Ammonite Leader tells the story of Israel to Assyrian general

The general of the Assyrian Army, Holofernes is continuing with the conquest and was approaching Israel. He also learned that the Israelites had begun to fortify the region including the hilltops and the plain.

One of the Ammonites leaders called Achior began to tell the history of the Israelites starting from when Abraham, a Chaldean, left his country and went to Mesopotamia. Achior describes the history of the Israelites including their enslavement in Egypt, their Exodus and including the conquest of the surrounding lands. It seems that Achior and probably his people knew the history of Israel very well, which is also a testimony revealing God at work in His people that others can see.

It is also amazing that Achior also understood that the victories of the Israelites occurred when the Israeliets were obedient to God, and that Israel became weak without the help of God when they were disobedient to God.




Judith 5 Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)

Council against the Israelites
When Holofer′nes, the general of the Assyrian army, heard that the people of Israel had prepared for war and had closed the passes in the hills and fortified all the high hilltops and set up barricades in the plains, 2 he was very angry. So he called together all the princes of Moab and the commanders of Ammon and all the governors of the coastland, 3 and said to them, “Tell me, you Canaanites, what people is this that lives in the hill country? What cities do they inhabit? How large is their army, and in what does their power or strength consist? Who rules over them as king, leading their army? 4 And why have they alone, of all who live in the west, refused to come out and meet me?”

Achior’s Report
5 Then Ach′ior, the leader of all the Am′monites, said to him, “Let my lord now hear a word from the mouth of your servant, and I will tell you the truth about this people that dwells in the nearby mountain district. No falsehood shall come from your servant’s mouth. 6 This people is descended from the Chalde′ans. 7 At one time they lived in Mesopota′mia, because they would not follow the gods of their fathers who were in Chalde′a. 8 For they had left the ways of their ancestors, and they worshiped the God of heaven, the God they had come to know; hence they drove them out from the presence of their gods; and they fled to Mesopota′mia, and lived there for a long time. 9 Then their God commanded them to leave the place where they were living and go to the land of Canaan. There they settled, and prospered, with much gold and silver and very many cattle. 10 When a famine spread over Canaan they went down to Egypt and lived there as long as they had food; and there they became a great multitude—so great that they could not be counted. 11 So the king of Egypt became hostile to them; he took advantage of them and set them to making bricks, and humbled them and made slaves of them. 12 Then they cried out to their God, and he afflicted the whole land of Egypt with incurable plagues; and so the Egyptians drove them out of their sight. 13 Then God dried up the Red Sea before them, 14 and he led them by the way of Sinai and Ka′desh-bar′nea, and drove out all the people of the wilderness. 15 So they lived in the land of the Am′orites, and by their might destroyed all the inhabitants of Heshbon; and crossing over the Jordan they took possession of all the hill country. 16 And they drove out before them the Canaanites and the Per′izzites and the Jeb′usites and the She′chemites and all the Ger′gesites, and lived there a long time. 17 As long as they did not sin against their God they prospered, for the God who hates iniquity is with them. 18 But when they departed from the way which he had appointed for them, they were utterly defeated in many battles and were led away captive to a foreign country; the temple of their God was razed to the ground, and their cities were captured by their enemies. 19 But now they have returned to their God, and have come back from the places to which they were scattered, and have occupied Jerusalem, where their sanctuary is, and have settled in the hill country, because it was uninhabited. 20 Now therefore, my master and lord, if there is any unwitting error in this people and they sin against their God and we find out their offense, then we will go up and defeat them. 21 But if there is no transgression in their nation, then let my lord pass them by; for their Lord will defend them, and their God will protect them, and we shall be put to shame before the whole world.”

22 When Ach′ior had finished saying this, all the men standing around the tent began to complain; Holofer′nes’ officers and all the men from the seacoast and from Moab insisted that he must be put to death. 23 “For,” they said, “we will not be afraid of the Israelites; they are a people with no strength or power for making war. 24 Therefore let us go up, Lord Holofer′nes, and they will be devoured by your vast army.”

There he built an altar to the Lord

Genesis 12:8
And he moved from there to the mountain east of Bethel, and he pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; there he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord. 


The verse above occurred in Abraham's journey when he had arrived in Canaan. God had promised Abraham that the land of Canaan would belong to his descendants. This could be Abrahams's first arrival in the land of Canaan. Before this, God had called him out the city of Ur. The promises that God made to Abraham from the very beginning included:

Genesis 12
2 I will make you a great nation;
I will bless you
And make your name great;
And you shall be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
And I will curse him who curses you;
And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”


Just as Abraham followed God out of Ur, when God showed him the promised land and continued to lead him on, Abraham did not stay or procrastinate to go further. He was faithfully listening to God's direction. He did however built the altar before leaving Canaan, then built another altar near the mountain between Bethel and Canaan.

It does not give detailed motives for the altars but they could mean various things to Abraham. He could build it to mark God's promises to him to remind himself, he could have build in faith and declaring the land to be his in the future or he could be humbled by the favour of God and decided to mark the place where he prayed to God. In any case, he left physical symbols about his relationship with God.

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The Burden Against Tyre

This is a prophecy against Tyre in the land of Cyprus which include the famous port city of Tarshish. This city has been known since ancient times and was still flourishing during the time our Lord was on Earth. It tells of the pride of Tarshish which the Lord is determined to bring down. A few more specifics about the prophecy that it is likely to be the Chaldeans or Babylonians who will bring them down. It also mentions that Tyre will first be forgotten for seventy years, then the Lord will bring a final judgment.



