NIV Study Bible Sampler

8/9/2019 NIV Study Bible Sampler

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SAMPLER


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THE BOOKS

OF MOSES


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197Exodus

256Deuteronomy

156Leviticus

92Exodus

4Genesis

English Bibles are customarily divided into six major sec-

tions: Pentateuch, History, Poetry, Prophets, Gospels

and Acts, and Letters and Revelation. The Pentateuch

(meaning “five-volumed book”) comprises the first ma-

jor section of the OT. It is also known as the Torah (“Law”). Here

God’s first covenants with his chosen people are described and

confirmed.

The five books of Moses are primarily accounts of the historyof God’s covenant people (Israel). Beginning with Genesis, the

narrative moves from a broad view of the universe and all cre-

ation to human beings in general and God’s role for them in the

world. From this view of mankind as a whole, the account nar-

rows from a focus on all nations to Abraham and one nation — Is-

rael as the vassal people of the divine suzerain and his kingdom.

The last four books tell the story of Israel’s exodus from Egypt,

their assent to the Sinaitic covenant, and their wandering in the

Desert of Sinai because of unbelief and disobedience at Kadesh

Barnea (Nu 13 – 14; see note on Heb 3:16 – 19).


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GENESIS

Title

The first phrase in the Hebrew text of 1:1 is bereshith (“In [the] beginning”), which is also the

Hebrew title of the book (books in ancient times customarily were named after their first word

or two). The English title, Genesis, is Greek in origin and comes from the word geneseos, which

appears in the pre-Christian Greek translation (Septuagint) of 2:4; 5:1. Depending on its context,the word can mean “birth,” “genealogy,” or “history of origin.” In both its Hebrew and Greek forms,

then, the traditional title of Genesis appropriately describes its content, since it is primarily a book

of beginnings.

Background

c Chs. 1 – 38 reflect a great deal of what we know from other sources about ancient Mesopota-

mian life and culture. Creation, genealogies, destructive

floods, geography and mapmaking, construction techniques,

migrations of peoples, sale and purchase of land, legal customs

and procedures, sheepherding and cattle-raising — all thesesubjects and many others were matters of vital concern to the

peoples of Mesopotamia during this time. They were also of

interest to the individuals, families and tribes whom we read

about in the first 38 chapters of Genesis. The author appears to

locate Eden, humankind’s first home, in or near Mesopotamia;

the tower of Babel was built there; Abram was born there; Isaac

took a wife from there; and Jacob lived there for 20 years. Al-

though these patriarchs settled in Canaan, their original home-

land was Mesopotamia.

The closest ancient literary parallels to Ge 1 – 38 also comefrom Mesopotamia. Enuma elish, the story of the god Marduk’s

rise to supremacy in the Babylonian pantheon, is similar in

some respects (though thoroughly mythical and polytheistic)

to the Ge 1 creation account. Some of the features of certain

king lists from Sumer bear striking resemblance to the gene-

alogy in Ge 5. The 11th tablet of the Gilgamesh epic is quite

INTRODUCTION

Author:

Moses

Audience:

God’s chosen people, the

Israelites

Date:

Between 1446 and 1406 BC

Theme:

Genesis is a book of beginnings

that introduces central themes

of the Bible, such as creation

and redemption.

a quick look


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INTRODUCTION: GENESIS ❘ 7

Genesis is supremely a book that speaks about relationships,highlighting those between God and his creation, between

God and humankind, and between human beings.

turn composed of three narrative cycles (Abraham-Isaac, 11:27 — 25:11; Isaac-Jacob, 25:19 — 35:29;

37:1; Jacob-Joseph, 37:2 — 50:26), interspersed by the genealogies of Ishmael (25:12 – 18) and Esau

(ch. 36).

r The narrative frequently concentrates on the life of a later son in preference to the firstborn:

Seth over Cain, Shem over Japheth (but see NIV text note on 10:21), Isaac over Ishmael, Ja-

cob over Esau, Judah and Joseph over their brothers, and Ephraim over Manasseh. Such emphasis

on divinely chosen men and their families is perhaps the most obvious literary and theological

characteristic of the book of Genesis as a whole. It strikingly underscores the fact that the people

of God are not the product of natural human developments but are the result of God’s sovereign

and gracious intrusion in human history. He brings

out of the fallen human race a new humanity con-

secrated to himself, called and destined to be the

people of his kingdom and the channel of his bless-

ing to the whole earth.

Numbers with symbolic significance figure prom-

inently in Genesis. The number ten, in addition tobeing the number of sections into which Genesis

is divided, is also the number of names appearing

in the genealogies of chs. 5 and 11 (see note on

5:5). The number seven also occurs frequently. The

Hebrew text of 1:1 consists of exactly seven words

and that of 1:2 of exactly 14 (twice seven). There are

seven days of creation, seven names in the geneal-

ogy of ch. 4 (see note on 4:17 – 18; see also 4:15,24;

5:31), various sevens in the flood story, 70 descen-

dants of Noah’s sons (ch. 10), a sevenfold promiseto Abram (12:2 – 3), seven years of abundance and

then seven of famine in Egypt (ch. 41), and 70 descen-

dants of Jacob (ch. 46). Other significant numbers, such

as 12 and 40, are used with similar frequency.

The book of Genesis is basically prose narrative,

punctuated here and there by brief poems (the longest

is the so-called Blessing of Jacob in 49:2 – 27). Much of

the prose has a lyrical quality and uses the full range of figures of speech and other devices that

characterize the world’s finest epic literature. Vertical and horizontal parallelism between the two

sets of three days in the creation account (see note on 1:11); the ebb and flow of sin and judgmentin ch. 3 (the serpent, woman and man sin successively; God questions them in reverse order; then

he judges them in the original order); the powerful monotony of “and then he died” at the end of

paragraphs in ch. 5; the climactic hinge effect of the phrase “But God remembered Noah” (8:1) at

the midpoint of the flood story; the hourglass structure of the account of the tower of Babel in

11:1 – 9 (narrative in vv. 1 – 2,8 – 9; discourse in vv. 3 – 4,6 – 7; v. 5 acting as transition); the macabre

The Atrahasis Epic, c. 17th c BC, containsan account of creation and early humanhistory, including the flood.

Kim Walton, courtesy of the British Museum


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22 ❘ GENESIS 8:22

mal.v And from each human being, too, Iwill demand an accounting for the life ofanother human being.w

6 “Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be

shed;x

for in the image of Gody

has God made mankind.

7As for you, be fruitful and increase innumber; multiply on the earth and in-crease upon it.”z

8Then God said to Noah and to his sonswith him: 9“I now establish my covenantwith youa and with your descendants af-ter you 10and with every living creaturethat was with you — the birds, the live-stock and all the wild animals, all those

that came out of the ark with you — everyliving creature on earth. 11I establish mycovenantb with you: c Never again will alllife be destroyed by the waters of a flood;never again will there be a flood to destroythe earth.d”

humans, even thougha every inclination ofthe human heart is evil from childhood. j And never again will I destroyk all livingcreatures,l as I have done.

22 “As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest,m

cold and heat, summer and winter,n

day and night will never cease.”o

God’s Covenant With Noah

9 Then God blessed Noah and his sons,saying to them, “Be fruitful and in-crease in number and fill the earth.p 2Thefear and dread of you will fall on all thebeasts of the earth, and on all the birdsin the sky, on every creature that moves

along the ground, and on all the fish in thesea; they are given into your hands.q 3Ev-erything that lives and moves about willbe food for you. r Just as I gave you thegreen plants, I now give you everything.s

4“But you must not eat meat that has itslifeblood still in it.t 5And for your lifebloodI will surely demand an accounting.u I willdemand an accounting from every ani-

here has a different word for “curse,” the reference appears tobe to the curse of 3:17. It may be that the Lord here pledged

never to add curse upon curse as he had in regard to Cain(4:12). even though every inclination of the human heart is evil. For almost identical phraseology, see 6:5. Because of human-ity’s extreme wickedness, God had destroyed people (6:7)by means of a flood (6:17). Although righteous Noah and hisfamily had been saved, he and his offspring were descendantsof Adam and carried in their hearts the inheritance of sin. Godgraciously promises never again to deal with sin by sendingsuch a devastating deluge (see 9:11,15). Human history isheld open for God’s dealing with sin in a new and redemp-tive way — the way that was prepared for by God’s action atBabel (see notes on 11:6,8) and that begins to unfold with thecall of Abram (12:1). from childhood. The phrase replaces “all

the time” in 6:5 and emphasizes the truth that sin infects aperson’s life from conception and birth (Ps 51:5; 58:3).8:22 Times and seasons, created by God in the beginning(see 1:14), will never cease till the end of history.9:1 – 7 At this new beginning, God renewed his originalbenediction (1:28) and his provision for humanity’s food (cf.v. 3; 1:29 – 30). But because sin had brought violence into theworld and because God now appointed meat as a part of thehuman diet (v. 3), further divine provisions and stipulationsare added (vv. 4 – 6). Yet God’s benediction dominates andencloses the whole (see v. 7).9:2 given into your hands. God reaffirmed that human beingswould rule over all creation, including the animals (see note

on 1:26).9:3 Everything that lives and moves about will be food. Meatwould now supplement the human diet.9:4 you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood. Lev 17:14stresses the intimate relationship between blood and life bytwice declaring that “the life of every creature is its blood.” Lifeis the precious and mysterious gift of God, and people are notto seek to preserve it or increase the life-force within them byeating “life” that is “in the blood” (Lev 17:11) — as many paganpeoples throughout history have thought they could do.

n 9:5 for your lifeblood . . . I will demand an accountingfrom every animal. God himself is the great defenderof human life (see 4:9 – 12), which is precious to him becausepeople were created in his image (v. 6) and because they arethe earthly representatives and focal point of God’s kingdom.In the theocracy (kingdom of God) established at Sinai, a do-mestic animal that had taken human life was to be stoned todeath (Ex 21:28 – 32).9:6 Whoever sheds human blood , by human beings shall theirblood be shed. In the later theocracy, those guilty of premed-itated murder were to be executed (see Ex 21:12 – 14; Nu35:16 – 32; see also Ro 13:3 – 4; 1Pe 2:13 – 14). for in the imageof God has God made mankind. See 1:26 and note. In killinga human being, a murderer demonstrates contempt for God(see also Pr 14:31; 17:5; Jas 3:9 and notes).

9:8 – 17 God’s first and most basic covenant with his crea-tures (see chart, p. XXXX). It concerns the creation order itselfand has its “sign” embedded in that creation order. Since di-vine judgment had seemed to undo the creation completely,sinful humanity needed God’s covenanted assurance that hisacts of judgment in history will not destroy the created order.

