Exodus and Leviticus

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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)

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)

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)

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!

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)

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)

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)

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.” 

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)  

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)

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)

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.

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)

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)

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)

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!

Understand the Context (Ex 22:1-27; Lev 19)

There is a great deal of splendor and pomp associated with the building of the tabernacle for Israel. Recall they were condemned to slavery in Egypt and had no rights to any form of religion including their own. Many had joined with the worship of various created things for worship like the Egyptians did. But here, the whole idea of religion changes for Israel. The description of the Ark of the Covenant and the building of it are awesome (Chapter 25)! The Ark would serve as the centerpiece within the Holy of Holies also called the Most Holy place. The one being built here would serve them for forty years in the wilderness and be transferred into the Temple in Jerusalem when the wilderness exile was over and Solomon built the Temple. 

No one was allowed into the Most Holy place except the High Priest, and he was only allowed there on the Day of Atonement. The Book of Hebrews provides a little more information on the Ark for us to tie a couple Old Testament points together.  Chapter 25 gives the instructions for how to build the Ark, but Hebrews tells us what was placed inside the Ark.  Hebrews 9 recapitulates the general idea of the construction and adds at verse 4, “Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant.”  These were the three elements from the Old Testament which summed up the total rejection of God by Israel. The second set of tablets (Ten Commandments) were there to show Israels rejection of God’s Law; the golden pot of manna was in there to show Israel’s rejection of God’s provision; and Aaron’s rod that budded was there to show Israel’s rejection of God’s leadership. God would look down between the cherubim which blocked the view of the Mercy Seat from all but Him and see these objects inside the Ark. 

Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest would enter the Holiest place with the blood of an unblemished animal. He would sprinkle the blood of the animal on the Mercy Seat using a hyssop branch. The blood would cover the Mercy Seat, and God could not see through it. Israel’s sin was covered by the blood. It is easy to see how this celebration pointed forward to the cross of Christ where His blood covered all our sin forever. As Hebrews 9:28 says, while the High Priest was required to enter the Holy of Holies every year, “Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” Paul says, “Now, therefore, there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:1). The Old Testament and the New Testament come together to show Jesus Christ completing the sacrificial system forever. He only needed to enter the Holy of Holies ONCE.

Exploitation (Ex 22:21-24)  

Now God, through Moses, turns to establishing a government with integrity and accountability in mind. First point in Israel’s management structure is to manage through what we learned while in Egyptian captivity. With Israel government, there will be no vexation or oppression of strangers. Leaders must remember how things were in Egypt, and how their total lack of recall and associated gratitude for saving Egypt when all the other nations of the world were starving to death multiplied their lack of gratitude for what the Jews had done for them. It was Israel who did that, but way back at chapter 1, we learned there was a new king in Egypt who did not remember Joseph or the things he did. They forgot it was a Jewish man who successfully managed Egypt’s response to the seven years of plenty and the seven years of famine. So, leaders in Israel will not behave as Egypt’s leaders did. Further, there will be no affliction of widows or orphans in our country. 

Verse 22 states the mandate and verse 23 establishes the penalty for failure to obey. We will not afflict the widows or the fatherless. These are the most vulnerable of the population among us and must be cared for. If anyone disobeys that command, the afflicted ones will cry to the Lord and He will hear their cries. And when He hears, His wrath will wax hot, and He will execute the guilty with a sword (vs. 24). Further, the families of the guilty will be repaid with the same penalties they inflicted on these most vulnerable. Namely, those guilty of afflicting widows will not only face capital punishment for themselves, but their families will experience widowhood and fatherlessness because of their offenses. Specifically, their wives will become widows, and their children will become fatherless. Those who chose to live by the sword will certainly die by the sword. 

Lending Practices (Ex 22:25-27)  

In addition to taking care of the widows and fatherless, Moses documented God’s will for lending and borrowing money from one another within the community. If you are one who loans money, you shall not act like a creditor among God’s people, nor shall you charge them interest on the money they borrow. Moses does not speak this specifically, but God is setting up more than banking procedures here. The idea follows on from the first bullet of not exploiting members of the community. He is saying, the same attitude must be followed when dealing with lending money to the less fortunate or needy among us.  When they have a need, we have a responsibility to respond to that need without trying to make money, or other profit off their misfortune. Recall that Jesus said, “40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also. 41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. 42 Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away” (Matt 5:40-42). It is an attitude of helpfulness an generosity that God is trying to instill in the minds of His people.