Isaiah 23
Proclamation Against Tyre

1 The burden against Tyre.
Wail, you ships of Tarshish!
For it is laid waste,
So that there is no house, no harbor;
From the land of Cyprus[a] it is revealed to them.
2 Be still, you inhabitants of the coastland,
You merchants of Sidon,
Whom those who cross the sea have filled.[b]
3 And on great waters the grain of Shihor,
The harvest of the River,[c] is her revenue;
And she is a marketplace for the nations.
4 Be ashamed, O Sidon;
For the sea has spoken,
The strength of the sea, saying,
“I do not labor, nor bring forth children;
Neither do I rear young men,
Nor bring up virgins.”
5 When the report reaches Egypt,
They also will be in agony at the report of Tyre.
6 Cross over to Tarshish;
Wail, you inhabitants of the coastland!
7 Is this your joyous city,
Whose antiquity is from ancient days,
Whose feet carried her far off to dwell?
8 Who has taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city,
Whose merchants are princes,
Whose traders are the honorable of the earth?
9 The Lord of hosts has purposed it,
To bring to dishonor the pride of all glory,
To bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth.
10 Overflow through your land like the River,[d]
O daughter of Tarshish;
There is no more strength.
11 He stretched out His hand over the sea,
He shook the kingdoms;
The Lord has given a commandment against Canaan
To destroy its strongholds.
12 And He said, “You will rejoice no more,
O you oppressed virgin daughter of Sidon.
Arise, cross over to Cyprus;
There also you will have no rest.”
13 Behold, the land of the Chaldeans,
This people which was not;
Assyria founded it for wild beasts of the desert.
They set up its towers,
They raised up its palaces,
And brought it to ruin.
14 Wail, you ships of Tarshish!
For your strength is laid waste.
15 Now it shall come to pass in that day that Tyre will be forgotten seventy years, according to the days of one king. At the end of seventy years it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the harlot:

16 “Take a harp, go about the city,
You forgotten harlot;
Make sweet melody, sing many songs,
That you may be remembered.”
17 And it shall be, at the end of seventy years, that the Lord will deal with Tyre. She will return to her hire, and commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth. 18 Her gain and her pay will be set apart for the Lord; it will not be treasured nor laid up, for her gain will be for those who dwell before the Lord, to eat sufficiently, and for fine clothing.

In That Day Israel Will be one of Three with Egypt and Assyria

This is a prophecy against Egypt. It describes a time when there will be internal strife in Egypt setting its people against another. They will keep seeking their spiritualists but will fail. But God will let them be oppressed or conquered. It also describes the nature around the land where the main source, the rivers, will be desolate.

Although Egypt was conquered by the Romans, they have not become desolate yet. Also the part about Judah and Egypt had not occurred yet. An even more amazing prophecy being that the people of Egypt will turn to the Lord and build an altar there. And the Lord will deliver them and heal the land. In addition, Assyria will join Egypt in serving the Lord and the Lord calls Egypt - My People, Assyria - Work of My Hands and Israel - My Inheritance. Clearly these events are yet to come.


Isaiah 19
Proclamation Against Egypt

1 The burden against Egypt.
Behold, the Lord rides on a swift cloud,
And will come into Egypt;
The idols of Egypt will totter at His presence,
And the heart of Egypt will melt in its midst.
2 “I will set Egyptians against Egyptians;
Everyone will fight against his brother,
And everyone against his neighbor,
City against city, kingdom against kingdom.
3 The spirit of Egypt will fail in its midst;
I will destroy their counsel,
And they will consult the idols and the charmers,
The mediums and the sorcerers.
4 And the Egyptians I will give
Into the hand of a cruel master,
And a fierce king will rule over them,”
Says the Lord, the Lord of hosts.
5 The waters will fail from the sea,
And the river will be wasted and dried up.
6 The rivers will turn foul;
The brooks of defense will be emptied and dried up;
The reeds and rushes will wither.
7 The papyrus reeds by the River,[a] by the mouth of the River,
And everything sown by the River,
Will wither, be driven away, and be no more.
8 The fishermen also will mourn;
All those will lament who cast hooks into the River,
And they will languish who spread nets on the waters.
9 Moreover those who work in fine flax
And those who weave fine fabric will be ashamed;
10 And its foundations will be broken.
All who make wages will be troubled of soul.
11 Surely the princes of Zoan are fools;
Pharaoh’s wise counselors give foolish counsel.
How do you say to Pharaoh, “I am the son of the wise,
The son of ancient kings?”
12 Where are they?
Where are your wise men?
Let them tell you now,
And let them know what the Lord of hosts has purposed against Egypt.
13 The princes of Zoan have become fools;
The princes of Noph[b] are deceived;
They have also deluded Egypt,
Those who are the mainstay of its tribes.
14 The Lord has mingled a perverse spirit in her midst;
And they have caused Egypt to err in all her work,
As a drunken man staggers in his vomit.
15 Neither will there be any work for Egypt,
Which the head or tail,
Palm branch or bulrush, may do.[c]
16 In that day Egypt will be like women, and will be afraid and fear because of the waving of the hand of the Lord of hosts, which He waves over it. 17 And the land of Judah will be a terror to Egypt; everyone who makes mention of it will be afraid in himself, because of the counsel of the Lord of hosts which He has determined against it.

Egypt, Assyria, and Israel Blessed

18 In that day five cities in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear by the Lord of hosts; one will be called the City of Destruction.[d]

19 In that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the Lord at its border. 20 And it will be for a sign and for a witness to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they will cry to the Lord because of the oppressors, and He will send them a Savior and a Mighty One, and He will deliver them. 21 Then the Lord will be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will know the Lord in that day, and will make sacrifice and offering; yes, they will make a vow to the Lord and perform it. 22 And the Lord will strike Egypt, He will strike and heal it; they will return to the Lord, and He will be entreated by them and heal them.

23 In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian will come into Egypt and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians will serve with the Assyrians.

24 In that day Israel will be one of three with Egypt and Assyria—a blessing in the midst of the land, 25 whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, “Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance.”

He Brought Out His People With Joy

From the Creation in the last psalm, this psalm reminds us of the more personal God who relates to His people. It starts with a call to give thanks to God, sing to Him, glorify Him and remember His works. Then it starts reminding us that God formed a covenant relationship directly with man, through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

It tells the account from Jacob to the injustice done to Joseph, but who finally rose to become a powerful man in Egypt - all part of God's plan. Following this the children of Jacob were oppressed in Egypt, but God miraculously brought them out through Moses and Aaron, and provided for them through their journey in the desert.

