Week 12b--Deuteronomy 26-34, Psalm 90

The rest of Deuteronomy is like the first--the end of a LONG speech by Moses. Like last week, many things we read are repeats of things we have heard before.

In chapter 27-28 new instructions are given for building an altar to help remember the law. Moses gives details of the blessings and curses that God has in store for the children of Israel, depending on whether or not they continued to love the Lord and serve Him. (My money’s on “not.”)

Some of these curses are really extreme--”If you do not obey,” says the Lord, “If you fail to honor me and then do not fear and respect my name,then you will overrun by your enemies to such an extent that you will even eat your own children.” Wow. But this is a stubborn and stiff-necked people (called that by God Himself), and they have a tendency to disobey despite God’s continual favor and miraculous provision, so I think such an invasion is exactly what we shall find in later books of the Bible.

God then institutes a new covenant. And He again gives a terrible warning: If the Israelites disobeyed, and refused to love and honor God, if they would forsake the covenant and worship other gods, then God would destroy them and the land so badly that people who walked past years later would be able to tell that He destroyed it. Yikes. So what He’s saying is, He’s really serious about this “Don’t worship other gods” thing. 

Again and again throughout the Law it is repeated more than any other commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength...” Yes, the ordinances are important; yes, the other laws matter. But MOST IMPORTANT is to LOVE GOD. WITH YOUR WHOLE SELF. Moses sums up his speech in chapter 30 by saying, “Choose life, that you may live.” How? “By loving the Lord your God, by obeying His voice, by holding fast to him.”

This is the challenge that we must face as we read the Bible. Now that we have seen this command so abundantly in the scripture, we cannot help but love God with everything that we have, and everything that we are. It is the most important thing you will ever do.

Moses ends the book of the law with a blessing for each of the twelve tribes of Israel (combining Ephraim and Manasseh into just “Joseph” and including Levi).  We also read Psalm 90 this week. Moses writes that although God is the place where Israel dwells, He is also their Judge. He ends with a note of hope, that the favor of the Lord may be upon them. 

Moses does get a glimpse of the promised land before he dies on Mount Nebo, and is buried by God Himself, in a secret place known only to the Lord. I am a little sad to leave this character that we have been following for so long. 

Next time, Joshua and the Promised Land!

Week 11--Deuteronomy 1-25

If a lot of Deuteronomy may seem like review, well, it is. Deuteronomy consists of a set of speeches given by Moses as the Israelites were preparing to go into the Promised Land (again). All the Israelites who had heard these speeches before had died in the past 40 years, including Moses’ own siblings Miriam and Aaron. I’m not going to spend this post writing “this is a repeat or a retelling of this and that” I will, however, point out things that are new and interesting. 

Og, king of Bashan is mentioned 8 times in the first 4 chapters. He was a giant king (his bed was 9 cubits, or 13 feet, long!) and victory over him was very important in building the Israelite’s courage. Let me also say that I really like his name.

Speaking of names, God has a new spin on His name in Deuteronomy. In Numbers He was usually called “The Lord.” In Deuteronomy, though, He is often “The Lord your God.” This makes Him more personal to the Israelites, showing more relationship. He is not only God, but THEIR God.

A special command called the Shemah (Hebrew for hear) is found in Deuteronomy 6:4-9. It begins: “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one!” The Israelites are commanded to love God, to review and study His laws, and to bind them on their hands, foreheads, and on their doorposts. This led to the tradition of Jewish people having a mezuzah (small box) near the door of their house. The mezuzah usually has a scroll with this scripture inside, in Hebrew.

Chapter 7 begins a section of commands, promises, and warnings. Don’t follow other gods! The Lord your God, the Lord is one! There are also promises of prosperity when they arrive in the new land.

10:12-13 “Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Hm, and to serve the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good?”  Again, the point, the way to follow God, is to LOVE HIM with everything you are. Is obedience necessary? Of course! But which is more important, to be concerned about following a long list of rules or to love the Lord your God with your whole self?

Again (11:22-23) the Israelites are commanded to love the Lord their God.

Chapter 12 tells the Israelites that they are to offer their sacrifices in specific places, because the offerings are holy. God’s not just being picky here, He is demanding holiness. 

Chapter 13-Once again, love the Lord your God. Worship Him only. Do not follow false gods. (Are you listening yet?) 

