ESV Chronological Plan, Day 40 | Exodus 37-40

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 37:1-40:38

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

Now we're here. It might seem like the description of the building project in Exodus 37-40 is virtually the same as the instructions that were given in the early chapters. But that's only because... well, it is. It is almost exactly the same. But consider what happened in the middle! God wanted to bless the people and dwell in their midst, but their sin and idolatry resulted in enmity between them and God. So God could not dwell among them, without the work of a mediator who would personally represent the people before him, reconciling God to his people. Not only is that historically how it worked out, but the book is organized that way to emphasize the role that Moses plays in that regard. And yet, a lot of things don't make sense. (1) How is it that Moses was able to effectively carry out that role? What does he actually do here? Moses offering to bear the sins of the people at the end of Exodus 32 is rejected by God, but that offer by Moses is clearly where the relationship starts to turn back towards restoration. Is this pointing to something else? Maybe this helps us get ready for the "prophet like Moses" pointed to at the end of the Torah, in Deuteronomy 18:15-19. (2) Historically, why is this episode worth mentioning when that whole generation would later be forced to wander 40 years and die in the desert anyway? And why is Exodus organized like this--one half gripping cinematic story of God conquering external enemies, and one half miscellaneous collection of laws and instructions for worship? Here's my theory: it's not enough for Israel to have deliverance from the nations and be lifted up against its oppressors. That's only the first half of the redemption story. The second half is the much more important part: Israel being delivered from the sin that separates them from God. That's the second half of the redemption story in Exodus--prefigured in Moses. And the book ends by showing that, once the work of the mediator is carried out, all the promises of God come to fruition in exact detail; every thread (in this case, of the tabernacle) will be accounted for when all is said and done.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

God fulfills his promises. When we get to the conclusion, nothing of what he has ordained is lacking. So we can expectantly wait for him. And, as we wait for him, we should know that our biggest problem is not an external problem, but an internal one. God can easily deliver us out of Egypt by His mighty hand and outstretched arm, but He can only deliver us from our sins at the cost of His own Son. That should underline the attitude of continual returning to God and repentance that marked previous generations of Christians; they never viewed themselves as having arrived, but constantly pressed onward towards the goal. Maybe that is our response for today: to press onward.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, I am tempted to come before you and ask you to solve all of my external issues. And I do need your help with those. But I also acknowledge my ongoing, internal need for repentance and renewal. Grant me the strength to press onward in the journey of faith. Help me to continually identify attitudes of sin and to turn from those, knowing that I don't lose anything by doing so, but instead I just draw closer to you. I pray that your Holy Spirit would guide, convict, and empower me to live a life that honors and glorifies your name, now and forevermore. Amen."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 39 | Exodus 33-36

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 33:1-36:38

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) There is a bit of a crisis happening at the start of this reading. Even though God is still, at this point, willing to take Israel straight into the Promised Land (Exodus 33:1-6), there is enmity between them and God, and God will not go with them. Their idol worship has separated them from God. The Tent of Meeting that Moses has set up (which was what Moses used before the Tabernacle was constructed) is now place outside the camp, instead of in the midst of the people. But Moses prefigures Jesus here: he offers himself up for his people (Exodus 32:30-32, though God rejects this); he continues to mediate for them (Exodus 33:7-11), he intercedes for them as Jesus continually intercedes for us (Exodus 33:12-23; cf. Hebrews 7:25), he alone beholds God in his glory [though in Moses' case he can only see the 'back' of God] and bears the law of God (34:1-9), and having successfully interceded for a sinful and wayward people, he wins the right to presents the people with the covenant and promises of God (Exodus 34:10-35), and descends the mount with a face that shines with glory, as Christ's face shone with glory on the mount of Transfiguration (Exodus 34:29-35; cf. Matthew 17:1-9).

(B) If your presence will not go out before us, do not bring us up from here. This passage (Exodus 33:14-16) struck me during a previous time reading through the Bible. How often are we content to do things in our own strength, and not in cooperation with the Holy Spirit? And yet, God is the one who gets results. I have learned to pray more often -though not yet often enough- that God would go out first, do what only He can do, send us in as servants equipped with His wisdom and strength, and then invite us to come into the situation after He has already done His work. If we only go in our own strength, without the presence of God, we may as well not go at all. That's a hard word for someone like me; I tend to get focused on the task that needs to get done. This passage is a reminder to me that my relationship with God, and my dependence upon Him, is more important.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

Today's reading is, really, all about the presence of the Lord. It's not worth it to make it to the Promised Land and to not have God with us when we get there--to gain the whole world, yet lose our soul somewhere along the way. The wilderness is not the place that we rush through; it's the place where we enroll in the school of faith. Even in the midst of the wilderness, when life is full of hardship and struggle, it is more important to find our way back to right relationship with God than it is to move on to a better living situation. I think that calls for an attitude of dependence upon the Lord. It shows the centrality of the need for worship (not God's need for worship; our need to worship Him, lest something else take the place of God in our hearts that breaks down under the weight of that role, and us along with it). And for an action step, it might be to schedule an appointment to spend time with God to start off the day, the week, or the month (start with the last and work to the first), in an intentionally extended time of listening, reflection, and response. Get into the presence of God first, and then go out.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, I need to enter into your presence. I want to move where your Spirit is moving. Don't let me get distracted by busyness; by the news; or by the urgency of those around me. Help me to realize how deeply I need you above everything. Give me extended moments of stillness to seek your face and hear your voice. Fill me with your Spirit, so that I may be renewed, refreshed, and transformed by the awesome power of your presence, or by the gentle whisper of your still, small voice. I do not want to go out from here unless you go with me and ahead of me. Amen."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 38 | Exodus 30-32

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 30:1-32:35

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) The Altar of Incense and the Census Tax. The altar of incense (1) represented the prayers of the people coming up before God. The incense was to be burned both morning and evening, signifying the continued praying of God’s people (Psalm 141:2; Revelation 8:3-4). Just like the incense always went up to God, our prayers should be regularly offered up. (2) Along with this, the altar of incense was also the place where the High Priest offered up the sacrifice of the Day of Atonement once per year (Exodus 30:10); this greater and more special sacrifice pointed to the insufficiency of the regular sacrifices offered during the rest of the year. Hebrews 9-10 shows how this points to Jesus' still more special sacrifice -offered up not once per year, but once for all of time- which makes Jesus the High Priest of a new and better covenant. These sacrifices in the Old Testament took on forms that would have been understandable to people of the Ancient Near East, but God took those familiar things and layered them with meaning intended to point forward to the true and better sacrifice that He would offer through His Son. Not to be ignored, the census tax  in Exodus 30:11-16 shows who is in need of this kind of redemption: everyone. God does not discriminate between people. The Life Application Study Bible says this tax shows that "God does not discriminate between people (see Acts 10:34; Galatians 3:28). All of us need mercy and forgiveness because of our sinful thoughts and actions. There is no way the rich person can buy off God, and no way the poor can avoid paying. God’s demand is that all of us come humbly before him to be forgiven and brought into his family.”

