Friday, May 23
Exodus 34: We observe that the Israelites, notwithstanding the command to depart from Sinai at the beginning of the previous chapter, are still at the site (verse 2), and it is clear that they will remain there for some time yet.
Moses, we recall, had broken the original tablets of the Decalogue when—in anger because of the golden calf—he had flung them on the ground (32:19). That physical “breaking” of the Law symbolized the true breaking of the commandments by the idolatrous Israelites. Now these stone tablets must be replaced (verse 1).
It is to be remarked that the two stone tables verses in 1-9, though to the naked eye they may seem lifeless and hard, actually embody the awesome personal experience of Moses described in these verses. Regarded in faith and in the context of the covenant, these stones are alive with the grace of that experience. They are “God’s word written.”
Verses 10-28 are joined by the common theme of the purity required for an exclusive fidelity to God.
The Christian theological meaning of verses 29-35 is explained by St. Paul in 2 Corinthians 3:7—4:6. This is our earliest Christian commentary on the scene here in Exodus:
But if the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away, how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? For if the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry of righteousness exceeds much more in glory. For even what was made glorious had no glory in this respect, because of the glory that excels. For if what is passing away was glorious, what remains is much more glorious. Therefore, since we have such hope, we use great boldness of speech– unlike Moses, who put a veil over his face so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the end of what was passing away. But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
Saturday, May 24
John 10.1-6: Unlike ordinary shepherds, the Good Shepherd calls each of his sheep by name, and the sheep, when they hear their own name, recognize the shepherd’s voice. It is instructive to reflect how many pages of the Bible consist of nothing but lists of names. To Moses the Lord says, “I know you by name” (Exodus 33.17.” And, indeed, when first God calls out to Moses, he does so by using his name (Exodus 3.4).
It is further significant that this summons, by name, came in a foreign land. Centuries later, when God’s people were in exile in Babylon, He once again declared, “I, the Lord, who call you by your name, am the God of Israel” (Isaiah 45.3). That prophetic voice further declares, “The Lord has called me from the womb; from the belly of my mother he has spoken my name” (Isaiah 49.1).
When Mary Magdalen conversed with he risen Christ, she did not recognize his voice until he spoke her name (John 20.16).
Exodus 35: The final chapters of Exodus (35—40) tell of the execution of the sundry directions given in chapters 25—31. Moses simply repeats, mostly verbatim, the directions he had received on the mountain, and the Israelites strive to comply.
This section of Exodus seems to have undergone extensive editing, an impression strengthened by the great divergence of order between the inherited Hebrew text and the ancient Greek version handed down in the ancient manuscripts of the Christian Church. The traditional Greek version was clearly based on a Hebrew text greatly at variance with the Hebrew text handed down from the Middle Ages, the Masoretic Text.
Although the instructions in this chapter are given quickly and all at once (verses 1-19), one should probably think in terms of several months for their accomplishment (verses 20-29). There was evidently a great deal of hustle and bustle in progress at the foot of Mount Sinai.
After the instructions, the building and proper appointing of the tabernacle must begin with the gathering of the materials. As we shall see in due course, something in the neighborhood of eight tons of precious metals and stones would be required in this work. In addition, there would need to be wood and various kinds of expensive cloth. The present chapter describes how this vast array of materials is assembled by the generosity of the people. This tabernacle would be the consecration of their own material resources, the fruit of their labor.
Because the tabernacle and its appointments were to be modeled on Moses’ vision of the heavenly and eternal tabernacle of heaven, the construction of all these things was dependent on the grace of the Holy Spirit, who would inspire and guide the minds and hands of the artisans (verse 31).
Sunday, May 25
1 John 2.3-17: How can we be truly certain that we really know God? John answers this question by telling us, not to analyze the state of our consciousness, but to observe the empirical data of our conduct. The question is simplified to “Am I obeying Christ’s commandments?” (verse 3). Our Blessed Assurance, that is to say, is related to the concrete moral evidence visible in how we live. This practical approach to the matter, typically Johannine (cf. John 13:35; 14:21-24) had a long antecedence in the Old Testament prophets (cf. Hosea 4:1-3; 6:4-7; Jeremiah 2:8). To take some other approach to the matter not only threatens us with self-delusion; it may simply render us liars (verse 4).
As in all things, John’s approach here is entirely practical. He regards a person’s conduct—how he walks—as the reliable barometer of that person’s spiritual state (verses 6,29). Like James (or, for that matter, Paul—“and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing”—1 Corinthians 13:2), John resists the thesis of justification by faith alone, or faith apart from works. Being “in Christ” means walking as Christ walked.
