Old Testament Scriptural Summaries and Commentary
Exodus, Chapters 15-20; 31-34 Gospel Doctrine Class
Sunday School Lesson 14 - "Ye Shall be a Peculiar Treasure unto Me"
Book reference, The Old Testament Made Easier, Part 2,
by David J. Ridges
Publisher Cedar Fort,
Springville, Utah
Exodus 15 - 16 Murmuring and manna
After the Israelites see the stunning destruction of
Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea, they rejoice and praise the LORD. And Israel sings the song of Moses. “And with
the blast of thy nostrils the waters were gathered together, the floods stood
upright as an heap, the depths were congealed [dry ground] in the heart of the
sea” (v. 15:8). "Who is like unto
thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful
in praises, doing wonders?" (v. 1:11).
And Miriam the prophetess the sister of Aaron (and Moses) took a timbrel
[a small drum or tambourine; a tabret]
in her hand and all the women followed her with timbrels and dancing. And Miriam said, "Sing ye to the LORD,
for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into
the sea" (see vv. 15:1-21).
“So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea," and
they went three days into the wilderness of Shur and found no water to drink at
Marah as it was bitter. And the people
murmured against Moses saying, "What shall we drink?" Then Moses
cried unto the LORD and the LORD showed him a tree that when he cast it into
the water, "the waters were made sweet" (vv. 15:24-25).
And the "whole congregation" of the children
of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron that their food brought with them
from Egypt had run out and they had no food.
And the LORD spoke to Moses and He provided quail in the evening and a
bread-like substance called manna, in the morning. And the people were told to gather only as
much manna as they needed for one day except on the sixth day when they were to
gather twice as much for the next day which was the Sabbath. And, on that day, no bread was found on the
ground. And some of the people were
disobedient and the LORD said unto Moses, “How long refuse ye to keep my
commandments and my laws?” (vv. 16:28). "And
the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like coriander
seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey" (v. 16:31).
In Numbers 11:8 more information about
manna is found: "And the people went about and gathered it and ground it
in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it:
and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil."
And the children of Israel ate manna for forty years
until they went into inhabited land on the borders of Canaan (vv. 16:26-35).
Exodus 17 - 18 The Miracle of the water; Amalekite war; Jethro comes to help
The children of Israel continued their journeys into
the wilderness. And there was murmuring about having no water so Moses cried to
the LORD as the people were threatening to stone him. The LORD told Moses to take the elders of
Israel and his rod and go to a rock that will be shown to him on Horeb (Sinai). At that place, Moses strikes the rock and
water gushes forth so that all the people may drink (vv. 17:1-7)
Now the Amalekites, the descendants of
Esau, sweep out of the hills and attack the Israelites. Moses puts a young Ephramite, Joshua, in
charge and sends him to battle the following day. When the battle begins, Moses stands on the
top of the hill with the "rod of God" in his hand and the Israelites
prevail. When he becomes tired and lowers
his arms, the Amalekites prevail. Finally,
Aaron and a man named Hur hold up Moses’ hands, one on each side, until the sun
goes down and the invaders are vanquished (vv. 17: 8-16).
After the defeat of the Amalekites, Jethro, the high priest of Midian, [Moses' father-in-law], arrives with Moses' wife, Zipporah, and his
two sons, Gershom and Eliezer. Moses
tells Jethro all that happened in Egypt.
And Jethro rejoiced and worshiped the LORD with Moses and the elders of
Israel, that the LORD had delivered the
people of Israel out of the hand of the Egyptians (vv. 18:1-12).
Jethro sees that Moses is having to judge the people
from morning to night when they come to enquire about the statutes of God and
his laws, over every little problem between two individuals. Jethro asks Moses, "why sittest thou
thyself alone?" And he tells him, "this thing is too heavy for thee
thou art not able to perform it thyself alone." And Jethro gives counsel that Moses should
choose out of all the people able men that fear God to be rulers [Judges] of thousands, and rulers of
hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of ten.
