rescues His people from their sin, protects them from evil and provides them with eternal life (John 3:16).
Not only was Egypt’s god inferior to Israel’s God, but Egypt’s leadership also fell very far short of Israel’s leadership. Moses was able to announce and deliver God’s 10 plagues on the schedule he predicted. Pharaoh initially yielded to each of God’s plagues, but soon hardened his heart and refused to let God’s people go. In each case, Moses initially delayed the next plague, but as Pharaoh hardened his heart, he came quickly with the next one. Each of the plagues singled out a target which the people of Egypt worshipped. The resulting plague proved each of Egypt’s items of worship could be defeated by Israel’s God. It was simply no contest.
But the final plague was the death of every firstborn male in Egypt. This was especially damaging to Pharaoh because of his firstborn son. God memorialized His protection of Israel with the blood of the lamb of the door posts. This became the Passover Meal for all time.
Instruction (Ex 12:21-23)
Understand the Context (Ex 7:14-14:4)
Understand the Context (Ex 7:14-14:4)
Instruction (Ex 12:21-23)
Here, we see Moses establishing the Passover Meal that will become an annual celebration of remembering the day that God brought a strong judgement on Egypt through His tenth judgement against Egypt. This one was given by God after the other nine judgements did not result in Egypt setting God’s people free. This judgement was against Egypt’s firstborn, male children. Each firstborn male would die if Pharaoh refused to set God’s people free.
When Pharaoh stated that he would not free Israel, Moses issued the instructions in Exodus 12:21-23. That is: the elder of the family was to take a lamb for his family and slay it ceremoniously, collecting the blood of the lamb in a basin (vs. 21). Then he is to collect several branches of hyssop tied together and dip them into the blood in the basin and spread the blood on the doorposts and the lintel of the door to their dwelling (vs. 22). Once this is done, no one will be allowed to come outside their home until the morning.
Moses explains that the Lord would pass through the land to bring punishment on the Egyptians, but when He sees the blood of the lamb on the doorposts and lintel, He would pass over that home and forbid the destroyer to come into that home to smite the firstborn among the inhabitants. All those not having the blood of the lamb on their doorposts and lintel would have the judgement visited upon them and every firstborn within that house will die because of the Pharaoh’s refusal to free God’s people (vs. 23).
For those who are believers in Jesus Christ, it should be easy to see the similarities of this Passover process and the cross of our Savior. The lamb selected as the Passover lamb must be totally without spot or blemish indicating its perfection and complete sinlessness. Only that lamb could qualify as the Passover sacrifice for God. The lamb’s blood would be sprinkled on the horizontal and vertical wood of the door trim. The cross of Christ had His blood sprinkled on the horizontal and vertical members of the cross. Only the perfect, flawless and sinless lamb could qualify. Only Jesus lived a sinless human life on this earth. No one else could qualify to die for us but Him.
Celebration (Ex 12:24-28)
Celebration (Ex 12:24-28)
Celebration (Ex 12:24-28)
Celebration (Ex 12:24-28)
Now, the Lord takes the event for which He provided instructions for doing on that fateful night and turns it into an ordinance for Israel and her children to celebrate annually, forever (Ex 12:24). He continues by saying that even when Israel moves in to claim the nation He has prepared to give them, they will celebrate this Passover event or rite (vs. 25). God tells Israel that when their children ask them why they are to celebrate this day or rite, the parents are to instruct them that it is a Passover sacrifice to the Lord who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He killed the Egyptian firstborn but spared our homes; the homes with the blood of the lamb on the doorposts and lintels (vss. 26-27). The text shows that the people, the sons of Israel, bowed low and worshipped the Lord for sparing Israel in the punishment intended for the Egyptians.
Verse 28 specifically identifies the response of the sons of Israel as going off to do so; exactly as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron regarding the celebration of the Passover Meal. It is an eight-day Holiday celebrated on Nissan 15-22 on the Hebrew calendar which means it is a different set of dates annually on our calendars.
The focus of the Passover (Holiday of Pesach) is the Passover Meal or Seder which is eaten at sunset on the first evening of the Passover (or two evenings, depending on the Jewish sect or diasporas). The Seder is full of symbolism, that is, each part of meal has a meaning. The bitter herbs (usually horseradish) symbolizes the bitterness of Egyptian slavery, saltwater symbolizes the tears of the slaves, Matzah bread is used as a flat bread (without yeast) because there was no time to let the bread rise, haroset (a sweet paste made of fruit and nuts) symbolizing the mortar the slaves used to build the Egyptian pyramids), and the lamb shank bone symbolizes the rebirth. The meal is eaten with sandals on for fast departure (https://thejoint.org.au/news/passover-the-most-significant-jewish-holiday/#:~:text=Passover%20Dates,%3A%20April%2012%2D20%202026). There is an empty chair at the end of the table, and as the Seder ends, the leader faces that chair (symbolizing the coming Messiah) and toasts a glass saying, “Next year with You in Jerusalem!”
