Wed Worship - Exodus 3

Steven Rye

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EXODUS

EXODUS IS THE GOSPEL -OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

Have you thought of the Old Testament in terms of it being Law Based? And the New Testament being gospel? Why or why not?

Intro to Exodus 3

VERY DIFFERENT WORLD

MAJORITY OF WRITING DONE ON CLAY TABLETS

strange SMALL nations - you may not have even heard of

Ugaritic

Akkadian

Horites

LIKE ON OUR IRON RANGE - THEY MINED

turquois & copper mined

papyrus ..the paper of the day

HUNTING SEASON NOTE: QUIVERS ARE COMING INTO USE

USE OF TREATIES ARE COMING INTO USE BETWEEN DIFFERING PEOPLES

BIBLE STUDY IS LEARNING MORE ABOUT TREATIES…AND WE PROBABLY WILL TALK ABOUT THEM TOO IN WEEKS AHEAD

WOMEN NOTE: COSMETIC EYELINER COMING INTO USE DURING THIS TIME

What other differences do you think we would have with people who lived so long ago? What similarities would we still have in common?

SETTING: LAND CALLED MIDIAN

ARROWS ARE A GUESS AT THE PATH THAT MOSES MIGHT HAVE TAKEN TO/FROM EGYPT

RIGHT AWAY THERE IS A PROBLEM IN THE TEXT...

LAST WEEK - TALKED ABOUT INSERTING WORLD WAR ONE INTO AN ARTICLE THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE WRITTEN IN 1938

NO WORLD WAR II YET

God appears to Moses

Exodus 3:1–2 NRSV

Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.

BEYOND THE WILDERNESS - COMPLETELY NEW AND STRANGE AND DISTANT PLACE

CLEARLY MOSES WAS TRUSTED/A KEY PART OF THE FAMILY = LIVESTOCK = THE FAMILY BANK ACCOUNT / RETIREMENT FUND / ETC.

What do you make of the family giving Moses charge of the entire flock?

LOCATION OF THIS MOUNTAIN NOT PRESERVED

ANGEL - NOT AN ANGEL AS WE KNOW IT

name JETHRO = “HIS ABUNDANCE”

HOREB = “DESOLATE WASTE”

God Reveals God’s Name (vv 3-6)

Exodus 3:3–4 NRSV

3 Then Moses said, “I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up.” 4 When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”

nature of fire - to consume....PRAY FOR SKY RANCH !!!

GOD MAKING GOD’S PRESENCE KNOWN.... THROUGH SYMBOL=FIRE; AND SPEACH

Have you ever experienced a “burning bush” (something that caused you to turn aside and pay attention to God?)

WE HAVE A WORD FOR THAT - THEOPHANY

THEOPHANY

THEO - GOD

EPIPHANY - DISCOVERING/REVEALING

HAVE YOU EVER EXPERIENCED AN EPIPHANY IN YOUR LIFE?

Have you ever experienced an Epiphany of God in your life?

Exodus 3:5–6 NRSV

Then he said, “Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” He said further, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

GOD’S MAJESTY IS SUCH THAT NO CREATED BEING CAN LOOK ON IT AND LIVE

CONVENIENT WHEN YOU’RE RUNNING A TEMPLE - NO ONE IS GOING TO ASK FOR A TOUR OF THE HOLY-OF-HOLIES

What would be on the bottom of Moses’ sandels that wouldn’t be appropriate for Holy Ground? Can you think of any other reasons why Moses would be told to take off his shoes?

God Shares the Gospel - a Message of Deliverance (vv 7-8)

Exodus 3:7–8 NRSV

Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

GOD EXPRESSES CONCERN - GOD HAS PAID ATTENTION;

GOD HAS COME DOWN (!)

THE WHOLE BIBLE IS FILLED WITH IMAGES OF GOD COMING DOWN TO BE INTIMATELY ENGAGED WITH GOD’S PEOPLE

THIS IS A DESCRIPTION OF THE PROMISED LAND THAT YOU WILL READ A LOT IN THE FIRST FIVE BOOKS OF THE BIBLE: THE PENTATEUCH

Does it appear as if God is unaware of the suffering of some people in the world today? People who need to hear that God does care for them, and is providing for their relief?

PENTATEUCH … TALK ABOUT THIS A LITTLE BIT ABOUT (A) TRADITION SAYS MOSES WROTE; (B) FIRST FIVE BOOKS OF BIBLE;

Exodus 3:9–11 NRSV

The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

THIS IS FIRST COMMISSIONING OF MOSES...

