Tag Archive | moses

An EVIL report about Canaan, but not false concerning the GIANTS – Numbers 13-14

“They brought up an evil report of the land” (Num. 13:32)

The term “evil report” is a translation from the Hebrew word dibbah (Strong’s 1681) and apart from “evil report” it could mean whispering, defamation, slander, infamy or unfavourable saying. The word does not necessarily mean incorrect/false report even if it could be translated as such (or a report including half truths), but at least it is a negative description about something.

Moses asked a group of his men to investigate the land of Canaan and he gave them instructions how to go about it. Among other things he wanted to know whether the people in Canaan were strong or weak and their number. He also asked them to bring back some fruit of the land.

Num. 13:17 And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain: 18And see the land, what it is; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they be strong or weak, few or many; 19And what the land is that they dwell in, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they be that they dwell in, whether in tents, or in strong holds; 20And what the land is, whether it befat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the firstripe grapes.21So they went up, and searched the land from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath. 22And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)23And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs. 24The place was called the brook Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from thence.25And they returned from searching of the land after forty days. 26And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land. 27And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. 28Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.29The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.30And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. 31But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. 32And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. 33And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the GIANTS: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

Notice above that Caleb is described as being able to still the people of Israel and encouraged them to go up against the Canaanites because they would certainly be able to be successful despite the children of Anak. Caleb is not the one bringing up an evil report back to Moses, but the other men, who went with him, did. We can read “But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. 32 And THEY brought up an evil report of the land”. What is at focus here is the incorrect claim that the Israelites would not be able to conquer the people in Canaan because of their strength. The claim that their defeat would be inevitable was the exact opposite of the message that God wanted to give his people.

The people (the sons of Anak) were described as huge giants, and in comparison the Israelites felt like grasshoppers. The fact that two men carried one cluster of grapes is also an indication of that the sons of Anak were indeed huge people who needed large amounts of food (and preferably genetically modified in order to enlarge it). Why else mention this cluster of grapes and the information that two men carried it between the two of them with help of a stick?

The people of Israel unfortunately believed the evil report, and this is why Caleb and Joshua were highly disappointed (they even rent their clothes) and instead tried to tell the people about the good land that Canaan indeed was, and that God would give it to them as long as they did not rebel against him or feared the current inhabitants:

Num. 14:6 And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes:7 And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land.8 If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.9 Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not.

However, the people of Israel did not listen to Caleb and Joshua and instead the two men were attacked. The people provoked the Lord by not believing in his consistent promises about the land, which they really should have considering the many miracles that God performed among them:

Num. 14:10 But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.11 And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them?

The inhabitants of Canaan, and other nations, had already heard about the God of Israel, and the many miracles that he did among his people so their arrival was expected. The Israelites did not always obey their God despite of the many miracles, but Moses communicated with God and the Israelites got another chance.

God spoke well of Caleb and described him as a servant who obeyed him fully:

Num. 14:12 I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.13 And Moses said unto the Lord, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;)14 And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou Lord art among this people, that thou Lord art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night.15 Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying,16 Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness.17 And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying,18 The Lord is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.19 Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.20 And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word:21 But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.22 Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice;23 Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it:24 But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went;and his seed shall possess it.25 (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.)

The problem was again the slander which the spying men (not Caleb and Joshua) made about the land and which made the people of Israel murmur against their God. Those men who brought up the evil report about the land died by a plague:

30 Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.31 —36 And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land,37 Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before the Lord.38 But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.

Examples of giants

Here you can read bout the giants before and after the flood. Examples of references in the Bible:

Amos 2:9 Yet destroyed I the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the cedars, and he was strong as the oaks; yet I destroyed his fruit from above, and his roots from beneath.

Deu 2:10 The Emim lived there in days gone by, a great and plentiful people, and tall as the Anakim 11 they are reckoned to be giants (rephaim), they too, like the Anakim; but the Moabites call them Emim.

Deu 2:20 That also is accounted a land of Rephaim: Rephaim dwelt therein aforetime; but the Ammonites call them Zamzummim 21 a people great, and many, and tall, as the Anakim; but the LORD destroyed them before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead

Deu 3:11 For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of the Rephaim; behold, his bedstead was a bedstead of iron; is it not in Rabbah of the children of Ammon? nine cubits was the length thereof, and four cubits the breadth of it, after the cubit of a man. (15 feet! – or 9 feet depending on if you use the standard cubit or lower forearm cubit) 4,6 meter or 2,7 meter

Deu 9:2 a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom you know, and of whom you have heard it said, Who can stand before the sons of Anak?

False report:

Pro 25:10 Lest he that heareth it put thee to shame, and thine infamy H1681 turn not away.

Zipporah: “A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision” – Ex. 4:24-26

Feb2

“Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me” (Ex. 4:25)

What is this all about? The textual context is a great help and also a corresponding passage in The book of Jasher – which is Jewish secular history, not claimed to be the inspired word of God but the text can nevertheless provide some light.

Exodus 4:19 And the Lord said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life.20 And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand.—22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:23 And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn.

There seems to be a link between God’s speech about Israel being the firstborn son (in a figurative sense) and the verses which immediately follow (see below) – about Moses’ first born son. We have to remember that an important covenant had been established between God and Israel, through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and a covenant is supposed to be respected by both parties. God had promised the patriarchs and their offspring protection and the land of Canaan under the condition that they stayed faithful to him. The law of Moses was still in the future at this point in history, but in order to reach to that stage faithfulness from Moses and the Israelites was required. A circumcision was an outward sign of being a follower of the one true God and a crystal clear divine commandment which was not optional. Moses was of course well aware of this commandment from God, yet he still neglected to obey him apparently due to fear of man – his father-in-law. That is like saying “I respect you God and you have done so much for me and my people, showing us miracles, etc, but there are limits for how much I can obey you. I prefer to obey my father-in-law in this matter so that I can be on a good standing with him. That is more important than having a good relationship with you or being able to save the people of Israel”. Here is the rest of the story:

24 And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the Lord met him, and sought to kill him.25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision. 27 And the Lord said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him in the mount of God, and kissed him.28 And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord who had sent him, and all the signs which he had commanded him.29 And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel:30 And Aaron spake all the words which the Lord had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people.31 And the people believed: and when they heard that the Lord had visited the children of Israel, and that he had looked upon their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshipped.

If Moses and the Israel would be faithful to God and stay away from sin (like murdering, stealing, lying, adultery, witchcraft, etc), it would mean that Israel would indeed be a “peculiar” people who would be able to show other people that they (the Israelites) were a morally upright people who lived for the Lord. God is just but he also requires obedience from his people. If the Israelites were just like anyone else, God’s reputation would consequently also be attacked and other people would see no reason to seek the God of Israel nor improve their pagan life styles. Therefore it is not a light matter to choose to disobey God despite having seen divine miracles and despite knowing that breaking the covenant would risk the safety of his own family and many other Israelite families.

