It is vital that we spend time in God’s Word.

But it’s not always easy.

We read a chapter and we don’t know what to get out of it or even how to start to understand it.

I thought I could try to help you get a little something out of what you are reading by providing you with some questions to ask as you look at the text. Good questions are a good start to understanding. Sometimes there will be more questions, sometimes less.

You can do this!

So, get a notebook, a pen, your Bible, take some time to answer the questions, and you may be surprised by all God teaches you.

Exodus 19

1.) If you are trying to read through the Bible in a year, this is where you usually start to struggle. And that’s because, while the opening chapters are exciting, and we are reading a story, it’s like God hits pause here, and instead of a story, we are reading about all these laws, and then particulars about the construction of the tabernacle. So it’s like putting down a novel and picking up a book of law code or a construction manual. Exodus 19-24 is something we call the Mosaic covenant and 25-40 helps Israel understand how to worship and gives a lot of detail about the tabernacle. Because it’s so different, we are tempted to put it down and yet that’s a problem. Can you think of any reasons this part of Exodus might be important?

2.) These chapters are really the heart and soul of the book. While they may seem slow to us there are a number of things that highlight its importance. One, we are going to see God speak directly, which is huge. Two, the whole book of Exodus and some would say even Exodus and Genesis has been waiting for this moment. Think about that for a minute. Begin with Genesis. How does Genesis anticipate this part of Exodus? Now go back to the beginning of Exodus. What does God promise in Exodus 3:12? What might that indicate about the importance of this moment?

3.) How long has it been since Israel came out of Egypt at the beginning of chapter 19? Where do they camp? Now go to Numbers 10:11. How long do they stay here?
How many chapters of the Bible are between Exodus 19 and Numbers 10:11? What might that tell you about what happens here and the story of the Pentateuch? How much you talk about something sometimes shows its importance and God spends a lot of time talking about these laws and the tabernacle, so we can assume these chapters are pretty important.

4.) After Israel camps at the mountain, where does Moses go? (Think about that! What does that tell us about the unique privilege Israel was experiencing at this point? What else does it tell you God’s people need if they are going to accomplish God’s mission?)

5.) How does God describe what He did for the Israelites in verse 4? What three statements does he make about their experience? What image does he use to describe their rescue? What do you think is intended by that picture? (Deuteronomy 32:8-11 expands on this picture. Read that text and note how it describes God’s concern for Israel. What does this tell you about what God is like?)

6.) Where does God say he brought them in Exodus 19:4? God’s about to make a covenant with Israel. But are they in the Promised Land yet? This is important. One scholar explains, “The ratification of the covenant at Sinai, far removed from the land promised to Israel, highlighted the radical difference between YHWH’s relationship with his people and other gods’ relationship with their devotees. In the ancient world, national deities tended to be perceived as divine holders of real estate. Since they were essentially gods of cities and territories, the integrity of the geographic realm was more important than the identity of their devotees. The god of Babylon was Marduk; it mattered little to him who his subjects were, it matter more that they were in his city. His primary relationship with the place, not with the people. The relationship between YHWH and Israel differed radically; indeed, we know of no other ancient Near Easter population that enjoyed a covenant relationship with its god.”

7.) That’s what happened. Why did it happen? What do we know already about the purpose of Israel from the Abrahamic covenant?

8.) This is explaining God’s plan for Israel accomplishing that. What is the if then in verse 5 and 6? What does God say Israel needs to do and what will happen if they do it? (Note, it begins with Israel listening to God. One author explains, “Although most English translations render this something like, ‘If you indeed will obey me,’ we capture the sense better with a more literal translation: ‘if you will indeed listen to my voice.’ What distinguishes YHWH from other gods is that he speaks.” But they are not just to listen, they are to keep his covenant. So Israel’s basic job is to, what?

9.) If they do this, what does God promise them in verse 5 and 6? What do those terms mean? Think especially about the phrase kingdom of priests. What is the job of a priest? Who does God want to be these priests? And who would they be doing this job for? What does this tell you about the purpose of Israel and how God intended Israel to accomplish that purpose?

