We are now at Hebrews 11:17. It's time to read more about Abraham's faith. Abraham's faith was so great that he offered his son Isaac as a sacrifice when god tested him. God was being a sadistic bastard. He had previously told Abraham that the promise of numerous offspring would be fulfilled through Isaac. The Hebrews author claims Abraham was willing to sacrifice Isaac because he "reasoned" that god could raise the dead. Baloney. The author of Hebrews is trying to use the old testament story to prove that belief in resurrection has always been part of Hebrew beliefs. There is actually no indication in most of the old testament that anyone of the ancient Abrahamic tradition believed in a resurrection of the dead. Sheol was the fate of every dead person. The author of Hebrews goes on to say that "figuratively speaking, he (Abraham) did receive Isaac back from the dead." Just so you know, figurative speech doesn't have any more substance than faith.
Next, the author says, that by faith Isaac blessed Jacob's and Esau's future. In other words, he said magical words at them that were supposed to have some mystical power over their lives. By faith, Jacob also "blessed" Joseph's sons. By faith, Joseph spoke of the exodus from egypt and what he wanted done with his bones. Joseph did speak of the Israelites leaving Egypt, going to the promised land, and taking his bones with them, in Genesis 50, but there were no other specifics. We are not going to go into the fact that none of the stuff we are reading about actually happened. So, it doesn't matter what these supposed patriarchs supposedly said or did and why they did it. It's the same as if we would take the Iliad and the Odyssey seriously.
The author goes on to say, "by faith Moses's parents hid him for three months after he was born because they saw that he was no ordinary child, and they were afraid of the king's edict." Any parent worth being called a parent would try to do anything they could to save their child from death. Faith has nothing to do with it.
We are also told that "by faith, Moses refused to be called the son of Pharoah's daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of god rather than enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time." Again, this never actually happened, but let's look at what Exodus says. Did Moses refuse to be called the son of Pharoah's daughter? Nope, can't find that. Did Moses choose to be mistreated along with the people of god? Nope, can't find that either. In fact, Exodus 2:11 says Moses went out and watched his people doing hard labor.
In Hebrews 11:26, the author says, Moses "regarded disgrace for the sake of christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt because he was looking ahead to his reward." This is blatant nonsense. Go back and read Exodus 2. Moses killed a man and became a fugitive, eventually going incognito as a shepherd. He had no eternal reward in mind only saving his own skin. Moses had no christ in mind.
Next, the author says, "By faith (Moses) left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger, because he saw him who is invisible." At least that part is true to the Exodus story. The reader is also told,"By faith (Moses) kept the passover and the sprinkling of the blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel." That also happened in the story. Plus, Moses never pleaded on behalf of all the innocent children that would die that night. Nice guy.
Some more things that supposedly happened by faith: the people walked through the Red Sea on dry land, the walls of Jericho fell, Rahab welcomed spies and was not killed. These are all stories that most likely never happened, so faith had nothing to do with them. Besides, if faith was a factor, it wasn't faith in Jesus or a resurrection, was it?
Till next time.
Showing posts with label Exodus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Exodus. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 8, 2019
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
Heaven
I've already covered the topic of hell, so I thought we would do a survey of heaven in the bible. According to Bible Gateway, there are 622 times heaven/ heavens is used in the NIV, 691 in the KJV. It's important to note that it is probable that most of the instances are referring to the area above the earth, the atmosphere, or space. Sometimes that is indistinguishable from the residence of Yahweh.
Strong's concordance shows that through most of the old testament one single Hebrew word is translated into the English word heaven, most of the time. It is the word Shameh, which is defined as pertaining to the sky or the invisible arch in which the clouds move, as well as to the higher "ether" where the celestial bodies (planets) revolve.
This same heaven is the one created by god in Genesis, the one that contains the stars. This is the same heaven that let loose the flood waters that carried the ark. This same heaven is the one that rained fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah. This is the same heaven from which god spoke to Abraham. This is the same heaven to which Jacob's dream ladder reached. This is the same heaven that holds the stars and the dew. It's all the same word. There is no differentiation between the sky/upper atmosphere and the realm of god in the whole book of Genesis.
In Exodus, god talks to Moses from heaven. He sends manna to the Israelites from heaven. In Deuteronomy, god lives in heaven (the sky) and on earth. He speaks from heaven. Smoke and fire goes up to heaven. Rain comes down from heaven, etc. It's all one and the same heaven.
In Joshua, the lord threw stones down from heaven and the sun stood still in heaven. In Samuel, the lord thunders from the same heaven.
More to come.
Strong's concordance shows that through most of the old testament one single Hebrew word is translated into the English word heaven, most of the time. It is the word Shameh, which is defined as pertaining to the sky or the invisible arch in which the clouds move, as well as to the higher "ether" where the celestial bodies (planets) revolve.
This same heaven is the one created by god in Genesis, the one that contains the stars. This is the same heaven that let loose the flood waters that carried the ark. This same heaven is the one that rained fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah. This is the same heaven from which god spoke to Abraham. This is the same heaven to which Jacob's dream ladder reached. This is the same heaven that holds the stars and the dew. It's all the same word. There is no differentiation between the sky/upper atmosphere and the realm of god in the whole book of Genesis.
In Exodus, god talks to Moses from heaven. He sends manna to the Israelites from heaven. In Deuteronomy, god lives in heaven (the sky) and on earth. He speaks from heaven. Smoke and fire goes up to heaven. Rain comes down from heaven, etc. It's all one and the same heaven.
In Joshua, the lord threw stones down from heaven and the sun stood still in heaven. In Samuel, the lord thunders from the same heaven.
More to come.
Saturday, June 3, 2017
Book Review: The Pentateuch and Book of Joshua Critically Examined
I am reading the Pentateuch and Book of Joshua Critically Examined. You can download it for free here: https://archive.org/details/pentateuchbookof00cole
The book was written by John William Colenso in 1862. The author was a missionary in Africa and was translating the bible into a local language when he realized, with the questions that arose from a native assistant, that what he was translating was very problematic. In fact, he determined that it could not be true. Unfortunately he didn't give up his belief in God, just his belief in the infallibility of scripture. When you get to the meat of the book, he makes some very intelligent observations, based on reality and observable evidence.
First the cons: The quality of the transcription was horrible, with at least a dozen errors per page. The first 25% of the book contains the author's explanations for writing it and numerous disclaimers that in spite of the truth of what he found, he still retains a kind of belief. This part was very repetitive.