Chapter 20 holds some new rules of war. First, the Israelites were to try to make peace with the people of the land. They were only to besiege the city if the inhabitants attacked first. However, there were still some people in the land that were to be destroyed.

Chapter 21 has an interesting passage about a murder with no witnesses. The sacrifice brought forgiveness to whoever it was who had committed the crime, and (hopefully) prevented retribution.

Notice in 23:3 that “no Moabite shall enter the assembly of the Lord,” and yet, remember Ruth? She was a from Moab, and yet she was not only allowed to join in the community of the Jews but she became King David’s great-grandmother and is therefore in the genealogy of Jesus. This shows again the mysterious nature of God, in that His mercy is extended to all.

There was a lot to read this week, but most of it was things we had read before. Keep at it! See you next time!

Week 10—Numbers 19-36

In the second half of the book of Numbers we find the results of the Israelite’s sinful hearts. They aren’t going to make it to the promised land just yet, they have to wander for 40 years. Fun times? I don’t think so. However, God in His infinity mercy (and patience) makes new provisions for the Israelites who were now on an extended trip.

The first new law we see is the ordinance of the red heifer. This involves burning a specific animal until there is nothing left but ashes, and then putting the ashes in a special place so they can be used to purify holy water used to cleanse those who had come into contact with the dead. Sadly, there will be a lot of dead in the next 40 years.

God then provides water, despite Moses’ disobedience. “Talk to the rock, Moses,” says God. But Moses hits the rock, apparently because hitting the rock worked last time, but this lack of faith and obedience prevents Moses from entering the Promised Land.

God also provides a new priest, having Aaron literally pass the mantle of priestly leadership to his son before he dies. Then the Israelites begin a series of wars with the other people in the wilderness. We have in chapter 21 the first mention of Og, king of Bashan. Great name, no? (You will hear it repeatedly in later books.)

Then we have one of my favorite stories in the Bible—Balaam and his talking donkey. Balaam was not a Hebrew, and was not really all that great a guy, but in this story, at least, he refused to disobey the word of the Lord. Balaam goes to meet with Balak. We have another appearance of the Angel of the Lord, and then Balaam’s donkey talks! What is interesting is Balaam’s total lack of surprise in the text. Balaam just talks back to the donkey, and the Bible doesn’t tell us that he stood there looking shocked. Balak hires Balaam to curse the Israelites, but Balaam realizes that he cannot curse God’s chosen people and so he blesses them—three times. Balak is steamed, to say the least. More of Balaam’s prophecies tell of the rise of the kingdom of Israel and the fall of many other tribes of the wilderness. Balaam’s story does not end here, though, nor does it end well. Remember, he is a false prophet and a deceiver at heart.

In spite of all this, Israel once again turns away from God and so He sends a plague to punish the people. This helps me understand the mentality of people in the middle ages who thought that all plagues were punishments from God. It had happened before. The lesson? Follow the One True God, not just to avoid plagues, but because it’s the right thing to do.

Next, God sets up the succession of leadership after Moses—Joshua will take over. Also, there are provisions made in case a man dies and leaves all daughters and no sons. This new rule makes sure that no land or inheritance is passed from one tribe to another.

The Israelites are now preparing to enter the promised land—again—and so we hear repeated commandments about offerings, ceremonies, and the celebration of the Day of Atonement. Remember, they have been wandering for a long time, many people have died, and the young ones have not heard all these rules.

Wait, did we miss the 40 year wandering? Yeah, we did. They got ready to go into the promised land, then they got scared in chapter 13-14…and now in chapter 26 they are being counted so they can go into the promised land again. Forty years have passed in 12 chapters with more speeches than events (except for Balaam’s story).

Chapter 31 tells us how Balaam’s tale ends—in death by the sword. He is killed in battle because he led the Israelites in worshiping false gods.

Oh, and just in case you want to chart it on a map, Chapter 33 details the path the Israelites took through the wilderness. I am looking for a map we can link to, as well.

More final rules and we are done with Numbers! Whew!

Only one more book and we are done with the Torah! Keep it up.

Week 9—Numbers 1-18

Now we have finished the book of Leviticus, we can breathe a big sigh of relief and then dive into Numbers. Here is a summary of what we find in the first half of the book. Let’s go!

In the first chapter, when the warriors are counted, we see the first evidence of the half-tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh. Notice also that there are no warriors from the priestly tribe of the Levi.

