New Every Morning

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
(Lam. 3:22-23)

Relying on God

In Exodus 15, Moses and the Israelites sing a song of praise to the Lord for helping them escape Pharaoh. As Moses lifted his staff, the waters of the Red Sea parted, and the Israelites were able to cross on dry ground. All night, the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided with a wall of water on their right and their left. All of the Egyptian horses, chariots and horsemen pursued the Israelites into the sea; as soon as the Israelites were safely crossed, the Lord instructed Moses to stretch his hand back over the sea so that the waters would flow back into place at daybreak. The Israelites saw the great power of God against the Egyptians, feared the Lord, and put their trust in Him and in Moses His servant.

Shortly after this miracle, Moses led them into the Desert of Shur. For three days, they traveled without food or water. When they finally came to a place with water, they couldn't drink it because it was bitter (Marah). They began to grumble and complain. Moses cried to the Lord for help. The Lord showed him a piece of wood; he threw it into the bitter water, and it turned sweet, so they could drink it.

Being Tested--What Is It?

The Israelites were beginning a time of testing by God in the wilderness for 40 years until they would reach the border of Canaan, the promised land. They were told to pay attention to the commands of the Lord and keep his decrees, and He would protect them from disease.

In the Desert of Sin, the Israelites were hungry and complained that if only they could still be slaves in Egypt, they would have food to eat! They had already forgotten how far they had come by escaping the Egyptians.

The Lord heard their complaining, and promised to provide them with food. That night, quail appeared for them to eat meat. Then the next morning, a layer of dew covered the camp. When the dew was gone, thin flakes of bread remained. They said, "What is it?" because they had never seen this strange type of food. Moses told them it was their daily bread the Lord would be providing for them.

They had to gather the bread (manna) every morning. This would be a reminder to them that their provision comes from God. They could only gather what they needed for the day. If they tried to store up extra until morning, it would be covered with maggots and smell. On the sixth day, they were allowed to gather double so they would have plenty for the seventh day (Sabbath), a day of rest.

Application

Even today, much can be learned and applied from this Old Testament story. It is good to acknowledge God as the source of what we have. He gives us rules to humble us and keep us mindful of His power and presence. Even when we trust that our needs will be met, the Lord honors discipline and daily work (gathering food). Sometimes the Lord uses other people in the transaction of needs being met (Moses interceded for drinkable water). If we have enough for today, we should be content (not worry about tomorrow). If we work hard while we can, we can enjoy a day of rest!

Joshua at Jericho: The Lord Will Fight for You

When Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua asked him, "Are you for us or for our enemies?" The man replied, "Neither, but as commander of the army of the Lord, I have now come." Joshua bowed face down to the ground in reference to him and asked what message the Lord had for him, his servant? The commander of the Lord's army replied, "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy."

Commander of the Lord's Army

A Long Journey

The Israelites have journeyed 40 years in the desert to finally arrive at the land the Lord had promised to their ancestors. Along the journey, they ate manna from heaven daily and followed the leadership of Moses and Aaron, and then now Joshua. Miraculously, when they reached the flooding waters of the Jordan River, while the Levitical priests carried the Ark of the Covenant, the Israelites walked across the river bed on dry ground. After they were safe at Gilgal, the flood waters returned as before. One man from each tribe (12), placed a stone at Gilgal as a memorial to share with future generations.

The military aged men along the journey had all been circumcised, but while in the desert, none of their sons had been. The Lord God told Joshua to make flint knives and circumcise all the Israelite males before proceeding to Israel. Then they celebrated the tradition of Passover and ate produce from the land of Canaan. The next day, the manna, which they had been receiving for 40 years, ceased. The day following Passover, they began eating produce from the land of Canaan.

The Israelites ate manna in the wilderness for 40 years.

Marching Around the City

Joshua followed the Lord's instructions for how to capture the city of Jericho. They marched around the city one time daily for 6 days, while the priests blew rams' horn trumpets. On the seventh day, they marched around the city 7 times, while 7 priests blew the trumpets. When Joshua commanded on the 7th day, the army shouted and the walls of the city fell, just as the Lord told them it would. 

The Sin of Achan

The Israelites were warned to not take any spoils of war, called "devoted things" of the Canaanites. But one man (Achan, from the tribe of Judah) confessed to taking and keeping a beautiful robe, 200 shekels of silver and a wedge of gold weighing 50 shekels. Achan said he coveted them and took them, and hid them in the ground inside his tent. As a punishment for his disobedience and theft, Achan, his sons and daughters, cattle, donkeys and sheep, tent and all that he had was taken to the Valley of Achor. Fearing the wrath of God on all the Israelites, Joshua implored to know why Achan would disobey and bring on the wrath of the Lord?!

Joshua said in chapter 7:25, "Why have you brought this trouble on us? The Lord will bring trouble on you today." Then all of the Israelites stoned Achan and his family and burned everything. They piled stones on top, and the Bible says, this punishment turned [away] the fierce anger of the Lord.

This passage troubled me as being too severe, but I did read online that this is a parallel to how all of mankind was punished for the sin and disobedience of Adam and Eve. More at this link.

In the New Testament, in Romans 5:18-19, we learn that all of mankind is saved by the obedience of one man--God in human flesh--Jesus Christ. The theme of propitiation of sin is a thread throughout the Old and New Testament. The solution to this ongoing problem of sin is fixed and finished in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for all of mankind by faith. Jesus is described as our advocate (lawyer) who presents himself as the holy requirement that bridges the gap between the sin of mankind and the holiness of God. 

The Lion of Judah, the Lamb of God

All of the city of Jericho was burned, except the silver, gold, bronze, and iron articles were put into the treasury of the Lord's house. By grace, Rahab, and all of her household, were brought out of Jericho before everything else in the city was burned. Because the city of Jericho was given to the Israelites as an inheritance, Joshua pronounced a solemn oath that anyone who would undertake to rebuild Jericho would be cursed by God.

Manna in the Wilderness

On the Way to Canaan

In Exodus 16, the Israelites set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin (a.k.a. Wilderness of Sin), between Elim and Sinai. The "Sin" here does not have the same meaning of the English term "sin," but of a semitic "god of the moon" who was worshiped in ancient times.

The community grumbled to Moses and Aaron because of their lack of food, especially meat, which they had even when they were in slavery in Egypt. The Lord explained to Moses that He would rain down bread from heaven for the people. Their instructions were to gather it daily for 6 days, but on the 6th day to gather twice as much so they could eat leftover manna on the 7th day, a "sabbath" day.

On the way to the Promised Land

When they continued to complain, Moses and Aaron explained that the Lord hears their grumbling, and it is not to them that they are complaining, but to the Lord God.

The Lord said to Moses, “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.’” (Ex. 16:11-12)

They were supposed to only keep what they could eat (one omer, which is 1/10 of an ephah) because in the morning it would spoil. Some of them disobeyed, and the food would stink or get maggots in it.

In the mornings, they all gathered as much manna as they needed, and when the sun grew hot, the manna melted away. On the sixth day, they gathered twice as much—two omers for each person—and the leaders of the community came and reported this to Moses. He said to them,

“This is what the Lord commanded: ‘Tomorrow is to be a day of sabbath rest, a holy sabbath to the Lord. So bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil. Save whatever is left and keep it until morning.’” 

So they saved it until morning, as Moses commanded, and it did not stink or get maggots in it.

“Eat it today,” Moses said, “because today is a sabbath to the Lord. You will not find any of it on the ground today. Six days you are to gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any.”

Nevertheless, some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather it, but they found none. Then the Lord said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep my commands and my instructions? Bear in mind that the Lord has given you the Sabbath; that is why on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Everyone is to stay where they are on the seventh day; no one is to go out.” So the people rested on the seventh day.

The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Take an omer of manna and keep it for the generations to come, so they can see the bread I gave you to eat in the wilderness when I brought you out of Egypt.’” (Ex. 16:21-32)

The Israelites continued to eat manna for 40 years, until they came to the border of Canaan. It is believed that the preserved omer of manna was kept in the Ark of the Covenant for many generations, but it was not there in the time of King Solomon (1 Kings 8:9). 

Water From the Rock

The trial of eating manna in the wilderness was a form of testing for the Israelites. They were supposed to obey the instructions of Moses and Aaron and in doing so, they were obeying God. 

After they traveled from place to place through the Desert of Sin, they camped at Rephidim (see map above), but there was no water for the people to drink (Ex. 17:1). Again, they quarreled with Moses, who replied, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the Lord to the test?”

Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.”

The Lord answered Moses, “Go out in front of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.”

"Water From the Rock" Stained Glass Window

So Moses did this in front of the elders of Israel. And he called the place Massah (“testing”) and Meribah (“quarreling”) because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the Lord saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”

My observation here is that God was trying to teach the Israelites (and really all of us, today) of God's enduring presence (along the journey in the desert), God's provision (manna, quail, water--food), and God's protection (during the battle with the Amalekites). 

In Exodus 17:8-15, the Israelites were attacked at Rephidim by the Amalekites. Moses ordered Joshua to fight them with the sword. As long as Moses could raise his staff and hold it up, they were winning. When he got tired, Aaron and Hur held his hands up for him, one on each side, until sunset.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.” 

Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. He said, “Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.”

I'm looking for an inspiring visual of "The Lord is My Banner," but so far, I have these!