# 00 2024 Dev. Isa.7:13. Rumors of War! Read all of chapter seven first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Isaiah 7:13 “Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also?”

Isa.7 After the commissioning of Isaiah in chapter 6, sixteen years later, after the righteous King Jotham, Uzziah’s son dies and his son Ahaz is on the throne, Jerusalem was unsuccessfully attacked. Ahaz was not a righteous king. But God wanted to extend His grace to the house of David. A larger army was rumored to be on the way and “Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.” God sent Isaiah and his son to meet Ahaz and tell him that this larger army would not prevail and he is told to ask God for a sign. “But Ahaz said, ‘I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.”’ Verse 13 tells us what Isaiah thought of that answer. 

Vs.1-13 All of Jerusalem is disturbed, fearful, and had lost all hope. God sends Isaiah to meet with the king Ahaz. God tells Isaiah to take along his son, Shear-Jashub, his name meaning: “a remnant will return”. God is sending Ahaz and his people a message; there is grace and salvation but there also are consequences. Isaiah, speaking for God says, this attack “will not take place. It will not happen… Within sixty-five years”, within God’s timing , the people opposing you will no longer be a people to oppose you. “If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.”

Standing firm is a strong message for today, for us, for you! Faith is believing what you cannot see. Faith is a sure knowledge of God’s presence with us and the assurance of the Holy Spirit working in our lives. Ahaz is told to act on faith; “Ask the Lord your God for a sign”, any sign. Ahaz refuses, the spirit he has does not allow him to ask, “I will not put the Lord to the test.”  He is afraid to practice faith. How about us, how about you?

Vs.14-17 Ahaz lacked faith. Often we lack faith as well, but that does not stop God’s will in our lives, in our families or in our country. God Himself gives Ahaz a sign; like Isaiah son’s name, it contains a message to Ahaz and to us today. “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, for before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste.” The message is that God will be with us and that he is with  us now, Immanuel, God with us. We celebrated that 2 days ago. Ahaz and his people will be saved, saved from war. We are being saved, from sins, our short comings, and God, who is always in the eternal present, is with us now and always will be with us by faith. And in Ahaz’s case, still with him in his lack of faith. Faith is gift of the Holy Spirit.

Vs.18-25 “Assyria, the Lord’s Instrument.” God will save Jerusalem and Judea by sending the Assyrians to conquer Aram, Samaria and much of Judea, but not Jerusalem. At that time Hezekiah, a righteous man, was the King in Jerusalem. The rest of the chapter describes the devastation caused by the Assyrian invasion, allowed by God, to punish unrighteous governments and people. This is a warning to us as well, God has blessed our land and I believe He will continue to bless but only because we are on the cusp of a religious revival. Pray for that to accelerate in our lives, in our town and cities, in our country and in the world as well. We praise God! 

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# 52 2024 Dev. Ex.20:2 “Freedom!” Read all of chapter  twenty first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ex.20:2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.”

Ex.20 At the end of Ch.19 God calls Moses and Aaron back up on the mountain. This chapter gives us the words of the Decalogue, Ten Words, The Ten Commandments. In many churches, these commands are read at the beginning of the service, followed by a time of confession and a passage  of assurance of forgiveness. Now different passages are used in place of the Ten Commandments, there are many of God’s precepts throughout Scripture. I have found that people pay more attention when the passage is changed up with the many passages of God’s law.

Vs.1-11 speaks to the expected relationship of the people to God. “I am the Lord your God.” He is God and He is our God, He sets us free from the slavery of sin. “You shall have no other gods before me.” This comes with a warning. Do we have other gods today? Yes! We do! Really? What is the most important thing in your life? The warning: “punishing the children for the sin of the parents…” The blessing: “but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.” Amen! “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God…” This law may be the one most abused ever; gee, gosh, dang.

“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.” This was enforceable in the Old Testament, but the New Test. gives us this advice: Rom 14:5-12 “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind.  Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord.” One day to worship and to rest is good for our health and  glorifies God. Read all of the Rom. passage.