Verses 26 and 27 goes even farther in making sure members of the community take care for one another. Here He says that if a debtor, who is a neighbor, has to give you his clothing as earnest on a loan, the loaner must return the clothing before nightfall to allow the debtor to keep warm overnight. He wants us to understand that there are people among us who are legitimately less well off than we. And, when we see that need, we are to respond to that need in ways that help them overcome that need, but without finding ways to profit from doing so. Whenever possible, it is permissible to pick up the check for dinner, for example. It is not because it is expected or even because it is “your turn.” It is because when God blesses you, it is because He believes you will bless others. Now, this cannot be done to embarrass the neighbor nor to reject his gift to you.

Reaping Crops (Lev 19:9-10)

This word from the Lord is one that we recall from reading the Book of Ruth. Remember that Ruth and her Jewish mother-in-law returned poor from Moab where her family fled during the earlier famine in Israel. Naomi’s husband died and so did her two sons, leaving her poor and without a kinsman redeemer to help provide for her. So, she returned to Israel and sent Ruth to go to her rich, landowning relative because they would not harvest the corners of the crop, nor would they clean up all the spillage of the gleaning process. Rather, they would leave these for the less fortunate that they might live off their overabundance.  Here is where God established that way of being for the less fortunate. God specifically says that when the reapers reap, they must not reap the corners of the field. These will be left for the poor or less fortunate. Naomi and Ruth were both legitimate widows of Jewish husbands. Naomi was a Jewess, herself while Ruth was a Moabites widow of Naomi’s son. Boaz, the rich kinsman, not only let Ruth harvest and glean, but gave orders to his workmen to leave extra for her. It did not go unnoticed that Boaz was also romantically attracted to Ruth. We recall that their eventual union resulted in the birth of King David in a couple generations and in the birth of Jesus, the Christ several generations after that!

Verse 10 extends the principle in verse 9 to include the methodology of leaving a part of the harvest of the vineyard for the poor. As the vineyard owner reaps the harvest of the grapes from his vineyard, God instructs that he will leave the grapes that fall aside from the harvest for the poor rather than cleaning up anything they drop. God completes more of the instruction from verse 9 by including the stranger (non-Israelite) who has a need also. This short word of inclusion made Ruth specifically included in those allow to freely take a part of the harvest and the gleanings of the same. 

Notice also that God specifically identifies whom it is that gives such direction to all the families of the nation of Israel. He says, “I am the LORD your God.” In Hebrew, that is once again clearly identifying Jehovah (or Yahweh) your Elohym. 

Understand the Context (Ex 24:1-31:18)

The Lord calls Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu and seventy of the elders of Israel to meet for worship of Him, but only Moses was permitted to come near Him. The other were to “worship afar off” (vss. 1-2). Moses was to tell the others what the Lord had said to him. As he did, all the people Moses had with him agreed to do exactly as the Lord directed (vs. 3). What was happening here was nowhere as important as the incarnation where God and man could talk face to face together, nor has the thick curtain between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies been ripped like at the conclusion of Jesus sacrifice for sin, so only Moses was allowed to speak with the Lord and see Him. Nevertheless, Moses repeated God’s words, and they agreed unanimously (19:8 & 24:3).  

Moses provided an offering to the Lord and then read all the words of the covenant to them (vss. 7-8). Verse 10 talks of how the selected group Moses chose to go to God with Him “saw the God of Israel,” but this would be inconsistent with Scripture saying that no one can see God and live (John 1:18 & 1 John 4:12).  So, the seeing of God was likely the seeing of His surroundings. 

What they were permitted to see was the pavement upon which He walked, and the gemstones used for it. The wealth of what they saw gave them a great vision of the unlimited wealth of the things that were all around the Lord. These gave the vision of unlimited wealth and beauty of God’s dwelling place which would someday be our dwelling place as well (John 14:1-3). 

Then we see Moses departing alone to receive visions of the restored Tablets of the Law that God would give him after restoring the words as written with His own finger. Now, once he receives them, as we studied last time, God would instruct him to put them aside until His vision of the Ark of the Covenant was delivered to him where the second set of Ten Commandments, the golden pot of manna and Aaron’s rod that budded were to be stored (Heb 9:4). On this trip of 40 days and nights, Moses would get the details for the Tabernacle, furnishings, operations and functions of the priesthood.