Israel sets up camp surrounding the tabernacle, again according to God’s directions. Wherever they wander, when they camp, they always set up the tents in the same formation. This may seem mighty particular of God, but remember, He is a God of order and not chaos.  When 600,000 men need to start marching, it helps if all members of each tribe are camped in the same place.

A note about Numbers 5: It’s not just about adultery and jealousy. Yes, it is on the surface. But look deeper. God wanted the people of Israel to be clean, pure, set apart. He would tolerate nothing less. When a problem existed in a marriage relationship, it needed to be dealt with, in public. This is a picture also of our relationship with God, whose name is Jealous (Exodus 20:5). God wants our total devotion to Him. He’s (probably) not going to make us drink bitter water if we skip church to go on a picnic, but we need to remember to live our lives for Him.

Chapter 6 gives us information about the Nazarite Vow, which was a temporary vow a man would make setting himself apart for a certain amount of time.  One man we will learn about who was a Nazarite his whole life (very unusual) was Samson, of “and Delilah” fame.

The (supposedly short) journey towards the Promised Land begins in chapter 10. In 10:29 we meet Reuel, Moses’ father-in-law, who was also known as Jethro (Exodus 2:18, 3:1). I appreciate the fact that even Moses needed a mentor. We all need someone we can turn to for wisdom.

What happened next? “And God said, ‘You want meat? I’ll give you meat! You’ll eat meat until it comes out your nose!’ ” (Numbers 11:18-20, Laura Condensed Version). And people say the Bible is boring! But with the quail came plague, for God was angry at the people’s foolish attitude. This is an example of group penalty for group sin. Then, Miriam and Aaron, Moses’ own brother and sister, grumble against him. “How come God doesn’t speak to us?” Miriam, with her leprosy, bears the individual penalty for her individual sin.

Chapter 13 is best summed up by a song I learned as a child:

Twelve men went to spy on Canaan, Ten were bad and two were good.

What did they see when they spied on Canaan? Ten were bad and two were good.

Some saw the giants great and tall, Some saw grapes in clusters fall

Some saw that God as Lord of all, Ten were bad and two were good.

And yet, in spite of God’s provision and protection, Israel whines. Again. Moses and Aaron beg God not to destroy the Israelites. Again. And God forgives, again, for He is merciful. But here is the moment you’ve been waiting for: in Numbers 14:20-24, God declares that none of the men living on that day will enter the Promised Land.

The story of Korah’s rebellion in chapter 16 both fascinates and frightens me because here you have three people who were called to certain duties, but they wanted a bigger piece of the priestly pie, and so they whined about it, and refused to appear before the assembly when called to account. Then the earth opened up and swallowed them. Gone. Just like that. An impressive display of God’s authority, no? And yet…

THE NEXT DAY the Israelites were grumbling again. So I asked a chaplain friend, “Why were the Israelites so stupid and why did they whine so much?” And he asked me, “How come you’re so stupid and why do you whine so much?” And oddly enough, I was not offended. Humanity continues asking for more and more, despite the fact that God continually provides all we need.

Once again, God forgives. He establishes, with a sign, Aaron’s right to the priesthood (everyone happy now? good!) and gives more commands to the Levites.

This week has been intense! Keep reading, and remember to give thanks for God, for He does supply all we need.

Laura

Week 8—Leviticus 9-27

Welcome back! I’ll try to keep this short, because if you have finished Leviticus you’re probably exhausted. And if you haven’t, you will be. Since Leviticus consists of a long list of rules and regulations, there will be a bunch of statistics and word counts today. But don’t worry—there won’t be a test.

Last week we discovered that the reason Leviticus exists is to show the holiness of the Lord to the people of Israel and, by extension, us. We have the example of Nadab and Abihu in Leviticus 12. Strange fire on the offering? That’s not going to work. God demands holiness. All those rules on leprosy? God showed the Israelites how to be clean and avoid an unclean lifestyle (hmm, this sounds like something we are supposed to do anyway). Word count: clean appears 46 times in Leviticus; unclean 116 times.

One of the keys to understanding and actually enjoying Leviticus is being able to find God’s holiness. For example, Leviticus 11:44-45 reads, “For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. And you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on the earth. For I am the Lord who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God; thus, you shall be holy, for I am holy.”