The last few verses provide an excellent summary that God was glad and it filled Him with joy to bring His people out of Egypt. And God fulfilled His promise to give them the land of the Gentiles. He also expected them to observe and keep His statutes and law


Psalm 105
The Eternal Faithfulness of the LORD

 1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD!
         Call upon His name;
         Make known His deeds among the peoples!
 2 Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him;
         Talk of all His wondrous works!
 3 Glory in His holy name;
         Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the LORD!
 4 Seek the LORD and His strength;
         Seek His face evermore!
 5 Remember His marvelous works which He has done,
         His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,
 6 O seed of Abraham His servant,
         You children of Jacob, His chosen ones!
       
 7 He is the LORD our God;
         His judgments are in all the earth.
 8 He remembers His covenant forever,
         The word which He commanded, for a thousand generations,
 9 The covenant which He made with Abraham,
         And His oath to Isaac,
 10 And confirmed it to Jacob for a statute,
         To Israel as an everlasting covenant,
 11 Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
         As the allotment of your inheritance,”
 12 When they were few in number,
         Indeed very few, and strangers in it.
       
 13 When they went from one nation to another,
         From one kingdom to another people,
 14 He permitted no one to do them wrong;
         Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes,
 15 Saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones,
         And do My prophets no harm.”
       
 16 Moreover He called for a famine in the land;
         He destroyed all the provision of bread.
 17 He sent a man before them—
         Joseph—who was sold as a slave.
 18 They hurt his feet with fetters,
         He was laid in irons.
 19 Until the time that his word came to pass,
         The word of the LORD tested him.
 20 The king sent and released him,
         The ruler of the people let him go free.
 21 He made him lord of his house,
         And ruler of all his possessions,
 22 To bind his princes at his pleasure,
         And teach his elders wisdom.
       
 23 Israel also came into Egypt,
         And Jacob dwelt in the land of Ham.
 24 He increased His people greatly,
         And made them stronger than their enemies.
 25 He turned their heart to hate His people,
         To deal craftily with His servants.
       
 26 He sent Moses His servant,
         And Aaron whom He had chosen.
 27 They performed His signs among them,
         And wonders in the land of Ham.
 28 He sent darkness, and made it dark;
         And they did not rebel against His word.
 29 He turned their waters into blood,
         And killed their fish.
 30 Their land abounded with frogs,
         Even in the chambers of their kings.
 31 He spoke, and there came swarms of flies,
         And lice in all their territory.
 32 He gave them hail for rain,
         And flaming fire in their land.
 33 He struck their vines also, and their fig trees,
         And splintered the trees of their territory.
 34 He spoke, and locusts came,
         Young locusts without number,
 35 And ate up all the vegetation in their land,
         And devoured the fruit of their ground.
 36 He also destroyed all the firstborn in their land,
         The first of all their strength.
       
 37 He also brought them out with silver and gold,
         And there was none feeble among His tribes.
 38 Egypt was glad when they departed,
         For the fear of them had fallen upon them.
 39 He spread a cloud for a covering,
         And fire to give light in the night.
 40 The people asked, and He brought quail,
         And satisfied them with the bread of heaven.
 41 He opened the rock, and water gushed out;
         It ran in the dry places like a river.
       
 42 For He remembered His holy promise,
         And Abraham His servant.
 43 He brought out His people with joy,
         His chosen ones with gladness.
 44 He gave them the lands of the Gentiles,
         And they inherited the labor of the nations,
 45 That they might observe His statutes
         And keep His laws.
       
         Praise the LORD!

Song of Deborah

This seems to be a victory song to celebrate the defeat of the Canaanite forces under Sisera. Typically, God's people's victory songs are often based on praising the LORD and giving thanks to Him. It would be wonderful to hear how this song sound musically but we can leave that to the imagination.

Following the victory, Israel had peace for another 40 years.


Judges 5

The Song of Deborah

 1 Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying:
 2 “When leaders lead in Israel,
      When the people willingly offer themselves,
      Bless the LORD!

 3 “Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes!
      I, even I, will sing to the LORD;
      I will sing praise to the LORD God of Israel.

 4 “ LORD, when You went out from Seir,
      When You marched from the field of Edom,
      The earth trembled and the heavens poured,
      The clouds also poured water;

 5 The mountains gushed before the LORD,
      This Sinai, before the LORD God of Israel.

 6 “In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath,
      In the days of Jael,
      The highways were deserted,
      And the travelers walked along the byways.

 7 Village life ceased, it ceased in Israel,
      Until I, Deborah, arose,
      Arose a mother in Israel.

 8 They chose new gods;
      Then there was war in the gates;
      Not a shield or spear was seen among forty thousand in Israel.

 9 My heart is with the rulers of Israel
      Who offered themselves willingly with the people.
      Bless the LORD!

 10 “ Speak, you who ride on white donkeys,
      Who sit in judges’ attire,
      And who walk along the road.

 11 Far from the noise of the archers, among the watering places,
      There they shall recount the righteous acts of the LORD,
      The righteous acts for His villagers in Israel;
      Then the people of the LORD shall go down to the gates.

 12 “ Awake, awake, Deborah!
      Awake, awake, sing a song!
      Arise, Barak, and lead your captives away,
      O son of Abinoam!

 13 “Then the survivors came down, the people against the nobles;
      The LORD came down for me against the mighty.

 14 From Ephraim were those whose roots were in Amalek.
      After you, Benjamin, with your peoples,
      From Machir rulers came down,
      And from Zebulun those who bear the recruiter’s staff.

 15 And the princes of Issachar[a]were with Deborah;
      As Issachar, so was Barak
      Sent into the valley under his command;[b]
      Among the divisions of Reuben
      There were great resolves of heart.

 16 Why did you sit among the sheepfolds,
      To hear the pipings for the flocks?
      The divisions of Reuben have great searchings of heart.

 17 Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan,
      And why did Dan remain on ships?[c]
      Asher continued at the seashore,
      And stayed by his inlets.

 18 Zebulun is a people who jeopardized their lives to the point of death,
      Naphtali also, on the heights of the battlefield.