The pros: The author examines the historicity of the Pentateuch and Joshua with great practicality. He concentrates on the numbers of the people and animals that came out of Egypt during Exodus, giving detailed reasons for his conclusions that they are impossible. He then covers the sacrificial system, again concentrating on the numbers of animals and people involved and the practical concerns. He obviously spent a lot of time trying to reconcile scripture with facts, but was unable to do so.
Mr. Colenso does not think his observations about scripture will have a great impact on Christianity because: "One has great faith in the mere inertia of religious belief."
Even over 150 years later, Mr. Colenso's argument stand up well.
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Joshua chapter 24 part 2, plus wrap up.
*We have come to the end of the book of Joshua. Joshua sent the people away, each to his own inheritance. Then he dies. He was 110 years old. That would make this somewhere around the year 1267 B.C.E. (I've been counting back from Bishop Ussher's date of 4,004 B.C.E. as the supposed date of the beginning.) Joshua was buried at his inherited land. The Israelites served Yahweh during the lifetime of Joshua. Joseph's bones, which had been brought from Egypt and presumably carried around this whole time, were buried at Shechem on a piece of land that Jacob had supposedly once bought. Though how they could know that after over 400 years in captivity is a mystery. Think of all the ways of record keeping we have today, and it is still very difficult to know much about our ancestors of 100 years ago, let alone over 400. The high priest Eleazor, son of Aaron, died and was replaced by his son Phinehas.
Wrap Up
*In this book, we are not told it is the word of God, or that it was written by Joshua. We find no mention of heaven, hell, satan, Angels, demons, etc., except for the hornet and we are not told what that is. The only obviously supernatural event is the crossing of the Jordan in chapter 3. It clearly mirrors the crossing of the Red Sea. There is no mention of a messiah. There are only earthly blessings and cursings that pertain to the lives and conduct of the Israelites, not their thoughts.
*Joshua has become the new conduit for Yahweh's commands and instructions after Moses's death. . He alone hears the words of Yahweh. The people are expected to believe and obey. Obedience is stressed over and over. Consequences of disobedience are usually death.
* Yahweh is a jealous God, vengeance is his, he will repay. He pelts hailstones at his enemies while they run away. He changed his mind about the no plunder rule. He orders the deaths of multitudes of men, women and children, so that the Israelites can have the land that he supposedly promised one of their ancestors over 400 years ago. He orders the torture of horses. His power to help eliminate the remaing tribes living in the promised land seems limited after the initial slaughter. He is currently living in Shiloh.
*The Israelites have conquered the land and taken posession, just like Yahweh promised. Sort of. The land was allotted to each of the Israelite tribe by casting lots. However, there is still plenty of clean up to do. Some pesky tribes refuse to be conquered so they are made to do menial tasks for the Israelites. Make sense of that.
*Finally, there is little to no historical evidence of any of the events in this book. It is probably historical fiction, used by the Israelites to explain and justify their presence in the land. It also was probably used to retroactively "foresee" the eventual conquering and exile of their people. This is attributed to disobedience, of course.
*This wraps up the story of the origins of "the people" of the land of Israel. It establishes their group identity. It is interesting to note that most ancient tribes had origin stories and a large percentage of them called them selves "the people" of some sort. Just take a look at some names of Native American tribes and their meanings. Look at the Preamble of the constitution of the United States, "we the people." It is natural for people to group themselves with those who are like them in culture and background and think of everyone else as "other." It makes us feel more comfortable, but it artificially separates and divides people from each other. This is one of the causes of war and genocide throughout history.
Edited
Wrap Up
*In this book, we are not told it is the word of God, or that it was written by Joshua. We find no mention of heaven, hell, satan, Angels, demons, etc., except for the hornet and we are not told what that is. The only obviously supernatural event is the crossing of the Jordan in chapter 3. It clearly mirrors the crossing of the Red Sea. There is no mention of a messiah. There are only earthly blessings and cursings that pertain to the lives and conduct of the Israelites, not their thoughts.
*Joshua has become the new conduit for Yahweh's commands and instructions after Moses's death. . He alone hears the words of Yahweh. The people are expected to believe and obey. Obedience is stressed over and over. Consequences of disobedience are usually death.
* Yahweh is a jealous God, vengeance is his, he will repay. He pelts hailstones at his enemies while they run away. He changed his mind about the no plunder rule. He orders the deaths of multitudes of men, women and children, so that the Israelites can have the land that he supposedly promised one of their ancestors over 400 years ago. He orders the torture of horses. His power to help eliminate the remaing tribes living in the promised land seems limited after the initial slaughter. He is currently living in Shiloh.
*The Israelites have conquered the land and taken posession, just like Yahweh promised. Sort of. The land was allotted to each of the Israelite tribe by casting lots. However, there is still plenty of clean up to do. Some pesky tribes refuse to be conquered so they are made to do menial tasks for the Israelites. Make sense of that.
*Finally, there is little to no historical evidence of any of the events in this book. It is probably historical fiction, used by the Israelites to explain and justify their presence in the land. It also was probably used to retroactively "foresee" the eventual conquering and exile of their people. This is attributed to disobedience, of course.
*This wraps up the story of the origins of "the people" of the land of Israel. It establishes their group identity. It is interesting to note that most ancient tribes had origin stories and a large percentage of them called them selves "the people" of some sort. Just take a look at some names of Native American tribes and their meanings. Look at the Preamble of the constitution of the United States, "we the people." It is natural for people to group themselves with those who are like them in culture and background and think of everyone else as "other." It makes us feel more comfortable, but it artificially separates and divides people from each other. This is one of the causes of war and genocide throughout history.
Edited
Thursday, March 17, 2016
Joshua chapter 3
After reading chapter 3:
*The morning after the spies reported to Joshua, the Israelites that were going to cross the Jordon moved to camp by the Jordan river. Remember, we are talking about at least a million people. After they had been camped for three days, Joshua walked among the people giving them instructions. When they saw the priests carrying the ark of the covenant they were to follow in a proscribed order, probably that given back in Numbers chapter 2. However, they were to stay 2,000 cubits back from the ark, which is about half a mile! Think about it. How easy is it to see people half a mile away? Can you see what they are carrying or doing, hear what they are saying? It would partly depend on the terrain and the vegetation, wouldn't it? You can read about the geography surrounding the Jordan River here and here. As far as I can determine, the Jordon River itself is currently a little over half a mile wide at its widest point and could have been up to a mile wide in antiquity. The river is in a depression in the Jordon Rift Valley.