Most of the rest of the key phrases for Leviticus are in these two verses. Word counts, just from the book of Leviticus:

I am the Lord: 22 times

I am the Lord your God: 22 times

Be holy: 9 times

Be holy, for I am holy: 5 times

The final key to Leviticus is in yet another name of God: I am the Lord who sanctifies you, or YHWH M’kaddesh. This name appears 7 times in Leviticus, and totally blew me away. It is not the blood, not the sacrifices, not the holy garments, but the Lord who sanctifies the people. Wow. When I realized this, when I found it looking for names of God, I was floored. It’s not that the sacrifices were for nothing, because bloodshed is necessary for forgiveness and atonement (word count: 51 times). But the sacrifices themselves could never be enough to make the people holy. God is the one who sanctifies.

How do we walk this out today, as New Testament believers? We are not bound to long lists of rules about what to eat and what to wear. But the book of James reminds us to keep ourselves “unstained by the world.” We are still to be holy, as God is holy. Yesterday, today, and forever.

Have a great week!

Laura 

Week 7, Part 1—Exodus 35-40, Numbers 9, 7, 8 (yes, that’s in the right order)

This week we finish up Exodus and have some introductory pieces from the middle of Numbers. Part 2 will tackle the start of Leviticus, which has a very abrupt beginning. On with Exodus!

We have read about the design of the tabernacle and the furnishings for it; now we read about Bezalel, the skilled craftsman who gathered the material to create the tabernacle and furnishings. There is no tabernacle, no temple, today in Jerusalem. But a full scale model of the tabernacle has been built in Israel and you can see pictures of it at http://www.bibleplaces.com/tabernacle.htm and http://www.bibleplaces.com/tabernaclemore.htm.  (There is also an advertisement on how to purchase pictures, just to let you know.)

Moses then assembled the tabernacle, all by himself, all in one day. Remember, the Israelites were living in the desert at this point and the tabernacle had to be taken apart and re-assembled whenever the glory of the Lord would choose to move to another location.

The priests were dressed, the sacrifices were made, and the tabernacle was built, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. It’s beautiful, no? A fabulous ending to the story of the exodus. We sang a song last year that talked about God bringing us out of the darkness and into His marvelous light. He had done this with the Israelites, brought them out of the darkness of slavery and into the marvelous light of freedom. How wonderful to se His glory in the tabernacle!

What we read next is a few transitional chapters from the book of Numbers. We see the cloud on the tabernacle again, and read one veeerrrryy long chapter about the offerings for the dedication of the tabernacle. If I was asking questions, I would ask: What did each tribe bring as an offering?

And then I would duck. :)

See you next time!

Week 6—Exodus 13-34

Hello again! We are in Exodus, still reading familiar stories, and then we will get into some of God’s laws. As you read these chapters, think about God’s reason for giving those laws, and consider how those laws might fit into our lives today. 

As they began to wander, God gave the Israelites manna because they were whining about not having any food. I thought this was pretty foolish of the Israelites; after all, God has just set them free from slavery in Egypt. Were they going to begin whining at the first bit of hard times? But someone reminded me recently that the Israelites still had the mentality of slavery at this moment in their history. They had been slaves for 430 years and had only been free for a few months. So we should cut them a little slack. But only a little. Trivia bit, just for fun: Manna means “What is it?”

In chapter 18, Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, gives Moses some very good advice: “Get help.” This is the beginning of the biblical court system. It is interesting that Jethro speaks to and about God and Moses speaks to and about the Lord. God and the Lord are the same person, but still, the use of the different names is interesting.

Finally, the Israelites come to Mt. Sinai. The Lord gives Moses the Ten Commandments as well as many (MANY) other laws, including instructions for building the Tabernacle and its furnishings. Fortunately, God also gave plans and wisdom to Bezalel and Oholiab, two skilled men who would help Moses in the building of the Tabernacle and all the things that were required for the many sacrifices.

Moses comes down off the mountain to find the Israelites...worshipping a golden calf. “We took off our earrings and threw them in the fire, and the calf jumped out!” Aaron claimed. Riiiiight... Moses broke the two original tablets on which God Himself had written the Ten Commandments; God is so angry (at the Israelites, not at Moses) that he threatens to destroy the people. Moses intercedes--not for the last time--and God relents.

After spending all this time with God, Moses finds that his face literally shines with God’s light. He has to wear a veil--the others cannot bear to look at him, his face is so bright. Now, while I still want to be able to look at people when I talk to them, this is my goal for all of us, that as a result of the time spent with God our very faces look different; that the world can tell, just by looking at us, that we have a special relationship with Him.

