Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Numbers chapter 11 verses 10 through 17:
10 Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, all at the entrances of their tents. Then the Lord became very angry, and Moses was displeased. 11 So Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you treated your servant so badly? Why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? 12 Did I conceive all this people? Did I give birth to them, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a sucking child, to the land that you promised on oath to their ancestors’? 13 Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they come weeping to me and say, ‘Give us meat to eat!’ 14 I am not able to carry all this people alone, for they are too heavy for me. 15 If this is the way you are going to treat me, put me to death at once—if I have found favor in your sight—and do not let me see my misery.”
16 So the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tent of meeting, and have them take their place there with you. 17 I will come down and talk with you there; and I will take some of the spirit that is on you and put it on them; and they shall bear the burden of the people along with you so that you will not bear it all by yourself.
Moses is learning to be a leader in today’s Lesson. In the Exodus out of Egypt it was largely a one man show — or two if you count Aaron who, though he was supposed to be the primary speaker, appears largely silent. It was Moses who led the people. It was Moses who took on Pharaoh.
But here in the Wilderness Moses begins to recognize that he can’t do it alone. He begins to see that the task is too much for him, and that he needs help. And we see that what the LORD is doing through Moses’ fatigue and inadequacy is actually raising up a group of leaders who will help lead the people into the Promised Land.
One person can lead us out of somewhere old, but it takes a team of leaders to lead a group somewhere new. And the irony for Moses as he becomes a great leader is his necessary acceptance of his own shortcomings in leadership. He must accept the limits of his time, age, and energy, and inabilities in order that he can enable others. In other words, the manifold strength of God in Israel must be revealed through the accepted and acknowledged weakness of Moses.
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible together this year. Monday’s Lesson will be from Numbers chapters 14-20 and Psalm 90.
Friday, February 28, 2020
Thursday, February 27, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 27, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson is from Numbers chapter 9 verses 6 through 22:
6 Now there were certain people who were unclean through touching a corpse, so that they could not keep the passover on that day. They came before Moses and Aaron on that day, 7 and said to him, “Although we are unclean through touching a corpse, why must we be kept from presenting the Lord’s offering at its appointed time among the Israelites?” 8 Moses spoke to them, “Wait, so that I may hear what the Lord will command concerning you.”
9 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 10 Speak to the Israelites, saying: Anyone of you or your descendants who is unclean through touching a corpse, or is away on a journey, shall still keep the passover to the Lord. 11 In the second month on the fourteenth day, at twilight, they shall keep it; they shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12 They shall leave none of it until morning, nor break a bone of it; according to all the statute for the passover they shall keep it. 13 But anyone who is clean and is not on a journey, and yet refrains from keeping the passover, shall be cut off from the people for not presenting the Lord’s offering at its appointed time; such a one shall bear the consequences for the sin. 14 Any alien residing among you who wishes to keep the passover to the Lord shall do so according to the statute of the passover and according to its regulation; you shall have one statute for both the resident alien and the native.
15 On the day the tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the covenant;[d] and from evening until morning it was over the tabernacle, having the appearance of fire. 16 It was always so: the cloud covered it by day and the appearance of fire by night. 17 Whenever the cloud lifted from over the tent, then the Israelites would set out; and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the Israelites would camp. 18 At the command of the Lord the Israelites would set out, and at the command of the Lord they would camp. As long as the cloud rested over the tabernacle, they would remain in camp. 19 Even when the cloud continued over the tabernacle many days, the Israelites would keep the charge of the Lord, and would not set out. 20 Sometimes the cloud would remain a few days over the tabernacle, and according to the command of the Lord they would remain in camp; then according to the command of the Lord they would set out. 21 Sometimes the cloud would remain from evening until morning; and when the cloud lifted in the morning, they would set out, or if it continued for a day and a night, when the cloud lifted they would set out. 22 Whether it was two days, or a month, or a longer time, that the cloud continued over the tabernacle, resting upon it, the Israelites would remain in camp and would not set out; but when it lifted they would set out.
Waiting is the hardest part.
So said Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. And they were right; waiting can itself be a heartbreaker.
But the Journey through the Wilderness is not a race. It’s purpose is not to get the people anywhere fast. It’s purpose is rather to form a people deeply, to teach them to pray and listen and learn to obey.
The Psalmist says, “Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.”
We want to go. We want to get there. We want to know, and decide, and up and move out, and move into the Promised Land today. But the LORD tells us to wait, to keep camp, to not be too hasty in crossing over Jordan. For we still have things to learn here in the wilderness; and chief among these is learning to trust the LORD’s wisdom and timing and not our own . . .
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Numbers chapters 11 through 13.
6 Now there were certain people who were unclean through touching a corpse, so that they could not keep the passover on that day. They came before Moses and Aaron on that day, 7 and said to him, “Although we are unclean through touching a corpse, why must we be kept from presenting the Lord’s offering at its appointed time among the Israelites?” 8 Moses spoke to them, “Wait, so that I may hear what the Lord will command concerning you.”
9 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 10 Speak to the Israelites, saying: Anyone of you or your descendants who is unclean through touching a corpse, or is away on a journey, shall still keep the passover to the Lord. 11 In the second month on the fourteenth day, at twilight, they shall keep it; they shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12 They shall leave none of it until morning, nor break a bone of it; according to all the statute for the passover they shall keep it. 13 But anyone who is clean and is not on a journey, and yet refrains from keeping the passover, shall be cut off from the people for not presenting the Lord’s offering at its appointed time; such a one shall bear the consequences for the sin. 14 Any alien residing among you who wishes to keep the passover to the Lord shall do so according to the statute of the passover and according to its regulation; you shall have one statute for both the resident alien and the native.
15 On the day the tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the covenant;[d] and from evening until morning it was over the tabernacle, having the appearance of fire. 16 It was always so: the cloud covered it by day and the appearance of fire by night. 17 Whenever the cloud lifted from over the tent, then the Israelites would set out; and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the Israelites would camp. 18 At the command of the Lord the Israelites would set out, and at the command of the Lord they would camp. As long as the cloud rested over the tabernacle, they would remain in camp. 19 Even when the cloud continued over the tabernacle many days, the Israelites would keep the charge of the Lord, and would not set out. 20 Sometimes the cloud would remain a few days over the tabernacle, and according to the command of the Lord they would remain in camp; then according to the command of the Lord they would set out. 21 Sometimes the cloud would remain from evening until morning; and when the cloud lifted in the morning, they would set out, or if it continued for a day and a night, when the cloud lifted they would set out. 22 Whether it was two days, or a month, or a longer time, that the cloud continued over the tabernacle, resting upon it, the Israelites would remain in camp and would not set out; but when it lifted they would set out.
Waiting is the hardest part.
So said Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. And they were right; waiting can itself be a heartbreaker.
But the Journey through the Wilderness is not a race. It’s purpose is not to get the people anywhere fast. It’s purpose is rather to form a people deeply, to teach them to pray and listen and learn to obey.
The Psalmist says, “Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.”
We want to go. We want to get there. We want to know, and decide, and up and move out, and move into the Promised Land today. But the LORD tells us to wait, to keep camp, to not be too hasty in crossing over Jordan. For we still have things to learn here in the wilderness; and chief among these is learning to trust the LORD’s wisdom and timing and not our own . . .
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Numbers chapters 11 through 13.
Wednesday, February 26, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 26, 2020
Today's Daily Lesson comes from Numbers chapter 7 verse 89:
When Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with the Lord, he would hear the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the covenant from between the two cherubim; thus it spoke to him.
The Mercy Seat in the tent of meeting was the cover of the Ark of the Covenant which was later placed inside the curtain within the Holy of Holies in Solomon's Temple. The cover was decorated with two cherubim, in between which the LORD was said to sit. The Mercy Seat was known as God's footstool on the earth; and it was from above there that Moses could hear the voice of the LORD speaking to him during the journey of the Exodus.
Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the 40 Day Christian journey towards Lent, reflecting the 40-year journey of the Israelites to the Promised Land. It is a time for entering into the holy place we call prayer, where we are surrounded by angels, and met by the LORD.
The journey ahead this year will be long and very difficult. We must be spiritually prepared for what is ahead. We must be seeking the voice of the LORD, and listening to it also.
The LORD is waiting for us in the Holy Place, and will meet us here at the Mercy Seat, and will speak to us about this journey that is journey that is before us.
"Be not afraid," the voice says. "Be not afraid for I am with you."
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Numbers chapters 8 through 10.
When Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with the Lord, he would hear the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the covenant from between the two cherubim; thus it spoke to him.
The Mercy Seat in the tent of meeting was the cover of the Ark of the Covenant which was later placed inside the curtain within the Holy of Holies in Solomon's Temple. The cover was decorated with two cherubim, in between which the LORD was said to sit. The Mercy Seat was known as God's footstool on the earth; and it was from above there that Moses could hear the voice of the LORD speaking to him during the journey of the Exodus.
Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the 40 Day Christian journey towards Lent, reflecting the 40-year journey of the Israelites to the Promised Land. It is a time for entering into the holy place we call prayer, where we are surrounded by angels, and met by the LORD.
The journey ahead this year will be long and very difficult. We must be spiritually prepared for what is ahead. We must be seeking the voice of the LORD, and listening to it also.
The LORD is waiting for us in the Holy Place, and will meet us here at the Mercy Seat, and will speak to us about this journey that is journey that is before us.
"Be not afraid," the voice says. "Be not afraid for I am with you."
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Numbers chapters 8 through 10.
Tuesday, February 25, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 25, 2020
Today's Daily Lesson come from Numbers chapter 5 verses 11 through 22. TRIGGER WARNING: This Lesson deals with issues of punishment and forced abortion against women.
11 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 12 Speak to the Israelites and say to them: If any man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him, 13 if a man has had intercourse with her but it is hidden from her husband, so that she is undetected though she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her since she was not caught in the act; 14 if a spirit of jealousy comes on him, and he is jealous of his wife who has defiled herself; or if a spirit of jealousy comes on him, and he is jealous of his wife, though she has not defiled herself; 15 then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. And he shall bring the offering required for her, one-tenth of an ephah of barley flour. He shall pour no oil on it and put no frankincense on it, for it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering of remembrance, bringing iniquity to remembrance.
16 Then the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the Lord; 17 the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. 18 The priest shall set the woman before the Lord, dishevel the woman’s hair, and place in her hands the grain offering of remembrance, which is the grain offering of jealousy. In his own hand the priest shall have the water of bitterness that brings the curse. 19 Then the priest shall make her take an oath, saying, “If no man has lain with you, if you have not turned aside to uncleanness while under your husband’s authority, be immune to this water of bitterness that brings the curse. 20 But if you have gone astray while under your husband’s authority, if you have defiled yourself and some man other than your husband has had intercourse with you,” 21 —let the priest make the woman take the oath of the curse and say to the woman—“the Lord make you an execration and an oath among your people, when the Lord makes your uterus drop, your womb discharge; 22 now may this water that brings the curse enter your bowels and make your womb discharge, your uterus drop!” And the woman shall say, “Amen. Amen.”
Today's Lesson is difficult and even disgusting, and certainly not uplifting. Yet as we are reading the Bible together this year, I have chosen it to highlight the complexities of what we find in the Bible, and also the insanity of claims that we need to "get back to the Bible".
Really? Have they read this stuff? Do they really think we should make women eat the dust of the sanctuary at the whim of their jealous husbands? Do they know the Bible actually prescribes this as a form of divine-sanctioned and induced abortion?
So here are some general comments.
1. The Bible should not be read as a book of Divine Laws. It should be read as a catalogue of the early history and development of HUMAN-MADE Laws.
2. It is important to understand that the Laws in the Bible which we sometimes now view as draconian were in their time in their time somewhat progressive. An example: "An eye for an eye" was a Law which actually LIMITED retribution. This is an example of punishment being made to fit the crime, rather than exceed it. Perhaps today's Lesson is also of this nature. However repugnant and also patently patriarchal, the so-called "trial" did at least bring in a priest and a certain form of due process which took the Law out of the hands of the jealous husband. This gave a decent priest an opportunity to intervene for the sake of the woman and perhaps the fetus within her.
3. The Hebrew Bible Laws were indeed patriarchal in nature. Generally Laws like this governing women's bodies in today's Lesson have no cognate relative to men and their bodies. This historical inequality continues to shape our own Laws today. We must open our own eyes to this injustice and work to make the Law more equal for all sexes and genders.
The Bible is a catalogue. It's a Law Library. And getting "Back to the Bible!" is seriously problematic. It's demagogic and patriarchal. And it's downright scary.
Woe to the people that buy into it.
NOTE: We are reading the whole Bible this year, sometimes critically. Tomorrow's Lesson is from Numbers 7.
11 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 12 Speak to the Israelites and say to them: If any man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him, 13 if a man has had intercourse with her but it is hidden from her husband, so that she is undetected though she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her since she was not caught in the act; 14 if a spirit of jealousy comes on him, and he is jealous of his wife who has defiled herself; or if a spirit of jealousy comes on him, and he is jealous of his wife, though she has not defiled herself; 15 then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. And he shall bring the offering required for her, one-tenth of an ephah of barley flour. He shall pour no oil on it and put no frankincense on it, for it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering of remembrance, bringing iniquity to remembrance.
16 Then the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the Lord; 17 the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. 18 The priest shall set the woman before the Lord, dishevel the woman’s hair, and place in her hands the grain offering of remembrance, which is the grain offering of jealousy. In his own hand the priest shall have the water of bitterness that brings the curse. 19 Then the priest shall make her take an oath, saying, “If no man has lain with you, if you have not turned aside to uncleanness while under your husband’s authority, be immune to this water of bitterness that brings the curse. 20 But if you have gone astray while under your husband’s authority, if you have defiled yourself and some man other than your husband has had intercourse with you,” 21 —let the priest make the woman take the oath of the curse and say to the woman—“the Lord make you an execration and an oath among your people, when the Lord makes your uterus drop, your womb discharge; 22 now may this water that brings the curse enter your bowels and make your womb discharge, your uterus drop!” And the woman shall say, “Amen. Amen.”
Today's Lesson is difficult and even disgusting, and certainly not uplifting. Yet as we are reading the Bible together this year, I have chosen it to highlight the complexities of what we find in the Bible, and also the insanity of claims that we need to "get back to the Bible".
Really? Have they read this stuff? Do they really think we should make women eat the dust of the sanctuary at the whim of their jealous husbands? Do they know the Bible actually prescribes this as a form of divine-sanctioned and induced abortion?
So here are some general comments.
1. The Bible should not be read as a book of Divine Laws. It should be read as a catalogue of the early history and development of HUMAN-MADE Laws.
2. It is important to understand that the Laws in the Bible which we sometimes now view as draconian were in their time in their time somewhat progressive. An example: "An eye for an eye" was a Law which actually LIMITED retribution. This is an example of punishment being made to fit the crime, rather than exceed it. Perhaps today's Lesson is also of this nature. However repugnant and also patently patriarchal, the so-called "trial" did at least bring in a priest and a certain form of due process which took the Law out of the hands of the jealous husband. This gave a decent priest an opportunity to intervene for the sake of the woman and perhaps the fetus within her.