Ex. 19:5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:

Below we can read the same story from the book of Jasher’s point of view. God really wanted to save his people from their Egyptian yoke. He was “jealous of his people and his inheritance”.

Jasher 78:8 And Zipporah walked in the ways of the daughters of Jacob, she was nothing short of the righteousness of Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah.9 And Zipporah conceived and bare a son and he called his name Gershom, for he said, I was a stranger in a foreign land; but he circumcised not his foreskin, at the command of Reuel his father-in-law.10 And she conceived again and bare a son, but circumcised his foreskin, and called his name Eliezer, for Moses said, Because the God of my fathers was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.11 And Pharaoh king of Egypt greatly increased the labor of the children of Israel in those days, and continued to make his yoke heavier upon the children of Israel.–16 And the Lord was jealous of his people and his inheritance, and heard their voice, and he resolved to take them out of the affliction of Egypt, to give them the land of Canaan for a possession.

Jasher 79:5 And the Lord said unto Moses, Go, return to Egypt, for all those men who sought thy life are dead, and thou shalt speak unto Pharaoh to send forth the children of Israel from his land.6 And the Lord showed him to do signs and wonders in Egypt before the eyes of Pharaoh and the eyes of his subjects, in order that they might believe that the Lord had sent him.7 And Moses hearkened to all that the Lord had commanded him, and he returned to his father-in-law and told him the thing, and Reuel said to him, Go in peace.8 And Moses rose up to go to Egypt, and he took his wife and sons with him, and he was at an inn in the road, and an angel of God came down, and sought an occasion against him.9 And he wished to kill him on account of his first born son, because he had not circumcised him, and had transgressed the covenant which the Lord had made with Abraham.10 For Moses had hearkened to the words of his father-in-law which he had spoken to him, not to circumcise his first born son, therefore he circumcised him not.11 And Zipporah saw the angel of the Lord seeking an occasion against Moses, and she knew that this thing was owing to his not having circumcised her son Gershom.12 And Zipporah hastened and took of the sharp rock stones that were there, and she circumcised her son, and delivered her husband and her son from the hand of the angel of the Lord.

“The Angel of the Lord” is not a created angel, but as you can see in this article it seems to be none other than a form of God and likely therefore a form av Jesus (who was with his Father from the beginning). Zipporah knew that the angel of God visited them due to Moses’ neglect to obey God when it comes to their first-born son’s circumcision, and maybe this was also according to the plans of the angel. If it was a tangible reaction that the angel was after, he certainly got one when their son Gershom eventually was circumcised – and Moses was thereafter delivered from the hand of the angel of the Lord. If a person neglects to obey God when it comes to simple matters due to fear of man, he might not be ready for greater matters like saving his people from Egypt. The presence of the angel of the Lord sorted it out, and he continued to hold his protective hand over Moses, his family and Israel.

Jesus Christ holds the SCEPTER OF RIGHTEOUSNESS as God in flesh

Jul22

Hebrews 1:8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O GOD, is for ever and ever: A SCEPTRE of righteousness is the SCEPTRE of thy kingdom (KJV)

“Scepter” in the New Testament is a translation from the Greek word rhabdos (Strong’s 4464) which could also be translated as rod or staff.

“Scepter” in the Old Testament is a translation from the Greek word shebet (Strong’s 7626), and can also be translated as per above or as “tribe” or “clan”. Other synonymous words for “rod” in the OT is matteh (Strong’s 4294) and choter (Strong’s 2415).

A scepter is a special staff/rod carried by a king or a high official, and in our past it was used as a token of authority and power of the king. Scepters are similar to a shepherd’s rod, except they are much fancier and way more valuable. Christ is told to have a kingdom, and his symbolic scepter is told to be of “righteousness”. Righteousness is doing what is right, just, pure and pleasing to God, and this means that the Lord Jesus will be totally fair and govern his kingdom righteously.

Below we can find some interesting verses where “scepter”, and also “rod” or “staff” are mentioned.

New Testament (KJV)

Aaron’s rod was one of a kind. It was a sign of authority and power:

Heb. 9:4 Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;

Compare the below verse with Jacob’s prophesy in Gen. 49:10, to which the author of Hebrews is referring. It’s interesting that Jacob is said to have been leaning upon the top of his staff when he prophesied about the scepter not leaving Judah until Shiloh comes;“The sceptre shall not depart from Judah—“:

Heb. 11:21 By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff.

The disciple John saw an extended version of the vision of the future-coming scepter that both Jacob and Balaam saw much earlier in the OT (see further down below). The book of Revelations mentions a man-child who was to rule the nations with a rod of iron, and there are many more descriptions of Jesus Christ:

Rev. 2:25 But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.28 And I will give him the morning star.

Rev. 11:1 And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.

Rev. 12:5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

Rev. 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King Of Kings, And Lord Of Lords.17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;

Old Testament (NKJV) – using the word shebet

Below is Jacob’s prophesy about the last days concerning Judah. Jacob (Israel) was prophesying over each of his twelve sons and he places the scepter in Judah’s hands. Jacob was speaking of the lineage from which the Messiah would come. The scepter, the sign of power and dominion “shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh (rest/peace) comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people”. People were apparently supposed to be obedient to the one holding the scepter or this “Shiloh” who is understood to be the Messiah. The prophesy also suggests that people can trust that the scepter will at least remain in Judah until his arrival. (There is no mention of what will take place after his coming.) From David’s time until the exile, the scepter as always been in Judah. The Roman empire affected the area at the time of the birth of Jesus, and in him both the priesthood and the kingship would be synchronized. Around the time of his death the Jews suggested “We have no king but Caesar” (John 19:15).

We also recognize more descriptions of the son of man (Jesus Christ) from Revelations:

Gen. 49:“Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s children shall bow down before you.9 Judah is a lion’s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him?10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet,Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.11 Binding his donkey to the vine, And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, He washed his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes.12 His eyes are darker than wine, And his teeth whiter than milk.

Balaam gave numerous prophesies about a star that would come out of Jacob who among other things would be brought out of Egypt.

