Category Archives: Bible Study

James 1:17 

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 This study of James 1:17 is because of the word shadow in the last part of the verse. 

James 1:17 (KJV) Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. (Please read 16-18 to get the most from the passage.) 

The word for a shadow in this verse is aposkiasma (Strong’s 644 G). It is used only once in the Bible, here in James. James actually used three words in this part of the verse that is used only once-parallage (variableness) and trope (turning) are the other two. It is fitting that these rare words (for the Bible) are being used to describe the Father of lights. Parallage is number 3883 and trope is number 5157 in the Greek side of the Strong’s. 

Skia is the word that is normally used for a shadow in the New Testament, it is number 4639 G. It is easy to see that Skia is the core of aposkiasma so I choose to study the parts of this word instead of just the Strong’s “usage definition”. Apo, the prefix, means away or apart, and skiasma indicates a split or separation. Yes, our word schism comes from this Greek word. A shadow can be thought of as a place that separates light and dark. If the solid object (the Father) turns the shape of the shadow changes. My God does not change. 

Give us your own translation. Use the definitions in the post and see how you would describe the “Pater ho phos” (the Father of lights). Rewrite James 1:17 😊  

Mounce Reverse Interlinear New Testament was used in studying for this post.

The Sons of Korah

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When you read the Book of Psalms you will see the “sons of Korah” in the titles of psalms in the 40s and the 80s. Yes, these are the heirs of the Korah who rebelled against Moses (Numbers 16). Numbers 26:11 states that they did not die out during the rebellion. My guess on that is some of them were doing their appointed task of being gatekeepers for the Tabernacle; so they were not swallowed up. (Please note that Korah rebelled but the Reubenites—Dathan and Abiram, and On son of Peleth would not even talk to Moses and made some very wild claims about him.) If you look at the camp arrangement around the Tabernacle you will see that the Kohathites (Korah was of this group) were camped next to the Reubenites. So, the earth opening up may have been in a small area on the south side of the camp.

In Numbers 27:3 the daughters of Zelophehad made a point to mention that their father had not died in the rebellion. It makes it sound like the whole affair had become a curse around the camp.

Kohathites are members of the Tribe of Levi, he was one of the three sons; Gershon and Merari were the other two. Kohath had four sons, but the most important are Amram and Izhar. Moses and Aaron are children of Amram. Izhar fathered Korah, Nepheg, and Zikri (Exodus 6:21-24). Korah had three sons.

The Kohathites were responsible for the Ark and the tent that covered it. Okay, Aaron and his sons took care of the sacrifices and the Ark, and the rest of the family was responsible for moving everything in the Tent of Meeting on their shoulders. This included the Ark, all tables, the lampstand, the altar, and all of the utensils (Numbers 4).

Other Duties

From Moses to Jeremiah the family of Korah and all of the other Kohathites served God by doing many tasks and helping in times of need. God did not hold the children responsible for the sins of their father Korah. These are some of the things the sons of Korah did during the centuries.

  • 1 Chronicles 6:31 to 37-David singled them out as musicians.
  • 1 Chronicles 9:19-They guarded the entrance to the dwelling of God.
  • 1 Chronicles 9:31,32-Mattithiah baked the bread for the offering in the Tent.
  • 1 Chronicles 26:19-gatekeepers
  • 2 Chronicles 20:19-they stood and praised the Lord.
  • 2 Chronicles 29-Hezekiah and cleaning the Temple.
  • 2Chronicles 34-Josiah cleaning the Temple.

Out on a Limb

David picked the sons of Korah and other Kohathites to be his musicians for a reason, I think he was a practical man. My thought is that they were already in the position of praising God. It is clear that Moses and Miriam praised God, and there were mandates to do so. The only/first time I found someone to be put into a position to do it was with David and Solomon. They ordered the family of gatekeepers to be in charge of praise. What if that started back with Moses and just continued through the years to David.

1 Samuel 2:22 is another verse/idea that may back my thought up. What were the women doing at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, and how were they serving? Could they have been singers, serving with the gatekeepers who were praising? Maybe they were Korahite women.

