Moses and Aaron Confront Pharoh

Today’s Reading:
• Exodus 4:1 - 5:21
• Proverbs 5:15 - 21

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Exodus 4:1 - 5:21
At the close of the last Exodus reading Moses was protesting his ability to do God's will and lead the people out of Egypt. The Lord had equipped Moses with his special staff, the one that turned into a serpent when thrown to the ground.  God also showed Moses how to cover his hand with disease and then make it whole again.  The Lord told Moses that if he dumped water from the Nile onto the ground that it would turn into blood.  Still, Moses continued to object to the task the Lord have given him until the Lord decided to name Aaron as the speaker for Moses.  Finally Moses had no more excuses and had to undergo his mission to speak to the leaders of Israel and to the Pharaoh.

Moses had no problem convincing the elders of his people.  They rejoiced in the fact that God was finally going to lift them up out of the suffering.  The Pharaoh, on the other hand, was outraged -- after all, who could this "God" be that was greater than he?  As a result of his anger the Pharaoh punished the people of Israel by having them work even harder than before.  This greatly angered the Israelites and turned them against Moses and Aaron.  This is where the reading stops for the day.

In the middle of this reading there was a small passage that really baffled me.  It was during Moses's return to Egypt with his family.  Seemingly out of the blue it says that the Lord confronted Moses and was about to kill him.  Then Moses's wife Zipporah immediately circumcised their son, and the Lord left Moses alone (5:24-26). 

I am wondering if I overlooked something earlier in this book, or if maybe there's more information elsewhere in the scripture that explains this?  I guess my assumption would be that the Lord had commanded Moses to circumcise his son at some point, yet Moses refused or delayed it?  It just seems odd because I didn't see that there was any reason given for God's sudden anger at Moses, and the very first reaction of Moses's wife was to circumcise their son.  Perhaps I'll find another piece of scripture at some point that clears this up for me.  I just felt like it came out of nowhere.

Proverbs 5:15 - 21
This is a continuation of the last reading from Proverbs (5:7 -14) where we were warned that extramarital affairs will destroy our lives.  In today's reading we are strongly cautioned to keep sex within our own marriage.  The man is told to let his wife be enough for her, to enjoy the sanctity of marital relations and not to share that with anyone else.

Baby Moses is Sent Down the River, Beware Immorality

Today’s Reading:
• Exodus 1 - 2:10
• Proverbs 5: 1-6

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Exodus 1 - 2:10
At the end of Genesis the Israelites moved to Egypt where Joseph was second in command the entire nation.  Pharaoh knew what Joseph had done for him and was good to him.  In time, however, that Pharaoh died and a new Pharaoh came to power.  He realized that the Israelites were dangerously prolific and soon outnumbered the Egyptians.  He ordered the Israelites to be slaves and worked them very hard.  That only backfired as the Israelites multiplied even more quickly.  So the Pharaoh gave his famous order to kill all sons born to the Israelites.

The Pharaoh first ordered the midwives to kill the sons but they refused out of fear of God.  He then sent the order that all of the sons of Israelites should be thrown into the Nile River.  Forget the fact that the Pharaoh does not know God -- but where is that man's conscience?  How can someone order such a thing and then later live with themselves?  I know that we as a people have a sinful nature, but I don't think the majority of those who never did and never will know God could do such a thing as that.

I would be interested to know how many people followed the Pharaoh's orders, and the measures they took to hide their babies.  Was there a safe age for a boy child to reach?  Let's say they managed to hide a boy for 2-3 years, was he safe at that point if they brought him out?  How long was this order under effect?

The final section of the reading is one of my favorite parts of the story of Moses.  Moses's mother left him in a basket on the banks of the river in hopes that he would survive.  Not only did he survive, but the princess herself found him and then paid the mother of Moses to raise and nurse the child for awhile.  It says that Moses was brought back when he was older to be adopted by the princess.

How old was Moses when his mother brought him back to the princess?  How old was the sister, who watched in the weeds and suggested to the princess a woman to nurse the child?  I know it was all God's work, but did the princess suspect or know that the woman was Moses's own mother?  Regardless, the bottom line is God is GREAT and through him all things are possible, and these passages contain but one small example of His great works.

Proverbs 5: 1- 6
These first few verses of the fifth Proverb warn men to stay away from immoral women.  The immoral woman has lips as sweet as honey and a mouth that is smoother than oil (5:3), but in the end she is poison, she is dangerous,  and her feet lead to death (5:4-5).  Of course this verse is written to the men, but it certainly applies to women as well.  It applies to the women who are tempted to have an extramarital affair as well as those who are doing the tempting.

In those days a person really could be put to death for adultery.  These days, in the United States, that doesn't happen as often, although crimes of passion do occur.  In some countries it's not uncommon for a woman to be put to death (by her own family even!) if it is found that she isn't a virgin when she gets married.  Regardless of whether or not one will actually be put to death for having immoral sex, in the end it's still your relationship with God that winds up tarnished.  You can be forgiven and you can be cleansed, but each and every sin keeps you from becoming as close to God as you could and should be.  In the end, it's you who loses out.