10.) Let me give you a few long quotes here. Read through them and then try to summarize what you learned. “…the final phrase designates Israel as a particular type of kingdom. Instead of being a kingdom of a particular king, it will be a kingdom marked by priesthood; that is, service of God on behalf of people and vice versa. It will be a ‘kingdom run not by politicians relying upon strength and connivance but by priests depending upon faith in Yahweh, a servant nation instead of a ruling nation.’ Israel will thus redefine the meaning of dominion – service. This will be its distinctive task, its distinguishing characteristic among the world of nations. It will reclaim the lost dominion of humanity.” To say it another way, “As a priest represents the people before God and then represents God to the people, Israel is called to do the same. Israel is called to be a community of priests whose congregation is nothing less than the whole globe. The end of the covenant is not Israel’s own salvation but the inclusion of the nations since ‘all the earth belongs to me.’ The expression ‘holy nation’ underscores the twofold character of Israel: it is set apart to God, and it is visible as such to the rest of the word…It is a holy life lived in community that will display God’s name to the world. Israel will essentially be a ‘shop window’ of God to the world.” “This will be the purpose of the laws at the end of the day. To help Israel know as a nation how they are to image and make God known to the world. Though God is invisible, He will be made visible through the actions of a people that are close to Him.”

11.) Apparently in those days there was a certain way of making treaties. And what happens in the next few chapters follows that pattern. You have a king and you have a servant, superior and an inferior. It would start with getting the servant or the inferior part ready for the coming of the king, which is what happens next.
Read verse 7 and 8. How do the people respond to what God tells them through Moses? Has God given them any laws yet? So who are they really committing themselves to here?

12.) What does Moses do after they respond like that?

13.) What does this tell you about the work of Moses? What work might this point forward to in salvation history?

14.) In verse 9 God says he is going to come to the people in a thick cloud for what purpose? What does God want for the people? What do you think God is trying to signify to the people about Moses and why is this important?

15.) What does God tell Moses to tell the people to do? Why? (When is God going to do this? Take note of this day, because so often in Scripture when God shows up to do something awesome in salvation history, it’s on this particular day.) What does the fact that God has to come down to Mount Sinai and that the people have to consecrate themselves tell you about God?

16.) What stands out to you about how the people are to prepare themselves in verses 10-15? What do you think is the point of all that?

17.) One of the things I love about the Old Testament is this reminder that God is not just an idea. If this were a human king coming to visit people, what would happen? They would have to prepare in somewhat similar ways. And what would happen if you had about 600 thousand people and someone got to close to the human king? There would be security guards everywhere. God is making clear to His people that He is their true and present King. He’s preparing them for His arrival.

18.) Now read verse 16-20 and try to get the picture in your mind. What happens?What do you think all this says about God? What does God tell Moses to warn the people in verse 20? What are we learning here about the presence of God? What does this tell us about our need if we are going to ever live in God’s presence? How does this get us ready for the coming chapters?

Exodus 20

1.) This is a big chapter. What is this chapter famous for?

2.) This chapter is part of a important section of the Bible we sometimes call the Mosaic covenant and it is part of a bigger category in the Old Testament that we sometimes shy away from and that is the Old Testament law. This part of the Scripture is different than what we have been reading so far. We have been looking at stories, and now we get legal code. Legal code is often difficult to read. If I give you the DMV manual, that would be difficult reading. But that doesn’t make it unimportant. This is where you need to remind yourself that you are not just reading another old legal code, this is God’s Word and so while it might be challenging for you, it’s valuable. But it is going to take work.

3.) One place to start is by remembering the purpose of these laws. What promise did God make to Israel back in 19:4-6? How might this chapter connect with what we read there?

4.) So we are not just picking up a set of laws to read all by itself. These laws are connected to a big long story. And actually if you read the first two verses of Exodus 20, you will notice that God reminds you of that. What does God remind Israel of in verse 2?