 19 “The kings came and fought,
      Then the kings of Canaan fought
      In Taanach, by the waters of Megiddo;
      They took no spoils of silver.

 20 They fought from the heavens;
      The stars from their courses fought against Sisera.

 21 The torrent of Kishon swept them away,
      That ancient torrent, the torrent of Kishon.
      O my soul, march on in strength!

 22 Then the horses’ hooves pounded,
      The galloping, galloping of his steeds.

 23 ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel[d] of the LORD,

      ‘Curse its inhabitants bitterly,
      Because they did not come to the help of the LORD,
      To the help of the LORD against the mighty.’

 24 “Most blessed among women is Jael,
      The wife of Heber the Kenite;
      Blessed is she among women in tents.

 25 He asked for water, she gave milk;
      She brought out cream in a lordly bowl.

 26 She stretched her hand to the tent peg,
      Her right hand to the workmen’s hammer;
      She pounded Sisera, she pierced his head,
      She split and struck through his temple.

 27 At her feet he sank, he fell, he lay still;
      At her feet he sank, he fell;
      Where he sank, there he fell dead.

 28 “The mother of Sisera looked through the window,
      And cried out through the lattice,

      ‘Why is his chariot so long in coming?
      Why tarries the clatter of his chariots?’

 29 Her wisest ladies answered her,
      Yes, she answered herself,

 30 ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoil:
      To every man a girl or two;
      For Sisera, plunder of dyed garments,
      Plunder of garments embroidered and dyed,
      Two pieces of dyed embroidery for the neck of the looter?’

 31 “Thus let all Your enemies perish, O LORD!
      But let those who love Him be like the sun
      When it comes out in full strength.”

   So the land had rest for forty years.

Deborah the Judge, Barak the Commander

This chapter concerns one of the many leading female characters in the bible - Deborah the judge. The pattern of Israel in disobeying God, being oppressed, crying out to God and getting saved by God is repeated again.

So at the end of Ehud time, the Israelites did evil and God let them be oppressed by Jabin, the king of Canaan. Jabin's leading army commander was Sisera - who had a major role in this chapter.

After 20 years of oppression, God heard their cries. Deborah was a judge as well as a prophetess. To deliver Israel, Deborah called on Barak, son of Abinoam, to raise an army against Jabin of Canaan. So one of the first battle between Deborah's Israel and Jabin's Canaan was fought by Barak against Sisera.

Deborah was prophesies before the battle to Barak that "for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman". As the battle proceeded, Sisera's army lost and he fled and hid with Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite. There was peace between them and the Kenites so perhaps this was the main reason Sisera sought refuge there.

However, Jael turned on Sisera and killed him in his sleep. From then on the Israelites begin to win against Jabin the king of Canaan. Apart from just a historical chapter, this accounts shows that the freedom from oppression took effort and time and also came only after 20 long years of oppression. Had the Israelites simply obeyed God and avoid evil, this cycle of oppression and struggle for independence may have been avoided.



Judges 4

Deborah

 1 When Ehud was dead, the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD. 2 So the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, who dwelt in Harosheth Hagoyim. 3 And the children of Israel cried out to the LORD; for Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and for twenty years he had harshly oppressed the children of Israel.
4 Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, was judging Israel at that time. 5 And she would sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the mountains of Ephraim. And the children of Israel came up to her for judgment. 6 Then she sent and called for Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “Has not the LORD God of Israel commanded, ‘Go and deploy troops at Mount Tabor; take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun; 7 and against you I will deploy Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude at the River Kishon; and I will deliver him into your hand’?”
8 And Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go!”
9 So she said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless there will be no glory for you in the journey you are taking, for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh. 10 And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; he went up with ten thousand men under his command,[a] and Deborah went up with him.
11 Now Heber the Kenite, of the children of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, had separated himself from the Kenites and pitched his tent near the terebinth tree at Zaanaim, which is beside Kedesh.
12 And they reported to Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor. 13 So Sisera gathered together all his chariots, nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people who were with him, from Harosheth Hagoyim to the River Kishon.
14 Then Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day in which the LORD has delivered Sisera into your hand. Has not the LORD gone out before you?” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand men following him. 15 And the LORD routed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army with the edge of the sword before Barak; and Sisera alighted from his chariot and fled away on foot. 16 But Barak pursued the chariots and the army as far as Harosheth Hagoyim, and all the army of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword; not a man was left.
17 However, Sisera had fled away on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite; for there was peace between Jabin king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. 18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me; do not fear.” And when he had turned aside with her into the tent, she covered him with a blanket.
19 Then he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a jug of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him. 20 And he said to her, “Stand at the door of the tent, and if any man comes and inquires of you, and says, ‘Is there any man here?’ you shall say, ‘No.’”
21 Then JaelBarak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to meet him, and said to him, “Come, I will show you the man whom you seek.” And when he went into her tent, there lay Sisera, dead with the peg in his temple.
23 So on that day God subdued Jabin king of Canaan in the presence of the children of Israel. 24 And the hand of the children of Israel grew stronger and stronger against Jabin king of Canaan, until they had destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.

Moses Reminiscing of Failed Entry into Canaan

This is one of the final speeches by Moses to the Israelites as God prepared them for the handover of Moses' leadership and entry into the promised land. Moses reminded them that they had now a well structured government that does not depend on a single leader but had a hierarchy of leadership from the local / tribal leaders upwards. This is a form of goverment similar to many modern democracies.

Moses also reminded them of how they were supposed to conquer the land of Canaan as the Promised Land but the Israelites refused to obey and trust God after reports that the inhabitants were giants. As a result God passed judgement that the Israelites were set to wander the desert for 40 years and the present generation would pass away except Joshua and Caleb who will enter Canaan with the next generation. Even when Israel tried to repent, they again rebelled by trying to later conquer Canaan against the Lord's wishes and were defeated by the Amorites.