3. The Hebrew Bible Laws were indeed patriarchal in nature. Generally Laws like this governing women's bodies in today's Lesson have no cognate relative to men and their bodies. This historical inequality continues to shape our own Laws today. We must open our own eyes to this injustice and work to make the Law more equal for all sexes and genders.
The Bible is a catalogue. It's a Law Library. And getting "Back to the Bible!" is seriously problematic. It's demagogic and patriarchal. And it's downright scary.
Woe to the people that buy into it.
NOTE: We are reading the whole Bible this year, sometimes critically. Tomorrow's Lesson is from Numbers 7.
Monday, February 24, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 24, 2020
Today's Daily Lesson comes from Numbers chapter 1 verses 1 through 4:
The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: 2 Take a census of the whole congregation of Israelites, in their clans, by ancestral houses, according to the number of names, every male individually; 3 from twenty years old and upward, everyone in Israel able to go to war. You and Aaron shall enroll them, company by company. 4 A man from each tribe shall be with you, each man the head of his ancestral house.
2020 is a census year in America and a time for carrying out the Constitutional mandate to count the number of people in our communities that fair representation in governance and equitable distribution in benefits might be ordered.
As the Israelites made their way through the Wilderness the LORD also ordered a census. Its purpose was essentially the same, to figure the overall populace and then determine representation of the people by the priests in the Holy Temple. The census count was also the mechanism by which the Israelites determined regimental order and the various duties related to the care and protection of the Tabernacle as it traveled through the wilderness.
A census is an important undertaking. So important, in fact, that some are willing to cheat at it for their own political purposes. So let us be reminded that when we're talking about a census we're talking about a sacred and God-ordained thing. So its not something to be manipulated or exploited.
A people count is holy because, well, people count — all of them.
And so does God . . .
The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: 2 Take a census of the whole congregation of Israelites, in their clans, by ancestral houses, according to the number of names, every male individually; 3 from twenty years old and upward, everyone in Israel able to go to war. You and Aaron shall enroll them, company by company. 4 A man from each tribe shall be with you, each man the head of his ancestral house.
2020 is a census year in America and a time for carrying out the Constitutional mandate to count the number of people in our communities that fair representation in governance and equitable distribution in benefits might be ordered.
As the Israelites made their way through the Wilderness the LORD also ordered a census. Its purpose was essentially the same, to figure the overall populace and then determine representation of the people by the priests in the Holy Temple. The census count was also the mechanism by which the Israelites determined regimental order and the various duties related to the care and protection of the Tabernacle as it traveled through the wilderness.
A census is an important undertaking. So important, in fact, that some are willing to cheat at it for their own political purposes. So let us be reminded that when we're talking about a census we're talking about a sacred and God-ordained thing. So its not something to be manipulated or exploited.
A people count is holy because, well, people count — all of them.
And so does God . . .
Friday, February 21, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 21, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Leviticus chapter 25 verses 10 through 17:
10 And you shall hallow the fiftieth year and you shall proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you: you shall return, every one of you, to your property and every one of you to your family. 11 That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you: you shall not sow, or reap the aftergrowth, or harvest the unpruned vines. 12 For it is a jubilee; it shall be holy to you: you shall eat only what the field itself produces.
13 In this year of jubilee you shall return, every one of you, to your property. 14 When you make a sale to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor, you shall not cheat one another. 15 When you buy from your neighbor, you shall pay only for the number of years since the jubilee; the seller shall charge you only for the remaining crop years. 16 If the years are more, you shall increase the price, and if the years are fewer, you shall diminish the price; for it is a certain number of harvests that are being sold to you. 17 You shall not cheat one another, but you shall fear your God; for I am the Lord your God.
The original vision for the Israelites coming into the Promised Land was for there to be an assurance that the land could never fall into the hands of only a few into perpetuity, nor could an Israelite fall into perpetual slavery either. What was prescribed to ensure was the act of Jubilee, an every-50-year release of the land back to its original clan ownership, and emancipation of the citizen slaves back to a state of freedom. Jubilee therefore ensured that wealth would remain relatively distributive throughout the tribes and that no family would fall into permanent poverty and/or slave bondage.
There is no record of the Israelites ever have actually practiced Jubilee. And it was one law in the Bible I never hear the Fundamentalists say we need to get back to. Maybe that’s because the Fundamentalists owned so much land. Though in an increasingly-less agrarian society it’s hard to say how this could practically work anyhow. And maybe that’s why the Israelites apparently never tried it. It was too hard.
But nevertheless the Law is still there, set as a kind of judgment upon us as a people, while our divide between the haves and the have nots widens.
There is the increasingly mass-conglomeration of land, and farms, and wealth in the world and the prospect of permanent generational poverty of so many; and there is also the Jubilee, a vision of equity for all generations to come, and the ultimate grounding conviction that both the land and the people belong to God and no one else.
And the vision remains . . .
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. This weekend we finish out Leviticus and start Numbers. Monday’s Lesson will be from Numbers chapters 1 through 4.
10 And you shall hallow the fiftieth year and you shall proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you: you shall return, every one of you, to your property and every one of you to your family. 11 That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you: you shall not sow, or reap the aftergrowth, or harvest the unpruned vines. 12 For it is a jubilee; it shall be holy to you: you shall eat only what the field itself produces.
13 In this year of jubilee you shall return, every one of you, to your property. 14 When you make a sale to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor, you shall not cheat one another. 15 When you buy from your neighbor, you shall pay only for the number of years since the jubilee; the seller shall charge you only for the remaining crop years. 16 If the years are more, you shall increase the price, and if the years are fewer, you shall diminish the price; for it is a certain number of harvests that are being sold to you. 17 You shall not cheat one another, but you shall fear your God; for I am the Lord your God.
The original vision for the Israelites coming into the Promised Land was for there to be an assurance that the land could never fall into the hands of only a few into perpetuity, nor could an Israelite fall into perpetual slavery either. What was prescribed to ensure was the act of Jubilee, an every-50-year release of the land back to its original clan ownership, and emancipation of the citizen slaves back to a state of freedom. Jubilee therefore ensured that wealth would remain relatively distributive throughout the tribes and that no family would fall into permanent poverty and/or slave bondage.
There is no record of the Israelites ever have actually practiced Jubilee. And it was one law in the Bible I never hear the Fundamentalists say we need to get back to. Maybe that’s because the Fundamentalists owned so much land. Though in an increasingly-less agrarian society it’s hard to say how this could practically work anyhow. And maybe that’s why the Israelites apparently never tried it. It was too hard.
But nevertheless the Law is still there, set as a kind of judgment upon us as a people, while our divide between the haves and the have nots widens.
There is the increasingly mass-conglomeration of land, and farms, and wealth in the world and the prospect of permanent generational poverty of so many; and there is also the Jubilee, a vision of equity for all generations to come, and the ultimate grounding conviction that both the land and the people belong to God and no one else.
And the vision remains . . .
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. This weekend we finish out Leviticus and start Numbers. Monday’s Lesson will be from Numbers chapters 1 through 4.
Thursday, February 20, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 20, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Leviticus chapter 23 verses 39 through 43:
39 Now, the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the produce of the land, you shall keep the festival of the Lord, lasting seven days; a complete rest on the first day, and a complete rest on the eighth day. 40 On the first day you shall take the fruit of majestic trees, branches of palm trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 You shall keep it as a festival to the Lord seven days in the year; you shall keep it in the seventh month as a statute forever throughout your generations. 42 You shall live in booths for seven days; all that are citizens in Israel shall live in booths, 43 so that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
Last April our family moved into a new house beside a lovely Jewish named the Isgurs.