This is the only divine covenant in which God pledges not todo something.

r 9:9 I now establish my covenant. God sovereignlypromised in this covenant to Noah, to Noah’s descen-dants and to all other living things (as a kind of graciousreward to righteous Noah, the new father of the humanrace — see 6:18) never again to destroy the earth and its

inhabitants until his purposes for his creation are fully real-ized (“as long as the earth endures,” 8:22). For similar com-mitments by God, see his covenants with Abram (15:18 – 20),Phinehas (Nu 25:10 – 13) and David (2Sa 7). See chart, p.XXXX.9:11 Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of aflood. A summary of the provisions of the Lord’s covenantwith Noah — an eternal covenant, as seen in such words andphrases as “never again” (see also v. 15), “for all generations tocome” (v. 12) and “everlasting” (v. 16).

S Ge 6:18 9:11 b ver 16; Isa 24:5; 33:8; Hos 6:7 c S ver 9 d S Ge 8:21

8:21 j Ge 6:5;Ps 51:5;Jer 17:9;Mt 15:19;Ro 1:21k Jer 44:11l Ge 9:11, 15;Isa 54:98:22 m Jos 3:15;Ps 67:6;

Jer 5:24n Ps 74:17;Zec 14:8o S Ge 1:149:1 p S Ge 1:229:2 q S Ge 1:269:3 r S Ge 1:29s S Ac 10:15;Col 2:169:4 t Lev 3:17;7:26; 17:10-14;19:26;Dt 12:16,23-25; 15:23;1Sa 14:33;Eze 33:25;Ac 15:20, 29

9:5

u

Ge 42:22;50:15; 1Ki 2:32;2Ch 24:22;Ps 9:12

v Ex 21:28-32w Ge 4:109:6 x S Ge 4:14;S Jdg 9:24;S Mt 26:52y S Ge 1:269:7 z S Ge 1:229:9 a ver 11;

a 21 Or humans, for


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GENESIS 9:11 ❘ 23

MAJOR COVENANTS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

COVENANTS REFERENCE TYPE PARTICIPANT DESCRIPTION

NOAHIC Ge 9:8-17 Royal Grant Made with “righteous” (6:9) Noah

(and his descendants and every

living thing on earth—all life that is

subject to human jurisdiction)

An unconditIonal divine promise never to

destroy all earthly life with some natural catas-

trophe, the covenant “sign” being the rainbow

in the storm cloud

ABRAHAMIC

A

Ge 15:9-21 Royal (land)

Grant

Made with “righteous” (his

faith was “credited . . . to him as

righteousness,” v. 6) Abram (and his

descendants, v. 16)

An unconditional divine promise to fulfill the

grant of the land; a self-maledictory oath

symbolically enacted it (v. 17; see note there)

ABRAHAMIC

B

Ge 17 Suzerain-vassal Made with Abraham as patriarchal

head of his household

A conditional divine pledge to be Abraham’s

God and the God of his descendants (cf. “As

for me,” v. 4; “As for you,” v. 9); the condition:

total consecration to the Lord as symbolized by

circumcision

SINAITIC Ex 19–24 Suzerain-vassal Made with Israel as the descendants

of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and as

the people the Lord has redeemed

from bondage to an earthly power

A conditional divine pledge to be Israel’s God

(as her Protector and the Guarantor of her

blessed destiny); the condition: Israel’s total

consecration to the Lord as his people (his

kingdom) who live by his rule and serve his

purposes in history

PHINEHAS Nu 25:10-13 Royal Grant Made with the zealous priest

Phinehas

An unconditional divine promise to maintain

the family of Phinehas in a “lasting priesthood”

(implicitly a pledge to Israel to provide her

forever with a faithful priesthood)

DAVIDIC 2Sa 7:5-16 Royal Grant Made with faithful King David after

his devotion to God as Israel’s king

and the Lord’s anointed vassal had

come to special expression (v. 2)

An unconditional divine promise to establish

and maintain the Davidic dynasty on the

throne of Israel (implicitly a pledge to Israel) to

provide her forever with a godly king like David

and through that dynasty to do for her what he

had done through David—bring her into rest

in the promised land (1Ki 4:20-21; 5:3-4)

NEW Jer 31:31-34 Royal Grant Promised to rebellious Israel as she

is about to be expelled from the

promised land in actualization of

the most severe covenant curse(Lev 26:27-39; Dt 28:36-37, 45-68)

An unconditional divine promise to unfaithful

Israel to forgive her sins and establish his

relationship with her on a new basis by writing

his law “on their hearts”—a covenant ofpure grace

MAJOR TYPES OF ROYAL COVENANTS/TREATIES IN THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST

ROYAL GRANT UNCONDITIONAL PARITY SUZERAINVASSAL CONDITIONAL

A king’s grant (of land or some other

benefit) to a loyal servant for faithful or

exceptional service. The grant was normally

perpetual and unconditional, but the ser-

vant’s heirs benefited from it only as theycontinued their father’s loyalty and service.

(Cf. 1Sa 8:14; 22:7; 27:6; Est 8:1.)

A covenant between equals,

binding them to mutual friendship

or at least to mutual respect for

each other’s spheres and interests.

Participants called each other“brothers.” (Cf. Ge 21:27; 26:31;

31:44-54; 1Ki 5:12; 15:19; 20:32-

34; Am 1:9.)

A covenant regulating the relationship between a great king and

one of his subject kings. The great king claimed absolute right

of sovereignty, demanded total loyalty and service (the vassal

must “love” his suzerain) and pledged protection of the subject’s

realm and dynasty, conditional on the vassal ’s faithfulness andloyalty to him. The vassal pledged absolute loyalty to his suzer-

ain—whatever service his suzerain demanded—and exclusive

reliance on the suzerain’s protection. Participants called each

other “lord” and “servant” or “father” and “son.” (Cf. Jos 9:6,8; Eze

17:13-18; Hos 12:1.)

Commitments made in these covenants were accompanied by self-maledictory oaths (made orally, ceremonially or both). The gods were called upon towitness the covenants and implement the curses of the oaths if the covenants were violated.


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28 ❘ GENESIS 11 :7

14When Shelah had lived 30 years, hebecame the father of Eber.g 15And after hebecame the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403years and had other sons and daughters.

16When Eber had lived 34 years, he be-came the father of Peleg.h 17And after hebecame the father of Peleg, Eber lived 430

years and had other sons and daughters.18When Peleg had lived 30 years, he

became the father of Reu. i 19And after hebecame the father of Reu, Peleg lived 209years and had other sons and daughters.

20When Reu had lived 32 years, he be-came the father of Serug. j 21And after hebecame the father of Serug, Reu lived 207years and had other sons and daughters.

22When Serug had lived 30 years, he be-came the father of Nahor.k 23And after he

do will be impossible for them. 7Come, letusv go downw and confuse their languageso they will not understand each other.”x

8So the LORD scattered them from thereover all the earth,y and they stopped build-ing the city. 9That is why it was called Ba-bela z — because there the LORD confused

the languagea of the whole world. b Fromthere the LORD scatteredc them over theface of the whole earth.

From Shem to Abram

11:10-27pp — Ge 10:21-31; 1Ch 1:17-27

10This is the accountd of Shem’s familyline.

Two years after the flood, when Shemwas 100 years old, he became the fatherb

of Arphaxad.

e

11

And after he became thefather of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 yearsand had other sons and daughters.

12When Arphaxad had lived 35 years,he became the father of Shelah. f 13Andafter he became the father of Shelah, Ar-phaxad lived 403 years and had other sonsand daughters.c

11:7 v S Ge 1:26w S ver 5x Ge 42:23;Dt 28:49;Isa 28:11;33:19; Jer 5:15;1Co 14:2, 1111:8 y S Ge 9:19;Dt 32:8;

S Lk 1:5111:9 z S Ge 10:10a Ps 55:9b Ac 2:5-11c Isa 2:10, 21;13:14; 24:111:10 d S Ge 2:4e Lk 3:3611:12 f Lk 3:35

11:14 g Lk 3:3511:16 h Lk 3:3511:18 i Lk 3:3511:20 j Lk 3:3511:22 k Lk 3:34

a 9 That is, Babylon; Babel sounds like the Hebrew forconfused. b 10 Father may mean ancestor ; also inverses 11-25. c 12,13 Hebrew; Septuagint (see alsoLuke 3:35, 36 and note at Gen. 10:24) 35 years, hebecame the father of Cainan. 13 And after he became thefather of Cainan, Arphaxad lived 430 years and hadother sons and daughters, and then he died. WhenCainan had lived 130 years, he became the father ofShelah. And after he became the father of Shelah, Cainanlived 330 years and had other sons and daughters

against God. A godless human kingdom would displace andexclude the kingdom of God.11:7 let us. See notes on 1:1,26. God’s “Come, let us” from

heaven counters proud people’s “Come, let us” (v. 4) fromearth. not understand each other. Without a common lan-guage, joint effort became impossible (see v. 8).

n 11:8 scattered. See v. 4; 9:1,19. God dispersed thepeople because of their rebellious pride. Even thegreatest of human powers cannot defy God and long survive.11:9 Babel. See NIV text note and 10:10. The word is of Ak-kadian origin and means “gateway to a god” (Jacob’s stairway

was similarly called “gate of heaven”; see 28:17). confused. TheHebrew word used here (balal ) sounds like “Babel,” the He-brew word for Babylon and the origin of the English word

“babel.”11:10 – 26 A ten-name genealogy, like that of Seth (see5:3 – 31; see also note on 5:5). Unlike the Sethite genealogy,however, the genealogy of Shem does not give total figuresfor the ages of the men at death and does not end eachparagraph with “and then he died.” It covers the centuriesbetween Shem and Abram as briefly as possible.11:10 account. See note on 2:4.

Ziggurat of Nanna at Ur. The large temple dedicated to the god Nanna was built c. 2100 BC by King Ur-Nammu in the ancient Mesopotamian city of Ur in present-day Iraq. Some believe that the Tower of Babel(Ge 11:1 – 9) was a type of ziggurat.

© Michael S. Yamashita/CORBIS


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GENESIS 12:2 ❘ 29

in-lawy Sarai, the wife of his son Abram,and together they set out from Ur of theChaldeans z to go to Canaan.a But whenthey came to Harran,b they settled there.

32Terahc lived 205 years, and he died inHarran.