Vs.12-21 speaks to our relationships to each other. “Honor your father and your mother,” This is the only command that has a promise “so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”   The next five commands are self-explanatory. “You shall not murder.” Mt. 5:21-22 “You shall not commit adultery.” Mt. 5: 27-30 “You shall not steal.” Ex 22:1-15 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” Pr. 6:18-19 “You shall not covet.”Lk 12:15 Click on these passages for the deeper meaning of these relationship laws.

Vs.22-26. Idols and Altars. “Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Tell the Israelites this: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven:” God, here, gives worship instructions; sacrifices that foreshadow the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. God also gives instruction on the kind of altar to build. Worship was as it is today; fellowship, rejoicing and receiving blessings,  in the presence of our God, particularly in this Christmas season.  Blessed Christmas!   _{© cgvanwyk, all rights reserved}

# 51 2024 Dev. Isa.6.1.8b ‘Here am I. Send me!” Read all of chapter six first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Isaiah 6:8 “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us? And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!”’

Isa.6 records for us the commissioning of Isaiah. It is established in history, “In the year that King Uzziah died “(750BC). Isaiah sees God on his throne and he sees seraphim calling to each other: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth s full of his glory. At the sound of their voices the doorposts and the thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.” Isaiah is sanctified, called, and he answers the call. After all that the Lord tells Isaiah what to tell the people. The call of Isaiah foreshadows the call to all followers of Jesus. This call is the demand of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

V.1-7 At the sight of God on the throne and the sight of the flying seraphim, Isaiah responds, “Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips… one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal…See, this has touched your lips, your quilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”   

Vs.8-9a “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I… Send me!” Our guilt has been taken away, we have been atoned for in Christ Jesus. Who will go for Him? Yes we will go! Will you?

Vs.9b-10 “Tell these people:” Hebrew; Septuagint ‘You will be ever hearing, but never understanding; / you will be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ / This people’s heart has become calloused; / they hardly hear with their ears, / and they have closed their eyes. “(Footnote)

The New Testament enlightens us, only those who have the Spirit will understand. In Mt.13:13-15 Jesus says: “This is why I speak to them in parables: ‘Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:”’ This is applied today, we could be speaking of our country, especially  at this time.

Vs.11-13 “Then I said, “For how long Lord?” God answered “Until; the cities lie ruined… until the Lord has sent everyone far away…But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump in the land.” There is hope and a part of that Prophecy has been realized today, see, Isaiah 11:1-16. That is what Christmas is all about, praise  be to God!

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# 50 2024 Dev. Ex.19:3. Face to Face! “Read all of chapter  nineteen first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ex.19:3 “Then Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said,”

Ex.19 This chapter is the pre-amble to the giving of the Law at Sinai. It was the place where God called Moses out of the burning bush. It was given 50 days after leaving Egypt, as the Holy Spirit was given to the disciples 50 days after the death and resurrection of Jesus. Here, also, God claims the Israelites as “my treasured possession…you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”

Vs.1-8  After camping before mount Sinai, “Then Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain…” God explained to Moses what he was to say to all the people, remember “how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.” Today, we are brought close to God in Christ, “Obey me fully and keep my covenant,” which still applies to the church today. “You will be my treasured possession.” The church is that today! “You will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation”.  Scripture confirms that for us as well: 1Pt. 2:9 “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” Praise be to God!  The people answered to the affirmative, Moses told the Lord what the people had said. Of course God knew the answer but God used this method so that the poeple would trust Moses.

Vs. 9-15 God told Moses to have the people consecrate themself, stay celibate during this time, keep everyone away from the mountain, Man or animal must not touch the mountain, “ Only when the ram’s horn sounds a long blast may they approach the mountain.”

Vs.16-25 “On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled… Moses led the people out of the camp to meet God… Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently. 19 As the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.” Here Scriptures confirms God’s voice: Heb.1:1-2 “In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.” God has blessed us in these last days. Amen!  

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# 49 2024 Dev. Isa.5.1. Called to Account! Read all of chapter five first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Isa.5:1 “I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard:  My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside.”

Isaiah 5 is a commentary on the short comings of God’s people that we today need to pay attention to. It lays out what God has and is now doing for His church. Further it lays out where the Israelites have gone wrong and where we can go wrong today. Yet, there is also hope of God extending His grace.