(B) Oholiab and Bezalel using their gifts. God doesn't only call us to use our gifts, but he is the one who gives us those gifts in the first place. Commenting on the statement that these men are filled with the Spirit (Exodus 31:1-3, 6), The NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible says "This is the first time in the Bible that someone is filled with the Spirit, here for the creative task of an artisan. In both the OT and NT, being filled with the Spirit generally refers to a God-given ability to perform some action in service to God (Deut 34:9; Mic 3:8; Luke 1:15, 67; Acts 2:4; 4:8, 31; 13:9). Bezalel is proficient in 'all kinds of skills' not simply because he has natural abilities but because God gave him wisdom, understanding, and knowledge. In 1 Cor 3, Paul sees himself as performing a similar function to Bezalel as regards laying the foundations for the church as God’s temple.” As God has similarly given each of us gifts, let's use them in a way that glorifies God.

(C) The Golden Calf. If you've ever heard of someone talking about "sacred cows" in political circles, this is where it comes from. That cute little phrase references a dark reality: the worship of something other than God. And the result, from God, is to turn away from the group that is participating in this kind of worship. He doesn't bless it. Last Sunday in the Bible Study before the service, we mentioned the existence of four "root idols" which lie under the surface of most problems that we think we have: these four root idols are comfort, security, control, and acceptance. We might think that we have a problem with money, for example, but really money is just the mediator between us and the god of security ("if I put enough of this away, I'll be safe"), or acceptance ("if I can't buy what the people around me are buying, I'll look bad"), or comfort ("working for the weekend"), or control ("he who makes the money makes the rules")--though the spider-web of our harmful attitudes are a lot more intricate than just these example quotes can really capture. Here's the connection with Exodus 32: rather than just outright walk away from God, the people identified God with their idols. They said, "These are your gods [or 'Elohim,' a plural word often used for God in the singular], O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!... Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD" (Exodus 32:4-5). And just like them, we often dress up our idol with names of God, following him as long as he tells us to be at peace with those around us and be kind (acceptance), or be a good steward who values diligence and hard work (security), or to trust and be content to live a simple life (comfort), or do everything in an orderly and proper way and respect those in positions of authority (power)--but then we struggle or become angry when someone brings us evidence that God calls us to do something contrary to the god we actually worship. The solution is to draw near to Jesus: in his face, we see the glory of God (2 Cor. 4:6). As we come back to him time and time again, we see the difference between him and our idols. The more we trust him, the more we come to see that his way is better.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

There are a lot of ways we can apply today's reading in terms of our actions, attitude, and worship. For example, we can take more time to struggle with ways that God seems inconsistent with what we sometimes think He would be like--often this is where the God of the Bible and our root idol may be at the greatest level of contradiction, and so for us these might be the most important passages for us to dwell on. Another way we could apply this is to use our gifts in ways that would honor God. One more would be for us to see ourselves as equal to everyone else: no one else is more, or less, in need of redemption before God than you are (including you, me, and everyone else in the world).

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, in your mercy, I come before you. I acknowledge my need for redemption and forgiveness. Forgive me for times when I may have looked at others and thought, 'they are more in need of redemption than I am.' Forgive me for times when I've chased after other things and convinced myself (and others) that it was in your name. Grant me clarity of mind and strength of spirit to discern your will and resist the temptations and idols that lead me astray. Guide me along the path that you've laid out for me, so that I can seek your truth and find fulfillment in your love alone. Amen."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 37 | Exodus 27-29

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 27:1-29:46

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) The Altar of burnt offering. For its note on Exodus 27:1-8, The Life Application Study Bible makes this observation: "The altar of burnt offering was the first thing the Israelites saw as they entered the tabernacle courtyard. Here sacrifices were constantly made. Its vivid presence constantly reminded the people that they could only come to God by means of the sacrifice. It was the only way their sins could be forgiven and taken away. In Hebrews 10:1–18, Jesus Christ is portrayed as the ultimate sacrifice. This teaches that we are not to seek any other means to having a personal relationship with God. No counseling theory, Eastern mysticism, or modern ideas of spirituality can remove our sin. Jesus is our only High Priest today. Put all your confidence in him." The ESV Gospel Transformation Study Bible adds "As the priests offered sacrifices of bulls and goats repeatedly, it should have become clear that the blood of animals could not truly atone for human sin. What was needed was a once-for-all sacrifice: Jesus, the sinless one, who offered himself as a 'single sacrifice for sins' (Heb. 10:11–14). It is Jesus’ blood that cleanses us from 'all sin' (1 John 1:7; cf. Heb. 9:14; 10:19–22; 1 Pet. 1:18). Nothing more is needed."

(B) Jesus and the Priesthood. For its notes on Exodus 28-29, The ESV Gospel Transformation Study Bible does a really good job of pointing out that 

"God dressed Aaron in 'holy garments' that would serve to cover his sinfulness and make him fit to stand in God’s presence (Ex. 28:4). These garments shared the same kind of fabrics as the tabernacle, showing that the priest’s ministry was a heavenly one. In addition, the breastpiece of judgment also had 12 stones on which the names of the tribes of Israel were engraved; this breastpiece was positioned so that the tribes were 'on his heart' (vv. 14–30). There was a plate on his head that said 'Holy to the LORD' (v. 36). Jesus, our Great High Priest, was chosen by God to serve as priest; he identified with human beings in our suffering and obedience so that he might be sympathetic to our weaknesses (Heb. 2:17–18; 5:5–10). He did not require holy garments to cover his sin; for he was the sinless one (Heb. 4:14–15) who was 'holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens' (Heb. 7:26). He bore his people upon his heart as he made intercession for them, and he continues to do so (Heb. 7:25). And he clothes us with his righteousness so that we, as those who participate in his priesthood (1 Pet. 2:9; Rev. 1:5), have our sins covered and are 'holy to the LORD.' [...] Aaron’s consecration involved washing (v. 4), vesting (vv. 5–6), anointing (v. 7), and sacrifice (vv. 10–28). The washing, vesting, and anointing is all ultimately fulfilled in the priesthood of the sinless Jesus: he was already clean, clothed, and Spirit-empowered for his work as priest. And these three actions all came before the sacrifices, which were offered, not for Aaron and his sons as persons, but as priests (Heb. 5:3). The blood of the sacrifice was applied to ear, hand, and toe to speak of the total consecration of the priest: he would hear, act, and walk only for God’s holy purpose. And yet, only Jesus could manifest such complete consecration, all the way to offering himself as both priest and sacrifice (Heb. 10:5–10). As those who participate in Jesus’ bloody sacrifice by faith, we are washed clean (John 13:10; Heb. 10:22), clothed (Isa. 61:10; Rev. 19:8), and anointed (1 John 2:20) to serve in his name, consecrated, a kingdom of priests (1 Pet. 2:9)."