Late last year the Isgurs invited us and several other friends and neighbors to join them for Sukkot, the annual celebration of the Festival of Booths, when Jews commemorate the Israelites’ 40-year journey to Promised Land through the wilderness in tents or “booths”. Though the Biblical injunction is to actually stay in the Booths for a whole week, most modern Jews like the Isgurs instead hold outside parties and invite friend, though I do have a Jewish friend who sleeps outside with his children in the tree house he made them.
The Isgur Sukkot party is a fun-loving time. Jews and Gentiles join together in laughter and story telling, and a little wine drinking. There is a small fire, though none of the neighbors seemed to stay past dark because while 50 is the new 40, nine is also the new midnight.
And I suppose that is the whole point of the Festival. It is a reminder to the Jewish people that life is fragile, that they came from nothing and nowhere, and are still tenting on this earth towards a Promised Land where they’ve never before been and don’t know how long it will take, and so need to look after one another — even look after the Gentiles — on the way.
And as for us Gentiles, I think we could learn something from our Jewish neighbors. Our ancestors too tabernacled in the wilderness. They came here — wherever here is — on horses, and in buggies, and on the backs or in the arms of big sisters. They too wandered, veered, feared, got lost, and found help. Somehow the manna fell, enough — barely.
We all came from survivors. And we’re survivors too. And we may yet have more to survive. And we will will with a cloud by day, and fire by night — and maybe a little wine and story telling to boot.
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will be from Leviticus chapters 24 and 25.
39 Now, the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the produce of the land, you shall keep the festival of the Lord, lasting seven days; a complete rest on the first day, and a complete rest on the eighth day. 40 On the first day you shall take the fruit of majestic trees, branches of palm trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 You shall keep it as a festival to the Lord seven days in the year; you shall keep it in the seventh month as a statute forever throughout your generations. 42 You shall live in booths for seven days; all that are citizens in Israel shall live in booths, 43 so that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
Last April our family moved into a new house beside a lovely Jewish named the Isgurs.
Late last year the Isgurs invited us and several other friends and neighbors to join them for Sukkot, the annual celebration of the Festival of Booths, when Jews commemorate the Israelites’ 40-year journey to Promised Land through the wilderness in tents or “booths”. Though the Biblical injunction is to actually stay in the Booths for a whole week, most modern Jews like the Isgurs instead hold outside parties and invite friend, though I do have a Jewish friend who sleeps outside with his children in the tree house he made them.
The Isgur Sukkot party is a fun-loving time. Jews and Gentiles join together in laughter and story telling, and a little wine drinking. There is a small fire, though none of the neighbors seemed to stay past dark because while 50 is the new 40, nine is also the new midnight.
And I suppose that is the whole point of the Festival. It is a reminder to the Jewish people that life is fragile, that they came from nothing and nowhere, and are still tenting on this earth towards a Promised Land where they’ve never before been and don’t know how long it will take, and so need to look after one another — even look after the Gentiles — on the way.
And as for us Gentiles, I think we could learn something from our Jewish neighbors. Our ancestors too tabernacled in the wilderness. They came here — wherever here is — on horses, and in buggies, and on the backs or in the arms of big sisters. They too wandered, veered, feared, got lost, and found help. Somehow the manna fell, enough — barely.
We all came from survivors. And we’re survivors too. And we may yet have more to survive. And we will will with a cloud by day, and fire by night — and maybe a little wine and story telling to boot.
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will be from Leviticus chapters 24 and 25.
Wednesday, February 19, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 19, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Leviticus chapter 19 verses 9 and 10:
9 When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 You shall not strip your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the alien: I am the Lord your God.
In the little town where I first served as pastor up in Vermont there was an old and still-dirt road which was easy to miss unless you were looking for it. It was called “Poor Farm Road”. And in by-gone days it was literally the road to the “Poor Farm”, a plot of land the town fathers had set aside for the sake of the needs and provision of the poor in town. It was their way of putting into practice today’s Lesson on not stripping the vineyard bare or gathering the fallen grapes, but leaving something for the poor and needy and the alien.
This injunction is interesting. The command is given and it’s about as clear as anything in the Bible. And then a kind of exclamation is put on it at the end. “I am the LORD your God,” the word says.
This was a word for people coming out of the bondage of slavery in Egypt under Pharaoh. There a man’s measure was judged solely by how much he could produce in a day or in a year. No one ever produced a whole life-time because the work used them up and they were then good for nothing. That was Pharaoh’s system.
But now they’re under a new system. Pharaoh is no longer their master, the LORD is their God. And that means a new judgement for a person — were they kind and gracious and did they leave something for the alien? Because they too were once aliens, and they ought never to forget that.
So, a question: Are we leaving something around the edges of our lives? Are we leaving something in time, or money, or produce to help the poor, the needy, and the alien? Do we remember that we too as people were once looking for Poor Farm Road?
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson is from Leviticus chapters 22 and 23.
9 When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 You shall not strip your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the alien: I am the Lord your God.
In the little town where I first served as pastor up in Vermont there was an old and still-dirt road which was easy to miss unless you were looking for it. It was called “Poor Farm Road”. And in by-gone days it was literally the road to the “Poor Farm”, a plot of land the town fathers had set aside for the sake of the needs and provision of the poor in town. It was their way of putting into practice today’s Lesson on not stripping the vineyard bare or gathering the fallen grapes, but leaving something for the poor and needy and the alien.
This injunction is interesting. The command is given and it’s about as clear as anything in the Bible. And then a kind of exclamation is put on it at the end. “I am the LORD your God,” the word says.
This was a word for people coming out of the bondage of slavery in Egypt under Pharaoh. There a man’s measure was judged solely by how much he could produce in a day or in a year. No one ever produced a whole life-time because the work used them up and they were then good for nothing. That was Pharaoh’s system.
But now they’re under a new system. Pharaoh is no longer their master, the LORD is their God. And that means a new judgement for a person — were they kind and gracious and did they leave something for the alien? Because they too were once aliens, and they ought never to forget that.
So, a question: Are we leaving something around the edges of our lives? Are we leaving something in time, or money, or produce to help the poor, the needy, and the alien? Do we remember that we too as people were once looking for Poor Farm Road?
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson is from Leviticus chapters 22 and 23.
Tuesday, February 18, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 18, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Leviticus chapter 16 verses 7 through 10:
7 He shall take the two goats and set them before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting; 8 and Aaron shall cast lots on the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for Azazel. 9 Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord, and offer it as a sin offering; 10 but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the Lord to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.
Here is the Scripture from which we get the word “scapegoat”. The scapegoat is the goat upon which the judgment (in Latin “scepter”) falls. The scepter of judgment falls on the scapegoat, and all the sin of the people is then placed upon its head while another goat is cast out into the wilderness and made an offering to evil. So the people’s sin is atoned for — at least for another year.
It sounds wildly ancient and even ludicrous. But wherever you get a mass of people together, see if the anxieties and sins of the collective body do not all have away of being channeled into one place, or perhaps two. Someone or something is blamed or punished acutely, while another is demonized and made to leave.
This is still the way we often address our collective sins and anxieties within our institutions, whether they be our political parties and administrations, our corporate bodies, our hospitals, our universities, or even our churches.
Pay attention. Be aware. Open your eyes and see and then speak; for the satisfaction of the scapegoat will last a while, but soon there will arise need for another sacrifice and more casting out.
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Leviticus chapters 19 through 21.
7 He shall take the two goats and set them before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting; 8 and Aaron shall cast lots on the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for Azazel. 9 Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord, and offer it as a sin offering; 10 but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the Lord to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.
Here is the Scripture from which we get the word “scapegoat”. The scapegoat is the goat upon which the judgment (in Latin “scepter”) falls. The scepter of judgment falls on the scapegoat, and all the sin of the people is then placed upon its head while another goat is cast out into the wilderness and made an offering to evil. So the people’s sin is atoned for — at least for another year.