V.1-7 “The song of the Vineyard.” The first two verses look back at the Song of Songs “My beloved had a vineyard…” The bride is speaking of her beloved—the Christ. These verses are a parable in song, telling of God’s grace to His people, “but it yielded only bad fruit.” God asks a rhetorical question. What more could have been done for my vineyard? Today we ask: What more must God do after giving His Son, Jesus? We answer, nothing, what is being done is adequate!!! When we answer God’s call, and accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, heaven erupts in celebration! Praise the Lord! 

V.8-15 The excessive seeking after wealth God rejects. Excessive running after drinks, excessive banquets, every excess is unacceptable to God. There will be consequences, exile, hunger thirst and death. Today we understand that as the Second Death.  

V.16-17 There is hope! “But the Lord Almighty will be exalted by his justice, and the holy God will be proved holy by his righteous acts. Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture; lambs will feed among the ruins of the rich.” Those righteous, true followers of Jesus (sheep) and their children (lambs) will be blessed.

V.18-25 Four Woes. Woe to those who seek earnestly to sin and challenge God “who call evil good and good evil”, those “who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter, those who are wise in their own eyes…” woe to those who indulge in excessive alcohol and those who adulterate justice with bribes convicting the innocent. Vs .24-25 There will be a reckoning. These verses (18-23) we read here could be written today in our own country. When will we wake up? 

Vs.26-30 “He lifts up a banner for the distant nations, he whistles for those at the ends of the earth. Here they come, swiftly and speedily!” This chapter ends with God sending nations against Israel as punishment, nations that are powerful, confident, and intent on destruction. God is in control, He decides what will happen to Israel and He decides what will happen to us, here in this country. Are we getting back on track? I hope and pray. Happy Thanksgiving!!!                          

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# 48 2024 Dev. Ex.18:5. Wise Leadership! “Read all of chapter  eighteen first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ex.18:5 “Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, together with Moses’ sons and wife, came to him in the wilderness, where he was camped near the mountain of God.” 

Ex.18 While the Israelites were camped near Mt. Sinai, Moses’ father in law came to visit him and returned his wife and sons, who Moses sent back to him before he entered Egypt. Jethro was the priest of Midian. Some commentators think Jethro was a Kenite, but others think he was a Midianite, which makes sense given his priesthood.  In passing he is also known as Reuel. It is commonly accepted that he was known by seven names and he is the main prophet of the Druze religion practiced in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel. Jethro offered advice to Moses that released him for the more important work of teaching the Israelites how to worship and how to live. 

Vs.1-6  Here we learn that Moses had sent his wife and children back home from their trip to Egypt. We also learn the meaning of the names of Moses’ children. The first born Gershom, “I become a foreigner in a foreign land.” The second son was named Eliezer, “My father’s God was my helper; he saved me from the sword of Pharaoh.” Moses led Israel out of a foreign land and he is leading them into a foreign land. Hebrews 11:9-10 teaches us what Israel’s situation foreshadows and sets direction for us, the church today. Abraham; “By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” What Hebrews is talking about is the “New Heaven and the New Earth.”

Vs.7-12 “Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and kissed him… Jethro was delighted to hear about all the good things the Lord had done for Israel in rescuing them from the hand of the Egyptians. 10 He said, “Praise be to the Lord, who rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and who rescued the people from the hand of the Egyptians… Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and other sacrifices to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat a meal with Moses’ father-in-law in the presence of God.” 

Vs.13-27 “The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening.” The problem with Moses’ method is that all of his time was taken up with people with problems or disagreements. If a leader or pastor spends all his time with people with chronic problems less assertive people with problems will fall through the cracks. Jethro gives Moses the method of distributing the responsibility of leadership that does not overwhelm the leaders. Jethro gives this advice but he defers to God, ‘If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied. Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.”’ A word to the wise, thanks be to God!  

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# 47 2024 Dev. Isa.4.2.The Branch! “Read all of chapter four first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Isa.4:2 “In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel.” 

Isaiah 4 continues the vision of chapters 2 and 3 the encouragement of the “Mountain of the Lord”, the vision of the future Church in the last days that began with Jesus’ birth and “the judgment on Jerusalem and Judah.” And now also restoration.