(C) The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us. The end of our reading has God telling Moses that He "will dwell among the people of Israel and be their God" (Exodus 29:45). This is referenced in a really beautiful, and subtle, way in a familiar New Testament passage. John 1 is one of the most familiar passages of the Bible to most Christians, partly because it's a beautiful introduction to the meaning of the life of Jesus, and also partly because it is a really handy proof text of the divinity of Christ ("In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God... and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us" John 1:1-2, 14). But there is something else going on in that passage; a neat callback to the end of our reading in Exodus 27-29 for today. The Greek word for "dwelt" in John 1:14, ἐσκήνωσεν (eskenosen), is actually related to the Greek word σκηνὴν (skenen) which is the word for "tabernacle" in the old Greek translation of the passages that we read today. Literally, as a callback, John is saying "the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us." As God dwelt in the tabernacle in the midst of His people, so also in Jesus, God came to us and dwelt among us in a tabernacle of flesh and bone. He is the God who is always in the midst of His people. So later this year, when the Feast of Tents (Sukkot) rolls around on the Jewish calendar, just remember--that feast began by celebrating how God dwelt among His people in a tent, but it always was pointing forward to a greater act of love: God dwelling with us as a human being.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

The passages we read today, though they are long and detailed, boil down to basically this: (1) God makes a way for us to come to Him; (2) God makes a way for Him to come to us. In the middle is the need for a way to deal with the problem of sin and brokenness--we need a mediator like the High Priest of Israel; we need a sacrifice to take our sin upon itself, which the altar represents. We need a meeting place where heaven and earth meet, and a bridge is made from our broken world into the very presence of God. When Jesus came, He revealed Himself to be all three of those things. All of those things in the Old Testament are imperfect foreshadowings of Him. So how do we respond? With an attitude of joy and thankfulness; a freedom to draw near to God in worship; and for action on our part: since the way has been made for us, and since God has drawn near to us first, let us draw near to him in response through prayer, singing, time in God's Word, worship, obedience, and a life lived to the glory of God.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "Father, I come before you with a heart that is overflowing with gratitude for your unfailing love; for your goodness, and your faithfulness. Thank you for drawing near. You have never abandoned your people, and you will never abandon me. You surround me with your comforting presence. Help me to be more aware of your nearness. Empower me to draw near to you with sincere devotion. Help me to seek your will, and your wisdom, and your guidance--in every aspect of my life. Amen."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 36 | Exodus 24-26

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 24:1-26:37

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) They saw the God of Israel... they beheld God. The Jewish commentators, for obvious reasons, have a hard time with this passage (Exodus 24:9-11). This is true for all similar mentions in the Old Testament, including God's appearance to Abraham in Genesis 12:7. We are often told that people cannot see God, and that God does not have a body, and yet at the same time we often receive reports in the Bible of people having clearly seen Him. There is also a figure called the Angel of the LORD who continues to appear, who has an appearance like a man, is somehow differentiated from God, and yet repeatedly speaks in the first person as God--and when people see him, the Bible says they've seen God. Matt Foreman and Doug Van Dorn have a fantastic book, which I have only so far gotten partially through, called The Angel of the LORD: A Biblical, Historical, and Theological Study, where they show that this figure appears in more places than just where "the Angel of the LORD" is specifically mentioned. When people are clearly shown to have seen God in physical, anatomical form, we are on pretty good footing to say that it is the same figure. This same figure is a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ; who John 1 says was "with God, and was God" from "the beginning." Rabbi Ibn Ezra says this was "in a prophetic vision," as do the other Jewish commentators, but the passage does not appear to lend itself well to that interpretation. Not only is there no mention that they had a vision, but it says they physically feasted with God: "they beheld God, and ate and drank" (Exodus 24:11).

(B) Building instructions for the Tabernacle. It is easy to glaze over the instructions for the Tabernacle--and in this case, I will. But for those of you who are going through this plan more slowly, look up the final product. I would recommend this link from Ligonier ministries, which is a ministry that I trust: https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/6-reasons-why-christians-should-study-tabernacle.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

Both the appearance of God to the elders of Israel, and the building of the Tabernacle, are reminders of God's desire to be knowable and to be present in our midst. I think sometimes we carry on without Him, without really expecting to have an encounter with Him, without expecting Him to go with us. But nearly every page of the Bible reveals the opposite--God is on a rescue mission! He is constantly revealing Himself. He makes Himself present in our prayer times, in Bible reading, in changing hearts as we go forward with Him on mission. In the WhatsApp group that I am a part of with the group that does campus ministry, we are currently celebrating some circumstances where God has opened the hearts of a few students and caused them to enthusiastically open up to dedicating themselves to God. This doesn't just happen naturally; we see the opposite happen all the time. But as we do what He has called us to, we encounter the God who has called us. The elders who respond to God by climbing the mountain are met with God at the feast; the people who build the Tabernacle as they have been instructed get to witness the glory of the LORD fill it; Abraham who obeys and goes into the void is met with the appearance of God; the disciples who travel north to Galilee find Jesus waiting for them on top of the mountain; and we who go into all the world to make disciples will find God along the way.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, thank you for inviting me to know and encounter you. Help me to respond to your call so that as I go, I may meet you in the place of obedience to which you have called me."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 35 | Exodus 19-23

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 19:1-23:33

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) The holiness and awe of God. In Exodus 19, we witness a profound moment as the Israelites stand at the foot of Mount Sinai, awaiting the presence of God. The Lord instructs Moses to remind the people of the covenant He desires to establish with them. As they prepare to encounter God on the mountain, we are reminded of the holiness of God and the reverence we should approach Him with. This passage teaches us that our relationship with God is not casual; it is built on a covenant that demands respect, obedience, and a heart set apart for Him. Just as the Israelites were set apart as a chosen people, we too are called to be a holy nation, reflecting the love and righteousness and goodness of our Creator. May we approach God with awe and gratitude, recognizing the privilege of being in covenant relationship with the One who loves us beyond measure, pursues us by His grace, and gives Himself for our restoration.

