Numbers is Long...

My plan was to finish reading the book of Numbers last week.

But, life got in the way.  Between work, a ruptured eardrum, doctor visits, trying to finish my book club book, preparing for my storytelling gig this week and a weekend trip to the mountains with friends... I just did not get nearly as far reading as I thought I would.  The good news is I am still on track to finish the Bible in a year as I am ahead of my schedule.  The bad news, I have very little to write about since I only read through chapter six.

What did I learn?

I took the time to refresh who exactly the Levites are since they play an important part in Numbers.  As a reminder (to you and to me) the Levites were the only ones to not worship the golden calf while Moses was up on the mountain talking to God.  Because of this, the Levites were allowed to live, but they did have to kill the friends and brothers who were worshiping the calf.  They hold a special place in God's plans.

I realized that Numbers took place about two years after Moses lead the Israelite's out of Egypt  I reviewed who the twelve sons of Jacob (renamed Israel by God) were as their descendants made up all the tribes of Israel.  Each son's descendants were part of their own tribe. (I guess some must have survived the wrath of Moses.) Each tribe will be given a very specific job to do.

As the name Numbers indicates, the beginning chapters talk about taking a census of the first born males in all the tribes.  This seemed to be for several reasons.  One, count first born men over twenty who would be part of an army.  (Is there a battle coming?)  Two, count the firstborn males over one month to determine a tax each tribe would have to pay to God, through Aaron.  Third, use these numbers to determine which tribe is assigned what location and job around the Tabernacle Tent.  (The Levites are the keepers of the Tent.)

There is a section on the purity of the camp which was a bit over the top to me.

First, ban anyone who is unclean from the camp. (Leviticus had all the rules in explicit detail on clean versus unclean, remember?)  Next, there is a detailed explanation of what the priest is to do if a woman is brought before him because she is suspected of being unfaithful to her husband (whether she really is or if her husband is just jealous and has no facts to back up his suspicions).  Of course, there are no repercussions if the wife suspects her husband is not faithful - women are still second class citizens.  (Do you think that bugs my twentieth century brain?  Yes, it does.)

Then on to the Nazarite vows.  I was a bit confused as to what this was.  After some research, I think I understand a little better.  The vow was taken by individuals who decided to voluntarily dedicate themselves to God (as opposed to Aaron and his sons who were chosen - they did not volunteer.)  Besides being voluntary, it can be done by either men or women, has a specific time frame with specific requirements and restrictions, and ends with a sacrificial offering.

Interestingly, the last thing I read was a blessing we still use today in my church.  I had no idea was from Numbers.

Numbers 6:24-26
     The Lord bless you and keep you;
     The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;
     The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.

See you next week with, hopefully, my thoughts on the rest of Numbers...

Leviticus - so many rules...

All those rules and instructions and warnings; and in such explicate detail...

It all begins with detailed instructions on the types of offerings - burnt offerings, grain offerings, fellowship offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings.  And then, they are all reviewed again but this time with an emphasis on Aaron and his son's part in the rituals. There is a lot emphasis on how, when and where to kill and then burn the animals and on the types of breads (what is the deal with no yeast?) that can be offered as a sacrifice.  I just didn't understand why the details were so important.

At first, I thought Aaron and his son's had a pretty sweet deal.

The were named priests for no reason other than God chose them. They had not done anything special.  They did not seem extra holy.  But, because of this honor, they seemed to get to eat a lot of food.  And no one objected or questioned the choice. It reminded me of British royalty, they are who they are because of a birth line, nothing to do with the kind of person they are.  As it turns out, being a son of Aaron was no picnic.  Two died right away because they messed up and lit an extra fire and incense to the Lord during their consecration - boom, you're dead.  Aaron and the remaining sons were not even allowed to morn them.  That is tough.

After reading about offerings in detail, we move on to all the regulations.

First, clean and unclean foods - I would be afraid to eat any meat (food animals must have divided hooves and be cud chewing...why?).  Fish is allowed (but, sorry you shrimp and lobster lovers - that is a big no) and only some birds are okay.  Stay away from those four legged (yes, that is what it says) flying insects - they are bad news.  Don't eat them - like I would even want to.  It is not just about eating; you can't even touch something considered unclean.  Fortunately, if you touch the unclean, once you wash and evening finally comes you are back to being clean, most of the time.

