Exodus 32 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Golden Calf

¹ When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, “Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” ² So Aaron said to them, “Take off the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” ³ So all the people took off the rings of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. ⁴ And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” ⁵ When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord.” ⁶ And they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.

⁷ And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. ⁸ They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’” ⁹ And the Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. ¹⁰ Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you.”

¹¹ But Moses implored the Lord his God and said, “O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? ¹² Why should the Egyptians say, ‘With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your burning anger and relent from this disaster against your people. ¹³ Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.’”¹⁴ And the Lord relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.

 

REFLECTION

• Please read the whole chapter once, then re-read the above passage.
• Moses had been gone a long time. Meanwhile, the people, impatient to get on with their new life of freedom, decided that they wanted to develop their own worship that they could “get something out of”. So they talked Aaron into providing them with worship that satisfied their desire – something that turned out to be pretty much a reflection of the Egyptian world in which they had so recently been oppressed.
• Their golden calf worship nearly destroyed them. And it is the same with us. Refusing to wait for God to speak, we many times fill in His silence with activity. Fund raising, building project, we model worship after patterns that are familiar to us and seem to work for others, patterns that leave out ambiguity and mystery as well as waiting on God and listening for Him. No wonder we feel disillusioned, isolated, inauthentic, and burned out.
• PRAY: Please read Day 14 of “Purpose Driven Life” on When God Seems Distant (http://purposedrivenlife2005.blogspot.ca/2005/03/day-14-when-god-seems-distant.html). Then have a conversation with God: God is real, no matter how you feel, really? How can you stay focused on God’s presence, especially when He seems distant?

 

Exodus 31 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Sabbath

¹² And the Lord said to Moses, ¹³ “You are to speak to the people of Israel and say, ‘Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you. ¹⁴ You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death. Whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. ¹⁵ Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death. ¹⁶ Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations, as a covenant forever. ¹⁷ It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’”

¹⁸ And he gave to Moses, when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God.

 

REFLECTION

• God chose workers to build the tabernacle. Once again, He reminded the Israelites to keep the Sabbath whether they are working for the sacred work or others.
• “Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths” (v13). This command was strategically placed – at the very end of all the commands to build the tabernacle. Though God gave Israel a work to do in building the tabernacle He did not want them to do that work on the Sabbath. God’s rest still had to be respected.
• Is the Sabbath for Christians? The passage states that the Sabbath is a sign of God’s covenant with Israel. On the other hand, Christians from the beginning have met on Sunday, not Sabbath – the seventh day of the week. While the Sabbath commemorates creation (v17), the first day of the week commemorates Jesus’ resurrection (Matt 28:1, Acts 20:7). What links the two is that each serves as a weekly reminder to believers of their personal relationship with God.
• If we are going to live appropriately in the world, we must keep the Sabbath. We must stop running around long enough to see what God has done and is doing. We must shut up long enough to hear what He has said and is saying. Without silence and stillness, there is no spirituality.
• Pastors and congregational leaders commonly cram the Lord’s Day with work: committee meetings, congregational meetings, projects, mission events, and social activities. But talking and doing displace Sabbath quietness and stillness. All of this activity is very well intentioned but nevertheless all very wrong. How might we re-organize our lives and priorities in order that we might actually practice Sabbath-living?
• PRAY: Recall last Sunday. How did you spend it? Did you enjoy the rest and time with God? Enjoy a few moments of silence with God knowing that God is enjoying it, too.

 

 

Exodus 30 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Census Tax

¹¹ The Lord said to Moses, ¹² “When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. ¹³ Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the Lord. ¹⁴ Everyone who is numbered in the census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the Lord’s offering.¹⁵ The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when you give the Lord’s offering to make atonement for your lives. ¹⁶ You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the Lord, so as to make atonement for your lives.”

The Bronze Basin

¹⁷ The Lord said to Moses, ¹⁸ “You shall also make a basin of bronze, with its stand of bronze, for washing. You shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it, ¹⁹ with which Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet. ²⁰ When they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn a food offering to the Lord, they shall wash with water, so that they may not die. ²¹ They shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they may not die. It shall be a statute forever to them, even to him and to his offspring throughout their generations.”

 

REFLECTION

• This chapter contains instructions not mentioned in the other chapters. Read this passage, or read the whole chapter if time allows.
• The half shekel tax “atonement money”(11-16) is to be collected from each Hebrew male, rich and poor, everyone has to pay the same small amount. This is to remind us that God’s redemption is equal to all.
• Eph 2:8-9 says: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast”. This tells us that our redemption is free to us, and we don’t need to pay the “atonement money”. However, the redemption is not cheap, as Dietrich Bonhoeffer called it, it is indeed very costly.

Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: “ye were bought at a price,” and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.

“Cheap grace is the deadly enemy of our church. We are fighting today for costly grace. Cheap grace means grace sold on the market like the cheap jack wares. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”

• PRAY: An excerpt from “The Cost of Discipleship” can be found at: http://www.crossroad.to/Persecution/Bonhoffer.html. Reflect on your life as a disciple of Christ. What kind of grace is expressed in your life? Ask God to show and direct you.

 

Exodus 29 English Standard Version (ESV)

Consecration of the Priests

¹ “Now this is what you shall do to them to consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. …….

³⁵ “Thus you shall do to Aaron and to his sons, according to all that I have commanded you. Through seven days shall you ordain them, ³⁶ and every day you shall offer a bull as a sin offering for atonement. Also you shall purify the altar, when you make atonement for it, and shall anoint it to consecrate it. ³⁷ Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar and consecrate it, and the altar shall be most holy. Whatever touches the altar shall become holy.

³⁸ “Now this is what you shall offer on the altar: two lambs a year old day by day regularly. ³⁹ One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight. ⁴⁰ And with the first lamb a tenth measure of fine flour mingled with a fourth of a hin of beaten oil, and a fourth of a hin of wine for a drink offering. ⁴¹ The other lamb you shall offer at twilight, and shall offer with it a grain offering and its drink offering, as in the morning, for a pleasing aroma, a food offering to the Lord. ⁴² It shall be a regular burnt offering throughout your generations at the entrance of the tent of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet with you, to speak to you there. ⁴³ There I will meet with the people of Israel, and it shall be sanctified by my glory. ⁴⁴ I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar. Aaron also and his sons I will consecrate to serve me as priests. ⁴⁵ I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God. ⁴⁶ And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God.

 

REFLECTION

• The theme of this chapter is the sanctification of priests. If time permits, read through the whole chapter once. Then re-read the selected portion above.
• Priests has to wash and offer sacrifices to symbolize being cleansed before he can put on the sacred clothing. God accepts their morning and evening sacrifices (v42), and promises to be with the people always. This foretold the truth “come near to God and he will come near to you”(James 4:8).
• In verses 44-46, “dwell” has the sense of abiding, living among, taking up residence. God’s purpose in delivering the Israelites out of Egypt is to live among them. God is also dwelling in the hearts of believers today.
• PRAY: How would you react if God’s presence became visible in the building where you attend worship services? Next Sunday try a little experiment: arrive at the worship service fifteen minutes early, sit quietly in the sanctuary, and pray for God’s presence to be especially strong. What difference did this exercise make in your attitude during worship?

Exodus 28 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Priests’ Garments

¹ “Then bring near to you Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the people of Israel, to serve me as priests—Aaron and Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. ² And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. ³ You shall speak to all the skillful, whom I have filled with a spirit of skill, that they make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him for my priesthood. ⁴ These are the garments that they shall make: a breast piece, an ephod, a robe, a coat of checker work, a turban, and a sash. They shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons to serve me as priests.⁵ They shall receive gold, blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen.

