Notes- Exodus 16-20

My margin notes from Exodus 16-20:

16:3 Some professors would stay in Egypt (the world) as long as they have protection and provision, as long as they were safe and had a full belly.

16:15 The “what is it?”

16:16 An omer is thought to be about 6 pints. We estimate that God provided about 9 million pounds of manna a day, which would translated to about 130 billion pounds over the next 40 years.

16:20 You cannot hoard up yesterday’s grace and blessings. You need it new and fresh every morning.

16:22 Gather it in the morning before the heat of the sun melts it. Usually a good proof-text for morning devotions and the importance of getting your spiritual manna early in the day.

16:24 How could the manna tell what day of the week it was?

16:27 Man just can’t take a day off from filling his belly or worrying about his needs.

16:29 Travel forbidden on the Sabbath.

17:14 But God did not do this immediately.

17:15 “The LORD Our Banner”.

18:2 We are not told why Moses sent her back but we assume all was not well between them. Moses may have been neglecting his family for the sake “of the ministry”, a classic and tragic mistake on the part of many of God’s men.

18:7 Nothing is said about Moses doing this with his wife or sons.

18:21 Requirements for civil magistrates.

18:24 God was not consulted on this.

19:5 An example of both separation and sanctification. They usually go together.

19:6 See 1 Peter 2:9.

19:6 A conditional promise.

19:8 The covenant accepted.

19:9 There is no such cloud in the New Testament. We have a much clearer view of God.

19:10 Washing and changing of clothes is usually associated with sanctification.

19:12 We are now bidden to boldly approach the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16).

19:16,19 Who was blowing this trumpet?

19:22 There was a priesthood before the Law.

Summary of the Ten Commandments (Also repeated in Deuteronomy 5)
1- Idolatry forbidden- 20:3
2- Worshipping false gods forbidden, no graven images allowed- 20:4-6
3- Talking God’s name in vain forbidden- 20:7
4- The Sabbath to be observed- 20:8-11
5. Honor parents- 20:12
6. Killing prohibited- 20:13
7. Adultery prohibited- 20:14
8. Stealing prohibited- 20:15
9. Bearing false witness prohibited- 20:16
10. Covetousness prohibited 20:17
The first 4 commandments are vertical (Godward) while the final six are horizontal (manward). This shows that our relationship with God must be right before our relationship to men can be.

20:2 The Preamble to the Ten Commandments.

20:8 This is the only commandment not repeated in the New Testament, showing that it was not binding on either the Gentiles or the Church.

20:12 The first commandment with promise- that of a long life (Ephesians 6:3).

20:15 The establishment of private property, also in 20:17..

20:15 The last three commandments do not carry a death penalty.

20:18 Under the Law, we were always “afar off”.

20:25 Keep your handiwork out of God’s worship. Do it God’s way, not your way, as you will not improve on it.

20:25 Deuteronomy 27:5

Exodus 11-15 Notes

Notes from Exodus 11-15 from my “mini-commentary”.  I have a full-sized commentary on Exodus but it is in need of a major revision and sprucing-up.

11:5 I have never seen any “death angel” who was responsible for the death of the firstborn. It seems to have been God Himself who did this.

11:5 Since Pharaoh was oppressing God’s firstborn, God would kill Pharaoh’s.

12:2 The civil calendar starts in October.

12:5 The Passover lamb as a type of Christ:
1. A male
2. A lamb (John 1:29)
3. Innocent
4. Harmless
5. Physically perfect- no flaws or blemishes
6. First born
7. Killed violently with blood shed
8. Partaken of
9. Under intense scrutiny as Christ was for the final 3 ½ years of His life (12:6)

12:35 This loan was repaid to Egypt in 1 Kings 14:26.

12:46 Jesus had no broken bones on the cross- John 19:33.

13:4 The beginnings of the Jewish religious calendar.

13:9 The origin of the phylactery.

13:17 It was only 11 days to Canaan but it was heavily fortified by the Egyptian army. Besides, they had an appointment at Sinai first.

13:18 God does lead His people through the wilderness at times, and you have to go through the wilderness before you reach Canaan.

14:5 What short memories!

14:15 Moses said “stand still” but God said “Go forward”.

15:1-19 The first psalm

15:2 The building of the tabernacle foreshadowed.

15:8 If God’s breath can do this, what can the rest of Him do?

15:9 Man proposes but God disposes.

15:14 Joshua 2:9

15:20 First mention of a prophetess.

15:25 Throw in a tree (cross) to make the bitter waters sweet.

15:26 Specifically, the diseases of Egypt.

15:26 “The LORD that healeth thee”- Jehovah Rapha.

Tabernacle vs. Temple- Exodus 25

Re: Exodus 25 and the Tabernacle

I think it interesting that God commanded the building of the tabernacle but He never commanded the building of the temple. See 2 Samuel 7:6. God allowed David and Solomon to build the temple but He never commanded it, nor did He give any blueprints for it as He did the tabernacle. God loved the tabernacle but He tolerated the temple. God never allowed the tabernacle to be destroyed, although we are never told of its ultimate fate. But God allowed the temple to be destroyed by the Babylonians and the Romans and it will be defiled in the tribulation by the Antichrist. It is better to be a tabernacle Christian than a temple Christian. You are closer to God in the tabernacle. It is a humble structure, not impressive to the carnal eye. It is in the wilderness. It is rather small, allowing for intimacy with God. There is clear typology with every element of the tabernacle. Such typology is not as clear in the temple. It is also obvious that the tabernacle speaks more to a pilgrim heart of a Christian than does the temple. The tabernacle is small, unattractive, in the wilderness but is also intimate and has the presence of God. The temple is large, impressive, a structure like all the other nations may have. Intimacy with God is not possible in such a large building. It was also easy to become proud of such a structure, rather than in the God to whom that structure was dedicated. Let us seek to cultivate a tabernacle heart of a pilgrim in our walk with God.

