Exodus 12:37-13:22 Dear RTB’ers, Today, Israel’s departure from Egypt and instructions for celebrating the Passover and for setting aside the firstborn. As far as I know, our reading yesterday and today are the only Biblical instructions for how the Israelites were to celebrate the Passover. By contrast, the setting aside of the firstborn males is …
Monthly Archives: May 2024
May 21 / Exodus 12:1-36
Exodus 12:1-36 Dear RTB’ers, The Passover. Today we get 28 verses of instruction and preparation, then eight verses of action. And the instruction is given with detail: the tenth day, the fourteenth day, the twenty-first day; year-old male lamb, unblemished, roasted; unleavened bread, bitter herbs; belt, sandals, staff; blood, hyssop, lintel, doorposts. And the people …
May 20 / Exodus 10-11
Exodus 10-11 Dear RTB’ers, Exodus 10-11, two plagues today – the eighth and ninth, locusts and darkness – and the promise of another, the final plague, the death of the Egyptian firstborn. Two days ago I spoke of Pharaoh wanting to compromise with Moses: So Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to sacrifice to …
May 19 / Exodus 9
Exodus 9 Dear RTB’ers, Exodus 9, three plagues today – livestock deaths, boils and hail. Again the Lord distinguishes between the Egyptians and the Hebrews, in both the fifth and seventh plagues. The fifth plague, …behold, the hand of the LORD will come with a very severe plague on your livestock which are in the …
May 18 / Exodus 8
Exodus 8 Dear RTB’ers, Exodus 8, three plagues today – frogs, gnats, and flies. Pharaoh is beginning to see the power of the Lord, possibly swayed by his own magicians. (Ex. 8:19) As a result, he begins to compromise. During the plague of frogs, he seems to relent: Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and …
May 17 / Exodus 6:10-7:25
Exodus 6:10-7:25 Dear RTB’ers, Good morning, folks. I’m trying to get back on track here. I’m still distracted by other things, but we move on! The writer of Exodus gives us a small genealogy, covering lightly only Reuben and Simeon before moving on to detail with Levi. His clear intent is that we know who …
May 16 / Exodus 4:18-6:9
Exodus 4:18-6:9 Dear RTB’ers, Moses’ first encounter with Pharaoh: Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go…’” (v. 5:1a) Actually, the first of many encounters and the first of many rejections by Pharaoh to Moses’ requests. An aside: I’ve wondered if this …
May 15 / Exodus 3-4
Exodus 3-4 Dear RTB’ers, Still no word on my brother, Ron. We’ll drop by there as we leave our hotel, headed for home. Back on May 6 I mentioned Scriptural incidents of the Lord having long one-person conversations, and I mentioned His appearing as a burning bush to Moses in Exodus. That’s where we are …
May 14 / Exodus 1-2
Exodus 1-2 Dear RTB’ers, A very late post… Today was “ministry” for my brother, Ron. It’s a long story to recount the “swamp” that he has built for himself. For now, he had a late surgery and was still in postop late, so we haven’t yet seen him. So, tomorrow morning… Today we begin Exodus; …
May 13 / Acts 12:1-24
Acts 12:1-24 Dear RTB’ers, Chapter 12, our last reading in Acts for a while. James is killed; the Jews are happy; Peter is imprisoned, and the disciples are praying; Peter is miraculously released; Herod has the prison guards killed because his soldiers could not find Peter in the prison; and then Herod suffers big time! …