Deuteronomy 1

The Previous Command to Enter Canaan

 1 These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel on this side of the Jordan in the wilderness, in the plain[a] opposite Suph,[b] between Paran, Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab. 2 It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by way of Mount Seir to Kadesh Barnea. 3 Now it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spoke to the children of Israel according to all that the LORD had given him as commandments to them, 4 after he had killed Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt in Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who dwelt at Ashtaroth in[c] Edrei.
5 On this side of the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law, saying, 6 “The LORD our God spoke to us in Horeb, saying: ‘You have dwelt long enough at this mountain. 7 Turn and take your journey, and go to the mountains of the Amorites, to all the neighboring places in the plain,[d] in the mountains and in the lowland, in the South and on the seacoast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the River Euphrates. 8 See, I have set the land before you; go in and possess the land which the LORD swore to your fathers—to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—to give to them and their descendants after them.’

Tribal Leaders Appointed
 
9 “And I spoke to you at that time, saying: ‘I alone am not able to bear you. 10 The LORD your God has multiplied you, and here you are today, as the stars of heaven in multitude. 11 May the LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times more numerous than you are, and bless you as He has promised you! 12 How can I alone bear your problems and your burdens and your complaints? 13 Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them heads over you.’ 14 And you answered me and said, ‘The thing which you have told us to do is good.’ 15 So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and knowledgeable men, and made them heads over you, leaders of thousands, leaders of hundreds, leaders of fifties, leaders of tens, and officers for your tribes.
16 “Then I commanded your judges at that time, saying, ‘Hear the cases between your brethren, and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the stranger who is with him. 17 You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small as well as the great; you shall not be afraid in any man’s presence, for the judgment is God’s. The case that is too hard for you, bring to me, and I will hear it.’ 18 And I commanded you at that time all the things which you should do.


Israel’s Refusal to Enter the Land
 
19 “So we departed from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw on the way to the mountains of the Amorites, as the LORD our God had commanded us. Then we came to Kadesh Barnea. 20 And I said to you, ‘You have come to the mountains of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us. 21 Look, the LORD your God has set the land before you; go up and possess it, as the LORD God of your fathers has spoken to you; do not fear or be discouraged.’
22 “And every one of you came near to me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, and let them search out the land for us, and bring back word to us of the way by which we should go up, and of the cities into which we shall come.’
23 “The plan pleased me well; so I took twelve of your men, one man from each tribe. 24 And they departed and went up into the mountains, and came to the Valley of Eshcol, and spied it out. 25 They also took some of the fruit of the land in their hands and brought it down to us; and they brought back word to us, saying, ‘It is a good land which the LORD our God is giving us.’
26 “Nevertheless you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the LORD your God; 27 and you complained in your tents, and said, ‘Because the LORD hates us, He has brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. 28 Where can we go up? Our brethren have discouraged our hearts, saying, “The people are greater and taller than we; the cities are great and fortified up to heaven; moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakim there.”’
29 “Then I said to you, ‘Do not be terrified, or afraid of them. 30 The LORD your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes, 31 and in the wilderness where you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ 32 Yet, for all that, you did not believe the LORD your God, 33 who went in the way before you to search out a place for you to pitch your tents, to show you the way you should go, in the fire by night and in the cloud by day.

The Penalty for Israel’s Rebellion
 
34 “And the LORD heard the sound of your words, and was angry, and took an oath, saying, 35 ‘Surely not one of these men of this evil generation shall see that good land of which I swore to give to your fathers, 36 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him and his children I am giving the land on which he walked, because he wholly followed the LORD.’ 37 The LORD was also angry with me for your sakes, saying, ‘Even you shall not go in there. 38 Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall go in there. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.
39 ‘Moreover your little ones and your children, who you say will be victims, who today have no knowledge of good and evil, they shall go in there; to them I will give it, and they shall possess it. 40 But as for you, turn and take your journey into the wilderness by the Way of the Red Sea.’
41 “Then you answered and said to me, ‘We have sinned against the LORD; we will go up and fight, just as the LORD our God commanded us.’ And when everyone of you had girded on his weapons of war, you were ready to go up into the mountain.
42 “And the LORD said to me, ‘Tell them, “Do not go up nor fight, for I am not among you; lest you be defeated before your enemies.”’ 43 So I spoke to you; yet you would not listen, but rebelled against the command of the LORD, and presumptuously went up into the mountain. 44 And the Amorites who dwelt in that mountain came out against you and chased you as bees do, and drove you back from Seir to Hormah. 45 Then you returned and wept before the LORD, but the LORD would not listen to your voice nor give ear to you.
46 “So you remained in Kadesh many days, according to the days that you spent there.

Drawing Borders of Canaan - the Promised Land

There can be no doubt to anyone familiar with the Old Testament that the conquest of Canaan, the Promised Land, west of the Jordan river is a directive from God. Even before the conquest, God had already revealed the exact boundaries of the land in which the Israelites would inhabit. The boundaries are given in specific details such as the Salt Sea in the south, the Great Sea in the west, Mount Hor in the north, and the Jordan river in the east. That will be the settlement for the nine and a half tribes, and the two and a half tribe will be on the east of the Jordan as agreed upon.

God then placed the administration of dividing the land to Eleazar the priest and Joshua. These two will replace the roles of Aaron the priest and Moses respectively. Then one leader from each tribe (9.5 tribes) was called upon to receive the land, they were:
Caleb (Judah), Shemuel (Simeon), Elidad (Benjamin), Bukki (Dan), Hanniel (Manasseh), Kemuel (Ephraim) , Elizaphan (Zebulun) , Paltiel (Issachar), Ahihud (Asher), Pedahel (Naphtali)


