#21 Leviticus and us

“Woe is us, Woe is us, We have come to Leviticus.” I don’t remember where I first heard that humorous phrase, but it captures the feelings many of us have as we approach one of the least appreciated books of the Bible. This is really quite unfortunate as Leviticus has much to say to N.T. Christians about living in the presence of a Holy God and offering unto Him a life of sacrifice that pleases Him. Like every other book of the Bible, it is ultimately a book about Jesus and its timeless message points to the necessity of a perfect sacrifice to make it possible for sinners like you and I to gain access to the presence of God.

The book of Leviticus is quoted or alluded to about forty times in the N.T. consider just three that show how important an understanding of this book is to us today.

For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if the salt becomes unsalty, with what will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another (Mark 9:49-50).
I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship (Rom. 12:1).
But I have received everything in full, and have an abundance; I am amply supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you have sent, a fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God (Phil. 4:18).

We have an altar, from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin, are burned outside the camp. Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate. Hence, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach. For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come. Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing; for with such sacrifices God is pleased (Heb. 13:10-16).

The key to understanding these texts is to be found in understanding the Old Testament sacrifices, as explained in Leviticus. The same can be said of the other portions of the New Testament where concepts are conveyed in Old Testament terminology. If we don’t understand the Old Testament terminology and concepts, we will not grasp the New Testament meaning.

#20 Mt. Sinai and the Tabernacle

The description of Israel’s encounter with Yahweh at Mt. Sinai has interesting parallels with the tabernacle Moses was instructed to build while there. The mountain of God was the place where God met with Israel and made a covenant with them. When the time came for them to leave the mountain they had completed construction of the tabernacle and God’s glory cloud, which had been above Mt. Sinai, moved to the tabernacle. Because of this, as well as several other details, it seems clear that the tabernacle was to be understood as a portable Mt. Sinai. It would serve the purpose of making God’s dwelling among the people possible for the entire time that they were wandering through the wilderness and up to the time that they were established in the land and the permanent temple structure was built.

#19 Gracious Law

The giving of the law at Sinai marks a tremendous advance for Israel. The preface to the ten commandments marks the context in which the law is to be understood. Exodus 20:2 introduces the ten commandments with these words, "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.” Contrary to their earlier complaint, God did not bring them out of Egypt to kill them in the wilderness and He did not bring them out in order to enslave them. Instead, he released them from the tyrannical law of a sinful man and gave them the liberating law of a loving God.

The law of God is given so that man might escape the enslaving effects of sin. The worship of false gods, rebellion against parents, neglecting to rest and worship God, stealing, murder and lying are ultimately destructive to personal and societal liberty. Obedience to God’s law liberates.  Sin enslaves.

It is true that law itself cannot save sinful men. It doesn’t have redemptive qualities. Salvation from sin is found exclusively in the gospel. Only Christ  crucified can free us from the guilt of sin. This does not alter the fact that law is itself graciously given to us from God as guide to teach us how free people are to live in relation to God and each other. So, a heart that receives God’s law in the context of grace will see God’s goodness and love in the law. He will see it as a practical guide to liberty. To use scriptural imagery, he will see the 10 commandments under the mercy seat i.e. law in the context of grace. Others will see the law as a way to earn God’s approval and in the end find it a hangman’s noose.

#18 Yahweh vs. god's of Egypt

The readings are coming at me much faster than I can post. I'll continue to hit some of the high points two or three times a week. Today we will consider the plagues.


The Plagues bring two basic issues to a head (5:1-2). Who does Israel belong to? Pharaoh thinks they are his slaves. But God calls Israel His son (4:22). This is made clear by the conversation between Moses and Pharaoh. Moses tells Pharaoh that Yahweh commands Him to let Israel go that they may celebrate a feast unto Him. Pharaoh then asks a question that will drive the next several chapters of the story, "Who is Yahweh that I should obey Him?" Pharaoh, does not know Yahweh and sees no reason to obey his voice and refuses to let Israel go. This section of the book will answer that question climaxing in chapter fifteen with the Song of Moses which celebrates Yahweh's answer to the question of who Yahweh is.

Just as Moses could only find himself by understanding Yahweh. So Israel and Pharaoh, must understand themselves and each other in terms of Yahweh. Pharaoh believed he was a god w/ a divine claim on Israels Israel seems to believe Yahweh is a god among god’s (Josh 24:14), particularly the god of their forefathers, but they have no idea, as of yet, the scope or depth of His being and power. Consequently they feel conflicted about what they should do. Should the stay and serve Pharaoh peaceably - plenty of food, full employment, secure national defense. Or, should they leave and serve God - who as a Father will require them to mature, which will necessarily involve all kinds of uncomfortable and unknown experiences.


