Exodus Beyond the 10 Commandments
More Laws and Tabernacle in Exodus
The book of Exodus can be summarized as freedom and exodus from Egypt, the giving of the law, and the building of the ark and tabernacle. In Exodus the law of the 10 commandments and the judgments or statutes given Moses that followed were the first formal laws from God documented in detail. During the ascents by Moses up Mount Sinai, including stays as long as 40 days, God gives him more laws and very specific rules of behavior. Besides the ten commandments, these can be summarized within Exodus as follows:
Exodus chapter 21:1-32 are laws regarding persons.
Exodus verses 21:33 to 22:15 are laws regarding property.
Exodus expands on these in more detail in chapters 22 and 23.
Chapter 24 begins with the 4th ascent up Mount Sinai, and God instructs Moses to bring Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, plus 70 elders. Aaron, the older brother of Moses, is the chief priest. Nadab and Abihu may be unfamiliar names because they were previously mentioned just once earlier in Exodus as follows:
And Aaron took him Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab, sister of Naashon, to wife; and she bore him Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. Exodus 6:23 (KJV)
Nadab and Abihu are Aaron's two oldest sons who will be mentioned again in a reckoning that underscores the importance of the statutes and rules as to the priesthood in particular. The line from Levi to Aaron and their descendants forms the Levitical priest office chosen by God to be ministers of the tabernacle and religious leaders.
Aaron, his sons, and the 70 elders who travel with Moses up Mount Sinai do not accompany him as he meets privately with God, but are commanded to remain at a place part way up the mount. In Exodus 24:10 the meaning of the phrase "And they saw God" may be misunderstood because it is not literal in the sense that we understand the word "saw" in modern English. The Hebrew for "saw" in this verse is raah (raw-AW) which means having a mental image, or vision. As stated in a previous study, no human can see the face of God and live, so the group of persons with Moses were aware of His presence and experienced seeing God in their mind's eye only.
The last verse of chapter 24 states that Moses left and was on the mount 40 days and 40 nights. Exodus 25 through 27 includes a detailed description and instructions for the construction of the ark of the covenant and tabernacle. Chapters 28 to 31 provide specifics on consecration of the priests, their garments, and strict rules as to how they are to minister unto the Lord, concluding in the last verse of chapter 31 with the writing of the 10 commandments on stone tablets.
And He gave unto Moses, when He had made an end of communing with him upon Mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God. Exodus 31:18 (KJV)
Meanwhile, the people were restless with Moses being absent for such a long time. They pressured Aaron into making a golden calf to worship after the traditions of the Egyptians who they had lived among during 400 years of bondage. Upon his return, Moses views the chaos and breaks the two tablets with the 10 commandments written by God. 3000 people died by the sword that day at the hands of the priests (Exodus 32:28), and 20,000 by a plague from God (Exodus 32:35 and 1 Corinthians 10:8 which gives the total number) for breaking the first commandment.
In Exodus 32:31 Moses had climbed Mount Sinai for the 5th time to make intercession for the people prior to the death of the 20,000. He receives more information about God's plan for taking over the Promised Land in chapter 33. In chapter 34 Moses is told to descend again and hew two new tablets to replace those broken, and return the next day. Note that God made the first set. He wrote on both. Moses returns the next day, and Exodus concludes with the building of the ark and tabernacle according to the detailed instructions as mentioned.
As a final note, going back in time to Exodus 12:38 in reference to the departure from Egypt, that verse begins with "And a mixed multitude went up also with them" and means a large number of Egyptians left with the children of Israel. These camp followers and the inhabitants of the Promised Land were people warned about by God as a "snare" that could entrap the Israelis by interacting with these people and chasing after their false gods.
Article Source: www.ultimateriddles.com/exodus-bible-lesson-08.html.
About the Author: Jim Degerstrom is an author who works in a faith based business offering custom website design and graphic art services, and documents Bible studies at his Ultimate Riddles Spiritual Journey website and blogs about spiritual growth on his Ultimate Riddles Spiritual Study blog from Kissimmee, Florida USA.
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