Numbers 24:1 Now when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not go as at other times, to seek to use sorcery, but he set his face toward the wilderness. 2 And Balaam raised his eyes, and saw Israel encamped according to their tribes; and the Spirit of God came upon him.3 Then he took up his oracle and said:“The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor,The utterance of the man whose eyes are opened,4 The utterance of him who hears the words of God,Who sees the vision of the Almighty,Who falls down, with eyes wide open:5 “How lovely are your tents, O Jacob! Your dwellings, O Israel!6 Like valleys that stretch out, Like gardens by the riverside, Like aloes planted by the Lord,Like cedars beside the waters.7 He shall pour water from his buckets, And his seed shall be in many waters.“His king shall be higher than Agag, And his kingdom shall be exalted.8 “God brings him out of Egypt; He has strength like a wild ox; He shall consume the nations, his enemies; He shall break their bones And pierce them with his arrows.9 ‘He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him?’“Blessed is he who blesses you, And cursed is he who curses you.”—17 “I see Him, but not now;I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And destroy all the sons of tumult. 18 “And Edom shall be a possession; Seir also, his enemies, shall be a possession,While Israel does valiantly.19 Out of Jacob One shall have dominion, And destroy the remains of the city.”

Hosea 11:1 “When Israel was a child, I loved him, And out of Egypt I called My son.

Matt. 2:13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.”¹⁴When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt,¹⁵and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”

In the book of Esther we find an interesting story involving a king’s scepter. The queen Esther wanted to speak to the powerful king about an urgent matter and she hoped to find favor in his site so that she could continue to live, despite approaching him without first being asked for. The king chose to do his part, holding out his scepter, and Esther did her part by touching the top of it. This fortunate combination meant that Esther would get life instead of death. In comparison, we may all approach the throne of God without fear, because his son Jesus Christ always has his scepter extended to us. Our job is to repent from our sins to become cleansed and righteous:

Esther 4:11 “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that any man or woman who goes into the inner court to the king, who has not been called, he has but one law: put all to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter, that he may live. Yet I myself have not been called to go in to the king these thirty days.”

Esther 5:2 So it was, when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, that she found favor in his sight, and the king held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther went near and touched the top of the scepter.

Ps. 45 is introduced with this information: “The Glories of the Messiah and His Bride To the Chief Musician. Set to “The Lilies.”A Contemplation of the sons of Korah. A Song of Love”. Psalms/songs in the Bible do not contain any kind of falsehood, but we must be prepared for a certain extent of poetic expressions, comparisons, analogies and metaphors which are not supposed to be understood literally. This particular song seems to be talking about an earthly king, with comparisons with a heavenly king and God himself. V. 45:6 is the source of the famous expression in Heb. 1:8, where God (the Father) is talking to God (the son). Since the long and detailed expression is about God the son in Heb. 1, it is also about God in Ps. 45. We can see references to the Messiah also in Ps. 45 – someone being on the right hand side, a mighty one, being the most fair, riding with righteousness, being anointed with oil, being worshiped, praised, etc. (Read my article about Heb. 1:8 here.):

Ps. 45:1 My heart is overflowing with a good theme; I recite my composition concerning the King;
My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.2 You are fairer than the sons of men; Grace is poured upon Your lips; Therefore God has blessed You forever.3 Gird Your sword upon Your thigh, O MIGHTY ONE,With Your glory and Your majesty.4 And in Your majesty ride prosperously because of truth, humility, and righteousness; And Your right hand shall teach You awesome things.5 Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the King’s enemies; The peoples fall under You.6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.7 You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.—11 So the King will greatly desire your beauty; Because He is your Lord, worship Him.—17 I will make Your name to be remembered in all generations; Therefore the people shall praise You forever and ever.

Note Ps. 45:7 about joy “Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of JOY“ NASB, and compare with Hebrews again:

Heb. 12:2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the JOY that was set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of God

John 3:29 He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of thebridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled.

Is. 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

“It despises the scepter of my son” according to a prophesy of Ezekiel:

Ez. 21:8 Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 9 “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord!’ Say:‘A sword, a sword is sharpened And also polished!10 Sharpened to make a dreadful slaughter, Polished to flash like lightning! Should we then make mirth? It despises the scepter of My son, As it does all wood.—13 “Because it is a testing, And what if the sword despises even the scepter? The scepter shall be no more,”says the Lord God.14 “You therefore, son of man, prophesy, And strike your hands together. The third time let the sword do double damage. It is the sword that slays,The sword that slays the great men, That enters their private chambers.

Old Testament (NKJV) – using the word matteh

There was a lot of focus on the rod that Moses (and Aaron) used during Exodus. Moses had great use for it when he showed others the power of God, and proved that he himself had been given authority to be the leader of the Israelites on their journey:

Ex. 4:1 Then Moses answered and said, “But suppose they will not believe me or listen to my voice; suppose they say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you.’”2 So the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”He said, “A rod.”3 And He said, “Cast it on the ground.” So he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from it. 4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail” (and he reached out his hand and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand),5 “that they may believe that the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”—8 “Then it will be, if they do not believe you, nor heed the message of the first sign, that they may believe the message of the latter sign. 9 And it shall be, if they do not believe even these two signs, or listen to your voice, that you shall take water from the river and pour it on the dry land. The water which you take from the river will become blood on the dry land.”

Ex. 7:¹⁹Then the Lord spoke to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Take your rod and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their streams, over their rivers, over their ponds, and over all their pools of water, that they may become blood. And there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in buckets of wood and pitchers of stone.

Ex. 14:16 But lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it. And the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.

Num. 20:⁷Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ⁸“Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals.”⁹So Moses took the rod from before the Lord as He commanded him.

Each tribe also had rods, but their rods cannot be compared with the rod that Moses possessed:

Num. 17:2“Speak to the children of Israel, and get from them a rod from each father’s house, all their leaders according to their fathers’ houses—twelve rods. Write each man’s name on his rod.

Jonathan was involved in a dramatic story where he dipped his rod into honey in order to eat from it:

1 Sa 14: 26 And when the people had come into the woods, there was the honey, dripping; but no one put his hand to his mouth, for the people feared the oath. 27 But Jonathan had not heard his father charge the people with the oath; therefore he stretched out the end of the rod that was in his hand and dipped it in a honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and his countenance brightened. 28 Then one of the people said, “Your father strictly charged the people with an oath, saying, ‘Cursed is the man who eats food this day.’” And the people were faint.—42 And Saul said, “Cast lots between my son Jonathan and me.” So Jonathan was taken. 43 Then Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.”And Jonathan told him, and said, “I only tasted a little honey with the end of the rod that was in my hand. So now I must die!”

A psalm by David replete with references to the Messiah Jesus Christ, such as “The Lord said to my Lord”. Jesus Christ is called Lord of Lords and he is a priest forever, just like it says in Heb. 7:21-24. It is out of Zion from where the rod of strength will come. :

Ps. 110:1 The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”2 The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!3 Your people shall be volunteers In the day of Your power; In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning, You have the dew of Your youth.4 The Lord has sworn And will not relent,“You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek.”5 The Lord is at Your right hand; He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath.6 He shall judge among the nations, He shall fill the places with dead bodies, He shall execute the heads of many countries.