God does not wait passively for them to search Him out. He unilaterally imposes himself. Pharaoh and Israel WILL learn who Yahweh is. Israel WILL leave Egypt as Yahweh’s son. The actions that God takes are designed to reveal Himself to: Egypt – Ex 7:5 "And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand on Egypt and bring out the children of Israel from among them." Israel– Ex 10:2 "That you may tell in the hearing of your son and your son's son the mighty things I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them, that you may know that I am the LORD." The extent to which this is stressed is impossible to overstate:
            a.    Ex 7:17 By this you shall know that I am the LORD..
            b.    Ex 8:22 that you may know that I am the LORD in the midst of the land.
            c.    Ex 8:10 that you may know that there is no one like the LORD our God.
            d.    Ex 9:29-30  that you may know that the earth is the LORD's.
            e.    Ex 14:4 I will gain honor over Pharaoh and over all his army, that the Egyptians may know that I am the LORD.
            f.    Ex 14:18 Then the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD. ael go.

The Plagues As A Whole.

As one views the first 9 plagues as a whole, there is a distinct pattern to them. The 9 plagues can be grouped into 3 groups of 3.

The first plagues (1-3) produce discomfort; the next 3 bring about greater damage (4-6); the last 3 (7-9) produce the added dimension of dread.

The first plague of each series (plagues 1, 4, and 7) begins with the expression “in the morning.” The last plague of each sequence (3, 6, and 9) comes unannounced and without the warnings of the others.

In the first series of plagues (1-3), the staff is stretched out by Aaron. In the second series (4-6), no staff is used. In the third series (7-9) Moses uses his staff.

In the first series of plagues, the Israelites are not distinguished from the Egyptians so far as experiencing the plagues is concerned. From the second series onward, a distinction is made.


The rest of this post consists of some of my teaching notes, thus the outline form:

Consider the plagues and how each of them is Yahweh’s challenge to the god’s of Egypt, culminating in a conquest of Egypt’s incarnate god - the crown prince.

I.    The plagues were a judgment upon the “gods” of Egypt.
    A.    Num 33:3-4 The Israelites set out from Rameses on the fifteenth day of the first month, the day after the Passover. They marched out boldly in full view of all the Egyptians, 4 who were burying all their firstborn, whom the LORD had struck down among them; for the LORD had brought judgment on their gods.
    B.    Ex 18:10-11 He said, "Praise be to the LORD, who rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and who rescued the people from the hand of the Egyptians. 11 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all other gods, for he did this to those who had treated Israel arrogantly."
    C.    Ex 12:12 "On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn--both men and animals--and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD.
    D.    The Bible teaches us a strict division between Creator/Creature. There is only One God. The strict monotheism of the Bible does not prevent a comparison of God to all the gods, who are, compared to Him nothing.  We should Affirm the existence of principalities, powers, thrones, dominations, angels, archangels, demons, and things that go bump in the night. As Paul put it, they are called gods. They are nothing compared to Yahweh. But they are there. There are gods many and lords many. But for us, there is only one God, the Father of all.
        1.    If necessary see (cf. 1 Cor. 10:20-21; I Tim. 4:1)
        2.    Not only did the Egyptians need to renounce their pagan gods, but so did the Israelites, who also worshiped them (cf. Josh. 24:14).

II.    The Plagues In Particular
    A.    Water Turned To Blood (7:14-25). Attack on hapi & khnun god’s of the Nile.
        1.    Hapi - is in charge of the flooding of the nile
        2.    Khnun is its source & guardian
        3.    Moses & Aaron meet Pharaoh in AM. He reviews the demand (let my people go) and reminds Pharaoh of his refusal.
        4.    Stretches out Aaron’s rod & all water turns to blood.
        5.    The plague lasted 7 days (perhaps the length of the others is implied)

    B.    Frogs (8:1-15). Attack on Heqet a frog headed water goddess - fertility.
        1.    Moses &Aaron meet Pharaoh in Morning w/ command to let Israel go (v.1).
            a.    Aaron stretches out staff & frogs go wild.
            b.    Magicians duplicate (v.7)
        2.    Pharaoh cries “uncle” (v.8)
        3.    Moses gives him the honor of choosing when the plague will end.
        4.    Frogs die and are piled up (v. 14)
        5.    Pharaoh hardens his heart (v. 15).
        6.    Celebrated in Psalm 78:45; 105:30

    C.    Lice (8: 16-19) Attack on Geb god of the land.
        1.    Unannounced plague
        2.    Strike the dust
        3.    Magicians could not duplicate. This is the finger of God!
        4.    Pharaoh’s heart grows hard
   