Exodus 36: In the account of the gathering of the various materials for the tabernacle, considerable stress is laid on the people’s generosity. Over the course of history, it is a rare thing that God’s people have to be told, as they are told here, to “stop giving!” (verses 5-7) One suspects that this eager generosity in the present instance was in part prompted by the people’s shame and fear at the recent defection and the divine punishment that ensued.
One may compare the generosity shown here with the unselfishness of the Christians in Philippi in Macedonia who, during the three weeks that St. Paul spent in neighboring Thessaloniki (cf. Acts 17:2), twice sent offerings for the maintenance of his ministry (cf. Philippians 4:16). The Apostle would be speaking about that Macedonian generosity for years to come (cf. 2 Corinthians 8:1-5).
Particularly to be noted in this chapter of Exodus is the use of the “veil” in all of Israel’s worship. Even as God “reveals” (a word that literally means “unveils”) Himself, He is manifested, not as an object open to direct regard, but as supreme Mystery, chiefly to be adored.
When God and man are finally reconciled by the death of Jesus on the Cross, this symbolic veil of the Old Testament is rent asunder (Matthew 27:51). The sacrificed Jesus Himself enters behind the veil of the heavenly tabernacle (Hebrews 6:19). In another sense of the same image—because it houses His divine person—the very flesh of Christ is also called the veil of the divine presence (Hebrews 10:20).
Monday, May 25
1 John 2:18-29: John must now deal with the problem of heresy—false teaching—by which the faith of his readers is endangered. We observe that the false teaching mentioned here concerns the correct answer to the key questions asked by Jesus Himself: “What do you think of the Christ? Whose Son is He?” And, “but who do you say that I am?” The readers of this epistle were suffering trouble from certain former members who insisted on answering these questions incorrectly.
It is clear that John takes Christological heresy very seriously. In fact, he sees its emergence as a sign of the last times and the judgment of the world. For John, this is how “we know that it is the last hour” (verse 18). This consideration of “the last hour” is what links the current section of the epistle to the verses immediately preceding. Those verses ended, we recall, with an assertion that ”the world is passing away” (2:17).
One sure sign that the world is passing away, says John, is the appearance of these heretics, whom he does not flinch from calling “the Antichchrist,” even “many antichrists.”
Exodus 37: This chapter narrates that the ark, the table of the presence bread, the lamp stand, and the incense altar were constructed according the specifications that Moses received in his Sinai vision of the heavenly sanctuary.
This distinction between the earthly and heavenly sanctuaries was important to the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, who made it the framework for his soteriological exposition. He speaks of the same elements we find in the present chapter of Exodus: the Ark of the Covenant, the table for the Showbread, the golden lamp stand, the altar of incense. He disappoints us (if one may be completely frank) by finishing his description with the comment: “Of these things we cannot now speak in detail” (Hebrews 9:5). One so wishes he had gone on to speak of these things at much greater length!
The author’s point in the Epistle to the Hebrews, however, is not to satisfy our curiosity with respect to the tabernacle that Moses made. He is interested, rather, in directing our attention to that heavenly sanctuary, “the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation” (9:11). It was into this heavenly tabernacle that Christ entered, unto the fulfillment of our redemption.
This heavenly sanctuary is the one that Moses, in mystic vision, saw on the mountain. It is the one that St. John saw when the door opened into heaven (Revelation 4:1). It is to this eternal and heavenly sanctuary that Christians, in their prayer, have eternal access, because Jesus entered into it as the culminating act of our redemption.
Thus, the various appointments in Moses’ tabernacle corresponded to heavenly models. The seven-branched candlestick (verses 17-24) is modeled on that which John beheld in his vision on the isle of Patmos (Revelation 1:12). There are also the altar of incense (verses 25-28 and Revelation 8:3-4) and the Ark of the Covenant (verses 1-9 and Revelation 11:19).
Tuesday, May 27
1 John 3:1-9: John takes up again the teaching of chapter two, elaborating it from a different perspective. For instance, John had earlier declared, “I write to you, so that you may not sin” (2:1), and now he explains, “Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God” (verse 9).
John knows that he is writing to children of God, and he knows, as well, that this is the reason why the world treats them with enmity (verse 1). The world, as we have seen (2:15-16), has nothing in common with the Father of these children so it is to be expected will hate the children also (John 14:22-24; 17:25).
Although believers are already the children of God, the full meaning of their filiation has not yet been revealed (verse 2). Even with respect to their present ontological state there is more to be revealed (cf. Romans 8:19), and this revelation will come when “we shall see Him as He is.” Because the believer is sustained by this hope, he strives continually to be holy and pure (verse 3).