5.) If I pick up any book and turn to chapter 32 without reading the story that goes before and after, chapter 32 is going to be difficult to understand. That’s especially true if it is a list of laws, which is why I think it helps to rehears where we are in the story before we read through these laws. What’s the bigger story that these laws are part of?

6.) If we look more specifically at the context for these laws we are about to read, we see it’s part of a covenant God’s making with the nation of Israel. So what’s a covenant? A covenant is a “way of expressing and/or a method of establishing and defining a relationship.” What does that tell you about the purpose of the laws we are about to read?

7.) To summarize, God is entering into this covenant with Israel for a purpose. He wants to bless the descendants of Abraham and through them the world. His plan is to restore the creation through Israel and so after delivering them from Egypt and before they enter the land, God enters into an agreement with them and the purpose of this agreement is to enable them to enjoy the blessings He wants to give them and to be a blessing to other nations. Specifically, this covenant teaches Israel how to fulfill that purpose and provides consequences if they don’t. Peter Gentry explains, “This covenant will show them how to be his true humanity. It will direct, guide, and lead them to have a right relationship with everyone else in the covenant community. It will also teach them how to have a right relationship to all the creation, to be good stewards of the earth’s resources. We might say, then, that the Mosaic covenant is given at this time to administer the fulfillment of the divine promises to Abraham and to the nation as a whole and through them to the entire world.”

8.) When we think about the ten commandments, we usually start with the commandments. But, actually it begins before that. How does it begin again? Before the law comes a reminder, of God’s grace. What does that tell us?

9.) What is the first statement in verse 3? What do you think is the significance of the word before?

10.) What does he prohibit them from doing in verse 4? Who was the image of God in the Garden of Eden? How does that help us understand verse 4? What is the reason God gives they should not worship idols? And what does that tell you about the character of God?

11.) God says He is a jealous God. What do you think about that? What does it mean? How is it right for God to be jealous? Why can we be thankful God is a jealous God?

12.) What do these first two commandments have to do with?

13.) How might we disobey these commands today?

14.) What does he tell us we must not do in verse 7?

15.) Our translations don’t help us here. They usually say something like you shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. But the word literally is referring to bearing God’s name or carrying God’s name. Here’s how one scholar explains what is happening. Read this quote. It’s long. But reflect on it and comment on the significance for understanding this command. “It seems like an odd statement — how does one “bear” God’s name? It’s no wonder that interpreters have often gone to other passages (either inside or outside of the Bible) hoping for clarification.  Most assume that “bear the name” is short-hand for something like “bear the name on your lips,” which would be to say the name, or “lift your hand to the name,” which would mean to swear an oath. But there’s a much simpler explanation. We miss it because it involves a metaphor that’s unfamiliar to us. Shortly after the giving of the Ten Commandments at Sinai, God gave instructions to Moses regarding the construction of the tabernacle, which will house the two stone tablets, and the official vestments of the high priest, who will officiate. The article of clothing that is of central importance to Aaron’s position as high priest is a cloth chest apron studded with 12 precious stones. These stones are to be inscribed, each with the name of one of the 12 tribes of Israel. Yahweh instructs Aaron to “bear the names of the sons of Israel” whenever he enters the sacred tent (Exodus 28:12, 29). Aaron literally bears their names. He carries them on his person as he goes about his official duties. He serves as the people’s authorized representative before God. He also bears Yahweh’s name on his forehead, setting him apart as God’s representative to the people. As special as he is, Aaron is a visual model of what the entire covenant community is called to be and do. At Sinai, Yahweh selected Israel as his treasured possession, kingdom of priests, and holy nation (Exodus 19:5-6). All three titles designate Israel as Yahweh’s official representative, set apart to mediate his blessing to all nations. By selecting the Israelites, Yahweh has claimed them as his own, in effect, branding them with his name as a claim of ownership. Because they bear his name, they are charged to represent him well. That is, they must not bear that name in vain. This goes far beyond oaths or pronunciation of God’s name. It extends to their behavior in every area of life. In everything, they represent him. They are his public relations department. The nations are watching the Israelites to find out what Yahweh is like. Not convinced yet? Look at Aaron’s blessing in Numbers 6:24-27. After Aaron’s ordination  as high priest (where he was clothed with the special garments) and the consecration of the tabernacle and people, his first official act was to pronounce this blessing over the people (see Leviticus 9:22). It’s very likely that you’ve heard the blessing before. It’s often used in churches and synagogues: “May Yahweh bless you and keep you; May Yahweh smile on you and be gracious to you;  May Yahweh show you his favor and give you peace.” But have you ever read the following verse? “So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”You see? It’s quite explicit. God put his name on the Israelites as a claim of ownership. They wore an invisible tattoo. They were not to bear it in vain.”