    D.    Flies (8:20-32) Attack on Khephri god of creation
        1.    Moses goes before Pharaoh early in the morning w/ command to let Isr. go (v. 20).
            a.    If not flies!
            b.    Goshen will be set apart (v22-23) & make a difference lit. set a ransom
        2.    Pharaoh begins to bargain, sacrifice here in the land
            a.    Moses says no - their sacrifices would be abominable to Egyptians.
            b.    Counters w/ let us go 3 days journey into wilderness
            c.    Bargain struck “ok just don’t go very far”
        3.    Plague lifted & Pharaoh goes back on his agreement (v32).

    E.    Murrain of the Livestock (9:1-7) Attack on Apis very important cow God chief symbol of fertility and prosperity.
        1.    Moses warns Pharaoh & Pharaoh refuses to heed.
        2.    Next day livestock is struck
            a.    All die (v. 6)? Next Plague more die.
                (1)    all from Heb kol – “all kinds of” or “from all over” or “all over the place”
                (2)    w/ reference to “all Israel” means representatives from the whole nation, not every individual Israelite.
            b.    None in Goshen
        3.    Pharaoh hardens

    F.    Boils (9:8-12) Attack on Thoth God of knowledge & medicine - A healer.
        1.    Unannounced - take ashes from a furnace and throw into the air
            a.    Caused boils on man and beast.
            b.    Magicians unable to stand before Moses
                (1)    either to make more boils
                (2)    or take them away from themselves or others
        2.    Pharaoh unyielding.

    G.    Hail (9:13-35) Attack on Nut sky goddess of wind and rain & Horus sky god
        1.    Early in Morning w/ demand for release.
        2.    Intensification - at your very heart vv. 14-16
            a.    Could have already utterly destroyed you.
            b.    Building up the drama to reveal ultimacy
        3.    Warning to bring in people and livestock from field v. 19
            a.    Some believe and obey
            b.    Some do not
        4.    Destroys everything except in Goshen
        5.    Pharaoh repents v. 27-28
        6.    Pharaoh hardens v. 35

    H.    Locusts (10:1-20) Attack on Anubis dog headed god of the dead & protector of the field.
        1.    Moses goes in before Pharaoh & his words are bolder (vv 3-4)
        2.    Pharaoh’s advisors talk sense (v. 7)
            a.    Let the men go
            b.    Pharaoh asks who will go with you - Moses says EVERYONE v. 9
            c.    Pharaoh refuses.
        3.    East wind blows in locusts who devour whatever remained after the hail. (V. 15).
            a.    Pharaoh repents
            b.    & hardens

    I.    Darkness (10:21-29) Attack on Isis protector of fields.
        1.    Unannounced
        2.    3 days of darkness
            a.    So dense they had to “feel” their way around.
            b.    Darkness to ancient people
            c.    Natural world suspended
            d.    Sense of depression and doom by third day
        3.    Pharaoh sends word GO, but leave livestock behind (v. 24).
            a.    Moses says No - we take everything with us
            b.    And YOU must give us sacrifices
            c.    Pharaoh hardens
        4.    Moses warned not to come before Pharaoh again

III.    The Point of the Plagues:
    A.    The plagues were a demonstration of God’s existence and power.
        1.    To Pharaoh & Israel
        2.    To the Canaanite tribes who would hear of it.
        3.    Empires of men are like gargoyles on a cathedral: ugly, high, hard to knock off, but God raises them up to reveal His greater power.
    B.    The plagues were a judgment on Pharaoh and the Egyptians for their cruelty and harshness.
        1.    Gen. 15:14 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions.
        2.    They had shed innocent blood. Been repressive and arrogant.

IV.    So then, Who Is YHWY?
    A.    Sovereign God whose purposes in the world cannot be thwarted.
        1.    Everything Pharaoh does is for the purpose of preventing God.
        2.    Everything Pharaoh does fall into the plan of God to:
            a.    deliver His people.
            b.    glorify His name among the nations.
    B.    He is the god who throws down all pretenders to the divine nature.
        1.    He defeats all the god’s of Egypt.
        2.    He defeats Pharaoh “the divine son”.
    C.    He is the God who gives Justice to some, by hardening them in their rebellion and gives undeserved mercy to others by leading them out of their bondage to sin.
        1.    The exodus is not a story of some really good people (Israel) who were oppressed by some really bad people. (true in a relative sense, but both were idolatrous and sinful)
        2.    Not about the irrepressible will of the Jewish people, but the irrepressible will of a gracious and merciful God (cf. Deut 9:4-6).