Numbers 34

The Appointed Boundaries of Canaan

 1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Command the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you come into the land of Canaan, this is the land that shall fall to you as an inheritance—the land of Canaan to its boundaries. 3 Your southern border shall be from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom; then your southern border shall extend eastward to the end of the Salt Sea; 4 your border shall turn from the southern side of the Ascent of Akrabbim, continue to Zin, and be on the south of Kadesh Barnea; then it shall go on to Hazar Addar, and continue to Azmon; 5 the border shall turn from Azmon to the Brook of Egypt, and it shall end at the Sea.
6 ‘As for the western border, you shall have the Great Sea for a border; this shall be your western border.
7 ‘And this shall be your northern border: From the Great Sea you shall mark out your border line to Mount Hor; 8 from Mount Hor you shall mark out your border to the entrance of Hamath; then the direction of the border shall be toward Zedad; 9 the border shall proceed to Ziphron, and it shall end at Hazar Enan. This shall be your northern border.
10 ‘You shall mark out your eastern border from Hazar Enan to Shepham; 11 the border shall go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain; the border shall go down and reach to the eastern side of the Sea of Chinnereth; 12 the border shall go down along the Jordan, and it shall end at the Salt Sea. This shall be your land with its surrounding boundaries.’”
13 Then Moses commanded the children of Israel, saying: “This is the land which you shall inherit by lot, which the LORD has commanded to give to the nine tribes and to the half-tribe. 14 For the tribe of the children of Reuben according to the house of their fathers, and the tribe of the children of Gad according to the house of their fathers, have received their inheritance; and the half-tribe of Manasseh has received its inheritance. 15 The two tribes and the half-tribe have received their inheritance on this side of the Jordan, across from Jericho eastward, toward the sunrise.”

The Leaders Appointed to Divide the Land
  
16 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “These are the names of the men who shall divide the land among you as an inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun. 18 And you shall take one leader of every tribe to divide the land for the inheritance. 19 These are the names of the men: from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 20 from the tribe of the children of Simeon, Shemuel the son of Ammihud; 21 from the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon; 22 a leader from the tribe of the children of Dan, Bukki the son of Jogli; 23 from the sons of Joseph: a leader from the tribe of the children of Manasseh, Hanniel the son of Ephod, 24 and a leader from the tribe of the children of Ephraim, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan; 25 a leader from the tribe of the children of Zebulun, Elizaphan the son of Parnach; 26 a leader from the tribe of the children of Issachar, Paltiel the son of Azzan; 27 a leader from the tribe of the children of Asher, Ahihud the son of Shelomi; 28 and a leader from the tribe of the children of Naphtali, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.”
29 These are the ones the LORD commanded to divide the inheritance among the children of Israel in the land of Canaan.

Israel’s Journey from Egypt Reviewed

As the Lord commanded, Moses documented the Israelites' journey from Egypt into the Promised Land so that future generations will have documented proof of God's intervention and glory. The description below gives a detailed route which the Israelites took by giving the names of the places they pass through. If the location of all the ancient cities mentioned were known today, as they would have in those times, then it is possible to know exactly they path they took to the Promised Land.

The description mentions the places by name but did not mentioned any of the many battles between Israel and the pagan inhabitants of the land. It also does not mention the various rebellions and complains from the Israelites towards Moses, Aaron and God. The description below went up to the death of Aaron at 123 years old, which marks the 40th year (1st day of the 5th month) since they came out of Egypt.

It seemed that towards the end of the 40 years went Israel were at Mount Hor when Aaron died, the local kings fled their land and converged at the Jordan, which marks the entry to the Promised Land. God instructed the Israelites to cross the Jordan and completely take over the land of Canaan by dispossessing the pagan inhabitants, with a stern warning that if they fail to do so, God would punish the Israelites as he intended to punish the ungodly Canaanites.


Numbers 33

Israel’s Journey from Egypt Reviewed

 1 These are the journeys of the children of Israel, who went out of the land of Egypt by their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron. 2 Now Moses wrote down the starting points of their journeys at the command of the LORD. And these are their journeys according to their starting points:
3 They departed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the day after the Passover the children of Israel went out with boldness in the sight of all the Egyptians. 4 For the Egyptians were burying all their firstborn, whom the LORD had killed among them. Also on their gods the LORD had executed judgments.
5 Then the children of Israel moved from Rameses and camped at Succoth. 6 They departed from Succoth and camped at Etham, which is on the edge of the wilderness. 7 They moved from Etham and turned back to Pi Hahiroth, which is east of Baal Zephon; and they camped near Migdol. 8 They departed from before Hahiroth[a] and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness, went three days’ journey in the Wilderness of Etham, and camped at Marah. 9 They moved from Marah and came to Elim. At Elim were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees; so they camped there.
10 They moved from Elim and camped by the Red Sea. 11 They moved from the Red Sea and camped in the Wilderness of Sin. 12 They journeyed from the Wilderness of Sin and camped at Dophkah. 13 They departed from Dophkah and camped at Alush. 14 They moved from Alush and camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.
15 They departed from Rephidim and camped in the Wilderness of Sinai. 16 They moved from the Wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth Hattaavah. 17 They departed from Kibroth Hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth. 18 They departed from Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah. 19 They departed from Rithmah and camped at Rimmon Perez. 20 They departed from Rimmon Perez and camped at Libnah. 21 They moved from Libnah and camped at Rissah. 22 They journeyed from Rissah and camped at Kehelathah. 23 They went from Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher. 24 They moved from Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah. 25 They moved from Haradah and camped at Makheloth. 26 They moved from Makheloth and camped at Tahath. 27 They departed from Tahath and camped at Terah. 28 They moved from Terah and camped at Mithkah. 29 They went from Mithkah and camped at Hashmonah. 30 They departed from Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth. 31 They departed from Moseroth and camped at Bene Jaakan. 32 They moved from Bene Jaakan and camped at Hor Hagidgad. 33 They went from Hor Hagidgad and camped at Jotbathah. 34 They moved from Jotbathah and camped at Abronah. 35 They departed from Abronah and camped at Ezion Geber. 36 They moved from Ezion Geber and camped in the Wilderness of Zin, which is Kadesh. 37 They moved from Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, on the boundary of the land of Edom.
38 Then Aaron the priest went up to Mount Hor at the command of the LORD, and died there in the fortieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, on the first day of the fifth month. 39 Aaron was one hundred and twenty-three years old when he died on Mount Hor.
40 Now the king of Arad, the Canaanite, who dwelt in the South in the land of Canaan, heard of the coming of the children of Israel.
41 So they departed from Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah. 42 They departed from Zalmonah and camped at Punon. 43 They departed from Punon and camped at Oboth. 44 They departed from Oboth and camped at Ije Abarim, at the border of Moab. 45 They departed from Ijim[b] and camped at Dibon Gad. 46 They moved from Dibon Gad and camped at Almon Diblathaim. 47 They moved from Almon Diblathaim and camped in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo. 48 They departed from the mountains of Abarim and camped in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho. 49 They camped by the Jordan, from Beth Jesimoth as far as the Abel Acacia Grove[c] in the plains of Moab.

