Exodus 3:1-4:18 -- God Calls Moses

Well, as you may have noticed, there hasn't been any blog posts for about a week or a little longer.  I've been out of town with family, vacationing at the beach.  We had no internet service, hence no posts.  It was nice, I will admit to just sit around and not have to worry about anything.  All I had to do was to enjoy a part of creation I do not see very often.  Well, now I can get back to blogging my way through the Bible.

Exodus 3:1 Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 Then the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire within a bush. As Moses looked, he saw that the bush was on fire but was not consumed. 3 So Moses thought: I must go over and look at this remarkable sight. Why isn’t the bush burning up?

If you saw a bush on fire, but not burning, would you go investigate?  I think I would.  I would be curious, just like Moses.

Exodus 3:4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called out to him from the bush, “Moses, Moses!”
“Here I am,” he answered.

I probably would not have answer right away.  I would have first looked around to see who was speaking to me!  After seeing no one, I'd probably have to be called out to again and after realizing the voice came from the bush, I think I'd be a little frightened.

Exodus 3:5 “Do not come closer,” He said. “Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then He continued, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.

Moses too was afraid, for the Lord had appeared to him.

Exodus 3:7 Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of My people in Egypt, and have heard them crying out because of their oppressors, and I know about their sufferings. 8 I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and to bring them from that land to a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the territory of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 9 The Israelites’ cry for help has come to Me, and I have also seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them.10 Therefore, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh so that you may lead My people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.”

God has heard the prayers of his people.  He knows about their suffering.  He tells Moses that he will deliver the people out of Egypt and return them to the promised land.

Exodus 3:11 But Moses asked God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”
12 He answered, “I will certainly be with you, and this will be the sign to you that I have sent you: when you bring the people out of Egypt, you will all worship God at this mountain.”
13 Then Moses asked God, “If I go to the Israelites and say to them: The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, ‘What is His name?’ what should I tell them?”
14 God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the Israelites: Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever; this is how I am to be remembered in every generation.

And our Lord is still called the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob today.  He is who he is.  He is God.  The only God.  The one God who exists forever, eternally.

Ephesians 4:4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope at your calling— 5 one Lord, one faith,one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.

One.  It is a theme in the Bible.  God is the ONE true God.  There is only ONE way to him and that is through Christ.  Any gospel/message that teaches otherwise is false.

Exodus 3:16 “Go and assemble the elders of Israel and say to them: Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, has appeared to me and said: I have paid close attention to you and to what has been done to you in Egypt. 17 And I have promised you that I will bring you up from the misery of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey. 18 They will listen to what you say. Then you, along with the elders of Israel, must go to the king of Egypt and say to him: Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Now please let us go on a three-day trip into the wilderness so that we may sacrifice to Yahweh our God.
19 “However, I know that the king of Egypt will not allow you to go, unless he is forced by a strong hand. 20 I will stretch out My hand and strike Egypt with all My miracles that I will perform in it. After that, he will let you go. 21 And I will give these people such favor in the sight of the Egyptians that when you go, you will not go empty-handed. 22 Each woman will ask her neighbor and any woman staying in her house for silver and gold jewelry, and clothing, and you will put them on your sons and daughters. So you will plunder the Egyptians.”

So, why did God not just allow Pharaoh to simply let the people go?  Why did God have to harden Pharaoh's heart (as is mentioned in a later chapter) and not let the people go right away?  Hid Glory.  That is the simple answer.  If Pharaoh had let the people go right away, then God's glory would not have been on display at the magnitude it was.  Since Pharaoh did not let them go, God was able to demonstrate his glory and power through the plagues and the eventual destruction of the Egyptian army in the sea.

Exodus 4:1 Then Moses answered, “What if they won’t believe me and will not obey me but say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?”
2 The Lord asked him, “What is that in your hand?”
“A staff,” he replied.
3 Then He said, “Throw it on the ground.” He threw it on the ground, and it became a snake. Moses ran from it, 4 but the Lord told him, “Stretch out your hand and grab it by the tail.” So he stretched out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand. 5 “This will take place,” He continued, “so they will believe that Yahweh, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.
6 In addition the Lord said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” So he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, his hand was diseased, white as snow. 7 Then He said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” He put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, it had again become like the rest of his skin. 8 “If they will not believe you and will not respond to the evidence of the first sign, they may believe the evidence of the second sign. 9 And if they don’t believe even these two signs or listen to what you say, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. The water you take from the Nile will become blood on the ground.”

