Category Archives: Bible Study

The Number Twenty-four in the Bible

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This collection of the number twenty-four in the Bible covers a large time span and a variety of things.

  • Numbers 7:88 – The leaders of the twelve tribes brought two oxen apiece (24 total) as an offering to dedicate the altar.
  • Numbers 25:9 – 24,000 Israelites died in the plague that came from the men indulging in immorality with the women of Moab and Midian. Balaam had suggested this to nullify God’s banner of protection over the People when he could not openly curse the nation.
  • 1 Chronicles 20:6 and 2 Samuel 21:20 – A giant, a descendant of Rapha, who was killed by David’s nephew, had 24 fingers and toes.
  • 1 Chronicles 27:1 – David had twelve divisions of his army that were on duty one month out of the year. Each division had 24,000 men for a total of 288,000.
  • 1 Kings 15:33 – Baasha King of Israel reigned for 24 years. He killed Nadab son of Jeroboam and the entire family of Jeroboam to gain power. He continued the sin of Jeroboam, having priests who were not from the family of Aaron.
  • 1 Chronicles 24:18 and 25:31 mark the 24th person on a list.

These are all days when words and visions were given to the prophets. They all are given after Cyrus gave the orders to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem.

  • Daniel 10:4 – On the 24th day of the first month in the third year of Cyrus King of Persia Daniel was fasting and had a vision. I find it hard to think that Daniel would have fasted through Passover, but this would have been at the end of the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. It could be the first month of the civil calendar, which would put it at the time of the Day of Atonement. This was near the end of Daniel’s life and close to the time of Ezra.
  • Haggai 1:15 – The 24th day of the sixth month of the second year of King Darius the Great. (This is not the Darius that was in Daniel, and there are several timestamps in Haggai and Zechariah that are very close together.) This is when work started on the Second Temple; it was incorporated into Herod’s Temple that Jesus visited.
  • Haggai 2:10 and 18 – These are the 24th day of the ninth month of the second year of Darius. The foundation of the Temple was laid, and God had Haggai ask the priest a question. The point of the first words from the Lord on this day was to have the people consider carefully how things changed when they finally started building the Temple.
  • Haggai 2:20 – This is a separate message that was given on the same day. This was a word of encouragement to Zerubbabel, who is a forefather of Jesus.
  • Zechariah 1:7 – On the 24th day of the eleventh month, the month of Shebat in the second year of Darius a word came to Zechariah. (This is the religious calendar.)
  • Nehemiah 9:1 – This is the 24th day of the seventh month, which is after the Day of Atonement. (religious calendar) This should match the day that Daniel had his vision.  

Hebrew Jewish Months in the Old Testament – Bible History (bible-history.com)

The Elders in the Book of Revelation

  • Revelation 4:4 and 10, 5:8, 11:16, and 19:4 are all references to the 24 elders who worship God before His throne.

Purpose or Prothesis

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My Purpose or agenda is to encourage people to study their Bible readings and the sermons they listen to during the week. I will get to the term “purpose” in the New Testament because that is where my study, this morning, landed. My study did not start out there and to be honest, it went all over the place, but it was good, and I had great takeaways.

Because I have used the word purpose in this post, I feel it is important for you to believe Exodus 34:5-7. Knowing and believing He is a good God has to be your foundation. Having questions and problems is part of our journey in the Way. God said all of these things to Moses after he messed up big time. In a moment of anger, he literally broke all of the commandments at one time. (That is a little Mark humor.) it is about two years since the burning bush and Moses is still learning God and His ways. God invited Moses back up the mountain, anger and all, to teach him about Himself and reissue the Law to the Community.

My study, this morning, started with the word pagan. A person said it came from the phrase “the people of the country” or those who lived outside the cities. I found that pagan, heathen, and Gentile in the New Testament are the same word and that translators change the word ethnikos and ethnos to fit their writing. God bless translators who are trying to do right. Not every Christian likes to think they were a pagan or a heathen at one time in their life. (Take away #1.)

That led to the thought there may be agendas attached to writing, translations, and sermons. So, I looked up the word agenda in Bible Gateway. I did not find it except in the Amplified version, and they seemed to be in the commentaries they like to add. But that brought me to purpose.

Purpose (one of several words for that idea) in the First Testament is H 6098, in Strong’s, and is translated as counsel, plan, or purpose. Take some time to study that word, you won’t be sorry.

In the Gospels and the Epistles, the Greek word prothesis and its various forms are translated as purpose and shewbread. That is the twelve loaves that are associated with the Tabernacle. The number is G 4286 and use this as a reference: πρόθεσις | billmounce.com. That word looks like prosthesis or artificial joints and limbs, I am not sure of the etymology and if they are related.

