Judges 17-18
This is the first of two snapshots given to show the depth of the religious confusion that followed when Israel refused to love and obey the Lord. The first story deals with the religious apostasy and the second deals with the moral apostasy. Looking at Romans 1:18-32, you see that religious confusion always precedes moral confusion.
We will get two more views into this time period in the Book of Ruth and in the early history of 1Samuel. Ruth will show some confusion, but overall, people who followed God. 1 Samuel will show one family that seems fairly balanced, but it will also show a corrupt priesthood and the defiled worship at the Tabernacle.
Judges 17
What stands out in this story is the sincerity of the mixing of the true and the false. These people are highly sincere and couldn't be more lost.
The time when this takes place might be very important. Look at 18:30. It identifies the Levite as "Jonathan the son of Gershom, the son of Moses…." A couple of considerations here. In most copies of the OT, Moses' name is found. It is thought that a well meaning scribe added an "n" to turn "Moses" into "Manasseh" and get Moses off the hook. They have so many copies of the OT that they can see that this is an error. Also, it is possible that Jonathan was not the son of Gershom, but a grandson or great grandson, etc. There are instances of a grandson being called the son of someone and the generations in between are skipped.
However this works out, there are two terrible dynamics at work here. First, this shows that after Joshua's generation died (Joshua told the people in his farewell speech to put away their foreign gods), the nation sank into almost immediate spiritual confusion. Gershom, Moses' son, would have been that generation of elders who lived with Joshua. Jonathan would have been the next generation. Second, it means that even those closest to the truth, the family of Moses, became too busy to really know the Law (Bible) well. The system God set up, and the Nation He created, could only function if everyone obeyed. If the people didn't worship, they wouldn't support the Levites. If the Levites had to fend for their own living, they couldn't learn and teach the Law as they were supposed to. It was all very interconnected. They didn't obey and the nation fell apart immediately.
Vs. 1-6
Notice the editor's note in verse 6. That means this is written during the time when there was a king, and order was taking root.
V. 2 the mother praises God and then dedicates the money to God, to make an idol. And they were sincere in their belief and service, and totally displeasing to God. How awful.
Some of what she did here was to remove the curse she put upon whomever stole the money.
V. 4 Either she made two images or it was simply one process, the wooden image, covered with silver.
V. 5 Micah's shrine is a little, eclectic temple, filled with something from all the gods of the land. Notice that he has an ephod. I think the ephod was a tool for discerning the will of the gods. In Israel, the ephod held the Urim and Thummim. In chapter 18, I think, it gets used.
God had put the ephod with the high priest at the Tabernacle. One aspect of our need and worship is to find answers to our questions. The key is really the relationship with God, on His terms, not ours. Still, God set up a way for answers to be found. All you had to do was go to the Tabernacle. Well, if the Tabernacle was far away, and if the priests and Levites couldn't be trusted, why not have your own ephod and your own Urim and Thummim? This got Gideon in trouble and we see here, in this story, it began years before Gideon, in fact, right after Joshua died.
Vs. 7-13
This brings the confusion to a stellar level. A Levite of the best upbringing, totally lost.
V. 13 is an incredibly ignorant and sincere statement.
Joshua 18
V. 1 Notice again that this is a commentary given at a later date to explain the sin and confusion of this particular time in Israel's history. Again, you don't flaunt your ignorance in your national literature, unless this isn't national literature, but the record of God's redemptive working with humans, sick with sin.
The tribe of Dan never controlled the land of their inheritance.
Vs. 5-6 I think this is where the Levite used the Urim and Thummim to give them advice.
Vs. 30-31 Dan as a tribe set up official worship away from the Tabernacle. Some of the tribe of Dan stayed in the south on the original homestead and were spared this apostasy: Samson's parents for example.
In Revelation 7:2-8 when the 144,000 are selected to give testimony during the Tribulation, there is no mention of the tribe of Dan. The presumed reason is that Dan was the first tribe to fall into total idolatry and apostasy.
That is to say, the punishment for what they did here, is that they were removed as a tribe of Israel. Those who were true to the Lord would have been absorbed into the other tribes through intermarriage. After the exile, too, many people lost track of their genealogy and family tree.