Next come the regulations about childbirth, skin diseases and molds.  How to recognize a bad disease or mold over an acceptable case.  (What is the deal with white hair in a sore - why is that so bad?)  I feel for the priests; they have to remember all the exceptions and be the one to examine and decide what should be done. Is the person clean or unclean as a result of the problem?  They better get it right, because if the person is unclean, there are serious consequences that must be paid.

Then back to more rules and punishments (including special rules just for the priests).

There is a section on festivals, some of which I recognize as Jewish celebrations including Sabbath and Passover.  Then, in the middle of the celebrations and offerings, is a story of a man who blasphemed God's name during a fight, and was put to death by stoning.  His mother was an Israelite and his father an Egyptian.  An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth is mentioned, not for the first time.  Then, with no further explanation, back to more information on the Sabbath Year (not just a day of rest, a whole year!) and the Year of Jubilee, which has a whole new set of rules.

The chapter concludes by telling the rewards for obedience and the punishment for disobedience.

I understood why Genesis (the beginning) and Exodus (the journey) were named what they were, but I didn't understand Leviticus.  So, I looked it up.  Basically, what I found was this book was a set of rules for the Levites.  Guess I could have figured that out on my own.  There are a lot of rules...very specific rules for a very specific people at a very specific time in history.

Specific, because the rules changed with the teachings of Jesus.

For example, an eye for an eye became turn the other cheek in Jesus' teachings.  Fear the stranger (don't marry them!) in Leviticus became love your neighbor with Jesus.  And of course, women were second class citizens, the unclean should be pushed away, and slaves were simply property.  But, Jesus had many women followers that he held in high regard, he healed the lepers, and...well, I don't know if he ever said anything about slavery other than to treat your slaves fairly.  I wish I could say he was an abolitionist, but I can't (unless you go back to love your neighbor and assume Jesus was including all men and women, slave or free).

Despite all the rules (who could ever remember them all?) there is one other thing about Leviticus that caught my attention.  It was a very real God doing all the talking to Moses and the Israelites.  God was there, among the people.  God was not just a concept.  He was real.  He talked to people.  He killed people.  He rewarded people...and punished them.

God was actually there...and maybe that is what I should take away from Leviticus.

Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and Moses...

I finished reading Genesis and Exodus.  Yeah!

Last time I checked in, I focused a lot on details that I had a hard time reconciling with the world as I know it.  There are more things I could question from a purely logistical standpoint, but I don't think I will.  I am going to accept that the Bible has some crazy stories in it.  Whether you believe the stories are historical fact or an attempt to explain why the world is as it is without the benefit of modern science or the historical references we have today, that is up to you.  (Many of the stories remind me of folktales from around the world - not scientifically accurate, but a good story with a hint of possibility.)  I think God, through these stories, was trying to explain the world in ways He thought the people of the time would understand - some facts mixed in with good story telling.

So, Isaac has two sons, Esau and Jacob.

The younger son, Jacob, plays some tricks on his father (with the help of his mother, Rebecca) and gets Isaac's birthright and blessing.  Even though Jacob was deceitful, God still says He is building His kingdom through the sons of Jacob.  (Coincidentally, many years later, when Joseph asks his father, Jacob, to bless his sons Jacob purposely gives the blessing of the first born to the younger son - sound familiar?)  God gives Jacob a new name, Israel.  (He likes to give new names, doesn't He?)  And in the rest of the Genesis Jacob is referred to by both names, bouncing back and forth between them. Just a little confusing.

Jacob has a lot of sons (and wives).

I was familiar with the story of Jacob and Leah, Jacob and Rachel, Jacob and his wives’ two slaves, Zilpah and Bilhah, all of whom he had children with.  His favorite child was Joseph.  (Remember Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat anyone?)  Joseph was chosen by God to lead the children of Israel and ended up living a good life in Egypt along with (through a complicated series of events) his father, brothers and their families.  Most memorable line by Joseph (when talking to his brothers):  You were intending to harm, but God intended it for good.  And with that, all is forgiven.

On to Exodus and Moses.

I actually knew many of the stories in Exodus.  The story of the midwives refusing to kill Hebrew baby boys, Moses being saved from death as an infant by being placed a basket for the Pharaoh's daughter to find, Moses being raised as an Egyptian, Moses and the burning bush, Moses and the plagues, Moses and the parting of the sea, Moses leading his people out of Egypt, God giving him the Ten Commandments and Moses smashing them in anger when he sees his people worshiping the golden calf.  (I keep picturing Charleston Heston in The Ten Commandments on my parents black and white console television.)