Have a great week!

Week 5, Part 2—Exodus 1-12

The book of Exodus begins with a story that is familiar to almost everyone that went to Sunday School as a child: THE EXODUS. This is when the people of Israel (finally) left their life of slavery behind in Egypt and set out to a victorious life in the Promised Land. (Okay, not really. More on that later.) 

We meet Moses, who is the major player in the next four books of the Bible. Moses is the first leader of the children of Israel, and there is probably more written in the Bible about him than any other person, except Jesus--and maybe Paul.

Here’s a redux of the first 12 chapters of Exodus. The Hebrews are growing great in number in Egypt. Pharaoh fears that they will overpower the Egyptians, so he asks the Hebrew midwives to kill all the male children. (Ha.) They obey God rather than Pharaoh, and God blesses them. One baby boy, Moses, is smuggled out of his home in a basket and finds his way down the river to Pharaoh’s daughter, who adopts him despite the fact that he is Hebrew. 

Moses grows up in the palace but kills an Egyptian when he sees him beating one of the Hebrews. Moses runs away and lives in the desert of Midian for 40 years. God hears the voice of his peoples’ suffering and tells Moses via burning bush that he needs to go back to Egypt to bring the Hebrews out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. Moses argues. God wins.

Pharaoh is not fond of the idea of releasing 600,000 slaves. Ten plagues ensue: the water of the Nile is turned to blood; frogs come up and get into EVERYTHING; gnats fly in and get into everything ELSE; flies show up and bother everyone again; livestock catch diseases; people and livestock break out on boils; hail destroys many of the crops; locusts destroy the remaining crops; darkness “that can be felt” (10:21) hangs over Egypt for three days; the firstborn in every family dies--except in the houses that are marked by the blood of the Passover Lamb (foreshadowing, anyone?).

After this final blow (for even Pharaoh loses his son) he lets the people go--and he even asks Moses and his brother Aaron to “bless me also.” Perhaps Pharaoh is beginning to see something in this Hebrew God after all (but probably not, as we will see next week). The Hebrews pack their unleavened bread and get out of town as quickly as 600,000 people can.

What strikes me as I read this again is the fact that God has His name all over these people. Literally. The words LORD and GOD appear more than TWO HUNDRED times (combined) in these 12 chapters. He is making Himself known to the Israelites; He is claiming them as His people and He is declaring that He, and He alone, is their God. He is all over these pages, writing His name on their hearts. They leave Egypt with instructions to remember the Passover night, to remember the night of their salvation and to pass on the story to their children.

Do we do this with stories of our faith as well?

Week 5, Part 1—Job 35-42

We have three more days in the book of Job, then we are on to Exodus. Today we begin with the second half of Elihu’s speech.

He finishes his speech by continuing to scold Job—old habits die hard. My favorite verse in his speech is Job 36:18, “Beware that wrath does not entice you to scoffing, and do not let the greatness of the ransom turn you aside.” I could camp out on that verse for a week!

Elihu continues by spending 1 ½ chapters praising the greatness of God and reminding us that God is in charge of the weather.

Then God speaks. Out of a tornado. He tells Job to put on his “big boy pants” (my interpretation of Job 38:3) and answers Job’s demands, but not in the way Job expects. “Where were you when I placed the stars?” God asks. “Have you walked on the recesses of the ocean?” “When did you create the storehouses of snow?” God also questions Job on the lives and habits of lions, ravens, goats, donkeys, oxen, ostriches, horses, and hawks.

Job realizes that in the face of Almighty God, he has nothing to say.

God then continues questioning Job, speaking about the Behemoth, which could be a dinosaur, and the Leviathan, which is something between a fire-breathing Loch Ness monster and a water-dwelling dragon.

Job comes to terms with the fact that God is in control, even though he never learns why any of his suffering occurred. Job is restored, his foolish friends are forgiven, “and Job died, and old man and full of days,” (Job 42:17) which is the Bible’s way of saying that he lived happily ever after.

Coming soon…Exodus!

Week 4—Job 12-34

Welcome back to Job! We find ourselves in the midst of the debates that Job is having with his friends; let’s jump right in.