(B) Jesus and the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments in Exodus 20 are a gift; out of His love and goodness, God graciously bestowed them upon His people. They are not burdensome, but rather a delight. These "ten words," or instructions, serve as a compass for righteous living, a reflection of God's perfect and holy nature. As followers of Jesus, we recognize these commandments not merely as a set of rules, but as a manifestation of God's love and desire for our well-being. In Christ, we find the fulfillment of these commandments: His sacrificial love covers our shortcomings and empowers us to live according to God's standards. In the commandments, we see an invitation to intimacy with God, a call to honor Him above all else (commands #1-4), and to love our neighbors as ourselves (commands #6-10). Through Christ's redemptive work, we find grace and forgiveness when we fall short, guiding us to a life of obedience that is fueled by love, faith, and devotion to God.

(C) The variety of commands in Exodus 21-23. These two chapters seem like sort of a grab-bag of miscellaneous commands, and (as far as I can tell) they are. Some of them seem immediately sensible; others will require some more looking into and thinking about, though there are answers if we spend the time to find them out. But God's law is a reflection of God's character. If we trust Him, we will trust the commands that He gives. We might not always understand them. But in the end we will find that His way is better than our way; His thoughts higher than our thoughts.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

God's character, and His holiness, are reflected in His commands; they are good because He is good, and they are wise because He is wise. We can try to run away from them, but we don't break them so much as we end up breaking ourselves against them. This, He seems to say, is how I meant for you to be in rhythm with how I made the world. So let's not be resentful when God's commands seem to be contrary to what we wish we had permission to do. Let's not try to carve out our own exemptions. But let's lean in, because we can know God through the wisdom of His law. Let every part of our lives look winsomely inexplicable to the world around us; inexplicable--unless we were followers of God.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a short prayer prompt: "God, thank You for Your Word--for Your instructions, and Your guidance in my life. Thank You for the wisdom and love embedded in Your laws. They are a reflection of Your holiness. I'm grateful that, when interpreted through the accomplished work of Jesus, they act like a compass for my soul, steering me towards righteousness before You and compassion towards others. Please etch Your commands on my heart so that I might be filled with joy and gladness as I live before You. And when I fail, which I will, thank You for the blood of Christ that covers my sins, and calls me back to You, to get up with the strength that You provide and to try again."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 34 | Exodus 15-18

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 15:22-18:27

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) The people grumbled. Right from the start of Exodus 15:22-24, there is a change of mood in the camp. Moses has come to the people of Israel, and God has used him to answer the cries of the people, who suffered bitterly at the hands of the Egyptians. Now that they have seen great things and are beginning to see the fulfillment of God's promises, they are ecstatic--but actually, wait, they're not. They've barely gotten across the Red Sea when they start encountering a little difficulty, and begin wishing that they could have things the way they've always been: "Would that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger" (Exodus 16:3). I wonder if Moses was tempted at that point to tell them to go ahead, and offer to take the rest to the Promised Land by the quick route. But he didn't. He stayed and led the people, eventually sacrificing his own ability to enter the Promised Land himself, and died in the wilderness--the most significant leader that Israel ever produced. As for the people, God slowly dealt with their grumbling by schooling Israel. But for more on that, see below...

(B) Israel in the school of faith. God used the wilderness as a sort of school of faith, with immediate rewards and consequences, to teach the people to trust in him. When they came to a bitter pool, God miraculously made it fresh. When they were hungry, He rained bread from heaven--but only enough for that day, unless the following day was the Sabbath; no storing up security for later. When the Amalekites came up against them in Exodus 17 (if memory serves me, this would have been an unusually tall people), God gave them victory as long as Moses could have his hands lifted up to God, to the point where the people actually had to plan for that and provide someone to help Moses keep his hands up. Every part of the wilderness was meant to shape the people so that when God brought them to the Promised Land, they would be ready. Maybe that's a good word for us. Maybe you're reading this and you're in the middle of a personal wilderness. Now, if there is real harm in your wilderness, don't stay there if you could get out. Don't be passive. But could God be (partly) using this time intentionally to shape your character for the Promised Land ahead?

(C) The duty of delegation. In Exodus 18 God had a visit from his father in law, who himself had some extensive leadership experience as the high priest of Midian (see Exodus 2).  He took a look around at all the things that Moses was doing, and he did the right thing by telling Moses to look for some people who could help. The same thing is true today for every church, business, school, community organization, or significant birthday planning committee--no one person can do all the necessary roles without dropping a few plates. At the same time, leaders can create more work for themselves by assigning the wrong people to handle details; I have worked seven times harder to manage a key volunteer with a bad attitude, a political mind, and a poison tongue than I have ever worked doing something on my own. The wrong person in a key role can create ripples of crisis management in relationships all over the camp, to the point where that one person can create most of the work of the whole job just by themselves. So Moses wasn't told to just assign anyone who wanted to lead: he was told "Look for [chosen] able men [qualified by ability] from all the people [representative], men who fear God [spiritually qualified], who are trustworthy and hate a bribe [qualified by character], and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens [able to work within a larger structure]" (Exodus 18:21). If Moses was willing to look for this and raise up such leaders, not only would he be better off, but all the people would be better served, and the mission could go forward as God is honored in the work.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

Like the people of Israel, we (and I include myself here) can become quick to complain or to wish for the way things used to be--or to wish for how things will be, ad infinitum. But all we have at the moment to be faithful with is now. How is our attitude right now? What am I doing to be faithful with what I have now? What is God trying to teach me right now? If we have trust that God is good and that He is in control, and if we are in possession of our own minds, then we are free to worship the Lord despite whatever situation we are in. Let's jump in to the school of faith, do the most we can with the moment, and trust that at the right time God will lead us to the Promised Land.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, in the middle of the wilderness, in the school of faith that you've enrolled me in at the moment, help me entrust myself to your wisdom. Grant me courage in uncertainty, anchoring my heart in the certainty of your love. Help this wilderness journey to refine my trust in you and deepen my reliance upon you. Teach me to trust in you and lead me to patiently wait for the fulfillment of your promises."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 33 | Exodus 12-15

