Exodus 5:22-23
22 Then Moses returned to the LORD and said, “O Lord, why have You brought harm to this people? Why did You ever send me? 23 “Ever since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has done harm to this people, and You have not delivered Your people at all.”
In our last episode Moses was complaining to God. Like the old western serials we used to see at the movies. Each week our hero was in a new crisis.
Exodus 6:1 (NASB)
1 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for under compulsion he will let them go, and under compulsion he will drive them out of his land.”
1. What is God telling Moses in verse 1?
Every Greek heroic figure had times of paralyzing fear, times their “knees knocked together” and they would struggle to overcome their fear and lack of confidence to achieve victory.
Many of the biblical heroes had struggles with confidence.
Psalm 3:1-2 O LORD, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me! Many are saying of me, “God will not deliver him.”
Psalm 4:1 Answer me when I call to you, O my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer.
Psalm 5:1-2 Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my sighing.
Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray.
Matt. 27:46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Sometimes we need reassurance. Sometimes believing that something can be done is more than half the battle.
On May 6, 1954 Roger Bannister was the first human being to run a mile in under 4 minutes. For many years, the scientific and athletic communities thought that it was impossible for a human to run a four-minute mile.
Medical experts predicted that if a man tried to run that fast for that long he would die. The 4 minute mile barrier was as much a physiological barrier as a physical one. Once Bannister broke through this barrier it has become routine. Within ten years high school kids were running under 4 minutes. It’s been broken hundreds of times. Now the record is 17 seconds below 4 minutes and on day women will be breaking this barrier. The key was the confidence that you won’t die if you run fast and it can be done.
Philippians 1:6 says: “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” God knows our needs today. He knows our desperate condition. He can and wants to help us just as He helped Israel in Egypt.
Exodus 6:2-5 (NASB)
2 God spoke further to Moses and said to him, “I am the LORD;
3 and I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name, LORD, I did not make Myself known to them.
4 “I also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they sojourned.
5 “Furthermore I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel, because the Egyptians are holding them in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant.
2 God spoke further to Moses and said to him, “I am the LORD;
3 and I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name, LORD, I did not make Myself known to them.
4 “I also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they sojourned.
5 “Furthermore I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel, because the Egyptians are holding them in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant.
2. “I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make myself known to them.” What is God saying here?
God Almighty…El Shaddi….they knew me only as the
Mighty One, but you know me as the Personal God Yahweh. This ties in with verse 7
“I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God”.
In the past God interacted with certain individuals but now he is going to be the private God of a nation of people.
No longer am El Shaddi (generic God the Mighty One), now I’m your God.
“my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Phil 4:19
3. What is a covenant?
A covenant is a contract or agreement between two parties. In the Old Testament the Hebrew word berith is always thus translated. Berith is derived from a root which means “to cut,” and hence a covenant is a “cutting,”
with reference to the cutting of dividing of animals into two parts, and the contracting parties passing between them, in making a covenant (Gen. 15; Jer. 34:18,. The blood was a witness and if one party breaks the covenant then his blood is to be shed.
When men made a contract in that day, this is the way they made it. Suppose one man agreed to buy sheep from another one. They would prepare a sacrifice in this manner. The party of the first part joined hands with the party of the second part, they stated their contract, and then they walked through the sacrifice. In that day this corresponded to going down to the courthouse and signing before a notary public in our day. So we see that God is using with Abram the legal procedure of his day. Covenant breakers.
When men made a contract in that day, this is the way they made it. Suppose one man agreed to buy sheep from another one. They would prepare a sacrifice in this manner. The party of the first part joined hands with the party of the second part, they stated their contract, and then they walked through the sacrifice. In that day this corresponded to going down to the courthouse and signing before a notary public in our day. So we see that God is using with Abram the legal procedure of his day. Covenant breakers.
Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,31 Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Rom. 1:30-31
Athletes, business, marriage etc.
Shakespeare: “Kill all the lawyers”
4. What was this land that God was going to give Abraham and his seed?
Exodus 6:6-8 (NASB)
6 “Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.
7 ~’Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
8 ~’I will bring you to the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will give it to you for a possession; I am the LORD.'”
6 “Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.
7 ~’Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
8 ~’I will bring you to the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will give it to you for a possession; I am the LORD.'”
5. In verses 2 through 5 God uses the word “I” six times.
In verses 6 to 8 He uses “I” ten times. What is God telling Moses?
This is not about you Moses. This goes way back. This concerns my power and my credibility. This is between me and that Pharaoh guy, between me and the false pagan gods and ultimately between the truth and the lie. I’m going to show my power.
And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD.’ ”
Again the Lord reiterates His sworn covenant with Moses forefathers and ends with I AM the Lord. Do you remember who I Am.
Exodus 6:9-12 (NASB)
9 So Moses spoke thus to the sons of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses on account of their despondency and cruel bondage.
10 Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
11 “Go, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the sons of Israel go out of his land.”
12 But Moses spoke before the LORD, saying, “Behold, the sons of Israel have not listened to me; how then will Pharaoh listen to me, for I am unskilled in speech?”
9 So Moses spoke thus to the sons of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses on account of their despondency and cruel bondage.10 Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
11 “Go, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the sons of Israel go out of his land.”