Job answers Zophar, speaking of the power of God to do things both creative and destructive. Job declares that he wants to argue his case before God in a courtroom setting. There are a few brief spots of hope, namely Job 13:15-16 and 14:15.

Eliphaz speaks, beginning the second cycle of debates and calling Job and old windbag, depending on how you interpret Job 15:2. Eliphaz restates the (incorrect) message of the Creepy Spirit Thing. Then he speaks on his favorite topic, the Future Punishment of the Wicked (dun dun dunnn…)

Job returns Eliphaz’s windbag compliment. He then tells how God, and ruffians, have made him miserable. Remember that Job does not know about the drama in haven at the beginning of the story. God allowed, but did not cause, his pain. This is the main source of misunderstanding between Job and his friends—they think that God has caused the misery to come on Job for some secret sin. Job has hopeful words to offer in Job 17:9, but he sinks into a state of depression again soon after.

Bildad speaks again, talking about the future of the wicked. Job 18:21 reads, “…this is the place of him who does not know God.”  We need to make sure that these verses do not describe us who do know God.

Job’s next speech reminds me of the final stretch of a marathon. He is tired, struggling, and in pain. Yet he bursts across the finish line in Job 19:25 declaring, “I know my Redeemer lives!”  After this declaration his outlook is different, better, and more positive.

Zophar speaks next. More about the wicked. Gets old, yes? Please understand that there is a wealth of wisdom to be found in deeper examination of Job’s friends’ foolish words. But we don’t have time for that here.

Job then shares a different outlook on God’s future for the wicked.

Eliphaz speaks about the wicked (shocking, I know) and actually accuses Job of specific wrongs. He then offers a beautiful, if misapplied, treatise on forgiveness and reconciliation. Job 22:21-30 is truly beautiful. Read it again and enjoy it.

Job responds, speaking first of the greatness of God, then acknowledging that God will judge all men when and how He chooses. I like Job 24:40, “…the worm feeds sweetly till he is no longer remembered.”  Makes me laugh.

Bildad begins, first quoting the Creepy Spirit Thing…

Job has had enough, and cuts Bildad off mid-speech  He speaks for a very long time, as this is his  “closing argument” if you use a courtroom metaphor, first on the creative power of God. Job 26:14 reminds me that after all my studying, I really don’t know all that much about God. “These are the fringes of His ways…His mighty thunder, who can understand?”  Job has his own say on the relationship between God and the godless. Then Job offers a fascinating look at the value of wisdom. He remembers how good his life used to be, and complains how rotten it is now. Job then gives a list of “if…then” statements about his life. “If I did this sin, then let this bad thing happen to me.”  Then he is finished speaking. For now.

We meet a new friend, Elihu, who is young, truly wise beyond his years, and “hot nosed” (literally, from the Hebrew) or full of anger. He speaks with a fresh new outlook on the discipline of God, how it can be for training and not just for punishment. Elihu affirms again the just-ness and righteousness of God.

I feel I have not done justice to the richness found in the speeches of Job and his friends. There is wisdom to be found there on further study, as there will be with all the books of the Bible. Until then, we press on! I am looking forward to next week, when we hear the conclusion of Elihu’s speech, and God’s response. (Dragons, anyone?)

Week 3, Part 2—Job 1-11

I LOVE the book of Job. I have read it many times in the past four years and I have studied it extensively. It is very dear to me for a personal reason; I will have to post about it sometime. After I get caught up with this.

So why are we reading the book of Job now? It’s a book of poetry, right? Well, yes. But the story it tells is very old, one of the oldest stories in the Bible. Some chronologies place the story of Job before the calling of Abraham. Why, though? Job himself does not appear as a character in any other book, although he is referred to by a few prophets and in the New Testament. This makes him very hard to place. We will look for clues in the text of the Bible itself to determine when the story of Job happened.

Job 1:3 lists Job’s wealth in terms of flocks and herds. This is typical of someone in the time of Genesis; we have seen Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob described as wealthy because of their flocks.

There is also the hint of names. Job lived in the land of Uz. Uz was the grandson of Shem, Noah’s son (Genesis 10:23). (Yes, the flood Noah. )  Possibly, but not definitely, the land of Uz was named after this person Uz. There is another Uz listed in Genesis 22:21. (Genealogies come in handy, yes?)  Also, one of Job’s friends is Eliphaz the Temanite. Genesis 36:11, 15 lists Eliphaz as the son of Esau (Jacob’s brother) and Teman as the son of Eliphaz. Possibly the Temanites were named for this person Teman. Perhaps Job’s friend Eliphaz was descended from these Temanites. We cannot know for sure. This whole bit about names is all conjecture. But it’s fun.