Victory (Ex 12:29-32)
Celebration (Ex 12:24-28)
Celebration (Ex 12:24-28)
Victory (Ex 12:29-32)
Verse 29 starts the description of the horror of that night when the judgement against the Pharaoh and all Egypt was executed. “It was about midnight that the Lord struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the cattle. Pharaoh arose in the night, he and all his servants and all Egyptians, and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was no home where there was not someone dead” (Ex 12:29-30). The Pharaoh had hardened his heart and received the judgement Moses and Aaron announced: the firstborn of all flesh was dead. I can only imagine the pain felt by the Pharaoh as he realized that his stubbornness resulted in the death of his own little son along with the death of millions of his subjects. His leadership against Moses and the God of Israel resulted in severe sorrow across all his land.
Now Pharaoh’s heart is changed from its hardness and pride to a broken man. Verses 31-32 tell of the Pharaoh’s call for Moses and Aaron in the night. He had them brought in as the once proud, confident and powerful leader of the great nation of Egypt, sat on his throne with his lifeless little boy in his arms as he said, “Rise up, get out from among my people, both you and the sons of Israel; and go, worship the Lord, as you have said. Take both your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and go, and bless me also.” Here is the sound of defeat accepted. The unconditional surrender of the great and powerful soldier admitting that he has been bested and beat. I can imagine the three of them looking at the lifeless boy wondering why it had to come to this. Why could there not have been a time when Pharaoh understood that the Creator of the Universe was not a Being to battle? Yes, the Pharaoh had massive economic considerations to make. The cost of building all that had been planned would shatter any budgets they had. There were over a million slave laborers who would no longer be reporting to work, but neither would there be the sounds of the little boy playing near his father’s throne where he sat in judgement over the entire nation. Now there was sorrow, the sobbing of his wife and the sorrow of a broken man having to bid farewell to the winners of the contest that cost so very dearly. He said, “and bless me also.”
Delivered From Sin (Luke 1:26-38, 12/22/2024)
Understand the Context (Luke 1-2)
Understand the Context (Luke 1-2)
Understand the Context (Luke 1-2)
Understand the Context (Luke 1-2)
Luke is unique as a Gospel writer in that he was a Gentile. He joins John Mark as not being an apostle of Jesus Christ; only Matthew and John were apostles. Luke is further unique in that he was a professional man; a physician, and more specifically, he was the physician of the Apostle Paul. He also sets himself aside as he introduces his Gospel with a commitment to sound research and investigative techniques to document the full story of the life and works of Jesus Christ. The full research says he will not report on the fantastic or unproven. Rather, this is how Dr. Luke begins his Gospel, “1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, 3 it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; 4 so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught” (Luke 1:1-4). So, he is committing to take a scholarly approach to analyzing and compiling his findings.
The first two chapters of Luke are used to tell the birth stories of John the Baptizer and Jesus the Christ (Hebrew Messiah). He shows John as the prophesized forerunner of the Christ (Isa 40:3). The timing of the birth of Jesus is dependent on the birth of the proclaimer of His birth. We learn that John was conceived six months earlier than Jesus. Luke documents that John prenatally recognized the approach of Jesus, freshly conceived in His mother, Mary (Luke 1:41).
God’s plan for the redemption of all humankind is executed through His Messiah as announced by John, who was prophesied to “make straight the paths of the Lord” (Isa 40:3). Now, we see both are on the way to their births. More than 300 Old Testament prophesies will be fulfilled in the life of Jesus. The link to King Herod in the slide is important because the Scripture says Joseph would return his family from Egypt to Galilee after the death of Herod. That would begin Jesus’ life in Nazareth, and hence, living life as Jesus, the Nazarene. It could be no earlier than 4 BC.
Favor (Luke 1:26-30)
Understand the Context (Luke 1-2)
Understand the Context (Luke 1-2)
Favor (Luke 1:26-30)
Luke 1 began with the story of John the Baptizer’s conception, so the subject of verse 26 must be John. That is, Luke is saying that, in the sixth month of John’s gestation in Elizabeth, the angel Gabriel went to the virgin Mary in the city of Nazareth in Galilee. Verse 27 ushers in the truth that both Mary and Joseph were genetically qualified to bring the Messiah into this world. Mary was a virgin, and she was engaged to be married to a carpenter named Joseph. Luke also gives us the pedigree for Joseph qualifying to be thought of as being the father of Jesus. The King James version shares more appropriately that Mary was “betrothed” to Joseph. In the Hebrew culture, this means that there is a contract between the families of Joseph and Mary that, once Joseph and Mary qualify for marriage, they will be married to each other. It was a binding contract.
It does not appear that Mary was perplexed at this issue, yet. She is more concerned with what this kind of greeting from the Arch Angel Gabriel means to her. She was continually cycling through the angel’s salutation for clues as to what he might want of her.
The angel can see that Mary is sorely perplexed and wants to calm her concerns. He opens with telling her not to be afraid and calls her by her name. Having raised five little children, I learned early on that asking a child full of fear not to be afraid never works. After Gabriel calls her by her name he adds, “For you have found favor with God.”
The young, teenager was likely very grateful to hear that she has found favor with God, but carrying on a conversation with an angel of God was still sufficiently terrifying to justify her continued fear. Mary probably had a strong prayer life with God and may have joined Joseph in praying together for their future, but regardless of how strong her prayer life might have been, it was certainly not at the level of actual question and answer sessions like she was experiencing with Gabriel. Something BIG was happening with her that was sufficiently important for God to send an angel to speak directly with her about it. This was not going to be one of those conversation where God sent the angel to say, “Great job, Mary” and then departs. He wanted something!
Announcement (Luke 1:31-33)
Announcement (Luke 1:31-33)
Announcement (Luke 1:31-33)
Announcement (Luke 1:31-33)
Verse 31 is where the hammer drops on the suspense of what Gabriel wants with Mary, and it is nothing short of more astonishing and fearful than what he had said or done so far. Gabriel says, “You will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. I can almost hear her shouting, “WAIT A MINUTE!!” But Gabriel is not yet ready for discussion; he has to get the rest of the message out to her so she will understand. So, despite the fact that Mary is now bordering on complete shock, Gabriel continues to describe how great and important Mary’s coming child will be.
He tells her that her little boy will grow to become great. He will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. He will reign over the house of Jacob (Israel) forever and His kingdom will have no end. There, Gabriel has delivered the full message, and it is even greater than Mary could have imagined. Her Son is going to be the Promised Messiah of God! He will rule over the Kingdom of David forever and of His Kingdom, there will be no end!
But rather than calming her fears, Gabriel is causing them to grow. Mary is likely no older than fifteen when this message comes but may well be only thirteen. She has lived in a community where cultural norms are more important than life itself. She has had knowledge of her contractual betrothal to Joseph for years. She knows of the rules and lifestyle associated with that contract. She has grown accustomed to being held in high regard by her parents, her rabbis, her husband-to-be and the rest of the community. She understands that Gabriel is bringing a message that has with it the very greatest of honors any person could hope to receive, but there remains the practicalities of life that she must now consider and wonder at how God will work out all the issues connected to Gabriel’s message. What will Joseph say about Mary having a child that is not his? How will her mother and father react when they learn she is pregnant, under contract to Joseph but he is not the father. Legally, she could be stoned to death as an adulteress. How will this work?
Virgin Birth (Luke 1:34-38)
Announcement (Luke 1:31-33)
Announcement (Luke 1:31-33)
Virgin Birth (Luke 1:34-38)
So, Mary breaks interrupts Gabriel’s presentation with a question, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” (vs. 34). This was Mary’s question from the beginning of Gabriel’s talk when he said, “she would conceive in her womb” (vs.31). Is it possible that the angel did not know Mary was betrothed? Had he already spoken with the others involved? What arrangements have been made? Gabriel responds, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most Holy will overshadow you; and for that reason, the holy Child shall be called the Son of God” (vs. 35).
Luke 1:35 is a special verse because, like several other verses in both Testaments, it reveals all three members of God’s Holy Trinity acting at the same time in the same place. The most widely known of those is when Jesus came out of the water after His baptism by John (Matt 3:16-17). In that passage, Jesus, the Son of God came out of the water, the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove landed on Jim and the voice of God the Father from Heaven spoke and said, “This is my Son in whom I am well pleased.” Here, God in the form of the Holy Spirit came upon Mary. He will come to be fully present and cover her with His glory. God, the Father’s power in the form of the Most High will over shadow her to cause her to be pregnant. Then the angel will say, “for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.”
Gabriel will know that Mary will need some human support to keep grounded through all this, so he adds that even her relative Elizabeth has conceived in her old age even though she was called barren and is now in her eight month of pregnancy (vs. 36). Gabriel says he is telling Mary this truth because she must know that “nothing is impossible with God.”
Mary quickly thought through the myriad of miraculous things happening in her life and responded to Gabriel, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be to me according to your word” (vs. 38). She was saying that God can trust her to be fully submissive to the plan Gabriel outlined, but far more than that. When she said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord,” she was saying she was fully surrendered to whatever God wanted from her. She was willing to trust God to handle everything.
Power Revealed (Ex 14:19-31, 12/29/2024)
Understand the Context (Ex 14:5-15:21)
Understand the Context (Ex 14:5-15:21)
Understand the Context (Ex 14:5-15:21)
Understand the Context (Ex 14:5-15:21)
As we finished our previous session in Exodus, we were preparing for the first Passover Meal of Israel in Egypt to be eaten just before “the Destroyer” would come to kill all the firstborn of Egypt. We learned about the slaying of the perfect Passover lamb (the Paschal Lamb) and how the blood of that lamb was to be applied to the horizontal and vertical members of the doorposts, so the Destroyer would know to Passover that home. We saw how the Passover was a promise of the Christ, and how His blood would cause judgement for sin to be passed over us (Rom 8:1).
As Israel watched that night take place and heard the cries of Egypt as every family experienced the horror of seeing their firstborn die, they said that God had certainly taken them out of Egypt by His strong hand. The other nine plagues God had Egypt experience caused pain, suffering, inconvenience and horror, but this one took their firstborn children. Pharaoh would finally not allow his heart to turn cold after this one. He simply demanded that Israel leave his country with all that they had; it was all and more than he could handle.
God provided supernatural leadership to Israel with a Pillar of Cloud by day & Pillar of Fire by night (13:17-14:2). Moses told Israel that Pharaoh’s heart may go hard again, and he could come after them. While God’s leadership was obvious, Israel saw Pharaoh and Egypt coming after them and they began to wish they would have never left the previous security for Egypt, even though they were slaves.
God showed a regular behavior of placing Himself between any dangers Israel might have and the nation itself. This study ends with an excellent example as Pharaoh’ heart turned hard again, and he decided to go after Israel. They saw Israel approaching the Red Sea and believed Moses had led them into an impossible situation to defend. They had the Red Sea ahead and the Egyptians behind. There appeared to be either a slaughter or a recapturing of Israel for continued slavery in Egypt ahead. It was impossible and Moses’ leadership was being called into question.
The Escape (Ex 14:19-22)
Understand the Context (Ex 14:5-15:21)
Understand the Context (Ex 14:5-15:21)
The Escape (Ex 14:19-22)
Here we see God’s military strategy as He prepared to work an awesome miracle for Israel. They had the mighty forces of Egypt’s army; their chariots and fighting men behind them and the deep and wide Red Sea in front of them. God directed the powerful angel of protection to move to Israel’s rear and the Pillar of Cloud and Pillar of Fire to move between the camps of the Egyptians and the camps of the Israelites. These were for leading Israel during the night and during the day, but now they would be behind Israel. The message was clear, Egypt’s 600 chariots and thousands of mighty soldiers were not capable of reaching Israel through God’s protection. They would just have to wait and see. The Pillar of Cloud would provide not only separation between the two camps; but it would also provide light for monitoring that barrier between the camps.
Meanwhile, God tells Moses to walk to a high rock near the seashore where he could be seen of all Israel. Then Moses stretched out his hand in the direction of the Red Sea in plain view of all his people. The Lord directed a strong eastern wind to come up all night long. As the wind blew back the water, it also dried the mud of the sea bottom. The result was that the sea had a large divide between one half and the other. The sea on the left and on the right was like a wall of water with not a drop spilling into the area between. The muddy seabed was now a clean and dry highway for the people of Israel to walk at their leisure across the dried sea to the other side.
So, the sons of Israel led their families across the Red Sea walking on the dried seabed as if it were mighty asphalt. The wheels of their carts nor the hooves of their animals could penetrate that surface. God had made a strong path for His people, and they walked across all night long into the morning. Israel once again saw the strong arm of the Lord do what they all thought was impossible. He made the sea a highway and provided safe passage for all His people and their families. While Pharaoh and all his armies were blocked from seeing and prevented from passing, God was ushering the entire nation of Israel through the Red Sea to the other side. When God moved the angel and the pillars Egypt would see the empty campground where Israel once was.
The Defeat (Ex 14:23-28)
The Powerful One (Ex 14:29-31)
The Powerful One (Ex 14:29-31)
The Defeat (Ex 14:23-28)
Recall this conflict was not just a couple people involved in a disagreement, but rather a nation dominating another nation and forcing it into slavery to include murdering all its children born male. The context of the battle described here is the intervention of God in the gross discrimination and persecution of God’s chosen race, the sons of Israel. So, in the morning, when Egypt discovered that Moses was leading Israel across the Red Sea, the Pharaoh ordered his military to take pursuit and stop them. He ordered 600 chariots and thousands of soldiers to capture Israel and force them back as slaves or kill them in place. Verse 24 says that God saw them through the pillars of smoke and fire decided to cause confusion to come upon the entire army. In their confusion, Egypt got stuck in the middle of the road through the Red Sea that God had cleared for Israel to cross over. While the confused soldiers were saying they should run from Israel because the Lord is fighting for them (vs. 25), the Lord told Moses to stretch out his hand and tell the sea to close over Egypt, its chariots and its fighting men (vs. 26).
So, the Red Sea was restored to normal. The walls between the sea to the left and the sea to the right collapsed with Egypt’s armies caught in the middle of the sea with no possible escape (vs. 27). Moses adds that the Egyptians were still fleeing directly into the sea as it was collapsing. Verse 28 provides the description of the final results of the outcome of this battle without Israel having to lift a finger in its own defense. “The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen, even Pharaoh’s entire army that had gone into the sea after them (Israel); nor even one of them remained.”
God provided the tenth plague, the plague of the death of every firstborn child in Egypt who did not have the mark of the Passover blood on their doorposts and lintel. That was the plague that caused Pharaoh to set God’s people free, and he demanded their exit as well. Now, Pharaoh was once again hardening his heart and changing his mind. Unfortunately, it was simply too late. The Pharaoh would lose his entire army and his own life also, by drowning in the sea. It was over!
The Powerful One (Ex 14:29-31)
The Powerful One (Ex 14:29-31)
The Powerful One (Ex 14:29-31)
The Powerful One (Ex 14:29-31)
So, God uses Moses to provide the natural summary of what happened that day. He reiterates that Israel walked across the bed of the Red Sea as if it was dry land. He says the water was like a wall to them on their left hand and on their right (vs. 29). Cecil B. DeMille produced, directed and narrated the most expensive movie of all time (at that point in history). It received seven Oscar nominations and one win for Special Effects; the way it captured the opening of the Res Sea, the walls of water and Israel passing through on dry land would be remembered for decades to come. He showed the water crashing in on the chariots and soldiers of Egypt as Moses (Charlton Heston) held out his staff to cause the walls to disappear, the waters to return and the Egyptian soldiers meet their end in the watery grave of the Red Sea. Verse 30 says “the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. That is the truth of what happened that day in the fewest words possible.
From there, Israel would go on following Moses to Mount Sinai where they would receive the Ten Commandments from God. He would lead them to the borders of Canaan, the Promised Land, where they would send twelve spies into the land to scope it out before they entered. But their lack of faith that God could deliver the land to them resulted in ten of the twelve spies saying it was too hard to do. The indigenous people made them feel like grasshoppers in their sight. But Joshua and Caleb saw it how it was. They knew nothing was impossible for God. If He said it was theirs, He would deliver it. Nevertheless, the other spies out voted the two (as if God cared what the vote was), and Israel would enter into forty years of meandering in the wilderness as punishment for rejecting God’s word.
But in the day described here, “When Israel saw the great power which the Lord had used against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in His servant Moses” (vs. 31). Israel was motivated, inspired, fired-up and ready to face anything. They had seen the Powerful One at work and were greatly impressed by His might and power. If only it would last!
Provision Given (Ex 16:11-19, 17:1-6, 01/05/2025)
Understand the Context (Ex 15:22-18:27)
Understand the Context (Ex 15:22-18:27)
Understand the Context (Ex 15:22-18:27)
Understand the Context (Ex 15:22-18:27)
The excitement of watching God get His victory over Egypt as well as His full and complete redemption of Israel forced Moses into song. Exodus 15:13 was just one line, “In Your lovingkindness You have led the people whom You have redeemed; In Your strength You have guided them to Your holy habitation.” Israel experienced God’s awesome deliverance for their nation. When they shortly arrived at Mount Sinai, God would remind them that they had been delivered there on “the wings of eagles and guided them through every step in their travels (Ex 19:4). Hosea explained their 40 years of meandering in the wilderness was more evidence that He loved Israel and was preparing them for the battles to received God’s gift of Canaan (Hos 2:14).
Exodus 16-17 shows how God led them with visions of palm trees for shade and springs of water for cooling and quenching thirst. He demonstrated His power over nature’s seas as well as enemy weapons. He demonstrated how living in obedience and trusting in God provision could make them successful in all their efforts (Ex 15:27).
God provided a series of illustrations of how completely satisfying life can be when living in obedience to the Lord. Moses pointed out how God led them and watched over them as they observed His ordinances and maintained a holy relationship with Him. He showed them how God completely met their physical needs which revealed His efforts to meet their spiritual needs as well. Moses was able to show Israel how God met the spiritual needs of the people through both spiritual and physical demonstrations. He emphasized the meeting of spiritual needs and showed how Ue used the meeting of physical need met those as well.
It was God’s way of showing His people how His activities were geared toward meeting all their needs as they remained dedicated to living and practicing each new revelation of Himself to His people. This would prove essential in their preparation for four decades in the wilderness as well as their new lives in the Promised Land.
Provision (Ex 16:11-15)
Understand the Context (Ex 15:22-18:27)
Understand the Context (Ex 15:22-18:27)
Provision (Ex 16:11-15)
The exhilaration of successfully crossing the Red Sea with such an obvious hand of the Lord and having the threat of the Egyptian armies following closely behind supernaturally eliminated were the miracles of Israel’s new beginning as an independent nation. Their first goal was to follow Moses to Mount Sinai to receive direction from the Lord. But, as they turned south toward God’s Mountain, they found they could not drink the salty waters of the Red Sea regardless of how thirsty they were. In Exodus 15:25-27, Moses tells how God brought Israel through an area full of palm trees and streams of water to drink.
Here, the Lord came to Moses saying that He has heard the grumblings of the people; therefore, He will meet the needs of meat just as He did for water (vss. 16:11-12). For food, God promised meat at night and bread in the morning. Notice in Verse 12, He does not say He would just meet their need but fill them with plenty.
Specifically, “It came about in the evening that quails came up and covered camp” (vs, 13a). And, “in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp” (vs. 13b). When the layer of dew evaporated, the surface of the wilderness was covered with a fine flake-like thing that was fine as the frost on the ground (vs. 14). The sons of Israel were confused by what they saw and asked each other, “What is it?” (vs. 15). So, Moses spoke to them saying, “It is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat.”
The next section provides instructions from the Lord regarding how much to take and how to use it, but here, it is important to recognize the extent of the Lord’s provision for Israel in the wilderness where He sent them. He knew they had spent the last couple generations of their 400 years in Egypt as slaves being fed inside their captivity. So, the Lord picked up that need during their transition to a self-reliant nation again. They had no need to hunt quail for meat because the Lord flew the quail to them, and it was all they needed. Likewise, the manna (Hebrew mawn) and it tasted like wafers with honey (Ex 16:15, 31). They had all they needed for every day.