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 12:1-15:21

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) The Passover and Jesus. In today's reading we are given instructions for, as well as a description of, the first Passover. All of Israel was instructed to take a lamb and slaughter it, putting its blood on the door frame of their home so that "the destroyer" who came upon the people of Egypt would see the blood covering the entrance to the home and "pass over" them (Exodus 12, see especially 12:21-23). In the New Testament, we are told that this ceremony is a foreshadowing of Christ. The Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 5:7, "Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed." The book of Revelation along with John's Gospel also gives Jesus the title "the Lamb of God" (Revelation 5:6, 7:17, 14:10, 15:3, 19:9, 21:23, 22:1, 22:3; cf. John 1:29, 36), referring to Jesus as the true Passover Lamb.* Writing for The Gospel Coalition, Justin Dillehay brings out how the figure of the Passover lamb was fulfilled in Jesus:

"If you wonder how an animal could substitute for a human, the answer is that ultimately it couldn’t (Heb. 10:4). How God could pass over human sin because an animal died was a problem still demanding resolution (Rom. 3:25). Good Friday is when God finally resolved it. Just as even Israel stood exposed to God’s wrath in that 10th plague for their idolatry, so we all stand exposed to God’s righteous wrath for our idolatry... But in his infinite love, God devised a way to be just and merciful at the same time. Salvation through substitution. The Passover was meant to paint a picture of that, but it wasn’t the real thing. But when we get to the Gospels, the true substitute is here. Jesus corresponded to the Old Testament type in many ways. Like the Passover lamb, he was a mature male (Luke 3:23), none of his bones was broken (Ex. 12:46; John 19:36), he was thoroughly examined and found spotless (1 Pet. 2:22), and he was slain for our sins (1 Cor. 15:3; Rev. 1:5). We boast that we’ve been redeemed, 'not with perishable things like silver and gold—but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot' (1 Pet. 1:18–19). That’s what Paul means when he says that 'Christ our Passover has been sacrificed.' Our salvation comes through his substitution. That’s why God can say to us, 'When I see his blood, I will pass over you.'"

(B) The Pillar of Cloud and Fire, the Angel of the LORD, and God. The last time that we saw The Angel of the LORD show up, and immediately start speaking in the first person as God, was all the way back in Exodus 3 when Moses encountered the burning bush. (See the entry for that day, #30.) Now we have another occurrence here in Exodus 13-14. First, Exodus 13:21-22 says "And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way..." and then Exodus 14:19 says "Then the angel of God, who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them." As we will see throughout the following books, this is going to be a pattern: strange things begin to happen with how the Bible is describing events when The Angel of the LORD shows up in the Old Testament; the biblical writers will often just describe the reality of this one who is with God, and yet is God, and is differentiated from God (God will at one point refer to him in the third person) while being identified as God--and this will often be placed before us without the writers even trying to describe how all of that is supposed to work. The New Testament writers then write about Jesus in the same way. Along with specific Messianic prophecies, and the structure of the Old Testament narratives/books, and foreshadowings in the Old Testament laws and customs, the presence of The Angel of the LORD is yet a fourth way that the Old Testament books point forward to Jesus.

(C) Pointing Little Ones to Jesus. As a dad, I love how a major point of the Passover observance is supposed to be pointing little ones to the story of what God has done. Regarding the celebration, Exodus 13:8 says "You shall tell your son on that day, 'It is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt" and then in Exodus 13:14-15, "And when in time to come your son asks you, 'What does this mean?' you shall say to him, 'By a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery.'"  Some of the churches that Kendra and I have attended with our family, usually in the evenings or mid-week where I am not on staff, have had weekly communion. I really enjoy this practice as a dad. It gives me a moment every week where I can pause and turn to Cadence and ask, "Do you know what this cup represents?... Do you know what the bread means?... Do you know what Jesus did?... Do you believe that He died for your sins?... Are you willing to follow Him?" and then we partake of each element as a family ("to Jesus" - taken from a church plant we served with in Saskatoon). I am grateful for this moment when the gospel story is reenacted through the communion elements, and I take seriously the responsibility to guide my family through the practice each time. This is what Moses implored the people of Israel to do through the celebration of Passover.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

As always, there is not just one way to apply today's readings in terms of our attitudes, actions, and worship. For me, seeing how thoroughly Jesus is present in the Old Testament always brings me to worship--"wait, that's in there? God was making it that clear the entire time?" As a husband, father, and eventually grandfather one day, this passage shows me an action application of devoting time to guide my family, without assuming that they will just automatically understand the Gospel. And knowing that I need to be covered by the blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God, because I too am a person in need of redemption and saving, produces an attitude of humility and gratefulness, and joy.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, thank You for providing the blood of the covenant that covers -and washes away!- all of my sin. You have given Your Son in my place. You have exchanged His righteousness for my sin. You have passed over all of my guilt and shame, and have placed Jesus' blood over the door frame of my life. Help me never to feel like that is old news. Help me to run to Jesus, over and over again, just as amazed at the grace of God as I was when I first understood this message. And help me to share this message with others: my family, first, and then my friends, and my community as you provide opportunities. Help me to feel compassion for those who have not experience Your grace in my life as I have. You are my only hope, my peace, my joy, my righteousness, and my strength. Amen."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 32 | Exodus 9-11

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 9:1-11:10

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) Judgment on the gods of Egypt. At least part of God's intention through the ten plagues is to show that Pharaoh and the gods of Egypt, for all of their terrible prestige and willingness to afflict hardship on people, have no authority. God says in Exodus 12:12 that "on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD." Whether God is referring here to the gods of Egypt as symbols of Egyptian authority, or as real demonic powers behind Egyptian mythology, would be an interesting topic for further conversation. But one could just imagine the impression that the plagues left on those who had grown up steeped in Egyptian religion. The Life Application Study Bible note for Exodus 10:22 says "As each gloomy plague descended upon the land, the Egyptian people realized how powerless their own gods were to stop it. Hapi, the god of the Nile River, could not prevent the waters from turning to blood (7:20). Hathor, the crafty cow-goddess, was helpless as Egyptian livestock died in droves (9:6). Amon-Re, the sun-god and chief of the Egyptian gods, could not stop an eerie darkness from covering the land for three full days (10:21, 22). The Egyptian gods were (1) not personal, centering around images like the sun or the river; (2) numerous; (3) not exclusive (any and all could be worshiped). By contrast, the God of the Hebrews was (1) a living personal Being, (2) the only true God, and (3) the only God who should be worshiped. God was proving to both the Hebrews and the Egyptians that he alone is the living and all-powerful God."