# 17 Moses, The First Forty Years

Exodus begins with a description of God’s blessing on the children of Israel. An echo of Genesis two is found in Exodus 1:7 where we are told that they were fruitful and multiplied and filled the land. This blessing of fruitfulness sets the stage for the drama that follows. Time has elapsed since Joseph proved such a valuable ruler in Egypt and as men will do, Joseph and all he did was forgotten. The new Pharaoh was what we would call today, a practical politician. He rightly recognizes Israel as a threat to Egyptian national security. Having a sizable foreign people living inside the boarders of your country could certainly prove disastrous if an enemy should attack from without, and they were to attack from within. Pharaoh’s conceives a “shrewd plan” for dealing with the problem. Here is a man who is worldly wise. A man of action. A man determined to protect his nation from disaster.

The plan was simple enough. All the male babies were to be killed by the midwives at birth. When this plan fails because the midwives feared God more than Pharaoh, the king was not deterred. He passed down a law through the appropriate channels and the order went out that all the male Hebrew babies were to be thrown into the Nile. Undoubtedly, a religious significance was attached to this as the god of the Nile was an important deity to the Egyptians and such a sacrifice could be thought of as an expression of piety and necessary to insure the proper flooding and receding of the Nile, which was essential to Egyptian agriculture. In addition to the infanticide, the Hebrews were made slaves and forced to build cities for the Egyptians.

When Moses was born, his parents hid him until they could no longer keep him from being discovered. In faith, they placed him in an ark (do not let the imagery of Noah’s ark escape you). The baby floated by the place where Pharaoh’s daughter (just happened) to be bathing. She took pity on the child and decided to keep him. Moses' older sister (just happened) to walk by at that moment and offer to bring a wet nurse in to care for the child. The offer was accepted and Pharaoh’s daughter paid Moses' mother to be his nurse.

Moses grew up in the royal family and received a royal education. Stephen tells us that he was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians. This wisdom was considerable and would certainly prove valuable in governing the children of Israel. Forty years pass until the day that Moses, who knew his Hebrew heritage, came out to visit (the word may imply deliver) his Hebrew brethren. He killed an Egyptian for beating a Hebrew slave. The next day, Moses came out to the Hebrews again and intervened in a squabble between to slaves. One of the slaves asked sarcastically if Moses would kill him like he had the Egyptian the day before. My understanding of this is that Moses had wanted to deliver the Hebrews, but this comment revealed that they were not interested in having him do so. With his slaying of the Egyptian exposed and his rejection by the Hebrews as their deliverer, Moses was suddenly a man without a land or people and so he fled to Midian.

The usual view is that Moses was a hotheaded young man who needed forty years in the desert to learn humility. I think there is something to this. Moses was certainly humble by the time he reached eighty, but there is probably another factor that we should consider. The Jews were being brutally treated by the Egyptians and Moses comes and offers them relief from their oppressors. Because they rejected him, they are forced to continue as slaves for another forty years. Perhaps the judgment is not so much on Moses as it is on the Hebrew slaves.

# 16 Joseph

We come now to one of the greatest stories of all time. The life of Joseph is remarkable in every way. It has all we could hope for in a dramatic narrative; a young handsome hero, envious brothers, a deceitful vixen, a tragic fall, a triumphant comeback, a tense and then tearful reunion, all guided by the Hand of Providence.

Rather than over viewing the life of Joseph, I will interact with some of the instances that stand out in my mind. The first is that Joseph is envied by his brothers. He is the youngest and yet he is set over them in a position of authority. This was because of an unrighteous favoritism on the part of their father, but as the story unfolds, it is also apparent that he is over them because he is better than them and has been chosen by God to be their savior. This is foreshadowed early in the story by the visions of sheaves and heavenly bodies bowing down to him. It is worth interjecting at this point that this is the first time that the sun, moon and stars are used symbolically of earthly authorities. This is a symbol that will be picked up and regularly used by the writers of scripture.

Envy is a cancer that has killed innumerable people, families, offices, and churches. Unlike covetousness, which wants what belongs to another, envy wants what the other person has to be taken from them. In other words, Joseph’s brothers are not concerned with having his colorful coat for themselves, they just want Joseph to be coatless. They want him stripped. They want him, not up above them but down in a well, not ruling over them, but sold as a slave. In their minds they were thinking, “this arrogant little punk needs to be taken down several notches.” Now, I do not believe the common view that Joseph was an arrogant youth. Like Cain, they saw that their works were evil and that they were inferior to their little brother and so they laid hands on him. In this same way, Jesus was delivered up to pilate by the envious priests and elders of the people. The fact that a person is genuinely humble and godly, does not disarm the envious, but only works them into a greater frenzy.

