Chronological Bible Study – Feb 5

What I Noticed Today (Exodus 19-21)

Exodus 19-40

These next 21 chapters through the end of Exodus involve the establishment of God’s Law and the worship of God in the tabernacle.

Exodus 19

Chapter 19 describes the Israelites as they arrive at Mount Sinai:

• Three months after leaving Egypt, the Israelites arrived at Mt Sinai and camped there.

• Moses went up on the mountain of God, and God told Moses to explain to the Israelites what He had done to bring them out of Egypt.
• God proposed a covenant with the people. If they would listen to Him and keep His covenant, He would be their God, and they would be His treasured possession, a kingdom of priests, and His holy nation.
• Moses came back down the mountain and told the elders what God had said.
• Then all the people responded they would do all the Lord commanded. So Moses went back up the mountain and told God.
• The Lord told Moses He would come to Moses in a dense cloud so the people would see and believe all that Moses told them.
• Then the Lord told Moses to go and consecrate the people for two days, and wash their clothes. No person was to come to the mountain or set foot on it, or they were to be stoned. When a ram’s horn sounded, the people could then advance toward the mountain.
• On the third day, God came down the mountain. Moses gathered the people and moved toward the mountain. The entire mountain was shrouded in smoke because God came in the fire.
• The Lord spoke to Moses, and Moses went up the mountain. The Lord then told Moses to go back down and warn the people not to come up the mountain in an attempt to see God, or they would die.
• The Lord told Moses to go back down the mountain and bring Aaron back with him. But the people must not try to follow them up the mountain. So Moses went down and told the people.

Some additional thoughts for consideration:

• The people actually asked Moses, is God among us or not (Exodus 17:7). Seriously? See the tower of clouds and the pillar of fire? How can they question God’s presence when He is clearly right there with them!
• There are several important lessons in these chapters: 1) Every difficulty that confronts us in life is an opportunity to trust God, 2) Leaders need to delegate tasks, and they need to be very careful in selecting the right kind of men and women to help, 3) Because of Jesus and His sacrifice we can now draw close to God, and 4) God cares about equal and appropriate justice in all matters of life.

Exodus 20

In chapter 20, God gives Moses the Ten Commandments.

In verses 1-17, God delivers the Ten Commandments to the people of Israel:

• God begins by reminding the people who He is and what He has done: He is their Lord, the One who redeemed them from slavery by bringing them out of Egypt.
• Do not have other Gods besides Me.
• Do not make an idol in any form and worship it, for I am a jealous God. Those who hate God will be punished, but He loves those who keep His commandments.
• Do not misuse the name of the Lord.
• Remember the Sabbath day and keep it Holy. Work for six days, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord.
• Honor your father and mother.
• Do not murder.
• Do not commit adultery.
• Do not steal.
• Do not give false testimony.
• Do not covet your neighbor’s property.

In verses 18-21, the people respond in fear:

• The people saw the lightning and smoke, and heard the thunder and the trumpet and trembled in fear that God would kill them.
• Moses reassured the people that God has come to test them, that they would fear Him and not sin.

In verses 22-26, God gives Moses additional statutes governing worship:

• God tells Moses to speak to the Israelites.
• They are not to make gods of silver or gold.
• They are to make an earthen altar and sacrifice their burnt and fellowship offerings on it.
• If you make a stone altar, you must not use cut stones.
• You must not go up to My altar on steps and thus expose your nakedness to Me. If they obey, God will come to them and bless them wherever they are.

Exodus 21

In Chapter 21, God gives Moses statutes to give to the people regarding male and female slaves, and personal injury:

In verses 1-11, God gives Moses laws about slaves:

• When you buy a Hebrew slave, he or she is to serve for six years and is then to be set free.
• The master must give provisions to the servant when he is released.
• If he arrives alone, he leaves alone. If he arrives with a wife, he must leave with his wife.
• If the master gives the man a wife and she bears children, the children belong to the master, and he must leave alone.
• But, if the slave declares he does not want to leave, the master will pierce his ear with an awl, and he will serve the master for life.
• If a man sells his daughter as a slave, she must not leave as males do.
• If she is displeasing to her master, he must allow her to be redeemed.
• He must not sell her to a foreigner.
• If the master chooses her as a wife for his son, he must deal with her like a daughter.
• If he takes an additional wife, he must not reduce the provisions or marital rights of the first wife.
• If the master does not do these things, she may leave free of charge, without any payment of money.

In verses 12-36, God gives Moses laws regarding death penalty crimes and personal injury:

• Verses 12-17 describe four crimes that required the death penalty:
  • Premeditated murder (vv. 12, 14).
  • Physical violence against one’s father or mother (v. 15).
  • Kidnapping (v. 16).
  • Cursing (or verbal abuse) of one’s parents (v. 17).
  • A provision was made for causing accidental death in the form of a city of refuge (v. 13).

• Verses 18-27 describe laws regarding lesser crimes of personal injury:
  • A person injured in a fight, whether or not it was premeditated, was to be compensated for their lost time at work and provide for his complete recovery (vv. 18-19).
  • A master must be punished if he beats a slave, and the slave dies (v. 20).
  • If two men get into a fight and a pregnant woman gets hit and delivers prematurely, the man must pay compensation based on the degree of injury to the woman and the baby. The compensation must be appropriate and equitable based on the injury (eye-for-eye).
  • When a man strikes a male or female slave in the eye, and they lose the eye, the slave must be set free as compensation for the loss — the same penalty for a lost tooth.

• In verses 28-36, God gives Moses laws regarding negligence:
  • If an ox gores a man or woman, the ox is to be stoned, and its meat may not be eaten, but the owner is innocent (v. 28).
  • If, however, the ox has a habit of goring and the owner does not restrain it, and it gores someone, the ox must be stoned and its owner put to death (v. 29).
  • The owner may pay a redemption price of whatever is demanded of him by the dead person’s relatives and avoid the death penalty (v. 30).
  • If the ox gores a male or female slave, the redemption price is 30 shekels of silver, and the ox must be stoned (v. 32).
  • If a man digs a pit and does not cover it and an animal falls in, he must pay the owner of the animal for the loss, but the dead animal becomes his (vv. 33-34).
  • If a man’s ox injures another man’s ox and it dies, they must sell the living ox and divide the proceeds and divide the dead animal. If the ox had a habit of goring and was not restrained, then the owner must compensate the other for their loss, and the dead animal will become his (vv. 35-36).

What did you notice in your study today? Feel free to visit the website and leave a question or a comment.

Tomorrow: Day 37 Exodus 22-24