Here are some things I didn't know.

God gives Moses hugely specific details about the ark that will carry the Commandments (made me think of Raiders of the Lost Ark), the inner tent, the Tabernacle Tent, and the outer tent area.  He gave more specific detail on the clothing that was to be made for Aaron and descendants, who were to be named high priests.  And there is more detail on the sacrificial altars, basins, and procedures to be followed for consecration and sacrifice.  God wants gold, and jewels, and the finest linens in royal colors.

I was confused.

I didn't understand why God would demand such opulence be built in his honor.  I didn't like it.  I was reminded of touring the Vatican and the overwhelming feel of wealth and pageantry on display there.  I kept thinking of Jesus and his humble beginnings and had a hard time reconciling the two.  And then I talked to my daughter who wondered why I wouldn't think God was deserving of all the best things.  I needed some additional insight and research to understand what I felt...

I needed to keep reading.

Moses brings down the tablets, sees the people have already forgotten their promises to God (and it had only been forty days), and feels the anger God had expressed to him earlier well up inside himself.  Moses gathers the true believers and has them kill all those who worshiped the false god.  Then he goes back up the mountain to God again.  Last time, God told Moses He was a jealous God whose anger burned and now God says He is a compassionate God, slow to anger.  And God once again engraves the Ten Commandments on new stone tablets for Moses to take back down to his people. And then, the people start to build God's temple, per his instructions.

God was not forcing his people to build the Tabernacle or anything else.

It says, at the end of Exodus, the people brought what they had as they were willing.  That there was so much gold and other precious metals, so much fabric and threads of purple, blue and scarlet, so many gems and jewels, that Moses had to tell the people to stop bringing donations.  People wanted to honor God by doing their part to construct the Tabernacle tent.  I guess God knew what he was doing by providing the architectural design plans. (When I think about it, house plans usually list the types of wall coverings, flooring, fixtures, just like God's plans did.). God’s people wanted to honor Him in a special place.  They wanted to hold God above themselves by providing a place worthy of Him.  Did I just have a revelation?

On to Leviticus...

Genesis - From Creation to Abraham

In the beginning...

I started reading Genesis and at first, all I could do was question the logistics of everything.  Is this a real history, a mythology written to explain the unexplainable or a little of both?  While my reading may have created more questions than answers, I did come to a conclusion.  Maybe the how is not as important as the why.  I mean, the overall message is that God created a flawed mankind, one who makes mistakes (a lot of them), but is constantly given a second chance despite their bad choices.  Genesis is also an accounting of a family tree (which will ultimately lead to Jesus). Long lists of names are common - I had to do some diagrams to figure who fit in where - and even then I sometimes just glossed over all those names...so many names.

So, here are my questions - I am just no longer certain I need all the answers.

Creation

God created the world, the Garden of Eden, the animals, Adam and Eve (...in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them) in seven days.  Seven twenty-four hours days?  Or were days measured differently?  How does this fit in with evolution and the slow formation of the earth?

If God did not want Adam and Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge & Wisdom, why did He put it in the garden in the first place?  And why create a talking serpent who would tempt them to eat from the tree?  Was it part of a bigger plan?  Did God want them to eat from it so He could send them away from the garden?  And what about the Tree of Life - why did He put that in the garden?  Was it to give the inhabitants eternal life only while they were in the garden?  (No one said to not eat from it.)  Once He sent Adam and Eve away, the entrance was guarded to protect the Tree so that people could no longer find it and, in retrospect, not have eternal life.  Again, part of a bigger plan?

All those people

Where did the wives of Cain and his sons come from?  Were there unmentioned sisters or other people who already lived outside the Garden of Eden? After Cain killed his brother Abel, he was worried about the others killing him - who were those people?  Where did they come from?

Why is there mention of "sons of God" marrying "daughters of humans" in Chapter Six?  If God created all people, why the need to differentiate?

Noah

God decided to destroy all mankind except for Noah and his family.  Did the flood cover the entire earth or just the area we know as the middle east (which, in the minds of the people at that time, would be their entire earth)?  And everyone that lived after were descendants of Noah and his sons?  So there was marriage between family members of all ages?