⁶ “And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and of fine twined linen, skillfully worked.⁷ It shall have two shoulder pieces attached to its two edges, so that it may be joined together. ⁸ And the skillfully woven band on it shall be made like it and be of one piece with it, of gold, blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen. ⁹ You shall take two onyx stones, and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel, ¹⁰ six of their names on the one stone, and the names of the remaining six on the other stone, in the order of their birth. ¹¹ As a jeweler engraves signets, so shall you engrave the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel. You shall enclose them in settings of gold filigree. ¹² And you shall set the two stones on the shoulder pieces of the ephod, as stones of remembrance for the sons of Israel. And Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord on his two shoulders for remembrance. ¹³ You shall make settings of gold filigree,¹⁴ and two chains of pure gold, twisted like cords; and you shall attach the corded chains to the settings.

 

REFLECTION

• This chapter gives instructions of priestly clothing.
• As high priest, Aaron was provided with distinctive clothing to “give him dignity and honor”. Each item he wore had symbolic significance. The ephod, a vest-like outer jacket featured two stones, mounted one on each shoulder. The name of each Israelite tribe was engraved on one of these stones. Whenever Aaron entered the tabernacle, he represented all the people of God.
• Today Jesus, our High Priest, represents the church before God’s throne. The New Testament says that “we have One who speaks to the Father in our defense – Jesus Christ the righteous”(1 John 2:1).
• All believers are “the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work,”(1 Pet 2:9). We also have the responsibility and privilege to intercede for others.
• PRAY: Let this sink in. Jesus, your high priest, is representing you and interceding for you before God’s throne. Continue wait before God. Notice if God brings anyone to mind. Is there any hardship, or need that God is reminding you? Pray for this person now, asking for blessings, and continue to do so for the coming week. If/when appropriate, speak to this person for comfort and encouragement. Wait with expectancy that God would listen to your prayer.

Exodus 27 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Bronze Altar

¹ “You shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits broad. The altar shall be square, and its height shall be three cubits. ² And you shall make horns for it on its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with bronze. ³ You shall make pots for it to receive its ashes, and shovels and basins and forks and fire pans. You shall make all its utensils of bronze. ⁴ You shall also make for it a grating, a network of bronze, and on the net you shall make four bronze rings at its four corners.⁵ And you shall set it under the ledge of the altar so that the net extends halfway down the altar. ⁶ And you shall make poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with bronze. ⁷ And the poles shall be put through the rings, so that the poles are on the two sides of the altar when it is carried. ⁸ You shall make it hollow, with boards. As it has been shown you on the mountain, so shall it be made.

The Court of the Tabernacle

⁹ “You shall make the court of the tabernacle. On the south side the court shall have hangings of fine twined linen a hundred cubits long for one side. ¹⁰ Its twenty pillars and their twenty bases shall be of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. ¹¹ And likewise for its length on the north side there shall be hangings a hundred cubits long, its pillars twenty and their bases twenty, of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. ¹² And for the breadth of the court on the west side there shall be hangings for fifty cubits, with ten pillars and ten bases. ¹³ The breadth of the court on the front to the east shall be fifty cubits. ¹⁴ The hangings for the one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and three bases. ¹⁵ On the other side the hangings shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and three bases. ¹⁶ For the gate of the court there shall be a screen twenty cubits long, of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, embroidered with needlework. It shall have four pillars and with them four bases. ¹⁷ All the pillars around the court shall be filleted with silver. Their hooks shall be of silver, and their bases of bronze. ¹⁸ The length of the court shall be a hundred cubits, the breadth fifty, and the height five cubits, with hangings of fine twined linen and bases of bronze. ¹⁹ All the utensils of the tabernacle for every use, and all its pegs and all the pegs of the court, shall be of bronze.

Oil for the Lamp

²⁰ “You shall command the people of Israel that they bring to you pure beaten olive oil for the light, that a lamp may regularly be set up to burn. ²¹ In the tent of meeting, outside the veil that is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning before the Lord. It shall be a statute forever to be observed throughout their generations by the people of Israel.

 

REFLECTION

• This chapter gives instructions on building altar and the courtyard. Read it over and pay special attention to the portion of altar building.
• A sanctuary is a place where we immerse ourselves in God. We, like the Israelites, gather there to listen to the reading of the Scriptures, from which we hear stories of God’s search for us, His love for us, His embrace of us, and His covenant commitment to us.
• In the sanctuary described in Ex 25-27, we see an altar. In our sanctuaries today, we see a cross. Through the sacrificial system, God instructed Israel about the consequences of their sins and foreshadowed the need for a sacrificial system in Christ, who gave Himself once and for all for our sins.
• Just as the Israelites brought their offerings to the sanctuary, so we bring our offerings when we come to church. Like the Israelites, we sing hymns, we pray, we confess our sins, we give thanks, and we offer our lives to God. The sanctuary isn’t a showplace where the audience comes and watches what takes place onstage. The sanctuary isn’t a lecture hall where students sit, listen to a teacher, and take notes. The sanctuary is a place of being, of sinking ourselves into the reality of a God-created world, a Christ-saved world, and a Spirit-blessed world.
• And that is what our churches today should be.
• What is your ideal church like? As the church is at the point of looking ahead for further development, do you and all members of your church understand God’s “blue print” so that you may work together to build this sanctuary for God? Pray for the church development. Listen for the role God wants you to play in the blue print.

 

Exodus 26 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Tabernacle

¹ “Moreover, you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns; you shall make them with cherubim skillfully worked into them. ² The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains shall be the same size. ³ Five curtains shall be coupled to one another, and the other five curtains shall be coupled to one another. ⁴ And you shall make loops of blue on the edge of the outermost curtain in the first set. Likewise you shall make loops on the edge of the outermost curtain in the second set. ⁵ Fifty loops you shall make on the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make on the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be opposite one another. ⁶ And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains one to the other with the clasps, so that the tabernacle may be a single whole.

⁷ “You shall also make curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the tabernacle; eleven curtains shall you make. ⁸ The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits. The eleven curtains shall be the same size. ⁹ You shall couple five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves, and the sixth curtain you shall double over at the front of the tent. ¹⁰ You shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in one set, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in the second set.

¹¹ “You shall make fifty clasps of bronze, and put the clasps into the loops, and couple the tent together that it may be a single whole. ¹² And the part that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the tabernacle. ¹³ And the extra that remains in the length of the curtains, the cubit on the one side, and the cubit on the other side, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle, on this side and that side, to cover it. ¹⁴ And you shall make for the tent a covering of tanned rams’ skins and a covering of goatskins on top. …….

³¹ “And you shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen. It shall be made with cherubim skillfully worked into it. ³² And you shall hang it on four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, with hooks of gold, on four bases of silver. ³³ And you shall hang the veil from the clasps, and bring the ark of the testimony in there within the veil. And the veil shall separate for you the Holy Place from the Most Holy. ³⁴ You shall put the mercy seat on the ark of the testimony in the Most Holy Place. ³⁵ And you shall set the table outside the veil, and the lampstand on the south side of the tabernacle opposite the table, and you shall put the table on the north side.

³⁶ “You shall make a screen for the entrance of the tent, of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, embroidered with needlework. ³⁷ And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia, and overlay them with gold. Their hooks shall be of gold, and you shall cast five bases of bronze for them.