I have felt that Moses wrote Psalms 90 (attributed to Moses in the title) to 100, this is due to the material that is covered in them and Psalm 101 is “Of David”. Apparently, Jewish custom agrees. It was a note that cited Rashi when I looked up who wrote Psalm 100. Psalm 100:4 has that we should “enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise”. That fits very well with the gatekeepers (the sons of Korah) playing music and singing as they watched the gate to the Tent of Meeting.

New Testament

Jude 1:11 is the only mention of Korah in the New Testament. It is a “curse” that connects to the rebellion. He is matched with Cain and Balaam. Not the best way to be remembered. However, the sons of Korah that survived went on to bless the Lord and be blessed by Him.

Your Chance to Study

What were the duties of the sons of Gershon and Merari for the Tabernacle? Why did these families get carts?

Going Back to Egypt

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In Numbers 14:4 the Children were going back to Egypt. The spies had returned with a bad report and the Tribes were going to pick a new leader and leave. The Children had tested God ten times, and He was ready to start over. I have heard many preachers say that they were ready to go back and be slaves in Egypt, I do not think that was on their mind. The people had trained for two years as a military force. These were not the beaten down slaves that passed through the Red Sea. My feeling is they did not want to fight giants, but Egypt had lost much of its army. Israel was going back to capture Egypt and rule it.

Egypt is mentioned thousands of times in Scripture, both Old and New Covenant parts talk about it. Abraham was the first to go into Egypt and that laid the ground work and pattern for his children since then. He came out rich, but there were problems (Ishmael). It became a place of refuge for Jacob and the family but that turned to bondage. Solomon acquired wealth from them through trade, and sinned. Jesus went there as a child to mirror Abraham and Israel coming out of her. Egypt bullied Israel until Nebuchadnezzar ended their bad boy ways. Even with them being a problem not all the books of the Old Testament mention Egypt. Do a search with a Bible app, that is interesting.

Why was going back to Egypt a problem? Why did God not want His children going back to Egypt for help? Bondage is the favorite answer and that is hard to argue with, but what sort of bondage? Ezekiel 23 describes Israel’s relationship with the gods of Egypt as prostitution. The ten plagues that got Israel out of Egypt were focused at their gods. Each plague struck down a deity that Egypt worshiped. Egypt loved the created thing-water, sun, plants, animals, and Pharaoh. Aaron and Jeroboam made a god for Israel that looked a bull, because of the influence of Egypt. Part of Eve’s problem in the Garden was because she made a big deal of the fruit on the Tree.

Abraham, the Children of Israel, and Jesus came out of Egypt. Analysis of this fills volumes of books. I would like to offer three ideas about coming out of Egypt. 1) You were in Egypt because of a problem, it may have been a refuge for a season. 2) Once you are gone, there will be a time of peace. Trials and test, however, are coming. 3) Leaving will open you up to your Promised Land or destiny. Once you are called out of Egypt the Father wants you to look to Him for your help. Worship the Creator and not the created, and stop going back to Egypt.

The Ark-Almonds

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What do almonds have to do with the Ark of the Covenant Law? There are two connections, Aaron’s staff, and the Menorah or the Golden Lamp.

Numbers 17 tells the tale of God having had enough of the grumbling against Aaron and Moses (vs. 5). Aaron’s staff had leaves, flowers, and fruit of the almond tree on it. This was the sign that God had chosen him to be the leader. The staff was to be put back into the Ark as a sign for Israel.

Numbers 11 to 16 are part of the ten test times that Israel tested God. The story of the manna and the quail, the spies returning and complaining about the land. (I think the people planned to take everyone back to Egypt and conquer the nation. They were not going back as slaves.) The two that directly affect the staff are Miriam and Aaron (Chapter 12) complaining about Moses, and Korah (a close relative of Moses) the Kohath, and Dathan and Abiram (Reubenites or the firstborn) trying to take control of the camp (Chapter 16). By this time, the people had been trained as an army.

Exodus 25 gives the instructions for the making of the Tent of Meeting and the furniture associated with it; Exodus 37 gives the same information, but it seems to be the confirmation that it was done. Details of the Menorah are here. There is much symbolism associated with the branches, bumps, flowers, and lights of this lamp. The simplest truth about the lamp and its artwork is that it is an almond tree. The lamp was to light the area in front of it.

