Idols look like living beings, but, as the Psalms point out, they cannot do anything with the equipment they have. They cannot see and judge, cannot hear and act, cannot smell the soothing aroma of sacrifice, cannot stretch out a hand against Egypt, cannot walk alongside Israel through the . . . . Continue Reading »
Reading the biblical account of the exodus, we think of it as a local conflict between Egypt and Israel, Yahweh v. Pharaoh and his gods. It was not. It was Yahweh’s massive intervention in the ancient world, and remade the whole religio-political landscape. So argues Egyptologist Jan Assmann . . . . Continue Reading »
Exodus 20:3: You shall have no other gods before Me. In the explanation of the Second Word, God declares that He is a jealous God, but His jealousy is already implicit in the First Word. Among the gods of the ancient world, Yahweh alone is jealous. Ancient temples teemed with images of gods. Baal . . . . Continue Reading »
All of the Ten Words assume one basic commandment, summarized in the shema , Israel’s confession of faith: “Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one God.” The prophets echo the shema again and again: “Hear the Word of Yahweh.” So does Solomon: “Listen, my son, . . . . Continue Reading »
When the book of Exodus opens, the Hebrews are subjected to “hard” bondage (1:14; 6:9). Yahweh sees it, and graciously delivers them from the bondage, but hardness returns. Four times in Exodus, Yahweh charges that Israel, though delivered from the hard bondage of hard-hearted Pharaoh, . . . . Continue Reading »
Exodus 18:12: Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law before God. When Abram returned from defeating the kings who had taken Lot captive, Melchizedek met him with . . . . Continue Reading »
Israel complained about conditions in the wilderness. Some in Israel wanted to return to Egypt. In Egypt, they worshiped Egypt’s gods. Therefore: The complaint in the wilderness was a complaint against Yahweh, and conversely a call to turn back to the gods of the fathers. The logic is . . . . Continue Reading »
First Pharaoh attacks Israel. Then the Amalekites attack, an attack from a fraternal enemy, a descendant of Esau (Genesis 36). Finally, Moses gets attacked by various rebels within Israel. Israel gets attacked by the Gentiles, by the brother Amalekites, by nearer brothers within Israel. And Moses . . . . Continue Reading »
In today’s sermon text, Israel fights Amalekites for the first time. It is not the last battle with Amalek. Saul has to fight them too, and David, and they aren’t finally wiped out until the book of Esther. Each time Israel defeats Amalek, other Gentiles turn to the Lord. After the . . . . Continue Reading »
Exodus 17:10: Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought against Amalek, and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. There are two locations in this story, and two groups of people. Down below, in the valley, Joshua and the armies of Israel fight the Amalekites. Up on the top of a hill . . . . Continue Reading »
Subscribe
Latest Issue
Support First Things