Heb. 7:21 (for they have become priests without an oath, but He with an oath by Him who said to Him: “The Lord has sworn And will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek’”),—24 But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood.

Old Testament (NKJV) using the word choter

A rod shall come forth out of the stem of Jesse (king David’s father), and a branch shall grow out of his roots. The Messiah would come from king David’s blood line:

Is. 11:1 There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.

Moses was supposed to be LIKE A GOD to Aaron, unlike Jesus who IS God (Hebr. 1:8)

May31

If someone is called GOD, he is either the supreme Creator or a false god – so which category applies to Jesus?

The only way for anti-Trinitarians to make an attempt to solve the problem that Jesus is called God in Hebr. 1:8, John 20:28, etc, is to try to make an inflation out of the word “God”, with the hope that it will lead to a position where it’s not a big deal to be called God since people are called God left and right. They are incorrect, however, since the Bible shows that there are only two alternatives that could apply to Jesus – the true God or a false god, and false gods are no gods at all.

The only verse that they could possibly use as support is a psalm (82:6), which POETRY naturally couldn’t make the case that other beings than the true God can be called God – unless we’re talking about false gods. Godly judges or priests wouldn’t dream about being called God by anyone. (See further down below.) So if someone tells you that judges, priests and angels are also called gods (outside poetry) they are greatly mistaken. The only angel that was called God (even JAHVE) was the Angel of the Lord, and he was not a created angel but actually a manifestation of God himself – probably Jesus,who was with the Israelites during the Exodus – 1 Cor. 10:4. Read more about the Angel of the Lord here.

False gods are no gods at all

244 times in the KJV, Elohyim is translated as “god” instead of “God”, indicating that it’s not the true God that is referred to but a false god (or just an idea of god, such as when Satan told Adam and Eve that they would be as gods if they ate of the forbidden fruit).

Ex. 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Please note, that oftentimes people (and sometimes even Jahve himself) might refer to other things as gods even though they don’t actually believe there exist more gods than GOD. When people worship idols, those idols are called gods also by those who don’t really view those idols as anything else but stone, wood or hay. Demons are of course real, and they are at times also called gods since they are idols that are being worshiped. Again, by referring to these idols as gods is by no means a confirmation of that these created things or demons are in actuality real gods of any kind!

Gen. 35:2 Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him, Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be clean, and change your garments:

2 Chron. 32:19 And they spake against the God of Jerusalem, as against the gods of the people of the earth, which were the work of the hands of man.

Ps. 95:6 FOR ALL THE GODS OF THE NATIONS ARE IDOLS: but the Lord made the heavens.

Ps. 97:7 Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.

Deut. 32:17 They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not.

Ex. 12: 12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord.

Ex. 23:24 Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images.

Deut. 10:¹⁷For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:¹⁸He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment.¹⁹Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.²⁰Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name.

Take special notice of the last few verses where God is called God of gods in order to make a statement about the many gods that the strangers in Egypt were worshiping. Jahve is the true God of all! Which god are you worshiping? God is the God of that god, because there is only one real God and he is over ALL.

1 Cor. 8:4 Therefore concerning the eating of things offered to idols, we know that an idol is NOTHING in the world, and that there is no other God but one.5 For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many gods and many lords), 6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live. (NKJV)

(Also read this article where we can read that God alone is, or is doing something … and yet Jesus is also, just as we can read that Jesus alone is, or is doing something… and yet God is also.)

Moses was told to be LIKE A GOD (or instead of God) to Aaron and Pharao

Both Ex. 4:16 and Ex. 7:1 use the word Elohiym, and most Bible translators have translated the below highlighted passages to ”as God”, and others “instead of God”. The fact that words such as “as”, and “instead of” are not in use in Hebrew, doesn’t mean that prepositions should neither be used in other languages – where such words indeed are in use. If Bible texts would be handled in that way, the end result would not be grammatically correct and extremely confusing to read. It’s simply not possible to always translate a language word for word into another language, and sometimes words can hold a number of alternate meanings. I believe we have no reason to doubt that the world’s translators, and experts in Hebrew have done a good job, or is there any particular reason to not trust them? Because we don’t like the outcome?

Note below that Moses is never called God according to these verses, but he was to be AS God for Aaron (and Pharao). Moses was supposed to be his spiritual leader, and he were supposed to turn to him since Moses was acting on Gods behalf. Whenever the translators have phrased themselves as “instead of God”, they of course don’t suggest that Aaron was supposed to drop the real God (Jahve) altogether and instead put Moses there in his place and start to worship him, but rather that Moses was the mediator between God and man. This is an entirely different story than Hebr. 1:8, where Jesus is directly CALLED God by his own Father.

1) Ex. 4:¹⁶So he shall be your spokesman to the people. And he himself shall be as a mouth for you, and you shall be to him AS GOD. (NKJV)

Ex. 4:16 Moreover, he shall speak for you to the people; and he will be as a mouth for you and you will be AS GOD to him. (NASB)

Ex. 4:¹⁶And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God. (KJV)

¹⁶Y él hablará por ti al pueblo; él te será a ti en lugar de boca, y tú serás para él en lugar de Dios. (Reina -Valera, 1960)

¹⁶Il sera ton porte-parole devant le peuple, il te servira de bouche, et tu seras pour lui comme le dieu qui parle à son prophète. (La Bible du Semeur)

¹⁶Und er soll für dich zum Volk reden und soll dein Mund sein, und du sollst für ihn an Gottes Statt sein. (Schlachter, 1951)

2) Ex. 7:1 So the Lord said to Moses: “See, I have made you AS GOD to Pharaoh, and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet. (NKJV)

Ex. 7: 1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I make you AS GOD to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. (NASB)

Ex. 7:1 And the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. (ESV)

Ex. 7:1 But Adonai said to Moshe, “I have put you in the place of God to Pharaoh, and Aharon your brother will be your prophet. (Complete Jewish Bible)

Ex. 7:1 And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet (KJV)

Elohiym (Strong’s 430)

KJV translates the word : God (2,346x), god (244x), judge (5x), GOD (1x), goddess (2x), great (2x), mighty (2x), angels (1x), exceeding (1x), God-ward (with H4136) (1x), godly (1x).

When we check these options, we can see that Jesus (who was not called by a description/adjective, but was addressed with THEOS = GOD in Hebr. 1:8) was either called a TRUE God or a FALSE god. It’s one or the other. Isn’t the most likely option that Jesus was called a TRUE God, considering that all the angels were supposed to worship him and that Jesus was often also worshiped by men?