First Moses doubted the people would listen because he did not know God's name.  Once he knew that, he said the people still will not believe me, so God gave him signs... next, as we will read, Moses said, "But I can't talk!"  Oh, just think of the excuses we give to God as to why we cannot do something he has commanded us to do... I do not have time... I don't know anyone who isn't saved... I don't know how... I... I... I... You see the problem with excuses?  They all have an "I" problem.  I am not good enough.  But just look at this... When you are saved, God makes you good enough to do the things he has called you to do.  Like with Moses, God will give you what you need to finish the tasks he has given you.  Stop focusing on what you (I) can do for God and focus on what God can do through you.  All that is done is done by him.  He uses you to accomplish his tasks.  He does not need you, and if you continue having and "I" problem, telling God all the reasons you can't do something, then he will find someone else to work through,  His will can be done even if you do not submit fully to him.  You may miss the opportunity to tell someone of Christ because of an "I" excuse, but if  that person is chosen by God to be his, then your missed opportunity will not hinder that person coming to God.  Someone else will have the joy and the privilege of revealing the greatest miracle of all to that person.  You have missed a blessing because you are too focused on yourself and your own "I" excuses that you have failed to embrace the gifts God has given you to accomplish the work he has set forth for you.

Exodus 4:10 But Moses replied to the Lord, “Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent—either in the past or recently or since You have been speaking to Your servant—because I am slow and hesitant in speech.”
11 Yahweh said to him, “Who made the human mouth? Who makes him mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, Yahweh? 12 Now go! I will help you speak and I will teach you what to say.”

Here after Moses made another "I" excuse, the Lord puts him in his place.  Who made the mouth?  God did!  If you are afraid to tell someone about Christ, just know that God will give you the words to say.  He made the mouth and he knows all languages, he can speak through you if you are willing to open up and speak.

Exodus 4:13 Moses said, “Please, Lord, send someone else.”

Even after God gave him his name, promised him signs, told him he can speak for him, Moses asks God not to send him, but to send someone else.  After all God promised him, he still did not want to do it.

Exodus 4:14 Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses, and He said, “Isn’t Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, he is on his way now to meet you. He will rejoice when he sees you. 15 You will speak with him and tell him what to say. I will help both you and him to speak and will teach you both what to do. 16 He will speak to the people for you. He will be your spokesman, and you will serve as God to him. 17 And take this staff in your hand that you will perform the signs with.”

So, God makes one more promise to Moses.  Your brother can speak for you.  If, you, Moses, are so caught up in your stutter that you do not want to talk to the people, then I will give you Aaron to speak to the people for you.  Now, Moses, what other excuses do you have?  God covered them all.

Exodus 4:18 Then Moses went back to his father-in-law Jethro and said to him, “Please let me return to my relatives in Egypt and see if they are still living.”
Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.”

Moses finally accepted the task God had given him to complete.  He would free his people from the oppression of Egypt.  I know Moses was still afraid of the task he had, but he still agreed to go after God wiped all his excuses away.

Exodus 2:11-25 -- Moses flees Egypt

Exodus 2:11 Years later, after Moses had grown up, he went out to his own people and observed their forced labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. 12 Looking all around and seeing no one, he struck the Egyptian dead and hid him in the sand.

Moses became angry when he saw how his people were being treated.  He killed the Egyptian and hid his body.  

Exodus 2:13 The next day he went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, “Why are you attacking your neighbor?”
14 “Who made you a leader and judge over us?” the man replied. “Are you planning to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?”
Then Moses became afraid and thought: What I did is certainly known. 15 When Pharaoh heard about this, he tried to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and went to live in the land of Midian, and sat down by a well.

Even though Moses thought no one had seen the sin he committed, they had.  Pharaoh eventually heard about it and  tried to have Moses killed, but Moses fled.