A SECOND COMMISSIONING HAPPENS IN CHAPTER 6

LIKELY TWO DIFFERENT VERSIONS - TWO DIFFERENT TRADITIONS THAT GOT WOVEN TOGETHER INTO ONE HOLY CONVERSATION

Have you ever felt called by God to do something? How did you feel? Were you up to the task? Want someone else to do it?

IN OT - WHEN GOD SHOWS UP.....YOU DO WHAT GOD WANT’S YOU TO DO…

exception: JONAH - WENT BADLY

God’s promise of presence

Exodus 3:12 NRSV

He said, “I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain.”

BECAUSE THE BIBLE HAS BEEN COPIED SO MANY TIMES;

AND BECAUSE IN JUST A LITTLE BIT - GOD IS GOING TO BE GIVING MOSES SOME LITERAL SIGNS

SOME BIBLE TEACHERS WONDER IF THE ‘SIGN’ REFERRED TO IS REALLY …THAT GOD’S PEOPLE GO WORSHIP… OR IF THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN A SIGN LEFT OUT (LIKE THE ONE THAT IS COMING UP - MOSES PUTS HIS HAND UNDER CLOAK - TURNS ASHEN)

OR THE STAFF TURNING INTO A SNAKE..OR ANOTHER SIGN

Exodus 3:13–14 NRSV

But Moses said to God, “If I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I Am Who I Am.” He said further, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘I Am has sent me to you.’ ”

V11 - MOSES ASKS…WHO AM I?

NOW MOSES SECOND QUESTION: WHO ARE YOU GOD?

ONE AUTHOR - TEACHERS CALL “YAHWISTIC” … SAYS THE DIVINE NAME WAS USED THROUGHOUT ABRAHAM, ISAAC, JACOB’S TIME

God’s Caller ID

Genesis 4:26 NRSV

To Seth also a son was born, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to invoke the name of the Lord.

Exodus 3:13–14 NRSV

ANOTHER SOURCE - TEACHERS CALL THE ELOHISTIC - SAY THAT THE DIVINE NAME WAS REVEALED FIRST TO MOSES

A THIRD SOURCE - TEACHERS CALL THE PRIESTLY SOURCE - AGREE THAT MOSES WAS FIRST GIVEN THE NAME

YHWH

UNPRONOUNCABLE

WHEN JEWISH PEOPLE READ (THEN AND NOW) THIS NAME IS NOT PRONOUNCED - INSTEAD THEY SUBSTITUTE “THE LORD”

THE LORD - IN THE BIBLE = ELOHIM = THE LORD

OUR NRSV BIBLE CARRYS THAT TRADITION WITH SMALL CAPS

THE NAME - … IS SOME FORM OF VERB “TO BE”

A BIT OF A MYSTERY - IMPORTANT NOT TO READ THIS PARTICULAR TRANSLATION AS THE BE-ALL-END-ALL

TRANSLATIONS ARE INTERPRETATIONS - EVERY TRANSLATOR CAN ONLY CHOOSE ONE INTERPRETATION (THERE MAY BE OTHER, EQUALLY VALID TRANSLATIONS)

I am becoming who I am going to be

I will cause to be what I will cause to be

I will be who I am / I am who I will be

I will be there (with you)

I am the one who always is

I am the Ising One

TRANSLATIONS - Q SOMETIMES ASKED… WHICH IS THE BEST ONE? A: DEPENDS; NO ONE **ALWAYS RIGHT** TRANSLATION;

SOME WANT THE “LITERAL” TRANSLATION; LITERAL IS NOT ALWAYS THE BEST;

EXAMPLE: TRANSLATING THE PHRASE, “WHAT’S THE MATTER, DOES THE CAT HAVE YOUR TOUNGE?”

TRANSLATING THAT LITERALLY WORD-FOR-WORD WOULD NOT BE BEST IN A LANGUAGE THAT DOESN’T HAVE THAT IDIOM.

God’s Mission (vv 15)

Exodus 3:15 NRSV

God also said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you’: This is my name forever, and this my title for all generations.

GOD MAY HAVE SEEMED ABSENT TO THOSE IN EGYPT - BUT GOD ***IS*** VERY MUCH PRESENT, IN EXISTENCE, NOW & FOREVER

AND THIS GOD IS THE SAME GOD AS YOUR ANCESTORS GOD

Why would it be important for God to identify God’s-self as the ‘God of your ancestors?’

Exodus 3:16 NRSV

Go and assemble the elders of Israel, and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying: I have given heed to you and to what has been done to you in Egypt.