Hebr. 1:6 And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.7 And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.9 Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

John 20:27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and MY GOD.29 Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

Let’s check all KJV options for GOD:

goddess (2x) – there are no female Gods so this is evidently about false gods as well (Ashtoreth to be exact)

great (2x), mighty (2x) –

Gen. 30:8 and Rachel saith, `With wrestlings of God I have wrestled with my sister, yea, I have prevailed;’ and she calleth his name Napthali. (Young’s Literal)

1 Sa. 14:15 and there is a trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people, the station and the destroyers have trembled — even they, and the earth shaketh, and it becometh a trembling of God. (Young’s literal)

Gen. 23:6 `Hear us, my lord; a prince of God [art] thou in our midst; in the choice of our burying-places bury thy dead: none of us his burying-place doth withhold from thee, from burying thy dead.’ (Young’s Literal)

Ex. 9:28 make ye supplication unto Jehovah, and plead that there be no voices of God and hail, and I send you away, and ye add not to remain.’ (Young’s Literal)

Evidently Jesus wasn’t called any of the above descriptions in Hebr. 1:8. He was plainly called GOD.

exceeding (1x)

Jon. 3:3 and Jonah riseth, and he goeth unto Nineveh, according to the word of Jehovah. And Nineveh hath been a great city before God, a journey of three days. (Young’s Literal)

Jesus wasn’t called this description either.

God-ward (1x) (with H4136) – only with the combination of H4136.

godly (1x) –

Mal 2:10 Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?11 Judah hath dealt treacherously, and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; for Judah hath profaned the holiness of the Lordwhich he loved, and hath married the daughter of a strange god.— 15 And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.16 For the Lord, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the Lord of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously. (KJV)

It’s the seed that is “godly”, and neither this verse is suggesting that other people/beings than God is a God.

angels (1x) –

When Jesus walked as a man on earth, he was made lower than the angels, and if you’re lower than the angels you’re naturally lower than GOD because God the Father certainly isn’t lower than his own created angels. Gen. 8:12 and Gen. 32:1 both translate ”Malak Elohiym” with “the angels of God”, and it makes sense to also translate Elohiym in Ps. 8:5/6 here below with ”God”, to prevent the text from saying “God’s gods”. This is also what we will see in many Bible versions across the world. Young’s Literal is interesting since “Godhead” is used, and it’s certainly true that Jesus left the Godhead (the trinity) in order to be born as a baby boy on earth and become one of us. He didn’t cease to be God, but he left his first estate. Also the German version concedes that the name is in plural.

Psalm 8:4 What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him?5 Yet You have made him a little lower than God, And You crown him with glory and majesty!6 You make him to rule over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet (NASB)

Psalm 8:5 And causest him to lack a little of Godhead, And with honour and majesty compassest him.6 Thou dost cause him to rule Over the works of Thy hands, All Thou hast placed under his feet. (Young’s literal)

Psalm 8:5 je me dis: Qu’est-ce que l’homme, pour que tu en prennes soin, et qu’est-ce qu’un être humain pour qu’à lui tu t’intéresses? 6 Pourtant, tu l’as fait de peu inférieur à Dieu, tu l’as couronné d’honneur et de gloire. (La Bible du Semeur)

Psalm 8:5 Hiciste al hombre poco menor que un dios, y lo colmaste de gloria y de honra. (Reina Valera Contemporánea)

Psalm 8:5 Was ist der Mensch, daß du seiner gedenkst, und des Menschen Sohn, daß du auf ihn achtest? 6 Du hast ihn ein wenig Gottes entbehren lassen; aber mit Ehre und Schmuck hast du ihn gekrönt; (Schlachter 1951)

(Gottes, hebr. Elohim, ein Name in Mehrzahl zur Bezeichnung Gottes (LS)

judge (5x) –

The KJV translators have translated Elohiym to ”judges”, unlike many other Bible versions where they have consistently translated Elohiym to God (in their own respective languages) also here. KJV is usually a very good translation, but it would have made more sense to translate Elohiym to God, as it’s done in more than 2.346 other times in the Bible. The translators were likely referring to the fact that God doesn’t actually come down to earth himself to sort out disputes between men, and when for instance the servant/slave is to be brought before God he is actually brought before the judges who are acting on behalf of God. However, the judges were definitely NOT gods and neither were they called gods by anyone else (unless we’re speaking about a certain poetic verse…). So when people are asked to stand up before God to sort out an errand and/or to get a judgment, where do they go now when it’s impossible to actually stand right before the living God? Do they stand before the rest of the family? Before a tree? Before a house? No, naturally it makes sense to stand before those individuals who are supposed to give them the verdict, and those are the judges/priests. That’s why it’s not wrong to say that the Israelites were supposed to “come before the judges” to sort out a problem, because this is what was actually done – as long as we understand that the original text doesn’t actually say “judges” but GOD, and judges and priests never referred to themselves as god and neither were they called god by anyone else.

1) Ex. 21:⁶then his master shall bring him to GOD, then he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him permanently. (NASB)

Ex. 21: 6 then his master is to bring him before God; and there at the door or doorpost, his master is to pierce his ear with an awl; and the man will be his slave for life. (Contemporary Jewish Bible)

Ex. 21:6 then hath his lord brought him nigh unto God, and hath brought him nigh unto the door, or unto the side-post, and his lord hath bored his ear with an awl, and he hath served him — to the age. (Young’s literal)

Ex. 21:6 entonces su amo lo traerá a Dios y lo traerá a la puerta o al quicial. Y su amo le horadará la oreja con una lezna, y él le servirá para siempre. (La Biblia de las Américas)

Ex. 21:6 ich will nicht freigelassen werden, so bringe ihn sein Herr vor Gott und stelle ihn an die Tür oder den Pfosten und durchbohre ihm seine Ohren mit einem Pfriem, daß er ihm diene ewiglich. (Schlachter 1951)

2) Ex. 22:8 If the thief is not found, the owner of the house shall come near to GOD to show whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor’s property. 9 For every breach of trust, whether it is for an ox, for a donkey, for a sheep, for a cloak, or for any kind of lost thing, of which one says, ‘This is it,’ the case of both parties shall come before GOD. The one whom GOD condemns shall pay double to his neighbor. (ESV)

Ex. 22:⁷⁽⁸⁾But if the thief is not found, then the trustee must state before GOD that he did not take the person’s goods himself. ⁸⁽⁹⁾In every case of dispute over ownership, whether of an ox, a donkey, a sheep, clothing, or any missing property, where one person says, ‘This is mine,’ both parties are to come before GOD; and the one whom GOD condemns must pay the other one double. (Contemporary Jewish Bible)