Americans understand that everyone deserves equal opportunity and equal rights and equal protection under the law because we are all created equal. Many misunderstand this important truth and think the founders were saying that everyone has equal ability. But this is not the case. Everyone has equal worth before God. Everyone citizen deserves equal rights. But we are most certainly not all equal in ability. Joseph was a great man. Jesus was a perfect man. Paul was a highly intelligent man with an unstoppable drive. In every family, workplace and church are people with widely differing abilities and skills. We can either choose to accept this diversity and appreciate what God has given to others and be content with what He has given to us, or we will be forever trying to tear down those who rise above us. The corollary is equally important. Those with great talent, must understand that they have nothing to boast about. It is God who has made them excel. Joseph understood this and told Pharaoh that it was God who gave him his great abilities.

Joseph dealt with the temptation he encountered in Potiphar’s house in a most remarkable way. As his master’s lewd wife continually sought to seduce him, he resisted her for two reasons. She was not his wife and he would not trade his relationship with God for a few moments pleasure with her. In an age when sexual morality, even among God’s people, was confused to say the least, Joseph stands as an example to all people of all time as to how and why we should remain sexually pure.

After his cloak was stripped away a second time and used as a means to deceive others, Joseph finally emerges from prison to be placed in great authority over the world’s superpower. Undoubtedly, he was dressed in a robe that would represent the greatness he had attained. However, the greatest demonstration of Joseph’s valor is seen not in his sexual restraint, nor in his visions and interpretation of dreams nor his wisdom to rule, but in his decision to forgive his brothers of their treachery.

Throughout his painful journey, Joseph must have felt alone and abandoned by God. It is to his credit that he did not let those feelings guide his decisions. Throughout the course of his hardships he maintained the belief that God was with him, guiding him. In the end God’s gracious purpose was made clear. Many wicked people had sought to destroy Joseph, but God made every sinful act of man a means of bringing about the salvation of His people from the famine.

#15 Gen 29-35

The fruitfulness of Jacob’s wives, whether directly or through their servants, in chapter twenty-nine is paralleled with the fruitfulness of Jacob’s flocks in chapter thirty. In the story of the flocks and herds we see the scheming of men and the overruling providence of God. Laban is pleased with the deal he makes with Jacob, because his flocks were predominantly black and brown with only an occasional spotted or streaked lamb or goat. Jacob thinks he is a shrewd fellow because he puts poles in the ground that are streaked and spotted. He thinks that the offspring of the mating sheep will be influenced by the spotted poles they visualize at the time of conception. This, of course, had nothing to do with the high proportion of streaked and spotted offspring and in chapter thirty-one we learn that the real reason was that God had caused the males who were mating with the flock to be spotted and streaked. As it says in Proverbs 16:33, The lot is cast into the lap, But its every decision is from the LORD.

Though we might find fault with Jacob over a number of things, it is clear that Laban was more deceitful and selfish than Jacob. He was a shrewd business man who constantly changed the rules of the game to his own advantage. Ten times he tried to do this, but it backfired every time. As promised at Bethel, God is with Jacob and is blessing him during his time of exile. Like Abram in Egypt and like his descendants in Egypt, God will spoil and plague those who try to take advantage of Jacob.

When Jacob flees from Laban, Rachel steals her father’s household gods. These were likely gold or silver figurines that were used as objects of worship. When Laban catches up with the fleeing company he demands that Jacob give the idols back. Jacob knows nothing about it and swears that anyone who is found with them in their possession will be killed. The whole camp is searched and when Laban comes to Rachel she is hiding them under her skirt. She succeeds in her theft by telling her father that she is on her period and therefore unable to rise. The gods of Laban are powerless and defiled.

After escaping from the wrath of Laban, Jacob must now face his brother Esau. Again, he devises a two fold plan. First he will try to placate his brother by a great gift and second, he will divide the women and children into two groups so that if one is attacked the other can escape. Most importantly Jacob prays for God to protect and deliver him from Esau. As they prepare to meet, Jacob is left alone at the crossing where he wrestles with a (man/angel/God) all through the night. Jacob refused to let him go until he blessed him. This is Jacob’s life in miniature. He is a man who struggles, who wrestles, who refuses to let go. His name is changed from Jacob to Israel which means, struggles with God.

After settling in the land and avenging the rape of Dina, Israel is called to fulfill his vow at Bethel. Jacob tells his household to put away their false gods, purify themselves and change their clothing. He returns to Bethel and builds an alter there to the God of his fathers.