to continue from post #92
God gave the COI the calendar while they were still in egypt (ex 12:2).
then he instituted the passover which was tied to the tenth plague that was placed on the egyptians (ex 12:3-13).
after that the Feast of Unleavened Bread:
Exodus 12:14-16 ( NKJV ) 14So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance. 15Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. 16On the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No manner of work shall be done on them; but that which everyone must eatthat only may be prepared by you.
he gave the passover that was to point to the Christ and then a feast of seven days followed. during the feast days the first day of the feast and the seventh day of the feast was a sabbath.
it is interesting that God gives them sabbath commands while they were still in egypt.
in ex 15, notice:
Exodus 15:26 ( NKJV ) 26and said, If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.
three days after leaving the red sea, the bible shows clearly that the Lord had commandments and statutes before sinai, (also gen 26:5).
Exodus 16:1 ( NKJV ) 1And they journeyed from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came to the Wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they departed from the land of Egypt.
a month and a half later God says this to them:
Exodus 16:4-5 ( NKJV ) 4Then the Lord said to Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not. 5And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.
it is pretty clear that God had law before sinai, this is a fact that cannot be disputed.
now let's look a little closer:
Exodus 16:23 ( NKJV ) 23Then he said to them, This is what the Lord has said: Tomorrow is a Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord. Bake what you will bake today, and boil what you will boil; and lay up for yourselves all that remains, to be kept until morning.
here, before the COI gets to mt. sinai, God reveals His Sabbath to them. the sabbath existed way before sinai (gen 2:2-3). another fact that cannot be refuted!
Exodus 16:25-30 ( NKJV ) 25Then Moses said, Eat that today, for today is a Sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field. 26Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be none.
27Now it happened that some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather, but they found none. 28And the Lord said to Moses, How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My laws? 29See! For the Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. 30So the people rested on the seventh day
will continue, have to go watch the president's speech.
(continue)
thanks to YS, for your insight.
it's interesting that God says "whether they will
walk in My law".
the law expresses God's ways!
Exodus 18:13-23 ( NKJV ) 13And so it was, on the next day, that Moses sat to judge the people; and the people stood before Moses from morning until evening.
14So when Moses father-in-law saw all that he did for the people, he said, What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit, and all the people stand before you from morning until evening?
15And Moses said to his father-in-law, Because the people come to me to inquire of God.
16When they have a difficulty, they come to me, and I judge between one and another; and
I make known the statutes of God and His laws.
17So Moses father-in-law said to him, The thing that you do is not good.
18Both you and these people who are with you will surely wear yourselves out. For this thing is too much for you; you are not able to perform it by yourself.
19Listen now to my voice; I will give you counsel, and God will be with you: Stand before God for the people, so that you may bring the difficulties to God.
20And you shall teach them the statutes and the laws, and show them the way in which they must walk and the work they must do.
21Moreover you shall select from all the people able men,
such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness;
this is interesting, to teach them to walk in the ways of God, after His statutes and judgements, and what about paul learning from the law?
Romans 7:7 ( NKJV ) 7What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary,
I would not have known sin except through the law.
For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, You shall not covet.
interesting indeed! paul says that he would not have known covetousness but for the law, and here we have jethro telling moses to pick men that
"such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness".
men of truth, and hating covetousness! wonder how jethro knew about covetousness, but i'm sure scratch and frog have answers for this.
no matter, i'll answer for you. there was law before sinai and the proof is in the bible.
now continue,
and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.
22And let them judge the people at all times. Then it will be that every great matter they shall bring to you, but every small matter they themselves shall judge. So it will be easier for you, for they will bear the burden with you.
23If you do this thing, and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all this people will also go to their place in peace.
after the COI left rephidim, they reached sinai. the COI was already living under the terms and conditions of the covenant, for three months, by the time they reached sinai (ex 19:10). just like the christian today is living by the terms and conditions of the new covenant.
three days after the COI reached sinai, God gave them the covenant, entered into a marriage arrangement with them.
God discussed the details of the covenant agreement (ex 19). and then spoke the covenant to them (ex 19 -23).
God gave the COI the moral law (ex 20), the law that, if broken, constitutes sin (1jn 3:4).
then, the statutes and the judgments (ex 21-23).