And they will judge the people over all the “small matters.” Then when there is a “great matter” they can
bring it to Moses. This is the system
used today to delegate Priesthood responsibility to others. And Jethro departs into his own land
(18:13-27).
Exodus 19-23 Revelations of God from Mt. Sinai
The children of Israel are now camped in the
wilderness in front of Mt. Sinai. They
have been gone from Egypt about two months. Mt. Sinai is the place where God called Moses to free the Israelites from bondage.
As soon as possible, he climbs the mountain. The LORD tells him that if the children of
Israel obey his voice and keep his covenants, they will be “a peculiar treasure
unto me above all people. And ye shall
be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation"—"Through covenant keeping, we become a holy
people, the Lord's people" (Ridges, OT Made Easier, pt. 2, p. 74) (19:1-6).
LDS Scripture Bible Dictionary:
"Peculiar - One's very own, exclusive, or special, not used in the Bible
as odd or eccentric.…[Comparing] the various translations of the same word in
[other scriptures]…should carry the meaning of the saints' being the Lord's own
special people or treasure" (p. 748).
And the people say to Moses, “All that the LORD has
spoken, we will do (19:8). Then the LORD
tells Moses to prepare the Israelites [to
see God] for three days after which “The LORD will come down in the sight
of all the people on Mt. Sinai” (v. 19:11).
And Moses was to set bounds where the people could not go beyond
or they would die.
On the third day there were thunders and lightnings
and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet was exceeding
loud; and all the people in the camp trembled.
Then Moses took the people out of the camp to meet with God. The mountain was filled with smoke as the
LORD descended upon it in fire; and the whole mount quaked greatly. The LORD called Moses to the top of the mount
and told him the people were about to defy the boundaries and follow him up
into the mountains. So, Moses was quickly sent back to keep them from death. The LORD told Moses when he comes upon the
mount again to bring only Aaron. (vv. 19:10-25).
When Moses returns to the mount, the people hear the
voice of the LORD from Sinai speak the Ten Commandments. And they were afraid and moved away from the
mount. And when he comes down, they say
to Moses, "Speak thou with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak
with us, lest we die" (vv. 20:1-19).
The LORD tells Moses to say to the children of Israel
"Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven." And he tells him to make a sacrificial alter
for burnt offerings and peace offerings out of earth or uncut stones (vv.
20:24-26).
And the LORD gave Moses the “Covenant Code” or Laws of
Moses which are laws that concern crimes, public or social problems, and
general policies.
Following are LDS scriptures Old Testament chapter headings:
Exodus 21: "The Lord reveals its laws pertaining to
servants; plural marriage; the death penalty for divers offenses; the giving of
an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth (see vv. 24, 26-27); the regulations
governing damage done by oxen."
Exodus 22: "The Lord reveals his
laws pertaining to stealing, destructions by fire, care of property of others,
borrowing, lascivious acts, sacrifices to false gods, afflicting widows, usury,
reviling God, the firstborn of men and of animals—Men of Israel commanded to be
holy."
Exodus 23: "The Lord reveals his
laws pertaining to integrity and godly conduct—Land shall rest during a
sabbatical year—Israel shall keep three annual feasts—An angel, bearing the
Lord's name, shall guide them—Sickness shall be removed—Nations of Canaan shall
be driven out gradually.
Exodus 24 Seventy-three Israelites see God
When Moses presented the words of the LORD concerning
all the laws, the people answered with one voice, “All the words which the Lord
hath said, we will do” (v. 24:3). And
Moses wrote the words of the LORD. An
altar was built of stone with twelve pillars representing the twelve tribes of
Israel. And they made burnt offerings
unto the LORD. Moses took half of the
drained blood of the offering and sprinkled it on the altar and on the people
as the blood of the covenant “which the LORD hath made with you concerning all
these words” (vv. 24:1-8).