*Joshua promises that Yahweh will do amazing things. Then he tells the priests to take the ark, go to the river and stand in the water. After that, he tells the Israelites they will know God is with them when they are able to drive the previous inhabitants out of the land. Then they are told to choose twelve men, one from each tribe, but we are not told why. As soon as the priests with the ark will set foot in the water, the flow will cease and the water will pile up in a heap.
*The priests and the people did what Joshua said. Supposedly, the river was at flood stage, but as soon as the priest's feet touched the water, it stopped flowing and piled up in a heap "a great distance away" near Zarethan, which was apparently about 30 miles away from the crossing near Jericho. All those people then crossed over on dry ground while the priests with the ark stood firmly in the middle of dry river bed. So how did the all the people cross and maintain the required half mile distance from the ark? How did the river bed dry so quickly? However they did it, we are told everyone got across safely. By that time the heap of flood waters near Zarethan must have reached incredible hieghts. I wonder if anyone in that vicinity noticed?
*Can you see the resemblance of this story to the crossing of the Red Sea back in Exodus 14? This time, however, they are not being chased, they are on the attack. The two crossings are like bookends to the time in the desert.
*The morning after the spies reported to Joshua, the Israelites that were going to cross the Jordon moved to camp by the Jordan river. Remember, we are talking about at least a million people. After they had been camped for three days, Joshua walked among the people giving them instructions. When they saw the priests carrying the ark of the covenant they were to follow in a proscribed order, probably that given back in Numbers chapter 2. However, they were to stay 2,000 cubits back from the ark, which is about half a mile! Think about it. How easy is it to see people half a mile away? Can you see what they are carrying or doing, hear what they are saying? It would partly depend on the terrain and the vegetation, wouldn't it? You can read about the geography surrounding the Jordan River here and here. As far as I can determine, the Jordon River itself is currently a little over half a mile wide at its widest point and could have been up to a mile wide in antiquity. The river is in a depression in the Jordon Rift Valley.
*Joshua promises that Yahweh will do amazing things. Then he tells the priests to take the ark, go to the river and stand in the water. After that, he tells the Israelites they will know God is with them when they are able to drive the previous inhabitants out of the land. Then they are told to choose twelve men, one from each tribe, but we are not told why. As soon as the priests with the ark will set foot in the water, the flow will cease and the water will pile up in a heap.
*The priests and the people did what Joshua said. Supposedly, the river was at flood stage, but as soon as the priest's feet touched the water, it stopped flowing and piled up in a heap "a great distance away" near Zarethan, which was apparently about 30 miles away from the crossing near Jericho. All those people then crossed over on dry ground while the priests with the ark stood firmly in the middle of dry river bed. So how did the all the people cross and maintain the required half mile distance from the ark? How did the river bed dry so quickly? However they did it, we are told everyone got across safely. By that time the heap of flood waters near Zarethan must have reached incredible hieghts. I wonder if anyone in that vicinity noticed?
*Can you see the resemblance of this story to the crossing of the Red Sea back in Exodus 14? This time, however, they are not being chased, they are on the attack. The two crossings are like bookends to the time in the desert.
Friday, March 4, 2016
Deuteronomy 29
After reading chapter 29:
* Moses calls all the Israelite people together on behalf of Yahweh to make a covenant with them in Moab. It is in addition to the one made in Horeb after they left Egypt. First he tells them that with their own eyes they saw the events of the exodus from Egypt, even though this was not true. All those who were adults when the Israelites left Egypt were now dead. (Numbers 14:26-35, 26:64-65)The Israelites had wandered in the desert for Forty years but their clothes and sandals miraculously did not wear out. Supposedly, they had also eaten no bread and had drunk no fermented drink during that whole time, even though the laws given in Exodus and Leviticus include bread and drink sacrifices. Next he tells how the Israelites conquered land on the east side of the Jordan and gave it to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half tribe of Mannasseh, as their part in the Israelite "inheritance."
*Moses then tells the Israelites that all the people standing there that day, including the women, children, servants, and foreigners are entering into a covenant with Yahweh. (Apparently consent didn't matter.) This is an extension of the covenant Yahweh made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. There must not be a hint of the worship of other gods. Also, just because they recieve a blessing from being present at this covenant ceremony, they shouldn't assume that they can't be thoroughly cursed some day, if they insist on doing things their own way. And what a mighty cursing it will be. When people ask,"Why is Yahweh so angry?" The answer will be,"Because these people abandoned the covenant." Verse 28 is interesting: In furious anger and in great wrath Yahweh uprooted them from their land and thrust them into another land, as it is now. As it is now? The study bible says that is just what the people would say in the future, IF the curses actually happened. It just as easily could mean that the authors wrote the book of Deuteronomy while in exile, which would have been hundreds of years after the events recorded therein.
*Then comes a statement that secret things belong to Yahweh, but revealed things belong to the Israelites and their descendants forever. (Or until someone claims that a new covenant has come.)
* Moses calls all the Israelite people together on behalf of Yahweh to make a covenant with them in Moab. It is in addition to the one made in Horeb after they left Egypt. First he tells them that with their own eyes they saw the events of the exodus from Egypt, even though this was not true. All those who were adults when the Israelites left Egypt were now dead. (Numbers 14:26-35, 26:64-65)The Israelites had wandered in the desert for Forty years but their clothes and sandals miraculously did not wear out. Supposedly, they had also eaten no bread and had drunk no fermented drink during that whole time, even though the laws given in Exodus and Leviticus include bread and drink sacrifices. Next he tells how the Israelites conquered land on the east side of the Jordan and gave it to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half tribe of Mannasseh, as their part in the Israelite "inheritance."
*Moses then tells the Israelites that all the people standing there that day, including the women, children, servants, and foreigners are entering into a covenant with Yahweh. (Apparently consent didn't matter.) This is an extension of the covenant Yahweh made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. There must not be a hint of the worship of other gods. Also, just because they recieve a blessing from being present at this covenant ceremony, they shouldn't assume that they can't be thoroughly cursed some day, if they insist on doing things their own way. And what a mighty cursing it will be. When people ask,"Why is Yahweh so angry?" The answer will be,"Because these people abandoned the covenant." Verse 28 is interesting: In furious anger and in great wrath Yahweh uprooted them from their land and thrust them into another land, as it is now. As it is now? The study bible says that is just what the people would say in the future, IF the curses actually happened. It just as easily could mean that the authors wrote the book of Deuteronomy while in exile, which would have been hundreds of years after the events recorded therein.