12 But Moses spoke before the LORD, saying, “Behold, the sons of Israel have not listened to me; how then will Pharaoh listen to me, for I am unskilled in speech?”
6. Why didn’t the Israelites listen to him?
Look what happened to them the last time they listened to Moses. Fool me once your fault, fool me twice my fault.
Exodus 5:4-7 (NASB)
4 But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you draw the people away from their work? Get back to your labors!”
5 Again Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are now many, and you would have them cease from their labors!”
6 So the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters over the people and their foremen, saying,
7 “You are no longer to give the people straw to make brick as previously; let them go and gather straw for themselves.
5 Again Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are now many, and you would have them cease from their labors!”
6 So the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters over the people and their foremen, saying,
7 “You are no longer to give the people straw to make brick as previously; let them go and gather straw for themselves.
7. ” why would Pharaoh listen to me, since I speak with faltering lips.” Again with the speech problem?
Sometimes we focus on our short comings as an excuse to not try.
“Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried is the true failure. “
He’s afraid and lacks confidence and his faith is in the Lord is weak. Here we get a chance to see the struggle of one of the greatest men in the bible.
“Lord I believe, help my unbelief.” Mark 9:24
These were the heads of their families
The sons of Reuben the firstborn son of Israel were Hanoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi. These were the clans of Reuben.
The sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jakin, Zohar and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman. These were the clans of Simeon.
These were the names of the sons of Levi according to their records: Gershon, Kohath and Merari. Levi lived 137 years. The sons of Gershon, by clans, were Libni and Shimei. The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. Kohath lived 133 years.
The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. These were the clans of Levi according to their records.
Amram married his father’s sister Jochebed, who bore him Aaron and Moses. Amram lived 137 years.
The sons of Izhar were Korah, Nepheg and Zicri.
The sons of Uzziel were Mishael, Elzaphan and Sithri.
Aaron married Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab and sister of Nahshon, and she bore him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.
The sons of Korah were Assir, Elkanah and Abiasaph. These were the Korahite clans.
Eleazar son of Aaron married one of the daughters of Putiel, and she bore him Phinehas.
These were the heads of the Levite families, clan by clan.
It was this same Aaron and Moses to whom the LORD said, “Bring the Israelites out of Egypt by their divisions.”
They were the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing the Israelites out of Egypt. It was the same Moses and Aaron. Exodus 6:13-27
8. Verses 13 through 27 include a genealogy. What it is here for?
There is a lot of speculation as to what this list of names means. Scholars debate its accuracy and its meaning. It’s confusing because it looks like it is a partial list and only includes certain people. This is the family tree of Moses and Aaron. It’s possible that Moses really didn’t know who his ancestors were. Today we have Ancestry.com and there is a lot of interest in family trees. People get excited when they find a leaf on their tree. My kids now that they are adults have started asking question about who we are and the background of our family. I know a little bit but only bits and pieces of my family history. There are some people who in our families and stand out more than others. Every family has its share or saints and scoundrels.
It would appear that these names are the people who God had enough regard for to point out to Moses. Some feel that these names are there to point out to Moses that the people in Moses background are all part of God’s plan, and that this plan culminates on Moses and Aaron confronting the Egyptian Pharaoh.
Now when the LORD spoke to Moses in Egypt, he said to him, “I am the LORD. Tell Pharaoh king of Egypt everything I tell you.” But Moses said to the LORD, “Since I speak with faltering lips, why would Pharaoh listen to me?” Exodus 6:28-30
9. Isn’t this a legitimate point? Why should Pharaoh listen?
God is aware that Pharaoh will not listen and is indeed counting on his obstinate stubborn personality (hardened heart) so that God will be able to destroy the belief in the useless Egyptian gods. He will not listen to what Moses says but listen to what Moses does.
- ESVN………….ESV Study Bible Notes
- MSBN…….MacArthur NASB Study Notes
- NIVSN…..NIV Study Notes.
- JVM ….J Vernon McGee,
- ACC …. Adam Clarke’s Commentary
- BN …..Barnes Notes
- WBC…… Wycliffe Bible Commentary
- CN …… Constables Notes
- IC……….Ironside Commentary
- NET………Net Bible Study Notes.
- JFB…………..Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary
- VWS……………..Vincent Word Studies
- CMM………….Commentary on Matthew and Mark
- BDB………….. Barclay’s Daily Study Bible (NT)
- Darby………..John Darby’s Synopsis of the OT and NT
- Johnson………Johnson’s Notes on the New Testament.
- NTCMM…………..The New Testament Commentary: Matthew and Mark.
- BKC………………….Bible Knowledge Commentary
PCB…………………… Popular Commentary of the Bible,
SSN…………………..Scofield’s Study Notes
“Fair Use “ Notice – Title 17 U.S.C. section 107
The above post may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. It is being made available in an effort to advance the understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, social justice, for the purpose of historical debate, and to advance the understanding of Christian conservative issues. It is believed that this constitutes a ”fair use” of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the Copyright Law. In accordance with the title 17 U.S. C. section 107, the material in this post is shown without profit to those who have expressed an interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please feel free to make civil comment. Divergent views encouraged,