Tower of Babel

God did not want everyone to speak the same language because they would communicate too well, work together and build a tower to heaven?  It was better to create division among the people by giving them different languages?  Makes no sense to me...

Abram and Sarai

What is the deal with Abram telling people his wife Sarai is his sister?  And he did this not once, but twice.  And he was forgiven and sent away with all the possessions he gained while Sarai was taken as a wife by two different pharaohs/kings (both of whom were told by God who she really was, and then threatened to let her go...or else)?  And then, after the second incident, we find out that she is not only Abram's wife, but also his half-sister, so in his mind he was justified in his deceit.

God told Abram he and Sarai would have a son.  Sarai did not believe this would happen, so she offered her servant Hagar to Abram.  We are told Abram believed God when he was told he would have a son with Sarai, but he still slept with her servant and had a son.  Why did he do that if he truly believed God's promise?

Lot

Before Isaac was born, Abram took his great-nephew Lot to live with him but they ended up parting ways and Lot went to Sodom (where, if my charts are correct, the descendants of Noah's son Ham lived).  God was so angry at the behavior in Sodom he was going to kill everyone, but he let Abram negotiate with Him until it came down to Lot, his wife and his daughters leaving before the slaughter.  Why is it that Lot's wife, who doesn't even have a name, is so well known when all she did was look back and turn into a pillar of salt (and how is that even possible?)  Then Lot's daughters get him drunk and sleep with him so they could have his babies?  How is looking back worse than seducing you own father?  And these were the people worth saving?  Is this an indication of the times or a message that even flawed people are worthy of God's love?

Abraham and Sarah

Why did God rename Abram and Sarai to Abraham and Sarah?  I know there was some reference to the meaning of the new names.  Were they renamed to represent a new beginning?

Why did God feel he had to test Abraham by asking him to sacrifice Isaac?  How old was Isaac?  He had to at least be an older boy as he carried the wood and asked his father what they were going to sacrifice as they had no animal with them to use as a burnt offering.  Next thing, Isaac is tied up over the wood.  He just went along with this?  I think his faith had to be as strong as Abraham's, but this is never mentioned.

Sarah dies.  Abraham is dying and sends a servant to find a wife for his son that is of his own bloodline.  Rebecca marries Isaac and Abraham dies (after having more sons with another wife - apparently girls are not worth mentioning, again).

And that is where I stop for now.  Next time...Isaac, Rebecca and more Genesis...

Reading the Bible

I decided to read the Bible, cover to cover, in 2020.

When I mentioned this goal to my daughter and her seminary student husband, they suggested I find an app which would guide me through readings on a set schedule  It would assign me chapters from both the New and Old Testaments each day.  They thought an app would help me understand how the the books relate to each other and help me with accountability.

I am not going to do that.

Reading via app assignments feels too much like homework.  I tried an app as a test for a few days in December and did not like it.  It felt weird to keep bouncing around, reading sections from various parts of the Bible.  And when I missed a day I felt like I failed before I even really began.  I want this to be enjoyable, not fear producing.  So, I decided to just read straight through, like a good book.  I know this won't be easy because some books of the Bible are just plain boring (at least, this is what I have heard).  And, the Bible isn't written in chronological order, like most books. I may be crazy in my approach.

But, this feels like the most natural way for me to finish.

I looked at the Bible I have at home, checked how many pages there are in it, divided by three hundred sixty-five/six and came up with a goal of reading between three and four pages a day.  I may read more, or less, in a day, but will try my best to complete what I need to at the end of each month to finish in a year.  If I read three pages a day, I will finish mid- December, four pages a day will give me a completion date in mid- October.

I like having a cushion.

So, here is my plan.  I will read each month and take some notes.  I'll write down questions and observations, things I don't understand and insights I may find.  Then I plan to share them on this blog.  I am not sure how often I will write.  I am shooting for once a month, but maybe it will be more often.

Why am I doing this, and in a public forum no less?

First, reading all of the Bible is something I wanted to do for a long time, but never have.  I think I was afraid.  Afraid of looking foolish when I question things I may read; afraid of not understanding what I read; afraid of not finishing.  If I make this a public quest, maybe some people will be able to answer my questions.  Maybe some people will relate to my struggles.  Maybe some people will be supportive.  Maybe some people will be mean (please don't).  Maybe some people will think I am crazy.

I am not sure what I will find, but I feel compelled to start.