*Then comes a statement that secret things belong to Yahweh, but revealed things belong to the Israelites and their descendants forever. (Or until someone claims that a new covenant has come.)
Monday, January 25, 2016
Deuteronomy 15
After reading chapter 15:
*Every seven years the debts of all Israelites to other Israelites are to be cancelled, but not the debts of foreigners. Besides, the promised land will be so good that there shouldn't be any poor Israelites. Then they will loan money to other nations, but never borrow from others. Consequently, they will rule over many nations and no one will rule over them. Well, history tells us things didn't work out quite this way.
*So, IF there happens to be a poor man (not woman) among them, they must be generous. Plus, they must not refuse to lend to someone because the year of cancellation is too near. Now, after saying there should be no poor among them in verse four, because of the rich blessings of the promised land, they are told there will always be poor people in the land in verse 11. Which is true?
*Next we find that a man or woman can sell themselves as servants for six years, but in the seventh year, they must be set free. When they are let go they are to be given grain and wine. But if a servant wishes to remain a servant, his or her ear is pierced. Then they are a servant for life. This is somewhat different from Exodus 21, where only male servants go free and female servants do not go free at the end of seven years. Unless no one wants them and no one will provide for them, then they get set free with nothing in payment. It seems that Deuteronomy does not assume the master's right to the sexual services of the maid servants like Exodus does. Also, unlike Deuteronomy, the male servants in Exodus get no payment when released.
*The last part of the chapter commands the setting aside of all the unblemished firstborn livestock for the lord. But they get to eat them with their families in the place Yahweh decides. The blemished animals can be eaten in their towns, just not the blood. We musn't forget about the blood.
*Every seven years the debts of all Israelites to other Israelites are to be cancelled, but not the debts of foreigners. Besides, the promised land will be so good that there shouldn't be any poor Israelites. Then they will loan money to other nations, but never borrow from others. Consequently, they will rule over many nations and no one will rule over them. Well, history tells us things didn't work out quite this way.
*So, IF there happens to be a poor man (not woman) among them, they must be generous. Plus, they must not refuse to lend to someone because the year of cancellation is too near. Now, after saying there should be no poor among them in verse four, because of the rich blessings of the promised land, they are told there will always be poor people in the land in verse 11. Which is true?
*Next we find that a man or woman can sell themselves as servants for six years, but in the seventh year, they must be set free. When they are let go they are to be given grain and wine. But if a servant wishes to remain a servant, his or her ear is pierced. Then they are a servant for life. This is somewhat different from Exodus 21, where only male servants go free and female servants do not go free at the end of seven years. Unless no one wants them and no one will provide for them, then they get set free with nothing in payment. It seems that Deuteronomy does not assume the master's right to the sexual services of the maid servants like Exodus does. Also, unlike Deuteronomy, the male servants in Exodus get no payment when released.
*The last part of the chapter commands the setting aside of all the unblemished firstborn livestock for the lord. But they get to eat them with their families in the place Yahweh decides. The blemished animals can be eaten in their towns, just not the blood. We musn't forget about the blood.
Friday, January 15, 2016
Deuteronomy chapter 10
After reading chapter 10:
*Now Moses tells about his chiseling of the second set of stone tablets and his construction of the ark. Even my study bible's footnotes admit that this sequence of events is different than that in Exodus 34-37. There, the ark is not made til after Moses brings the second set of tablets down from the mountain, and then it was made by Bezalel, not Moses. Also, the commands Yahweh gave Moses to put on the second set of the stone tablets in Exodus 34 are very different than the famous "Ten Commandments" mentioned in Deuteronomy. The ones in Deuteronomy say nothing about feasts, sacrifices, or cooking young goats in their mother's milk.
*Then we are told in an aside that the Levite's inheritance is the lord not land and they have the responsibility of caring for the ark with the commandments inside. After the aside, Moses stays on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights, again. Then God tells him to go lead the Israelites to the promised land. Again they are reminded to obey god's commands, for their own good. Again they are told everything belongs to God and God loves them in spite of their obvious flaws (why?).
*Verse 17 is in praise of Yahweh, the lord of lords and God of gods. This is an interesting verse. Does it mean the Israelites believed there were other gods besides Yahweh? If you look at an interlinear translation, you can see that the word "gods" is a form of Elohim, the same word translated as "God" (singular) a great many times in scriptures so far. The verse says God shows no partiality, but he obviously shows partiality to the Israelites. It says he accepts no bribes but we have seen that he expects many many sacrifices. We are told he loves the alien (foreigners) but he plans on destroying the Canaanites. Then the Israelites are told to *love* aliens because they were aliens in Egypt. ???
Well, guess what, they are still aliens in Deuteronomy. They just think they own land that belongs to someone else.
*Lastly, they are told again to fear God and serve him.
I use the Bible Hub website for interlinear translation.
*Now Moses tells about his chiseling of the second set of stone tablets and his construction of the ark. Even my study bible's footnotes admit that this sequence of events is different than that in Exodus 34-37. There, the ark is not made til after Moses brings the second set of tablets down from the mountain, and then it was made by Bezalel, not Moses. Also, the commands Yahweh gave Moses to put on the second set of the stone tablets in Exodus 34 are very different than the famous "Ten Commandments" mentioned in Deuteronomy. The ones in Deuteronomy say nothing about feasts, sacrifices, or cooking young goats in their mother's milk.
*Then we are told in an aside that the Levite's inheritance is the lord not land and they have the responsibility of caring for the ark with the commandments inside. After the aside, Moses stays on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights, again. Then God tells him to go lead the Israelites to the promised land. Again they are reminded to obey god's commands, for their own good. Again they are told everything belongs to God and God loves them in spite of their obvious flaws (why?).
*Verse 17 is in praise of Yahweh, the lord of lords and God of gods. This is an interesting verse. Does it mean the Israelites believed there were other gods besides Yahweh? If you look at an interlinear translation, you can see that the word "gods" is a form of Elohim, the same word translated as "God" (singular) a great many times in scriptures so far. The verse says God shows no partiality, but he obviously shows partiality to the Israelites. It says he accepts no bribes but we have seen that he expects many many sacrifices. We are told he loves the alien (foreigners) but he plans on destroying the Canaanites. Then the Israelites are told to *love* aliens because they were aliens in Egypt. ???
Well, guess what, they are still aliens in Deuteronomy. They just think they own land that belongs to someone else.
*Lastly, they are told again to fear God and serve him.