Ex. 22:8 `If the thief is not found, then the master of the house hath been brought near unto God, whether he hath not put forth his hand against the work of his neighbour;9 for every matter of transgression, for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, for any lost thing of which it is said that it is his; unto God cometh the matter of them both; he whom God doth condemn, he repayeth double to his neighbour. (Young’s literal)

Ex. 22:8 Dans toute affaire frauduleuse, qu’il s’agisse d’un bœuf, d’un âne, d’un mouton, d’un vêtement ou de n’importe quel objet perdu dont deux personnes revendiqueront la propriété, les deux parties porteront leur litige devant Dieu; celui que Dieu déclarera coupable restituera le double à l’autre.9 Si un homme confie en garde à son prochain un âne, un bœuf, un mouton ou tout autre animal, et que celui-ci meurt, se casse une patte ou se fait capturer par des voleurs sans qu’il y ait de témoin,(La Bible due Semeur)

Ex. 22: 8 Ist aber der Dieb nicht zu finden, so soll man den Hausherrn vor Gott bringen [und ihn darüber verhören], ob er sich nicht vergriffen habe an seines Nächsten Gut.9 Wird irgend etwas gestohlen, sei es ein Ochs, ein Esel, ein Schaf, ein Kleid, oder was sonst abhanden gekommen sein mag, wovon einer behauptet: Der hat’s! so soll beider Aussage vor Gott gelangen; wen Gott schuldig spricht, der soll es seinem Nächsten doppelt ersetzen. (Schlachter, 1951)

3) 1 Sam. 2:²⁵If one man sins against another, God will judge him. But if a man sins against the Lord, who will intercede for him?” Nevertheless they did not heed the voice of their father, because the Lord desired to kill them. (NKJV)

1 Sam. 2:²⁵If one man sins against another, God will mediate for him; but if a man sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the Lord desired to put them to death. (NASB)

1 Sam. 2:²⁵If someone sins against a man, God will mediate for him, but if someone sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for it was the will of the Lordto put them to death. (ESV)

1 Sam. 2:25 If a man sin against a man, then hath God judged him; but if against Jehovah a man sin, who doth pray for him?’ and they hearken not to the voice of their father, though Jehovah hath delighted to put them to death. (Young’s literal)

1 Sam. 2:²⁵Wenn jemand wider einen Menschen sündigt, so wird Gott Schiedsrichter sein; wenn aber jemand wider den Herrn sündigt, wer will sich für ihn ins Mittel legen? Aber sie folgten der Stimme ihres Vaters nicht; denn der Herr wollte sie töten. (Schlachter 1951)

1 Sam. 2:Si un homme pèche contre un autre, Dieu est là pour arbitrer, mais si quelqu’un pèche contre l’Eternel lui-même, qui interviendra en sa faveur? Mais les fils ne tinrent aucun compte de l’avertissement de leur père, car l’Eternel voulait les faire mourir. (La Bible due Semeur)

Satan is out to fool us into believing that Jesus has NOT come into flesh and that he is NOT God

Satan is doing what he can to deceive the people of the earth, and he is grateful to get help from false teachers. Some christians might not be aware of their errors (much like Peter, when Jesus said “Get thee behind me, Satan”), but others are more actively serving Satan by purposely seeking out false teachers who can serve them the false doctrines that they are looking for. They are not interested to amend their ways and be corrected by the Bible, but they have much energy to twist the Bible in such a way that it serves their purpose. They are only interested in feeding themselves with food from these false teachers in order to find more tasty arguments for their falsehood, and they are not interested to be fed by other teachers who are presenting simple Biblical truth. They also love to look around for disciples, who can learn about these falsehoods and hopefully continue to spread them to more and more people. We are living in the last days, and Satan is doing what he can to destroy us. Be prepared, and question yourself which teacher you allow to get the last word? Often we let that particular teacher get the final word, who teach us what we want to hear – according to our itching ears.

2 Tim. 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears

There are mainly two lies that Satan is presenting to us. 1) We are NOT going to die even if we sin, and 2) Jesus Christ is not God who has come in the flesh and lived as a man

Satan doesn’t have any problems with accepting that Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the holy one of God, the son of God or that God is ONE, (see Mark 1:23-24, Ja 2:19, Luke 4:41), but he does not confess that Jesus Christ has started out with God the Father (often called just GOD), and humbled himself and BECAME man in the flesh, and died on the cross for mankind.

1 John 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.2 HEREBY KNOW YE the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

1 John 1:7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.8 Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.10 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:11 For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.

Isaiah 7:¹³And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?¹⁴Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Matt. 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.2 The same was in the beginning with God.3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.—14 And THE WORD WAS MADE FLESH, AND DWELT AMONG US, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.15 John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.

John. 17:And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee BEFORE the world was.—Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me BEFORE the foundation of the world.

Phil. 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

It’s no mystery why Satan wants to spread the word that Jesus is NOT the IAM (the true God – the alpha and the omega), because if people have a chance to accept him as such and still refuse, it certainly looks like they will die in their sins. I’m not talking about innocent people who might live in an area where it’s hard to find a Bible, and who consequently might not understand all details about who Jesus really is (but according to Romans 2, we do have a conscience when it comes to our life styles), but I’m talking about those who have all the chances in the world to understand the basics of the Bible, but still choose to feed themselves with falsehood which they also spread to others. God can see our hearts.

Joh. 8:24 I said, therefore, to you, that ye shall die in your sins, for if ye may not believe that I AM [he],c) ye shall die in your sins.’25 They said, therefore, to him, `Thou — who art thou?’ and Jesus said to them, `Even what I did speak of to you at the beginning;26 many things I have to speak concerning you and to judge, but He who sent me is true, and I — what things I heard from Him — these I say to the world.’27 They knew not that of the Father he spake to them;28 Jesus, therefore, said to them, `When ye may lift up the Son of Man then ye will know that I am [he]; and of myself I do nothing, but according as my Father did teach me, these things I speak;29 and He who sent me is with me; the Father did not leave me alone, because I, the things pleasing to Him, do always.’30 As he is speaking these things, many believed in him; (Young’s Literal)

From Bible Gateway under c) (translation from Swedish) Read more about the IAM here.

c) The I Am term is referring to Ex. 3:14, where it’s used for God himself. It’s connected to the most supreme and divine name, JHVH, which is a never pronounced out of respect for God, but was substituted with ”Adonai”, which means the Lord.

You can read in this article about Jesus reference to “gods” in John 10:34-35, which is a quote from a poetic POEM from Ps. 82:6. The Jews who wanted to kill Jesus naturally knew about that psalm, and when Jesus made a reference to it they again picked up stones to kill him.

John. 10:33 The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself GOD.

Did they miss the inflation that has happened to the word GOD, and that loads of people can be called this name?

