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Bezaleel and Aholiab

BEZALEEL AND AHOLIAB

After God had given the Ten Commandments, He called Moses up into the mountain; where he remained forty days and forty nights. During that time, God told him to speak to the Israelites, asking them to give gold, silver, brass, blue, purple, fine linen, oil, precious stones, and other things, to make a tabernacle or sanctuary, where God would dwell among them. God showed Moses the pattern of this tabernacle, with its coverings, its holy place and most holy place, its ark of the covenant with the cherubims and mercy-seat, its table for the shewbread, golden candlestick, and altar of incense, and the garments for Aaron and his sons, etc.; everything was accurately described by God. Then God instructed Moses as to who could do the work He had commanded to be done, and named two to whom He had given special wisdom and skill: these two were Bezaleel and Aholiab.

When Moses came down from the mountain he called Aaron and all the people of Israel, and told them what God had commanded. The people willingly brought gifts, till more than enough was provided. Then Bezaleel and Aholiab, and other wise-hearted men, worked diligently until the tabernacle and all things belonging to it were made exactly as God had instructed. Some worked in gold and silver, others in brass and wood; wise women spun cloth of blue, purple and scarlet, and fine linen; precious stones were set for the high priest’s ephod and breastplate; and, at last, all was finished. Then we are told “Moses did look upon all the work, and, behold, they had done it as the Lord had commanded.” Then Moses blessed them.

BEZALEEL AND AHOLIAB

The Ten Commandments

THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

The Israelites journeyed onward and encamped before Mount Sinai. There God talked with Moses, and instructed him to remind the people of the great things He had done for them; and to say that if they obeyed Him, and kept His covenant, they should be a peculiar treasure to Him above all people, and a holy nation.

When the people heard God’s message, they answered, “All that the Lord hath spoken we will do.” How happy would they have been if they had always kept this promise! But, alas! they did not do so; and great punishments came upon them in consequence.

God also said that on the third day He would descend upon Mount Sinai; and commanded the people to prepare themselves for that great and solemn event. None were to approach the mount, for if they did so they would die. On the third day, according to the command, the people gathered before Mount Sinai. A thick cloud covered the mountain, which smoked and quaked, and there were thunders and lightnings; a trumpet also sounded exceeding loud, so that all the people trembled. Then God spake from the midst of the fire, and gave the people the Ten Commandments. These you will find in the twentieth chapter of Exodus; and little folks with sharp eyes can read them in our picture.

We are told that “all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking;” and when they saw it they were so much afraid that they stood afar off. How holy is God’s law, and how careful should we be to obey it!

The Ten Commandments

Moses Striking the Rock

MOSES STRIKING THE ROCK

After the Israelites left Egypt they crossed the Red Sea, whose waters divided so that they passed through on dry land. Then they travelled through the wilderness toward Mount Sinai. Passing onward, they wanted water and food; and forgetting the great things God had already done for them, they began to murmur. At a place called Marah they found the water too bitter to drink; so they grumbled, saying to Moses, “What shall we drink?” He asked God; who showed him a tree, which, when cast into the water, made it sweet.

Next the people murmured for food, and God sent them manna, which they gathered every day except the Sabbath; but with all God’s care and kindness the Israelites continued to grumble whenever any difficulty arose. Journeying forward, they entered another wilderness, called the Desert of Sin, and came to a place named Rephidim, where they found no water. They were very thirsty, and came to Moses murmuring and saying, “Give us water that we may drink.” How could Moses do that? He was grieved with them, and said, “Why chide ye with me? wherefore do ye tempt the Lord?” But the people grew so angry that they were ready to stone him. Then Moses told God all the trouble, and God showed him what to do. He was to go before the people, taking the elders of Israel with him, and his rod, and God would stand before him on a rock among the mountains of Horeb. This rock he was to strike, when water would gush forth.

Moses did as God commanded. He went forward with the elders, struck the rock with his rod; and the pure, clear water gushed out, so that all the people were able to drink.

STRIKING THE ROCK

The Flight From Egypt

THE FLIGHT FROM EGYPT

When Moses was forty years old he had to flee from Egypt. He went to Midian, where he dwelt for forty years; at the end of which time God appeared to him, and instructed him to return to Egypt; where he was appointed by God to lead the Israelites from bondage to the land of Canaan. Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and delivered to him God’s command to let the people of Israel go; telling him that if he disobeyed terrible plagues would come upon his land. Pharaoh hardened his heart against God, and refused to let the people go; so ten dreadful plagues were sent, the last of which was that the firstborn of every Egyptian should die, whether it were man or beast. But not a single Israelite was to suffer harm. This plague God said should come in the night; when an angel would pass through the land, destroying the Egyptians but sparing the Israelites.

Each family of the Israelites was commanded, on the evening that God had appointed, to kill a lamb, and to dip a bunch of hyssop in its blood, sprinkling this blood upon the top and side posts of the door. All the houses thus marked God said would be spared when the destroying angel passed through the land. In the night, while the Israelites were, according to God’s command, eating the lambs that had been slain, all ready to depart, a great cry arose among the Egyptians. In every house, from the palace downwards, the eldest child lay dead.