(B) The Ipuwer Papyrus. There is a possible, though disputed, Egyptian recollection of the Exodus contained in something known as the Ipuwer Papyrus, written by a royal Egyptian scribe of the same name. Many of its statements are strikingly similar to plagues that we find in Exodus, from "Indeed, the river is blood, yet men drink from it," to "the land is without light," to "he who places his brother in the ground is everywhere" (this is a partial list). It even seems to have parallels to other events like the plundering of the Egyptians, and to Moses pouring out water on the ground as part of his initial signs given to him in Exodus 4. So we read: "gold and lapis lazuli, silver and turquoise, carnelian and amethyst, Ibhet-stone and […] are strung on the necks of maidservants" and "he who poured water on the ground has carried off the strong man in misery." If you have a little time, go and check out this link to the Armstong Institute's write-up on the possible connections between the Exodus and the Ipuwer Papyrus, and decide for yourself whether the connection seems compelling or not. They also include a link to the full translation of the Ipuwer Papyrus near the end.

(C) The Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart. There is some question throughout the plagues about whether God hardened Pharaoh's heart against letting Israel go. Some have asked whether Pharaoh hardened his own heart. Others have said that Pharaoh hardened his own heart initially, and then God merely solidified him in his stubbornness. What makes it more tricky is this section in Exodus 9:34-10:1 where we read: "But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart, he and his servants. So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people of Israel go, just as the LORD had spoken through Moses. Then the LORD said to Moses, 'Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them.'" Even when Pharaoh hardens his own heart, God says immediately after that He was the cause of Pharaoh hardening his own heart. Then in Exodus 10:16-17 after Pharaoh repents and says "I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you. Now therefore, forgive my sin... remove this death from me" we then read in Exodus 10:20 that afterwards "the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go." Whatever the explanation is, we need to remember that (1) God is just. Pharaoh was no saint even before the plagues began, and God is not unjust for hardening someone against having a temporary, false repentance out of self-preservation, in order to use them as an example to others. By solidifying a bad man into a consistent mode of behavior, God demonstrated through Pharaoh the disaster that sin and pride brings into a person's life and the lives of those around them. (2) Jesus consistently implored those around him not to harden their hearts. The danger is that if we allow ourselves to become set in a certain course of action or attitude or thought pattern, out of pride or resentment, there is a real danger that we may never get out of that pattern. The Puritans used to say that "the same sun that melts the ice hardens the clay," and hardening of heart is a real phenomenon. When we allow ourselves to get set on some idea about a person or the way that something should be, it might not matter how much light is shone on us after that, it might just increase our resentment and harden us further. That would be a terrible place to be. Here's the truth from a pastor: I have seen this tragically take place many, many times across 8 churches now. One more truth: I've never seen a case like that where most other people in the church weren't already aware of the unhealth. Often rather than confront the hardened person and receive the backlash, most tend to be one of the few who stay and put up with it, or they move on.

(D) The theory that the plagues were natural occurrences. This comes from the CSB Apologetics Study Bible, from the notes on Exodus 7:20-21: "Were the ten plagues natural occurrences, not miracles? According to the Bible they were true miracles—signs and wonders performed by God (6:6; 7:3-4; 8:19). Theologically, a miracle can be defined as God’s working at just the right time, in just the right place, in just the right degree to produce a redemptive outcome. Miracles are acts of God, but God can make them happen in various ways. As Creator of the universe He can work miracles through nature, or outside the natural order when it suits His purposes. The events of Joshua 3:16 may be an example of a miracle occurring when God worked through natural forces. But God is not bound by nature; He is Spirit (John 4:24) and exists outside the material order. Thus He can act in ways that differ from the patterns we call 'scientific laws.' Christ’s resurrection from the dead is the greatest miracle of this type. The biblical description of the events associated with the ten plagues allows for the possibility that God used natural processes to bring judgments on Egypt’s gods (Exodus 12:12) and set His people free from Egyptian captivity. Some have suggested that bacteria turned the waters red, and the poisoned waters killed the fish and forced the frogs to seek cool, moist places away from the Nile. When the frogs died their corpses were a breeding ground for two types of small insects. These, in turn, spread communicable diseases among both animals and humans, resulting in death to the livestock and boils upon the people. A well-timed locust plague followed by a spring hailstorm devastated Egypt’s crops. Shortly thereafter a desert sandstorm or dust cloud darkened most of Egypt. Finally a devastating plague, perhaps one caused by the insects, killed both humans and beasts among the non-Israelites. God was at work in the entire sequence of events, making them occur in the appropriate location, at the designated time, and at the prescribed intensity level. If God chose to work outside the natural order, it is reasonable to assume that the waters of the Nile were transformed for a time into actual blood. No causal chain would be needed to link the events of the first plague with those that followed up through the sixth, and possibly the tenth, as described above. God could bring small insects into existence directly from the dust of the earth (8:16-17) without resorting to natural causes. He made these ten events take place in response to Pharaoh’s stubbornness. Though this second option may be less intellectually satisfying to Americans and Europeans, it is within God’s power to have brought about the plagues in this way. Which of these methods did God employ to create the ten plagues? Since both account for all the biblical facts, either is a viable possibility. It is enough to affirm that God did them and that they fully accomplished His purposes."

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

There are a number of items in today's reading, and we've had a few insights from sources outside of the Bible as well. Now we have time to apply this to our attitudes, actions, and worship. (1) Do we fall in awe at the feet of God who has power over nature and over the human heart? (2) Do we look further into extra-biblical evidence for Scripture so that we can better share our faith with friends and neighbours? (And if you don't have any, an application might be to work on that--I promise, if you give up one non-Sunday morning church commitment to go and get to know your neighbours better, your pastor won't be upset.) (3) Do we search our own hearts for tendencies to harden ourselves into certain positions and attitudes, and resolve to take concrete steps to change that? These and many others could be possible responses to the reading today.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, I just want to love you; to learn, to grow, and to walk humbly with you. If there is anything in my heart that I need to work on -and I know there always will be- help me to see it. Do the work in my soul that I am not strong enough to do on my own. Show me how I can glorify and honour you in my life today. Help me to love you with all of my heart, mind, soul, and strength. And thank you that you have loved me first."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 31 | Exodus 5-8

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 5:1-8:32

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) But by my name the LORD I did not make myself known to them. This presents us with a difficulty, because the name of the LORD is given all over the earlier chapters os Genesis. Here is the CSB Apologetics Study Bible to help us out: "People began calling on the name of Yahweh during Seth’s lifetime (Gn 4:26), and Abraham and Sarah (Gn 14:22; 16:2), Isaac (Gn 26:22), and Jacob (Gn 27:20) explicitly used the name. Yet here the Lord seems to suggest that he had not previously been known by that name. Two possible reasons may exist for this. First, God may be saying that He is revealing Himself to Moses more fully than to anyone before him. Thus Moses and the generations to follow would have a more complete knowledge of who Yahweh is. Second, the Lord’s statement may be translated from the Hebrew as a rhetorical question: “And did I not make My name Yahweh known to them?” In this case, the Lord was affirming the continuity of relationship that had existed between Himself and His people over a period of time."