 

REFLECTION

• Moses was told to make the tabernacle and its furnishings “exactly like the pattern I will show you”(25:9). Chapter 26 shows us how detailed God’s instructions were. Finish the whole chapter will give you a clearer understanding of the tabernacle. (Refer to the picture of tabernacle (http://www.servantsofgraceapologetics.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Tabernacle.png)
• There are two holy places in the tabernacle – the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies, which are separated by a curtain. The priests were responsible for the daily sacrifices and other functions, as well as regular feasts. On the Day of Atonement, it was the high priest’s responsibility to take the blood of the sacrificed goat into the Holy of Holies on behalf of all God’s people, for forgiveness of their sins. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, the curtain of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom (Mark 15:38). Therefore, this signifies that through Jesus, we can approach God directly with confidence. We no longer need sacrifices in order to approach God.
• Is there a special “Holy of Holies” in your home where you could feel close to God and meet with Him regularly? You may want to set aside a sacred space for yourself to have your devotions there. It may be a small corner table or a particular chair and time of day. Think of how you can use the space to help you focus on God
• PRAY: Compare your experience of coming into God’s presence with those of the Israelites then, do you appreciate the privilege? Do you comprehend what God has done for you? Do you welcome the opportunity to meet with God? Where is you “Holy of Holies” at home or in your heart where you meet God? Talk to God about it and listen to His response.

Exodus 25 English Standard Version (ESV)

Contributions for the Sanctuary

¹ The Lord said to Moses, ² “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me. ³ And this is the contribution that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, ⁴ blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, goats’ hair, ⁵ tanned rams’ skins, goatskins, acacia wood, ⁶ oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense,⁷ onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breast piece. ⁸ And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst. ⁹ Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.

The Ark of the Covenant

¹⁰ “They shall make an ark of acacia wood. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. ¹¹ You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and outside shall you overlay it, and you shall make on it a molding of gold around it. ¹² You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it.¹³ You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. ¹⁴ And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark by them. ¹⁵ The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. ¹⁶ And you shall put into the ark the testimony that I shall give you.

¹⁷ “You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. ¹⁸ And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. ¹⁹ Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. ²⁰ The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. ²¹ And you shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. ²² There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.

 

REFLECTION

• Read the passage. For a better picture read the whole chapter. Imagine you were there, what would your emotions be?
• The Old Testament emphasizes the importance of the tabernacle (http://www.servantsofgraceapologetics.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Tabernacle.png), a portable tent, in Israel’s worship. Exodus takes seven chapters (25-31) to list tabernacle specifications, and then devotes six more to its construction (35-40). The New Testament touches on some of the symbolism, saying that the tabernacle design and use was intended to reflect heavenly realities (cf. Heb 9-10).
• The first item in the tabernacle mentioned, and the most important, is the ark (https://carm.org/images/arkofthecovenant4.jpg). The ark is also the only furniture inside the Holy of Holies. God’s glory resides here. God speaks to the Israelites through the Mercy Seat on the ark. It represents the presence of God, symbolized God dwelling among His people.
• It contains the Tablets of Stone on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed (v16), along with manna (16:33-34) and Aaron’s rod (Num 17:10). These three items testify to the unchanging love of God, the covenant between God and His people, and the faithfulness and power of God. They serve to remind the people to remember the God of their deliverance, and the God of unfailing mercy and love. They also remind them to obey God’s commands and to keep a thankful and humble heart.
• PRAY: What might you carry around with you to remind you of God’s past actions and continuing presence in your life? Recall the situation, note what God did and how you responded. Thank God for His past grace (prevenient) and His persevering grace.

 

Exodus 24 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Covenant Confirmed

¹ Then he said to Moses, “Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship from afar. ² Moses alone shall come near to the Lord, but the others shall not come near, and the people shall not come up with him.”

³ Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord and all the rules. And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words that the Lord has spoken we will do.” ⁴ And Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. He rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. ⁵ And he sent young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the Lord. ⁶ And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. ⁷ Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.” ⁸ And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.”

⁹ Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, ¹⁰ and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. ¹¹ And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank.

¹² The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and wait there, that I may give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.” ¹³ So Moses rose with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up into the mountain of God. ¹⁴ And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we return to you. And behold, Aaron and Hur are with you. Whoever has a dispute, let him go to them.”

¹⁵ Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. ¹⁶ The glory of the Lord dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. ¹⁷ Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. ¹⁸ Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

 

REFLECTION

• Read through the whole chapter twice.
• Moses carefully explained what God expected of people who would live in personal relationship with Him (Ex 20-23;24:3). The Israelite people committed themselves to keep God’s commands, and were then fully responsible for their acts.
• God invited His people into a covenant relationship. But He wanted to make sure that the Israelites understood just what life with Him would involve.
• It’s true that people can put their trust in Christ without a deep understanding of the Gospel or of the Bible. But unless we go on to learn all God’s words, we will fall short of knowing God more fully and living the lives God desires to bless us with. As we come to know and understand the character of God, we will also be more sensitive to the work of the Holy Spirit guiding us through our daily decisions and obstacles.
• PRAYER: How well do you know and love God’s Word? How well do you understand God’s desire of your commitment to Him? Thank God for His Bible. Thank God for the 260 project and ask the Spirit for the perseverance you need to do it every day in order to increase your knowledge, love and obedience of God and His Word.

 

 

Exodus 23 English Standard Version (ESV)

Conquest of Canaan Promised

²⁰ “Behold, I send an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared.²¹ Pay careful attention to him and obey his voice; do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression, for my name is in him.

²² “But if you carefully obey his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.

²³ “When my angel goes before you and brings you to the Amorites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Canaanites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, and I blot them out, ²⁴ you shall not bow down to their gods nor serve them, nor do as they do, but you shall utterly overthrow them and break their pillars in pieces. ²⁵ You shall serve the Lord your God, and he will bless your bread and your water, and I will take sickness away from among you. ²⁶ None shall miscarry or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days. ²⁷ I will send my terror before you and will throw into confusion all the people against whom you shall come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. ²⁸ And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivites, the Canaanites, and the Hittites from before you. ²⁹ I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the wild beasts multiply against you. ³⁰ Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and possess the land. ³¹ And I will set your border from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness to the Euphrates, for I will give the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall drive them out before you.³² You shall make no covenant with them and their gods.³³ They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against me; for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.”

 

REFLECTION

• If time allows, read the whole chapter. Then read this passage slowly once more.
• How does the emphasis on worship fit into these chapters on law? Very simply, worship is not simply going to church and singing hymns. Worship is putting our faith into practice by loving God and following His commandments.
• When God gave Moses these laws to share with Israel, He identified them with worship and with success. God promises to provide the Israelites with abundant food, pure water, and bodily health when they worship him, needs that are physical. When we put God first and honor Him with obedience, God provides what we need and we grow towards the person God created us to be.
• Jesus told the Samaritan woman that “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). Examine the reasons why you worship God and the spirit in which you worship. Are they at odds with each other? If so, what actions could you take to bring them into harmony?
• PRAY: Do you worship because you desire to receive abundance in life? Do you worship God simply and authentically? If not, ask God to show you what to do so that your worship may be pleasing to HIm.

 

 

 

Exodus 22 English Standard Version (ESV)

Laws About Social Justice

¹⁶ “If a man seduces a virgin who is not betrothed and lies with her, he shall give the bride-price for her and make her his wife. ¹⁷ If her father utterly refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money equal to the bride-price for virgins.

¹⁸ “You shall not permit a sorceress to live.

¹⁹ “Whoever lies with an animal shall be put to death.

²⁰ “Whoever sacrifices to any god, other than the Lord alone, shall be devoted to destruction.

²¹ “You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. ²² You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. ²³ If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry,²⁴ and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.

