Category: Scripture

Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “How long must I put up with this wicked community and and its complaints about Me? Yes, I have heard the complaints the Israelites are making against Me. Now tell them this: ‘As surely as I live, declares the Lord, I will do to you the very things I heard you say. You will all drop dead in this wilderness! Because you complained against Me, everyone of you who is twenty years or older and was included in the registration will die. You will not enter and occupy the land I swore to give to you. The only exceptions will be Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.'”

“‘You said your children would be carried off as plunder. Well, I will bring them safely into the land, and they will enjoy what you have despised. But a for you, you will drop dead in this wilderness. And you children will be like shepherds, wandering in the wilderness for forty years. In this way, they will pay for your faithlessness, until the last of you lies dead in the wilderness.'” (vv. 26-33, NLT)

After exploring the land for forty days, the men returned to Moses, Aaron , and the whole community of Israel at Kadesh in the wilderness of Paran. They reported to the whole community what they had seen and showed them the fruit they had taken from the land. This was their report to Moses: “We entered the land you sent us to explore, and it is indeed a bountiful country-a land flowing with milk and honey. Here is the kind of fruit it produces. But the people living there are powerful, and their towns are large and fortified. We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak! The Amalekites live in the Negev, and the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country. The Canaanites live along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and along the Jordan Valley.”

But Caleb tried tried to quiet the people as they stood before Moses. “Let’s go at once to take the land” he said. “We can certainly conquer it.!”

But the other men who had explored the land with him disagreed. “We can’t go up against them!. They are stronger than we are!” So they spread this bad report about the land among the Israelites: “The land we traveled through and explored will devour anyone who goes to live there. All the people we saw were huge. We even saw giants there the descendants of Anak. Next them the we felt like grasshoppers, and that’s what they thought too! ” (vv. 25-33. NLT)

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron and his sons to bless the people of Israel with this special blessing:

‘May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord smile on you and be gracious with you.
May the Lord sho you His favor and give you His peace.’

Whenever Aaron and his sons bless the people of Israel, I Myself will bless them.” (vvv. 22-27, NLT)

Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord fled the Tabernacle. Moses could no longer enter the Tabernacle because the cloud had settled down over it, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.

Now whenever the. cloud lifted from the Tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out on their journey, following it. But if the cloud did not rise, they remained there where they were until it lifted. The cloud of the Lord hovered over the Tabernacle during the day, and as night fire glowed inside the cloud so that the whole family of Israel could see it. This continued throughout all their journeys. (vv. 34-38, NLT)

Next Bezalel made the Ark of acacia wood-a sacred chest 45 inches long, 27 inches wide and 27 inches high. He overlaid the inside and outside with pure gold, and he ran a molding of gold all around it. He cast four gold rings and attached them to its four feet, two rings on each side. Then he made poles from acacia wood and overlaid them withe gold. He inserted the poles into the rings at the sides of the Ark to carry it.

Then he made the Ark’s cover-the place of atonement-from pure gold. It was 45 inches long and 27 inches wide. He made two cherubim from hammered gold and placed them on the two ends of the atonement cover. He molded the cherubim on each end of the atonement cover, making it all one piece of gold. The cherubim faced each other and looked down on the atonement cover. With their wings spread above it, the protected it. (vv. 1-9, NLT)

Then Moses called together the whole community and told them, “These are the instructions the Lord has commanded you to follow. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day must be a Sabbath day of complete rest, a holy day dedicated to the Lord. Anyone who works on that day must be put to death. You must not even light a fire in any of your ones on the Sabbath.” (vv. 1-3, NLT)

Moses immediately threw himself to the ground and worshiped. And he said, “O Lord, if it is true thatI have found favor with You, then please travel with us. Yes, this is a stubborn and rebellious people, but please forgive our iniquity and our sins. Claim us as Your own special possession.”

The Lord replied, “Listen, I am making a covenant with you in the presence of all your people. I will perform miracles that have never been performed anywhere in all the earth or in any nation. And all the people around you will see the power of the Lord-the awesome power I will display for you. But listen carefully to everything I command you today. Then I will go ahead of you and drive out the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.

Be very careful never to make a treaty with the people who live in the land where you are going. If you do, you will follow their evil ways and be trapped. Instead, yiou must break down their pagan altars, and cut down their Asherah poles. You must worship no other gods, for the Lord, whose very name is Jealous, is a Goe who is jealous about His relationship with you..” (vv. 8-14, NLT)

Then the Lord told Moses, “Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones. I will write on them the same words that were on the tablets you smashed. Be ready in the morning to climb up Mount Sinai and present yourself tome on the top of the mountain. No one else may come with you. In face no one is to appear anywhere on the mountain. Do not even let the flocks or heard graze near the mountain.”

So Moses chiseled out two tablets of stones like the first ones. Early in the morning, he climbed Mount Sinai as the Lord had commanded him, and he carried the two stone tablets in his hands.

Then the Lord came down in a cloud and stood there with him: and He called out is own name, Yahweh. The lord passed in front of Moses calling out,

“Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin.. But I do not excuse the guilty. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren: the entire family is affected-even the children in the third and fourth generations.” (vv. 1-7, NLT)

One day Moses aid to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Take these people up to the Promised Land.’ But You haven’t told me whom you will send with me You have told me, ‘I know you by name, and I look favorably on you.’ But if it is true that You look favorably on me, let me know Your ways to I may understand you more fully and continue to enjoy Your ways more fully and continue to enjoy Your favor. An remember that this nation is Your very own people.”

Then the Lord told Moses, “I will personally go with you, Moses, and I will give your rest-everything will be fine for you.”

Then Moses said, “If You don’t personally go with us, don’t make us leave this place. How will anyone know that You look favorably on me-on me and on Your people-if yo don’t go with us? For Your presence among us sets Your people and me apart from all other people on the earth.”

The Lord replied to Moses, “I will indeed do what you have asked, for I look favorably on you, and I know you by name.”

Moses replied, “Then show me Your glorious presence.”

The Lord replied, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will call out My name, Yahweh, before you. For I will show mercy to anyone I choose. But you may not look directly at My face, for no one may see Me and live.” The Lord continued, “Look, stand near me on this rock. As My glorious presence passes, by I will hide you in the crevice of the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove My hand and let you see from behind. But My face will not be seen.” (vv. 12-23, NLT)

It was Moses’ practice to take the Tent of Meeting and set it up some distance from the camp. Everyone who wanted to make a request of the Lord would go to the Tent of Meeting outside the camp.

Whenever Moses went out to the Tent of Meeting, all the people would get up and stand in the entrances of their own tents. They would all watch Moses until he disappeared inside. As he went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and hover over at its entrance while the Lord spoke to Moses. When the people saw the cloud standing at the entrance of they tent, they would stand and bow down in front of their own tents. Inside the Tent of Meeting, the Lord would speak to Moses face-to-face, as one speaks to a friend. Afterward Moses would return to the camp, but the young man who assisted him, Joshua son of Nun, would remain behind in the Tent of Meeting. (vv. 7-11, NLT)