Exodus 2:16 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters. They came to draw water and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. 17 Then some shepherds arrived and drove them away, but Moses came to their rescue and watered their flock. 18 When they returned to their father Reuel he asked, “Why have you come back so quickly today?”
19 They answered, “An Egyptian rescued us from the shepherds. He even drew water for us and watered the flock.”
20 “So where is he?” he asked his daughters. “Why then did you leave the man behind? Invite him to eat dinner.”
21 Moses agreed to stay with the man, and he gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses in marriage. 22 She gave birth to a son whom he named Gershom, for he said, “I have been a foreigner in a foreign land.”

Moses was rewarded for being kind to this family by marrying a daughter of the man he helped and by having a son.

Exodus 2:23 After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned because of their difficult labor, and they cried out; and their cry for help ascended to God because of the difficult labor. 24 So God heard their groaning, and He remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 25 God saw the Israelites, and He took notice.

God heard the prayers of his people.  God always hears the prayers of those who are his.  God always answers the prayers of his people.  He may say "no" or "not yet," but he always answers.  We may not know the answer for quite a while.  We may think God is not listening because we do not know the answer, but he always answers.

The verse points out that he "remembered" the covenant with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.  Does that mean God forgot and that is why the Israelites suffered?  No.  God did not forget about His people, it is us who forget God.  When everything is going well, we tend to forget to thank God or give him praise for the good times, but when things turn bad, we are quick to cry "help!"  We know we need God when times are rough, but we forget we also need him when  things seem good.

Exodus 2:1-10 -- The Story of Baby Moses

Exodus 2:1 Now a man from the family of Levi married a Levite woman. 2 The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son; when she saw that he was beautiful, she hid him for three months. 3 But when she could no longer hide him, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with asphalt and pitch. She placed the child in it and set it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile. 4 Then his sister stood at a distance in order to see what would happen to him.
5 Pharaoh’s daughter went down to bathe at the Nile while her servant girls walked along the riverbank. Seeing the basket among the reeds, she sent her slave girl to get it. 6 When she opened it, she saw the child—a little boy, crying. She felt sorry for him and said, “This is one of the Hebrew boys.”
7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Should I go and call a woman from the Hebrews to nurse the boy for you?”
8 “Go,” Pharaoh’s daughter told her. So the girl went and called the boy’s mother. 9 Then Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay your wages.” So the woman took the boy and nursed him. 10 When the child grew older, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses, “Because,” she said, “I drew him out of the water.”

This is the story of Moses as told to all young children who attend Sunday School.  For the person who has been going to church their whole life, they can't help but know this story.

Moses's mother hid him so the Egyptians would not kill him, since Pharaoh had ordered the deaths of all the baby boys.  I guess Aaron was a good bit older to not have been killed or needing to hid him.  We know that Moses's sister, who is mentioned in this story, is Miriam.  She was very brave to approach Pharaoh's daughter without being called.  Also, I bet it brought joy to Moses's mother that she was able to nurse him before she had to leave him with the Egyptians.

It seems from the passage that Moses stayed with his mother until he was weened and then returned to Pharaoh's daughter.

This story is mentioned in two other part of the Bible as well:

Acts 7:17 “As the time was drawing near to fulfill the promise that God had made to Abraham, the people flourished and multiplied in Egypt 18 until a different king who did not know Joseph ruled over Egypt. 19 He dealt deceitfully with our race and oppressed our ancestors by making them leave their infants outside, so they wouldn’t survive. 20 At this time Moses was born, and he was beautiful in God’s sight. He was cared for in his father’s home three months, 21 and when he was left outside, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted and raised him as her own son. 22 So Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his speech and actions. 

I find it odd that his passage says he was powerful in speech.   In just a few chapters, we will read the following verse:

Exodus 4:10 But Moses replied to the Lord, “Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent—either in the past or recently or since You have been speaking to Your servant—because I am slow and hesitant in speech.”