²⁵ “If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him. ²⁶ If ever you take your neighbor’s cloak in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down, ²⁷ for that is his only covering, and it is his cloak for his body; in what else shall he sleep? And if he cries to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.

²⁸ “You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

²⁹ “You shall not delay to offer from the fullness of your harvest and from the outflow of your presses. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me. ³⁰ You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep: seven days it shall be with its mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to me.

³¹ “You shall be consecrated to me. Therefore you shall not eat any flesh that is torn by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.

 

REFLECTION

• This chapter continues the detailed laws. It first deals with the law concerning property. In this paragraph, Moses identified heinous sins. Read this portion slowly as if you were in that time receiving this law.
• The laws express a person’s responsibility toward others, those to whom they must show respect. To do wrong to a neighbor is to sin against God. The seduction is The sin of witchcraft was punishable by death, as was the unspeakable sin of bestiality and sacrificing unto any other god; these three sins were practiced in the heathen religions of surrounding nations, and Israel was to take no part in them.
• There were laws of not charging interest when lending to the poor; as well as returning a pledge of their cloak which would be used as a blanket at All people must be treated with dignity and respect. God’s care and protection of the foreigner, needy widow and orphan are expressed throughout Scripture (cf. James 1:27). He hears the cry of those in need, and if they are mistreated, His wrath is stirred up.
• According to the principle of this passage, how could you, your cell and your church design or adjust your social concern ministry in order to live more in line with God’s will for “holiness” and heart of compassion for the marginalized? What is one action that you could achieve in this week to allow you to live the life of a “holy people”(v31)?
• PRAY: O Holy God, You’ve not only made provision for my forgiveness, You’ve written Your laws upon my heart. Help me to surrender daily in obedience to You. And help me to do _________________________________ so that I may live the life of a “holy people”.

Exodus 21 English Standard Version (ESV)

¹² “Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death. ¹³ But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint for you a place to which he may flee. ¹⁴ But if a man willfully attacks another to kill him by cunning, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.

¹⁵ “Whoever strikes his father or his mother shall be put to death.

¹⁶ “Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death.

¹⁷ “Whoever curses his father or his mother shall be put to death.

¹⁸ “When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist and the man does not die but takes to his bed, ¹⁹ then if the man rises again and walks outdoors with his staff, he who struck him shall be clear; only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall have him thoroughly healed.

²⁰ “When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged.²¹ But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money.

²² “When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman’s husband shall impose on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. ²³ But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, ²⁴ eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, ²⁵ burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

²⁶ “When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. ²⁷ If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth.

 

REFLECTION

• The commandment said, “You shall not murder.” Read this passage with this in mind. Pay attention to the specific examples showing that “You shall respect the life and well-being of others.”
• The principle of the famous lex talionis – the law demanding an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth – is clear and simple: if someone causes another person serious injury, he is to be punished. In the biblical world feuds were an ever-present possibility. The principle of an eye for an eye was actually seen as an act of mercy, since punishment in the ancient Near East usually exceeded the crime! It is not a law of revenge, but a basis for a judge to make judgment on acts of violence and injustice.
• Jesus’ elaboration of this law is that, in the Kingdom of God, you are to go beyond revenge and “love your enemy, pray for those persecuting you” (Matt 5:38-42). In His life and death, Christ modeled this for us. The law’s goal is to prevent excessive revenge, but Jesus wants to completely free us from a mentality of revenge. This is far more than what the law requires.
• PRAY: How easy is it for you to live up to the standard set forth here? What would be toughest for you to adhere to? Name one person who has hurt you, and ask Jesus to give you His forgiveness for that person.

 

Exodus 20 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Ten Commandments

¹ And God spoke all these words, saying,

² “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

³ “You shall have no other gods before me.

⁴ “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.⁵ You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, ⁶ but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

⁷ “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

⁸ “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. ⁹ Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. ¹¹ For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

¹² “Honor your father and your mother,that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

¹³ “You shall not murder.

¹⁴ “You shall not commit adultery.

¹⁵ “You shall not steal.

¹⁶ “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

¹⁷ “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

¹⁸ Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off ¹⁹ and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.”²⁰ Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” ²¹ The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.

 

REFLECTION

• Read this passage then slowly evaluate my life according to the Ten Commandments.
• Before God commanded anything of man, He declared who He is and what He did for Israel. It’s important to understand that grace precedes law. God first acts in grace and mercy by delivering the people, and then the people respond in gratitude and thanksgiving by the obeying the commandments. The crossing of the Red Sea comes before the giving of the Ten Commandments.
• The first four commands are for keeping our relationship with God intact: no worship of other gods, no idolatry, no abuse of God’s holy name, and no abuse of God’s holy Sabbath.
• The last six commands are for keeping our relationships in the world in which we live intact: honoring parents, honoring others’ lives, honoring marriage, honoring others’ possessions, honoring the truth, and honoring what God gives others to live with and what He gives us to live with.
• Although the commandments are, with the exception of the fifth, all prohibitive, they are not negative. They speak about love: love of God and love of others.  Jesus once was asked by a lawyer among the Pharisees: which is the greatest commandment? Jesus replied: Loving God and your neighbor (Matt 22:37-40).
• Spend some time read this passage carefully and meditatively. If you could, use one word or a term to describe each commandment and reflect on its meaning. Thank God for His love in giving us these commands.
• Ask the Holy Spirit’s help to examine your own life, where you have failed, or in which area you are facing crisis right now. Pray to confess and receive forgiveness of Jesus Christ, and ask for a renewed spirit and abundant power in living out a life of holiness and love.

Exodus 19 English Standard Version (ESV)

 ⁹ And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.”

When Moses told the words of the people to the Lord, ¹⁰ the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments¹¹ and be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. ¹² And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death. ¹³ No hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” ¹⁴ So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people; and they washed their garments. ¹⁵ And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not go near a woman.”

¹⁶ On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. ¹⁷ Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. ¹⁸ Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. ¹⁹ And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. ²⁰ The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

²¹ And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to the Lord to look and many of them perish. ²² Also let the priests who come near to the Lord consecrate themselves, lest the Lord break out against them.” ²³ And Moses said to the Lord, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, ‘Set limits around the mountain and consecrate it.’”²⁴ And the Lord said to him, “Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the Lord, lest he break out against them.” ²⁵ So Moses went down to the people and told them.

 

REFLECTION

• Read this passage, or read the whole chapter if time allows.
• God’s display of power at Mount Sinai is later described as a “consuming fire on top of the mountain”(24:17). It was intended to inspire awe and fear, and to communicate something of the holiness of Israel’s God. Only Moses would go up into the thunder and constantly flashing lightning that shrouded the mountaintop.
• Hebrews 12:18 describes the mountain as “burning with fire…darkness, gloom, and storm.” It was so terrifying that even Moses said, “I am trembling with fear”. (Heb 12:21)
• While Christians come directly to God through a loving Christ, something important about the nature of God was communicated at Sinai. Hebrews reminds us that we are to “worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire” (Heb 12:28-29).
• God told the Israelites to do certain things in preparation to receive His commandments. These rules are to remind the people that God is holy and should not be taken lightly; it emphasizes God’s holiness and majesty (Lev 11:45). How do you get ready for church? How else do you draw near to God?
• When did you last truly experience the holiness of God? What impact did that have on you?
• PRAY: Ask God to help you realize God’s holiness, and to come to worship service, other meetings and personal devotions with reverence and humility.