The Call of Abram

12 The LORD had said to Abram, “Gofrom your country, your peopleand your father’s householdd to the lande I will show you. f

2 “I will make you into a great nation,g

and I will bless you;h

I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.a i

became the father of Nahor, Serug lived 200years and had other sons and daughters.

24When Nahor had lived 29 years, he be-came the father of Terah.l 25And after hebecame the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119years and had other sons and daughters.

26After Terah had lived 70 years, he be-

came the father of Abram,m Nahorn andHaran.o

Abram’s Family 27This is the accountp of Terah’s family

line.

Terah became the father of Abram, Na-horq and Haran. And Haran became thefather of Lot.r 28While his father Terah wasstill alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chal-deans,s in the land of his birth. 29Abram

and Nahor t both married. The name ofAbram’s wife was Sarai,u and the nameof Nahor’s wife was Milkah;v she was thedaughter of Haran, the father of both Mil-kah and Iskah. 30Now Sarai was childlessbecause she was not able to conceive.w

31Terah took his son Abram, his grand-son Lotx son of Haran, and his daughter-

20:12; Ru 1:6, 22; 2:20; 4:15; 1Sa 4:19; 1Ch 2:4; Eze 22:11; Mic 7:6z S ver 28 a S Ge 10:19 b S ver 29; Ge 12:4; 27:43; 28:5, 10; 29:4;2Ki 19:12; Eze 27:23 11:32 c Jos 24:2 12:1 d Ge 20:13; 24:4,27, 40 e S Ge 10:19 f Ge 15:7; 26:2; Jos 24:3; Ac 7:3*; Heb 11:812:2 g Ge 13:16; 15:5; 17:2, 4; 18:18; 22:17; 26:4; 28:3, 14; 32:12;35:11; 41:49; 46:3; 47:27; 48:4, 16, 19; Ex 1:7; 5:5; 32:13; Dt 1:10;10:22; 13:17; 26:5; Jos 11:4; 24:3; 2Sa 17:11; 1Ki 3:8; 4:20;1Ch 27:23; 2Ch 1:9; Ne 9:23; Ps 107:38; Isa 6:13; 10:22; 48:19;51:2; 54:3; 60:22; Jer 33:22; Mic 4:7 h Ge 24:1, 35; 25:11; 26:3; 28:4;Ex 20:24; Nu 22:12; 23:8, 20; 24:9; Ps 67:6; 115:12; Isa 44:3; 61:9;65:23; Mal 3:12 i Ge 22:18; Isa 19:24; Jer 4:2; Hag 2:19; Zec 8:13

11:24 l Lk 3:3411:26 m Lk 3:34n Jos 24:2o 2Ki 19:12;Isa 37:12;Eze 27:2311:27 p S Ge 2:4q ver 29;Ge 31:53r ver 31;

Ge 12:4; 13:1,5, 8, 12; 14:12;19:1; Lk 17:28;2Pe 2:711:28 s ver 31;Ge 15:7; Ne 9:7;Job 1:17; 16:11;Eze 23:23;Ac 7:411:29 t S ver 27,31; Ge 22:20,23; 24:10,15, 24; 29:5u Ge 12:5, 11;16:1; 17:15v Ge 22:2011:30 w Ge 16:1;18:11; 25:21;29:31; 30:1,22; Jdg 13:2;1Sa 1:5;Ps 113:9; Lk 1:7,3611:31 x S ver 27

y Ge 38:11;Lev 18:15;

a 2 Or be seen as blessed

11:26 Terah . . . became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. As in the case of Shem, Ham and Japheth, the names of thethree sons may not be in chronological order by age (see

9:24; see also 10:21 and NIV text note). Haran died while hisfather was still alive (see v. 28).

n r 11:27 — 25:11 With God’s calling of Abram outof the post-Babel peoples, the story of God’sways with humankind shifts focus from universal historyto the history of God’s relationship with a particular personand people. Here begins the history of his saving work, inwhich human sin is not only judged (the flood) or restrained(Babel) but forgiven (through atonement) and overcome(through the purifying of human hearts). Throughout therest of Scripture the unfolding of this history remains thegolden thread and central theme. Its final outcome is madesure through Jesus Christ, “the son of Abraham” (Lk 3:34; see

also Mt 1:1 – 17 and note on 1:1; Gal 3:16) — which is the coremessage of the NT. The account of the God-Abram relationship found here

foreshadows in many ways the God-Israel relationship, andthe trials and triumphs of Abram’s faith model the life of faithfor his descendants.11:27 account. See note on 2:4.

c 11:28 Ur of the Chaldeans. Possibly in northern Meso-potamia, but more likely the site on the Euphrates insouthern Iraq excavated by Leonard Woolley between 1922and 1934. Ruins and artifacts from Ur reveal a civilization andculture that reached high levels before Abram’s time. KingUr-Nammu, who may have been Abram’s contemporary, is

famous for his law code. Chaldeans. See notes on Ezr 5:12;Job 1:17.

r 11:30 Sarai was . . . not able to conceive. The sterilityof Abram’s wife (see 15:2 – 3; 17:17) emphasized thefact that God’s people would not come by natural genera-tion from the post-Babel peoples. God was bringing a newhumanity into being, of whom Abram was father (17:5), justas Adam and Noah were fathers of the fallen human race.11:31 they came to Harran. In Hebrew the name of the townis spelled differently from that of Abram’s brother (v. 26). The

moon-god was worshiped at both Ur and Harran, and since Terah was an idolater (see Jos 24:2), he probably felt at homein either place (Sarah’s name probably means “moon wor-

shiper”). Harran (an Akkadian word meaning “caravan”) wasa flourishing caravan city in the 19th century BC. In the 18thcentury it was ruled by Amorites (see note on 10:16).12:1 had said. God had spoken to Abram “while he was stillin Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran” (Ac 7:2). Go from. . . show you. Abram must leave the settled world of the post-Babel nations and begin a pilgrimage with God to a bet-ter world of God’s making (see 24:7; see also 11:1 – 9; Heb11:8 – 10 and notes).

Here begins the story of how “the LORD [ Yahweh] . . . theGod of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob” (Ex 3:16), “the God of Is-rael” (Ex 5:1), created for himself a people who acknowledgedhim as the only true God and who had as their homeland

a place in the world that would be called “their land, whichthey had acquired in accordance with the command of theLORD through Moses” (Jos 22:9). In the ancient world of theOT, all the various gods that were worshiped and relied onwere gods of a particular place and/or a particular people (afamily, tribe or nation). The rest of Yahweh’s dealings with thepatriarchs and with Israel is an important theme that relateshow Abram’s pilgrimage moved ever forward toward the ful-fillment of Yahweh’s purposes.12:2 – 3 God’s promise to Abram has a sevenfold structure: (1)“I will make you into a great nation,” (2) “I will bless you,” (3) “Iwill make your name great,” (4) “you will be a blessing,” (5) “Iwill bless those who bless you,” (6) “whoever curses you I will

curse,” and (7) “all peoples on earth will be blessed throughyou.” God’s original blessing on the whole human race (1:28)would be especially fulfilled in the lives of Abram and his off-spring. In various ways and degrees, these promises were reaf-firmed to Abram (v. 7; 15:5 – 21; 17:4 – 8; 18:18 – 19; 22:17 – 18),to Isaac (26:2 – 4), to Jacob (28:13 – 15; 35:11 – 12; 46:3) and toMoses (Ex 3:6 – 8; 6:2 – 8). The seventh promise is quoted in Ac3:25 with reference to Peter’s Jewish listeners (see Ac 3:12) —Abram’s physical descendants — and in Gal 3:8 with referenceto Paul’s Gentile listeners — Abram’s spiritual descendants.


10/32

30 ❘ GENESIS 12:3

were in the land. 7The LORD appeared to

Abramw and said, “To your offspringb I willgive this land.x”y So he built an altar thereto the LORD,z who had appeared to him.

8From there he went on toward the hillseast of Bethela and pitched his tent,b with

3 I will bless those who bless you,

and whoever curses you I will curse; j and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.k”a

4So Abram went, as the LORD had toldhim; and Lotl went with him. Abram wasseventy-five years oldm when he set outfrom Harran.n 5He took his wife Sarai,o hisnephew Lot, all the pos sessions they hadaccumulatedp and the peopleq they had ac-quired in Harran, and they set out for theland of Canaan,r and they arrived there.

6Abram traveled through the land s asfar as the site of the great tree of Moreht at Shechem.u At that time the Canaanitesv

Heb 11:8 12:6 s Heb 11:9 t Ge 35:4; Dt 11:30; Jos 24:26; Jdg 7:1;9:6 u Ge 33:18; 37:12; Jos 17:7; 20:7; 24:1; Jdg 8:31; 21:19; 1Ki 12:1;Ps 60:6; 108:7 v S Ge 10:18 12:7 w Ge 17:1; 18:1; 26:2; 35:1; Ex 6:3;Ac 7:2 x Ex 3:8; Nu 10:29; Dt 30:5; Heb 11:8 y Ge 13:15, 17; 15:18;17:8; 23:18; 24:7; 26:3-4; 28:13; 35:12; 48:4; 50:24; Ex 6:4, 8; 13:5,11; 32:13; 33:1; Nu 11:12; Dt 1:8; 2:31; 9:5; 11:9; 34:4; 2Ki 25:21;1Ch 16:16; 2Ch 20:7; Ps 105:9-11; Jer 25:5; Eze 47:14; Ac 7:5;Ro 4:13; Gal 3:16* z S Ge 8:20; 13:4 12:8 a Ge 13:3; 28:11, 19;35:1, 8, 15; Jos 7:2; 8:9; 1Sa 7:16; 1Ki 12:29; Hos 12:4; Am 3:14; 4:4b Ge 26:25; 33:19; Heb 11:9

12:3 j Ge 27:29;Ex 23:22;Nu 24:9; Dt 30:7k Ge 15:5;18:18; 22:18;26:4; 28:4, 14;Dt 9:5; Ps 72:17;Isa 19:25;Ac 3:25;Gal 3:8*12:4 l S Ge 11:27m Ge 16:3, 16;17:1, 17, 24; 21:5n S Ge 11:3112:5 o S Ge 11:29p ver 16;Ge 13:2, 6;

31:18; 46:6q Ge 14:14; 15:3;17:23; Ecc 2:7r Ge 11:31; 16:3;

a 3 Or earth / will use your name in blessings (see 48:20)b 7 Or seed

ABRAM’S TRAVELS

c 12:3 whoever curses you. The ancient Near Easternpeoples thought that by pronouncing curses on some-one they could bring down the power of the gods (or othermysterious powers) on that person (cf. 1Sa 17:43). They hada large conventional stock of such curses, preserved in manysources, such as the Egyptian Execration Texts, the Hittitesuzerainty-vassal treaties, kudurrus (stone boundary mark-ers), the Code of Hammurapi (Epilogue), etc. For examples,

see notes on Dt 9:14; Jer 15:3; see also note on Ge 27:33; cf.note on Ezr 6:11.

n r 12:4 Abram went , as the LORD had told him. SeeHeb 11:8. Prompt obedience grounded in faithcharacterized this patriarch throughout his life (see 17:23;21:14; 22:3). Lot went with him. See 13:1,5. Lot chose to gowith his uncle Abram, seeking a better future. seventy-five years old. Although advanced in age at the time of his call,Abram would live for another full century (see 25:7; see alsonote on 5:5).

