January 26 / Exodus 29-31

Exodus 29-31 The idea of holiness permeates today’s reading even more than yesterday’s. The word “holy” occurs 22 times in these three chapters (in the ESV, at least). Perhaps we should pay attention… My sense is that holiness is practically a foreign concept for most 21st-century Western evangelicals. We can easily understand the idea of …

January 25 / Exodus 26-28

Exodus 26-28 Reading through the instructions for building the Tabernacle, with all its pieces and parts, materials and associated accessories, one can easily get distracted by (or perhaps mired in) all the details: curtains of just such a size, so many supporting poles separated by just so many cubits, clasps of gold, clasps of bronze, …

January 24 / Exodus 22:16-25:40

Exodus 22:16-25:40 The LORD speaks the Ten Commandments to the entire congregation of Israel, and the experience is so terrifying that the people beg Moses to act as an intermediary (Ex. 20:18-21). The LORD accommodates them and conveys the rest of the Law to the people indirectly through Moses. And there is quite a bit …

January 23 / Exodus 19-22:15

Exodus 19-22:15 Today God declares The Ten Commandments to the people of Israel. We often think of these Ten Commandments as the essential core of the Law, even as the bedrock of our own current legal code. They shape what we think of as right and wrong. They are, in fact, good for us, showing …

January 21 / Exodus 12:37-15:27

Exodus 12:37-15:27 The LORD said to Moses, “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.” Exodus 13:1-2 Having just passed over all the firstborn of Israel, both of man and of beast, the LORD now lays …

January 20 / Exodus 10-12:36

Exodus 10-12:36 In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD’s Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in …