Tag: history of Israel

Covenant with the One True God

Theme Week: 1 God, 1 Messiah: Nehemiah 9

Old Testament Reading: Deuteronomy 3 & 4

Psalms Reading: Psalm 78

To read Nehemiah 9 after Deuteronomy 6 could make a jarring shift of perspective, as we are skipping almost to the end of Old Testament history. But certain elements remain the same. The group that has gathered in mourning is the Hebrew people, hearing Moses’ words from Deuteronomy (“the Book of the Law”). They have received a call to commitment, but not in preparation for the people’s history with God in the promised land. Rather, after looking back on many centuries of Israel’s history, leaders of the people (who at this point are not a nation but under the rule of Persia) are signing a pledge to serve God as they were always meant to.

     A poor understanding of God’s intentions from the Book of the Law was part of the problem. That book is meant to be read aloud to the nation every seventh year (31:9-11), but such readings rarely took place. In fact we are told more than once in Nehemiah that the people had forgotten about certain laws. Just before our chapter the people learned about the existence of the Feast of Booths, and they commemorated it for the first time since the days of Joshua (Nehemiah 8:14-18).

     Reading through the people’s history as the chapter describes it may make it difficult to understand why God did turn back in mercy so often, but God set the precedent at the very start. God “chose” Abram because of his faith and made a covenant with Abram which included blessings on Abram’s descendants; they had to survive (v. 7, NASB). And at the very base level God fulfills promises because God is righteous, not because anyone else is (v. 8). That is part of why God deserves and receives the praise He is given throughout the chapter. God is not like the idols, not only in being real, God is not like the selfish and inconsistent beings they were described as being.

     In jumping from Deuteronomy to Nehemiah we have skipped over centuries of difficult history, full of incomplete response to God’s direction. If you haven’t read the events of that history it might be unclear to you how idolatry maintained its presence in the promised land during those centuries. But even when reading those texts you may be left muttering “why?” at different points. God showed His power in judgment time and again, as well as demonstrating powerful mercy when the people called out to Him, but time and again the people turned away. The mourners did not intend to sugarcoat that history. They arrived at this balanced plea about their situation: “Do not let all the hardship seem insignificant before you . . . However, You are just in all that has come upon us” (v. 32, 33). In effect they said ‘Please don’t decide that we should suffer more for our past failings, but we will not question what you have done.’

     Coming after all that pain, it would be nice to think that the people had finally ended the cycle of idolatry, and established a commitment to the Law, but it seems they had not. The “last straw” event for idolatry in the land was tied to the Maccabean Revolt (160s B.C.). So while the pledge of devotion was a heartfelt effort at a changed relationship with God, it was not permanent, or it did not sweep over the whole people. (The Bible does not record what happened, the events occurred in the 400-year gap between the Old Testament and the New Testament.)

     Lord, I think it can be easy for our own lives to resemble the history of Israel in Nehemiah 9, for you to choose to enter a covenant with us and bring great moments of rescue, and food and water as support in our personal deserts. But many of us have also been through some cycles where we turned stubborn shoulders and stiff necks and wouldn’t give you our ear. Thank you that you are patient and righteous. Thank you that you do not give up on what you know to be true. For myself, at least, thank you for putting me through enough hardship, at least in my heart, to keep me attentive to you and your will. In the name of your Son, Jesus. Amen.

-Daniel Smead

Reflection Questions:

  1. A covenant is a binding agreement between two parties. God chose to put Himself under a covenant with Abram and then reemphasized and clarified it with his descendants. Verse 32 describes God as “the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and lovingkindness” – how important do you think the fact of covenant is to God’s willingness to maintain patience with His people?
  2. Have you felt that you were caught in a cycle of struggles with God? Do you remember that God is in a covenant with you? Recall that God isn’t going anywhere.
  3. It can be striking how unthankful the Hebrews sometimes seemed. Looking through the chapter, find five or so good things God did for the Hebrews – do you think they gave God enough thanks for them?   With that in mind, can you identify items or events that are in any way comparable that God has done or promised for you? Do you think you have thanked God as much as you think the Hebrews should have done in your place? If you have not, what do you think causes the difference? (Is it one of perspective, in perceiving another person’s issues compared to yourself? Is it about thinking the Hebrews should have been more thankful because you know they were punished for their behavior?) How highly do you value the expression of thankfulness to God, in itself? How highly do you think God values it?