Moses did not feel he could do it on his own, he felt as though he was not adequate to do the job God wanted him to do, but God gave him the abilities he needed to fulfill what he needed to do.  The second area the story is mentioned is here:

Hebrews 11:23 By faith, after Moses was born, he was hidden by his parents for three months, because they saw that the child was beautiful, and they didn’t fear the king’s edict.

Moses's parents were indeed fearful of God, and not Pharaoh.  They knew where their ultimate allegiance should lay.  They knew that even if their son did not survive, that God's will would have been done.

Exodus 1 -- Harsh Treatment of Israel

Well, it has taken 3 months, but we have finally made it to the second book of the Bible, Exodus.  

Exodus 1:1 These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob; each came with his family:
2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah;
3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin;
4 Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher.
5 The total number of Jacob’s descendants was 70; Joseph was already in Egypt.

Here, Exodus is just repeating what we already know from Genesis.  We know the sons of Jacob went to Egypt and the total number of people who entered Egypt was 70.

6 Then Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died. 7 But the Israelites were fruitful, increased rapidly, multiplied, and became extremely numerous so that the land was filled with them.

This verse is demonstrating that God still kept his promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  All of there descendants would be as numerous as the sands of the sea.

8 A new king, who had not known Joseph, came to power in Egypt. 9 He said to his people, “Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and powerful than we are. 10 Let us deal shrewdly with them; otherwise they will multiply further, and if war breaks out, they may join our enemies, fight against us, and leave the country.” 11 So the Egyptians assigned taskmasters over the Israelites to oppress them with forced labor. They built Pithom and Rameses as supply cities for Pharaoh. 12 But the more they oppressed them, the more they multiplied and spread so that the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites. 13 They worked the Israelites ruthlessly 14 and made their lives bitter with difficult labor in brick and mortar and in all kinds of fieldwork. They ruthlessly imposed all this work on them.

The new king did not know Joseph.  He saw how large and powerful the Israelite people were.  He wanted to oppress and work them to death to keep them from rising up and leaving.  I don't think that this help him much, since they did eventually leave Egypt.

15 Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16 “When you help the Hebrew women give birth, observe them as they deliver. If the child is a son, kill him, but if it’s a daughter, she may live.” 17 The Hebrew midwives, however, feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt had told them; they let the boys live. 18 So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this and let the boys live?”

The Pharaoh, in order to keep Egypt secure for himself, ordered the death of all Hebrew boys.  He ordered the midwives to kill them as they are born.  Now a days that could be called partial birth abortion... as long as part of the baby is still in the womb.  The Bible says this is wrong because the midwives feared God and did not kill any of the babies.  If the Bible condoned such actions, then the midwives would not have been blessed afterwards by God for defying the king.

19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, “The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before a midwife can get to them.”
20 So God was good to the midwives, and the people multiplied and became very numerous.21 Since the midwives feared God, He gave them families. 22 Pharaoh then commanded all his people: “You must throw every son born to the Hebrews into the Nile, but let every daughter live.”

Here, to get around the midwives, Pharaoh then ordered the deaths of the infants by drowning.  "throw every son ... into the Nile."  In some ways, you could say Moses's mother did just that, but she "threw" him in the Nile with the protection of a basket and faith that God would bring him to safety.  

Genesis 50 -- The End of Genesis

Genesis 50:1 Then Joseph, leaning over his father’s face, wept and kissed him. 2 He commanded his servants who were physicians to embalm his father. So they embalmed Israel. 3 They took 40 days to complete this, for embalming takes that long, and the Egyptians mourned for him 70 days.
4 When the days of mourning were over, Joseph said to Pharaoh’s household, “If I have found favor with you, please tell Pharaoh that 5 my father made me take an oath, saying, ‘I am about to die. You must bury me there in the tomb that I made for myself in the land of Canaan.’ Now let me go and bury my father. Then I will return.”
6 So Pharaoh said, “Go and bury your father in keeping with your oath.”
7 Then Joseph went to bury his father, and all Pharaoh’s servants, the elders of his household, and all the elders of the land of Egypt went with him, 8 along with all Joseph’s household, his brothers, and his father’s household. Only their children, their sheep, and their cattle were left in the land of Goshen. 9 Horses and chariots went up with him; it was a very impressive procession. 10 When they reached the threshing floor of Atad, which is across the Jordan, they lamented and wept loudly, and Joseph mourned seven days for his father. 11 When the Canaanite inhabitants of the land saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “This is a solemn mourning on the part of the Egyptians.” Therefore the place is named Abel-mizraim. It is across the Jordan.