12:5 people they had acquired. Wealthy people in that an-cient world always had servants in their employ. Some wereslaves, others were servants by choice; all were consideredto be members of the “household” in which they served (see14:14; 15:3; 17:12 – 13; 24:2).12:6 site of the great tree. Perhaps the same tree referred to in35:4 (see also Jdg 9:6,37). Moreh. The name means “teacher.”It suggests that the Canaanites sought directions from their

gods by this tree. Abram’s God (Yahweh) appeared to himthere (v. 7). Shechem. An important city in central Canaan,founded in the patriarchal period.

r 12:7 The LORD appeared. The Lord at times “appeared”in some way to the patriarchs and others, but not in allhis glory (see Ex 33:18 – 20; Jn 1:18). altar. The first of severalAbram built (see v. 8; 13:18; 22:9). He acknowledged that theland of Canaan belonged to the Lord in a special way (see Ex20:24; Jos 22:19).12:8 Bethel. Just north of Jerusalem (see map, p. XXXX), it was


11/32

GENESIS 12:12 ❘ 31

and Abram went down to Egypt to livethere for a while because the famine wassevere.g 11As he was about to enter Egypt,he said to his wife Sarai,h “I know whata beautiful woman i you are. 12When theEgyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is

Bethel on the west and Ai c on the east.There he built an altar to the LORD andcalled on the name of the LORD.d

9Then Abram set out and continued to-ward the Negev.e

Abram in Egypt

12:10-20Ref — Ge 20:1-18; 26:1-1110Now there was a famine in the land, f

57; 42:5; 43:1; 47:4, 13; Ru 1:1; 2Sa 21:1; 2Ki 8:1; Ps 105:19g Ge 41:30, 54, 56; 47:20; Ps 105:16 12:11 h S Ge 11:29 i ver 14;Ge 24:16; 26:7; 29:17; 39:6

12:8 c Jos 7:2;12:9; Ezr 2:28;Ne 7:32;Jer 49:3d S Ge 4:26;S 8:2012:9 e Ge 13:1,3; 20:1; 24:62;Nu 13:17;33:40; Dt 34:3;

Jos 10:4012:10 f Ge 41:27,

AGE 6

17

29

30

39

56

110

Birth of

JOSEPH

Joseph to Egypt*

Joseph entersPharaoh’s service*

Joseph’s death*

AGE 40

60

75

100

137

151

157

168

180

AGE 15

40

77

91

97

108

120

121

130

147

To Canaan*

Abraham’s death*

AGE 75

100

140

160

175

Birth of

ISAAC*

Isaac’s marriage*

Isaac’s death*

Births of Esau and

JACOB*

Esau’s marriage*

Jacob toPaddan Aram

Jacob’s returnto Canaan

Jacob to Egypt*

Jacob’s death*

Note: The ages marked with (*) are expressly given.

ABRAHAM

INTEGRATED CHRONOLOGY OF THE PATRIARCHS

an important town in the religious history of God’s ancientpeople (see, e.g., 28:10 – 22; 35:1 – 8; 1Ki 12:26 – 29).12:9 Negev. The dry wasteland stretching southward fromBeersheba (see map No. 2 at the end of this study Bible). ThisHebrew word is translated “south” in 13:14.

r 12:10 went down to Egypt . . . because the famine was se-vere. Egypt’s food supply was usually plentiful becausethe Nile’s water supply was normally dependable. Abram’sexperience in this episode foreshadows Israel’s later experi-

ence in Egypt, as the author of Genesis, writing after the exo-dus, was very much aware. The parallels are striking: a faminein the land (here; 47:4); affliction at the hands of the Egyp-tians (vv. 12 – 15; Ex 1:11 – 14); God’s plagues on the Egyp-

tians (v. 17; Ex 8 – 11); the Egyptians sending the people awayas a result (vv. 19 – 20; Ex 12:31 – 32); the Egyptians lettingthem take with them all their possessions (v. 20; Ex 12:32); thepeople obtaining wealth from the Egyptians (v. 16; Ex 12:36);return to Canaan by stages through the wilderness (13:1 – 3;Exodus; Numbers; Deuteronomy; Joshua); arrival back in Ca-naan, where they worship the Lord (13:4; Jos 5:10; 8:30 – 35;24:1 – 27). Abram was truly the “father” of Israel.

c r

12:11 As he was about to enter Egypt. Having left

the promised land to find food in a time of fam-ine (see Ru 1:1), but doing so without God’s guidance or con-sent (see 46:3 – 4; 2Ki 8:1), Abram showed that he needed tolearn that the God who had called him and made promises


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116 ❘ EXODUS 13:14

3Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites arewandering around the land in confusion,hemmed in by the desert.’ 4And I willharden Pharaoh’s heart,n and he will pur-sue them.o But I will gain gloryp for myselfthrough Pharaoh and all his army, and theEgyptians will know that I am the LORD.”q

So the Israelites did this.5When the king of Egypt was told that

the people had fled,r Pharaoh and his offi-cials changed their minds s about them andsaid, “What have we done? We have letthe Israelites go and have lost their ser-vices!” 6So he had his chariot made readyand took his army with him. 7He took sixhundred of the best chariots,t along withall the other chariots of Egypt, with offi-cers over all of them. 8The LORD hardenedthe heartu of Pharaoh king of Egypt, sothat he pursued the Israelites, who weremarching out boldly.v 9The Egyptians — allPharaoh’s horsesw and chariots, horsemenc and troopsx — pursued the Israelites andovertooky them as they camped by the seanear Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon.z

10As Pharaoh approached, the Israeliteslooked up, and there were the Egyptians,marching after them. They were terrifiedand crieda out to the LORD. 11They saidto Moses, “Was it because there were no

graves in Egypt that you brought us to thedesert to die?b What have you done to usby bringing us out of Egypt? 12Didn’t wesay to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let usserve the Egyptians’? It would have beenbetter for us to serve the Egyptians than todie in the desert!”c

14“In days to come, when your sonx asksyou, ‘What does this mean?’ say to him,‘With a mighty hand the LORD brought usout of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.y 15When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to letus go, the LORD killed the firstborn of bothpeople and animals in Egypt. This is why

I sacrifice to the LORD the first male off-spring of every womb and redeem each ofmy firstborn sons.’z 16And it will be like asign on your hand and a symbol on yourforeheada that the LORD brought us out ofEgypt with his mighty hand.”

Crossing the Sea17When Pharaoh let the people go, God

did not lead them on the road through thePhilistine country, though that was shorter.For God said, “If they face war, they might

change their minds and return to Egypt.”b 18So God ledc the people around by the des-ert road toward the Red Sea.a The Israeliteswent up out of Egypt ready for battle.d

19Moses took the bones of Josephe withhim because Joseph had made the Isra-elites swear an oath. He had said, “Godwill surely come to your aid, and then youmust carry my bones up with you fromthis place.”b f

20After leaving Sukkothg they camped atEtham on the edge of the desert.h 21By daythe LORD went ahead i of them in a pillar ofcloud j to guide them on their way and bynight in a pillar of fire to give them light,so that they could travel by day or night.22Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor thepillar of fire by night leftk its place in frontof the people.

14 Then the LORD said to Moses,2“Tell

the Israelites to turn back and en-camp near Pi Hahiroth, between Mig-dol l and the sea. They are to encamp bythe sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon.m

y Ex 15:9 z ver 2 14:10 a Ex 15:25; Jos 24:7; Ne 9:9; Ps 5:2; 34:17;50:15; 107:6, 28 14:11 b S Ex 5:21; 16:3; 17:3; Nu 11:1; 14:22;20:4; 21:5; Dt 9:7 14:12 c S Ex 5:21; 15:24; 17:2; Ps 106:7-8

a 18 Or the Sea of Reeds b 19 See Gen. 50:25.c 9 Or charioteers; also in verses 17, 18, 23, 26 and 28

13:14 x S Ex 10:2y Ex 20:2; Dt 7:8;28:6813:15 z S ver 213:16 a S ver 913:17 b Ex 14:11;Nu 14:1-4;Dt 17:16;Hos 11:513:18 c

Ex 15:22;Ps 136:16;Eze 20:10d Jos 1:14; 4:1313:19 e Jos 24:32;Ac 7:16;Heb 11:22f S Ge 47:29-3013:20 g S Ex 12:37h Nu 33:613:21 i Ex 32:1;33:14; Dt 2:7;31:8; Jdg 4:14;5:4; Ps 68:7;77:20; Jer 2:2;

Hab 3:13 j Ex 14:19, 24;24:16; 33:9-10;34:5; 40:38;Nu 9:16; 12:5;14:14; Dt 1:33;Ne 9:12, 19;Ps 78:14; 99:7;105:39; Isa 4:5;1Co 10:113:22 k Ne 9:1914:2 l Nu 33:7;Jer 44:1;Eze 29:10m ver 9

14:4 n S Ex 4:21o ver 8, 17,23; Ps 71:11p S Ex 9:16;Ro 9:17, 22-23 q S Ex 6:2;Eze 32:1514:5 r S Ge 31:21s Ps 105:2514:7 t Ex 15:414:8 u S Ex 11:10v Nu 33:3;Ac 13:1714:9 w Ge 47:17x ver 6-7,25; Jos 24:6;Isa 43:17

13:14 See note on 12:26.13:16 See note on v. 9.13:17 road through the Philistine country. Although the mostdirect route from Goshen to Canaan, it was heavily guardedby a string of Egyptian fortresses.13:18 desert road. Leading south along the west coast ofthe Sinai peninsula. Red Sea. See NIV text note. Various loca-tions of the crossing have been proposed along the line ofthe modern Suez Canal and including the northern end ofthe Gulf of Suez (see note on 14:2). ready for battle. Probablyarmed only with spears, bows and slings.13:19

See notes on Ge 50:24 – 25.13:21 pillar of cloud . . . pillar of fire. The visible symbol of God’spresence among his people (see 14:24; see also note on 3:2).