Striving thus for holiness and purity, the believer flees from sin, which is rebellion, anomia (verse4). Since God’s Son came to take away sin (verse 5; John 1:29), the man who continues to commit sin (ho poion, present participle for sustained action) can have no communion with God (verses 4,8). Continuance in sin (ho hamartanon, again the present participle) means that the sinner does not really know God.
John does not mean, of course, that the Christian never sins. Indeed, if “we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1:8). Rather, John indicates the incompatibility between being a child of God and willfully continuing to sin. These two things are as incompatible as God and the world. Consequently, the man that willfully continues in sin is lying to himself about knowing God (cf. 2:4), and those that say otherwise are deceivers (verse 7). The deception of such a man is that of the Devil (verse 8), who holds the world in bondage. The man who has been reborn in God is not capable of continuing in sin; willful rebellion is incompatible with being a child of God.
- The Christian life, in short, is not just a state of mind. It involves also righteousness of conduct (cf. 2:5,6,29), and to some degree that conduct (including thought) is open to observation. If we want to know if we are in God, says John, the best indicator is our moral conduct. Mere profession of the faith is an inadequate indicator or our rebirth (verse 9).
Exodus 38: We come now to the construction of the sacrificial altar (verses 1-7), the basin for washing (verse 8), and the outer court (verses 9-20).
When, at their departure, the Israelites “borrowed” silver, gold, and precious stones from their Egyptian neighbors, the text (11:2) did not indicate just how large was the amount. Now we begin to gain a staggering idea of it (verses 21-31). Although the measurement of the ancient talent varied somewhat, it has been reasonably approximated at over 75 pounds, with three thousand shekels to the talent.
Thus, even on the most conservative estimate, we are dealing here with an enormous amount of precious metal: more than a ton of gold, three and a half tons of silver, nearly three tons of bronze. Moreover, if the weight is being computed according to the later temple measurements, these figures may need to be adjusted up to 20% higher.
We surmise that some of this treasure came from the head tax mentioned earlier (verse 26).
Wednesday, May 28
The Book of Leviticus: The Book of Leviticus: Today we commence reading this third of the “five scrolls” (Pentateuch) of Moses, which is concerned almost exclusively with matters of holiness, the priesthood and sacrifice. Within the New Testament, some of the imagery of the Book of Leviticus is found in the two works more particularly concerned with worship and the priesthood of Christ: Hebrews and Revelation.
A dominant motif throughout the Book of Leviticus is the mutual relationship of worship and holiness. In His salvific self-revelation to His people on Mount Sinai, God is experienced as supremely holy. Because of this, he is properly worshipped only “in the beauty of holiness.” This is the “holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). To be holy is to belong exclusively to God. Holiness is not cheaply bought. It requires a transformation of one’s whole life, the deep reformation of one’s lifestyle, and the strenuous eradication of whatever in our souls impedes the working of the Holy Spirit.
Exodus 39: The text moves now to the vestments of Aaron and his priestly sons. Worthy of particular notice among the priestly vestments is the ornate “breastplate” to be worn by the high priest for purposes of divining (verses 8-21). Its twelve polished stones are arranged according to the marching order of the twelve tribes they represent. Thus, when he appears before God, the high priest is adorned in such a way as to represent the whole chosen people. These stones are themselves symbolic, of course, of the great foundational stones of the heavenly city, that final company of the redeemed (Revelation 21:19-20).
The construction of this tabernacle out in the desert of Sinai was a feat of mammoth and nearly unparalleled difficulty. Aside from all the vestments, hangings, instruments, etc., the metal for the construction of the tabernacle apparatus alone has been estimated to weigh around eight tons. Recalling that it was to be carried through the desert for the next forty years gives one enhanced respect for the Levites who were to carry it!
The completion of this work provides an occasion to list an inventory of all of it (verses 32-43).
This chapter’s final verse, in which Moses “looked over all the work, and indeed they had done it; as the Lord had commanded, just so they had done it,” is strikingly reminiscent of the end of Creation itself: “Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.”
Indeed, the following comment, “And Moses blessed them,” puts the reader in mind of the blessing that follows the completion of Creation: “Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”
Ascension Thursday, May 29
Psalm 24 (Greek & Latin 23): As indicated in the New Testament, the recorded testimony of eyewitnesses is the basis for the Church’s proclamation of the Gospel and, consequently, for the articles of the Creed (cf. John 1:14; Acts 1:21, 22; 1 Cor. 15:1–8; 1 John 1:1–3). Certain specific events, occurring within time and space, were both the direct objects of empirical observation and the topics of apostolic preaching: “For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20).