Instructions for the Conquest of Canaan
  
50 Now the LORD spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho, saying, 51 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you have crossed the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 52 then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, destroy all their engraved stones, destroy all their molded images, and demolish all their high places; 53 you shall dispossess the inhabitants of the land and dwell in it, for I have given you the land to possess. 54 And you shall divide the land by lot as an inheritance among your families; to the larger you shall give a larger inheritance, and to the smaller you shall give a smaller inheritance; there everyone’s inheritance shall be whatever falls to him by lot. You shall inherit according to the tribes of your fathers. 55 But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then it shall be that those whom you let remain shall be irritants in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they shall harass you in the land where you dwell. 56 Moreover it shall be that I will do to you as I thought to do to them.’”

12 Spies and the Nephilim Giants

The story below is about the 12 spies sent by Moses to survey the Promised Land, so that they can prepare themselves to conquer the land. Instead the report from the 10 spies were that they surely could not overcome the inhabitants who appear to be so big in size.

This passage has been used for various teachings such as lessons in faith, lessons in obedience, lessons in overcoming the enemies, lessons in trusting God's promises and so on. All these lessons are valid but very few focus on the extraordinary report brought by the spies on the face value. The face value of the report is that the inhabitants of those lands were "unnatural beings" - they were Giants, not merely large men.

To examine the report in greater depth as well as the context, the following points can be noted:
- the 10 spies meant Giants - as in unnatural beings - instead of just larger people. It is not just the English translation is misrepresented using the word Giant. They actually mean Giants and in v33, the spies said "we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight." These were extraordinarily and unnaturally large people.
- the 10 spies were not weak or normal people chosen at random. They were the "heads of the children of Israel" from v3. The lesson that Joshua and Caleb had faith in an extraordinary God and can overcome the giants whereas the 10 spies did not have that strong faith and trust in God is still a valid lesson. It just shows that extraordinary faith is needed to overcome such extraordinary obstacles like the giants.
- the word Giant is not an English exaggeration in translation, but instead the source points to the word Nephilim. The Nephilim were the half-breed mutants produced from the unholy union between human females and fallen angels. See Corrupted Civilization - Pre Flood
The Nephilim would be well known among the Israelites and they would not use the specific word Nephilim to describe generally large people. In addition the verses below also refer to the Nephilim and Giants being descendents of Anak specifically connecting Anak, Giants and the Nephilim. So the spies report not only refer to merely large people as giants but instead the specific Giants / Nephilim from their history whom they knew their origins.
- the Israelites will go on to fight many battles in that region with many nations. Many times they would face experienced, professional warriors and soldiers compared to themselves who were slave labourers now being newly trained to fight. In all their battles, they had never declined or avoided a fight with other nations by giving the excuse that the enemies were giants, because most of their enemies were humans, not descendent of Nephilim. So it is not the 10 spies lack courage but rather lacking in faith when facing an extraordinary and unnatural enemy such as the Giants.


Numbers 13

Spies Sent into Canaan

 1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.”
3 So Moses sent them from the Wilderness of Paran according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel. 4 Now these were their names: from the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea[a] the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph, that is, from the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.
16 These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea[b] the son of Nun, Joshua.
17 Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to the mountains, 18 and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; 19 whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; 20 whether the land is rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.
21 So they went up and spied out the land from the Wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, near the entrance of Hamath. 22 And they went up through the South and came to Hebron; Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 Then they came to the Valley of Eshcol, and there cut down a branch with one cluster of grapes; they carried it between two of them on a pole. They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs. 24 The place was called the Valley of Eshcol,[c] because of the cluster which the men of Israel cut down there. 25 And they returned from spying out the land after forty days.
26 Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”
30 Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”
31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” 32 And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 There we saw the giants[d] (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”

God is YHWH

After the first encounter with Pharoah and the setback from his own people, Moses heard God's instructions again and this God revealed various things to Moses including:
- God introduced his personal name to Moses as YHWH, traditionally this is translated as Jehovah, or simply LORD.
- YHWH is the same God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
- The land promised to the children of Israel is Canaan.
- God intends to rescue Israel from Egypt and make Israel His people and be their God, thus establishing a special relation with Israel that no other nation has.

After the initial instructions, Moses asked God how would Pharoah listen to him when his own people, the Israelites to do not listen to him. Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron again, but we do not know exactly what God said to convince them.

The lineage of the brothers Moses and Aaron were also given here - which is Levi (son of Jacob), fathered Kohath, who fathered Aram, who was the father of Moses and Aaron. Some may suggest that it is the tradition to mention only important people in the lineage thus skipping some generations. However consider that Moses lived to 120 years, it is very plausible that Levi who entered Egypt along with his brothers during the famine at the invitation of Joseph, is actually the great-grandfather of Moses and Aaron who lived about 400 years after they entered Egypt.


Exodus 6

 1 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh. For with a strong hand he will let them go, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.”
2 And God spoke to Moses and said to him: “I am the LORD. 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name LORD[a] I was not known to them. 4 I have also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, in which they were strangers. 5 And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel whom the Egyptians keep in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant. 6 Therefore say to the children of Israel: ‘I am the LORD; I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. 7 I will take you as My people, and I will be your God. Then you shall know that I am the LORD your God who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8 And I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and I will give it to you as a heritage: I am the LORD.’” 9 So Moses spoke thus to the children of Israel; but they did not heed Moses, because of anguish of spirit and cruel bondage.
10 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 11 “Go in, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the children of Israel go out of his land.”
12 And Moses spoke before the LORD, saying, “The children of Israel have not heeded me. How then shall Pharaoh heed me, for I am of uncircumcised lips?”
13 Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, and gave them a command for the children of Israel and for Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt.