Shewbread and God’s purpose for my life being related is my second and big takeaway. Those loaves in the Tabernacle, that were eaten by the priest, were there to keep the Tribes before God. My Strong’s/Vine’s concordance draws a conclusion about it representing God’s plan for our daily bread. I appreciate that thought, but mine goes in a different direction. My purpose, like those loaves, is always before the Father. He has a plan for me and will see it to completion, Amen and Amen.

The Gospels and Hebrews are the books with the shewbread, and Paul’s Epistles and Acts use the word purpose.

My morning study did not end there. Bread is H 3899 and is lechem. From another study I read Deuteronomy 29:6 which says the Children had eaten no bread in their wanderings around the desert. That word has many working meanings; I will go with the grain the bread is made from. Friendly dealings with neighbors were not happening, so how could they get grain? Manna could be the answer, it was boiled or baked. It is possible they may have grown it but that is iffy. I know the Law was for then and the future, so consider Exodus 25:30 and Leviticus 24:5. The bread of the Presence was to always be before God and the twelve loaves had to come from the finest flour.

My purpose for the prothesis is to ask your opinion. During the time of wandering did they use manna for those thirty-eight years, or trade, or grow grain to make those large, round loaves of bread?  

Finger of God

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What is the most powerful part of God? His fingers do miracles and cast out demons, His breath gave us life, His right hand and extended arm do battle for us, and His face will kill you. Okay, I am not going there just because. So, back to the title of this post – The Finger of God. (Yes, I left out a few like His heart and voice.)

This study is from my Deuteronomy 911 background research. With His finger, God wrote the commands, laws, and instructions on a pair of stone tablets for His people to live in a community as free people. There are two references to this story: Deuteronomy 9:10 and Exodus 31:18. The phrase “finger of God” is used in two other places; this is consistent through all of the translations I looked at. Altogether, I think, they tell an interesting story.

Exodus 8:19 – Pharaoh’s magicians told him that the plague of gnats was from the finger of God. I looked at several commentaries and stopped! The main thought was that the magicians of Egypt would not have said that or believed in Moses’ God. Why not? They had to go get new walking sticks because the rod of God had swallowed theirs. They maybe did turn water to blood, but a bowl full is not the Nile and they could not undo Moses’ act. (Personally, I am thinking red coloring, but we will stay with blood.) The Egyptians had a frog goddess, so, who knows what experiments they had done to get frogs out of the water? Once again, they could offer no relief to the people. As one commentary noted, the gnats required them to create life. Jannes and Jambes (2 Timothy 3:8) were not up to that task and they knew they had been beaten. (See Frogs, Yeast, Plagues, The Wonders that Plagued Egypt, and Reflections)

A very common thought about fingers in our reference materials and commentaries is they point or scratch, and they do. Another use for the finger, in ancient times, was a unit of measurement or etsba. This is the width of the finger and not the length. Etsba or Strong’s H676 is the Hebrew for finger, you will have to look to find the measurement part. My Strong’s reference table lists a finger as a unit of length but gives no Hebrew name, and the given length has to be a finger width.

So, what if they were acknowledging the power of God and also saying this may just be a small measurement of that power? I doubt they converted, but other Egyptians did believe and got their people and animals out of the fields before the hailstorm (9:20). The magicians lasted until Exodus 9:11 and are not heard from again.

After they made that statement, God started treating Israel and Egypt differently. This leads to my BIG TAKEAWAY from this post. The three times the finger of God is used He is working to start His kingdom of priests and the holy nation. This one is measuring the Egyptians as guilty of enslaving His people and He will free them.                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Exodus 31:18 and Deuteronomy 9:10

God used His extended finger to write on two stone tablets the rules His holy nation needed to live as free men and women. STOP! Think about that for a minute or two. The Father wrote for His people (twice) the commandments He had spoken to them. How do we know that God is everything He said He was in Exodus 34: 6+7? Moses broke all of the commandments at the same and God still loved and used him. If you want a good study, find the traditions and legends that surround those tablets.

Moses wrote a book; God wrote stone tablets. Why stone and not rock? Rock is unaltered and in its natural state. Stone has been shaped for man to use.

Luke 11:20

This verse says it all, the extended finger of God casting out demons by the power of God measures the Kingdom is nearby. Daktylos is the word for finger, Strong’s G1147, and it has Hebrew roots. Luke does not name the crowd in the passage, but they sound like the Pharisees. Because of that, I am sure that this is one of Jesus’ multilevel revelations for them. “Frogs” getting pushed out by the finger of God. The same powerful finger that wrote the Law is bringing in the kingdom of God. He is also claiming to have the power of the finger of God, even as He ignores their demand for a sign from Heaven. Yes, the Pharisees were not happy with that righteous reminder of the finger of God.

