After reading chapter 20:
*This chapter starts on the first month of an unknown year. My study bible says it must have been the end of the forty years the Israelites were condemned to wander in the desert, back in chapter 14. If this is true, it appears that nothing noteworthy happened during the intervening years. They are back in Kadesh, where they started forty years ago. Miriam dies and is buried there. Echoing Exodus 17, the Israelites complain of no water. Moses and Aaron go to the tabernacle, where Yahweh tells Moses ( not Aaron) to take the magical staff that has apparently lasted all this time and speak to a rock, which would pour out water. This is the same staff that Moses turned into snakes, used to part the Nile, and which became Aaron's staff which blossomed. So, they gather the Israelites for a show of god's power. Moses struck the rock just like before, and just like before, water gushed out. All million plus Israelites and their livestock now had water. The text says these were called the waters of Meribah, just like the waters struck from a rock over forty years ago in Horeb. God takes this opportunity to remind Moses that he will not be going into the promised land.
*Then Moses sent messengers to the king of Edom asking permission for the Israelites to pass through his land, with promises not to disturb anything. The king denied them passage. The Israelites said they were coming through any way. The king of Edom said, "No, you are not." He sent a large army against the Israelites and they backed off.
*On the border of Edom, at Mount Hor, Yahweh told Moses it was time for Aaron to die. Moses, Aaron, and his son Eleazar, went up the mountain. Moses removed the high priest garments from Aaron and put them on Eleazar. Aaron died. Then, Moses and Eleazar came down the mountain. Sounds mighty fishy to me.
*If we continue to follow the bible chronology, placing the creation at 4004 B.C.E, this would have taken place around the year 1296 B.C.E.
Showing posts with label Miriam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Miriam. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Saturday, November 7, 2015
Numbers chapter 12
After reading chapter 12:
*In this chapter, we learn that Miriam and Aaron, Moses's sister and brother, were upset because Moses had married a Cushite woman. Why this made them upset is not stated, but there are some possibilities. 1. She was not an Israelite. The Israelites had been told in Exodus 34:16 that marrying foreign women was not God approved. Why did Moses get a pass? 2. One possible interpretation of Cushite is Ethiopian. In that case, this may have been a matter of racial prejudice, because of her dark skin. It could be both reasons or neither.
* Miriam and Aaron wanted equal billing with Moses because Yahweh had also spoken through them. What this had to do with Moses's wife is a mystery. Apparently God preferred Moses to be in charge because he was the humblest man on earth. Wow! That's quit an accomplishment.
*So, Yaweh called the three of them to stand in front of the tabernacle. He came down in the pillar of cloud and asked Miriam and Aaron to step forward. Then he rebuked them for daring to speak against Moses. Everyone else only gets revelations in dreams and visions, and we know how reliable those are. But Moses speaks clearly with God, face to face, and sees Yaweh's form. They should have been afraid to speak against him. This passage makes me wonder if the authors wrote it in response to Israelites in their time questioning the authority of Moses. It directly contradicts other scriptures that no one has seen God. It also directly contradicts the notion that God is a pure spirit being, if he has a face, a form, and a voice there must be a physical component to him. Likewise, if he can be seen and heard by humans, why hasn't he shown himself to anyone else, especially in modern times? Why would he need to cloak himself in mystery?
*When God was finished talking, the cloud lifted and Miriam was found to be leprous, white as snow, perhaps in contrast to the dark skin of the cushite? Of course that made her unclean. Moses and Aaron pleaded for Yahweh to heal her. He told Moses she would have to spend seven days outside of camp like all the other unclean people. So, the Israelites did not break camp till Miriam was "clean" again. Why wasn't Aaron punished too?
*Verse 14 says if Miriam's father had spit in her face she would have been in disgrace for seven days. We have come across no precedent or law about this yet but my study bible tells me there will be an explanation in Deuteronomy. We will wait and see.
*In this chapter, we learn that Miriam and Aaron, Moses's sister and brother, were upset because Moses had married a Cushite woman. Why this made them upset is not stated, but there are some possibilities. 1. She was not an Israelite. The Israelites had been told in Exodus 34:16 that marrying foreign women was not God approved. Why did Moses get a pass? 2. One possible interpretation of Cushite is Ethiopian. In that case, this may have been a matter of racial prejudice, because of her dark skin. It could be both reasons or neither.