The Family of Moses and Aaron
  
14 These are the heads of their fathers’ houses: The sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel, were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi. These are the families of Reuben. 15 And the sons of Simemon were Jemuel,[b] Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman. These are the families of Simemon. 16 These are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. And the years of the life of Levi were one hundred and thirty-seven. 17 The sons of Gershon were Libni and Shimi according to their families. 18 And the sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hembron, and Uzziel. And the years of the life of Kohath were one hundred and thirty-three. 19 The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of Levi according to their generations.
20 Now Amram took for himself Jochebed, his father’s sister, as wife; and she bore him Aaron and Moses. And the years of the life of Amram were one hundred and thirty-seven. 21 The sons of Izhar were Korah, Nempheg, and Zichri. 22 And the sons of Uzziel were Mishael, Elzaphan, and Zithri. 23 Aaron took to himself Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab, sister of Nahshon, as wife; and she bore him Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 24 And the sons of Korah were Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph. These are the families of the Korahites. 25 Eleazar, Aaron’s son, took for himself one of the daughters of Putiel as wife; and she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites according to their families.
26 These are the same Aaron and Moses to whom the LORD said, “Bring out the children of Israel from the land of Egypt according to their armies.” 27 These are the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring out the children of Israel from Egypt. These are the same Moses and Aaron.

Aaron Is Moses’ Spokesman
  
28 And it came to pass, on the day the LORD spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, 29 that the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “I am the LORD. Speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say to you.”
30 But Moses said before the LORD, “Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips, and how shall Pharaoh heed me?”

Jacob and Esau Reunion

Have we ever been so anxious about another person and imagine the terrible things that person may think about us or may act towards us? I certainly have. This is no different to the story of Jacob and Esau when Jacob returned home. Even though they were twin brothers yet due to their history of grievances, the potential for tension may be high.

However the result is a surprising and warm reunion between the brothers. It appeared that Esau no longer hold a grudge against his brother and simply overjoyed to see him. Perhaps the lesson we can learn from both of them is to forgive and forget and have faith in God to bring favour on others toward us.


Genesis 33

Jacob and Esau Meet

 1 Now Jacob lifted his eyes and looked, and there, Esau was coming, and with him were four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two maidservants. 2 And he put the maidservants and their children in front, Leah and her children behind, and Rachel and Joseph last. 3 Then he crossed over before them and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.
4 But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. 5 And he lifted his eyes and saw the women and children, and said, “Who are these with you?”
So he said, “The children whom God has graciously given your servant.” 6 Then the maidservants came near, they and their children, and bowed down. 7 And Leah also came near with her children, and they bowed down. Afterward Joseph and Rachel came near, and they bowed down.
8 Then Esau said, “What do you mean by all this company which I met?”
And he said, “These are to find favor in the sight of my lord.”
9 But Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself.”
10 And Jacob said, “No, please, if I have now found favor in your sight, then receive my present from my hand, inasmuch as I have seen your face as though I had seen the face of God, and you were pleased with me. 11 Please, take my blessing that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough.” So he urged him, and he took it.
12 Then Esau said, “Let us take our journey; let us go, and I will go before you.”
13 But Jacob said to him, “My lord knows that the children are weak, and the flocks and herds which are nursing are with me. And if the men should drive them hard one day, all the flock will die. 14 Please let my lord go on ahead before his servant. I will lead on slowly at a pace which the livestock that go before me, and the children, are able to endure, until I come to my lord in Seir.”
15 And Esau said, “Now let me leave with you some of the people who are with me.”
But he said, “What need is there? Let me find favor in the sight of my lord.” 16 So Esau returned that day on his way to Seir. 17 And Jacob journeyed to Succoth, built himself a house, and made booths for his livestock. Therefore the name of the place is called Succoth.[a]

Jacob Comes to Canaan
  
18 Then Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padan Aram; and he pitched his tent before the city. 19 And he bought the parcel of land, where he had pitched his tent, from the children of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for one hundred pieces of money. 20 Then he erected an altar there and called it El Elohe Israel.[b]

Abram Inherits Canaan

After the deception in Egypt, Abraham was allowed to leave Egypt not only with his family and life from the King of Egypt but also along with his possessions and more. One would see Abraham as blessed, but to be cautious we refrain from attributing any cause or effect to Abraham's recent deception. Perhaps we can view that Abraham walked with God in most of his life, despite his occassional weaknesses.

Abraham's nephew Lot was still with him when they left Egypt. Both their possessions and lifestock increase to such degree that their staff were arguing. Abraham took the initiative and offered Lot a choice of the land. Lot chose the best part of the land leaving Abraham with the other part. The land Lot chose looked fertile and the was the thriving but evil city of Sodom - something that looked good, but rotten at the core.

However, as Abraham gave up the fertile land for his nephew, God made another promise, this time more detailed, that Abraham's descendents would inherit large amounts of land beyond what Abraham could see and also uncountable number of descendents.


Genesis 13

 1 Then Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, to the South.[a]
 2 Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold.
 3 And he went on his journey from the South as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai,
 4 to the place of the altar which he had made there at first. And there Abram called on the name of the LORD.
5 Lot also, who went with Abram, had flocks and herds and tents.
6 Now the land was not able to support them, that they might dwell together, for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together.
7 And there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. The Canaanites and the Perizzites then dwelt in the land.
8 So Abram said to Lot, “Please let there be no strife between you and me, and between my herdsmen and your herdsmen; for we are brethren.
9 Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me. If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left.”
10 And Lot lifted his eyes and saw all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere (before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah) like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt as you go toward Zoar.
11 Then Lot chose for himself all the plain of Jordan, and Lot journeyed east. And they separated from each other.
12 Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelt in the cities of the plain and pitched his tent even as far as Sodom.
13 But the men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the LORD.
14 And the LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: “Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are—northward, southward, eastward, and westward;
15 for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants[b] forever.
16 And I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if a man could number the dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered.
17 Arise, walk in the land through its length and its width, for I give it to you.”
18 Then Abram moved his tent, and went and dwelt by the terebinth trees of Mamre,[c] which are in Hebron, and built an altar there to the LORD.