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Keep These Desires

1 Chronicles 29

March 20

Our reading today of 1 Chronicles 29 is from a book in the Bible that I realize I have often overlooked and not fully appreciated for its historical significance. Because of where it falls in our Bible, if I am reading through the OT when I run into it, I find myself thinking, “didn’t I just read that?”  because of its retelling of some stories from 1 and 2 Samuel and I and 2 Kings.

Since I like history and context in what I’m reading, I thought I’d dig around for a little information to help me understand more as we jump into this last chapter of 1 Chronicles. While 1 Chronicles falls mid-way in our Old Testaments, in most Hebrew Bibles it forms the conclusion as the last book. 1 Chronicles was originally combined with II Chronicles when written in the 5th century BC , and it was written ~ 600 years after the stories it tells.  Time wise, that would be like me writing about what happened in the Middle Ages today. During that long period of time, some major things had changed in the world. The fall of Israel, the exile of the Jews, the growth of the Roman Empire and emerging development of the Greeks, and the eventual return of Ezra (believed by many to be the author of Chronicles) and some exiled Jews to rebuild the temple centuries later.

As Chapter 29 starts with verse 1, we are reminded that GOD does not choose people to serve Him as the world chooses, and the tasks He calls us to are great because He is worthy.

“Then King David said to the whole assembly: “My son Solomon, the one whom God has chosen, is young and inexperienced. The task is great, because this palatial structure is not for man but for the Lord God.”

As the chapter goes along, we get some of the details of the temple reviewed which are pretty noteworthy. Like umm….100 metric tons of gold! It makes me think a little more about what the kingdom will be like given what His earthly temple included.

Verses 10-19 are such a beautiful prayer of David in his later years, and we hear fatherly wisdom and child-like humility all at once.  In his prayer for his son, he understands what to ask for. Not health, happiness, security, peace, or victories, but what he knows matters most,

v. 19  “And give my son Solomon the wholehearted devotion to keep your commands, statutes and decrees. . .”

The chapter ends retelling the stories of Solomon being made king and his unprecedented level of splendor, and ends with David dying, to sleep with his fathers until the return of Jesus.

I am glad these parts were some of the ones chosen to be retold, and I can see why they were worth the reminder for the Israelites at that time. Despite everything else changing around them, God was sovereign. With or without a temple, God was sovereign. With or without a king, God was sovereign and had a plan to continue King David’s line forever through the coming Messiah. Thousands of years later, David’s prayer and hope is still applicable for all of us.

-Jennifer Hall

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

  1. What changes have you seen in your lifetime? What has changed in the past 2000 years? How do you see a sovereign God over all history?
  2. David and the people gave generously a great amount of gold, silver, bronze, iron and precious stones for the building of the temple. David said, “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.” What has God blessed you with? How will you use it to honor Him?
  3. David prayed, “Keep these desires and thoughts in the hearts of your people forever, and keep their hearts loyal to you.” What desires and thoughts was he referring to? Are these desires and thoughts in your heart today? Is your heart loyal to God? Are there areas you want to be more loyal to God? How?
  4. What do you most look forward to in God’s Coming Kingdom?
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Counting in the Wilderness

 