Job 1:5 tells us something we can actually use: Job made sacrifices. Why does this matter? Other people made sacrifices as well. But Job’s were different. Many offerings made in Genesis were mo mark special occasions or to praise God. Job’s sacrifices were made for forgiveness, just in case his kids had sinned. This kind of sacrifice made Job the priest of his family. After the Israelites left Egypt, only Israelites of the tribe of Levi were allowed to make sacrifices. Had Job lived later, after the Exodus, God would not have allowed him to make these sacrifices. The fact that Job did this is the most compelling evidence that his story happens between the time of Abraham and the time of the Exodus. Now we read the story.

Job was a great man, loving, serving, and honoring God. God even bragged on him to Satan! You could even say about Job’s tragedy that God started it. Job lost everything—flocks, herds, fields, children. His poor wife—give her a break, she had also lost her children—tells him “Curse God and die!” I weep with her. His friends arrive and say the most helpful thing—nothing. Job does not curse God, but rather his birthday.

Then begins three cycles of debates, in which each of Job’s friends speak and Job answers. Eliphaz begins, insisting that Job is not as innocent as he seems, and Eliphaz quotes a Creepy Spirit Thing he saw one night when he couldn’t sleep. The Creepy Spirit Thing lies (see Psalm 8). Eliphaz reminds Job, most unhelpfully, that God only disciplines those he loves.

Job responds with anguished words, for his torment far outweighs his sin. He calls Eliphaz a dry stream, a fair weather friend. He is afraid of death, and is also afraid of God.

Bildad then speaks on God’s justice, and encourages Job to seek the wisdom of the elders.

Job replies that God’s justice far exceeds human understanding. He speaks of God’s creative power, yet fears His judgment. Job’s soul is bitter, and rightly so. He knows God has made him, but does not understand this judgment.

Zophar speaks, scolding Job’s statement that he does not deserve this punishment, for God is too big to understand. Then Zophar gives a beautiful—if misdirected—speech on the beauty of reconciliation and restoration (Job 11:13-20). Read it again and enjoy it.

Job gets better, both the book and the person. Honest! Keep with it—see you next time!

Laura J

Week 3, Part 1—Genesis 40-50

In the first part of this week we read Joseph’s life story, a tale of entrapment, intrigue, and redemption that would make a really good movie. Actually, it’s been made into several good movies. Let’s see how accurate they are in their facts.

Joseph is favored by his father (not a good idea, considering the sibling rivalry among Jacob’s wives; now he has created rivalry among his kids.)  Joseph has dreams which are, admittedly, visions of the future given to him by God, but he goes and brags about it to his brothers. They almost kill him, but they eventually sell him into slavery and tell their father he is dead. (Just for fun: The VeggieTales version, which is told as a western, has him getting eaten up in a wild gopher accident.)

Joseph gets a good job in Egypt, though, in the house of Potiphar, and he is favored by the Lord and by all who see him, including Potiphar’s wife. Her false accusation of Joseph lands Joseph in jail. Even there, though, he is favored, and becomes the chief prisoner.

One night two royal prisoners have dreams which Joseph, our dreamer, interprets, one with a happy ending and the other, well, not so much. News of Joseph’s gift reaches Pharaoh’s ears when he has two disturbing dreams. Joseph, who is older and wiser, now gives God the credit for interpretation. Famine is coming: they have been warned.

He helps Pharaoh set up a plan to conserve crops, looking ahead to the time of famine. Years later, when the famine has spread, Joseph’s brothers come to buy food and meet Joseph, though they do not recognize him. He keeps one brother hostage and sends the others back. When they return with Benjamin, the youngest and Joseph’s only full brother, Joseph finally reveals himself to them.

Jacob/Israel migrates to Egypt in fulfillment of a prophecy God made to Abraham. Israel blesses Joseph’s sons, once again placing the younger above the older, and then Israel blesses all his sons. This, the end of the book of Genesis, is the beginning of the 12 tribes of Israel, although when we get to Exodus there is no tribe of Joseph, but the half tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh. I don’t remember why, exactly—we will look for this when we get there.

Have a good week—we will be reading Job next!