The Lord often spoke to them from the pillar (see Nu 12:5 – 6;Dt 31:15 – 16; Ps 99:6 – 7).

c 14:2 turn back. Northward, in the general directionfrom which they had come. Pi Hahiroth. Located “eastof Baal Zephon” (Nu 33:7). Migdol. Location unknown. Thename means “watchtower.” sea. The sea that the NIV, in ac-cordance with established tradition, calls the Red Sea — in

Hebrew Yam Suph, i.e., Sea of Reeds (see 13:18 and NIV textnote). Reference can hardly be to the northern end of theGulf of Suez since reeds do not grow in salt water. More-over, an Egyptian papyrus seems to locate Baal Zephon inthe vicinity of Tahpanhes (see note on Jer 2:16), a site nearLake Menzaleh about 20 miles east of Rameses. The cross-ing of the “Red Sea” thus may have occurred at the southernend of Lake Menzaleh (see map, p. XXXX; but see note on13:18). However, more recent investigation points towardLake Balah (see map, p. XXXX). Baal Zephon. Means “Baal ofthe north” or “Baal of North (Mountain)” — also the name of

a Canaanite god.14:4 harden. See v. 8 and note on 4:21. know that I am theLORD. See note on 6:3.14:7 chariots. Introduced into Egypt from Canaan, theybrought about a revolutionary change in the art of warfare.Where the terrain was open and relatively flat, as much ofEgypt was, they were especially effective. officers. The He-brew for the singular of this word means “third man,” perhapsreferring to his place in a chariot crew.14:8 hardened. See v. 4 and note.


13/32

EXODUS 14:12 ❘ 117

0 40 miles

0 40 km.

Jebel Musa (traditional

locationof Mt. Sinai)

Jebel al-Lawz

(alternative location of Mt. Sinai)

Jebel Sin Bisher

(alternative location of

Mt. Sinai)

Mt.Nebo

Zoan

Elim

Hazeroth

Marah

Pithom

Sile

Ezion Geber

Migdol?

Migdol?

GizaOn

Kadesh(Barnea)

Gaza

Ashdod

Hebron

Jericho

Beersheba

Punon

Rameses

Memphis

Sukkoth

Rabbah

Heshbon

D e s e r t

o f Z i n

D e s e r t

o f Pa ra n

D e s e r t o f

S i n a i

D e s e r t

o f S i n

S I N A I

E t h a m / D e s e r t

o f S h u r

N i l

e

R .

J o r

d a n

R .

Red Sea

Great Bitter Lake

Sea of Reeds ?

Lake Menzaleh

Salt

Sea

Sea of Kinnereth

Little Bitter Lake

Lake Timsah

G u

l f

o f

S u

e

z

G u

l f

o f

A q a

b a

E D

O M

G O S H E N

E G Y P T

C A N A A N

A M M O N

P H

I L

I S T

I A

A M

A L E K

I T E S

M I D I A N

SHASU

NOMADS

M e d i t e r r a

n e a n

S e a

Probable Israelite route

Alternative route

The exodus and conquest narratives form the classic historical and spiritual drama of OT times. Subsequent ages

looked back to this period as one of obedient and victorious living under divine guidance. Close examination

of the environment and circumstances also reveals the strenuous exertions, human sin and bloody conflicts of

the era.

THE EXODUS

●➊ The Israelite tribes fled past theEgyptian system of border posts,through the Red Sea and into thedesert, where they avoided the mainmilitary and trade routes leadingacross northern Sinai. Their routepossibly took them past the remoteturquoise and copper mining regionsnorthwest of Mt. Sinai.

●➋ Exact crossing place through theBiblical “Yam Suph” is unknown.

●➌ It was necessary for Moses to takerefuge in Midian where the Egyptianauthorities could not reach him. Thedecades spent on “the far side of thedesert” were an important formativepart of his life.

ab In historical terms, the exodus from Egypt was ignored by Egyptian scribesand recorders. No definitive monuments mention the event itself, but a

stele of Pharaoh Merneptah (c. 1205 BC) claims that a people called Israel wereencountered by Egyptian troops somewhere in northern Canaan.

Finding precise geographical and chronological details of the period is problem-atic, but new information has emerged from vast amounts of fragmentary ar-chaeological and inscriptional evidence. Hittite cuneiform documents parallel theancient covenant formula governing Israel’s “national contract” with God at MountSinai.

The Late Bronze Age (c. 1550-1200 BC) was a time of major social migrations. Egyp-tian control over the Semites in the eastern Nile delta was harsh, with a system

of brickmaking quotas imposed on the labor force, often the landless, low-class“Apiru.” Numerous Canaanite towns were violently destroyed. New populations,including the “Sea Peoples,” made their presence felt in Anatolia, Egypt, Canaan,Transjordan, and elsewhere in the eastern Mediterranean.

Correspondence from Canaanite town rulers to the Egyptian court (the Amarnaletters; see chart, p. 0000) in the time of Akhenaten (c. 1375 BC) reveals a weakstructure of alliances, with an intermittent Egyptian military presence and an omi-nous fear of people called “Apiru” (= “Habiru”).

●➋

●➊

●➌


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134 ❘ EXODUS 25:13

of the cover. 19Make one cherub on oneend and the second cherub on the other;make the cherubim of one piece with thecover, at the two ends. 20The cherubime are to have their wings spread upward,overshadowing f the cover with them. Thecherubim are to face each other, looking

toward the cover. 21Place the cover on topof the arkg and put in the ark the tabletsof the covenant lawh that I will give you.

ringsx on one side and two rings on theother. 13Then make poles of acacia woodand overlay them with gold.y 14Insert thepolesz into the rings on the sides of theark to carry it. 15The poles are to remainin the rings of this ark; they are not to beremoved.a 16Then put in the ark the tab-

lets of the covenant law,b which I will giveyou.

17“Make an atonement cover c of puregold — two and a half cubits long and a cu-bit and a half wide. 18And make two cher-ubimd out of hammered gold at the ends

8:6; 2Ch 3:10-13; Heb 9:5 25:20 e S Ge 3:24 f Ex 37:9; 1Ki 8:7;1Ch 28:18; Heb 9:5 25:21 g ver 10-15; Ex 26:34; 40:20; Dt 10:5h S Ex 16:34; Heb 9:4

25:12 x ver 26;Ex 30:425:13 y ver 28;Ex 27:6; 30:5;37:2825:14 z Ex 27:7; 40:20;1Ch 15:1525:15 a 1Ki 8:825:16 b S Ex 16:34;Heb 9:425:17 c ver 21;Lev 16:13;Ro 3:2525:18 d Ex 26:1,31; 36:35;1Ki 6:23, 27;

25:16 covenant law. The two tablets on which were inscribedthe Ten Commandments as the basic stipulations of the Sinaicovenant (see 20:1 – 17; 31:18). The Hebrew word for “cove-nant law” is related to a Babylonian word meaning “covenantstipulations.” See also notes on v. 22; 16:34.

n 25:17 atonement. Reconciliation, the divine act ofgrace whereby God draws to himself and makes “atone” with him those who were once alienated from him. Inthe OT, the shed blood of sacrificial offerings effected atone-ment (see Lev 17:11 and note); in the NT, the blood of Jesus,shed once for all time (see Heb 9:12), does the same (see Ro3:25; 1Jn 2:2 and notes). atonement cover. See Lev 16:2 andnote. That God’s symbolic throne was capped with an atone-ment cover signified his great mercy toward his people —

only such a God can be revered (see Ps 130:3 – 4).

c 25:18 cherubim. Probably similar to the carvings ofwinged sphinxes that adorned the armrests of royalthrones (see note on v. 10) in many parts of the ancient NearEast (see also note on Ge 3:24). In the OT the cherubim were

symbolic attendants that marked the place of the Lord’s “en-thronement” in his earthly kingdom (see 1Sa 4:4; 2Sa 6:2;2Ki 19:15; Ps 99:1). From the cover of the ark (God’s sym-bolic throne) the Lord gave directions to Moses (see v. 22;Nu 7:89). Later the ark’s presence in the temple at Jerusalemwould designate it as God’s earthly royal city (see Ps 9:11and note).25:21 put in the ark the tablets of the covenant law. See noteon 31:18, but see also Dt 31:26.

The new religious observances taught by Moses in the desert centered on rituals connected with the tabernacleand amplified Israel’s sense of separateness, purity and oneness under the lordship of Yahweh.

THE TABERNACLE

ab A few desert shrines have been found in Sinai, notably

at Serabit el-Khadem and at Timnah in the Negev, andshow marked Egyptian influence.

Specific cultural antecedents to portable shrines carried onpoles and covered with thin sheets of gold can be found inancient Egypt as early as the Old Kingdom (2800 – 2250 BC),but were especially prominent in the 18th and 19th dynas-ties (1570 – 1180). The best examples come from the fabuloustomb of Tutankhamun, c. 1350 BC.

Comparisons of construction details in the text of Ex 25 – 40

with the frames, shrines, poles, sheathing, draped fabric cov-ers, gilt rosettes and winged protective figures from the shrineof Tutankhamun are instructive. The period, the Late BronzeAge, is equivalent in all dating systems to the era of Mosesand the exodus.

© 2011 by Zondervan. All rights reserved.


15/32

EXODUS 25:31 ❘ 135

overlay them with goldm and carry the ta-ble with them. 29And make its plates anddishes of pure gold, as well as its pitch-ers and bowls for the pouring out of of-ferings.n 30Put the bread of the Presenceo on this table to be before me at all times.