Also the early church fathers believed in the deity of Jesus, as can be seen here. (Quotes in English)

LOOK UPON ME whom they have PIERCED – JESUS in Zech. 12:10

Aug17

They shall look upon me whom they have PIERCED! (Zech. 12:10)

The prophet Zechariah is talking about a day in the future (from his perspective) where “he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David, and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the Lord before them”. When we study about the angel of the Lord (which you can read more about in this blog article), we can see that he is a particular messenger (not a created angel) and even God himself. We can see that God (the Father) has a dialogue with the angel of the Lord so this means they are not one and the same. However, if the angel of the Lord is a manifestation of Jesus Christ, then it all makes sense that he is referred to as God, and that people feared they would die for having seen him face to face. The angel of the Lord is said to have guided the israelites from Egypt to Canaan – which is the land of Israel – and if the angel of the Lord is also Jesus Christ, which it actually says in 1 Cor. 10:4, he is the same as the Word who would later turn up in flesh and guide his people (all who come to him) into his Kingdom!

Zechariah is talking about a day when God will pour the spirit of grace to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem (maybe due to their repentance and seeking of the Lord), and they shall “look upon me whom they have pierced, and mourn for him as one mourns for his only son”, and finally “as one that is in bitterness for his FIRSTBORN”. Those are well known attributes for Jesus Christ our Messiah! We know for a fact that Jesus Christ was PIERCED with nails on the cross due to our iniquities, and the short description of this event provided to us by Zechariah, gives us an indication of how it must have appeared for those standing below the cross and who looked up to Jesus on the cross.

Zechariah 12:8 In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the Lord before them.9 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have PIERCED, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. (KJV)

Zech. 12:10 — And they have looked unto ME whom they pierced (Young’s literal)

Zech. 12:10 — and they shall look upon ME whom they have pierced (Orthodox Jewish Bible)

Zech. 12:10 — so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced (NASB)

Zech. 12:10 — und sie werden MICH ansehen, (Luther Bibel 1545)

Zech. 12:10 — y mirarán a MÍ, a quien traspasaron (Reina-Valera 1960)

Zech. 12:10 — Et ils tourneront les regards vers MOI (Louis Segond)

Zech. 12:10 — Alors ils tourneront leurs regards vers MOI (La Bible du Semeur)

This is also the picture that Isaiah gives us when he in Isaiah 53:4 says that “WE did esteem him stricken—” which is how it must have appeared for the people below the cross who looked up on Jesus, and he goes on to say:

Isaiah 53:⁴Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet WE did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

David prophesied about the one who is pierced (Jesus) in this psalm:

Psalms 22:¹⁶For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they PIERCED MY HANDS AND MY FEET.¹⁷I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me.¹⁸They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.

Zechariah 12:10 is fulfilled in the New Testament, together with other prophesies:

John 19:²³Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout.²⁴They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did.—³¹The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.³²Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him.³³But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs:³⁴But one of the soldiers with a spear PIERCED his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.³⁵And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.

The israelites complained about their situation in the wilderness, which they of course did against God’s will, but due to his love for them he made them realize just how rebellious they really were by sending them fiery serpents that bit them. Sometimes obstacles might turn up in our lives, and we could then take the chance and at least consider the alternative that God wants our attention and that we might turn away from sin. (Or such obstacles might just be ordinary unfortunate circumstances.) The fiery serpents were a great hit, because the israelites understood that they were sinners and confessed it before Moses and God. God also thought of a way out of the problem with the wounds caused by the serpents, and asked Moses to make a hand-made fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and Moses made one out of brass. Consequently, each person who was bitten by one of the serpents could then be free from the poisonous snake bite by approaching the pole with the fake serpent of brass and look up to it. This was their own responsibility, and they were neither forced to go to the place where the pole was, nor forced to look at it. It was all based on free will, just like salvation is.

Jesus is compared with this brass serpent in the wilderness, and the whole story about the serpent is actually a picture of the whole salvation message where the serpent caused men to sin and thus be filthy, and where Jesus can cleanse us from our wounds and filthiness caused by Satan (and our rebellion) , if we only look up unto Jesus our Savior and repent for our sins. Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness for the people to look at and be free, even so must the son of man be lifted up in order to save the world. We can look up to Jesus on the cross, believe in him, confess our transgressions and eventually be totally free! Jesus says in John 12:32 “And I, if I be LIFTED UP from the earth, will draw all men unto me”.

Num. 21:⁵And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.⁶And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.⁷Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.⁸And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.⁹And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

John. 3:¹²If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?¹³And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.¹⁴And AS MOSES LIFTED UP THE SERPENT IN THE WILDERNESS, EVEN SO MUST THE SON OF MAN BE LIFTED UP:¹⁵That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.¹⁶For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.¹⁷For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.¹⁸He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.¹⁹And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.²⁰For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.²¹But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.

John 12:32 And I, if I be LIFTED UP from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

Hebrews 12:2 LOOKING UNTO JESUS the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the CROSS, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Jesus Christ was together with the israelites during the Exodus. He was their rock, and just like we can tempt Christ today by living wicked lives, so too did they tempt Christ in the wilderness. They were destroyed by serpents.

1 Cor. 10:1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;²And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;³And did all eat the same spiritual meat;⁴And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.⁵But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.⁶Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.⁷Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.⁸Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.⁹Neither let us tempt Christ, AS SOME OF THEM ALSO TEMPTED, and were destroyed of SERPENTS.

Jesus Christ is likened to the one who is pierced also in Revelations.

Rev. 1:5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which PIERCED him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

The phrase “a serpent of bronze” is a wordplay as “serpent” (nehash) and “bronze” (nehoshet) are closely related in Hebrew. The brass serpent was later destroyed by Hezekiah.

2 Kings. 18:1 Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign.²Twenty and five years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Abi, the daughter of Zachariah.³And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David his father did.⁴He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.

Thomas had a hard time believing that Jesus Christ was the Messiah, the son of God and GOD

Being the son of God means being GOD, because God the Father certainly has no children together with a woman. So if you’re the son of God, you also have the source in God, and since God is ONE and there is none like him, the son of God must be God himself.

Thomas eventually realized who Jesus really was (he already knew that he was the Messiah, the son of God and his Master), and he called him “My Lord and my God (theos)”. Jesus did not correct him, and he never corrected anyone who worshiped him or equated him with God. Probably because there was nothing to correct.