16.) The name of God in Scripture represents who God is, His complete character. What would it mean then to take the name of God in vain? What are some ways people can do this?

17.) What is the command right after not taking God’s name in vain? What do you think is the significance of that? Why is Israel keeping the Sabbath so important? What are they doing when they rest on the Sabbath? What is God teaching the head of the house in verse 10 about leadership? What hint do we get about the purpose of this command in verse 11?

18.) Someone has called the ten commandments Israel’s bill of rights. But notice whose rights the ten commandments are concerned about. First of all God’s. And then others. The writer begins with one’s father and mother. What does it mean to honor one’s parents and what blessing will they experience as a result?

19.) Reflect on the commands not to murder or commit adultery. What insight does Jesus later give you into them when he speaks about them in the Sermon on the Mount?

20.) How does Paul explain the command not to steal in Ephesians 4:28?

21.) What is the command in verse 16 exactly? What do you think this teaches us?

22.) What does it mean to covet? What do you think is the difference between coveting and desiring?

23.) As the people are looking a the mountain in verse 18 and 19, what do they see and what do they say to Moses? What do you think about that? Do you think that is good or bad? What does Moses tell the people is the purpose of God coming to them like that in verse 20? Even in this demonstration of his holiness and wrath and power, God is showing grace because he is teaching his people about his character in order to help them obey Him. Think about how God set up His people for success.

24.) What are some of the things He has done to help them obey these commands?
God has entered into a relationship with Israel, He is speaking with Israel, He is planning to use this nation in a great way, and as you look at verses 22-25, what is God most concerned Israel get right?

25.) What are they not to do? What are they to do?

26.) The last verse in the chapter probably seems strange. What does it say they are not to do and why? But they are meeting with God. We sometimes think of God as just an idea but He’s a person. What would we think of someone’s nakedness being exposed in a worship service? That would be terrible. Ancient religions and ancient religious practices were gross, and there was a lot of sexual sin at the temple, and so from the beginning God’s like, I want you to know, the way you are to do this is to be radically different and there shouldn’t even be a hint of any of that stuff.

Exodus 21

1.) When we think about law in our context, we think about stuff like speeding. There’s a law, it’s very specific, you break it, you get a fine, you don’t pay the fine, you go to jail. So we think in terms of doing, not doing. Breaking, not breaking. But biblically, it’s a little different. This is how someone puts it, “In the world of biblical law, legal code is a form of reasoning with Israel to shape her wisdom: “Keep [the statutes] and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people’” (Deut 4:6). The primary metaphor is not “breaking” the law, but “tending” or “keeping” the instruction (torah) of God, the same terms used for shepherding or gardening. The metaphors for disobedience are “not listening” (lo shama), “rejecting” (parar), and “crossing against” (abar). So, the biblical authors portrayed lawfulness neither as “rule-following” nor as “law-breaking,” but rather as formative. Ultimately, Israel must become the kind of people who exhibited principled justice as concrete examples of living together under God’s kingship.”One scholar explains, “The English word law is both too narrow and too misleading to accurately translate the Hebrew word torah. It is better translated as ‘instruction.’ Torah encompasses a wider scope of material than just laws. And law is not the best word to describe what the Torah contains. Here is why: In modern Western society, law refers to a statue codified by the legislature that indicates either required or prohibited behavior, containing specific penalties that are enforceable by the executive branch of the government. Often their precise details are specified at length. ‘Buckle up – It’s the law’ means that not only is it a good idea to wear a seatbelt in a moving vehicle, it is also unlawful not to do so, leading to a prescribed fine or even the loss of driving privileges. Ancient law didn’t function in the same way. Scholars studying ancient cultures are beginning to recognize that ancient laws were often hypothetical rather than legislative. Lists of any kind were the primary means of demonstrating wisdom.” I’m not sure that means they didn’t use them for legislation, but they were for more than that and they had to be because there were no armed police or jails. This was all happening within the context of a community and maybe just to keep going here, biblical law is intended to make you think. They had been saved by God, and they had a mission, and then these laws were given to them to study and think through how they could fulfill that mission as God’s people, what would that look like. So now and days, if we have a law we might say here’s the law, and here’s every last single way you can violate it and here’s what will happen if you do. But that’s not exactly how it works with biblical law. Instead, it’s giving you some examples based on a principle, and you have to reason and think about how to apply that law. And I guess, in Moses’ day, a lot of times it would have been the elders and judges who would have had to take the law and think through how it applies to particular situations. That’s what some people think is going on here in Exodus 21. And the laws we are going to look at now will make us think for sure. For starters because God doesn’t begin where we would.