Then the Egyptians arose, and thrust the Israelites out; and they left Egypt, and journeyed towards the Red Sea.

THE FINDING OF MOSES

THE FINDING OF MOSES

Pharoah, becoming alarmed at the increasing power and numbers of the Israelites in Egypt, ordered that every male child who might be born to them should be cast into the river, and drowned. But the wife of a man named Levi felt that she could not give up her babe, and for three months she hid him. When she could hide him no longer, she prepared a basket of rushes, and coated it with pitch, so that it would float upon the river and keep out the water. In this ark she placed her infant son, and hid the ark among the flags and bulrushes on the river-bank, and set the child’s sister to watch it.

Now it happened that the daughter of Pharaoh came with her maidens to bathe in the river; and when she saw the basket she sent one of her maids to fetch it. And when she looked at the child he wept, and she had compassion for him, and said, “This is one of the Hebrews’ children.” Then the child’s sister came forward and said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I call to thee a Hebrew woman that she may nurse the child for thee?” And when the princess said, “Go!” she, the maid, went and called her own mother, to whom Pharaoh’s daughter said, “Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will give thee thy wages.” And the woman took the child and nursed him. And when he had grown, his mother took him to the princess, who adopted him as her son, and called his name Moses, which means drawn out, because she took him from the water. Afterwards he grew to be a great man: he was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians; and we are told, “he was mighty in words and deeds.”

The Finding of Moses

Understanding the Exodus: God’s Plan of Redemption

The Exodus-The Plan of Redemption

  • Nearly four centuries passed after the Israelites came to Egypt in the days of Joseph. “And the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly, and multiplied and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them. Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph” (Exodus 1:7-8). The new king set harsh taskmasters over the Israelites and set them at hard labor in the fields and in constructing cities and walls. This story is rich in typology, for the deliverance of Israel from bondage illustrates God’s plan of redemption for fallen humanity. I Corinthians 10:1-11 teaches that we can use the flight from Egypt as an example for us today.
  • Forty Years in Egypt
    • The Birth of Moses
      • Pharaoh became fearful that the Hebrews would rise up and overthrow the Egyptians, so he commanded the midwives to kill every newborn male Hebrew at the time of birth.
      • “But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive” (Exodus 1:17).
      • Then Pharaoh commanded all his people to destroy the baby boys by throwing them into a river (Exodus 1:22). After Moses was born, he was hid three months by his parents, Jochebed and Amram. When they could no longer hide him in their home, his mother made an ark of bulrushes and waterproofed it with slime and pitch. She hid him each day in the reeds along the river. His sister, Miriam, watched the baby Moses from the shore.
      • One day while on her way to wash herself at the river, Pharaoh’s daughter chanced to find the ark there among the reeds. She had the ark brought to her, and when she opened it, Moses wept and Pharaoh’s daughter had compassion on the small baby. She determined to take the child and bring him up in the palace. Miriam offered to contact a Hebrew woman to nurse the child for the daughter of Pharaoh. “And Pharaoh’s daughter said unto her, Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the woman took the child, and nursed it” (Exodus 2:9). The woman, who was Jochebed, took the child to her home, nursed him, and received wages for nursing her own baby. “And the child grew, and she brought him [Moses] unto Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son” (Exodus 2:10). The same river that could have been the means of destruction of Moses became his salvation, just as Jesus becomes our Savior instead of our Judge if we follow His plan of salvation for us.
    • Moses’ Choice
      • When Moses was grown, he went out one day among his brethren and saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew. He killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. The next day he saw two Hebrews fighting and attempted to separate them. One of them said, “Who made thee a prince and a judge over us? intendest thou to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian?” (Exodus 2:14). Because Moses had acted out of God’s will, his efforts to lead were rejected by the people. He was unprepared at this stage for the task that he would later perform. (See also Hebrews 11:23-29.)
  • Forty Years in Midian
    • Moses realized that his deed was known, and fearing revenge by Pharaoh, he fled to the land of Midian. There he met and married Zipporah, a daughter of the Midianite priest Jethro.
    • Moses’ Call
      • One day as Moses was tending sheep, he beheld a bush burning. Upon closer examination, he was amazed when he saw it was not consumed with the fire. God called to him out of the midst of the bush, giving him his call for his life’s work. God told Moses that He had heard the cries of the people and that He would use him to deliver them from bondage and lead them to their promised land.
    • God Proves Himself to Moses
      • Moses expressed doubts that he could do the job, so God had him to cast down the rod he held in his hand. When he did so, the rod changed into a serpent. God had him pick it up by the tail, and it turned back into the rod. God then told Moses to put his hand into his bosom. Moses obeyed, and when he took his hand out it was white with leprosy. Then Moses was told to thrust his hand back into his garment. When he removed his hand, this time it was healed. Thus he was shown that God could make him victorious over everything that would confront him. Likewise God’s people today can totally trust in the Lord, knowing that He will bring triumph over the devil, the world, and the flesh.
  • Moses the Deliverer
    • Moses Before Pharaoh-Ten Plagues
      • Moses obeyed the Lord, returned to Egypt, went to Pharaoh, and told him that God had said, “Let my people go.” Pharaoh desired to keep the Hebrews in bondage and rebelled against God’s will. Disaster came to Egypt in the form of ten plagues from God. Significantly, God used the things the Egyptians worshiped-frogs, cattle, the sun, and the Nile river-to demonstrate His great power. After each of the first nine plagues, Pharaoh agreed to let the Israelites go, but in each instance, he later had a change of heart. His deceit set the stage for the most dreadul plague yet to come.
    • Passover-Deliverance by the Blood
      • The Lord told Moses to speak to the congregation and tell them to take a male lamb of the first year without blemish for each household. He instructed them to kill the lamb and to apply its blood to the two doorposts and the lintel of each house. They were then to roast the lamb and eat it that night, along with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. They were to eat in haste with shoes on their feet, belts on their waist, and a staff in their hand, because it was time to leave Egypt. At midnight the Lord passed through the land of Egypt and killed the firstborn of every household that did not have blood upon the doorpost. When he saw blood on the doorpost, He passed by that house and the inhabitants inside were safe.
      • Salvation in this age is dependent upon the blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ. “For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us” (1 Corinthians 5:7). The blood of Jesus must be applied through obedience to the gospel. If the Lord did not find blood applied to the doorpost, instant death resulted. The blood of the innocent lamb is symbolic of the blood of the Lamb of God that delivers from spiritual bondage.
    • Deliverance through the Red Sea
      • Pharaoh at last agreed to let the Hebrews go. The Lord led them out of Egypt with a pillar of fire by night and a pillar of cloud by day (Exodus 13:21). After the people left Egypt, Pharaoh changed his mind again and sent his army after the Israelites. God led the Israelites to the Red Sea. When the people saw Pharaoh’s chariots closing in on them, they cried out against Moses. Moses told the people, “Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever’ (Exodus 14:13). Moses lifted his rod, and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night (Exodus 14:7-21). The people miraculously crossed over upon dry ground with the waters as a great wall on either side. In every situation the Lord will always make a way of escape for His people. (See I Corinthians 10:13.) The Egyptians were in pursuit, but as soon as the Israelites got across, the Lord had Moses to stretch out his hand over the sea. The waters fell on the Egyptians and they were all drowned. “And Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore” (Exodus 14:30). Salvation is the whole process by which Christ rescues a person from sin and makes him a child of God.
  • Jesus Christ rescues from sin and death; He restores the soul, and He puts a new song into the heart.
  • In typology, Egypt represents bondage, or sin. The Red Sea is a type of baptism for “all our fathers.. baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea” (I Corinthians 10:1-2). A future lesson will show that entering the promised land is a type of receiving God’s promise. There were battles to be fought, giants to face, and walls to bring down. Thus we see God’s plan of salvation: repentance (leaving Egypt), baptism (crossing the Red Sea), and moving into the promise of God (the Holy Spirit).

