Author Archives: Mark

The Exodus Story in Other Places

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People may argue parts of the Exodus story and how it could not have happened. But the fact that the story is retold throughout the rest of scripture should speak volumes about its validity and its credibility. (This may not be all of them but you get the idea.)

  • Gideon  – Judges 6:13 – Questioned about the miracles
  • Jephthah – Judges 11:15-27 – Retold conquest story
  • Micah 6: 1-5 – The Lord had a case against Israel and highlighted the Exodus to prove his point.
  • Ezekiel 20:4 – God giving a discourse to the elders of Israel about their love for idols of Egypt even though He brought them out of Egypt and gave them a good land.
  • 1 Corinthians 10:4 – Spiritual lesson about Israel being baptized into Moses and Israel sharing spiritual food and drink and still some died in the desert.
  • Moses’ Psalms 90 -100 – I still think they are a series of songs to teach the people about God and His requirements.

Psalms

  • 66: 5-12 A highlight telling of Israel’s time in Egypt and their leaving.
  • 77: 11-20 A call for Jeduthun to remember and meditate on the miracles of God; the parting of the Red Sea is the focus of what God did.

Just a thought, look at Psalm 78-83 as a block for teaching people after Jerusalem fell.

  • 78 A comparison of Israel’s testing God and His mercy and miracles.
  • 80: 7-11 A call to God to remember that He did bring Israel out of Egypt and to have mercy on them again.
  • 81:3-10 To remember that God brought Israel out of Egypt and established that He should be praised.
  • 95: 8-11 Not to harden your heart as people did at Meribah.
  • 105:16-45 A Sunday School lesson of Abraham, Joseph, the plagues, and the joseph-dreams of wheatExodus.
  • 106 A history of God’s faithfulness in not destroying Israel starting in Egypt and going through the Conquest into the unfaithfulness in the Promise Land.
  • 114 It reminds Judah who they belong to and that mountains, hills, and the “waters” obey the Lord.
  • 135:8-14 That man (Egypt, Pharaoh, Sihon, Og, and the kings of Canaan) will not stop God’s people.
  • 136:10-22 Resembles Ps. 135 

Picture of Sheaves from http://www.freebibleimages.org/photos/joseph-dreams/

Timeline for the 38 Years of Wandering

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Much of this is not documented with timestamps but it averages out between thirteen and sixteen months per campsite. The longer time frame happens if you exclude the sites I put in italics from Numbers 21:10-20; they are not mentioned in Moses’ list of stages. (Please excuse the different size fonts as I was trying to keep it on one page.) My concordance does have meanings for some of the names of the campsites but they are usually just listed as “campsites.” (See the Number Thirty-eight in the Bible.)

Time Where Scripture What Happened
Rithmah Nu. 33:18Deut. 2:1 Should be the first camping area of the 38 yrs.
Rimmon Perez Nu.16, Deut. 11:6-7 Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, Aaron’s staff buds, Perez means “breach” that is why I put this here.
Libnah
Rissah
Kehelathah
Mount Shepher
Haradah
Makheloth
Tahath
Terah
Mithcah
Hashmonah
Moseroth
Bene Jaakan
Hor Haggidgad
Jotbathah
Abronah
Ezion Geber
M1 y40 Kadesh/Desert of Zin(Sin) Nu. 33:36Nu. 20:1 Miriam died, Edom denies passage (would have been Passover)
D1 m5 y40 Mount Hor, a border of Edom Nu.20: 22, 33:37 Aaron died, king of Arad attacks and then is destroyed, the bronze snake
Zalmonah
Punon
Oboth Nu. 21:10
Iye Abarim, a border of Moab Nu. 21: 11
Zered Valley, River Arnon border of Moab and Amorites, Mattanah, Nahaliel, Bamoth, Valley in Moab by Mt. Pisgah Nu. 21:10 – 20Deut. 2: 14 + 24 – 3:11 Israel (no longer Moses) defeats Sihon and Og. Numbers 21: 21- 35 Pisgah is by the Dead Sea  – Deut. 3:17,26-29 Moses died there 34: 1
Dibon Gad Nu.21: 30
Almon Diblathaim, near Mount Nebo Nu.33: 47
D1 m11 y 40 Plains of Moab across from Jericho, from Beth Jesimoth to Abel Shittim this is near Beth Peor Nu. 25:1, 33:49Deut. 1:3, 3:29, 4:3-4, 23:3-6 In the story of Balaam, Moses talked about the division of the land

Timeline for the First Two Years of the Exodus

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This is the first two years of the Exodus journey; the actual time frame for this journey should have been two to three weeks for the journey to Jordan River. The next 38 years timeline is coming. (Please see Ten Times Testing God)