NOW MOSES IS TO GET THE WORD OUT

WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT MOSES UP UNTIL NOW

MOSES IS HEBREW BY BIRTH, BUT RAISED IN PHAROAH’S COURT

COMMITS A FELONY (MURDERS AN EGYPTIAN)

ASIDE: HOW WE TREAT FELONS IN THIS COUNTRY;

RUNS AWAY TO MIDIAN - GET SO ATTACHED TO JETHRO’S FAMILY THAT THEY TRUST HIM WITH THEIR ENTIRE SAVINGS AND RETIREMENT FUND

NOW HE IS SUPPOSED TO GO BACK TO EGYPT - AND GATHER ALL OF THE ELDERS TOGETHER

THINGS THAT MAKE A CAREFUL BIBLE READER GO HMMM: HOW DIFFICULT IT WOULD HAVE BEEN FOR AN OUTSIDER TO GATHER THE ELDERS TOGETHER ...

How difficult do you think it would have been to convince the people that God was listening?

ESPECIALLY IF THE POPULATION OF THE ISRAELITES WAS 600,000 AS THE BIBLE LATER SAYS

THAT WOULD TAKE A LOT OF GATHERING

WHAT A WELCOME MESSAGE THEY WOULD HAVE HEARD: GOD’S PAYING ATTENTION !!!

Exodus 3:17 NRSV

I declare that I will bring you up out of the misery of Egypt, to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.’

THERE’S THAT PHRASE OF LAND FLOWING WITH MILK AND HONEY, ETC.

GOD HAS A PLAN!!

Have you ever thought about whether God has a plan to get us out of our current COVID misery? What might that plan look like?

The Elder & Pharoah’s reaction (vv. 18-20)

Exodus 3:18 NRSV

They will listen to your voice; and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; let us now go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, so that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’

AGAIN - AMAZING THAT SUCH A MESSAGE, FROM A RELATIVE OUTSIDE WILL HAVE THIS EFFECT

CLEARLY GOD MUST BE IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS - MAKING IT HAPPEN

NOTE ALSO - THAT THERE IS NO MENTION OF A DESTINATION…NOT HOREB, NOT SAINI…PERHAPS ONLY SOMEWHERE OUTSIDE THE NILE DELTA

If you were one of the elders of Israel, how do you think you would approach the meeting with the king of Egypt? Confidently? With some apprehension?

Exodus 3:19–20 NRSV

I know, however, that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all my wonders that I will perform in it; after that he will let you go.

“ALL MY WONDERS” - NIPHAL-OT - “EXTRAORDINARY DEEDS”

KEEP IN MIND THAT PEOPLE THOUGHT OF THE GODS VERY TERRITORIALLY …

GOD IS GOING TO DO THIS IN THE VERY YARD OF THE MIGHTIEST NATION

…MANY STUDENTS OF HEBREW WOULD SAY THE LANGUAGE IN NRSV IS TOO SOFT...

Word Biblical Commentary, Volume 3: Exodus Comment

שׁלח

PHAROAH IS GOING TO “HURL” OR “DRIVE” THE PEOPLE OUT … EAGER TO BE RID OF THEM

The Despoiling of the Egyptians (vv. 21-22)

Exodus 3:21–22 NRSV

I will bring this people into such favor with the Egyptians that, when you go, you will not go empty-handed; each woman shall ask her neighbor and any woman living in the neighbor’s house for jewelry of silver and of gold, and clothing, and you shall put them on your sons and on your daughters; and so you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

GOD WILL TRIUMPH OVER THE EGYPTIANS AND EVERYTHING EGYPTIAN

THEME THAT COMES UP SEVERAL TIMES IN GENESIS IS PLUNDERING - ESPECIALLY THE PLUNDERING OF THE EGYPTIANS

GOING TO SEE THIS PLAY OUT IN THE 11TH AND 12TH CHAPTER OF GENESIS - THIS VERSE SETS THE STAGE

PLUNDERING OF THE EGYPTIANS BY ISRAELITES WOULD HAVE BEEN A WELCOME THOUGHT - LATER IN THEIR HISTORY - THEY WERE PLUNDERED A LOT BY THE EGYPTIANS

ISRAEL WOULD BE PLUNDERED A LOT THROUGHOUT THEIR HISTORY BECAUSE OF THEIR GEOGRAPHY

VAST DESERT TO THE EAST OF THE LAND

ANYONE TRAVELING FROM TURKEY/IRAQ WOULD HAVE TO TRAVEL ALONG THE COAST; & EGYPT TRAVELLING NORTH WOULD ALSO

PERFECT PLACE FOR GOD’S STORY OF SALVATION TO PLAY OUT - TAKEN IN BOTH DIRECTIONS

MEANT THAT THERE WERE OFTEN ARMIES TRAVELING THROUGH

FINALLY - WHAT DID THE EAR RINGS LOOK LIKE?

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