It sounds wildly ancient and even ludicrous. But wherever you get a mass of people together, see if the anxieties and sins of the collective body do not all have away of being channeled into one place, or perhaps two. Someone or something is blamed or punished acutely, while another is demonized and made to leave.
This is still the way we often address our collective sins and anxieties within our institutions, whether they be our political parties and administrations, our corporate bodies, our hospitals, our universities, or even our churches.
Pay attention. Be aware. Open your eyes and see and then speak; for the satisfaction of the scapegoat will last a while, but soon there will arise need for another sacrifice and more casting out.
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Leviticus chapters 19 through 21.
Monday, February 17, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 17, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Leviticus chapter 12 verses 6 through 8:
6 When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. 7 He shall offer it before the Lord, and make atonement on her behalf; then she shall be clean from her flow of blood. This is the law for her who bears a child, male or female. 8 If she cannot afford a sheep, she shall take two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering; and the priest shall make atonement on her behalf, and she shall be clean.
This is one of the Scriptures from which we gather Jesus’ family was poor. Later in the Bible, in the book of Luke, Jesus’ parents present the infant Jesus at the Temple to make offering to the LORD for the gift of their new child. Mary and Jesus come, not with a lamb, but with what was acceptable for those who could not afford a lamb — “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons” (Luke 2:24).
What is required of us in the way of offerings should not be overly taxing or burdensome. We give what we can. We give sacrificially. But it does not honor the LORD for a person to fall deeper into debt or poverty at the altar of giving. So do not heap guilt onto your already heavy burden.
I have a friend who really inspired me last week. He is not yet in a place of giving financially. He has more time than money. So he’s donating his time to help us — and he’s given up several whole overnights to stay at the church with homeless we house during the winter. That’s something not a lot of rich people are able to do.
Here’s a good rule. Give what you can. If you can’t give money give time. And if you can’t give time we will still accept your money!
Work towards the tithe — that is ten percent of your yearly income. Set a goal to add an additional percent given each year. In at least a decade you’ll be a tither. A few more of those will change the church!
And when you reach the tithe give even more. Give extraordinarily. Store up treasures in heaven; and be glad to help foot the bill for the lambs other families cannot afford!
6 When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. 7 He shall offer it before the Lord, and make atonement on her behalf; then she shall be clean from her flow of blood. This is the law for her who bears a child, male or female. 8 If she cannot afford a sheep, she shall take two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering; and the priest shall make atonement on her behalf, and she shall be clean.
This is one of the Scriptures from which we gather Jesus’ family was poor. Later in the Bible, in the book of Luke, Jesus’ parents present the infant Jesus at the Temple to make offering to the LORD for the gift of their new child. Mary and Jesus come, not with a lamb, but with what was acceptable for those who could not afford a lamb — “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons” (Luke 2:24).
What is required of us in the way of offerings should not be overly taxing or burdensome. We give what we can. We give sacrificially. But it does not honor the LORD for a person to fall deeper into debt or poverty at the altar of giving. So do not heap guilt onto your already heavy burden.
I have a friend who really inspired me last week. He is not yet in a place of giving financially. He has more time than money. So he’s donating his time to help us — and he’s given up several whole overnights to stay at the church with homeless we house during the winter. That’s something not a lot of rich people are able to do.
Here’s a good rule. Give what you can. If you can’t give money give time. And if you can’t give time we will still accept your money!
Work towards the tithe — that is ten percent of your yearly income. Set a goal to add an additional percent given each year. In at least a decade you’ll be a tither. A few more of those will change the church!
And when you reach the tithe give even more. Give extraordinarily. Store up treasures in heaven; and be glad to help foot the bill for the lambs other families cannot afford!
Friday, February 14, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 14, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Leviticus chapter 6 verses 1 through 7:
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2 When any of you sin and commit a trespass against the Lord by deceiving a neighbor in a matter of a deposit or a pledge, or by robbery, or if you have defrauded a neighbor, 3 or have found something lost and lied about it—if you swear falsely regarding any of the various things that one may do and sin thereby— 4 when you have sinned and realize your guilt, and would restore what you took by robbery or by fraud or the deposit that was committed to you, or the lost thing that you found, 5 or anything else about which you have sworn falsely, you shall repay the principal amount and shall add one-fifth to it. You shall pay it to its owner when you realize your guilt. 6 And you shall bring to the priest, as your guilt offering to the Lord, a ram without blemish from the flock, or its equivalent, for a guilt offering. 7 The priest shall make atonement on your behalf before the Lord, and you shall be forgiven for any of the things that one may do and incur guilt thereby.
In the Bible absolution from guilt is never just a matter between a person and the LORD when a neighbor has been wronged. Nor is it enough simply express remorse to the neighbor. Restitution and even reparation are necessary. One who steals from a neighbor has to restore what was taken — and then some.
Desmond Tutu used to say, “If someone steals my pen and then asks me to forgive him, unless he returns my pen, the sincerity of his contrition and confession will be considered to be nil. Confession, forgiveness, and reparation, wherever feasible, form part of a continuum...”
The writer of Leviticus is interested in creating a just community. A just community requires just recompense. This is not a matter of vengeance, but of basic fairness.
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. Monday’s Lesson will be from Leviticus chapters 8 through 15.
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2 When any of you sin and commit a trespass against the Lord by deceiving a neighbor in a matter of a deposit or a pledge, or by robbery, or if you have defrauded a neighbor, 3 or have found something lost and lied about it—if you swear falsely regarding any of the various things that one may do and sin thereby— 4 when you have sinned and realize your guilt, and would restore what you took by robbery or by fraud or the deposit that was committed to you, or the lost thing that you found, 5 or anything else about which you have sworn falsely, you shall repay the principal amount and shall add one-fifth to it. You shall pay it to its owner when you realize your guilt. 6 And you shall bring to the priest, as your guilt offering to the Lord, a ram without blemish from the flock, or its equivalent, for a guilt offering. 7 The priest shall make atonement on your behalf before the Lord, and you shall be forgiven for any of the things that one may do and incur guilt thereby.
In the Bible absolution from guilt is never just a matter between a person and the LORD when a neighbor has been wronged. Nor is it enough simply express remorse to the neighbor. Restitution and even reparation are necessary. One who steals from a neighbor has to restore what was taken — and then some.
Desmond Tutu used to say, “If someone steals my pen and then asks me to forgive him, unless he returns my pen, the sincerity of his contrition and confession will be considered to be nil. Confession, forgiveness, and reparation, wherever feasible, form part of a continuum...”
The writer of Leviticus is interested in creating a just community. A just community requires just recompense. This is not a matter of vengeance, but of basic fairness.
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. Monday’s Lesson will be from Leviticus chapters 8 through 15.
Thursday, February 13, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 13, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Leviticus chapter 4 verses 27 through 31:
27 If anyone of the ordinary people among you sins unintentionally in doing any one of the things that by the Lord’s commandments ought not to be done and incurs guilt, 28 when the sin that you have committed is made known to you, you shall bring a female goat without blemish as your offering, for the sin that you have committed. 29 You shall lay your hand on the head of the sin offering; and the sin offering shall be slaughtered at the place of the burnt offering. 30 The priest shall take some of its blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and he shall pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. 31 He shall remove all its fat, as the fat is removed from the offering of well-being, and the priest shall turn it into smoke on the altar for a pleasing odor to the Lord. Thus the priest shall make atonement on your behalf, and you shall be forgiven.
At the heart of the book of Leviticus is the human need to make atonement before God. Whether this need is heavenly or earthly, juridical or psychological, we know for sure it is deeply theological. It has to do with our relationship with God.
In Leviticus there is an interesting phrase that comes up again and again relative to the atonement offerings of made of animals on the Tabernacle altar: “the priest shall turn it into smoke on the altar”.