The Lampstand25:31-39pp — Ex 37:17-24

31“Make a lampstand p of pure gold.Hammer out its base and shaft, and make

22There, above the cover between the twocherubimi that are over the ark of the cov-enant law, I will meet j with you and giveyou all my commands for the Israelites.k

The Table

25:23-29pp — Ex 37:10-16

23“Make a table l of acacia wood — twocubits long, a cubit wide and a cubit anda half high.a 24Overlay it with pure goldand make a gold molding around it. 25Alsomake around it a rim a handbreadthb wideand put a gold molding on the rim. 26Makefour gold rings for the table and fastenthem to the four corners, where the fourlegs are. 27The rings are to be close to therim to hold the poles used in carrying thetable. 28Make the poles of acacia wood,

o Ex 35:13; 39:36; 40:4, 23; Lev 24:5-9; Nu 4:7; 1Sa 21:4-6;1Ki 7:48; 1Ch 23:29 25:31 p Ex 26:35; 31:8; 35:14; 39:37; 40:4, 24;Lev 24:4; Nu 3:31; 1Ki 7:49; 2Ch 4:7; Zec 4:2; Heb 9:2; Rev 1:12

25:22 i Nu 7:89;1Sa 4:4;2Sa 6:2; 22:11;2Ki 19:15;1Ch 13:6; 28:18;Ps 18:10; 80:1;99:1; Isa 37:16 j S Ex 19:3;29:42; 30:6,36; Lev 1:1;

16:2; Nu 17:4k Jer 3:1625:23 l ver 30;Ex 26:35; 40:4,22; Lev 24:6;Nu 3:31;1Ki 7:48;1Ch 28:16;2Ch 4:8, 19;Eze 41:22;44:16; Heb 9:2

25:28 m S ver 1325:29 n Nu 4:725:30

a 23 That is, about 3 feet long, 1 1/2 feet wide and 2 1/4feet high or about 90 centimeters long, 45 centimeterswide and 68 centimeters high b 25 That is, about3 inches or about 7.5 centimeters

25:22 ark of the covenant law. Called this because it con-tained the two “tablets of the covenant law” (v. 16; see notethere). The phrase “ark of the covenant law” is a synonym ofthe more familiar phrase “ark of the covenant” (see, e.g., Nu10:33). I will meet with you. See note on 27:21.25:26 rings. See note on v. 12.

n 25:30 bread of the Presence. Traditionally “showbread.”In this phrase, “Presence” refers to the presence of God

himself (as in 33:14 – 15; Isa 63:9). The bread (12 loaves, onefor each tribe) represented a perpetual offering to the Lordby which the Israelites declared that they consecrated to Godthe fruits of their labors and by which the nation at the sametime acknowledged that all such fruit had been providedonly by God’s blessing. See Lev 24:5 – 9.25:31 flowerlike cups, buds and blossoms. The design is pat-terned after an almond tree (see v. 33), the first of the trees

●➊ ARK OF THE COVENANT

ab The ark of the covenant (or Testimony) compares

with the roughly contemporary shrine and funerary

furniture of King Tutankhamun (c. 1350 BC), which, along

with the Nimrud and Samaria ivories from a later

period, have been used to guide the graphic

interpretation of the text. Both sources show

the conventional way of depicting extreme reverence,with facing winged guardians shielding a sacred place.

●➋ INCENSE ALTAR

●➌ LAMPSTAND

The traditional form of the lampstand is not attested

archaeologically until much later.

●➍ TABLE

The table holding the bread of the Presence was made of

wood covered with thin sheets of gold. All of the objects

were portable and were fitted with rings and carrying poles,

practices typical of Egyptian ritual processions as early asthe Old Kingdom.

●➎ BRONZE ALTAR

ab The altar of burnt offering was made ofwood overlaid with bronze. The size, five cubitssquare and three cubits high, matches altars found at Arad

and Beersheba from the period of the monarchy.

The symbolism of God’s redemptive covenant was preserved in the tabernacle, making each element an object

lesson for the worshiper. Likely reconstructions of the furnishings are based on the detailed descriptions and

precise measurements recorded in Exodus 25–40. (The bronze basin is not shown here.)

TABERNACLE FURNISHINGS

●➊

●➋

●➌

●➍ ●➎



16/32

136 ❘ EXODUS 25:32

in the other set. 5Make fifty loops on onecurtain and fifty loops on the end curtainof the other set, with the loops oppositeeach other. 6Then make fifty gold claspsand use them to fasten the curtains togeth-er so that the tabernacle is a unit.x

7“Make curtains of goat hair for the tent

over the tabernacle — eleven altogether.8All eleven curtains are to be the samesizey — thirty cubits long and four cubitswide.c 9 Join five of the curtains togetherinto one set and the oth er six into an otherset. Fold the sixth curtain double at thefront of the tent. 10Make fifty loops alongthe edge of the end curtain in one set andalso along the edge of the end curtain inthe other set. 11Then make fifty bronzeclasps and put them in the loops to fas-ten the tent together as a unit.z 12As for

the additional length of the tent curtains,the half curtain that is left over is to hangdown at the rear of the tab ernacle. 13Thetent curtains will be a cubitd longer onboth sides; what is left will hang overthe sides of the tabernacle so as to coverit. 14Make for the tent a coveringa of ramskins dyed red, and over that a covering ofthe other durable leather.e b

15“Make upright frames of acacia woodfor the tabernacle. 16Each frame is to beten cubits long and a cubit and a half

wide,f 17with two projections set paral-lel to each other. Make all the frames of

its flowerlike cups, buds and blossoms ofone piece with them. 32Six branches are toextend from the sides of the lampstand —three on one side and three on the other.33Three cups shaped like almond flowerswith buds and blossoms are to be on onebranch, three on the next branch, and the

same for all six branches extending fromthe lampstand. 34And on the lampstandthere are to be four cups shaped like al-mond flowers with buds and blossoms.35One bud shall be under the first pair ofbranches extending from the lampstand,a second bud under the second pair, anda third bud under the third pair — sixbranches in all. 36The buds and branchesshall all be of one piece with the lamp-stand, hammered out of pure gold.q

37“Then make its seven lampsr and set

them up on it so that they light the spacein front of it. 38Its wick trimmers and trayss are to be of pure gold. 39A talenta of puregold is to be used for the lampstand andall these accessories. 40See that you makethem according to the patternt shown youon the mountain.

The Tabernacle26:1-37pp — Ex 36:8-38

26

“Make the tabernacle u with ten

curtains of finely twisted linenand blue, purple and scarlet yarn, withcherubimv woven into them by a skilledworker. 2All the curtains are to be thesame sizew — twenty-eight cubits long andfour cubits wide.b 3 Join five of the cur-tains together, and do the same with theother five. 4Make loops of blue materialalong the edge of the end curtain in oneset, and do the same with the end curtain

25:36 q ver 18;Nu 8:425:37 r Ex 27:21; 30:8;Lev 24:3-4;Nu 8:2; 1Sa 3:3;2Ch 13:1125:38 s S ver 37;Nu 4:925:40 t S ver 9;

Ac 7:44;Heb 8:5*26:1 u Ex 29:42;40:2; Lev 8:10;Nu 1:50;Jos 22:19,29; 2Sa 7:2;1Ki 1:39;Ac 7:44;Heb 8:2,5; 13:10;S Rev 21:3v S Ex 25:1826:2 w ver 8

26:6 x ver 1126:8 y ver 226:11 z ver 626:14 a Nu 3:25b Nu 4:25

a 39 That is, about 75 pounds or about 34 kilogramsb 2 That is, about 42 feet long and 6 feet wide or about13 meters long and 1.8 meters wide c 8 That is, about45 feet long and 6 feet wide or about 13.5 meters longand 1.8 meters wide d 13 That is, about 18 inches orabout 45 centimeters e 14 Possibly the hides of largeaquatic mammals (see 25:5) f 16 That is, about 15feet long and 2 1/4 feet wide or about 4.5 meters longand 68 centimeters wide

in the Near East to blossom in spring. The cups of the lamp-

stand resemble either the outer covering of the almondflower or the almond nut.

c n 25:37 seven. Signifying completeness. lamps. The ancient lamp was a small clay saucer withpart of its rim pinched together to form a spout from whichprotruded the top of a wick fed by oil contained in the saucer.(Examples of seven-spouted lamps come from the time ofMoses; see note on Zec 4:2.) The classic representation of theshape of the tabernacle lampstand (menorah) comes fromthe time of Herod the Great and may be seen on the Arch of

Titus in Rome. The lamps were to burn all night in the tab-ernacle, tended by the priests. Oil for the lamps was to besupplied by the people; the light from the lamps representedthe glory of the Lord reflected in the consecrated lives of theIsraelites — Israel’s glory answering to God’s glory in the tab-ernacle (29:43). See 27:20 – 21.

n 25:40 Quoted in Heb 8:5 in order to contrast the “shad-ow” (the trappings of the old covenant) with the reality(the Christ of the new covenant). See also Heb 10:1.

n 26:1 tabernacle. See note on 25:9; see also diagram,p. XXXX. Its basic structure was to be 15 feet wide by45 feet long by 15 feet high. Over an inner lining of embroi-dered linen (vv. 1 – 6), it was to have a covering woven of

goat hair (vv. 7 – 13) and two additional coverings of leather,

one made from ram skins dyed red and one from “another. . . durable leather” (25:5; see NIV text note there; cf. 26:14).Internally, the ceiling was probably flat, but whether theleather coverings had a ridge line with sloping sides (like atent) is not known. The tabernacle represented God’s royaltent. Its form and adornment (like those of the later templesthat replaced it) marked it as a symbolic representation ofthe created cosmos over which God is sovereign as Creatorand Lord. As such, it stood for the center of the cosmosfrom which the Creator reigns, the place where the heav-enly and earthly realms converge. There God “lived” amonghis people (Immanuel, “God with us”), and his people couldcome near to him. At this sanctuary Israel lived symbolicallyat the gate of Paradise — very near though still outside,awaiting the fulfillment of God’s redemptive program (seevv. 31 – 35; Ge 3:24 and notes; see also Rev 21:1 — 22:6 andnotes). finely twisted linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn. See note on 25:4. cherubim. Signifying a royal chamber (see25:18 and note).26:7 goat hair. See note on 25:4.26:14 ram skins dyed red . . . other durable leather. See noteon 25:5.26:17 projections. Lit. “hands”; probably the two pegs at the


17/32

THE NEW TESTAMENT


18/32

THE GOSPELS AND THE

EARLY CHURCH


19/32

1818 Acts

1754John

1693Luke

1646Mark

1582Matthew

T he first four books of the NT are known as the Gospels,

from the Greek word for “good news.” The good news

is that Jesus Christ and his redemptive work on the

cross fulfill Messianic promises in the OT (see note on

Lk 24:44). Matthew, Mark and Luke are often called the SynopticGospels, because they are written from a similar viewpoint (see

essay, p. 0000). These texts are historical narratives, relating the

story of the life and ministry of Christ. The Gospel of John differs

in emphasis from the Synoptics. With a more theological tone,

John is concerned more with examining the special significance

and meaning behind Jesus’ words, works and identity. The book

of Acts is a companion piece to Luke, picking up where the Gos-

pel narrative ends and telling the story of the early church and

the work of the Holy Spirit through the apostles, especially Peter

and Paul.