The Task (Ex 25:1-7)

Verse 1 shows some of the hard assignments the writers of the Lord’s words must do. Recall that Moses is writing the words, “Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying…” So, Moses is using third person, singular nouns and pronouns to talk about the Lord speaking to Moses (himself) as if he is reporting a discussion with the Lord to another person in the group. This style takes away the emphasis on the writer and shifts it to a conversation between the two important speakers in the discussion. So, the Lord told Moses to tell the sons of Israel to raise a contribution for Him. Notice in verse 2 that the Lord tells Moses that the contribution will be a “free will” contribution. That is, “every man whose heart moves him to contribute to this cause, from him shall you raise the contribution for Me.” Moses is to let the people give as it is laid upon their hearts. 

In verse 3, the Lord reveals what kind of contribution it can be, namely, it could be a contribution of these various types. The first type listed in verse 3 could be in precious metals: gold, silver and bronze. This choice is more like cash than the others. Gold, silver and bronze are precious metals which can be spent as if the metal is cash. The second type is fine linens in blue, purple and scarlet material which could be used directly as barter in exchange for another commodity or sold for cash to be used with another customer (vs. 4). The third is rams’ skins dyed red, porpoise skins or acacia wood (vs. 5). These are like the second where the product could be sold or traded for something else.  The oil for lighting, spices for anointing oil and for the fragrant incense (vs. 6) could be used by the producer or sold for cash which could than be given as contributions. The last of this list names the commodity and then the use for which it is intended. The onyx stones and setting stones are intended for the ephod or the breastplate (vs. 7). Each of these are to be used in the religious settings for the outfits the Lord requires for the religious services. The Law dictates the design and use of the ephod and breastplate. The jewels are usually engraved with one of the names of the 12 tribes and then fastened to the ephod or breastplate to be worn by the priest in his services in the Tabernacle or Temple (Hebrews 2:17, 4:14 to 7:28, 9, 10).  

God’s Presence (Ex 25:8-9)

Verses 8 and 9 give the detail for what the contribution of verses 1-7 is for. In very clear language, the Lord says He wants Israel to build a sanctuary for Him that He might always be with His people. Chronologically, there is something missing here. Moses told the people he was taking them to the land that flows with milk and honey, and they are to possess this land as promised in the Abrahamic Covenant as passed on the Isaac and Jacob. But after Moses gets their freedom and God destroys the Egyptians Army, Israel continues to Mount Sinai where God gives Moses the Ten Commandments for them (Ex 20). Now, it would seem that Israel has the Law and is ready to move forward to occupy the land which God had promised as a possession for Israel.  Instead, Moses delivers God’s words expanding and explaining His Ten Commandments. 

Part of God’s revelation of Israel is His desire to be present with them. To that end, God directs the contribution to be collected (as above) and reveals the purpose for it here. God wishes to have Israel construct a sanctuary where He can dwell with them. Recall from the very creation of man, God desired fellowship with him. The Tabernacle will provide that Holy Place where God can dwell and be with man. Further, Israel will be a travelling people for at least four decades, and the Tabernacle was designed as a mobile worship center. It is, in fact, a tent, and Israel (more specifically, the Tribe of Levi) will be responsible for moving it.

I questioned the chronology because only God knew (at this point) that Israel would spend the next 40 years meandering through the wilderness resulting from their rejection of Canaan for fear that the current occupants were too mighty to overcome. Verse 9 reveals God’s design of the Tabernacle where He would dwell with and provide guidance for Israel. Verse 9 promises the details for its construction, its contents and its operation until it is replaced when Soloman dedicates the permanent Temple in Jerusalem. God’s instructions are thorough, detailed and complete with instructions for how it is to be staffed and operated to provide God’s presence with His people in their travels to Canaan and their subsequent 40 years of wandering thereafter.

Equipped (Ex 31:1-6)

All of us who serve the Lord know from personal experience that He never calls a person or issues a task without providing the full and complete capabilities to address all its requirements. In this case, God assigns the task of building the Tabernacle to Moses in Chapter 31 and provides the two best men to address having Moses succeed in this assignment. Verses 1-5 announce God’s selection of Bezalel of Judah to lead the effort of building His Tabernacle. God says He had filled him with the “Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge and in all kinds of craftmanship to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver, bronze, cutting of stones and carving in wood.”  It should not be surprising that God gave Bezalel the Spirit of God for these skills; God has provided us for our assignments the same way. I have stopped counting the number of times I have witnessed God providing skills or knowledge I did not have to help people understand a biblical concept or saving grace God wanted to use. The key issue here is that God has already called and equipped the right man for this job and is revealing that name to Moses. 

Then God reveals that He had called another man along with Bezalel to this task. This man’s name is Oholiab of Dan. Of him, the Lord reveals only that He has established in the hearts of all who are skillful, the skills required to execute all that He has commanded of them to do (vss. 6-7). The combination of these two men will provide God-gifted talent to address all the issues and challenges that would surface in executing these tasks. 

This is far from unusual. Figure 1 presents Bible teaching on the topic of Spiritual Gifts.  We see that God has provided gifts, ministries and manifestations for a total of 315 permutations for use (Felsburg, 2015, Inside the Church, p. 126). He provided five Spiritual Gifts: Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors, Teachers (Eph 4:11); seven Practices or Ministries: Prophesying, Ministering, Teaching, Exhorting. Giving, Ruling, Showing Mercy (Rom 12:6-8) and nine Manifestations: Word of Wisdom, Word of Knowledge, Faith, Gifts of Healing, Working of Miracles, Prophecy, Discerning of Spirits, Diverse kinds of Tongues, Interpreting Tongues (1 Cor 12:8-10). An example might be hiring a person with the Spiritual Gift of Evangelism, in the position of Teaching presenting a Prophesy. 

Understand the Context (Ex 32:1-40:38)

It seems that the opening for this study goes somewhat out of its way to restate the Abrahamic Covenant and its importance to this specific setting. The tenants of the Covenant were established with Abraham and repeated by God to Isaac and Jacob. In this case, the content of the covenants was read to the people of Israel. The people heard the Covenant, committed to the Lord for it, were sealed by the blood of it and enjoyed the peace of the sacrifice in the house where Jehovah lived among His people. The time of actual occupancy of the Lord’s House depends on the completion date of the house and its furnishings. The delivery of the new set of tablets is mentioned here. Recall that Moses destroyed the first set when he came down from Mount Sinai after receiving the Commandments from the Lord. When he saw the idol worship of the people, he threw the tablets to the ground which broke them and initiated an earthquake which swallowed up several thousand people.  The new tablets represent the Law, just as the first one did, but the need for another set adds a representation of the sin that led to the need for new tablets.

Moses again goes up to get the tablets and Israel builds the golden calf. God looks like He is in frustration as He tells Moses He is ready to destroy them. But Moses consults with the Lord reminding Him of what the people outside the situation will says about Israel and Israel’s God if He cannot reliver them to the promised land and fulfill the Abrahamic Covenant issued so many years before. God agrees with Moses and the nation is saved but 3,000 of them would die immediately and more would die from a plague God sent to punish the leaders of the movement. 

So, Moses is shown as being “a friend of God” and one who has figuratively seen God face-to-face. Exodus 34 shows how this episode in Israel’s history resulted in a massive renewal of their faith. Nevertheless, the final building of the Tabernacle of the Congregation will require the direct leadership of the Lord to make it happen. The Tabernacle plays an extremely large role in the history of Israel as it is God’s place of direct dwelling between God and His people.

Instructions Followed (Ex 40:16-21)

The title of this part of our study is “Instructions Followed.” Verses 16 and 17 make the completion of the Tabernacle of the Congregation a fact. The first significant part of that fact was that Moses was completely obedient to the instructions the Lord had given Him. The second major fact is that Moses was able to state that “the Tabernacle was erected.” So, it is established that Moses was specifically obedient to God’s directions and that it was, in fact, completed on the given date. That is historic for Israel. Recall that God promised to dwell above the Mercy Seat within the Holy of Holies over the Ark of the Covenant. On the Day of Atonement, He would see the High Priest sprinkle the blood of the unblemished animal on the Mercy Seat and He would be blinded from seeing the sin of man represented by the three elements placed inside the Ark: the second set of ten commandment tablets, the golden pot of manna and Aaron’s rod that budded (Heb 9:4).  These elements represented man’s rejection of God’s Law, thee rejection of God’s provision and the rejection of God’s Leadership with Aaron as High Priest. 

Verses 18 thru 21 recount the direct match between God’s specific instructions and Moses’ full compliance with completing the Tabernacle exactly the way God designed it. Verse 20 documents that Moses put the testimony (three elements mentioned above) into the Ark, put the staves in the loops provided on the Ark, laid the Mercy Seat in place on top of the Ark and brought the Ark inside the Tabernacle to take its proper place. Once he had the Ark in place where the Holy of Holies would be, he placed the seven-layer-thick veil between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. Now, the veil would stretch from ceiling to floor and from one wall to the other. Moses must have had significant assistance in getting this task done. 

Just a note on context, this veil is the veil that had all seven layers ripped from top to bottom when Jesus said from the cross, “It is finished” (Greek tetelestai). It signified that there was no longer any barrier between the Holy of Holies and the worshiper (Matt 27:51, Mark 15:38-40 & Luke 23:44-47). That is, we all have direct access to God everyday, anytime. 

Tabernacle Inhabited (Ex 40:34-35)

The end of verse 33 states, “Thus Moses finished the work.” The verses between 40:21 and 40:34 list all of the finishing touches for the setting up of the furnishings of the Holy Place, that area just outside the veil to the Holy of Holies. When these things were done, Moses was finished, and the Tabernacle was ready for use by Israel. God sent His indicator that the building was finished as He sent a cloud to cover the tent of the meeting (vs. 34). This was no shock for the people of Israel. Recall that they saw the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire when they first left Egypt. It was a guide for them during the day while the pillar of fire led them at night. Both pillars established a divider wall between Moses and the people of Israel, and the Egyptian Pharaoh and his charioteers when they came after Israel after they crossed the Red Sea. When the Pharaoh’s heart hardened, the pillars established a protective barrier between Israel and the Egypt until Israel could safely pass through the Red Sea. 

Verse 34 tells us that the pillar of cloud over stretched the entire tent of meeting for the Tabernacle. The second half of the same sentence tells us that the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. This was the dwelling of the Lord with Israel within the Tabernacle of the Congregation. “God with us” had a literal meaning in addition to His spiritual love and experience with His creation. But notice that not even Moses could be in the tent of the meeting when the pillar of cloud settled on it and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle (vs. 35).  This is the same Moses who God allowed to see the afterglow of His glory at his request, but now, not even Moses could share the place where that glory resided. 

With that in mind, look at verses 3 -5 in Revelation 21, “3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.” Our future holds a closer position with God than even Moses had. Not only will we be permitted to share His space, but He will reach out and wipe the tears from our eyes!!!

Guidance Given (Ex 40:36-38)

Verses 40:36-38 show us the final state of Israel relative to God as we enter a time of the wanderings of Israel. This will seem amazingly familiar because this is the state of Israel as she departed from Egypt after the Pharaoh demanded that they leave his country. The primary difference is in the fact that while God was with them in the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire, He did not physically dwell with them. In this relationship, the glory of God was physically occupying the Tabernacle of the Congregation. In these pages, we see God realizing His desire to be the Lord their God and dwell with them. Verses 36 and 37 tell us that the pillar of cloud was the permanent leader for Israel for the entire journey to Canaan where Israel rejected God’s promised victory over all the lands and people of the heathen Canaan land. God would use the pillar of cloud to guide them during the daylight hours. Whenever the cloud remained in place, Israel did not travel. Whenever the cloud was taken up, Israel would travel. 

Verse 38 documents the state of Israel relative to the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire during all the years of their journeys.  When thinking of the years of their journeys recall that Israel will very soon find themselves at the boarder of the promised land (Canaan) being asked by Moses to decide whether to go into the land and completely take it over with God’s ample assistance. When they show they did not have sufficient faith in God to trust Him to deliver Canaan, they are punished with 40 years of exile in the wilderness. So, the definition of “all their travels” is extensive and lengthy. Verse 38 says simply, “For throughout all their journeys, the cloud of the Lord was on the Tabernacle by day, and there was fire in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel.” And one more reminder, the open view of the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire was not only viewed by Israel, but also by any group who were near as Israel marched by, including enemies.

Understand the Context (Lev 1:1-10:20)

This study is the first in the Book of Leviticus, the third book of Moses’ writings in the Pentateuch, the first five Books of the Bible. God’s consistent message to us is that of His never-ending desire to be together with His creation which requires a way to make us holy, so He can be with us. That requires man’s recognition, repentance and confession of sin and God’s acceptance, correction and restoral of man. Now that we have the Tabernacle of the Congregation constructed (Ex 40:38), God must provide instructions on how to use that tool to make us one with God; that is, cover our sin and receive atonement from the Lord. Leviticus 1:1 thru 7:38 is used to tell Israel how to worship God and make the sacrifices God requires for covering man’s sin. He explains how the Burnt, Grain and Fellowship offerings would cause the sweet aroma of forgiveness and acceptance by God. Then God (through the Book of Leviticus) provides instructions on how to live a holy life, and when it fails, how to eliminate the new defilement through acknowledgement, repentance, blood sacrifice and atonement. It sounds a lot like the sanctification part of the cycle of justification, sanctification and glorification we enjoy in the New Testament. The key difference, of course, is that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ made justification happen just once for all time (Heb 10:10). A reading of Hebrews 8, 9 and 10 will explain the details of the difference and why God repeated Jeremiah 31:31-34 into Hebrews 8:12 & 10:17. The key is “For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.” Entrance into the Old Covenant requires a SINCERE repentance and offering of the appropriate sacrifices. Entrance into the New Covenant requires a SINCERE belief and confession that Jesus died for our sins and rose again to show God’s acceptance of His sacrifice, ONCE AND FOR ALL (Rom 10:9-10).