(B) Lack of support. Towards the middle of Exodus 6, Moses and Aaron must have felt discouraged. They couldn't convince the Egyptian king with even a small requests, and the people of Israel also seemed to reject Moses and Aaron. But then this note gets added: "But the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge about the people of Israel and about Pharaoh king of Egypt: to bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt." Isn't that amazing? In the time of their doubt and despair, they were able to hear clearly from God that this is where they were supposed to be. May God grant all of us this kind of clarity!

(C) Gods at War. As we will see tomorrow, each of the plagues infringes on the claimed "territory" of some Egyptian deity.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

Moses and Aaron must have a had a difficult time with the lack of support they got from those they were trying to help. But instead of allowing him the lead them, the Israelites grumbled against Moses and his brother. Instead of giving in or giving up, though, they pressed forward. Why would they do this? Because the LORD had charged them to do so (Ex. 6:13). We also need strength to press forward into what God has charged us to do, even if we are met with little support.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer: "God, help me to lean on you when it seems like there is no one with me--and yet I am not doing anything except what you have asked me to do. Help me to lean on the strength that only you provide, with the wisdom that only you can give."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 30 | Exodus 1-4

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Exodus 1:1-4:31

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A) Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. We are told in Exodus 1:8 that a new king arose in Egypt who did not know about Joseph. How was this possible? Well, if there had been a regime change, it is entirely possible that this could be the case. (1) First we have to work out the timing of events. The biblical evidence for the date of the Exodus (worked out from Judges 11:26 and 1 Kings 6:1) suggests that the Israelites left Egypt in 1446 BC, with the length of time that they were in the land being 430 years (Exodus 12:41), giving us an arrival date of 1876 BC. (We already know from the Berlin Fragment dated to around 1400 BC, the Soleb Hieroglyph in the 1300's BC, and the Merneptah Stele in 1205 BC, that the Israelites had left Egypt and conquered the Canaanites to establish Israel by the time of the biblically suggested date--with more to follow as we get into further readings.) So the stay of Israel in Egypt is from 1876-1446 BC. (2) Then we have to look at why the Egyptians would have no knowledge of Joseph, and be worried about Semites living in the land and joining their enemies. It turns out that for about a hundred years during the time that Israel was sojourning in Egypt, a foreign group of Semitic rulers named the Hyksos came and ruled over Egypt, from around 1637-1529 BC. Britannica.com tells us, "The rise of the Hyksos kings in Egypt was made possible by an influx of immigrants from Palestine into Egypt beginning about the 18th century BCE... The sequence of events that brought the Hyksos kings to power in Lower Egypt is not entirely clear. The 13th and 14th dynasties, which had existed concurrently in Lower Egypt, weakened and disappeared about the middle of the 17th century. Some scholars have suggested that a famine in the Delta region contributed to their decline and opened the way for the emergence of the Hyksos dynasty. From Avaris the Hyksos 15th dynasty ruled most of Lower Egypt and the Nile valley as far south as Cusae (near present-day Asyūṭ)... [the Hyksos fell to] Ahmose, founder of the 18th dynasty, thereby ending 108 years of Hyksos rule over Egypt. Although vilified in some Egyptian texts, the Hyksos had ruled as pharaohs and were listed as legitimate kings in the Turin Papyrus." Knowing about this as background for the Exodus makes perfect sense for the events leading up to what we see in the opening chapters of Exodus. It explains why the new Pharaoh didn't know about Joseph. It explains why the Egyptians were afraid of Israel (a Semitic group) multiplying in the land and joining with their enemies (perhaps this had been what had happened in the past). And it explains why the Pharaoh of Moses' day went to such incredible and brutal lengths to suppress the people of Israel--by the time Moses was born, the Egyptian victory over the Hyksos was still very new, maybe only having happened a little over 40 years prior.

*One additional nugget: with the timing of the Exodus given above, the Pharaoh of the Exodus may have been either Thutmose III or Amenhotep II (but I think Thutmose III). The Egyptian rulers around this time tend to have "Moshe/Mose(s)" as a part of their name quite often, and so it's interesting that the Egyptian daughter of Pharaoh would give Moses a similar name. **One more nugget: depending on the chronology, some have suggested that it is likely that the daughter of Pharaoh who took Moses out of the river was Hatshepsut--who would later on become the Queen Regnant of Egypt.

(B) Our calling happens on God's time, and in God's way. It looks like Moses became aware of his Hebrew origins, and saw himself as a deliverer for his people, early on. He rose up to kill an Egyptian for beating a Hebrew--"one of his people" (Exodus 2:11-12) when he was 40 years old (Acts 7:23). Then he started walking around and acting like a mediator to unite the people of Israel (Exodus 2:13). In the book of Acts, Stephen said that "Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not" (Acts 7:25). So Moses, when he had been rejected by the people of Israel, and when he was discovered by the Pharaoh to be trying to raise up the Hebrew people against the Egyptians, he fled. He had nothing. And only 40 years later (Acts 7:30) did God appear to Moses in the midst of a burning bush, when Moses was no longer young, or influential, or had anything else going in his favor, to call him to be the deliverer of Israel. Even when we see how we could do something great for God, God likes to remind us that things happen in his time and not ours. The appropriate response to this on our end is humility and patience.

(C) The Angel of the LORD. In Exodus 3:2 we see that "the angel of the LORD appeared to Moses in a flame of fire out of the midst of the bush," but then two verses later we see that "God called to Moses out of the bush, 'Moses, Moses!'" What is happening here? Well, starting in the book of Genesis and then periodically throughout the rest of the Bible, there is "the Angel of the LORD" who is both a messenger from God, and when he speaks, he speaks in first person as God. And when he appears, the narrative often asserts that the person who has seen the angel has actually seen God. (We will see this a few times over the course of our Abraham series, starting this Sunday.) This figure is both with God, and is God, both one who reveals God, and who is himself the appearance of God. This is the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ, the physical representation of God the Son who appears all over the Old Testament.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

There is often more happening than we know. In Exodus 1 we see references to a whole history that we only know about now through archaeological sources; we see an early period in Moses' life where he had tried to be the deliverer of Israel, but not in God's timing; and we see a pre-incarnate Jesus delivering a message to Moses; who both is with God and is God, something that confused the Jewish people to no end when interpreting this passage, but now makes perfect sense to Christians. For us, I think the application is to be okay with waiting. The Israelites had to wait 400 years in Egypt. Moses had to wait to fulfill his calling. And the people of God had to wait over 1440 years to find out what was happening with the angel who suddenly started speaking in the first person as God--some things only become clear over time. And so, whatever situation you're in, whatever you're trying to figure out, whatever doesn't make sense--just wait. It will become clear in time.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, help me to be okay with waiting. Help me to be patient, not in a passive way, but actively serving you here and now, trying to understand what you are saying or doing, and yet content to know that you will make all things clear in time. Give me a purpose in my patience, and use this time to draw me more closely to yourself."