The phrasing “turn it into smoke” is intentional and different from simple burning or incineration. At the altar the offering is not destroyed by fire but rather transformed into a sacred smoke rising up to heaven.
Later in the New Testament, Paul will speak of his own works using the burnt offering as a metaphor for his work for the church, which he says — even if fruitless — he prays is a sacred and pleasing offering to God.
Nothing is ever destroyed on God’s altar, so long as it is given genuinely and with humility before God. What is offered in the spirit of a desire for atonement (oneness) with God is pleasing to God. And nothing is incinerated— ever. It is transformed and turned into smoke on the altar of the LORD.
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Leviticus chapters 5 through 7.
27 If anyone of the ordinary people among you sins unintentionally in doing any one of the things that by the Lord’s commandments ought not to be done and incurs guilt, 28 when the sin that you have committed is made known to you, you shall bring a female goat without blemish as your offering, for the sin that you have committed. 29 You shall lay your hand on the head of the sin offering; and the sin offering shall be slaughtered at the place of the burnt offering. 30 The priest shall take some of its blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and he shall pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. 31 He shall remove all its fat, as the fat is removed from the offering of well-being, and the priest shall turn it into smoke on the altar for a pleasing odor to the Lord. Thus the priest shall make atonement on your behalf, and you shall be forgiven.
At the heart of the book of Leviticus is the human need to make atonement before God. Whether this need is heavenly or earthly, juridical or psychological, we know for sure it is deeply theological. It has to do with our relationship with God.
In Leviticus there is an interesting phrase that comes up again and again relative to the atonement offerings of made of animals on the Tabernacle altar: “the priest shall turn it into smoke on the altar”.
The phrasing “turn it into smoke” is intentional and different from simple burning or incineration. At the altar the offering is not destroyed by fire but rather transformed into a sacred smoke rising up to heaven.
Later in the New Testament, Paul will speak of his own works using the burnt offering as a metaphor for his work for the church, which he says — even if fruitless — he prays is a sacred and pleasing offering to God.
Nothing is ever destroyed on God’s altar, so long as it is given genuinely and with humility before God. What is offered in the spirit of a desire for atonement (oneness) with God is pleasing to God. And nothing is incinerated— ever. It is transformed and turned into smoke on the altar of the LORD.
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Leviticus chapters 5 through 7.
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 12, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Exodus chapter 39 verses 8 through 14:
8 He made the breastpiece, in skilled work, like the work of the ephod, of gold, of blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and of fine twisted linen. 9 It was square; the breastpiece was made double, a span in length and a span in width when doubled. 10 They set in it four rows of stones. A row of carnelian, chrysolite, and emerald was the first row; 11 and the second row, a turquoise, a sapphire, and a moonstone; 12 and the third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; 13 and the fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper; they were enclosed in settings of gold filigree. 14 There were twelve stones with names corresponding to the names of the sons of Israel; they were like signets, each engraved with its name, for the twelve tribes.
As he entered the Holy Tabernacle, on the breastplate of the Priest were twelve stones, set in four rows, each stone of a different mineral — emerald, sapphire, onyx, etc. — and each having one of different names engraved upon them. These were stones of remembrance, stones to bear the names of the 12 tribes of Israel before the presence of the LORD.
And I would say that is pretty good model for prayer. We bring the names of the people we care and are responsible for before the LORD. We carry their names on our hearts just as the Priest brought the names of the tribes on his breastplate.
What are the names you have on your heart this morning? Have you brought them before the LORD? Are you bearing your remembrance stones into the Holy Tabernacle of Prayer?
NOTE: We’re through another Bible book! Tomorrow’s Lesson will be from Leviticus chapters 1 through 4.
8 He made the breastpiece, in skilled work, like the work of the ephod, of gold, of blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and of fine twisted linen. 9 It was square; the breastpiece was made double, a span in length and a span in width when doubled. 10 They set in it four rows of stones. A row of carnelian, chrysolite, and emerald was the first row; 11 and the second row, a turquoise, a sapphire, and a moonstone; 12 and the third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; 13 and the fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper; they were enclosed in settings of gold filigree. 14 There were twelve stones with names corresponding to the names of the sons of Israel; they were like signets, each engraved with its name, for the twelve tribes.
As he entered the Holy Tabernacle, on the breastplate of the Priest were twelve stones, set in four rows, each stone of a different mineral — emerald, sapphire, onyx, etc. — and each having one of different names engraved upon them. These were stones of remembrance, stones to bear the names of the 12 tribes of Israel before the presence of the LORD.
And I would say that is pretty good model for prayer. We bring the names of the people we care and are responsible for before the LORD. We carry their names on our hearts just as the Priest brought the names of the tribes on his breastplate.
What are the names you have on your heart this morning? Have you brought them before the LORD? Are you bearing your remembrance stones into the Holy Tabernacle of Prayer?
NOTE: We’re through another Bible book! Tomorrow’s Lesson will be from Leviticus chapters 1 through 4.
Tuesday, February 11, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 11, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Exodus chapter 36 verses 1 through 7:
Bezalel and Oholiab and every skillful one to whom the Lord has given skill and understanding to know how to do any work in the construction of the sanctuary shall work in accordance with all that the Lord has commanded.
2 Moses then called Bezalel and Oholiab and every skillful one to whom the Lord had given skill, everyone whose heart was stirred to come to do the work; 3 and they received from Moses all the freewill offerings that the Israelites had brought for doing the work on the sanctuary. They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning, 4 so that all the artisans who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary came, each from the task being performed, 5 and said to Moses, “The people are bringing much more than enough for doing the work that the Lord has commanded us to do.” 6 So Moses gave command, and word was proclaimed throughout the camp: “No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.” So the people were restrained from bringing; 7 for what they had already brought was more than enough to do all the work.
The work of building the Temple does not belong to just one person. It is the labor of myriads of people, and even generations. The people come with their offerings. Some among the people are endowed by the LORD to then take those offerings and use them for the building of the edifice. Sometimes the laborers are less than what the people imagine. Expectations must be managed and someone must have the wisdom to say, “Enough.” In the end, it shall be a Temple on earth, but not the Temple of Heaven.
Last week the theologian James Leo Garrett, Jr. passed away. He wrote the history of the first 100 years of Broadway Baptist Church. It is titled, “Living Stones”, a metaphor for a building that Paul used to compare it to the building of the church body and which is referenced on the Foundation Stone of the Church. I quote Dr. Garrett’s Preface, as it is an apt reflection on the building of Broadway Church in the same tradition of the chronicler of the building of the Temple in the book of Exodus.
From the Preface to”Living Stones: The Centennial History of Broadway Baptist Church, Fort Worth, Texas, 1882-1982:
“The history of Broadway Baptist Church is not a triumphalist story that moves from one triumph to another without trauma or reversal. It is a story of faith, commitment, loyalty, struggle, and service on the part of a host of persons — the “living stones”, many of whose names do not appear in this lengthy volume. It is a succession of seventeen regular pastorates, and numerous deacons, staff members, teachers, committee members, musicians, and the like. For its first eight decades its people statistics revealed a pattern of increase, whereas during the last decades those statistics have manifested a pattern of decrease. But throughout the century the blessings of God have been evident.”
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. tomorrow’s Daily Lesson will be from Exodus chapters 39-40.
Bezalel and Oholiab and every skillful one to whom the Lord has given skill and understanding to know how to do any work in the construction of the sanctuary shall work in accordance with all that the Lord has commanded.