Joh. 10:⁶Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie,⁷And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.⁸Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed.⁹For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead.—¹⁹Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.²⁰And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.—²⁴But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.²⁵The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.²⁶And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.²⁷Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.²⁸And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.²⁹Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.³⁰And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book:³¹But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

“I will have mercy on who I will have mercy”, but not unconditionally – Rom. 9:15

Jun10

Rom. 9:15 FOR HE SAITH TO MOSES, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion

This is a very famous and popular verse, and there are some (reformed) christians who translate this verse into “God says to us all; I will elect certain individuals for salvation, and I will place no conditions whatsoever on those that I choose…”. Just because God shows mercy to individuals, groups of people and entire nations, it doesn’t mean that they will be saved, and neither does it say anywhere in Romans. 9:15 that God shows mercy unconditionally. Paul is here making a reference to Exodus 33:19 where God is speaking to Moses, so in order to get Paul’s point we should both read both the context in Romans 9 (which is about God’s right to make the offer of salvation also to the gentiles and under the conditions that he himself chooses) as well as checking the passage that Paul is referring to in order to understand his full point.

Ex 33:²(God) And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite:³Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way.⁴And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments.⁵For the Lord had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee.—(Mose starts out)¹⁶For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? is it not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth.¹⁷And the Lord said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name.¹⁸And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.¹⁹And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.

As we can see, Moses is having a huge problem with the people that he was a leader for, and that’s because they were stiff-necked and rebellious against the God who Moses was a true servant of. Man’s free will is fully displayed in this passage (and throughout the entire Bible) because naturally God doesn’t want people to be disobedient to him and to walk on their own evil ways. The only reason God is threatening to consume them, is due to their sinfulness and stubborn hearts. Moses is pleading with God to show mercy on his people and he is successful because God has indeed seen Moses’ heart and therefore decided to show him grace and listen to his requests.

As we can see, the phrase that he “will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy” is not in reference to God unconditionally electing people to salvation, and neither can this phrase be understood that way in Romans 9. Moreover, just because God decides to show mercy on a person, it doesn’t mean this person will necessarily be saved because mercy (or kindness or grace) might not even be in relation to the person’s soul. And even if it is in relation to the person’s soul, it doesn’t say “Once God has shown mercy on a person, this person forever remains in his mercy and is forever saved”. Just like we people can choose to be kind or not to others depending on their actions, so can God.

That people are being stiff-necked in the Bible can be seen here with many examples.

Compare with the words of David, who claims that God will be merciful to those who are merciful – which is how God has chosen to treat people:

2 Sam. 22:25 Therefore the Lord hath recompensed me according to my righteousness; according to my cleanness in his eye sight.26 With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful, and with the upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright.27 With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself unsavoury.28 And the afflicted people thou wilt save: but thine eyes are upon the haughty, that thou mayest bring them down.

We are told to be merciful as our Father is merciful

If the idea is that God has a certain lucky and elect elite that he has decided to show mercy on while he turns his back on all others, can we act in the same way by showing mercy (being kind) to only SOME? Not according to the Bible that says we are to be good to all. If we show mercy to others, we can be expected to get mercy ourselves, and God expects us to show mercy to others.

Luke:³⁵But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.³⁶Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

Hosea 4:1 Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel: for the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.

Hosea 6:6 For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.

Hosea 10:12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.

Matthew 5:7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Matthew 9:13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

Matthew 23:23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

1 Timothy 1:13 Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.

Ja. 2:¹²So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.¹³For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.¹⁴What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?

Broader context from Romans 9. Read more about Romans 9 in this article.

Rom. 9:¹⁴What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.¹⁵For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.¹⁶So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.¹⁷For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.¹⁸Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.23And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory

Mercy is often in relation to individuals who are being righteous

It makes sense that kind-hearted and obedient people are prone to receive mercy themselves.

Genesis. 19:¹⁸And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord:¹⁹Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:

Genesis 24:27 And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master’s brethren.

Genesis 39:21 But the Lord was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.

1 Kings 3:6 And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.

Isaiah 14:1 For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob.

Conditions that are required for getting mercy, and when God does NOT show mercy

It looks like God is keen to show mercy on people who LOVE HIM AND KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. We can see this requirement throughout the below verses.

Ex. 20:⁵Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;⁶And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Deut. 5:⁹Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me,¹⁰And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.

Deut. 7:⁹Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;¹⁰And repayeth them that hate him to their face, to destroy them: he will not be slack to him that hateth him, he will repay him to his face.¹¹Thou shalt therefore keep the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which I command thee this day, to do them.¹²Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken to these judgments, and keep, and do them, that the Lord thy God shall keep unto thee the covenant and the mercy which he sware unto thy fathers

1 Kings 8:23 And he said, Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart

2 Chronicles 6:14 And said, O Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee in the heaven, nor in the earth; which keepest covenant, and shewest mercy unto thy servants, that walk before thee with all their hearts

Nehemiah 1:5 And said, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments:

Isaiah 9:¹⁶For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.¹⁷Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, neither shall have mercy on their fatherless and widows: for every one is an hypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

Isaiah 27:11 When the boughs thereof are withered, they shall be broken off: the women come, and set them on fire: for it is a people of no understanding: therefore he that made them will not have mercy on them, and he that formed them will shew them no favour.

Isaiah 30:18 And therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the Lord is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.

Isaiah 47:6 I was wroth with my people, I have polluted mine inheritance, and given them into thine hand: thou didst shew them no mercy; upon the ancient hast thou very heavily laid thy yoke.

Isaiah 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Daniel 9:4 And I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;

Hosea 2:4 And I will not have mercy upon her children; for they be the children of whoredoms.

Jonah 2:8 They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.

Luke 1:50 And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.

Luke 10:²⁹But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?³⁰And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.³¹And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.³²And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.³³But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,³⁴And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.³⁵And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.³⁶Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?³⁷And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

Romans 11:32 For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

Gal. 6 ¹⁵For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.¹⁶And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.

Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 10:28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:

Jude 1:21 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

Psalms and Proverbs about mercy

In Psalms and Proverbs we can see the conditions for getting mercy, and they are the same as above.

Psalm 32:10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall compass him about.

Psalm 33:18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy;

Psalm 37:21 The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth.

Psalm 62:12 Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy: for thou renderest to every man according to his work

Psalm 86:5 For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.

Psalm 103:11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

Psalm 103:17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children;

Psalm 118:4 Let them now that fear the Lord say, that his mercy endureth for ever.

Psalm 130:7 Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.

Psalm 147:11 The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.

Psalm 145:⁸The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.⁹The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.

Proverbs 14:22 Do they not err that devise evil? but mercy and truth shall be to them that devise good.

Proverbs 14:31 He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoureth him hath mercy on the poor.

Proverbs 16:6 By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the Lord men depart from evil.

Proverbs 21:21 He that followeth after righteousness and mercy findeth life, righteousness, and honour.

Proverbs 28:13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

We are not saved because we have always done the right thing, but because we are able to be cleansed in the blood of Jesus upon our repentance and faith in his holy name.

Titus. 3:³For we ourselves also WERE sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.⁴But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,⁵Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost