The Story Blog
Below you'll find some reflections on each chapter and some extra items that will help you with your readings. Some weeks we'll have more than others, but check back to find out how to go deeper with The Story.
The plagues are very interesting. There has been a lot of commentary throughout the years of Jewish and Christian believers about the plagues and their meanings. 10 plagues. One of the things I noticed in this reading was the constant attempt by Pharaoh to show that man could produce what God produces, and attempt to de-authenticate the divine in miracles. There are always challenges to God's sovereignty - other gods or humans trying to do what God does and be who God is. One way to look at the 10 plagues is that they are once again a polemic against other gods of the surrounding people. God is often demonstrating his power over the "sub-powers" that people have attributed to other so-called gods. Here's a way to look at the plagues as an Egyptian polemic:
Khnum, Hapi, Orisis, Sepek, Neith, and Hathor were all dependent upon, or considered gods of the nile. The Nile, in fact, was considered a blood stream of the god Osiris. Moses and Aaron showing Yahweh's power over the bloodstream of the Nile would show his power over each of these gods.
The Goddess Heqt, who was the wife of Khnum, was represented as a frog. The…
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This chapter begins with a couple of lines that are meant to remind you of something:
"the Israelites were exceedingly fruitful; they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers and became so numerous that the land was filled with them.""the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread"
Remembering back to the promises God makes along the way, we are beginning to see that not only is God sovereign and in control, but also that he is making and fulfilling promises. These two lines are directly reminding us of God's promises not only to Abraham, but also to Adam, Noah, and Jacob.
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it." (Genesis 1:28)
"As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.” (Genesis 9:7)
And God said to him, “I am God Almighty[f]; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants." (Genesis 35:11)
Here's a suggestion as you read through the Bible: keep a Promise Log. Keep track of the promises God makes. Think about how these promises…
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One of my favorite pictures is one that comes in chapter 4. The Israelites have been freed from the hand of Pharaoh through the passover, but he changes his mind and decides to pursue them once again. God leads them to what seems to be the classic "rock and hard place" with the sea behind them and Pharaoh's army coming at them.
Have you ever been backed into a corner? Either when you were little when the bullies trapped you near the bathroom or when you were older and backed into a moral corner? I imagine there have been times like that in your life when you look behind you, and there’s a wall and in front of you and there’s a threat. You’re trapped. Any way you move seems like bad decision. What’s your natural reaction when you get backed into a corner? Psychologists will say that the natural reactions for most people are fight or flight, right? Oh sure, there are times when we just want to slump down next to that wall, lay our head in our hands, cry, call for our mommies, and just give up. So OK, three reactions: fight, flee, or sob. What do…
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There is in this passage, what I call a "predictive cycle," a cycle that is predicting something for the future. When I was in college, in my writing class, we talked about "archetypes." An archetype is an example of something greater that is representative of that greater thing and embodies it in some way. That's kind of what I mean by a predictive cycle. This cycle that we see of slavery and deliverance is a cycle that we see played out here with the Israelites, in the whole redemptive story of humanity, in the story of individuals, and in your and my stories. Here is the cycle:
Bondage --> Death --> First Born --> Blood --> Enemy pursuit --> Waters of Deliverance --> Obedience
You can see this easily in the story of the Exodus:
The Israelites are slaves in bondage to the Egyptians.
The people of God are dying under that slavery, and instead of experiencing the life-giving love of God, they are experiencing the death of slavery to another master.
The firstborn in Egypt and/ or the unblemished lamb/ goat must be given up in exchange for freedom.
The blood is spilt, covering not only the doorposts,…
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One of the key phrases, and possibly the controlling phrase, of the entire Joseph story is this one: "The Lord was with Joseph." [Genesis 39:2; 39:23] This whole narrative, which reads like a dramatic play, has as its central idea that God is with Joseph. The phrase - or a similar one - shows up later in Judges 1:22, "Not the tribes of Joseph attacked Bethel, and the Lord was with them." Clearly, the writer of the Judges saw this controlling idea, and draws it back out here to remind his readers that God has not forgotten them. Let me offer just a couple of quick points on this:
We saw in the creation story that God was literally with Adam and Eve, walking with them and talking with them in the garden. Even though the curse of the fall has come upon the people - including separation from God - hasn't meant that there is no relationship with God. He is still with his people.
God promised Abraham to make a great nation of him, and that he would be God to him and to his people. In other words, God would be present to his people, and be…
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