2 Moses then called Bezalel and Oholiab and every skillful one to whom the Lord had given skill, everyone whose heart was stirred to come to do the work; 3 and they received from Moses all the freewill offerings that the Israelites had brought for doing the work on the sanctuary. They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning, 4 so that all the artisans who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary came, each from the task being performed, 5 and said to Moses, “The people are bringing much more than enough for doing the work that the Lord has commanded us to do.” 6 So Moses gave command, and word was proclaimed throughout the camp: “No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.” So the people were restrained from bringing; 7 for what they had already brought was more than enough to do all the work.
The work of building the Temple does not belong to just one person. It is the labor of myriads of people, and even generations. The people come with their offerings. Some among the people are endowed by the LORD to then take those offerings and use them for the building of the edifice. Sometimes the laborers are less than what the people imagine. Expectations must be managed and someone must have the wisdom to say, “Enough.” In the end, it shall be a Temple on earth, but not the Temple of Heaven.
Last week the theologian James Leo Garrett, Jr. passed away. He wrote the history of the first 100 years of Broadway Baptist Church. It is titled, “Living Stones”, a metaphor for a building that Paul used to compare it to the building of the church body and which is referenced on the Foundation Stone of the Church. I quote Dr. Garrett’s Preface, as it is an apt reflection on the building of Broadway Church in the same tradition of the chronicler of the building of the Temple in the book of Exodus.
From the Preface to”Living Stones: The Centennial History of Broadway Baptist Church, Fort Worth, Texas, 1882-1982:
“The history of Broadway Baptist Church is not a triumphalist story that moves from one triumph to another without trauma or reversal. It is a story of faith, commitment, loyalty, struggle, and service on the part of a host of persons — the “living stones”, many of whose names do not appear in this lengthy volume. It is a succession of seventeen regular pastorates, and numerous deacons, staff members, teachers, committee members, musicians, and the like. For its first eight decades its people statistics revealed a pattern of increase, whereas during the last decades those statistics have manifested a pattern of decrease. But throughout the century the blessings of God have been evident.”
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible this year. tomorrow’s Daily Lesson will be from Exodus chapters 39-40.
Monday, February 10, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 10, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Exodus chapter 32 verses 1 through 14:
When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make gods for us, 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 Aaron said to them, “Take off the gold rings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took off the gold rings from their ears, and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took the gold from them, formed it in a mold, and cast an image of a 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 proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a festival to the Lord.” 6 They rose early the next day, and offered burnt offerings and brought sacrifices of well-being; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to revel.
7 The Lord said to Moses, “Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; 8 they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a 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 The Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. 10 Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation.”
11 But Moses implored the Lord his God, and said, “O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’” 14 And the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people.
It was my former professor, friend, and strong Jewish community leader Howard Curzer who pointed out to me the peculiarity in this story that God waited to send Moses down the mountain until exactly the time the Israelites were demanding Aaron make idols before them. Up till then God had kept Moses busy for 40 days laying out all the exact plans for the Temple’s length, width, height, and exacting decor — proof, a friend says, that God really does care what color should be used for the chancel steps. Then, just as the Israelites grow too anxious to mollify and Aaron too weak to stand up to them, the LORD tells Moses to go down.
On first reading, it’s a test of God’s faithfulness. Will he or won’t he be with them, even though they are such a stiff-necked and forgetful people. But given the peculiarity of timing, Prof. Curzer says it’s actually a test of Moses. God lays out a test, “Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation.” It’s an alluring invitation. God will make something of Moses all alone. But it’s an invitation he must refuse. Moses was called to deliver his people, not just hisself.
Our church or synagogue or country may well be very stiff-necked, and everyone around us may be bowing down to false idols. But these are our people. And we need leaders right now who will decide they must stay with the community — come what may — and not give into the temptation that deliverance would be better all by ourselves.
And who knows, perhaps as in the story the disaster that may well befall the people because of their idolatry May be averted because one leader decided not to give up on the people.
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will be from Exodus chapters 36 through 38.
When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make gods for us, 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 Aaron said to them, “Take off the gold rings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took off the gold rings from their ears, and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took the gold from them, formed it in a mold, and cast an image of a 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 proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a festival to the Lord.” 6 They rose early the next day, and offered burnt offerings and brought sacrifices of well-being; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to revel.
7 The Lord said to Moses, “Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; 8 they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a 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 The Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. 10 Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation.”
11 But Moses implored the Lord his God, and said, “O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’” 14 And the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people.
It was my former professor, friend, and strong Jewish community leader Howard Curzer who pointed out to me the peculiarity in this story that God waited to send Moses down the mountain until exactly the time the Israelites were demanding Aaron make idols before them. Up till then God had kept Moses busy for 40 days laying out all the exact plans for the Temple’s length, width, height, and exacting decor — proof, a friend says, that God really does care what color should be used for the chancel steps. Then, just as the Israelites grow too anxious to mollify and Aaron too weak to stand up to them, the LORD tells Moses to go down.
On first reading, it’s a test of God’s faithfulness. Will he or won’t he be with them, even though they are such a stiff-necked and forgetful people. But given the peculiarity of timing, Prof. Curzer says it’s actually a test of Moses. God lays out a test, “Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation.” It’s an alluring invitation. God will make something of Moses all alone. But it’s an invitation he must refuse. Moses was called to deliver his people, not just hisself.
Our church or synagogue or country may well be very stiff-necked, and everyone around us may be bowing down to false idols. But these are our people. And we need leaders right now who will decide they must stay with the community — come what may — and not give into the temptation that deliverance would be better all by ourselves.
And who knows, perhaps as in the story the disaster that may well befall the people because of their idolatry May be averted because one leader decided not to give up on the people.
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will be from Exodus chapters 36 through 38.
Friday, February 7, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 7, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Exodus chapter 27 verses 20 through 21:
20 You shall further command the Israelites to bring you pure oil of beaten olives for the light, so that a lamp may be set up to burn regularly. 21 In the tent of meeting, outside the curtain that is before the covenant, Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning before the Lord. It shall be a perpetual ordinance to be observed throughout their generations by the Israelites.
We tend the light, even in the midnight hours. When all the rest of the world is asleep, or for fear simply pretending to be, there is still someone up, in the tent of meeting, watching over the light, and keeping its vigil.
It is dark out there, and we have a long time before the first rays of dawn will be seen. We have just begun the fourth watch, and sunrise is still a long ways off. But with the lamp of the soul and the oil of God’s Spirit, we will make it through the night; and the light will shine in the darkness and the darkness shall not overcome it . . .
NOTE: We are reading the whole Bible this year. Monday’s Lesson will come from Exodus chapters 28 through 35.
20 You shall further command the Israelites to bring you pure oil of beaten olives for the light, so that a lamp may be set up to burn regularly. 21 In the tent of meeting, outside the curtain that is before the covenant, Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning before the Lord. It shall be a perpetual ordinance to be observed throughout their generations by the Israelites.
We tend the light, even in the midnight hours. When all the rest of the world is asleep, or for fear simply pretending to be, there is still someone up, in the tent of meeting, watching over the light, and keeping its vigil.
It is dark out there, and we have a long time before the first rays of dawn will be seen. We have just begun the fourth watch, and sunrise is still a long ways off. But with the lamp of the soul and the oil of God’s Spirit, we will make it through the night; and the light will shine in the darkness and the darkness shall not overcome it . . .
NOTE: We are reading the whole Bible this year. Monday’s Lesson will come from Exodus chapters 28 through 35.
Thursday, February 6, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 6, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Exodus chapter 23 verses 1 through 9:
You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with the wicked to act as a malicious witness. 2 You shall not follow a majority in wrongdoing; when you bear witness in a lawsuit, you shall not side with the majority so as to pervert justice; 3 nor shall you be partial to the poor in a lawsuit.
4 When you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey going astray, you shall bring it back.
5 When you see the donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden and you would hold back from setting it free, you must help to set it free.