20/32

THE SYNOPTIC GOSPELS

A comparison of the four Gospels reveals that Matthew, Mark and Luke are noticeably similar, while

John is quite different. The first three Gospels agree extensively in language, in the material they

include, and in the order in which events and sayings from the life of Christ are recorded. (Chrono-

logical order does not appear to have been rigidly followed in any of the Gospels, however.) Be-

cause of this agreement, these three books are called the Synoptic Gospels ( syn, “together with”;

optic , “seeing”; thus “seeing together”). For an example of agreement in content, see Mt 9:2 – 8; Mk

2:3 – 12; Lk 5:18 – 26. An instance of verbatim agreement is found in Mt 10:22a; Mk 13:13a; Lk 12:17.

A mathematical comparison shows that 91 percent of Mark’s Gospel is contained in Matthew, while

53 percent of Mark is found in Luke. Such agreement raises questions as to the origin of the Synop-

tic Gospels. Did the authors rely on a common source? Were they interdependent? Questions such

FOUR PORTRAITS OF THE ONE JESUS

MATTHEW MARK LUKE JOHN

The Gospel of the Messiah The Gospel of the sufferingSon of God

The Gospel of the Saviorfor all people

The Gospel of the divine Son whoreveals the Father

Most structured Most dramatic Most thematic Most theological

Photo Credits (l to r):The Supper at Emmaus, Champaigne, Philippe de/Musee des Beaux-Art s, Angers, France/Giraudon/The Bridgeman Art Library, Scala/Art Resource, NY,Scala/Art Resource, NY, Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY

Taken from Four Portraits, One Jesus by MARK L. STRAUSS. Copyright © 2007 by Mark L . Strauss, p. 24. Used by permission of Zondervan.

THE SYNOPTICS AND JOHN

SYNOPTIC GOSPELS MATTHEW, MARK, LUKE GOSPEL OF JOHN

1. Emphasize the Galilean setting of the first part of Jesus’ ministry 1. Considerable movement between Galilee and Judea

2. Little information given to determine the length of Jesus’ ministry;material could fit into a single year 2. Mentions at least three different Passover festivals (2:13; 6:4; 13:1),and so a ministry of 2 ½ to 3 ½ years

3. Jesus teaches mostly in parables, short sayings and epigrams 3. Relates long speeches by Jesus, dialogues with his opponents andinterviews with individuals

4. Teaching focuses on the kingdom of God; healings and exorcismsdemonstrate the power of the kingdom and the dawn ofeschatological salvation

4. Teaching focuses on Jesus himself and the Son’s revelation of theFather. Signs or miracles reveal Jesus’ identity and glorify the Father;no exorcisms

Taken from Four Portraits, One Jesus by MARK L. STRAUSS. Copyright © 2007 by Mark L . Strauss, p. 25. Used by permission of Zonder van.


21/32

THE SYNOPTIC GOSPELS ❘ 1581

as these constitute what is known as the Synoptic Problem. Many solutions have been proposed,

of which these are the most important:

1. Complete independence. Some hold

that the Synoptic writers worked inde-

pendently of each other, perhaps using

various written or oral sources. Accordingto this view, the similar — sometimes even

verbatim — choice and order of words

and events are best explained by the in-

fallible guidance of the Holy Spirit on the

authors.

2. The use of an early Gospel. Some have

postulated that the Synoptic authors all

had access to an earlier Gospel, now lost.

3. The use of two major sources. The

most common view currently is that the

Gospel of Mark and a hypothetical docu-

ment, called Quelle (German for “source”)

or Q, were used by Matthew and Luke as

sources for most of the materials included

in their Gospels.

4. The priority and use of Matthew. An-

other view suggests that the other twoSynoptics drew from Matthew as their

main source.

5. A combination of the above. This the-

ory assumes that the authors of the Syn-

optic Gospels made use of oral tradition,

written fragments, mutual dependence on

other Synoptic writers or on their Gospels,

and the testimony of eyewitnesses.

DATING THE SYNOPTIC GOSPELS

MARK

MATTHEW LUKE

MATTHEW MARK LUKE

ASSUMPTION A Matthew and Luke used Mark as a major source ASSUMPTION B Matthew and Luke did not use Mark as asource; any of the three could have been written from the 50s onward(see Introductions to Matthew, Mark and Luke)

View No. 1 Mark written in the 50s or early 60s AD (1) Matthew written in late 50s or the 60s (2) Luke written 59–63

View No. 2 Mark written 65–70 (1) Matthew written in the 70s or later (2) Luke written in the 70s or later

TWO-SOURCE THEORY

MATTHEW LUKE

MARK Q

MATTHEAN PRIORITY

MARK

LUKE

MATTHEW


22/32

MATTHEW

Author

r Although the first Gospel is anonymous, the early church fathers were unanimous in holding

that Matthew, one of the 12 apostles, was its author. However, the results of modern critical

studies — in particular those that stress Matthew’s alleged dependence on Mark for a substan-

tial part of his Gospel — have caused some Biblical scholars to abandon Matthean authorship.

Why, they ask, would Matthew, an eyewitness to the events of our Lord’s life, depend so heavilyon Mark’s account? The best answer seems to be that Mark’s Gospel represents the testimony of

Peter (see Introduction to Mark: Author), and Matthew would certainly be willing to follow Peter’s

apostolic authority.

Matthew, whose name means “gift of the LORD,” was a tax collector who left his work to follow

Jesus (9:9 – 13). In Mark and Luke he is called by his other name, Levi; in Mk 2:14 he is further identi-

fied as “son of Alphaeus.”

Date and Place of Writing

Some have argued on the basis of its Jewish characteristics that

Matthew’s Gospel was written in the early church period, possi-bly the early part of AD 50, when the church was largely Jewish

and the gospel was preached to Jews only (Ac 11:19). However,

those who have concluded that both Matthew and Luke drew

extensively from Mark’s Gospel date it later — after the Gospel

of Mark had been in circulation for a period of time. See essay

and chart, p. XXXX. Accordingly, some feel that Matthew would

have been written in the late 50s or in the 60s. Others, who as-

sume that Mark was written between 65 and 70, place Matthew

in the 70s or even later. However, there is insufficient evidence

to be dogmatic about either view. The Jewish nature of Matthew’s Gospel may suggest that it

was written in the Holy Land, though many think it may have

originated in Syrian Antioch. The church in Antioch had a large

Greek-speaking Jewish population and was at the forefront

of the mission to the Gentiles, a theme Matthew emphasizes

(e.g., 28:18 – 20).

INTRODUCTION

Author:

Matthew, also called Levi

Audience:

Greek-speaking Jewish

Christians

Date:

Between AD 50 and 70

Theme:

Matthew presents Jesus as the

Jewish Messiah sent by God to

fulfill Old Testament prophecy.

a quick look


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INTRODUCTION: MATTHEW ❘ 1583

Recipients

Many elements in Matthew’s Gospel point to a Jewish or Jewish-Christian readership: Matthew’s

concern with fulfillment of the OT (he has more quotations from and allusions to the OT than any

other NT author); his tracing of Jesus’ descent from Abraham (1:1 – 17); his lack of explanation of

Jewish customs (especially in contrast to Mark); his use of Jewish terminology (e.g., “kingdom of

heaven,” where “heaven” reveals the Jewish reverential reluctance to use the name of God; see noteon 3:2); and his emphasis on Jesus’ role as “Son of David” (1:1; 9:27; 12:23; 15:22; 20:30 – 31; 21:9,15;

22:41 – 45). This does not mean, however, that Matthew restricts his Gospel to Jews. He records the

coming of the Magi (non-Jews) to worship the infant Jesus (2:1 – 12), as well as Jesus’ statement that

the “field is the world” (13:38). He also gives a full statement of the Great Commission (28:18 – 20).

These passages show that, although Matthew’s Gospel is Jewish, it has a universal outlook.

Purpose

Matthew’s main purpose is to confirm for his Jewish-Christian readers that Jesus is their Messiah.

He does this primarily by showing how Jesus in his life and ministry fulfilled the OT Scriptures.

Although all the Gospel writers quote the OT, Matthew includes many proof texts unique to his


24/32

1588 ❘ MATTHEW 1: 18

fore they came together, she was found tobe pregnant through the Holy Spirit.p 19Be-cause Joseph her husband was faithful to

Joseph Accepts Jesus as His Son18This is how the birth of Jesus the Mes-

siah came abouta: His mother Mary was

pledged to be married to Joseph, but be- a 18 Or The origin of Jesus the Messiah was like this 1:18 p Lk 1:35

1:18 pledged to be married. There were no sexual relationsduring a Jewish betrothal period, but it was a much morebinding relationship than a modern engagement and couldbe broken only by divorce (see v. 19). In Dt 22:24 a betrothedwoman is called a “wife,” though the preceding verse speaksof her as being “pledged to be married.” Matthew uses theterms “husband” (v. 19) and “wife” (v. 24) of Joseph and Mary

before their marriage was consummated (see note on Joel1:8). the Holy Spirit. The common NT way of referring to thedivine Spirit, who in the OT was almost always called “theSpirit of God” or “the Spirit of the LORD.” See Ps 51:11 andnote. Christian reflection on the Biblical word about him (see3:16 – 17; 28:19; 2Co 13:14 and notes) led to the understand-ing that he is one of the three persons of the Trinity.

HerodPhilip II

Herodthe Great

Herod

Antipas

Archelaus

Herod the Great King of Judea,Galilee, Iturea, Traconitis (37– 4 BC)

Birth of Jesus (Mt 2:1-19; Lk 1:5)

KEY:

King Ethnarch/Tetrarch

BERNICE italic capitals denote females

Antipater bold type: bloodline of Herod the Great

Felix light type: non-bloodline

2ND GENERATION

Herod Philip II (MOTHER: CLEOPATRA) Tetrach of Itureaand Traconitis (4 BCAD 34) (Lk 3:1)

Archelaus (MOTHER: MALTHACE) Ethnarch of Judea,Idumea and Samaria (4 BCAD 6); when Mary and Josephleft Egypt, they avoided Judea and settled in Nazareth(Mt 2:19-23)

Aristobulus (MOTHER: MARIAMNE) (d. 10 BC) Not mentionedin the Bible

Herod Antipas (MOTHER: MALTHACE) Tetrarch of Galileeand Perea (4 BCAD 39) (Lk 3:1); second husband ofHerodias; he put John the Baptist to death (Mt 14:1-12;Mk 6:14 -29); Pilate sent Jesus to him (Lk 23:7-12)

Herod Philip I (MOTHER: MARIAMNE) He did not rule; firsthusband of Herodias (Mt 14:3; Mk 6:17) (died c. AD 34)

Antipater (MOTHER: DORIS)

HOUSE OF HEROD

1ST GENERATION


25/32

MATTHEW 1:20 ❘ 1589

the law, and yeta did not want to expose

her to public disgrace, he had in mind to

divorceq her quietly.