 Time Where Scripture What Happened
D1 m1 y1 Rameses Ex. 12:1 Started Calendar
D 10 Choose Lamb
D 14 Slaughtered Lamb – Passover
D 15 Ex. 12:33,Num. 33:3 Marched out boldly, plundered Egypt
Succoth
Etham, the edge of the desert
I can’t prove it but I will call it day 21 –the end of Unleavened Bread By the sea Num. 7:7Ex. 14:2 Camped by Migdol/PiHahiroth to the east/opposite of Baal Zephon
3 days to Desert of Shur(Etham)Marah Ex. 15:22Num. 33:8 What they originally asked for in Ex. 3:18, Second testing of God – bitter waters
Elim Ex 15:27 (Num.33:9) 12 springs and 70 palm trees
Red Sea Num. 33:10
D15 m2 (y1) Desert of SinBetween Elim and Sinai Ex 16:1Num. 33:10 Third testing by complaining about meat and bread. Got manna and stored some for a witness.
Dophkah Num. 33:12
Alush Num. 33:13
Rephidium Num. 33:14, Ex. 17:1 Amalekites attacked, water at Massah and Meribah in 17:6 it says this was at Horeb/Sinai, Jethro visits,
D1 m3 (y1) Desert of Sinai Num. 33:15, Ex. 19:1 It sounds like they went around to the other side of the mountain, got the LAW, leaders ate with God, the golden calf
D1 m1 y2 Ex. 40:2+17,Nu.9:15 Tabernacle finished, glory cloud covered it
M1 y2 Nu. 9:1 God spoke again to celebrate Passover
D8 m1 y2 Lev. 9:1 Priest start their duties
D1 m2 y2 Desert of Sinai Nu.1: 1+18 Census was ordered
D20 m2 y2 Nu.10: 11 Lord command to break camp – cloud lifted
D23 m2 (y2) Taberah, Kibroth Hattaavah no movement is recorded, possibly the same place Nu.10: 33Nu. 11:34 People complained about hardships (outskirts of camped burned) and quail fell and plague occurred
Hazeroth/Desert of Paran/Kadesh Nu. 33:17Nu. 13:26 Miriam leprous, spies sent out, people rebel

My Start to Out of Egypt

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I guess I am marking this as the beginning of writing Out of Egypt. I have been tagging things for a while “Out of Egypt” especially the Tribes of Israel study. My thought there was if you are getting out of Egypt, a look at how you got in may not hurt.

As I have been collecting thoughts on this I realized that there are a lot of movies and TV shows on Moses and the Exodus. To go with all of the shows there is no end of opinions and arguments about how it happened or could not have happened. Even TV shows that seems like they are documentaries supporting the Exodus always have at least one area where they can’t go with the Biblical account. This is still possibly one of the more supportive; The Exodus Decoded by Simcha Jacobovici but even this one tries to relegate some of the miracles to natural events. These websites take the show to task on various subjects.

1. http://www.biblearchaeology.org/post/2006/09/debunking-the-exodus-decoded.aspx 2.  http://www.catholic.org/ae/tv/review.php?id=20866  I like what this site says,” In trying to find a “plausible scientific explanation” for Biblical events, the film misses a very important point: The Bible is a testament of faith, not a history or science book, written by authors who, inspired by the Holy Spirit, were trying to discern and understand God’s hand in the drama of salvation.”

Lately the focus has shifted to Moses; one recently talks about him as a military leader. I did not get the name, but I hope to see it replayed again. Its focus was on Moses as leader and offered what he did as natural, and took the miraculous out of the Exodus story. It tried to paint the picture that Israel were not just slaves before the Exodus. These websites do deal with some of these possibilities: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0009_0_09361.html and http://www.northforest.org/BiblicalArchaeology/moses.html . It should be clear that if Moses was raised in Pharaoh’s house he would have had military training and the Camp Order is supposedly an Egyptian battle formation. My thoughts about Israel in Egypt were changed when I read about Ephraim’s sons being killed in a raid in 1 Chronicles 7:21; maybe they were not just quite shepherds.

One website that is Christian based and deals with the Red Sea crossing site is http://www.wyattmuseum.com/red-sea-crossing-02.htm but it definitely does not go along with many current avenues of thought.

I am going to agree with the Catholic website; I am not looking for a “plausible scientific explanation.” He is a miraculous God and we, as His children need to celebrate that fact. I feel we have made many of His miracles into “common kid stories” and not taught them as fact like they really are. I am glad when there is an explanation for how God has used His creation to bless His children, but God is still God and if He wants to do an extraordinary act outside of His laws of nature that is fine with me.

Moses picture: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/db/Moses_Pleading_with_Israel_(crop).

Epiphany or Three Kings Day

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This is the last day of Christmas or the 12th day of Christmas (January 6th).

Have a great 2013.

wiseman 3A devotional for Epiphany is on this website: http://www.cresourcei.org/cy12days.html

Regardless of the origin of this idea, a number of Christians give the following meanings to the gifts:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twelve_Days_of_Christmas_(song)

 wisemen 2
What is the religious symbolism of the 12 days of Christmas?
Here is one rendition of what the religious symbolism is for the Twelve Days of Christmas:
1 True Love refers to God
2 Turtle Doves refers to the Old and New Testaments
3 French Hens refers to Faith, Hope, and Charity, the Theological Virtues
4 Calling Birds refers to the Four Gospels and/or the Four Evangelists
5 Golden Rings refer to the first Five Books of the Old Testament, the “Pentateuch”, which gives the history of man’s fall from grace.
6 Geese a-laying refers to the six days of creation
7 Swans A-swimming refers to the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, the seven sacraments
8 Maids A-milking refers to the eight beatitudes
9 Ladies Dancing refers to the nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit
10 Lords a-leaping refers to the ten commandments
11 Pipers Piping refers to the eleven faithful apostles
12 Drummers Drumming refers to the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle’s CreedSource: http://www.carols.org.uk/

I have tried to connect Zachariah’s service with the birth of Jesus in the Post – The Day of Atonement, Passover, and Epiphany.  The results are not what I expected about the birth time of Jesus.  The legend/history is better than I thought.

I got the above information from the website http://www.12days.com/faq.htm