6 You shall not pervert the justice due to your poor in their lawsuits. 7 Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and those in the right, for I will not acquit the guilty. 8 You shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the officials, and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.
9 You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
In the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) translation the heading for this section of Scripture is “Justice for All”. So the Judeo-Christian system of law is meant for the good of all, without preconceived bias for or against anyone. The rights of all are safeguarded; and these rights cannot be subject to personal animus, political favoritism, prejudice, and/or bribery. And even the rights of an enemy must be vouchsafed by his or her neighbor, irrespective of the neighbor’s personal feelings or prerogatives. It is a system of justice for all, whereby no one is either above the demands of the Law or beneath its protections.
Let those with ears to hear listen and act . . .
NOTE: We are reading the whole Bible together this year. Tomorrow’s Lesson comes from Exodus chapters 25-27.
You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with the wicked to act as a malicious witness. 2 You shall not follow a majority in wrongdoing; when you bear witness in a lawsuit, you shall not side with the majority so as to pervert justice; 3 nor shall you be partial to the poor in a lawsuit.
4 When you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey going astray, you shall bring it back.
5 When you see the donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden and you would hold back from setting it free, you must help to set it free.
6 You shall not pervert the justice due to your poor in their lawsuits. 7 Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and those in the right, for I will not acquit the guilty. 8 You shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the officials, and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.
9 You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
In the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) translation the heading for this section of Scripture is “Justice for All”. So the Judeo-Christian system of law is meant for the good of all, without preconceived bias for or against anyone. The rights of all are safeguarded; and these rights cannot be subject to personal animus, political favoritism, prejudice, and/or bribery. And even the rights of an enemy must be vouchsafed by his or her neighbor, irrespective of the neighbor’s personal feelings or prerogatives. It is a system of justice for all, whereby no one is either above the demands of the Law or beneath its protections.
Let those with ears to hear listen and act . . .
NOTE: We are reading the whole Bible together this year. Tomorrow’s Lesson comes from Exodus chapters 25-27.
Wednesday, February 5, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 5, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Exodus chapter 20 verses 1 through 17. The Ten Commandments or Promises for a People Living in a Promised Land:
20 Then God spoke all these words:
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.
(There will be complete religious freedom in this land. They won’t have to worship Pharaoh anymore.)
4 You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, 6 but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.
(No more being forced to make sphinxes in the Promised Land. You are free now. The LORD delivered you. Worship the LORD.)
7 You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.
(Using God’s name to justify destructive and life-destroying purposes will not be tolerated.)
8 Remember the sabbath day, and 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; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.
(In Pharaoh’s economy all you were were workers. In the Promised Land you will be human beings made in God’s image. God rested; you deserve to rest also.)
12 Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
(In Egypt people were only valued for their production capability. So they were chewed up and spit out and then replaced. In the Promised Land the old who cannot produce will still be valued and treated with dignity.)
13 You shall not murder.
(Pharaoh’s whole system was based on the threat of murder.)
14 You shall not commit adultery.
(The marriage bed is respected and fidelity is expected.)
15 You shall not steal.
(An economy based on theft is chaotic and ends up ruled by thugs. In the Promised Land there will be law and order and the little person’s rights will be respected.)
16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
(That means in the Courts and on Twitter.)
17 You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
(Your neighbors’ family and things are not there for the taking. That’s the way it was in Egypt, not so in the Promised Land.)
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Exodus chapters 22 through 25.
20 Then God spoke all these words:
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.
(There will be complete religious freedom in this land. They won’t have to worship Pharaoh anymore.)
4 You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, 6 but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.
(No more being forced to make sphinxes in the Promised Land. You are free now. The LORD delivered you. Worship the LORD.)
7 You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.
(Using God’s name to justify destructive and life-destroying purposes will not be tolerated.)
8 Remember the sabbath day, and 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; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.
(In Pharaoh’s economy all you were were workers. In the Promised Land you will be human beings made in God’s image. God rested; you deserve to rest also.)
12 Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
(In Egypt people were only valued for their production capability. So they were chewed up and spit out and then replaced. In the Promised Land the old who cannot produce will still be valued and treated with dignity.)
13 You shall not murder.
(Pharaoh’s whole system was based on the threat of murder.)
14 You shall not commit adultery.
(The marriage bed is respected and fidelity is expected.)
15 You shall not steal.
(An economy based on theft is chaotic and ends up ruled by thugs. In the Promised Land there will be law and order and the little person’s rights will be respected.)
16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
(That means in the Courts and on Twitter.)
17 You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
(Your neighbors’ family and things are not there for the taking. That’s the way it was in Egypt, not so in the Promised Land.)
NOTE: Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Exodus chapters 22 through 25.
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 4, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Exodus chapter 17 verses 1 through 7:
From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 2 The people quarreled with Moses, and said, “Give us water to drink.” 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 complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” 4 So Moses cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” 5 The Lord said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6 I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7 He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”
The people wander and their spirits waiver. Fear sets in and so do anger and frustration. They blame Moses. They look up with indignation at God.
But then the LORD tells them to look not up, but down, and also in. Buried deep within is the water they will need to survive. It’s been there all along, in the depths of the earth, buried for a billion years, waiting on the Israelites to come and open the cascade within.
It is there, inside, this cataract of spiritual resource welled within us all; but it always takes desperation to find it.
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible together this year. Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Exodus chapters 19 through 21.
From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 2 The people quarreled with Moses, and said, “Give us water to drink.” 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 complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” 4 So Moses cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” 5 The Lord said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6 I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7 He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”
The people wander and their spirits waiver. Fear sets in and so do anger and frustration. They blame Moses. They look up with indignation at God.
But then the LORD tells them to look not up, but down, and also in. Buried deep within is the water they will need to survive. It’s been there all along, in the depths of the earth, buried for a billion years, waiting on the Israelites to come and open the cascade within.
It is there, inside, this cataract of spiritual resource welled within us all; but it always takes desperation to find it.
NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible together this year. Tomorrow’s Lesson will come from Exodus chapters 19 through 21.
Monday, February 3, 2020
Daily Lesson for February 3, 2020
Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Exodus chapter 9 verses 9 and 10:
9 The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, in order that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.” 10 Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh; but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land.
St. Augustine had a brilliant commentary on the Scripture in which he reflected on the sun and noted how it melts wax but hardens clay. The sun is the same; but it does different things to different substances depending on their properties.
The LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart like clay. Though the LORD gave Pharaoh every opportunity, the substance of Pharaoh’s heart could not be melted. It wasn’t in him to soften.
So then ultimately there would be no changing Pharaoh. His heart was hard; and the presence of the LORD’s light would only make it harder.
For Pharaoh there will simply be no bargaining, no wilting, and no change. And the sooner Moses and Aaron and the people realize that the better.
Let those with ears to hear let them listen . . .
NOTE: We are reading the whole Bible together this year. Tomorrow’s Daily Lesson will come from Exodus chapters 16 through 18.
9 The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, in order that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.” 10 Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh; but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land.
St. Augustine had a brilliant commentary on the Scripture in which he reflected on the sun and noted how it melts wax but hardens clay. The sun is the same; but it does different things to different substances depending on their properties.
The LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart like clay. Though the LORD gave Pharaoh every opportunity, the substance of Pharaoh’s heart could not be melted. It wasn’t in him to soften.
So then ultimately there would be no changing Pharaoh. His heart was hard; and the presence of the LORD’s light would only make it harder.
For Pharaoh there will simply be no bargaining, no wilting, and no change. And the sooner Moses and Aaron and the people realize that the better.
Let those with ears to hear let them listen . . .
NOTE: We are reading the whole Bible together this year. Tomorrow’s Daily Lesson will come from Exodus chapters 16 through 18.