I use the Bible Hub website for interlinear translation.
Thursday, January 14, 2016
Deuteronomy chapter 9
After reading chapter 9:
*Moses tells the Israelites that the people and cities in the land they will take are bigger and stronger than they are. Nevertheless, God will go before them and subdue those people so the Israelites can annhilate them. After that, the Israelites better not claim it was because of their righteousness, it was because of the other people's wickedness...still the best religious excuse for destroying other people.
*Then Moses reminds the Israelites of the time he was on the mountain waiting to receive the tablets of stone, for forty days and forty nights, without bread and water. A person can only live up to a week without water and three weeks without food. That's a little short of 40 days. But maybe Moses had meat and wine.
*After he got the stone tablets, he went down off the mountain and saw that the Israelites had made an idol for themselves. God was angry. Moses was angry. Moses broke the tablets. Then Moses had no bread and water for another 40 days! Incredible!
*After that incident, Moses pleaded to Yahweh on behalf of Aaron and the Israelies, and God listened to Moses. Then Moses took the golden calf, ground it to a powder and threw the gold dust into a stream that flowed down the mountain. It doesn't sound nearly as horrific as the story in Exodus 32:20 where Moses put the gold dust in the Israelites water and made them drink it. Gold thrown into a stream would just be washed down stream or sink to the bottom. Besides, people can consume gold without harm, though it seems a waste of gold to me.
*Starting at verse 22, Moses tells the Israelites about all the times they made God angry, and how the only reason they are still alive is because Moses interceded on their behalf, laying prostrate before the lord for another forty days and nights. Moses persuaded God to keep the Israelites as his people so Yahweh's reputation would not be tarnished in the eyes of the Israelite enemies.
*Moses tells the Israelites that the people and cities in the land they will take are bigger and stronger than they are. Nevertheless, God will go before them and subdue those people so the Israelites can annhilate them. After that, the Israelites better not claim it was because of their righteousness, it was because of the other people's wickedness...still the best religious excuse for destroying other people.
*Then Moses reminds the Israelites of the time he was on the mountain waiting to receive the tablets of stone, for forty days and forty nights, without bread and water. A person can only live up to a week without water and three weeks without food. That's a little short of 40 days. But maybe Moses had meat and wine.
*After he got the stone tablets, he went down off the mountain and saw that the Israelites had made an idol for themselves. God was angry. Moses was angry. Moses broke the tablets. Then Moses had no bread and water for another 40 days! Incredible!
*After that incident, Moses pleaded to Yahweh on behalf of Aaron and the Israelies, and God listened to Moses. Then Moses took the golden calf, ground it to a powder and threw the gold dust into a stream that flowed down the mountain. It doesn't sound nearly as horrific as the story in Exodus 32:20 where Moses put the gold dust in the Israelites water and made them drink it. Gold thrown into a stream would just be washed down stream or sink to the bottom. Besides, people can consume gold without harm, though it seems a waste of gold to me.
*Starting at verse 22, Moses tells the Israelites about all the times they made God angry, and how the only reason they are still alive is because Moses interceded on their behalf, laying prostrate before the lord for another forty days and nights. Moses persuaded God to keep the Israelites as his people so Yahweh's reputation would not be tarnished in the eyes of the Israelite enemies.
Saturday, October 3, 2015
Leviticus chapter 10
After reading chapter 10:
*Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, slipped up. They seem to have put the wrong kind of incense on the fire. This was forbidden in Exodus 30:9, but God had not said the penalty was death. Even so, fire came out of the presence of the lord and consumed them. Moses had no sympathy for them or Aaron and basically said, "I could have told you this would happen." Aaron was speechless. Two of Aaron's cousins were called to carry the bodies outside the camp. Aaron and his sons were not allowed to mourn their loss. They must stay at the entrance to the tabernacle or they would die too. Lovely. With friends like God, who needs enemies? No grace, no mercy, no empathy. Pure obedience was all that mattered. They did what they were told.
*Interesting tidbit: In verse 3, Moses gives a direct quote from Yahweh as justification for Nadab's and Abihu's deaths. However, that quote is nowhere else in previous scriptures! Not only that, it doesn't say anything about God killing people, unless there is a subtle implied threat.
*Then, like nothing happened, God proceded to tell Aaron that he and his sons were not to drink fermented beverages of any kind. They were also required to teach the Iraelites all the decrees given through Moses. Moses told Aaron and his sons to eat the grain offering that was leftover from the offerings to the lord. They and their family members were also to eat the priest's portions of the meat offerings. Moses got mad when he found out they hadn't eaten the meat from the goat of the sin offering. Aaron seems to have felt that it would have been inappropriate for him to eat it after what had happened that day. That satisfied Moses.
*Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, slipped up. They seem to have put the wrong kind of incense on the fire. This was forbidden in Exodus 30:9, but God had not said the penalty was death. Even so, fire came out of the presence of the lord and consumed them. Moses had no sympathy for them or Aaron and basically said, "I could have told you this would happen." Aaron was speechless. Two of Aaron's cousins were called to carry the bodies outside the camp. Aaron and his sons were not allowed to mourn their loss. They must stay at the entrance to the tabernacle or they would die too. Lovely. With friends like God, who needs enemies? No grace, no mercy, no empathy. Pure obedience was all that mattered. They did what they were told.
*Interesting tidbit: In verse 3, Moses gives a direct quote from Yahweh as justification for Nadab's and Abihu's deaths. However, that quote is nowhere else in previous scriptures! Not only that, it doesn't say anything about God killing people, unless there is a subtle implied threat.
*Then, like nothing happened, God proceded to tell Aaron that he and his sons were not to drink fermented beverages of any kind. They were also required to teach the Iraelites all the decrees given through Moses. Moses told Aaron and his sons to eat the grain offering that was leftover from the offerings to the lord. They and their family members were also to eat the priest's portions of the meat offerings. Moses got mad when he found out they hadn't eaten the meat from the goat of the sin offering. Aaron seems to have felt that it would have been inappropriate for him to eat it after what had happened that day. That satisfied Moses.
