The Lord plagued the people

Exodus 32: 30-35, “30 And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the people, Ye have sinned a great sin: and now I will go up unto the LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin. And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written. And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book. Therefore now go, lead the people unto the place of which I have spoken unto thee: behold, mine Angel shall go before thee: nevertheless in the day when I visit I will visit their sin upon them. And the LORD plagued the people, because they made the calf, which Aaron made.”

After Israel sinned they had to make atonement. At that stage the ceremonies had not been set up so Moses went back to see the Lord and try to make atonement on their behalf. Moses was willing to admit that there was sin even though Aaron had tried to make excuses and blame others before. Moses was so completely committed to bringing Israel to the Promised Land that he was willing to have his name taken from the Lord’s book to save them. This was a huge step for Moses to take but he was a sinner as well and was responsible for sin that he had committed before. The Lord made it quite clear that everyone is responsible for the eternal consequences of their own sin. This means that each person has to make their own arrangements with the Lord to deal with their sin as well. The process is much easier now because the sinless Lord Jesus Christ was able to experience all the eternal torments of hell in our place so all we have to do is repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ then our names will be permanently etched in the Lord’s book. Even though the sin was dealt with in eternal terms the people still had consequences to suffer in the present. The Lord plagued Egypt because they had enslaved His firstborn and now Israel was plagued because they tried to go back to the Egyptian gods.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Who is on the Lord's side?

Exodus 32: 21-29, “And Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto thee, that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them? And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord wax hot: thou knowest the people, that they are set on mischief. For they said unto me, Make us gods, which shall go before us: for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. And I said unto them, Whosoever hath any gold, let them break it off. So they gave it me: then I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf. And when Moses saw that the people were naked; (for Aaron had made them naked unto their shame among their enemies:) Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD’S side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him. And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour. And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men. For Moses had said, Consecrate yourselves to day to the LORD, even every man upon his son, and upon his brother; that he may bestow upon you a blessing this day.”

Aaron was the leader in this sin against the Lord. Even though the people grew tired of waiting while Moses communicated with the Lord on the mountain and the people asked Aaron to make gods for them, he was responsible for leading this rebellion against the Lord’s rule. However, Aaron, like every other sinner alive today, wanted to avoid responsibility for his actions and blamed the people. He even tried to persuade Moses that the golden calf just appeared when he put the gold in the smelter. The people were also naked as part of their sinful worship of this golden calf. Moses set out to restore order but didn’t do it in his own name, he called for people who were on the Lord’s side to help him deal with this sin. The tribe of Levi was set apart from the rest of Israel to act as priests and Tabernacle servants so they performed their role in this matter. When Israel worshipped to golden calf they had usurped their role, apart from Aaron, so they were restored to the proper role before the Lord. The penalty for breaking the Lord’s Law in those days was death so the Levites executed the leading offenders in this sin. These people had chosen to reject the Lord and they suffered the consequences of the choice that they had, knowingly, made.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Moses anger waxed hot

Exodus 32: 15-20, “And Moses turned, and went down from the mount, and the two tables of the testimony were in his hand: the tables were written on both their sides; on the one side and on the other were they written. And the tables were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, graven upon the tables. And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said unto Moses, There is a noise of war in the camp. And he said, It is not the voice of them that shout for mastery, neither is it the voice of them that cry for being overcome: but the noise of them that sing do I hear. And it came to pass, as soon as he came nigh unto the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses’ anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and brake them beneath the mount. And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it in the fire, and ground it to powder, and strawed it upon the water, and made the children of Israel drink of it.”

As Moses and Joshua went down from the mountain where they were meeting with the Lord they wondered why they were sent down in such a hurry The people were celebrating because they had asserted their ability to define what was good and what was evil for themselves. Joshua though that the people had been attacked and the sound was that of war. However, Moses knew the difference between the sound of war and the sound of celebration because the people were singing. When Moses saw the golden calf he was very angry and smashed the tablets of the Law, that the Lord had carved and written on. Moses realised that they people were not worthy to have the Law at that stage and their sin had to be dealt with before they could have a holy relationship with the Lord. This is why he smashed the tablets. When the issue had been dealt with again and the people were clean once more then they would be in a position to make an agreement with the Lord to be His people. The first thing that Moses had to do was destroy the calf so that it would never be a temptation to the people again. He did by burning the golden calf and then making what was left after it was melted into powder. He put this powder on their water and made them drink it. This may sound strange and vindictive but when the gold had passed through the people and come out the other side it was unclean and could never be used to make any other god again.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Get thee down

Exodus 32: 7-14, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves: They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation. And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever. And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people.”