Exodus 18 English Standard Version (ESV)

Jethro’s Advice

¹ Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel his people, how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt. ² Now Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, had taken Zipporah, Moses’ wife, after he had sent her home, ³ along with her two sons. The name of the one was Gershom (for he said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land”), ⁴ and the name of the other, Eliezer (for he said, “The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh”). ⁵ Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness where he was encamped at the mountain of God. ⁶ And when he sent word to Moses, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her,” ⁷ Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and kissed him. And they asked each other of their welfare and went into the tent.⁸ Then Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how the Lord had delivered them. ⁹ And Jethro rejoiced for all the good that the Lord had done to Israel, in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians.

¹⁰ Jethro said, “Blessed be the Lord, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh and has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. ¹¹ Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods, because in this affair they dealt arrogantly with the people.” ¹² And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God; and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law before God.

 

REFLECTION

• Read this passage, or read the whole chapter if time allows.
• Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came to Sinai to meet Moses. When Moses told him what the Lord had done in Egypt, and how the Lord had saved Israel on their journey to Sinai, Jethro praised God and said, “Now I know that the Lord is greater than all other gods.” Sitting with friends or relatives and simply telling what God has done in our lives is still the best way to share the Lord with others.
• Why not start the habit of daily journaling. Just write down what you experience during the day, God’s grace, His presence and what He’s been doing in our life. Review them weekly.
• PRAY: Ask that God will help you to be thankful through the journaling and to be ready to share with others about God.

 

Exodus 17 English Standard Version (ESV)

Water from the Rock

¹ All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. ² Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” ³ But the people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” ⁴ So Moses cried to the Lord, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” ⁵ And the Lord said to Moses, “Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel, and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. ⁶ Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink.” And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel.⁷ And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the Lord by saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”

Israel Defeats Amalek

⁸ Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim.⁹ So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose for us men, and go out and fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” ¹⁰ So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. ¹¹ Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. ¹² But Moses’ hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. ¹³ And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword.

¹⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” ¹⁵ And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord Is My Banner, ¹⁶ saying, “A hand upon the throne of the Lord! The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

 

REFLECTION

• Read this passage, or read the whole chapter if time allows.
• When Israel entered the territory of vicious Amalekites, there erupted a war. Joshua led the troop to fight while Moses went to the mountain top to appeal to God. When Moses’s tired and dropped his arms, both Aaron and Hur, standing on either side of Moses, held his arms up to pray. The Israelites were greatly encouraged to see Joshua before them in the battle field, and Moses above them on the hill.
• We also need to uphold the arms of our spiritual leaders. A word of appreciation or encouragement, a prayer on his/her behalf, a random act of kindness, these will all bring great encouragement and renewal of soul to the leaders.
• Pray: Silent before God, wait for God to bring one or two spiritual leaders into heart. Have I discerned any fatigue, disappointment, heavy burden in them? Pray for them, think of a practical way to encourage, comfort and bless them.

Exodus 16 English Standard Version (ESV)

Bread from Heaven

¹ They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. ² And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, ³ and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. ⁵ On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” ⁶ So Moses and Aaron said to all the people of Israel, “At evening you shall know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, ⁷ and in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling against the Lord. For what are we, that you grumble against us?” ⁸ And Moses said, “When the Lord gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the Lord has heard your grumbling that you grumble against him—what are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the Lord.”

⁹ Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.’” ¹⁰ And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. ¹¹ And the Lord said to Moses,¹² “I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’”

¹³ In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. ¹⁴ And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. ¹⁵ When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat.¹⁶ This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Gather of it, each one of you, as much as he can eat. You shall each take an omer, according to the number of the persons that each of you has in his tent.’” ¹⁷ And the people of Israel did so. They gathered, some more, some less. ¹⁸ But when they measured it with an omer, whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat. ¹⁹ And Moses said to them, “Let no one leave any of it over till the morning.” ²⁰ But they did not listen to Moses. Some left part of it till the morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them. ²¹ Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it melted.

 

REFLECTION

• Read the passage aloud. If you prefer, read the whole chapter to get a picture of the complaining that came before this and the obsessive hoarding that came after. Both give us a picture of the neediness of the Israelites at this time.
• If you were to complain to God right now, what would your complaint be? In what ways, if any, have you been perplexed by God’s response to your complaining? Sometimes we are blind to God’s activity because we are focused on a specific request or expectation of how we want Him to respond. How might God actually have been responding to your complaints?
• Pray: Ask God to show you how He has provided you with enough, even though you still might wonder.

            Sit in the quiet and feel God’s “enough-ness” in your body. Where do you feel it? In arms that are full? In a quiet mind? In a stomach that feels full? In muscles that work well? If you can really mean it, try delighting in this “enough-ness”.

Exodus 15 English Standard Version (ESV)

 ¹ Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD :
       “I will sing to the LORD,
       for he is highly exalted.
       The horse and its rider
       he has hurled into the sea.

 ² The LORD is my strength and my song;
       he has become my salvation.
       He is my God, and I will praise him,
       my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

 ³ The LORD is a warrior;
       the LORD is his name.

 ⁴ Pharaoh’s chariots and his army
       he has hurled into the sea.
       The best of Pharaoh’s officers
       are drowned in the Red Sea.

 ⁵ The deep waters have covered them;
       they sank to the depths like a stone.

 ⁶ “Your right hand, O LORD,
       was majestic in power.
       Your right hand, O LORD,
       shattered the enemy.

 ⁷ In the greatness of your majesty
       you threw down those who opposed you.
       You unleashed your burning anger;
       it consumed them like stubble.

 ⁸ By the blast of your nostrils
       the waters piled up.
       The surging waters stood firm like a wall;
       the deep waters congealed in the heart of the sea.

 ⁹ “The enemy boasted,
       ‘I will pursue, I will overtake them.
       I will divide the spoils;
       I will gorge myself on them.
       I will draw my sword
       and my hand will destroy them.’

 ¹⁰ But you blew with your breath,
       and the sea covered them.
       They sank like lead
       in the mighty waters.

 ¹¹ “Who among the gods is like you, O LORD ?
       Who is like you—
       majestic in holiness,
       awesome in glory,
       working wonders?

 ¹² You stretched out your right hand
       and the earth swallowed them.

 ¹³ “In your unfailing love you will lead
       the people you have redeemed.
       In your strength you will guide them
       to your holy dwelling.

 ¹⁴ The nations will hear and tremble;
       anguish will grip the people of Philistia.

 ¹⁵ The chiefs of Edom will be terrified,
       the leaders of Moab will be seized with trembling,
       the people of Canaan will melt away;

 ¹⁶ terror and dread will fall upon them.
       By the power of your arm
       they will be as still as a stone—
       until your people pass by, O LORD,
       until the people you bought pass by.

 ¹⁷ You will bring them in and plant them
       on the mountain of your inheritance—
       the place, O LORD, you made for your dwelling,
       the sanctuary, O Lord, your hands established.

 ¹⁸ The LORD will reign
       for ever and ever.”

 

REFLECTION

• Read the passage with passion, experiencing this story with emotion. Imagine how you might feel if you had just miraculously escaped certain death or capture?
• The deliverance stimulated Moses to write this song. The song, which reviewed what God had done, was intended as a teaching tool and instrument of praise and worship of God.
• Music can serve us in much the same way. The tune of a familiar hymn, or its words recalled during a difficult day, remind us of God’s presence and His power.
• PRAY: Is there a song in your heart? Choose one of your favorite song about God’s greatness. Sing this song a few times to praise and worship God.

Exodus 14 English Standard Version (ESV)

 

⁹ The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon.

¹⁰ When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. ¹¹ They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? ¹² Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” ¹³ And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. ¹⁴ The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

¹⁵ The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. ¹⁶ Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. ¹⁷ And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. ¹⁸ And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

¹⁹ Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, ²⁰ coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night^[a] without one coming near the other all night.