Priest 2

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Priest 2 has made me realize just how important the priesthood was and is in the Kingdom. Without realizing it I have written many posts that included the priest, Levities, and other learned men who were the scribes, lawyers, and teachers of the Law (names and titles vary).

Ruling/judging the people of Israel changed several times in Israel, but changing the priesthood required a change in the Law. The sin of Jeroboam was changing the priesthood, which did not work out too well. Moses started it all in Exodus 18 when he took the advice of Jethro. God started the priesthood of Aaron in Exodus 28. Wow, all the thoughts that just popped up.

So far, I have done a “skim-read” of the topic of priests, and Priest 2 is another small step into this topic. Since this is a “study” I am sure knowledge has been added; I hope I have stayed on course and topic. Here are some of my posts that have dealt with priests.

This small step into the topic of priest will focus on the New Testament and the Greek word hiereus Strong’s G2409. It is the word for priest; chief or high priest and priesthood are related to it. I will encourage you to be very Berean about my study. ἱερεύς | billmounce.com

Hierateia # G2405 – This word is used in Luke 1:9 and Hebrews 7:5. The priest are doing some aspect of their duties in these verses. Zechariah was going behind the curtain and the others were collecting the tithe. ἱερατεία | billmounce.com

Hierosyne # G2420 – It is used in Hebrews 7:11, 12, and 24. The connection, for me, is these three deal with the Law. In verse 24, Jesus’ permanent priesthood is because He fulfilled the requirements of the Law. ἱερωσύνη | billmounce.com

Hierateuma #2406 – Peter uses this form of priesthood in 1 Peter 2: 2, 9. He is referring to us and what we are and will be. ἱεράτευμα | billmounce.com This one is important because it fulfills Exodus 19:6 where God tells Moses He wants a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Revelations 1:6, 5:10, and 20:6 also states that we will be the priest of God. In Romans 15:16 Paul’s serving as a minister of the Gospel has a term that is related to doing priestly duties – G2418.

Melchizedek was a priest in Genesis, and we will be priests in Revelations because we are in Jesus. Sounds like the Father has had a plan all along.

Other terms to look up: high or chief priest ἀρχιερεύς | billmounce.com, scribes G1122, and elders G4245.

Following the Trail of NIŠ·BĀ·RĀH

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While studying sacrifice, I found niš·bā·rāh in Psalm 51:17. That form of the word is only used three times according to biblehub.com. (It has a lot of cousins.) In the Strong’s it is H7665.

Hebrew Concordance: niš·bā·rāh — 3 Occurrences (biblehub.com)  

The three places it is used are – Psalm 34:20, Psalm 51:17, and Jeremiah 48:25. As I focused on the verses, I realized that broken bones and spirit told a story for those who would seek God.

Psalm 34:20

David wrote this psalm as a praise and thank you to God for delivering him from a bad situation. That story is in 1 Samuel 21:10-15.

The way I like to read Psalm 34 is the Father is speaking to His children starting at verse 11 and ending at 20. Verse 20 is a prophecy about Jesus that is fulfilled in John 19:36. Not one of Jesus’ bones was broken during His crucifixion.

Psalm 51:17  

David is calling out to God again in this psalm. This time he is in grief because of his sin and a wrong that he committed against God. This story is in 1 Samuel 11 + 12. He realizes that what the Father wants is a broken spirit and a heart that is broken and can only be fixed by fellowship with God again.

Jeremiah 48:25

The entire chapter is a message against Moab. Moab is the nation descendant from Lot and his oldest daughter (Genesis 19:30-38). That makes them famies (family enemies). Through the centuries it has been a curious relationship. In Deuteronomy 2 God is “protecting” Moab but by the end of the wandering they are with Balaam in corrupting Israel. Ruth the grandmother of David and Jesus is from Moab, so Lot’s bloodline is not to be dismissed.

In this verse, Moab’s horn or strength is cut, and his power or his arm is broken. They did help the Babylonians when Jerusalem fell.    

The Trail of NIŠ·BĀ·RĀH

As I pondered these verses, this path in the Way took shape.

Because righteous Jesus was not broken on the cross, we can bring our broken hearts and spirits to Him. He will create a clean heart and renew our spirit so we can fellowship with Him. Now that we walk with Him, He will break the power of our sinful flesh (Moab).