There are exceptions to this rule, nonetheless, for certain other events, though central to both the Gospel and the Creed, were neither seen nor heard by anyone on the earth; they were not empirically available within time and space, for the simple reason that they did not take place in this world. Such events include the conquering descent of Christ into Hades (cf. Eph. 4:9; 1 Peter 3:19) and His glorious entrance into heaven. These two events are celebrated on Holy Saturday and Ascension Thursday, respectively, the days at either side of that period during which the risen Lord “presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3).
Relative to the Lord’s Ascension, we may say that the Church saw Him “going” (Luke 24:51; Acts 1:9) but not “arriving.” That triumphant arrival in heaven, nonetheless—Jesus’ crowning as “Lord of all”—is explicitly affirmed in the New Testament (cf. Mark 16:19; Phil. 2:9; 1 Tim. 3:16).
The heavenly glorification of our Lord Jesus Christ is not simply an aftermath to our redemption, but rather an essential component of the very sacrifice of the Cross. His Ascension is integral to our Lord’s priesthood. Indeed, if Jesus simply “were on earth, He would not be a priest” (Heb. 8:4). The atoning sacrifice of Christ did not end on Golgotha, but was rendered perfect and complete by His definitive entrance into the eternal Holy of Holies: “But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. . . . For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us” (Heb. 9:11, 24).
Psalm 24 is a celebration of the Lord’s entrance into that heavenly sanctuary and royal court: “Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.”
This “blessing from the Lord,” this “righteousness from the God of his salvation” is the eternal redemption won for us by the sacrifice of Jesus at His heavenly glorification: “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption” (Heb. 9:12); “But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God” (10:12).
This King of Glory comes to the entrance of heaven with the blood of the conflict still fresh upon Him (cf. Is. 63:1–6; Rev. 19:13), and a kind of dialogue takes place as the angels call for the opening of the portcullis at the approach of the returning Warrior: “Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle.”
The moment, however, is most special and most to be prolonged. Indeed, the moment is eternal, and the angelic dialogue goes on: “Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory.”
By virtue of the redemption, all of creation belongs to this Jesus, King and Priest, for God “raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all” (Eph. 1:20–23). Thus, our psalm begins: “The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein.”
Friday, May 30
Leviticus 2: When Stephen Langton divided the Bible into chapters in the 13th century, he determined that the change of subject matter in this next section of Leviticus warranted the commencing of a new chapter. In this chapter the author moves from sacrificed animals to sacrificed plants, with special attention to wheat.
This chapter’s rules governing grain offerings had little application in the desert; they look, rather, to the future, when the Israelites become, at last, a sedentary and agricultural society.
Because these sacrifices involve farm products, they were presented, often enough, at festivals associated with grain harvests, whether Pentecost in the late spring (winter grains, particularly barley) or Tabernacles in early autumn (the close of the annual agricultural year),
As we saw in chapter one, it was important that the person presenting the offering should own the animal; these could not be wild animals, not even the two species of birds. It was fundamental that the victims designated for sacrifice should actually be part of the human economy; it was necessary that the animals presented for oblation represent the life and culture of human beings. Otherwise, the offering would have no immediate relation to human existence. It was the essential that the sacrificial animals be, in that sense, humanized, cultivated and controlled by human beings.
In the present chapter, we perceive this same concern in a different way. The “grain offering” is actually an offering of flour; that is to say, the sacrifice involves the consecration of human labor. The stuff of the offering involves, not only the produce of man’s planting and harvesting, but also its further humanizing through the processes of threshing and milling. What is offered to God is food prepared for the human table. Indeed, some of this flour becomes food for the table of the priest’s own family.
Three things are offered together, each of them the product of human labor. The first is , which is finely milled wheat flour (soleth), which was passed through a sieve. That is, this flour, like the animals offered in the previous chapter, must be perfect. Two things are added to the flour: oil (shemen) pressed from the olive and incense (libonah,) the processed resin tapped from plants native to Arabia and the Horn of Africa, mainly Boswellia and Commiphora trees. This is the same aromatic gum offered on the altar of incense twice each day (Exodus 30.34).
The remainder of this flour offering is set aside and reserved for the priests to consume within the Tabernacle itself. This portion is called the “holy thing of holy things”—qodesh qedashim—meaning “the most holy thing.” The priestly reservation of this portion is identical to that of the prescribed “Show Bread” (cf. 6.10; 7.6;14.13 etc.; Matthew 12.4).