Joseph mourned 7 days for his father.  Seven is a number that represents perfect completion in the Bible.  Joseph mourned until his mourning was complete.

Genesis 50:12 So Jacob’s sons did for him what he had commanded them. 13 They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave at Machpelah in the field near Mamre, which Abraham had purchased as a burial site from Ephron the Hittite. 14 After Joseph buried his father, he returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had gone with him to bury his father.
15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said to one another, “If Joseph is holding a grudge against us, he will certainly repay us for all the suffering we caused him.”
16 So they sent this message to Joseph, “Before he died your father gave a command:17 ‘Say this to Joseph: Please forgive your brothers’ transgression and their sin—the suffering they caused you.’ Therefore, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father.” Joseph wept when their message came to him. 18 Then his brothers also came to him, bowed down before him, and said, “We are your slaves!”

The brothers were afraid that Joseph would seek revenge for what had been done to him all those years before.

Genesis 50:19 But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? 20 You planned evil against me; God planned it for good to bring about the present result—the survival of many people. 21 Therefore don’t be afraid. I will take care of you and your little ones.” And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.

Joseph recognized God's sovereignty in the whole situation.  If he had not been sold into slavery, he would have never been imprisoned and allowed to interpret Pharaoh's dream.  If the dream had not been interpreted, then many people would have starved in the famine.

Genesis 50:22 Joseph and his father’s household remained in Egypt. Joseph lived 110 years. 23 He saw Ephraim’s sons to the third generation; the sons of Manasseh’s son Machir were recognized by Joseph.
24 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die, but God will certainly come to your aid and bring you up from this land to the land He promised Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” 25 So Joseph made the sons of Israel take an oath: “When God comes to your aid, you are to carry my bones up from here.”
26 Joseph died at the age of 110. They embalmed him and placed him in a coffin in Egypt.

Joseph too wanted to be buried in the land promised to his family.  He, however, felt it fine to wait until all the people could leave Egypt and return to the land promised to them by God.

Exodus 13:19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, because Joseph had made the Israelites swear a solemn oath, saying, “God will certainly come to your aid; then you must take my bones with you from this place.”

The people kept their promise to Jacob.

Joshua 24:32 Joseph’s bones, which the Israelites had brought up from Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the parcel of land Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for 100 qesitahs. It was an inheritance for Joseph’s descendants.

Though Joseph was not buried in the same plot as his fathers, he was buried in the land that was given to his sons by Jacob.

Genesis 49 -- The Death and Burial of Jacob

Genesis 49:1 Then Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather around, and I will tell you what will happen to you in the days to come.
2 Come together and listen, sons of Jacob;
listen to your father Israel:
3 Reuben, you are my firstborn,
my strength and the first fruits of my virility,
excelling in prominence, excelling in power.
4 Turbulent as water, you will no longer excel,
because you got into your father’s bed
and you defiled it—he got into my bed.

Because of his sin, Reuben will no longer be powerful. He slept with his father's concubine in his father's own bed.

Genesis 49:5 Simeon and Levi are brothers;
their knives are vicious weapons.
6 May I never enter their council;
may I never join their assembly.
For in their anger they kill men,
and on a whim they hamstring oxen.
7 Their anger is cursed, for it is strong,
and their fury, for it is cruel!
I will disperse them throughout Jacob
and scatter them throughout Israel.

Remember back when their sister was defiled?  It was Simeon and Levi who went to kill all the men in the city.

Genesis 49:8 Judah, your brothers will praise you.
Your hand will be on the necks of your enemies;
your father’s sons will bow down to you.
9 Judah is a young lion—
my son, you return from the kill.
He crouches; he lies down like a lion
or a lioness—who dares to rouse him?
10 The scepter will not depart from Judah
or the staff from between his feet
until He whose right it is comes
and the obedience of the peoples belongs to Him.
11 He ties his donkey to a vine,
and the colt of his donkey to the choice vine.
He washes his clothes in wine
and his robes in the blood of grapes.
12 His eyes are darker than wine,
and his teeth are whiter than milk.