2.) What is the heading for this chapter in your Bible? Lots of people have problems with this. And you can understand. What are some reasons people have problems with this even before reading it?

3.) There are some things we don’t always understand however when we read these laws that make them seem more difficult than they are. First of all, it’s talking about a different kind of slavery. This is debt slavery. In other words, someone gets in trouble financially and needs help, and they don’t have loans, so they go to work for another farm to pay off their debt. How another person explains it. “Say you went bankrupt and you’d already sold the farm. Your options at this point were simple: you and your children could starve to death, or you use the only thing you had left (your labour) to pay off your debt and try to get back on your feet. Under this kind of arrangement you would voluntarily and temporarily become part of someone else’s family business, working alongside them and their children for a limited period of time to pay off your debt. All this is hard for us to imagine. But if you have a mortgage or an employment contract longer than a day then, in the ancient world, you would have been called a slave. LinkedIn hadn’t been invented yet, nor had companies or social security. Remember, these were brutal times and options were limited: starve to death in the desert, or work in someone else’s household as a slave. Slavery was everywhere in the ancient world. But God’s laws given through Moses condemned the dehumanising slave trade with the most serious penalty of all. He put measures in place to ensure nobody would go bankrupt and lose the farm in the first place. But he also made some concessions to ameliorate an imperfect reality: the slave trade was death penalty material, but for now you could still do bankruptcy-slavery. Yet even then, he put a huge asterisk on it—the fine print qualifications ultimately undermined the very idea that someone could own another human being.” And another difference, this is a quote as well, but “As a Hebrew bankruptcy slave you kept your rights and dignity even while you worked temporarily for someone else: You could bring lawsuits against your master for mistreatment (other ancient lawcodes allowed masters to sue other people for harming their slaves, but nobody else let slaves take their masters to court!). Your master owned your time and labour but not your body (if they damaged even one tooth of your body you walked free immediately). Your master owned your time and labour but not your soul. You had the right to a religious life, including a day off for the Sabbath, and you retained your identity and protection as part of your family and broader community. And here’s the kicker: Israelite towns were commanded to give refuge to runaway slaves. In any sane slave-owning society, escaped slaves would be punished severely and returned to their masters (those harbouring escapees were also punished, sometimes with death). But in Israel, if you didn’t like the way you were being treated you could simply walk to the next town and they would be obliged to protect you. The reason for this bizarre and backwards rule goes back to the start and their core identity: the nation of Israel was founded by runaway slaves from Egypt (c.f. Deut 15:15).”

4.) So when we read these laws, instead of getting angry right away and dismissing the Bible, we have to be patient and humble and ask questions. One question we might ask is why does this come first after the ten commandments? Look back at the way the ten commandments began again in Exodus 20:2. What do you think might be the connection between that statement and these laws coming when they do?