Leviticus chapter 9
After reading Leviticus chapter 9:
*On the eighth day after the ordination of Aaron and his sons, Moses summoned them and the elders of Israel. He told them to make a sin offering with a goat, a burnt offering with a calf and a lamb, a fellowship offering with a ram and an ox, and a grain offering. They gathered up the things for the offerings and met at the front of the tabernacle. Verse 5 says the entire assembly came near and stood before the lord. Does that mean all million plus people? That must have been some crowd in front of the tabernacle. Moses told Aaron to make the offerings. They were done according to previous instructions. Then Aaron lifted his hands and blessed the people. How much power do you think that blessing had over those people's lives? After that, Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle, presumably to consult with God. When they came out, they blessed the people again, and the (indescribable) glory of God appeared to all the people. Fire came out from the presence of the lord and consumed the burnt offering, which had already been burnt in verses 12-14, and again in verse 16. I'm confused. Anyway, when the people saw it, they cheered and fell facedown. Did the people in the back of the crowd even know what was happening?
*On the eighth day after the ordination of Aaron and his sons, Moses summoned them and the elders of Israel. He told them to make a sin offering with a goat, a burnt offering with a calf and a lamb, a fellowship offering with a ram and an ox, and a grain offering. They gathered up the things for the offerings and met at the front of the tabernacle. Verse 5 says the entire assembly came near and stood before the lord. Does that mean all million plus people? That must have been some crowd in front of the tabernacle. Moses told Aaron to make the offerings. They were done according to previous instructions. Then Aaron lifted his hands and blessed the people. How much power do you think that blessing had over those people's lives? After that, Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle, presumably to consult with God. When they came out, they blessed the people again, and the (indescribable) glory of God appeared to all the people. Fire came out from the presence of the lord and consumed the burnt offering, which had already been burnt in verses 12-14, and again in verse 16. I'm confused. Anyway, when the people saw it, they cheered and fell facedown. Did the people in the back of the crowd even know what was happening?
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
Wrapping up Exodus
*In this book, we find no information about Satan, demons, heaven, hell, or an afterlife. People still lived an unusual length of time, into their 130's. Rewards and punishments are earthly. Death and excommunication are common forms of punishment.
* Angels rarely appear. Sometimes they are called Angels of the lord and speak to Moses. One was around the burning bush. One is called the destroyer, and kills the Egyptian first born. The one that will go ahead of the Israelites and pester the people in the promised land is called God's terror and the hornet. Angels no longer appear in human like bodies.
*There is no concrete extra- biblical evidence for any of the events or main characters. The Pharoahs of Exodus are not named and it is impossible to know who they might have been. The archaeology of the relevant time periods give no indication of any event similar to the exodus. There is no evidence of a series of plagues or the sudden departure of over a million people. There is no evidence that Moses ever existed. There is no physical evidence that over a million people and their flocks, wandered around in the desert at that time. If nothing else, there should be numerous piles of quail bones.
*The events surrounding the Exodus would have caused a major economic collapse for the Egyptians. There is no evidence of such a collapse. Over a million people (The population of Austin, Texas.) living, camping, and traveling together in the desert is a practical impossibility.
*The book speaks of Moses and the events in Exodus in third person, and displays knowledge of events beyond the lifetime of Moses. It can not have been written by Moses. If it was, it would not have been written in Hebrew. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Israelites originated in Canaan and did not spend any significant time in Egypt. Also, the book does not claim to be the word of God.
*The Israelites are said to be hungry and are given manna from heaven, yet they have animals enough for a significant number of sacrifices. They also have flour for unleavened bread.
*The tabernacle and religious paraphernalia is very similar to those things used by other ancient religions. The verses claimed to be the Ten Commandments do not appear to be anything like the traditional commandments we have come to know. Three yearly feasts and the observance of the Sabbath have been instituted and an elite priesthood has been established.
Note: I thank you if you have been reading along. Please feel free to share this site with others you think might be interested. Next up- Leviticus. That promises to be interesting. As with Genesis and Exodus, I will try to read it as though I am encountering it with fresh eyes. We will keep looking at how it measures up to reality.
Edited to add an interesting video that I've watched recently: Matt Dilihunty in Atheist Debates- Patterns of Evidence: Exodus.
* Angels rarely appear. Sometimes they are called Angels of the lord and speak to Moses. One was around the burning bush. One is called the destroyer, and kills the Egyptian first born. The one that will go ahead of the Israelites and pester the people in the promised land is called God's terror and the hornet. Angels no longer appear in human like bodies.
*There is no concrete extra- biblical evidence for any of the events or main characters. The Pharoahs of Exodus are not named and it is impossible to know who they might have been. The archaeology of the relevant time periods give no indication of any event similar to the exodus. There is no evidence of a series of plagues or the sudden departure of over a million people. There is no evidence that Moses ever existed. There is no physical evidence that over a million people and their flocks, wandered around in the desert at that time. If nothing else, there should be numerous piles of quail bones.
*The events surrounding the Exodus would have caused a major economic collapse for the Egyptians. There is no evidence of such a collapse. Over a million people (The population of Austin, Texas.) living, camping, and traveling together in the desert is a practical impossibility.
*The book speaks of Moses and the events in Exodus in third person, and displays knowledge of events beyond the lifetime of Moses. It can not have been written by Moses. If it was, it would not have been written in Hebrew. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Israelites originated in Canaan and did not spend any significant time in Egypt. Also, the book does not claim to be the word of God.
*The Israelites are said to be hungry and are given manna from heaven, yet they have animals enough for a significant number of sacrifices. They also have flour for unleavened bread.
*The tabernacle and religious paraphernalia is very similar to those things used by other ancient religions. The verses claimed to be the Ten Commandments do not appear to be anything like the traditional commandments we have come to know. Three yearly feasts and the observance of the Sabbath have been instituted and an elite priesthood has been established.
Note: I thank you if you have been reading along. Please feel free to share this site with others you think might be interested. Next up- Leviticus. That promises to be interesting. As with Genesis and Exodus, I will try to read it as though I am encountering it with fresh eyes. We will keep looking at how it measures up to reality.
Edited to add an interesting video that I've watched recently: Matt Dilihunty in Atheist Debates- Patterns of Evidence: Exodus.
Monday, September 28, 2015
The God of Exodus
Now that we are finished with Exodus, let's look at how God was portrayed in that book.
*God (Yahweh) speaks only to Moses, most of the time, but everyone else is expected to believe him. The Egyptians and the Israelites do not appear to have heard of Yahweh before. It is explained that he is the same God Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob worshipped, but they called him God almighty. It seems that Yahweh had not appeared to anyone else for over 400 years. He considers the Israelites his " first born."
* God says his name is "I am" but the Hebrew Scriptures, including Exodus, call him Yahweh, which supposedly means " he is."
*God talks from a burning bush that is not burnt up, on a mountain that belongs to him. He tries to kill Moses for an unknown reason, but stops when Zipporah touches Moses with their son's foreskin. He sends plagues and hardens Pharoah's heart. He puts power in Moses's staff.