* Miriam and Aaron wanted equal billing with Moses because Yahweh had also spoken through them. What this had to do with Moses's wife is a mystery. Apparently God preferred Moses to be in charge because he was the humblest man on earth. Wow! That's quit an accomplishment.
*So, Yaweh called the three of them to stand in front of the tabernacle. He came down in the pillar of cloud and asked Miriam and Aaron to step forward. Then he rebuked them for daring to speak against Moses. Everyone else only gets revelations in dreams and visions, and we know how reliable those are. But Moses speaks clearly with God, face to face, and sees Yaweh's form. They should have been afraid to speak against him. This passage makes me wonder if the authors wrote it in response to Israelites in their time questioning the authority of Moses. It directly contradicts other scriptures that no one has seen God. It also directly contradicts the notion that God is a pure spirit being, if he has a face, a form, and a voice there must be a physical component to him. Likewise, if he can be seen and heard by humans, why hasn't he shown himself to anyone else, especially in modern times? Why would he need to cloak himself in mystery?
*When God was finished talking, the cloud lifted and Miriam was found to be leprous, white as snow, perhaps in contrast to the dark skin of the cushite? Of course that made her unclean. Moses and Aaron pleaded for Yahweh to heal her. He told Moses she would have to spend seven days outside of camp like all the other unclean people. So, the Israelites did not break camp till Miriam was "clean" again. Why wasn't Aaron punished too?
*Verse 14 says if Miriam's father had spit in her face she would have been in disgrace for seven days. We have come across no precedent or law about this yet but my study bible tells me there will be an explanation in Deuteronomy. We will wait and see.
Wednesday, September 9, 2015
Exodus chapter 15
After reading chapter 15:
*Moses and the Israelites sing a song about how awesome Yahweh is for killing all those Egyptians who were after them. Not only that, but other nations will hear about this and tremble as the Israelites pass by. Yaweh will plant the Israelites on the mountain of his inheritance. Miriam, Moses's and Aaron's sister, and all the Israelite women, sang and danced with tambourines. So, how did all the Israelites know this song? Did somebody write down the lyrics, make a million copies, and pass them out? or did they spontaneously burst out in song all at the same time? There must have been hundreds of thousands of women. The text says all the women followed Miriam's example. That's a lot of tambourines. If we seriously think of these events as actual events, happening in real time, it should be easy to recognize the practical impossibilities.
*The song also says "Who among the gods is like you?" This implies there are other gods.
*Then, Moses led the people away from the Red Sea, or the Sea of Reeds, depending who you ask, into the desert of Shur. For three days over a million people wandered in the desert without finding water. When they did find some, it was bitter. The people complained. Moses cried out to Yahweh who showed him a piece of wood to throw in the water to make it sweet. Next, Yahweh speaks of himself in the third person to tell the Israelites to obey him. If they do, they won't get any Egyptian diseases. Then they come to a place called Elim, where there are trees and water.
Last Edited 9/12/15
*Moses and the Israelites sing a song about how awesome Yahweh is for killing all those Egyptians who were after them. Not only that, but other nations will hear about this and tremble as the Israelites pass by. Yaweh will plant the Israelites on the mountain of his inheritance. Miriam, Moses's and Aaron's sister, and all the Israelite women, sang and danced with tambourines. So, how did all the Israelites know this song? Did somebody write down the lyrics, make a million copies, and pass them out? or did they spontaneously burst out in song all at the same time? There must have been hundreds of thousands of women. The text says all the women followed Miriam's example. That's a lot of tambourines. If we seriously think of these events as actual events, happening in real time, it should be easy to recognize the practical impossibilities.
*The song also says "Who among the gods is like you?" This implies there are other gods.
*Then, Moses led the people away from the Red Sea, or the Sea of Reeds, depending who you ask, into the desert of Shur. For three days over a million people wandered in the desert without finding water. When they did find some, it was bitter. The people complained. Moses cried out to Yahweh who showed him a piece of wood to throw in the water to make it sweet. Next, Yahweh speaks of himself in the third person to tell the Israelites to obey him. If they do, they won't get any Egyptian diseases. Then they come to a place called Elim, where there are trees and water.
Last Edited 9/12/15
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