Numbers 1 & 2 Cain

Do you ever feel like you’re in your high school math class reading through the book of Numbers like a timeworn Algebra 2 book? Rest assured there’s no Pythagorean theorem in this book of Numbers! The name ‘Numbers’ actually comes from an old Greek translation of the Old Testament called the Septuagint. The Septuagint translators gave the book that title because of the listing of the numbers of the tribes of Israel in the first four chapters. It is a shame that the title of this great book is defined by only a small portion of its contents. The Hebrew name given to the book is much more accurate to its true contents, בְּמִדְבַּר (bemindbar). The Hebrew word bemindbar actually means “in the wilderness” which is exactly what the book of Numbers covers. After a long-awaited return to the land, which was promised to their fathers, the Israelites can finally take the journey through the desert back to Israel. The trip from Egypt to Israel shouldn’t have taken more than a couple of weeks on foot, but somehow the Israelites found a way to make the journey last 40 years. There is a lot that happens in these 40 years.  This book is filled with rich history that is very dear to the Israelite people and events that would shape their faith and ours forever. If anyone has ever told you that Numbers is a boring book, I stand opposed. As we spend some time traveling though the beginning of this book I hope you see the importance that God has placed in its words.

The first words of the book are its name sake. “Then the LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting.”  There you have it, these words literally are the title of the book. I want to point out something that can easily be over looked by long-time Christians, and that is the phrase “the LORD spoke to Moses”. When was the last time that God chatted you up to give you direct commands? It’s not every day that the Creator of the universe talks directly to people. Only a few times in the Bible do we see God in direct communication with people in this way. I think as Christians we become numb to the stories we read as if everything is a normal day occurrence when it isn’t. For the first time in history there is a place that God has designated to dwell among His people. For the first time in history God is setting up a nation to call His own. God literally creates the nation of Israel before our eyes in the book of Numbers. When you stop to think about it, what is happening here is a monumental shift in history, setting the world on a course for God’s redemption plan to take place.

We find the book of Numbers picking up the story of God’s people two years into their time in the wilderness. During this time God has made a covenant with His people and they have built the tabernacle. Then we find that God wants Moses to count the number of able bodied men that could fight. These are the numbers that we find in the first chapter. Remember these are just the men 20 years of age and up who can fight; this doesn’t include all the men unable to fight, women, and younger people. Just the fighting men numbered 603,550! No one knows the exact number of the Israelites, but many estimates put the total number of people at around 2-4 million. As we read all the numbers of the first chapter we might be tempted to drift off to sleep, but an interesting point to realize is just how accurate the numbers are. The accuracy and attention to detail, to me at least, is evidence towards the validity of the scriptures. These aren’t details that someone would make up. If you look at any mythology or creation story, you don’t frequently see detailed accounts with genealogies such as we do here in Numbers. The detailed records of the Old Testament are proof to God’s care and intent for truth. Even with counting, our God is faithful and true.

As we move into the second chapter we see a rehashing of the numbers of the tribes and explicit directions from God as to how the Israelites are to set up camp. Imagine a square with the tabernacle at the center.  Directly around the tabernacle are the Levites. On each side of the square we find three tribes. I think there are two things we can glean from Chapter 2 about how God chose to design the camp. First, I think we can see how orderly and intentional God is with His people. I think no small part of having the Levites around the center was to help maintain a health boundary around the tabernacle to keep it holy. Holiness is one of the most important things to God. We can see how seriously God treats His holiness when He strikes now Nadab and Abihu, Aaron’s sons, in Leviticus 10. I think another reason God laid out the camp like He did was so that not one tribe was favored by being closer to the Tabernacle than another tribe. Imagine the fights that could have started if the tribes were allowed to camp wherever they wanted. If Dan claimed a spot right next to the Tabernacle, Judah might have started a fight because they were closer to God that day. Although these might not be the most glamorous chapters of the Bible, they do show us that God set up a very good system for His people. The first two chapters of Numbers show us a glimpse into God’s intentionality and love for His people.

I’ll admit, the first few chapters of this book aren’t the most exciting.  However, the book of Numbers holds many interesting stories and important lessons for us to learn as followers of God.  Many of the greatest teaching points for the prophets and apostles come from the stories in this book.  It is through the miracle of the exodus and the hardships of the wilderness that the nation of Israel is birthed.  I can’t wait to explore more of this book with you in the coming days!

Josiah & Amber Cain

 

Today’s Bible reading can be read or listened to at https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers+1-2&version=NIV

Tomorrow’s Bible reading will be Numbers 3&4 as we continue our 2020 Chronological Bible Reading Plan

 

 

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