After the people accepted the covenant offered by
Jehovah, the LORD permits 73 Israelites to be brought into his presence. And Moses took Aaron, and his two sons, Nadab
and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, part way up the mountain, “And
they saw the God of Israel [Jehovah]; and there was under his feet as it were a
paved work of a sapphire stone” (v. 24:10).
Again, the LORD tells Moses to come up into the
mountain and he will give him tables of stone that contain the law and
commandments "that thou mayest teach them." Then Moses and Joshua rise up and go to the
mount while the elders are left with Aaron and Hur to judge any disputed
problems while they are gone. After six
days, the LORD calls to Moses "out of the midst of the cloud." And
the children of Israel saw the glory of the LORD like devouring fire on the top
of the mount. And Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights (vv.
24:11-18).
Exodus 25 – 30
Moses is given the pattern for building the Tabernacle
The LORD gives Moses the pattern for and use of the
portable tabernacle while he is on the mount.
Every aspect of the doors, veils, walls, decorations, coverings,
utensils, altar, and Ark of the Covenant are described by the LORD along with
precise measurements and architectural detail.
The tabernacle was quite small – about 45 feet long by 15 feet wide and
consisted of the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. The fenced Outer Courtyard surrounding the
tabernacle was about 150 feet by 75 feet.
More description of the three areas of the tabernacle will be given
later in the scriptures when it is actually built (chapters 25; 26; 27).
Now the LORD tells Moses to consecrate Aaron to the
“priest’s office” (the High Priest) with Aaron’s sons as assistants to minister
in the tabernacle when it is finished.
And he provides Moses with all the details of the “holy garments” that
are to be worn in the holy sanctuary by the High Priest (Aaron) and his sons
(chapter 28).
Aaron and his sons are to be sanctified [made holy] to minister unto God in the
priest's office. They are to be brought
to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, washed with water, given
holy garments, and anointed with oil upon their heads. Many other sacrifices and offerings are
detailed to be performed by the priests on the altar and in the
tabernacle. "And I will dwell among
the children of Israel, and will be their God.
And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, that brought them
forth out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them: I am the LORD
their God" (chapter 29).
The details for the altar of incense are given. The atonement offering is explained. All items for the courtyard and the
tabernacle are to be sanctified and made holy.
Some restrictions are given for the use of the holy oil and perfume
(chapter 30).
Exodus 31 – 34
Instructions on the Sabbath; two sets of stone tablets
Moses was told that keeping the Sabbath is a sign
between the LORD and his people. And the
LORD tells Moses, "Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy
unto you: every one that denieth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever
doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his
people." Six days are for work, but
the seventh is for rest as in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and
rested and refreshed on the seventh.
This is to be a perpetual covenant throughout all generations of the
children of Israel (vv. 31: 12-17). Then,
at the end of his sojourn on the mount, Moses receives the stone tablets:
“tables of testimony…written with the finger of God" (v. 31:18).
Moses’ transcendent time with the LORD was about to be
spoiled as he was told that the people he brought out of Egypt had “corrupted
themselves” (v. 32:7) while he was away.
Jehovah told Moses they had made a golden calf and were worshipping
it. Now the Lord’s “hot wrath” (v. 32:10)
turned against the Israelites and he told Moses that he wanted to consume
(destroy) them. Moses pleads on their
behalf and the LORD withdraws his threat.
Moses went to where Joshua was waiting (see v. 24:13) and on down the
mount into the camp. They saw the
degenerate people and the golden calf.
Moses was so angry that he threw down the tablets of stone and broke
them to pieces. Then he cast the golden
calf into the fire and melted it into the dust and scooped up the dirt and
flung it into the water; and commanded the people to drink the water. And he saw that the people were naked (taken
into adultery or worse) and called to the people, “Who is on the Lord’s side?
Let him come unto me” (v. 32:26). And
all the sons of Levi gathered unto him.
Then Moses told the sons of Levi to slay every person who was guilty of
participating in the heathen rites; “and there fell of the people that day,
about three thousand men” (vv. 32:7-28).