ESV Chronological Plan, Day 29 | Job 40-42

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Job 40:1-42:17

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(A)  God's challenge to Job. At various points in this final speech, God essentially challenges Job to do what God does. Christopher Ash has a good gospel-centered insight here: "A deeper truth needs to be unearthed here. God is not saying simply that the job of dealing with evil is harder than Job thinks—undoubtedly that is hard work. Rather, God is saying that Job has not begun to understand what will be necessary to win the victory over death and the one who holds the power of death, that is, the devil; for only by the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ will this victory be won (Heb. 2:14). Strangely, even as Job does not understand this, in his own sufferings he is foreshadowing that victory."

(B) You have not spoken rightly of Me, as my servant Job has. This seems surprising, given that God has been taking Job to task for the last few chapters. But regarding Job's friends, Ash writes "They may have said all sorts of correct things (and they have); but their message as a whole is simply wrong. Their message denies the grace of God because it has no place either for undeserved suffering (Job and later Jesus) or undeserved blessing (the grace we now have in Jesus)... By contrast, God says that Job has spoken rightly of him. This may surprise us, given all we have just heard about how God has had to rebuke Job. Although God’s verdict may just refer to what Job has just said (42:1–6) in penitence, it seems more likely that it refers overall to what Job has been saying throughout the book, and in dialogue with his erroneous friends. For, even as Job has to repent of what he has said, there has been a fundamental heart of faith that lies beneath what he has said. Job has grappled honestly with God in a way that his comforters have failed to do."

(C) The Septuagint ending of Job. This gets a little more technical--but when the Jews were taken into exile by Babylon, many of them did not return to Judah when it was rebuilt. They stayed out in the lands where they had built their lives, throughout the times of the Persian, Greek, and Roman Empires. Over time many of them reached a point where they only spoke Greek. Because of this, the Hebrew Scriptures had to be translated into Greek for people to read them; this translation was called the Septuagint after the Greek word for "seventy," which is the traditional number of translators who worked on the project at Alexandria. In the process of translating, sometimes the translators would add little commentary notes or sum things up for their readers--which still makes the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible important for Bible scholars today, as a sort of early commentary or adaptation of the Old Testament by Jewish scholars who lived much closer in time to when it was written. (The apostles also gave it their approval by often -but not exclusively- quoting from it while producing the various writings of the Greek New Testament). All that to say, here is the ending of Job according to the Septuagint, which includes some extra detail about Job: 

"17a And it is written that he [Job] shall rise again with the ones whom the Lord shall raise up. 17b This man is described by the Syriac book as dwelling in the land of Uz on the borders of Edom and Arabia. And his name before was Jobab. 17c And, having taken an Arabian wife, he fathered a son, whose name was Enan. And he himself had as father Zerah, from the sons of Esau. And his mother was Bosorra, so that it made him fifth from Abraham. 

    17d And these were the kings who were ruling in Edom, which territory also he himself ruled: first, Bela, the son of Beor, and the name of his city was Dinhabah. And after Bela, Jobab, who was called Job. And after this, Husham, who was serving as leader from the territories of Thaiman. And after this, Hadad, son of Bered, who destroyed Midian in the field of Moab, and the name of his city was Avith. 17e And the friends who came to him were Eliphaz, of the sons of Esau, king of the Temanites; Bildad, the tyrant of the Shuhites; and Zophar, the king of the Naamathites."

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

We think that we are correct about most things, which is why we think the ways that we do. After all, it wouldn't make sense to think that we are wrong about some conviction or idea, and still persist in holding to it! When God shows up, he reveals everyone to have been wrong. Job is wrong about God and needs significant rebuke and correction; and yet, he is not so wrong as his wise friends have been, so God is able to say to them "you have not spoken rightly about me, as my servant Job has." 

When Jesus came to the earth, he found several different groups of Jewish thought. There were the Sadducees, the Essenes, the Hellenists, and the Pharisees. Of these, whose teachings did Jesus agree with most often and endorse? The Pharisees. In fact, on many specific beliefs that set apart the Pharisees from other groups -angels, the resurrection, the inspiration of biblical books other than the first five books of Moses, etc.- there is a straight line from the school of the Pharisees to basic Christian beliefs. And yet, this is the group that Jesus disagreed with and took to task most frequently, and they are the ones who confronted and then led the way in plotting to kill Jesus. No group was found to have it all figured out when Jesus arrived. 

So our response today might be one of humility. We are ever searching for the truth, and that search may get us closer than those who do not search (after all, we are not told to search the Scriptures because they are unknowable, but because they can be known), but we know that when Jesus returns to the earth he will make even the confusing or unclear things clear. I am pretty comfortably sure that as a Reformed Baptist (the theological position of the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptists, which is the denomination to which I belong) I am holding to and teaching pretty well the correct position on most of the main things that the Bible teaches. But I also love learning from Pentecostals, and Orthodox Christians, and Presbyterians, and certain Messianic Jews, and Lutherans, because together we are opening up the same Bible and asking questions, and learning together--some of us may be found to have gotten it more right than others when Jesus appears again, but I have a feeling we will all have a few things that we have been mistaken on. This leads us to the application for today, which I think is an application regarding our attitude--that this reading should cause us to be more humble.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

This is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, help me to stand before you with an attitude of curiosity and wonder, knowing that I may never completely comprehend the complete truth of what you have revealed, but I can increase in joy as I come closer, through prayer and study and meditating on your character. Help me to have an attitude of humility, knowing that as much as I understand, there is also much more that I do not. Help me to hold strongly to what is clearly taught in Scripture, but to be more gentle and open where many strong Christians disagree. There is much that I do not understand. Use that realization to make me a more curious, joyful, humble person. And help me to actively anticipate the day when you will come back to the earth and make all things clear."