Moses, reluctantly, decided to follow God’s Instructions. Every felt like that? God tells you to do something and you really don’t want to. I know that I felt that way often growing up when my parents told me to do stuff. Often I didn’t want to, but equally more often, I did it anyway. Most of the time, it was ultimately rewarding. Other times, not so much. Moses had tried and tried to get out of going back to Egypt.
Tag: Israel
JACOB BLESSES HIS SONS
Jacob lived another seventeen years after he arrived in Egypt and died at the ripe old age of one hundred and forty-seven. Very venerable to the Egyptians. Before he died, he called all of his sons together to bless them. These blessings were not only expected but were important to the inheritance of the father’s wealth and authority. We will find as Jacob blesses his sons that, again, birth order does not count.
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HEY GUYS, IT’S ME!
Joseph now knows that his brothers have changed over the years. He has seen the change in their honesty and in their concern for family. He also sees a great change in Judah. It was Judah who suggested that Joseph be sold to the slave traders back in the day. The testing was over and Joseph’s emotions were overwhelming.
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WHAT’S YOUR NAME AGAIN?
Bethel is the place where God reminds Jacob that his name is now Israel, “he struggles with God’. Jacob had his trials and difficulties but his new name shows his desire to stay close to God. God confirms the covenant again to Jacob that nations will come from him, and that kings will be his descendants. He also promised the land of Canaan again to Israel and his descendants. Jacob set up another pillar and poured wine and oil on it to consecrate it. The oil and wine used was probably the best that Jacob had in respect for the place it was poured upon. It is from this point on that we see Jacob called Israel.
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LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE
This is where we find Jacob. He is returning home to his father. He knows that Esau is probably still there and, for all he knows, Esau may still want to kill him. It’s been twenty years since he left in a panic, fleeing to Laban for sanctuary. What is Esau going to do when he sees Jacob? Jacob has 12 children, 11 sons and 1 daughter, 2 wives, huge flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, camels and donkeys and possibly hundreds of servants, shepherds and herdsmen. He can’t sneak back home. The huge mass of life that he is travelling with is impossible to hide. Jacob is shaking in his sandals. How can he protect his family and possessions?
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TWO SONS, TWO NATIONS
It’s been a year since Lord told Abraham and Sarah that Sarah have a son. Who would have ever imagined that a man of 100 and a woman of 91 years would have a baby together? But God had promised a child to Sarah and Abraham. You can just imagine the celebration. The promised child had finally arrived. Just as He had promised, Sarah gave birth to Isaac. She laughed again, this time with joy. Isaac’s name reflected her joy. But even in this time of joy, there was one who did not rejoice. Ishmael.
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FATHER OF A MULTITUDE BUT NO KIDS
God didn’t just promise Abraham a son, He promised him a nation, He promised ownership of land, a forever home, a place to put down roots and grow. God also promised to be their God down through the generations. God’s only demand was that Abraham, and his descendants, keep their part of the covenant.