We know that our Messiah will come from Judah.  Judah is often refered to as a lion.  Our Savior is often refered to as the Lion of Judah.  All his brothers will bow down to him.  All the descendants of Israel will eventually bow to the authority of Christ, as well as everyone else on earth.

Philipians 2:9 For this reason God highly exalted Him
and gave Him the name
that is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow—
of those who are in heaven and on earth
and under the earth—
11 and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

"The scepter will not depart from Judah or the staff from between his feet until He whose right it is comes and the obedience of the peoples belongs to Him." This is Christ.  He comes from the line of Judah and will reign forever.  You could also speak of David here and God's promise that an heir of David would always sit on the thrown of Israel.  Christ is our great King and is from the line of David, so even if there is currently no Earthly king of Israel, Christ is the King of us all, whether we choose to acknoledge him or not.

13 Zebulun will live by the seashore
and will be a harbor for ships,
and his territory will be next to Sidon.

We learn more about the tribe of Zebulun in Deuteronomy:

Deuteronomy 33:18 He said about Zebulun:
Rejoice, Zebulun, in your journeys,
and Issachar, in your tents.
19 They summon the peoples to a mountain;
there they offer acceptable sacrifices.
For they draw from the wealth of the seas
and the hidden treasures of the sand.

In this chapter of Deuteronomy, Moses blesses each of the tribes of Judah, much like Jacob blessed each of his sons.  Go here to read all of Deuteronomy 33.

Genesis 49:14 Issachar is a strong donkey
lying down between the saddlebags.
15 He saw that his resting place was good
and that the land was pleasant,
so he leaned his shoulder to bear a load
and became a forced laborer.
16 Dan will judge his people
as one of the tribes of Israel.
17 He will be a snake by the road,
a viper beside the path,
that bites the horses’ heels
so that its rider falls backward.
18 I wait for Your salvation, Lord.
19 Gad will be attacked by raiders,
but he will attack their heels.
20 Asher’s food will be rich,
and he will produce royal delicacies.
21 Naphtali is a doe set free
that bears beautiful fawns.
22 Joseph is a fruitful vine,
a fruitful vine beside a spring;
its branches climb over the wall.
23 The archers attacked him,
shot at him, and were hostile toward him.
24 Yet his bow remained steady,
and his strong arms were made agile
by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob,
by the name of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,
25 by the God of your father who helps you,
and by the Almighty who blesses you
with blessings of the heavens above,
blessings of the deep that lies below,
and blessings of the breasts and the womb.
26 The blessings of your father excel
the blessings of my ancestors
and the bounty of the eternal hills.
May they rest on the head of Joseph,
on the crown of the prince of his brothers.
27 Benjamin is a wolf; he tears his prey.
In the morning he devours the prey,
and in the evening he divides the plunder.”
28 These are the tribes of Israel, 12 in all, and this was what their father said to them. He blessed them, and he blessed each one with a suitable blessing.

 Jacob blessed each of his sons.  He gave each one a specific blessing.  I have expounded on a few of them and brought in some other verses or shown the reason for some of the statements, but I just do not know enough about the other tribes to make further comments.

Genesis 49:29 Then he commanded them: “I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite. 30 The cave is in the field of Machpelah near Mamre, in the land of Canaan. This is the field Abraham purchased from Ephron the Hittite as a burial site. 31 Abraham and his wife Sarah are buried there, Isaac and his wife Rebekah are buried there, and I buried Leah there. 32 The field and the cave in it were purchased from the Hittites.” 33 When Jacob had finished instructing his sons, he drew his feet into the bed and died. He was gathered to his people.

Jacob wanted to be buried with his ancestors.  You may ask, where is Rachel?  Why was his beloved wife not buried in the plot with the rest of the family?  Remember, she died in childbirth with Benjamin and was buried "on the way to Ephrath."