5.) If you look at these laws, they are not actually about slavery. They are about how to prevent people from taking advantage of others when they are in crisis situations. Why might God want to teach them that here at the beginning?

6.) The slavery Moses is talking about was primarily a way of survival in difficult times or paying off a debt and we see there are some restrictions on it in verse 2. What happens to a slave after six years?

7.) God doesn’t want people to take advantage of others when they are in crisis situations. No one thought about the rights of the poor in these days, and so, this is shocking. Remembering that helps us as we come into verse 4. Because I am not totally sure what’s going on here. In a sense these laws are dealing with hypothetical situations. So what’s happening is that you are a farmer, and you do terribly, and you are in trouble, and so you, have to basically go to another farmer, and work for him until you could pay off whatever debt you got yourself into. If you came single, you would go out single, but if you came in married, you would go out married. In other words, the rich person couldn’t make you work seven years for your debt and then your wife seven years. It was your debt. But then what would happen if you got married to one of your master’s servants while you were working off your debt? This is a situation you have to think about, because the master is actually being generous here, because he’s looking out for his servant, and paying money even to enable him to get married. And probably also the lady herself has a debt, which she owes to the master. So this is where verse 4 applies. One author explains, “This is a different indebtedness situation because the woman is working off a different debt than the man is. And where are the children positioned in all of this? If the master is feeding them, and at a certain age they are helping around the farm, whose debt are they working off, or none at all (working for food)? The wife is considered to be working off a different debt than the husband, and so his freedom has nothing to do with hers. “ What options does God give the servant in this situation?

8.) Specifically, what can the slave choose to do in verses 5 and 6?

9.) God addresses another situation in verses 7-11. Here’s how one author explains it. “The Hebrew term for slave here does not mean a slave girl in the usual sense, since her status is quite different from the male slave. The follow laws safeguard her rights and protect her from sexual exploitation. In the ancient world a father driven to poverty might sell his daughter into a well to do family in order to secure her future security. The sale presupposes marriage to the master or his son. So you can imagine the situation. This man helps this woman, agrees to marry her, and the law is like, you can’t take just advantage of her. You need to let her be redeemed. And if you are not willing to provide for her and treat her like a wife, then she’s free.” So if we think about it like that, and look at these verses, what do we learn about how Israel is to represent God in these kinds of situations?

10.) In verses 12-18, he helps us think through the specifics of some of the ten commandments. What is the punishment for murder in verse 12? What’s the difference between what happens in verse 12 and 13? What does that tell you about God? What do you think we learn in verse 14? (Either he’s saying, even if he is a priest, and he commits murder, he still experiences the consequences. Or even if you are worshiping, this is such a serious sin, you are don’t get to complete the worship, you need to be dealt with, in that moment.)

11.) What command is God applying in verse 15 and 17? What does this say about the importance of this command and the kind of society God wanted in Israel?

12.) What does God say about the kind of slavery we are used to in verse 16?

13.) What do you learn about restitution in verses 18-19?

14.) What happens if a man kills a slave?

15.) Verse 21 definitely seems like a difficult verse. But what if we step back and think about in principle form at least. Imagine you have an employee who is not doing his job. What might we learn from these verses about the right and wrong way to give him consequences for his failure to do that job properly? (And don’t say you can hit them or not hit them. That’s against the law. And I think it’s missing the point. We are trying to draw a principle from a law given to a very different ancient culture for our life after the New Testament with so much more revelation. Get the heart of this.)

16.) What do you learn about what God thinks about a baby in the womb from 22-24?

17.) How does verse 26-28 help you even understand verse 21 better?

18.) These next few verses seem very strange, but they are actually super helpful. So read verses 28-32 and think carefully about what is going on here. Say an owner of an ox knows the ox is dangerous and he’s been warned and he still is careless and the ox kills someone, what is his punishment? Now, how can he get out of that punishment in verse 30? What is imposed on him? And what does he then do for the redemption of his life? So, let’s think about what’s happening. He pays money in exchange or as a substitute for his life. To say it a different way, he is redeemed, set free from punishment because the payment of a price substitutes for his death. That’s a picture of what New Testament truth?