When the problem got out of hand the Lord sent Moses down from the mountain to deal with the issue. The Lord had two options in this case, He could have immediately destroyed the entire nation for their sin or followed the course of action that He chose. But the Lord is gracious (“But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.” Psalm 86: 15) and chose to deal in grace. Moses was their leader so the Lord sent Moses to the people so that Moses could talk to them and bring them to repentance. The Lord explained to Moses that He should really destroy the people for this sin but He gave Moses the chance to plead on their account. Moses knew the Lord and the things that He had said over many years to Abraham and his descendants. Moses had the chance to remind himself of all that the Lord had said and done. Moses, was a good man and the Lord gave him the chance to plead for the people and then the Lord gave Moses what he chose. At that time Israel’s future was entirely in Moses’ hands and he chose to save them. The Lord told Moses what Israel deserved but when Moses made the choice for Israel the Lord saved them from the consequences of their sin. When we read that the Lord repented of the evil that He thought to do to Israel, it really means that the Lord acted in mercy and didn’t give them what they deserved.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Make us gods

Exodus 32: 1-6, “And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the LORD. And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.”

There is a tension that resonates throughout the majority of the Bible. This tension began when Satan first tempted Eve in the garden. It is the tension that exists between true wisdom and false wisdom. The first time that we discover the concept of being wise in the Bible is in Gen 3: 6 (“And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”) There was more to the temptation than just just knowing good and evil, there was also the temptation to be wise. The second time that we come across “wise” in the Bible is in Gen 41: 8 (“And it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dream; but there was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.”) In this case the Lord gave Pharaoh a message but he relied on earthly wisdom to find the meaning of the Lord’s message. Joseph finally came and delivered the true message from the Lord and Israel was saved from starvation. This shows us that false wisdom is defined by man while true wisdom is defined by God. Man’s wisdom boasts that he can define what is good and what is evil while God’s wisdom gives the true definition of good and evil. While Moses was on the mountain and the Lord was giving him true wisdom, Israel, under Aaron, decided that they wanted to make their own definition of good and evil. During this period they chose to define their own god and hence their own rules. These new rules even reached the stage where all the people were naked (Ex 32: 25, “And when Moses saw that the people were naked; (for Aaron had made them naked unto their shame among their enemies:)”). When Adam and Eve sinned they were ashamed because they were naked but these people were naked but they weren’t ashamed. This tension still exists today and every person who wants to follow the Lord has to take great care to submit to His wisdom and forsake all false wisdom.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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My sabbaths ye shall keep

Exodus 31: 12-18, “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you. Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed. And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.”

Even though the Lord had been telling Israel, through Moses, how they were to follow their ceremonial regulations and how to make the hardware necessary for them, He returned to the true purpose of His plan. God has created us so that we might rest in the security of His love. The weekly Sabbath day was to be a constant reminder of the rest that we were created to enjoy. Even though we sinned and brought tension, restlessness and anxiety into the world, the Lord always remembered that we were created to know His rest and He put this reminder regularly before us. As long as the earth remains there will seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter and day and night (Gen 8: 22). As long as there is day and night, there will be a seventh day and there will be the reminder of the true rest that the Lord has in store for us when He finally makes the new heaven and the new earth.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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I have called by name

Exodus 31: 1-11, “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship. And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wise hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee; The tabernacle of the congregation, and the ark of the testimony, and the mercy seat that is thereupon, and all the furniture of the tabernacle, And the table and his furniture, and the pure candlestick with all his furniture, and the altar of incense, And the altar of burnt offering with all his furniture, and the laver and his foot, And the cloths of service, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to minister in the priest’s office, 1And the anointing oil, and sweet incense for the holy place: according to all that I have commanded thee shall they do.”

When the Lord has a task to be performed He always prepares a person for that task. We should not that the Lord deals with individuals or through individuals. When the Lord wanted to set Israel free from slavery, He called Moses, an individual, and worked through him to set the process in motion. When the Lord wanted to give Israel the Law, He chose Moses to come to the mountain and receive the Law then give it to the rest of Israel. Now that the Lord was ready for the Tabernacle to be built He prepared Uri the son of Hur to work with the metals to make the best possible instruments for worship and then the Lord commanded another man to be his helper. The first man was given the skills to supervise and oversee the entire work of making the instruments and the second man was given executive authority to make sure that everything was carried out to the exact specifications. Moses was too busy leading Israel and supervising the council while Aaron was High Priest and in charge of the tribe of Levi so they weren’t able to do these tasks. This is the way the Lord works today: He chooses specific people, with specific skills to perform tasks for His glory.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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