Then Leviticus explains what the roles and practices were for the Old Testament priests (Lev 8:1-9:24). Moses explains the various sacrifices and how they major on the ideas of forgiveness and atonement. Hebrews 8-10 describes how this activity is repetitive, but Christ finished it forever.

Separated (Lev 9:15-21) 

The “then” at the beginning of verse 15 refers to all that was presented before. Moses had called Aaron, his brother and the High Priest of Israel, to take his position in the Tabernacle. Before Aaron could offer sacrifices for all the others, he must be cleansed and make sacrifices for himself so that he would be clean from sin and worthy to sacrifice offerings for others. So, after he completed making himself holy through the sacrifices for himself, he “then presented the people’s offering.” He prepared that offering and presented it to the Lord just as he had done the first, that is, the one he offered for himself. In verse 16, he offers the burnt offering. This one is another part of the daily process to set the altar and the those offering for the holiness required to offer for others. The burnt offering is to be done at the beginning of the offering day and again at the end of the offering day. It sets the beginning and end of offerings to the Lord and establishes and removes the holiness of the place for the sacred offerings to the Lord.  

Verses 17 and 18 give the clear indication that Aaron is still in the process of doing the initial offerings for the day before they handle individual offerings for the people. Verse 17 mentions “the burnt offering of the morning” which makes it the first of the two at the beginning and ending of the days. Verse 18 mentions “the sacrifice of peace offerings which was for the people.” That would be for the “group of people” rather than a person.  

The specific mention of the fat of the pieces is because the fat of the animal is considered the best or a delicacy of the offerings being made. Notice that all these fatty pieces are offered in the smoke offerings to the Lord. That means they are totally consumed, and the smoke is for the benefit of the Lord, only. It is “a sweet aroma to the Lord.”  Now, verse 21 shows the meatier portions (the breast and the thigh) are offered as a Wave Offering. These portions are waved by the priest in God’s direct and returned to the priest for his, and his family’s consumption. The Wave Offering can also be shared with other priests. This is a part of how the Levites were supported by God. It almost makes you envision a day with the priest and how they select what is Waved or not.

Offering Accepted (Lev 9:22-24)

So, Aaron is now approaching the end of the full day of sacrificing for that first day. Verse 22 shows it is the end of day because the most expensive of the daily offerings, the second burnt offering is announced. Aaron pronounces the blessing on the people after he completes the sin offering, the burnt offering and the peace offering as steps down (vs. 22). The day is done, and Aaron can look back on the first day of his service as the High Priest for Israel. Moses rejoins Aaron at that point, and they walk together into the tent of the meeting.  Recall that the altar where the sacrifices are made is at the other end of the Tabernacle enclosure from the Tent.  Moses and Aaron would leave the Altar area and walk past the golden laver, toward the Tent of the Meeting. They would enter the tent into the Holy Place, at the other end of which is the seven-layer-thick veil from ceiling to floor. Beyond the veil is the Holy of Holies where the Ark of the Covenant is located. Inside the Ark are the elements of the Testimony: the second set of ten commandments, the golden pot of manna and the rod of Aaron which budded. There is no documentation of what Moses and Aaron did in the Tent of Meeting, but when they came out, they pronounced another blessing on the people after which the Glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. 

Apparently, when Aaron laid the animal and the fat for the burnt offering on the altar as he completed his work before Moses came to meet him. So now, we see that “fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the portions of fat on the altar” (vs. 24). The verse continues that as the people saw the fire of the Lord consume the burnt offering, “they shouted and fell on their faces.” The people recognized that they had seen an awesome work of the Lord as He personally sent the fire to consume the offering. It was so overwhelming for the witnesses that they immediately fell on their faces before God to recognize His full endorsement of the altar, the offering and the sacrificial system at their seeing. They fell and worshipped the Lord in pure gratitude for what He had allowed them to see and experience. Just imagining the events of that day is so very inspiring that it drives my heart to worship Him as well. 