The almond tree is one of the first to bloom in the spring and is used to symbolize someone who is watching over things. The Menorah is a “watcher” that lights the way for those coming to it, or for those who need to see.

Jeremiah 1:11 and 12 is a play on words when Jeremiah sees an almond branch and the Lord says He is “watching over” His words and Jeremiah.

Ecclesiastes 12:5 also has an almond tree that is showing the start of the year and includes a grasshopper dying that represents the end of the growing cycle or season.

Genesis 28:19 has Jacob running from Esau and resting at Luz (Almond Tree) for the night. Because of the dream of the ladder to Heaven, he asks God to watch over him on this journey and take care of him. He then renames the place Bethel or House of God.

Jacob also uses branches of the almond tree in his ritual in Genesis 30:37 of putting peeled limbs into the water. The poplar and plane tree were abundant and very leafy, so the symbolism is possibly more important than the wood. I had read once that experiments had been carried out on this combination of things and nothing was noticed that would account for Jacob’s results.

The only time that the almond nut (not the tree) is the center of attention is in Genesis 43:11 when Jacob sends almonds to the man in Egypt (Joseph).

Firstborn

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Firstborn was conceived from this question-How can the firstborn of creation be the Last Adam or Second Man? After a fruitful study, I am now ready to birth this post about the Firstborn. This study started growing into a very complicated child because of all the aspects related to the topic of the firstborn. Maybe I will get to that plethora of information in a future post.

Some about the Firstborn

This is a title as well as a position on a family tree. Part of being the firstborn son was the inheritance and the blessing that went with that honor. These rights of the firstborn are mentioned in the Five Books of Moses. Each book has a slightly different focus. (I am making some very loose points here as rules and requirements are mentioned in Exodus to Deuteronomy.)

  • Genesis-The focus here is Jacob and how he handles the rights of the firstborn. He buys and steals them from Esau, takes them away from Ruben and gives them to Joseph, and transfers them to Ephraim. 1 Chronicles 5:1, Jeremiah 31:9, with Genesis 49:3,4; 48:5 and 14-20 all refer to the story of Ruben.
  • Exodus’ focus is that Egypt/Pharaoh will not let Israel (God’s firstborn) go, so it will cost them their firstborn.
  • Leviticus has only one mention of firstborn-Chapter 27. It states that they belong to the Lord.
  • Numbers-There are many things written about the firstborn in Numbers. The theme I saw was Egypt being traded for Israel, and now Israel would cover the redeeming of the Levites’ firstborn. Zelophehad’s daughters (Numbers 36:11) do set some rules about all-girl families.
  • Deuteronomy restates the rules and requirements of the firstborn. Chapter 21:15 adds a rule for loved and unloved wives, and whose children get the rights of the firstborn. I want to think this adjusts some things Jacob did so as not to be an excuse for later generations.

Firstborn of Creation

Adam was the prototype, while Jesus is the prototokos (Colossians 1:15). Adam was made/created/assembled by God and he received the breath of life (The first CPR:). Jesus came from that amazing creation when the Holy Spirit surrounded Mary with grace (charitoo) and put in the male half of the DNA to form Jesus. So, He was the first man born from the Spirit. (Luke 2:21-He was circumcised.) This sets the example of our born-again experience with the Holy Spirit. Jesus is the firstborn of Creation (Hebrews 1:6, Colossians 1:15, Romans 8:29). He is also the firstborn of/from the dead (Revelation 1:5, Colossians 1:18). Jesus is the head of the church of the firstborn (Colossians 1:18, Hebrews 12:23).

1 Corinthians 15:45 and 46 is discussing the concepts that are also found in Romans 5:15 and 17 (here it is one man). The first Adam, the first man, allowed death into the world by his transgression. The last Adam (Jesus) is a life-giving Spirit that brought grace to us. In 1 Corinthians 15:46, Jesus is referred to as the second man. I believe, because of the Hebrew for Adam and man, being related has caused this to become the title of Second Adam.