The King James Version

I get so fed up with people who say that the King James Version is the only true version of the Bible.  They claim it is the only version worthy to read and study from because it is the most true to what scripture actually says.  They claim that the other, newer versions all contain errors and the wording used does not accurately portray what scripture is actually trying to say.

If you want to use the only version that is guaranteed to be 100% accurate and error free, then you have to read the actual manuscripts written by the authors themselves in their original language.  You will have no ambiguity of the translations then.  No question of what the word should or should not be.  What is that?  Oh, you do not know how to read Greek and Hebrew?  I'm so sorry, guess you are out of luck.  But wait!  God, yes our God, has given men the ability to translate scripture between languages!  God uses men who have studies the old languages and scriptures to translate them into other languages so the everyday person can understand.

I know you will agree with that, even if you do believe King James is the only true Bible.  What about people who do not know English?  Do they not have a true and accurate Bible to read?  Why can't other translations be acceptable, even other English translations?  Are you saying God cannot preserve his Word through out the generations?  Isn't God capable of that?  Doesn't scripture say nothing is impossible for our God, no matter what version you read?

Matthew 19:26

26 But Jesus looked at them and said, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (HCSB)

26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. (KJV)

26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (NIV)

26 But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (ESV)

I feel that the way you can choose a good translation is to first see how it was written.  If someone used accepted Greek and Hebrew manuscripts for translations and accurately translates them into another language, then I think they are fine for us to use to study his word.  Yes, some ambiguity will slip in as translations are made, but the overall ideas, truths and promises are still accurately conveyed.  There are always words in one language that do not exist or some idioms in one language we just do not understand, but they do not hinder our understanding of scripture as a whole.  Knowing what was used to translate the Bible and how the translator went about doing it can help you find the right Bible for you.  If you believe the King James is the best version for you, by all means, use that version.  If you feel the NIV or the ESV or the HCSB is the best translation, use those.  Just beware of how they are translated.  If a passage in the NIV or ESV or HCSB or KJV or any other version have a meaning that seems different across the versions, that is when you pull out Greek and Hebrew dictionaries and try to determine which is most accurate. (Or research it using the internet or books)  Perhaps the reason for the differences is that there is a word in the native languages that scholars do not know exactly what they mean.  They are using the context of the passages (HA, see context is still important!) to determine the best meaning for the unknown term.  Each translator will think of something slightly different based on his understanding of the passage.  Does that mean the passage is in error?  Well, not exactly.  Perhaps the word means all those things.  We just may not know.  Does that mean the translator was not inspired because God did not give him the meaning of every single word?  NO!  There are some things that remain mysteries in the Bible because God wants them to remain mysteries.  He reveals HIS mysteries in HIS time.

Colossians 1:25 I have become its servant, according to God’s administration that was given to me for you, to make God’s message fully known,26 the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to His saints. 27 God wanted to make known among the Gentiles the glorious wealth of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

What really gets me, is that one person I have met through the internet claims King James to be the only true word of God in the English language, but then goes on to site several places where translations were incorrect.  If some of it is incorrect, then it isn't perfect, now is it!

I know I mentioned in the previous post that I believe the Word of God is 100% true and contains no errors.  By errors, I do not mean punctuation or spelling or changing between words that have the same meaning.  What I mean is that nothing that was supposed to be there was left out and nothing that wasn't supposed to be there was put in.  There is no error in the meaning of what a passage is trying to convey, no matter which rightly translated Bible you pick up.

I do believe that there are some Versions that should not be called Bibles because they are not.  Take "The Message" version.  It is not a Bible.  It was not written to be a Bible.  It was written as a study guide as one reads through the Bible and should not be taken as the Word of God.  Can God use what is in "The Message" to help reach the lost for Him?  Yes.  But it should not be promoted as a Bible when the author, himself, wrote it as something different.

All in all, be careful on the translation you use, but do not be so stingy as to look down on someone else for not using "THE" version of scripture.  There are many good translations, not just one.  My husband says that the ideas of scripture is more important than the exact words used.  One translation may say it slightly different, but the meaning is completely the same.  Saying God can do all things is exactly the same as saying nothing is impossible for God.  There words used may be different, but the idea/meaning is the same.