Holiness Seen (Lev 10:1-3) 

In the first three verses of Chapter 10, we see the two sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, taking their firepans to the altar of offerings. What is unique about their fire in the firepans is that it was not the fire the Lord provided for the altar and the offerings offered there. Verse 10:1 correctly labels this fire as “strange fire” because it was not provided by the Lord. They had properly constructed the contents of the firepans by providing the incense for the proper aroma to the Lord, but the fire they brought before the Lord was not the fire God had provided for that purpose. Think of all the attention to detail for the entire offering process and how exacting the Lord was about every aspect of that ceremony. There was no reason for these two men to believe that God would ease His attention to detail for the work they were assigned. Nevertheless, that is what they did in bringing the strange fire before the Lord. 

Verse 2 documents God’s response to this error. It says simply that “fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed Aaron’s sons.  They died before the Lord.” Of course, Aaron was shocked that his two sons lost their lives while serving the Lord. The issue here is that many free-thinking people believe that serving the Lord is all about serving the way you wish and giving what you wish and limiting what you wish. Many have lost the idea of serving an absolute authority. The Lord our God is an absolute authority. We must meet Him on His terms not our own or anyone else’s.

In Verse 3, Moses explained to Aaron that what he experienced was covered by what the Lord had spoken, saying, ”By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy, And before all the people I will be honored.” Aaron fully understood what Moses was saying and decided that this was not the right time to question what the Lord had done to his sons. It was time, rather, to realize that there are times to question and there are times to simply accept the truth the way it comes. Aaron made a very wise choice to realize that this was not the time to question the way God did things. In this case, God was simply keeping His word and “Aaron decided, therefore, to keep silent.”

Understand the Context (Lev 17:1-27:34)  

The beginning of our relationship with God in the Garden was built on God’s desire to create every creature after its own kind but was nothing created after God’s own kind (Gen 1:24). In Genesis 1:26, God created man after His own kind, after His own image, in other words, like Him. He gave man charge over everything He created but warned him not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil lest he die.  When they ate of the fruit of that tree, they were ashamed and hid themselves from the Lord when He came to walk with them in the cool of the morning.  God had expectations of greetings and warmth, instead He experienced guilt and fear. 

Paul tells us that the purpose of the Law is to reveal that it is impossible to keep the Law (Rom 3:20). Paul makes another comment that drives home this point, “I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain (Gal 2:21). So, the Law cannot save us from sin; it can only reveal that we cannot successfully live in it. So, we needed more in order to get that redemption the Lord promised us, and that is where the grace of God comes in. Paul says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Eph 2:8). There is no condemnation to those under Jesus Christ (Rom 8:1)!

So, Leviticus provides foundational theology with practical applications. Chapters 1-16 gives instructions on how heal our continuous defilement with repetitive actions to confess and make sacrificial offerings to provide temporary righteousness. Under the Law, it is likely that they sinned again even before the sacrificed animal finishes burning. Chapters 17-27 show us that God expects those forgiven to express some modicum of gratitude for His forgiveness. But in truth, the frustration of sinning again so soon after being made holy makes us worse than we were before we started. Scripture like 1 John 4:19 and 1 Peter 1:16 give the New Testament repetition, but a careful read of Hebrews 10:10-12 says that we achieve imputed righteousness from Jesus Christ who establishes an everlasting righteousness which is based on His performance, not ours.

Faithfulness (Lev 26:1-2)

God begins His discussion with Israel here, immediately after He provides instruction on how to redeem various different kinds of people now that they have the Tabernacle and the promise of the presence of God with them (Lev 25). Beginning with Verse 26:1, Moses documents the basics of the relationship again. As we go back to Exodus 20:1, we can see that Moses is repeating the original conditions of the relationship (the Ten Commandments). The first one is certainly the foundation of the agreement: “I am the Lord you God and thou shalt not have any other Gods before thee” (Ex 20:2-3).  So, the basic idea of God’s relationship with man is that we must have only one God. We are forbidden to worship any other gods. Put in the simplest terms, we are not allowed to have anything that comes between us, that takes or blurs our focus on Him and Him alone. When discussing idols, many believe it has to be an object like a statue or a doll or a monument of some kind, but the truth is that an idol can be anything that comes between or reduces ones focus on God. It could be a house, car, wife, husband, money or anything else that limits your focus of or attention on God. He paid the price for us and deserves our full and complete attention. He uses the familiar phraseology here saying, “I am the Lord your God” at the end of verse 1. Using the Hebrew words, it means I am Jehovah (or Yahweh) your Elohiym.

