God's attempt to kill Moses.....

Hi, I read this recently also and was shocked too. My conclusion is that Moses was bought up in Egypt 40 years with Egyption religion. When he went into the desert he met with his (too be) family who had good understanding of Israels history (they knew about Mt Sinai etc). They were his new mentors and would have told him all they knew (he was there for 40 years)I think his refusal to circumcise was either: he just forgot what he was taught, or he deliberately didnt do it. Thankfully his wife new and took action..just my view, be blessed always

which just reminds me how much we need each other (mentors, friends, husbands/wives etc)

Well, when I first read this Scripture, my reaction was...
eeewwwww!?

LOL!

I'm still trying to understand it fully myself. I guess it's "just one of those [OT] verses", lol.

ok, here's the explanation from "The Quest: Study bible":

Exodus 4:24
This passage is confusing. Some think the word Moses should be replaced with Moses' son. Others disagree. Either way, the focus is that Moses' disobedience led to dire consequences. Apparently Moses had ignored God's command to circumcise one of his children (Gen. 17:10-14). Some think his wife, Zipporah, a Midianite, was especially opposed to the rite. Circumcision, however, was a symbol of obedience and consecration to God's covenant. Before going to Pharaoh, then, Moses had some unfinished family business to take care of.

I have The Quest Study Bible as well. Good book.

agree, it's a really good book, but sometimes it takes me a really long time to get through the bible because i keep getting distracted by the explanations...

You folks might find this interesting:
Exodus 4:24

And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him.


[In the inn] Or "resting place." See <Gen. 42:27> note.
_
[Met him, and sought to kill him] Moses was attacked by a sudden and dangerous illness, which he knew was inflicted by God. The word "sought to kill" implies that the sickness, whatever might be its nature, was one which threatened death had it not been averted by a timely act. Zipporah believed that the illness of Moses was due to his having neglected the duty of an Israelite, and to his not having circumcised his own son; the delay was probably owing to her own not unnatural repugnance to a rite, which though practiced by the Egyptians, was not adopted generally in the East, even by the descendants of Abraham and Keturah. Moses appears to have been utterly prostrate and unable to perform the rite himself.

Exodus 4:25

Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.


[Sharp stone] Not "knife," as in the margin. Zipporah used a piece of flint, in accordance with the usage of the patriarchs. The Egyptians never used bronze or steel in the preparation of mummies because stone was regarded as a purer and more sacred material than metal.
_
[Cast it at his feet] Showing at once her abhorrence of the rite, and her feeling that by it she had saved her husband's life.
_
[A bloody husband] Literally, "a husband of blood," or "bloods." The meaning is: The marriage bond between us is now sealed by blood. By performing the rite, Zipporah had recovered her husband; his life was purchased for her by the blood of her child.

Exodus 4:26

So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision.


[So he let him go] i. e. God withdrew His visitation from Moses.
Moses sent Zipporah and her children back to Jethro before he went to Egypt, <Exo. 18:2>. The journey would have been delayed had he waited for the healing of the child.
(from Barnes' Notes)

We need to understand the OT in light of the teachings of the NT. Please be patient and follow through with me on this. I do hope that you would benefit from my research here:

Certainly this is not the only place where we face difficulty understanding the Word of God. Here I have some more references for you: (from Exodus NIV)

1. It seems to me that all the cattle of Egypt perished in 9:5,6. Where did the cattle in 9:18-20 come from?

2. 10:27-29 contrasts 11:9-10 and 12:31. Why did Moses break his promise amd apeared before the Pharoah?

3. Is there any historical proof that the Jews flew out of Egypt as explained in 19:4?

4. How should we understand this: Chapter 24

9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:
10 And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.
11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

Did they really see God?

5. 33:11 says that Moses saw God face to face:

11 And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle.

But 33:20 says:

20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.

6. How should one understand this as explained in chapter 34:

29 And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses' hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him.
30 And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him.
31 And Moses called unto them; and Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned unto him: and Moses talked with them.
32 And afterward all the children of Israel came nigh: and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD had spoken with him in mount Sinai.
33 And till Moses had done speaking with them, he put a vail on his face.
34 But when Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he took the vail off, until he came out. And he came out, and spake unto the children of Israel that which he was commanded.
35 And the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face shone: and Moses put the vail upon his face again, until he went in to speak with him.

What type of veil was this?

In my humble estimation, the key to all this is the explanation of Apostle Paul (about chapter 34 of Exodus) given in II Corinth 3: 12--

2 Corithians 3: 12Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. 13We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away. 14But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. 15Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. 16But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.


You can see here how Apostle Paul puts versus 14 against versus 13. That is they were wrong in saying that the veil was on Moses' face. It was rather on their heart. And notice how he says that unless they believe in Christ, that veil will not be taken away (14). Additionally, Paul refers to OT as Moses, where he says, "Moses is read". Moreover, to make sure that we understand the whole thing in a spiritual way, he adds: "the Lord is Spirit". I understand it now that the VEIL MEANS A LACK OF UNDERSTNDING OF THE WORD OF GOD. "16But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away."

It is quite interesting to note the explanation that Apostle Paul gives here is very dfferent from a literal reading of Chapter 34. There was no physical and literal veil! The veil is a lack of understanding of the Word of God. Moreover to Apostle Paul the word "Moses" means "Old Testament". Let us apply these guidelines and understand the spiritual teaching behind the scriptures.

I will be looking for your comments on this.

Originally posted by debs
My conclusion is that Moses was bought up in Egypt 40 years with Egyption religion. When he went into the desert he met with his (too be) family who had good understanding of Israels history (they knew about Mt Sinai etc). They were his new mentors and would have told him all they knew (he was there for 40 years)

Click to expand...

Deb: Forgive me, but what on earth are you talking about??????

And why is this passage so "shocking"????