Instruction (Ex 16:16-18)
Understand the Context (Ex 15:22-18:27)
Further Provision (Ex 17:1-6)
Instruction (Ex 16:16-18)
Moses gives Israel a rough measure of how much manna to take each day dependent on the number of people in the tent where each person lived (vs. 16:16). The suggestion was that each person should have an omer per day (about 2 quarts). So, if there were 12 people living in your tent, the person collecting the manna should gather 24 quarts for that tent.
Looking up the meaning of an “omer” was entertaining because they wanted to express it in terms of other Hebrew measures that were equally unknown in our cultures. For example, an omer is a sheaf, about one tenth of an ephah. An ephah is about equal to a bushel or about 20 quarts and a tenth of that would be the 2 quarts quoted above.
Verse 17 says that Israel did as they were instructed with some of the people gathering a little more and some gathering a little less. When it was collected using the omer measure, those who gathered much more had no excess, and those who gathered little had no lack. This statement means that God even made the measurement fool-proof. Each person did their best to collect the approximate amount of manna needed for their family, and God made the measure right. The only warning that went along with these instructions addresses the idea of hoarding manna beyond the day for which it was collected. Of course, there were those in the camp who felt the need to collect extra and save it until morning, hoarding the manna. The result was that the manna bred worms and rotted to the smell (vs. 16:20). It was clear that God provided the instructions for how to use the manna and those instructions were meant to be followed.
There was an exception, however, and even the exception was somewhat supernatural. That is, if the manna was collected on sixth day, it would last throughout the Sabbath when the work of collecting it was forbidden (vs. 16:29). Another exception: Moses told the people to collect one omer of manna in a bowl to show the bread they ate to future generations. That manna did not rot. Hebrews 9:3-4 documents that “the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant” were kept in the Ark of the Covenants for all generations to come.
Further Provision (Ex 17:1-6)
Further Provision (Ex 17:1-6, Cont.)
Further Provision (Ex 17:1-6)
Further Provision (Ex 17:1-6)
Now we have the sons of Israel traveling through the “Wilderness of Sin” or the Sinai Peninsula toward Mount Sinai according to the commandment of the Lord (Ex 17:1). Notice that this is still very early in the trip to receive the Promised Land covenanted by God to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob via the Abrahamic Covenant throughout the Book of Genesis. Recall especially Genesis 15:6 where God made the covenant with Abraham and “Abraham believed God and it was accounted unto him for righteousness.” This was the beginning of a man’s faith in God being accepted for his righteousness (see Eph 2:8-9). This concept is the foundational difference between eternity in Heaven or Hell.
So, the people of Israel camped at Rephidim as the Lord had commanded. At the close of their march for that day, setting up camp and preparing to feed and water their beasts, the people all looked for a place where they would find the water. Verse 7:1 documents there was no water for the people to drink. As was their newest habit, “Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, ‘Give us water that we may drink’” (vs. 2). Moses responds, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?”
Hear the conclusion of the problem as stated by the sons of Israel as the thirsty people grumble against Moses: “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” (vs. 3). The supposition in the statement of the people is that somehow Moses purposely brought the people out of Egypt so he could have them die of thirst right here in Rephidim. This charge against Moses was patently flawed. Moses had been called by God to get His people freed from slavery in Egypt. Not only has Moses already achieved that awesome task, but he also demonstrated the power of God in victorious head-to-head against each of the gods of Egypt. Moses opened the Red Sea and allowed Israel to pass on dry ground while destroying the entire Egyptian army when they gave chase. Falsely charging Moses at every opportunity is not what God was trying to accomplish with Israel’s freedom. Nevertheless, God will provide!
Further Provision (Ex 17:1-6, Cont.)
Further Provision (Ex 17:1-6, Cont.)
Further Provision (Ex 17:1-6, Cont.)
Further Provision (Ex 17:1-6, Cont.)
This slide shows Moses’ response to the issue of no water to care for the needs of the people and the livestock of Israel. First, notice that Moses maintained his humility in the Lord and cries out to Him before anything or anyone else. “Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, ‘What shall I do to this people? A little more and they will stone me’” (vs.17:4). Moses properly identified the real problem here. It was not that the people were tired, in need of rest and wanting food and water. The problem is that the people are attacking Moses at every turn. There is no united front here, there is no joint celebration of victories already won nor is there sufficient respect for Moses as God’s chosen leader to accomplish God’s deliverance of His people to the Promised Land, fulfilling the Abrahamic Covenant God made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. You can almost see Moses throwing his hands in the air as he yells, “What shall I do to this people?”
But here comes the answer from God. He says, “Pass before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile, and go” (vs. 5). God tells Moses that He will stand before him there on the rock at Horeb; and Moses will strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink. Well, this is certainly the solution the people wanted to see, but the people have not grown from this encounter. Once again, they have “scolded” Moses and falsely accused him as against Israel. Israel had learned to hate their leaders while in Egypt and they have not yet recognized that their new leader is one of them. God has appointed Moses to lead His people into the Promised Land.