*He travels in a pillar of cloud and fire, and looks down from it. He does not concern himself with any other people besides the Israelites. In fact, he favors them to the extent of promising to drive people groups out of their homelands so the Israelites can take over. He still expects animal sacrifices, and still likes the smell of burnt offerings. He expects people to wave some offerings in front of him.
*God is personally responsible for the deaths of all the first born males in Egypt, plus their livestock. He is also responsible for the deaths of over six hundred Egyptian soldiers.
*Chapter 15 says Yahweh is a warrior. He says he is a jealous God. All other gods must not be worshipped, but he does not say they don't exist. He expects obedience, or death is likely to ensue. He gets angry with the Israelites but Moses is able to talk him out of destroying them.
*God says he is compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, but he will punish children for the sins of the fathers down to the third and fourth generation.
*In various places, God is said to have a hand, a finger, feet, a back, and a face. They seem to be literal in context. He also has something called "glory" which people can not look at. He can speak, hear and smell, but does not seem to do any walking, eating, or other physical activity. He also carves stone with his finger. Conversing with him makes Moses glow.
*He gives elaborate instructions for the construction of religious items to be used in his service.
*God (Yahweh) speaks only to Moses, most of the time, but everyone else is expected to believe him. The Egyptians and the Israelites do not appear to have heard of Yahweh before. It is explained that he is the same God Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob worshipped, but they called him God almighty. It seems that Yahweh had not appeared to anyone else for over 400 years. He considers the Israelites his " first born."
* God says his name is "I am" but the Hebrew Scriptures, including Exodus, call him Yahweh, which supposedly means " he is."
*God talks from a burning bush that is not burnt up, on a mountain that belongs to him. He tries to kill Moses for an unknown reason, but stops when Zipporah touches Moses with their son's foreskin. He sends plagues and hardens Pharoah's heart. He puts power in Moses's staff.
*He travels in a pillar of cloud and fire, and looks down from it. He does not concern himself with any other people besides the Israelites. In fact, he favors them to the extent of promising to drive people groups out of their homelands so the Israelites can take over. He still expects animal sacrifices, and still likes the smell of burnt offerings. He expects people to wave some offerings in front of him.
*God is personally responsible for the deaths of all the first born males in Egypt, plus their livestock. He is also responsible for the deaths of over six hundred Egyptian soldiers.
*Chapter 15 says Yahweh is a warrior. He says he is a jealous God. All other gods must not be worshipped, but he does not say they don't exist. He expects obedience, or death is likely to ensue. He gets angry with the Israelites but Moses is able to talk him out of destroying them.
*God says he is compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, but he will punish children for the sins of the fathers down to the third and fourth generation.
*In various places, God is said to have a hand, a finger, feet, a back, and a face. They seem to be literal in context. He also has something called "glory" which people can not look at. He can speak, hear and smell, but does not seem to do any walking, eating, or other physical activity. He also carves stone with his finger. Conversing with him makes Moses glow.
*He gives elaborate instructions for the construction of religious items to be used in his service.
Exodus chapter 40:
After reading chapter 40:
*Yahweh told Moses how to set up the tabernacle and all its paraphernalia on the first day of the month. Then, Aaron and his sons were to be washed, anointed, and clothed in the priestly garments. All that was done on the first day of the first month of the second year from the time the Israelites left Egypt. The tablets of the covenant were placed in the ark. When everything was finished being set up, the cloud settled on the tabernacle and the glory of the lord filled it. Because of this, Moses could not enter the tabernacle.
*From then on, whenever the cloud rose off the tabernacle, it was time for the Israelites to pack up and move on. Otherwise, they stayed put.
That marks the end of the book of Exodus.
*Yahweh told Moses how to set up the tabernacle and all its paraphernalia on the first day of the month. Then, Aaron and his sons were to be washed, anointed, and clothed in the priestly garments. All that was done on the first day of the first month of the second year from the time the Israelites left Egypt. The tablets of the covenant were placed in the ark. When everything was finished being set up, the cloud settled on the tabernacle and the glory of the lord filled it. Because of this, Moses could not enter the tabernacle.
*From then on, whenever the cloud rose off the tabernacle, it was time for the Israelites to pack up and move on. Otherwise, they stayed put.
That marks the end of the book of Exodus.
Sunday, September 27, 2015
Exodus chapter 39:
After reading chapter 39:
*Next we are told about the construction of the priestly garments, the ephod, the breastpiece, the tunics, robes, turban, etc. When all the work was done, everything was brought to Moses for inspection. It all passed the quality assurance test. So, Moses blessed them.
*Next we are told about the construction of the priestly garments, the ephod, the breastpiece, the tunics, robes, turban, etc. When all the work was done, everything was brought to Moses for inspection. It all passed the quality assurance test. So, Moses blessed them.
Exodus chapter 38
After reading chapter 38:
*Next they made the altar for burnt offerings. They also made a bronze basin out of donated mirrors, from women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. How they served there is not explained.
*Then they made the courtyard, repeating previous instructions. We are told the amounts of gold, silver and bronze donated as wave offerings, and told what it was used for. The census revealed exactly 603,550 men over the age of twenty. Was that before or after the slaughter of the 3,000 by the Levites?
*Next they made the altar for burnt offerings. They also made a bronze basin out of donated mirrors, from women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. How they served there is not explained.
*Then they made the courtyard, repeating previous instructions. We are told the amounts of gold, silver and bronze donated as wave offerings, and told what it was used for. The census revealed exactly 603,550 men over the age of twenty. Was that before or after the slaughter of the 3,000 by the Levites?
Exodus chapter 37
After reading chapter 37:
*The work progresses on the ark, the table, dishes, tools, lamp stand, lamps, altar of incense, anointing oil, and incense. It is basically a repetition of previous instructions.
*The work progresses on the ark, the table, dishes, tools, lamp stand, lamps, altar of incense, anointing oil, and incense. It is basically a repetition of previous instructions.
Exodus chapter 36
After reading chapter 36:
*Again, we are told Bezalel and Oholiab are overseeing the work and the Israelites are making donations. The repetition in the first few verses is tiresome. Then we are told that more than enough stuff was donated, so Moses informed the people they could stop bringing new materials.
*All the parts of the tabernacle were constructed and we are again given specific details that are basically a repetition of the previous instructions.