It is obvious that our "need" for spiritual connection can be sincere and still be controlled by the power of sin in us. We cannot deny the need, but we can deny God and make "spirituality" what we define. This is tragic and true. What is alarming in this story is that it only takes one generation to fall into total confusion. That is very sobering, especially with our desire today not to be bored and to have our needs met. Our churches have been built, in previous generations, by men and women committed to the truth and they sat through boring sermons in very plain services being built on very strong teaching. I'm not confident that same emphasis exists today. As a result, and all the studies show it, our biblical literacy is plummeting. We have more resources than any generation that has ever lived, yet we insist that reading the Bible is just not "the way I learn." And we don't sit through sermons that are full of teaching and content. Paul's command to Timothy to preach the Word urgently, because people would turn from listening to the truth and seek teaching that tickled their ears, falls on deaf eyes.
John 3:1-21
V. 3 Jesus' words are trying to force Nick away from his focus on the signs, to what was going on behind the signs. Even though Nick was a "spiritual leader," he fixated on the physical.
"Born again" is the right interpretation as seen in Nick's question of crawling back in his mother's womb. He understood what Jesus meant, but the spiritual dimension was too deep for him.
V. 6 Jesus is trying to get Nick to see that before there is entrance into heaven, there has to be a spiritual birth. Like most religious people, Nick focused on behavior and rules. Sin is the most powerful force on the earth. Without a new spiritual life (the breaking of sin's power in repentance and forgiveness and regeneration) and the help of the Holy Spirit, every minute, every day, leading us in the Word to obedience following our Savior, we'd be toast.
V. 8 The wind illustration simply says there are things you can't see but they are real. Spiritual life is real. The same word for wind also means spirit.
V. 14 So what is the point here? I think it is that the cure for those people was spiritual. It didn't come through medicine or cutting the wounds or sucking out the poison. It came transmitted spiritually through faith. But, you had to believe and you had to look at the brass serpent. In the same way…..
V. 16 This is one of the most well known verses in the Bible for good reason. It is the Gospel in a sentence, beginning with God's love and ending with our salvation in Christ.
Vs. 17-21 I memorized these verses the first year I gave my life to Christ. In fact, I think they were a part of the Awana leader's memory verses, and not knowing any better, I thought I was supposed to memorize them because I was an Awana leader. Actually, I was overwhelmed by the timelessness and simplicity of this truth.
Psalm 104:1-23
What a beautiful psalm. But, what is the point for us as disciples? What is the intent of the writer, God?
Notice that verse four is quoted in Hebrews 1:7, where "winds" mean spirits. Interesting that this word is used with "ministers" as it talks about God's control of His created world.
V. 11 The reference to a wild donkey. When you read through the Bible year after year you get all these random connections. In Genesis 16:12, God says that Ishmael will be a "wild ass of a man." Here you find that term and it is positive and strong and blessed by God, as Ishmael was.
V. 15 I have to laugh because I looked in a commentary and it mentioned the oil and food but skipped the "W" word. God made it for a purpose, but like all the good things God made, there needs to be control.
V. 19 Notice that the creation of the moon and sun is mentioned for the same purposes expressed in the creation account in Genesis. This means, especially given that they were created on the 4th day, that their sole purpose was for us to mark times and seasons, day and night. There was already light for 3 days before God made the sun. How big, amazing, is our Lord?
Notice the mentions of power, provision, protection and control in this psalm.
So, what does this psalm say to you? How did God intend this psalm to strengthen our hearts?
This is a very fitting place to put this video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CBNE25rtnE&feature=related
Proverbs 14:20-21
I think verse 21 is telling the rich guy in verse 20 to make friends with the poor, his neighbor in both verses. That sure sounds like, "Love your neighbor as yourself," to me. Amazing where you find it.
If you’re reading along and don’t have a One Year Bible, click on this link Every Day in the Word. If that doesn't work, go to http://www.gnpcb.org/esv/devotions/ and click on “Every Day in the Word.”
I'm writing these comments to and for those who are following a One Year Bible and interested in growing deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the growth of a discipleship culture in the church. Groups of 3-4 disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to reach out and make disciples who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal manual we have and key to our growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here or what we are to be doing. My comments are only meant to provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of God's plan of redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are designed to keep us focused on Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their growth as disciples, disciples making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a more descriptive commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary. It's keyed to the NIV, so the result is, the commentators are constantly telling you what the Greek or Hebrew is. That never hurts.
I am not endorsing any particular One Year Bible; in fact, I read something you don't, die revidierte Lutherbibel 1984.
Anyone reading along with us is welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their own observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular tradition or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as I understand it.
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