Am I being too human in my disappointed at the people’s lack of gratitude and appreciation for what God has done? Do the people not understand that Moses gave up a position in Egyptian top leadership and luxury to protest the treatment of a slave just like them? He paid 40 years in wilderness exile to lead this people for 40 more years to be God’s man at God’s time. The verse appropriately ends with, “And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.” It is a simple, almost too small of a statement saying, once again, God said it, Moses followed, it worked.
God's Commands (Ex 20:1-17, 01/12/2025)
Understand the Context (Ex 19:1-23:33)
Understand the Context (Ex 19:1-23:33)
Understand the Context (Ex 19:1-23:33)
Understand the Context (Ex 19:1-23:33)
Three important events form the context for the early parts of these passages of Scripture. In the first, Moses asks the Lord how to deal with what he has come to recognize as a grumbling, complaining and self-centered people. After God provided them with meat at night (quail) and bread every morning (manna), they were quick to complain that they had no water. Moses interceded for Israel and God provided abundant water as he hit the rock with his staff (Ex 17:1-7). Second, He had Israel waiting in Rephidim for His revelation of the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai (Ex 17:8-16). That area of the Sinai Peninsula was controlled by the Amalekites, and they prepared to attack Israel. Moses appointed Joshua to deal with that threat, and he put it down handily. In Exodus 17:14, the first mention of Moses as the writer of the first five books of the Bible. This is the first internal evidence of the Bible crediting Moses with its writing. God tells Moses to write the book for Joshua who will become the leader of all Israel at the end of their 40-year exile in the wilderness. Moses built the first altar in to Yahweh (Jehovah) by the freed people and called it Yahweh nissi or “The Lord is My Banner” (Ex 17:15).
By this time, Israel had traveled for about 3 months, but their location relative to Canaan (the Promised Land) had changed very little (Ex 19:1). The truth was that it was not the geographic difference that mattered to the Lord, rather, their spiritual distance meant a great deal. Rephidim was less than a day’s journey from the Sinai Wilderness and Mount Sinai or Horeb. It was not due to Moses being lost, recall that he has 40 years experience in this wilderness, he knew exactly where they were. So, the issue was not their geographic distance from Sinai, it was their spiritual distance from it. The time was used by God to prepare Israel to deliver His grace to the world.
The events of Exodus 19 and 20 were used to establish Israel as the hearers of the Ten Words from God. They were to hear these words first hand from God and prepare to share them to with the remainder of the entire world. This was no small responsibility!
God’s Identity (Ex 20:1-2)
Understand the Context (Ex 19:1-23:33)
Understand the Context (Ex 19:1-23:33)
God’s Identity (Ex 20:1-2)
As Moses writes this chapter of Exodus, he emphasizes that God told him directly what His name or identity was/is. Verse 1 only sets up the comment by saying that God communicated directly to Moses. Verse 2 contains the actual information of the exchange. God says, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” There is one independent clause, and two dependent clauses used here to specify descriptions of God by which He is called hundreds of times throughout both Bible Testaments.
The first clause is the independent clause stating, “I am the Lord your God.” Recall when Moses first asked God who he should tell the children of Israel sent him, God said, “I AM that I AM: and He said, Thus shall thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto to you” (Ex 3:14). So, the words “I AM” have meaning in naming the Lord. These were also the words that nearly resulted in Jesus being executed by the Pharisees when He claimed He knew Abraham, and they said He was too young to have known Abraham. Jesus responded, “Before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58). The Pharisees charged Jesus with claiming to be God. So first, He wanted to be known as the One who had always existed. He had no beginning ort end. He is the eternal One.
Second, God wanted Moses to know and advertise that He is “the Lord your God.” Looking in the Hebrew, we find that the word “God” is Hebrew Elohym. This is the same word as Genesis 1:1 which identifies God as the Creator of the Universe. When couple with the Hebrew word for Lord, i.e., the Lord your God, it means Jehovah (or Yahweh) your Elohym. It ties the name of our God with the Creator. Elohym is a masculine plural while Jehovah is a noun. In other words, Jehovah is the singular name of our Elohym.
Third, God wants to be known as the one who took us out of Egyptian slavery. This is also mentioned hundreds of times in both testaments and more specifically identifies God by the specific work He has done. The mention of this work associates God with salvation from bondage which matches the ministry of the Hebrew Messiah or Greek Christ (John 19:30).
Relating to God (Ex 20:3-11)
Understand the Context (Ex 19:1-23:33)
Relating to God (Ex 20:3-11, Cont.)
Relating to God (Ex 20:3-6)
Research proves nearly unanimous that verses 3-6 comprise the entirety of the First Commandment. The summary of all that is said here is that we have only one God and the introduction of any other god or image of another god whether that god is from above, below or on earth is forbidden (vs. 3). That includes making any kind of image or likeness of any other god (vs. 4). There cannot be any worship or serving of any god, image, likeness or idol of such a being (vs. 5a). Verse 5b also adds some justification from the Lord for why He is insistent on being the singular focus of everyone’s worship. He says it is because He is a jealous God. He tolerates only a singular form of worship. There shall be no competing forms or images or objects used for any kind of worship. In the marriage ceremony it would sound like keeping oneself to Him only, forsaking all others until parted by death, and death does not part one from ones God.