²¹ Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. ²² And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. ²³ The Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. ²⁴ And in the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, ²⁵ clogging^[b] their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily. And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from before Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.”

²⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.” ²⁷ So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared. And as the Egyptians fled into it, the Lord threw^[c] the Egyptians into the midst of the sea. ²⁸ The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen; of all the host of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea, not one of them remained. ²⁹ But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.

³⁰ Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. ³¹ Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.

 

REFLECTION

• Read this passage, or read the whole chapter if time allows.
• The wonder at the Red Sea illustrates the fact that salvation consists in what God does, not in what we do. We see and fear and believe (v31), and that’s it.
• This is what we need to be told whenever we find ourselves facing an advancing enemy with our backs against some impassable sea.
• Are you facing some emergency situation right now? /Sing this song slowly and ask God to help you to stand firm and be still(vv13,14) and wait for Him to work.

“God will Make a Way” by Don Moen   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xRB4rYpb1w

God will make a way where there seems to be no way;
He works in ways we cannot see, He will make a way for me.
He will be my guide, hold me closely to His side.
With love and strength for each new day, He will make a way, He will make a way.

By a roadway in the wilderness He’ll lead me, and rivers in the desert will I see.
Heaven and earth will fade, But His word will still remain, He will do something new today.

Exodus 13 English Standard Version (ESV)

Consecration of the Firstborn

¹ The Lord said to Moses, ² “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”

The Feast of Unleavened Bread

³ Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the Lord brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. ⁴ Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. ⁵ And when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month. ⁶ Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord. ⁷ Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. ⁸ You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ ⁹ And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. ¹⁰ You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.

¹¹ “When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, ¹² you shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the Lord’s. ¹³ Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. ¹⁴ And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. ¹⁵ For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ ¹⁶ It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.”

 

REFLECTION

• Read this passage, or read the whole chapter if time allows.
• Israel’s celebration of freedom is closely linked with a fresh sense of Israel’s obligation. Because God spared Israel’s firstborn, all future firstborn would belong to Him!
• We are given a freedom won at the cost of Christ’s blood. It is appropriate that, since He gave Himself for us, we should give ourselves to Him.
• When we remember what God has done for us, we are motivated to ask what we can do for God. It is important never to invert this order. We often try to please God in order to obligate Him to us, as if God might “owe” us for our good behaviour. Instead we are already obligated to Him for our salvation! We can express love for the God who saved us, but can never serve as a bribe to win God’s favor.
• PRAYER: Recount a few things God has done for me. Dwell on the goodness and generosity of God. Offer Him a heart-felt thanksgiving.

Exodus 12 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Passover

¹ The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, ² “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. ³ Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. ⁴ And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. ⁵ Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, ⁶ and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight.

⁷ “Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. ⁸ They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it.⁹ Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. ¹⁰ And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. ¹¹ In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover. ¹² For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. ¹³ The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt. ……

²¹ Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb. ²² Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. ²³ For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you.²⁴ You shall observe this rite as a statute for you and for your sons forever. ²⁵ And when you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service. ²⁶ And when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ ²⁷ you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of the Lord’s Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses.’” And the people bowed their heads and worshiped.

²⁸ Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

 

REFLECTION

• Read this passage, or read the whole chapter if time allows.
• In this passage, the Lord “passes over” the houses of the Israelites, thus sparing the lives of the firstborn in their households (vv12-13). Passover is the first of several annual religious festivals ordained by God. Passover is Israel’s celebration of freedom: a yearly reminder of the God who exercised His power to tear a slave people from the grip of oppressive masters.
• However, it’s not enough to think now and then of what God has done for us. We need to set aside regular times to remember. Celebrating God’s work in and for us is as important now as celebrating Passover was and continues to be for the Jewish people.
• What are the regular celebrations of God’s work that you are observing? How do you celebrate in these occasions?
• Sunday Worship, cell meetings, etc. are examples for such purpose. How do you prepare for such celebration and what attitude do you bring to these occasions?
• PRAY: Thank God for freeing you from the grip of sin. Ask God to remind you to always go to Sunday worship or cell meetings, etc. with a great anticipation to celebrate and give thanks to God for His work in you and everyone else.

Exodus 11 English Standard Version (ESV)

A Final Plague Threatened

¹ The Lord said to Moses, “Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely. ² Speak now in the hearing of the people, that they ask, every man of his neighbor and every woman of her neighbor, for silver and gold jewelry.” ³ And the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people.

⁴ So Moses said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, ⁵ and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle.⁶ There shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again. ⁷ But not a dog shall growl against any of the people of Israel, either man or beast, that you may know that the Lord makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.’ ⁸ And all these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, ‘Get out, you and all the people who follow you.’ And after that I will go out.” And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. ⁹ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.”

¹⁰ Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, and the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land.

 

REFLECTION

• Read the whole chapter
• In the Biblical world the firstborn son was special. He was expected to guide the family in the next generation, and he was the one through whom the family name would be preserved. Inheritance laws reflect the importance of the firstborn son: he received at least twice the portion of the other sons in the family.
• Thus the death of every firstborn in Egypt was a stunning loss. Only this final devastating plague would at last force Pharaoh to release his slaves.
• The plagues on Egypt may be viewed as a series of increasingly painful punishments. If Pharaoh had relented at any stage, he could have avoided the more serious troubles that followed. Because Pharaoh remained hard, however, the ultimate penalty was finally imposed.
• God’s judgments are often gracious in exactly this way. They become more severe only as we continue to resist Him. When we sense the disciplining hand of God, it’s wise to surrender immediately. Otherwise, God might have to strike what is dearest to us before we respond.
• PRAY: In what areas are you resisting God right now? Ask the Holy Spirit to show you. Pray for a trust and obedience. Sing this hymn “Trust and Obey” slowly as your prayer today.

1. When we walk with the Lord in the light of his word, what a glory he sheds on our way!
   While we do his good will, he abides with us still, and with all who will trust and obey.
2. Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share, but our toil he doth richly repay;
   not a grief or a loss, not a frown or a cross, but is blest if we trust and obey.
3. But we never can prove the delights of his love until all on the altar we lay;
   for the favor he shows, for the joy he bestows, are for them who will trust and obey.
4. Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at his feet, or we’ll walk by his side in the way;
   what he says we will do, where he sends we will go; never fear, only trust and obey.

Refrain:       

     Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

Exodus 10 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Eighth Plague: Locusts

¹ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them, ² and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and of your grandson how I have dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them, that you may know that I am the Lord.”

³ So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me. ⁴ For if you refuse to let my people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your country, ⁵ and they shall cover the face of the land, so that no one can see the land. And they shall eat what is left to you after the hail, and they shall eat every tree of yours that grows in the field, ⁶ and they shall fill your houses and the houses of all your servants and of all the Egyptians, as neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen, from the day they came on earth to this day.’” Then he turned and went out from Pharaoh. ….

⁷ Then Pharaoh’s servants said to him, “How long shall this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God. Do you not yet understand that Egypt is ruined?” ⁸ So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. And he said to them, “Go, serve the Lord your God. But which ones are to go?” ⁹ Moses said, “We will go with our young and our old. We will go with our sons and daughters and with our flocks and herds, for we must hold a feast to the Lord.” ¹⁰ But he said to them, “The Lord be with you, if ever I let you and your little ones go! Look, you have some evil purpose in mind. ¹¹ No! Go, the men among you, and serve the Lord, for that is what you are asking.” And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.