*Again, we are told Bezalel and Oholiab are overseeing the work and the Israelites are making donations. The repetition in the first few verses is tiresome. Then we are told that more than enough stuff was donated, so Moses informed the people they could stop bringing new materials.
*All the parts of the tabernacle were constructed and we are again given specific details that are basically a repetition of the previous instructions.
Saturday, September 26, 2015
Exodus chapter 34 part 2, and chapter 35.
Somehow I missed that verses 29-35 were part of chapter 34.
*When Moses came down from the mountain with the second set of tablets, he didn't realize his face was glowing because he had talked to Yahweh. That's not surprising, considering that it hadn't glowed all the other times he talked to God. The glow understandably scared Aaron and the Israelites. After Moses told the Israelites what God had commanded, he covered his face with a veil. Whenever he spoke to God he took the veil off. Whenever he wasn't speaking to God, he wore the veil.
After reading chapter 35:
*Moses assembled the Israelites to tell them about Sabbath regulations. They can't work or light fires, or they will be put to death. We've seen a lot of this info before, but that was God telling Moses. Now we have Moses telling the people. I wonder how easy it was to communicate while speaking from under a veil.
*Moses also explained about the construction of the priestly garments and tabernacle. After that, the people brought offerings and began work on the tabernacle and sacred garments. Many people presented gifts of gold and jewelry as "wave offerings." That means they waved it in front of God. Skilled artisans, men and women, worked on all the required objects. The Israelites were also told about Bazalel and Oholiab being the leaders and teachers of the skilled workers.
Edited.
*When Moses came down from the mountain with the second set of tablets, he didn't realize his face was glowing because he had talked to Yahweh. That's not surprising, considering that it hadn't glowed all the other times he talked to God. The glow understandably scared Aaron and the Israelites. After Moses told the Israelites what God had commanded, he covered his face with a veil. Whenever he spoke to God he took the veil off. Whenever he wasn't speaking to God, he wore the veil.
After reading chapter 35:
*Moses assembled the Israelites to tell them about Sabbath regulations. They can't work or light fires, or they will be put to death. We've seen a lot of this info before, but that was God telling Moses. Now we have Moses telling the people. I wonder how easy it was to communicate while speaking from under a veil.
*Moses also explained about the construction of the priestly garments and tabernacle. After that, the people brought offerings and began work on the tabernacle and sacred garments. Many people presented gifts of gold and jewelry as "wave offerings." That means they waved it in front of God. Skilled artisans, men and women, worked on all the required objects. The Israelites were also told about Bazalel and Oholiab being the leaders and teachers of the skilled workers.
Edited.
Exodus chapter 34
After reading chapter 34:
*Yahweh told Moses to chisel out two stone tablets to replace the ones he smashed. Now we know those were stone also. Moses was to go back up the mountain alone and no one else was to go anywhere near it. So, Moses did that and God came down in the cloud and stood there with him.
*Now we see God proclaiming his personal attributes to Moses. He is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. BUT...he does not leave the guilty unpunished. He punishes the children for the sins of the father to the third and fourth generations. Maybe it's just me, but the second part seems to negate any benefit of the first part. Why should I obey a god if I'm going to be punished for all the sins of my forefathers anyway?
*So, Moses again begs God to go with the Israelites, in spite of their disobedience. Again, God says he is making a covenant with them and will drive out the people living in the lands they are going to. However, they must break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles. There is to be no worshipping of any other gods. Apparently, Yahweh has another name and it is Jealous. Why doesn't he just tell them that no other gods actually exist?
*There are to be no treaties with the inhabitants of the land. This might lead to them participating in sacrifices to other gods. They might also marry their sons to the daughters of people other faiths. This could lead the sons to worship the other gods. Here the worship of other gods is metaphorically, not literally, equated with prostitution.
*There are more instructions that have been given before, Moses writes them down on the tablet, these are the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments. Let's take a look at them:
1. Do not worship any other god. (Verse 14)
2. Do not make cast idols. (Verse 17)
3. Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened bread. ( verse 18)
4. The first offspring of every womb belongs to God.(verse 19)
5. Six days shall you labor but on the seventh day you shall rest (verse 21)
6. No one is to appear before God empty handed. ( verse 20)
7. Celebrate the Feast of Weeks at the wheat harvest and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year. ( verse 22)
8. Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice along with anything containing yeast and do not let any of the
Passover feast remain until morning. ( verse 25)
9. Bring the best of the first fruits of your soil to the house of the lord your God.(verse 26)
10. Do not cook a young goat in its mother's milk. (Verse 26)
Does this look anything like the Ten Commandments you have seen before?
*Yahweh told Moses to chisel out two stone tablets to replace the ones he smashed. Now we know those were stone also. Moses was to go back up the mountain alone and no one else was to go anywhere near it. So, Moses did that and God came down in the cloud and stood there with him.
*Now we see God proclaiming his personal attributes to Moses. He is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. BUT...he does not leave the guilty unpunished. He punishes the children for the sins of the father to the third and fourth generations. Maybe it's just me, but the second part seems to negate any benefit of the first part. Why should I obey a god if I'm going to be punished for all the sins of my forefathers anyway?
*So, Moses again begs God to go with the Israelites, in spite of their disobedience. Again, God says he is making a covenant with them and will drive out the people living in the lands they are going to. However, they must break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles. There is to be no worshipping of any other gods. Apparently, Yahweh has another name and it is Jealous. Why doesn't he just tell them that no other gods actually exist?
*There are to be no treaties with the inhabitants of the land. This might lead to them participating in sacrifices to other gods. They might also marry their sons to the daughters of people other faiths. This could lead the sons to worship the other gods. Here the worship of other gods is metaphorically, not literally, equated with prostitution.
*There are more instructions that have been given before, Moses writes them down on the tablet, these are the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments. Let's take a look at them:
1. Do not worship any other god. (Verse 14)
2. Do not make cast idols. (Verse 17)
3. Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened bread. ( verse 18)
4. The first offspring of every womb belongs to God.(verse 19)
5. Six days shall you labor but on the seventh day you shall rest (verse 21)
6. No one is to appear before God empty handed. ( verse 20)
7. Celebrate the Feast of Weeks at the wheat harvest and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year. ( verse 22)
8. Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice along with anything containing yeast and do not let any of the
Passover feast remain until morning. ( verse 25)
9. Bring the best of the first fruits of your soil to the house of the lord your God.(verse 26)
10. Do not cook a young goat in its mother's milk. (Verse 26)
Does this look anything like the Ten Commandments you have seen before?
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