19.) What are we learning about life from verses 33-36?

Exodus 22

1.) What has happened to Israel so far in Exodus? Give just a general answer. And then where is God taking Israel next? Again, just a general answer. But what is God stopping to do here? What do you think is the significance of that?

2.) These are very specific laws that are intended to help Israel live as a nation. Obviously, this is a sinful world and so there need to be laws for a nation to be able to deal with the sin and brokenness in this world. We’re not nation, not a theocracy right now, but what are some of the things we can learn about God and ourselves from these laws.

3.) Read verses 1-4. What do these instructions basically have to do with? What about 5 and 6?

4.) How about veres 7-15? What general issues are these instructions addressing?
Now go back and pick out several of the laws. See if you can identify the basic principle behind the law and how it might shape the way you think today.

5.) Look at verses 16 -17? Who is this law intended to protect? How?

6.) The next few laws in verses 18-24 all deserve the death penalty in Israel. What are these sins?

7.) Bestiality and idolatry are both terrible sins. But what is the extra statement he makes about idolatry that shows how terrible a sin this is? (Do we think about idolatry as being like bestiality, or even worse?)

8.) What is the reason given for not mistreating a sojourner? What does God say will happen if they do mistreat the widow or fatherless child? (We are learning here about imitating God and the way He treats us. The New Testament will pick up on this theme and tell us to be imitators of God!)

9.) What do we learn about God’s attitude toward the poor in verse 25-27? What reason does God give for the way they should relate to the poor?

10.)What do we learn about our attitude toward authority in verse 28? What do you think it means to revile and curse?

11.) What surprising statement does he make at the end of verse 29 and beginning of verse 30? What do you think about that? What are you saying about God if you give him your firstborn? (How important was the firstborn in that society?)

12.) What does God want all of Israel to be? One way they demonstrated their separation to God was in what they ate? By throwing this meat to the dogs, what were they even saying about the difference between human and animals?

Exodus 23

1.) Before we look at Exodus 23 today, read Psalm 19:7-11. Obviously this is not only talking about these specific laws we read here, but the instruction from God we find in all of Scripture, but it does apply to these laws as well. What can a study of God’s law do in our lives?

2.) Now, it’s not always easy! One reason it is not easy is because we are not Israel. And a major purpose of these laws was to serve as part of their constitution. They were designed to help them honor God as a nation. But, even though we are not at the same time in salvation history we can still learn from these laws. We shouldn’t just neglect these other laws, and we shouldn’t apply them directly, instead we need to read them in their context and learn to draw principles from what we are reading. We are no longer under this law. That’s ok. It doesn’t mean we can’t learn from it. It’s kind of like as you grow up, in your family, your parents had more strict rules when you were younger, like about bedtime, maybe or what you ate, and when you are older, they don’t have those same rules, but that doesn’t mean you can’t look back at those earlier rules, and learn something about your parents, and even learn something about life. Now, how do you do that? A great way to derive principles from what you are studying, someone has suggested, is to follow the following basic general pattern as a start: “1.) By diligent study of the text and context, interpret the original intent of the law to the original audience to whom it was directed. What would this have meant for Israel?  2.) Determine the various substantial (not merely superficial) differences between the original audience and modern audience. How are we different? 3.) Determine the underlying universal principle from the prescription or prohibition. What’s the basic principle? 4.) Filter this principle through the progressive revelation of the gospel and New Testament clarity. Is there anything in the New Testament that helps me understand this principle?  5.) Apply the modified universal principle to life today. How might we apply it to day?”
That’s a lot of information! But read verses 1 through 9 and see if you can use this pattern to benefit from God’s instructions there. Summarize what you have learned about what’s important to God? And why?

3.) After instructions regarding how to relate to others in verses 1-9, what kind of instructions do we find in verses 10-19?

4.) The writer describes a six then one pattern in verses 10-12. What are the specifics of this pattern here?