While all of these things sound directive and limiting, they are consistent with each other in God’s desire to have a singular and exclusive relationship with each of His worshippers. Further, He mentions the punishments for offenses against Him will be brought to bear on offspring to the third or fourth generations of the offenders. Offenders are categorized as those who hate (disrespect, dishonor or dislike) Him. Nevertheless, He promises lovingkindness to thousands, that is, all those who love Him and keep His commandments as stated herein.
So, God insists on a singular and exclusive relationship where there are no other gods, images or desires competing for His exclusive relationship with us. It is not relevant where these competing gods may be positioned in the universe. Those who offend against this commandment, or the other 9, shall result in judgement against any descendent to the offender (specifically children) as far as the third or fourth generations after the initial offense. Verse 6 shows contrasting feelings and treatments for those who instead of hating Him by showing contempt for Him or His commandments, love Him by showing honor, acceptance and obedience to Him and His commandments. All of these observations are counted as the First Commandment.
Relating to God (Ex 20:3-11, Cont.)
Relating to God (Ex 20:3-11, Cont.)
Relating to God (Ex 20:3-11, Cont.)
Relating to God (Ex 20:7-11)
The prohibition of taking the Lord’s name in vain (the Second Commandment) is one of those that deals with common respect and courtesy for the greatness of God and our appreciation for all that He has done for us. Consider first the creation of the universe within which we live and the greatness of all He has provided for us. Using His name in vain, that is, recklessly or carelessly, is disrespectful and unappreciative of what He has given us. Even worse, taking the name of His Son, Jesus Christ in vain snubs our noses at the magnificence of the greatest gift He could give: the payment for the forgiveness of all the sin charges against us, forever. Jesus is quoted as using the words “it is finished” (Greek: tetelestai) at the close of His suffering, just before He gave up His spirit and allowed Himself to die. The root word for tetelestaiis the word telos which was in common use during Jesus’ life as a final and complete payment or discharge of debt (John 19:30). The ai at the end of the future perfect tense signifies “a future state that will result from a finished action” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greek_verbs). The “finished action” was His death; the “resultant established state” is the perpetually forgiven status of the believer because of Jesus’ completed act. In other words, Jesus spoke the word meaning He not only paid the required price to settle the debt, but His death established the fully settled debt for all past, present, future debt for the eternity to come. Sin can never separate us from Him again.
When Paul finishes establishing the impossibility of living the sinless life (“everything I want to do, I cannot do and all that I do not want to do is exactly what I do” in Romans 7:14-24), he begins Romans 8 with the words, “1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. 3 For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh.” (NASB). Hebrews 8:8-12 as quoted from Jeremiah 31:31-34 predicts the day that will come when a New Covenant is established where God will “forgive our sins and remember our iniquities no more.” The New Covenant was established at the death of Jesus Christ.” The old black spiritual song catches the feeling of “free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, I am free at last!” And His action is exactly why we must never take the Lord’s name in vain nor forget to honor His sabbath rest. He gave His life to buy our freedom. We must never forget nor ever take Him lightly.
Relating to Others (Ex 20:12-17)
Relating to God (Ex 20:3-11, Cont.)
Relating to Others (Ex 20:12-17)
Relating to Others (Ex 20:12-17)
The Fourth Commandment leaves our behavior with respect to God and begins our behavior with respect to others around us. This Commandment is the only one that includes a promise. It says, “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your God gives you” (vs. 12, NASB). The implication is simple: if we want to continue enjoying the life that God has given us in the land He provided, we must honor our mothers and fathers.
Verses 13-17 seem to give the remaining Commandments quickly but that in no way diminishes or reduces the importance of each one. As a matter of fact, James tells us, “For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all” (Jas 2:10). So, those who try to group the Ten Commandment by seriousness of the sin need to remember that, according to James, sinning against any one of them makes us guilty of all of them. The telling of “white lie” is just as seriously guilty as the murderer or adulterer. That specifically deals with the equal seriousness of each of the sins. Sin is disobedience to God’s Commandments. There are no great ones or small ones, and dying in sin is condemnation. Paul says, “The wages of sin is death.” (Rom 6:23).
Notice that the New American Standard Bible states the Fifth Commandment as “You shall not murder.” (vs. 15). The Hebrew word for “kill” (KJV) is râtsach, and speaks specifically to the unlawful taking of another’s life, that is, murder of another human being. There are many circumstances where killing (lawfully taking another’s human life) is completely lawful.
The taking of another’s spouse is forbidden by the Sixth Commandment. Not only is adultery a gross sin against that spouse, but it is a gross sin against the two people directly involved. They have both committed adultery and have cause another person to join them in committing adultery. Further, the both of them are guilty of causing the other to set aside an oath taken before the Lord. This sin taken along with the remaining four deals with desiring something or someone who belongs to someone else. “Coveting” means desiring. Looking at someone or something with appreciation in one’s mind is not the sin. But taking action to acquire that person or thing that belongs to someone else is the transition point. When every we feel that transition in our hearts, we must force the discipline to walk away and stay away.