The Ninth Plague: Darkness

²¹ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness to be felt.” ²² So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was pitch darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. ²³ They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the people of Israel had light where they lived.²⁴ Then Pharaoh called Moses and said, “Go, serve the Lord; your little ones also may go with you; only let your flocks and your herds remain behind.” ²⁵ But Moses said, “You must also let us have sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God. ²⁶ Our livestock also must go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we must take of them to serve the Lord our God, and we do not know with what we must serve the Lord until we arrive there.” ²⁷ But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go. ²⁸ Then Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me; take care never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face you shall die.” ²⁹ Moses said, “As you say! I will not see your face again.”

 

REFLECTION

• Read this passage, or read the whole chapter if time allows.
• Pharaoh negotiated with Moses three times:

	Pharaoh		Moses
8:25 8:28	sacrifice to your God here in the land. you must not go very far.	8:26	That would not be right.…… three-day journey into the desert ……
10:11	only the men go	10:9	go with our young and old, with our sons and daughters, and with our flocks and herds.
10:24	only leave your flocks and herds behind.	10:25	have sacrifices and burnt offerings

• Pharaoh wanted God’s people to compromise. The world is constantly tempting and enticing us to compromise what God has called us to do. The road to freedom is to bring all we have and offer it to God as our offering of thanksgiving. Daily we can simply, completely and faithfully offer ourselves to God.
• PRAY: “Lord, because of all You have done for me, I present my body and all I have to You as a living sacrifice for this day. I want to be transformed by the renewing of my mind, affirming that Your will for me is good and acceptable and (Romans 12:1-2)”

Exodus 9 English Standard Version (ESV)

 The Seventh Plague: Hail

¹³ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. ¹⁴ For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. ¹⁵ For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. ¹⁶ But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. ¹⁷ You are still exalting yourself against my people and will not let them go. ¹⁸ Behold, about this time tomorrow I will cause very heavy hail to fall, such as never has been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. ¹⁹ Now therefore send, get your livestock and all that you have in the field into safe shelter, for every man and beast that is in the field and is not brought home will die when the hail falls on them.”’” ²⁰ Then whoever feared the word of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh hurried his slaves and his livestock into the houses, ²¹ but whoever did not pay attention to the word of the Lord left his slaves and his livestock in the field.

²² Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, on man and beast and every plant of the field, in the land of Egypt.” ²³ Then Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt. ²⁴ There was hail and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very heavy hail, such as had never been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. ²⁵ The hail struck down everything that was in the field in all the land of Egypt, both man and beast. And the hail struck down every plant of the field and broke every tree of the field.²⁶ Only in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, was there no hail.

²⁷ Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, “This time I have sinned; the Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. ²⁸ Plead with the Lord, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” ²⁹ Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to the Lord. The thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth is the Lord’s. ³⁰ But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the Lord God.” ³¹ (The flax and the barley were struck down, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. ³² But the wheat and the emmer were not struck down, for they are late in coming up.) ³³ So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and stretched out his hands to the Lord, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured upon the earth. ³⁴ But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart, he and his servants. ³⁵ So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people of Israel go, just as the Lord had spoken through Moses.

 

REFLECTION

• If time permits, read through the whole chapter once. Then re-read the selected portion above.
• In a number places in Exodus the emphasis is on Pharaoh’s choosing to harden his heart and persist in refusing to release the Hebrew people from slavery. There are just as many places or more (e.g. 10:20, 10:27) where it says that God hardens Pharaoh’s heart. Why would God do this?
• In fact, it is Pharaoh’s own decision that he refused to obey God’s command. This is just like the free will to choose God gave to man at creation. Therefore, God hardens Pharaoh’s heart by giving Pharaoh the choice and ability to harden his own heart or to soften it to obey God. This is a route that Pharaoh himself decided to take, regardless of what God did or did not do.
• Sometimes we persist in a certain direction that we sense, again and again, is not wise, and sometimes we have no choice left at all. We are swallowed up in the way we have taken and no longer know how to want out of it. It consumes us.
• PRAY: Do you feel trapped in certain situation and couldn’t get out? Or do you know someone in this situation? Pray for the softening of hardened heart.

Help me to remain faithful with your grace.
Give me a firmness of heart, so different from my hardness of heart.
Soften my judgementalism, and help me to show greater care for all those in my life
especially those most in need of me today.
May the joy of my redemption spill over into my life so I may be truly called “Christian” — a follower of yours.

Exodus 8 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Second Plague: Frogs

¹ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. ² But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will plague all your country with frogs. ³ The Nile shall swarm with frogs that shall come up into your house and into your bedroom and on your bed and into the houses of your servants and your people, and into your ovens and your kneading bowls. ⁴ The frogs shall come up on you and on your people and on all your servants.”’” ⁵  And the Lord said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, over the canals and over the pools, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt!’” ⁶ So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. ⁷ But the magicians did the same by their secret arts and made frogs come up on the land of Egypt.

⁸ Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, “Plead with the Lord to take away the frogs from me and from my people, and I will let the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.”⁹ Moses said to Pharaoh, “Be pleased to command me when I am to plead for you and for your servants and for your people, that the frogs be cut off from you and your houses and be left only in the Nile.” ¹⁰ And he said, “Tomorrow.” Moses said, “Be it as you say, so that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God. ¹¹ The frogs shall go away from you and your houses and your servants and your people. They shall be left only in the Nile.” ¹² So Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried to the Lord about the frogs, as he had agreed with Pharaoh. ¹³ And the Lord did according to the word of Moses. The frogs died out in the houses, the courtyards, and the fields. ¹⁴ And they gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank.¹⁵ But when Pharaoh saw that there was a respite, he hardened his heart and would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

The Third Plague: Gnats

¹⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, so that it may become gnats in all the land of Egypt.’” ¹⁷ And they did so. Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the earth, and there were gnats on man and beast. All the dust of the earth became gnats in all the land of Egypt. ¹⁸ The magicians tried by their secret arts to produce gnats, but they could not. So there were gnats on man and beast. ¹⁹ Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

 

REFLECTION

• If time permits, read through the whole chapter once. Then re-read the selected portion above.
• When Moses showed Pharaoh the authenticating signs God had given him, Egyptian magicians duplicated them. The confrontation between Moses and Egypt’s magicians was a true test of supernatural resources.
• “This is the finger of God!”(v19) This expression refers to something that is obviously marked as coming from God. The magicians of Egypt were in fierce competition with Moses, yet when they failed, they were quick to acknowledge the source of Moses’ power. We may hear it from enemies, atheists, or people of other faiths. Yet when they admit, grudgingly or otherwise, that God is up to something in our lives, the encouragement ought to mean so much more to us. It is the last we would expect them to say.
• PRAY: Write down some words or phrases that describe the power, strength and glory of God. Use these words to worship and praise the Lord.

 

Exodus 7 English Standard Version (ESV)

Moses and Aaron Before Pharaoh

¹ And the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. ² You shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall tell Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go out of his land. ³ But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, ⁴ Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. ⁵ The Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them.” ⁶ Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the Lord commanded them. ⁷ Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.

⁸ Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ⁹ “When Pharaoh says to you, ‘Prove yourselves by working a miracle,’ then you shall say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become a serpent.’” ¹⁰ So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the Lord commanded. Aaron cast down his staff before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent. ¹¹ Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers, and they, the magicians of Egypt, also did the same by their secret arts.¹² For each man cast down his staff, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. ¹³ Still Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

 

REFLECTION

• Read the passage. For a better picture read the whole chapter.
• God appointed Moses to be His representative to speak to Pharaoh. As weak as Moses felt he was, especially in leadership and eloquent speech, his obedience to God has put him in the position of deity. “I have made you like God to Pharaoh.” (v1) He has a strength and a substance and an authority he never possessed before, even if he didn’t see it.
• When we stumble after God in our humility and ignorance, we often have words and thoughts that were not available to us before. Therefore, when we act in obedience, we no longer act as individuals, but it is God who at work in us to will and act according to his good purpose (Phil. 2:13). To others it may seem like we are not ourselves.
• When has God asked you to do something beyond our natural abilities? Did you obey God? How was the task accomplished?  
• Do you obey God humbly and simply? Or do you have too many agenda and couldn’t follow God single-mindedly? Talk with God about this.