5.) We might think of this as a practical life tip, and there are some definite practical reasons for these commands we will see here, but if we fit this into the story of Israel, what do you think this pattern has to do with their purpose as a nation? (Think Garden of Eden)

6.) What practical reasons are given for these commands here?

7.) God’s laws are good. They are right. They teach theology. But they are also good for us. He shows us grace in giving us His law! What does he tell them they must do in verse 13? What does he tell them they must not do? Why?

8.) In verses 14-17, we learn about several major festivals the nation must celebrate? What are these festivals? What do you think was God’s purpose in establishing these festivals for the people to celebrate every year?

9.) The next two verses describe how to make different sacrifices since Israel would be doing that when they came for these festivals. And then verse 19 ends with a strange command. This is strange, and yet it is one of the commands that is frequently repeated in the Pentateuch. Why? I am not sure, but it is probably because this was a pagan practice in the nations surrounding Israel. It does humble us as we study the law, becasue we know that God has a good reason for all these laws, and we need to work as hard as we can to understand them, but there are limits to our understanding.

10.) Who is God sending before Israel in verse 20? How are they supposed to relate to this angel in verse 21 and 22? What questions do you have about that? What is unusual about this angel? What can he do that you wouldn’t think an angel is able to do? What might that tell you about him? Who might this angel point to?

11.) How confident is God that they are going to be able to enter the land in verse 23?

12.) What does he warn them not to do in verse 24? And what does he tell them to do? What can you learn from that?

13.) What does God promise if they do obey him in verse 25-29? How does that connect to the story of what God’s doing with Israel?

14.) How does God say he is going to drive out the Canaanites? What is the reason he says they must drive out the Canaanites in verse 33?

Exodus 24

1.) After giving these specific laws, what does God tell Moses he wants the leadership of Israel to do?

2.) This is a privilege for all of them, but what does he say for Moses only to do?

3.) Why do you think that’s true? What does that tell you about Moses? (We want to look carefully at Moses and his role, because it gives us a category for understanding the work of Jesus. How might Moses point forward to Jesus even here?)

4.) Moses then comes and talks to the people. What does he tell the people? He meets with God and then he tells people the word of God. And how do the people respond?

5.) Look back to Exodus 19:8, what did the people say there? What’s with this repetition do you think? What’s the significance of what they are saying?
Moses then does what in verse 5? (How might this even help us have confidence about what we are reading here in Exodus?)

6.) After doing this, he rises early in the morning, to do what in verses 5-6? Again, we are seeing a relationship with God requires what?

7.) He then reads the Book of the Covenant to the people. What is this book of the covenant? Again, what’s going on here with all of this in terms of Israel and their purpose? And how do they respond again?

8.) After this Moses does something surprising with the rest of the blood. Why? What is the significance of this?

9.) Moses, Aaron and who else go up where after this? What happens when they get there? What is it like for them?

10.) What does it say God did not do in verse 11? What’s the point of that statement?

11.) What is this all saying about God’s goal for His people and the universe?

12.) What do they do after they “behold God?” What’s the picture here? What does this have to do with the purpose of Israel? What does this point forward to in God’s great plan?

13.) What does God say to Moses after this?

14.) What’s the purpose of the law here? This is important. God describes the reason he wrote these commands down.

15.) Who goes with Moses? Who stays behind and what are they supposed to do?

16.) What happens to the mountain when Moses goes up? How long is it before God calls Moses out in the middle of the cloud?

17.) Why do you think that happens on the seventh day? What does that tell you again about the purpose of creation, the goal of the seventh day even in the creation account, and God’s goal for the universe?

18.) What did the appearance of the glory of the Lord look like to the people of Israel?

19.) What’s that picture teaching you about God?

20.) How long did Moses stay there on the mountain? Why do you think that timing might be significant?

21.) A big part of understanding what God is doing in the future is looking back to what God has done in the past. That’s like a Bible reading principle. You get a picture of what God is going to do by looking back at what God has done. What pictures stood out to you from this chapter that help you anticipate the future?