In verse 2, Moses skips over not taking the Lord’s name in vain (Ex 20:7) and focuses on Exodus 20:8, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” That does not decrease the strength of His commandment not to take His name lightly or pronounce curses using His name, it just means that the emphasis God told Moses to take here, is on the Tabernacle and the commandments that relate most closely to it. Verse 1 focuses on worshipping God who appears above the mercy seat over the ark, and Verse 2 focuses on being sure to keep His sabbath and keeping it holy. He also adds that we should respect and hold honorably His Sanctuary or dwelling place among Israel (the Tabernacle).  For Christians, that should include the worship center for any place where Jesus Christ is called God.  Sometimes people get so worried about denominationalism that they forget that Jesus is a lot higher than some name we give His church. We worship Christ and love His.

Blessings (Lev 26:3-8)

In Verses 3-4, God emphasizes that obedience to His commandments will allow Israel to maintain close relationships, and when they honor their end of those relationships, He will honor His end. That is, if we will honor His commandments, He will make sure that the people get rain at the right times during the planting, cultivating and harvesting cycles. He further commits to making sure their fields produce heir produce and the trees yield their fruit. Not only does he guarantee that the crops will be plentiful, but that they will provide sustenance until the next harvest is ready to provide (vs. 5). The products from the threshing floor shall provide feed until the time for gathering the grapes, and the gathering of grapes will last until the next sowing time. God commits to provide food and allow them to enjoy it.  Further, that they will be able to consume it with knowledge that God Himself is keeping them secure in their land. 

The promise of eating their meals in security transitions nicely into verse 6 where God promises to grant Israel peace in their land so they can lie down and rest without fear of invasion. Further, God promises to prevent any vile beast from coming near their dwelling place. And the last part of verse 6 says He commits to make sure no sword or armed forces will come through their land. Verses 7 and 8 finish God’s promises concerning their home situation by describing their military standing. The first statement says they will chase their enemies, and they will fall before them by the sword (vs.7). 

Therefore, Israel will be the successful aggressor in their land.  

Specifically, five Israelis will chase after a hundred enemies and a hundred Israelis will chase after ten thousand.  All their enemies will fall before them by the sword. The prophesy speaks to Israel being a mighty military force to deal with. They will master military warfare so mightily that just a few of their soldiers will totally overwhelm the battle space and dominate their foes. The blessings continue as the Lord says Israel will endure with peace and prosperity at home and mighty victories when they are forced into battle.  They Lord says He will make them a fierce competitor as His hand causes peace, prosperity and honor the follow them.

Fellowship (Lev 26:9-13)

Now, the Lord gets even more personal with Israel. First, the Lord says He will turn toward Israel. That means that He will be paying specific attention to what is happening in the life events of Israel (vs. 9). With this beginning, it is easy to see that the writer is setting up a figure for a message. The Lord is everywhere, at all times and knows all there is to know. These are all characteristics of our God. Therefore, the note likely means that He is taking special notice of us, and in that notice, He wishes to accomplish three things. God wants to make us fruitful, multiply us and confirm His covenant with us (vs. 9). We will eat all of the current supplies until they are totally gone in order to make room for the new supply (vs. 10). This is receiving plentiful.

Next, He mentions He will make His dwelling place with us and never reject us (vs. 11). He says He will walk among us and be our God and we will become His people (vs. 12). These statements by God are found throughout both Testaments of the Bible. They speak of God’s statement of wanting to return to those days when He walked with us in the cool of the morning, before the Fall (Gen 3:8). The last time is in Revelation 21:3. The truth of a one-on-one relationship with God is something He promises and we hold in deep hope. 

Verse 13 is the final verse of today’s study. First, God holds true to His statements when He led Israel out of Egyptian captivity that He would remind us of the fact that, after 400 years in Egyptian captivity, He led Israel out of captivity to lead them to their own land, the Promised Land of Canaan. Second, after reminding us that He will be our God and we will be His people in verse 12, He identifies Himself as “the Lord our God, who brought us out of the land of Egypt so that you not be their slaves, and I broke the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect” (vs. 13). From the Hebrew, He identifies Himself as “the Lord (Hebrew Jehovah) our God (Hebrew Elohiym). That places us directly under the Creator of the Universe. The next phrase reminds us that He was the One who released us from harsh slavery. Third, He tells us that He broke the bars of our heavy yoke that made it impossible for us to stand up straight. Each phrase reveals reasons for gratitude.