And Moses told the people he would return to the LORD "[to] make an
atonement for your sin." The LORD
told Moses to leave and go lead his people to the place which he had spoken of
(vv. 32:7-34).
The LORD told him he would no longer personally guide
them but would send ministering angels instead "for thou art a stiffnecked
people: lest I consume thee in the way" (v. 33:3). And when Moses told the children of Israel,
they mourned. Then Moses erected a
temporary tabernacle of worship outside the camp and the Lord’s “cloudy pillar”
descended to the door of the tabernacle "And the LORD spake unto Moses face
to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend" (v. 33:11).
Exodus 33:20 is a contradiction of verse
11 which states: "And he [the LORD] said, Thou canst not see my face: for
there shall no man see me, and live."
JST corrects this statement with a longer explanation. The following is the last sentence of the JST
verse: "And no sinful man hath at any time, neither shall there be any
sinful man at any time, that shall see my face and live."
Exodus 34:1-2: "And the LORD said unto Moses, Hew
thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these
tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest, And be
ready in the morning and come up in the morning unto mount Sinai, and present
thyself there to me in the top of the
mount." (See below: JST Exodus 34:1-2 and JST Deuteronomy 10:2.)
He was instructed to come alone and to keep all flocks
and herds off the mount. "And the
LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there." The LORD made a
covenant to Moses "before all thy people" that he will do marvels
such as have not been done in all the earth" and all the people will see
the work of the LORD (vv. 34:3-10). At
the top of Sinai, Moses was quickened and conversed with the LORD. During this period the Lord instructed Moses
in the new order after the law of carnal commandments which was a lesser law
(JST) (vv. 34:11-26).
"And the Lord said unto
Moses, Write thou these words: for after the tenor of these
words I have made a covenant with thee and with Israel. And he was there with
the Lord forty days and forty nights; he did
neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the
words of the covenant, the ten commandments" (vv. 34:27-28).
When Moses came down from the mountain his face shone
with light so intense that the children of Israel were afraid of him and he put
a veil over his face while he talked with the people (vv. 34:29-35).
JST,
Exodus 34:1–2
1 And the Lord said unto Moses, Hew
thee two other tables
of stone, like unto the first, and I will write upon them also, the words of the law, according as they were written
at the first on the tables
which thou brakest; but it shall
not be according to the first, for I will take away the priesthood out of their
midst; therefore my holy order, and the ordinances thereof, shall not go before
them; for my presence shall not go up in their midst, lest I destroy them.
2 But I will give unto them the law as at the
first, but it shall be after the law of a carnal commandment; for I have sworn
in my wrath, that they shall not enter into my presence, into my rest, in the
days of their pilgrimage. Therefore do as I have commanded thee, and
be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning unto mount Sinai, and
present thyself there to me, in the top of the mount.
JST, Deuteronomy 10:2
2 And I will write on the tables the
words that were on the first tables, which thou breakest, save [except for] the words of the everlasting
covenant of the holy priesthood, and thou shalt put them in the ark.
D&C 84:19-27
19 And this
greater priesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth
the key of the mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of
the knowledge of God.
21 And
without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the priesthood,
the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh;
23 Now
this Moses plainly taught to the children of Israel in the wilderness,
and sought diligently to sanctify his people that they
might behold the face of God;
24 But
they hardened their hearts and could not endure his presence;
therefore, the Lord in his wrath, for his anger was kindled
against them, swore that they should not enter into his rest while in
the wilderness, which rest is the fullness of his glory.
26 And
the lesser priesthood continued, which priesthood holdeth
the key of the ministering of angels and
the preparatory gospel;
27 Which gospel is
the gospel of repentance and of baptism, and
the remission of sins, and
the law of carnal commandments, which the Lord in his wrath
caused to continue with the house of Aaron among the children of Israel
until John, whom God raised up, being filled with the Holy Ghost
from his mother’s womb.
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