20But after he had considered this, an

angel r of the Lord appeared to him in adreams and said, “Joseph son of David, donot be afraid to take Mary home as your

a 19 Or was a righteous man and

1:19 q Dt 24:1

1:20 r S Ac 5:19s S Mt 27:19

1:19 divorce her quietly. He would sign the necessary legalpapers but not have her judged publicly and stoned (see Dt22:23 – 24).1:20 in a dream. The phrase occurs five times in the first twochapters of Matthew (here; 2:12 – 13,19,22) and indicates themeans the Lord used for speaking to Joseph. Joseph son ofDavid. See notes on 1:1,16; perhaps a hint that the message

of the angel related to the expected Messiah. take Mary homeas your wife. They were legally bound to each other but notyet living together as husband and wife. what is conceived inher is from the Holy Spirit. This agrees perfectly with the an-nouncement to Mary (Lk 1:35), except that the latter is morespecific (see note on Lk 1:26 – 35).

HerodAgrippa I

HerodAgrippa II

3RD GENERATION

Herod of Chalcis

Herod Agrippa I King of Judea (AD 37– 44); killedJames; put Peter into prison; struck down by an angel(Ac 12:1-24)

HERODIAS Married her uncle Herod Philip I, and thena second uncle, Herod Antipas (Mt 14:3; Mk 6:17)

Denotes Herodias’s marriage to Herod Antipas

Denotes Herodias’s marriage to Herod Philip I

and daughter of that marriage

4TH GENERATION

Felix (Governor of Judea)

DRUSILLA

Married Felix, governor of Judea (AD 52–59);Felix tried Paul (Ac 24:24)

Herod Agrippa II

King of Judea; Paul makes a legal defense before him(Ac 25:13–26:32)

BERNICE

With her brother at the time of Paul’s defense(Ac 25:13)

SALOME

Daughter of Herodias and Herod Philip I; danced forthe head of John the Baptist (Mt 14:1-12; Mk 6:14-29)


26/32

1594 ❘ MATTHEW 4 :4

Dimensions of rooms,

steps, doorways, cornices

and exterior measure-

ments are mentioned inhistory (Josephus and the

Mishnah) but are subject

to interpretation, and all

drawings vary.

20 BC–AD 70

Begun in 20 BC, Herod’s new structure towered 15 stories high, following the floor

dimensions of the former temples in the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. The

high sanctuary shown here in a cutaway view was built on the site of the former

temples of Solomon and Zerubbabel.

The outer courts surrounding the temple mount were not completed until AD 64.

The entire structure was demolished by the Romans in AD 70.

HEROD’S TEMPLE



27/32

MATTHEW 4:12 ❘ 1595

4:4 Just as God gave the Israelites manna in a supernatural way

(see Dt 8:3 and note), so also people today must rely on God forspiritual nourishment. Jesus relied on his Father, not his ownmiracle power, for provision of food (cf. Jn 4:34 and note; 6:27).4:5 See note on Lk 4:2. highest point of the temple. See note onLk 4:9. temple. The temple, including the entire temple area,had been rebuilt by Herod the Great (see notes on 2:1; Jn 2:20;see also diagram, p. XXXX).

4:6 throw yourself down. See note on Lk 4:9. it is written. See

note on Lk 4:10.4:9 worship me. See note on Lk 4:7.4:10 Satan. See note on v. 1.4:11 the devil left him. See note on Lk 4:13.4:12 See map No. 11 at the end of this study Bible. John hadbeen put in prison. See Mk 1:14 and note on Lk 3:20. The rea-son for John’s imprisonment is given in 14:3 – 4.

8Again, the devil took him to a veryhigh mountain and showed him all thekingdoms of the world and their splendor.9“All this I will give you,” he said, “if youwill bow down and worship me.”

10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Sa-tan! f For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord

your God, and serve him only.’ d ” g11Then the devil left him,h and angels

came and attended him. i

Jesus Begins to Preach12When Jesus heard that John had been

put in prison, j he withdrew to Galilee.k

4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Manshall not live on bread alone, but on everyword that comes from the mouth of God.’ a ” a

5Then the devil took him to the holycityb and had him stand on the highestpoint of the temple. 6“If you are the Sonof God,”c he said, “throw yourself down.

For it is written: “ ‘He will command his angels

concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot

against a stone.’b ”d

7 Jesus answered him, “It is also writ-ten: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to thetest.’ c ” e

4:4 a Dt 8:3;Jn 4:344:5 b Ne 11:1;Da 9:24;Mt 27:534:6 c S ver 3d Ps 91:11, 124:7 e Dt 6:16

4:10 f 1Ch 21:1;

Job 1:6-9;Mt 16:23;Mk 4:15;Lk 10:18;13:16; 22:3,31; Ro 16:20;2Co 2:11;11:14; 2Th 2:9;Rev 12:9g Dt 6:134:11 h Jas 4:7i Mt 26:53;Lk 22:43;Heb 1:14

Many interpreters place John’s baptismalministry at a point on the middle reachesof the Jordan River, where trade routesconverge at a natural ford not far from themodern site of Tell Shalem.

Events surrounding Jesus’ baptism

reveal the intense religious excite-ment and social ferment of the early

days of John the Baptist’s minis-

try. Herod had been rapacious and

extravagant; Roman military occupa-

tion was harsh. Some agitation cen-

tered around the change of governors

from Gratus to Pilate in AD 26. Most of

the people hoped for a religious solu-

tion to their intolerable political situ-

ation, and when they heard of a newprophet, they flocked out into the

desert to hear him. The religious sect

(Essenes) from Qumran professed sim-

ilar doctrines of repentance and bap-

tism. Jesus was baptized at Bethany

on the other side of the Jordan (see

Jn 1:28). John also baptized at “Aenon

near Salim” (Jn 3:23).

For Jesus’ temptation, see notes on Mt

4:1-11; Lk 4:1-13.

JESUS’ BAPTISM AND TEMPTATION

4:12 j Mt 14:3 k Mk 1:14

a 4 Deut. 8:3 b 6 Psalm 91:11,12 c 7 Deut. 6:16d 10 Deut. 6:13


28/32

1682 ❘ MARK 14 :2

14:1 c S Mt 12:1414:3 d S Mt 21:17e Lk 7:37-39

14:7 f Dt 15:1114:8 g Jn 19:4014:9 h S Mt 24:14;Mk 16:1514:10 i Mk 3:16-19

6

“Leave her alone,” said Jesus. “Whyare you bothering her? She has done abeautiful thing to me. 7The poor you willalways have with you, b and you can helpthem any time you want. f But you will notalways have me. 8She did what she could.She poured perfume on my body before-hand to prepare for my burial. g 9Truly Itell you, wherever the gospel is preachedthroughout the world, h what she has donewill also be told, in memory of her.”

10Then Judas Iscariot, one of the

Twelve,i

went to the chief priests to betray

arrest Jesus secretly and kill him.c

2

“Butnot during the festival,” they said, “or thepeople may riot.”

3While he was in Bethany,d reclining atthe table in the home of Simon the Lep-er, a woman came with an alabaster jarof very ex pensive per fume, made of purenard. She broke the jar and poured theperfume on his head.e

4Some of those present were saying in-dignantly to one another, “Why this wasteof perfume? 5It could have been sold for

more than a year’s wagesa and the moneygiven to the poor.” And they rebuked herharshly.

14:2 not during the festival. During Passover and the week-long Festival of Unleavened Bread, the population of Jeru-salem increased from about 50,000 to a few hundred thou-sand. It would have been too risky to apprehend Jesus withso large and excitable a crowd present.

r 14:3 – 9 In John’s Gospel this incident is placed beforethe beginning of Passion Week (see Jn 12:1 – 11 andnote). Matthew and Mark may have placed it here to contrast

the hatred of the religious leaders and the betrayal by Judaswith the love and devotion of the woman who anointed Jesus.14:3 Bethany. See note on Mt 21:17. reclining at the table.

The usual posture for eating at a banquet. Simon the Leper. See note on Mt 26:6. woman. We know from Jn 12:3 that shewas Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. alabaster jar. Asealed flask with a long neck that was broken off when thecontents were used and that contained enough ointment forone application. nard. See notes on SS 1:12; Jn 12:3. pouredthe perfume on his head. Anointing was a common custom at

feasts (see Ps 23:5 and note). The woman’s action expressedher deep devotion to Jesus.14:4 Some of those present. Mt 26:8 identifies them as the dis-ciples, while Jn 12:4 – 5 singles out Judas Iscariot.14:5 given to the poor. It was a Jewish custom to give gifts tothe poor on the evening of Passover (see Jn 13:29).

n 14:7 The poor you will always have with you. See Dt15:11 and note. Jesus’ statement did not express lackof concern for the poor, for their needs lay close to his heart(see Mt 6:2 – 4; Lk 4:18; 6:20; 14:13,21; 18:22; Jn 13:29). He wassimply stating the truth.14:8 prepare for my burial. It was a normal Jewish customto anoint a dead body with aromatic oils in preparing it forburial (see 16:1 and note). Jesus seems to anticipate sufferinga criminal’s death, for only in that circumstance was there noanointing of the body.14:9 Truly I tell you. See note on 3:28. gospel. See note on 1:1.14:10 Judas Iscariot. See note on 3:19. chief priests. See note

a 5 Greek than three hundred denarii b 7 SeeDeut. 15:11.


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MARK 14:30 ❘ 1683

14:10 j S Mt 10:414:12 k Ex 12:1-11; Dt 16:1-4;1Co 5:714:15 l Ac 1:13

14:20 m Jn 13:18-2714:21 n S Mt 8:2014:22 o S Mt 14:1914:23 p 1Co 10:16

14:24 q S Mt 26:2814:25 r S Mt 3:214:26 s S Mt 21:114:27 t Zec 13:714:28 u Mk 16:7

“one who dips bread into the bowl withme. m 21The Son of Man n will go just as itis written about him. But woe to that manwho betrays the Son of Man! It would bebetter for him if he had not been born.”

22While they were eating, Jesus tookbread, and when he had given thanks, he

broke ito and gave it to his disciples, say-ing, “Take it; this is my body.”

23Then he took a cup, and when he hadgiven thanks, he gave it to them, and theyall drank from it.p

24“This is my blood of the a covenant, q which is poured out for many,” he said tothem. 25“Truly I tell you, I will not drinkagain from the fruit of the vine until thatday when I drink it new in the kingdomof God.” r

26When they had sung a hymn, they

went out to the M

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