Exodus Notes, chapters 6-10

Exodus notes for chapters 6-10, from my mini-commentary:

6:3 God’s personal, revealed, redemptive name. Moses was the first to receive this revelation. To the patriarchs, God revealed Himself as “El Shaddai”.

6:6-8 The Seven “I Will’s” of God.

6:9 An understandable reaction in the light of what happened in chapter 5.

7:2 The duty of a prophet, or a preacher.

7:4 The reason why God hardened Pharaoh’s heart.

7:11 Satan can counterfeit God’s work- up to a point.

The Ten Plagues
1. Water to blood- 7:20
2. Frogs- 8:6
3. Lice- 8:17
4. Flies- 8:24
5. Cattle disease- 9:6
6. Boils- 9:10
7. Hail and fire- 9:24
8. Locust- 10:13
9. Darkness- 10:22
10. Death of first born 12:29
We are not told how long these plagues took.

7:17 The Nile was worshipped as a god so this was a direct attack against Egyptian religion.

7:17 Christ’s first miracle was similar- turning water to wine (a type of blood).

7:17 Revelation 8:8-11; 16:3-7.

7:20 All freshwater was affected, even water in containers- a greater miracle.

7:22 What was the point in this? Change it back!

8:8 Instead of asking the magicians, Pharaoh asks Moses to take the frogs away. He was beginning to understand where the power really was.

8:10 “One more night with the frogs”.

8:18 Now they begin to run out of steam. We see here the limits to the power of Satan- he cannot create life.

8:19 If God’s “finger” can do this, what can the rest of His “body” do?

8:23 Separation between God’s people and the Egyptians. Always remember God is a God of separation.

Pharaoh’s Compromises:
1. Sacrifice to God in the land, or serve God while staying in the world- 8:25
2. Go out and serve God, just don’t go very far away- 8:28
3. Let the adults serve God but keep your children in the world. 10:10. This would be the same idea as serving God but sending your children to public schools.
4. Serve God but keep your money and resources in the world- 10:24

9:3 The wealth of Egypt is hit with this plague.

9:5 God announced it in advance and the Egyptians could do nothing to stop it.

9:8 This judgment was not announced beforehand.

9:19 Grace in the midst of judgment.

9:23 Thunderstorms were rare in Egypt.

9:24 “fire” = lightening?

10:26 See how bold Moses is getting!

I have been typing in my margin notes from my Bibles that I have collected over the last 20 years with the goal of “publishing” them all in one place, as a “mini-commentary.” A project like this will take some years to complete but it will be worth it. I’m working on Exodus right now, then will go back to do Genesis, alternating with a New Testament book as I go. This will compliment my various “full length” commentaries (available for free downloading at our website pilgrimway.org. But here, among other things, I’ll post the margin commentary, starting with notes on Exodus 1-5.

Ruin 1-11
Redemption 12-19
Responsibility 20-24
Relationship 25-40

85 promises
875 pericopes

Exodus- God gets His people out of the world
Leviticus- God gets the world out of His people

1:5 Deuteronomy 10:22; Acts 7:14

1:8 Probably a different dynasty. Joseph’s Pharaoh was probably a foreigner, but this one was an Egyptian who was eager to undo the previous policies.

1:10 Hitler followed the same policy with the Jews.

1:16 The first state-sponsored abortion mill.

2:4 Miriam?

2:7 A very clever suggestion, made at just the right time.

2:9 The devil had to pay Moses’s mother to raise her own child!

2:11 Moses was now 40.

2:15 A type of the Second Coming. Both Jesus and Moses were rejected at their first coming (in weakness) only to be accepted the second time (in power).

3:1 Horeb.

3:2 The national symbol for Israel is a burning bush, not a star of David.

3:5 At Sinai, you take your shoes off. Under grace, shoes are put on your feet (Luke 15:22).

3:8 God also came down at Babel (Genesis 11:7).

3:14 I AM:
1. By Myself
2. In Myself
3. Of Myself
4. Through Myself
5. For Myself

Moses’ Excuses:
1. I have no ability- 3:11; Philippians 4:13
2. I have no message- 3:13; 1 Corinthians 15:3,4
3. I have no authority- 4:1; Matthew 28:18-20
4. I have no eloquence- 4:10; Philippians 2:13
5. I have no inclination- 4:13; Philippians 2:13

4:1 Moses was an unlikely Messiah, an 80-year shepherd, not unlike a 30-year old carpenter.

4.4 That took faith! No one picks up a serpent by the tail!

4:6 It would not be this leprous hand that would deliver Israel.

4:10 Compare with Deuteronomy 32:1, where Moses calls on heaven and earth to witness his sayings.

4:18 Moses was not upfront with Jethro as to the reason why he wanted to go back to Egypt, and mentioned nothing about God appearing to him.

4:20 The Rod of Moses is now known as the Rod of God.

4:22 “Firstborn” presupposes other children- maybe believing Gentiles? “For now are we the sons of God…” (1 John 3:2).

5:1 Moses was unfaithful to the message God gave him to deliver to Pharaoh.. Moses said nothing about the death of the firstborn or about Israel being the firstborn of God.

5:23 Because Moses was unfaithful, God would not work as He said He would.