V.1 Ends the judgment on Jerusalem. The results of judgment is highlighted in vs. 18-26 in Chapter 3. There is devastation of the land, removal of all the finery they are used to, there is war, “Your men have fallen by the sword.” The problem was that they worshiped, they sacrificed as the law required in those days but their hearts were far from God. It was a pretense, worship was insincere, they had confidence in themselves, in their possessions. With the disruption of war and so many men killed, normal life was no longer possible. 

What about today? How do you see worship and church attendance? Is our country subject to judgment?

Vs.2-6 “The Branch of the Lord”. “In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel.” There will be a cleansing. “The Lord will wash away…” every stain “by a (the) Spirit of judgment and a (the) Spirit of fire.” Who or what is the “Branch” Zachariah 6:9-14 “Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the Lord.” This foreshadows Jesus, the two men mentioned in Zachariah are named Josiah, meaning God heals and Joshua, meaning God is salvation. Jesus’   name means God saves. 

Verse 5 defines God’s grace;  “Then the Lord will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over everything the glory[c] will be a canopy.” This harks back to God’s people coming out of Egypt and traveling in the desert. God led them and protected them, Jesus was and is in the cloud and in the fire. It is the glory of heaven, the power of the Holy Spirit that hovers over the church today, those who are the true followers of Jesus. Amen! Praise be to God.

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# 46 2024 Dev. Ex.17:2 Water and War! Read all of chapter  seventeen first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ex.17:2 “So they quarreled with Moses and said, ‘Give us water to drink.”’

Ex.17 has two very different kind of events. God was leading them from place to place with His cloud, all they had to do was follow. God had taken care of them, a string of miracles, getting them out of Egypt, protecting them from Pharaoh, giving them food and water up to this point. How quickly they forgot all that God had done for them.

The second event was that they were attacked, unprovoked, by the Amalekites. The Amalekites were dependents of Esau, Esau had sworn to kill Jacob, they reconciled, not so his offspring, memories were long in the Middle East as they are today. 

Vs.1-7 The people quarreled with Moses over water, the lack of it. “Moses replied, ‘Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the Lord to the test?”’ This was a not a passive situation; “Then Moses cried out to the Lord, ‘What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.”’ God instructed Moses to take his staff and hit the rock, God said to Moses, “I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb.” Horeb is the place where Moses saw the burning bush, and it is the mountain of God where the Ten Commandments were given to Moses. But The Rock means much more, The water came out of it like a river, in great abundance. It foreshadows, Jesus, the Rock of spiritual abundance. How weak our faith is sometimes! Life is a series of tests along the way, tests by God and some of our own making. How quickly we forget God’s grace and Jesus’ love!

Vs.8-16 The Amalekites, Amalek was one of Esau’s grandsons. They attacked the people of Israel, a large group of about three million people. We are not told how it all started but Moses appoints Joshua as commander, this is the first time we hear about him. “Moses said to Joshua,‘Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.”’ This was another test, the water situation caused the people to say “ is the Lord among us or not?” Not only was God among them but God used Moses in a powerful way to impress upon the people that God picks leaders, as he does today. Many of us have forgotten that truth. Rm.13 is a good reminder of how we must live! 

 As long as Moses held up his arms with God’s rod, the Israelites were winning but when tired he put his arms down the Amalekites were winning. Every leader needs help so Aaron and Hur held up Moses arms, one on each on a side. That is our job to come along side our church leaders in fervent prayer and to come alongside the leaders of our land and hold them up in fervent prayer. Amen!                            

“Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. He said, “Because hands were lifted up against (to) [c] the throne of the Lord…” How important is unity right now? Let us all lift up each other’s hands by the power of the Holy Spirit, we are all Prophets, Priests, and Kings! 

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# 45 2024 Dev. Isa.3.1. Disturbing News! “Read all of chapter three first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Isa.V1 “See now, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: all supplies of food and all supplies of water…”

Isaiah 3 continues the vision of chapter 2, the encouragement of the “Mountain of the Lord”, the vision of the future Church in the last days that began with Jesus’ birth.  We are in the last days now, we have seen and experienced the Church of Christ. But the day of the Lord is coming. The faithful do not fear that day, we pray for its coming. “Come quickly Lord Jesus!”