Will Wisdom be There for You When Disaster Strikes?

Today’s Reading:
• Genesis 11:1-13:4
• Proverbs 1:24-28

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Genesis 11:1-13:4
The first part of chapter 11 is the story of Babel. It occurred just as I was always taught, however I’m a bit confused by the language. My bible, an NLT version, gives verse 11:7 as: “Come, let’s go down and confuse the people with different languages.” What confuses me here is the word “let’s.” I even looked this verse up the King James, and it says the same thing. So my question is, who is the Lord talking to in this verse?

The rest of my reading introduced me to Abram and his wife, Sarai. The Lord calls to Abram, promising future blessings throughout the generations, and Abram answers and moves his family on. I am intrigued by the stop in Egypt. I would have liked to see Sarai, someone so beautiful that even the pharaoh is notified of her beauty. She must have been breathtaking to behold! But I can’t believe that Abram let the pharaoh take her as his wife. I wonder how long she played the part of his wife before she was sent back to Abram? Can you imagine being taken away from your husband and given to someone else? And having to play as if nothing was wrong? I think if I were Abram I would have asked the Lord to protect me and my wife and trusted in the Lord, instead of my own devices.

Proverbs 1:24-28
This passage contained a strong warning from wisdom. It says that wisdom tried to reach the people, tried to tell and show them the warnings, but they did not heed them and therefore wisdom will not be there to help when disaster strikes. Wisdom will answer no cries of help. There’s not much that can be done for that, is there? When you tell someone “if you do this, the following will happen” and they don’t listen, and then they do it anyway. There’s nothing that can be done at that point. We can’t run the live of others. All we can do is hope that they listen to wisdom.

Salvation or Lack Thereof is an Eternal Sentence; One Nation Under God

Today's Reading:

• Matthew 2:13-3:6
• Psalm 2:1-12

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Matthew 2:13-3:6

Herod was told that the Messiah had been born and was immediately angry and afraid.  In verse 2:16 we learned that Herod had all the baby boys in and around Bethlehem murdered, but Joseph had already been warned in a dream and fled with his family.  The act of ordering the murder of children alone is an unspeakable offense to me, but what makes it worse is the idea Herod really thought he could just kill the Messiah. That somehow Herod could give one order, and just wipe out the fulfillment of the God-given prophecy.  I guess to me the idea is ludicrous, for I know God's power is above all, but so many people think that if they don't believe it, then it doesn't apply to them.  Or they want the proof, but refuse to open their hearts to feel the proof for themselves.

My bible contains a small excerpt on "Herod the Great."  He was a brutal, ruthless tyrant.  He even murdered two of his wives and three of his own sons when he thought they were plotting against him. 

It's easier to deal with the fact that a tyrant like Herod or Hitler never knew salvation, but what of friends?  Friends who are really good people, but they just refuse to believe?  Family you love, yet whom you fear will never turn to know God?  We think of these tyrants and perhaps we feel justified that they will not have eternal salvation, but the fate of the regular -- and perhaps otherwise good person --  who just never found salvation carries the same eternal sentence.  It's tough to think about, isn't it?

Psalm 2:1-12
Psalm 2 tells us that the nations who submit to God will experience joy, while those who attempt to break free of the chains of slavery to God (2:3) will be smashed like clay pots (2:9).  The state of our nation really scares me at times.  I take pride in the fact that we are "One Nation Under God."  But how long will that last?  It surely doesn't feel like we are living in One Nation Under God any longer.
In many schools, the Pledge of Allegiance is banned for that sentence alone.  Lawsuits are filed over publicly displayed nativity scenes.  Stuff like that makes me more angry than anything else -- okay, so you're Atheist and you want to a non-denominational holiday to celebrate?  Fine, celebrate your X-Mas.  But don't take away our holiday in your fight just because you don't want to be reminded that CHRISTmas was founded as a Christian holiday.  I can co-exist with you, can't you co-exist with me?

Where is the Christian's right in all of this?  You have every given right not to believe in the Lord, and I don't protest when I see your non-denominational mickey mouse santa claus.  Why is it that the Christian has fewer rights than the non-Christian?  When did it become such an inconvenience for you to have to drive past a nativity scene?  How does that infringe on your rights?

The state of our nation scares me, and this will probably be a topic you will hear an awful lot about if you continually read this blog.  We have been a strong nation as we were founded UNDER GOD.  But take that away, and there goes our foundation, and with that comes the wrath of God and the end of our prosperity.

Conclusion
It seems the readings today have left me quite bitter!  Not at God, of course, but at all those who shrug away from God, all of those who think that they can best God, all of those who want to tear away our beliefs just because the very idea that there is a God infuriates them.  Compared to many times throughout history, throughout many countries;  even today throughout the world -- the Christians of America have it quite good and easy.  I will try to remember this in the future when complaining about minor annoyances such as nativity scenes.  At least no one is ordering the life of my son or outlawing Christianity from the United States.