Understanding the Exodus: God’s Deliverance of Israel

Exodus = to exit
Exodus 3:9(NKJV)
“Now, therefore. behold. the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and | have
also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them.
Exodus 3:10(NKJV)
“Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people,
the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”
  • Author
    • Moses
  •  Date
    • About 1400 B.C.
    • Moses wrote Exodus during the forty years in the wilderness
  • Theme
    • Redemption
    • Deliverance
  • Purpose
    • God delivering His people from bondage and developing them as a prosperous possessors of His promises
    • Exodus isa continuation of Genesis dealing with the development of a small family of 70 people who migrated to the land of Egypt under Joseph’s leadership. The Israelites grew into a large nation of millions. The Hebrews lived in Egypt for 430 years most of them in bondage. Exodus means “to exit” or “out of.”
  • Content
    • Moses God’s Called Leader: Exodus 1:1-4:31
      • Exodus 3:10 (NKJV) Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”
      • God calls with a purpose!
      • If God calls you to do something, then with His help you can do it!
    • The Contest with Pharaoh Exodus 5:1-13:19
      • Exodus 5:1(NKJV) Afterward Moses and Aaron went in and told Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness.”
    • From Egypt to Mount Sinai: Exodus 13:20-19:2
    • Covenant and Law Exodus 19:3-24:8
      • Ten commandments Exodus 20:1-17
      • Exodus 19:5(NKJV) “Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine.
      • Exodus 19:6(NKJV) And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel. “
    • Tabernacle Exodus 24:9-40:38
      • Exodus 25:8(NKJV) And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.
  • Christ in Exodus
    • Moses is a type of Christ as “The Deliverer”
    • Aaron is a type of Christ as “The High Priest”
    • The Passover Lamb
    • I AM WHO I AM
    • The Tabernacle as Christ Dwelling with His people