 

Exodus 6 English Standard Version (ESV)

God Promises Deliverance

¹ But the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.”

² God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord. ³ I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord I did not make myself known to them. ⁴ I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. ⁵ Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. ⁶ Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. ⁷ I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. ⁸ I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.’” ⁹ Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.

¹⁰ So the Lord said to Moses, ¹¹ “Go in, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the people of Israel go out of his land.” ¹² But Moses said to the Lord, “Behold, the people of Israel have not listened to me. How then shall Pharaoh listen to me, for I am of uncircumcised lips?” ¹³ But the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge about the people of Israel and about Pharaoh king of Egypt: to bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt.

 

REFLECTION

• Read this passage slowly aloud.
• The Israelites were exhausted that they’ve had all they can take. For a long time they might have endured and hung on to every promise that came their way. But nothing changed, and finally they reached a point where they could no longer hope.
• It is at such junctures, when people can absolutely do no more, that a divine breakthrough often occurs. When we are most helpless, we are in a position to receive the most help. God does not chastise us when we become heartsick. He acts in ways that we were too strong-willed and self-reliant to experience before.
• Why would the Israelites’ cruel slavery life cause them to lose all hope such that they couldn’t even stand listening to God’s promises? Why did God want to liberate them from slavery?
• PRAY: Lord, will I be like the Israelites to lose faith in God? Am I living under certain type of slavery, i.e. money, reputation? Holy Spirit, illuminate the deepest part of my heart and free me from the slavery that I am in right now.

Exodus 5 English Standard Version (ESV)

 Making Bricks Without Straw

¹ Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’” ² But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” ³ Then they said, “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, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword.” ⁴ But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens.” ⁵ And Pharaoh said, “Behold, the people of the land are now many, and you make them rest from their burdens!” ⁶ The same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their foremen, ⁷ “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as in the past; let them go and gather straw for themselves. ⁸ But the number of bricks that they made in the past you shall impose on them, you shall by no means reduce it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ ⁹ Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.”

¹⁰ So the taskmasters and the foremen of the people went out and said to the people, “Thus says Pharaoh, ‘I will not give you straw. ¹¹ Go and get your straw yourselves wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced in the least.’” ¹² So the people were scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. ¹³ The taskmasters were urgent, saying, “Complete your work, your daily task each day, as when there was straw.” ¹⁴ And the foremen of the people of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten and were asked, “Why have you not done all your task of making bricks today and yesterday, as in the past?”

¹⁵ Then the foremen of the people of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, “Why do you treat your servants like this? ¹⁶ No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And behold, your servants are beaten; but the fault is in your own people.” ¹⁷ But he said, “You are idle, you are idle; that is why you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord.’ ¹⁸ Go now and work. No straw will be given you, but you must still deliver the same number of bricks.” ¹⁹ The foremen of the people of Israel saw that they were in trouble when they said, “You shall by no means reduce your number of bricks, your daily task each day.

 

REFLECTION

• Read the passage. For a better picture read the whole chapter. Imagine you were there, what would your emotions be?
• Moses and Aaron did as God commanded them. They relayed God’s message to Pharaoh, and the result was totally opposite to what they had hoped. Pharaoh made the Israelites work harder and treated them more harshly. The Israelite foremen were savagely beaten by the Egyptian slave drivers. The foremen then appealed to Pharaoh, but were accused as lazy. Therefore, they directed all their anger toward Moses. Moses then turned around the complaint to God that He didn’t really deliver the people.
• Sometimes we might be persecuted for obeying God. Even when God works, we may endure pain, frustration and hardship. Following God doesn’t guarantee a warm reception from those around us. Often God’s mission and message make things worse before they get better because His way contrasts sharply with the way of this world.
• Do you suffer right now because your obedience to God? Are you complaining? To whom? About what?
• PRAY: As you think of the hardship you are going through, allow the Holy Spirit direct your attention to the millions around the world who are living in dire situations under oppression and exploitation. Ask God how might you identify with these suffering people and give them help and support?

Exodus 4 English Standard Version (ESV)

Moses Given Powerful Signs

¹ Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’” ² The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” ³ And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. ⁴ But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand—⁵ “that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”⁶ Again, the Lord said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. ⁷ Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. ⁸ “If they will not believe you,” God said, “or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign. ⁹ If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.”

¹⁰ But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” ¹¹ Then the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? ¹² Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” ¹³ But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” ¹⁴ Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses and he said, “Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can speak well. Behold, he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. ¹⁵ You shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth, and I will be with your mouth and with his mouth and will teach you both what to do. ¹⁶ He shall speak for you to the people, and he shall be your mouth, and you shall be as God to him.¹⁷ And take in your hand this staff, with which you shall do the signs.”

 

REFLECTION

• If time permits, it’s best to read through the whole chapter once. Then re-read the selected portion above.
• Moses had a lot of concerns and worries that caused him to be fearful at the thought of God’s task. Several times, he tried to wriggle out of God’s will. He told God that he was afraid that the Israelites wouldn’t listen to him; he claimed he didn’t speak well. Finally Moses decided to just tell the truth – he simply didn’t want to do it. But God graciously resolved every one of his fears and promised to be with him (Immanuel), and to give miracles and wonders when necessary.
• We are often afraid of making mistakes and become fearful and uneasy at those things God is calling us to do. But Scripture demonstrates to us that it is not, in fact, us who are trying to do things alone, but rather it is God at work in and through us. All we need is to follow His guidance and to depend on the courage and faith from Him.
• Is there anything God wants you to do that you are hesitating and resisting?

PRAYER: Read the passage one more time. Put yourself in Moses’ place, feel his hesitation, identify his lack of confidence. Acknowledge to God your weaknesses also your self-confidence. Tell God of this tug-of-war inside. Wait for God’s response.

Exodus 3 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Burning Bush

¹ Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. ² And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. ³ And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” ⁴ When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” ⁵ Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” ⁶ And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

⁷ Then the Lord said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, ⁸ and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. ⁹ And now, behold,the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. ¹⁰ Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”¹¹ But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” ¹² He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

REFLECTION

• If time allows, read the whole chapter. Then read the passage for today.
• Moses is shepherding his father-in-law’s sheep. In the distance he saw a bush in flames, but the bush mysteriously didn’t burn up. He walked closer, perhaps expecting a miracle, only to have a more unique encounter than he ever imagined. He interacted with the living God.
• What has your experience of God been like? When have you felt like you have heard God speaking to you?
• When God asked Moses to remove his sandals from his feet, God was reminding Moses that where God is, that place becomes holy. In addition, in the ancient near east, a servant takes off his shoes to show deep respect to his master.
• God is holy. What difference does that make in your life and how you think about the Holy Spirit in and with you?
• Moses heard from God when he paid attention. Like Moses, we often encounter God when we pay attention to what’s going on around us. Find a quiet place and spend a few moments in utter silence, paying attention to those aspects of your life that you often neglect: people, situations, quiet moments, creation, and so on. As you do this, look for God to interact with.
• PRAY: Ask God to reveal himself to you today in a fresh way, a way that he has never revealed himself before.