Vs.1-7 This ch. seems to be a big let down by the judgment on Jerusalem and Judah. There appears to be a complete breakdown of society, whether this is the result of war, or the result of sin taking over with no accountability. In any case, peace, harmony, diligence and commerce all seem to have disappeared among them. 

Vs.8-9 Gives us some answer, “their words and deeds are against the Lord… they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it.” This  is starting to sound familiar to us in this country. What has happened to godliness, where are the impartial judges, where is the accountability that holds down evil, where is basic decency, modesty and propriety?  This is the result of kicking God out of schools, out of society, out of politics and out of our lives.

Vs.10-12 “Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.” This speaks to the future, which is reassuring, but while all this is happening they suffer as well. The prophet goes on; “My people, your guides lead you astray; they turn you from the path.” Don’t we know it! But it falls on deaf ears today!

Vs.13-15 “The Lord takes his place in court; he rises to judge the people.” He judges the leaders, “It is you who have ruined my vineyard; the plunder from the poor is in your houses.” That is the way it is today as well. How do our leaders get so rich?

Vs.16-23 “The women of Zion are haughty…” the Lord condemns their alluring ways… “In that day the Lord will snatch away their finery…” Where is the woman of Proverbs 31:10-31? “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” I trust there still are such women today and faithful men as well. 

Vs.24-26 paints a disturbing picture. This is in fact what happened to them, and it could happen to us. The leaders, the elite, the proud and arrogant, paid dearly for their disobedience. If we do not change direction in this land vs.16-26 is heading our way. We thank God that here we also are told: “Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.” Thanks be to God!

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# 44 2024 Dev. Ex.16. God Provides! “Read all of chapter  sixteen first. We invite you into God’s space, to read His Word, to think on and interact with. This is God’s Story. Do you believe that this may also be part of our story, in our time? All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ex.16:9 “Then Moses told Aaron, “Say to the entire Israelite community, ‘Come before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.’”

Ex.16: Dissatisfaction. “The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt.” By this time they had run out of whatever food they had brought with them. But God had planned to provide for them. He planned to send quail and manna from heaven. This chapter is about trusting God. 

It reminds me of Romans 8:28-29 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” 

Note:[a] “Or that all things work together for good to those who love God, who; or that in all things God works together with those who love him to bring about what is good—with those who…”

Vs.1-12 “In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. 3 The Israelites said to them, ‘If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”’ This sets the tone for the entire journey to the promised land. Whenever there was a problem, or things did not go to their liking, the people rebelled. Not much different today is it? Yes, God tests our faith, but all that is for our good and for the good of the work God has given us, that is to serve God by worship, promoting goodness and peace though the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That also was the work of the Israelites beginning with God choosing Abraham. “The Lord said to Moses, ‘I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.’” The Lord our God is in control.

Vs.13-30 God brought quail that evening and manna in the morning. They were to gather an omer, about three pounds, for each person in the tent. “The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much, some little. And when they measured it by the omer, the one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little. Everyone had gathered just as much as they needed.” This was God’s provision. They were to gather just enough for everyday. Of course some people lacked the faith to follow the instruction, do not keep any for the next day. Those who did found it full of worms and putrid in the morning. But on the sixth day they were to gather double for the Sabbath and that did not spoil overnight. They rested on the Sabbath. God set the tone for many of us, the weekend is for rest and worship, to prepare for the next week. Also, this is a lesson for us, we all have earned less than what we thought we needed, and sometimes more than what we thought we needed but it has been enough, God is faithful. Like the Israelites we must be diligent and follow the rules. God provides but we must work for it. Amen.

Vs.31-36 “The people of Israel called the bread manna.[d] It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.” God told Moses to preserve an omer for generations to come as a remembrance of His faithfulness. “The Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a land that was settled; they ate manna until they reached the border of Canaan.” It took forty years to root out the rebellion, only two men of the generation that left Egypt, Joshua and Caleb, the two spies who trusted God, were allowed to enter the Promised Land. Praise the Lord

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