Today, I am reading and commenting on  Exodus 22-24.

Before I get into my main point today I want to touch on a few other things.  In the second and third verse of today’s passage it says, “If a thief is caught breaking in at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed; but if it happens after sunrise, the defender is guilty of bloodshed.”  I am not sure why God makes that distinction between whether it happens at night or during daylight hours.  However, it seems like the expectation here is that at night one is more likely to be a bit disoriented (and thus be more likely to not calibrate your actions correctly), combined with the fact that after sunrise one can more reasonably expect aid to come in response to your cries for help.  The other verse I wanted to mention is the sixth one in today’s passage which says, “If a fire breaks out and spreads into thornbushes so that it burns shocks of grain or standing grain or the whole field, the one who started the fire must make restitution.”  That one struck me because of the fires in California and the evidence which makes me wonder if they were all set by someone.  Anyway, enough idle musing.

Later in today’s passage God tells the Israelites the following, “See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared.  Pay attention to him and listen to what he says.”  God sent an angel to the Israelites, He has sent His Holy Spirit to us.  God told the Israelites that if they did not worship the gods, or follow the practices, of the people whose land they were going to occupy, but instead worshiped only Him, He would bless them.  He is bringing us to place which He has prepared for us.  He has sent His Holy Spirit to guard us and guide us.  If we listen to what He says, and refuse to follow the practices of the people around us, He will bless us.  Let us listen carefully to what He says, and do what He tells us to do.  Then He will be the enemy of our enemies and will oppose those who oppose us.  Of course, if we truly do as He says, then our enemies will be those who have chosen to be His enemies, and those who oppose us will be those who oppose Him.  I want to repeat the part which I find most important.  God has sent One to Guard us and guide us, and He has prepared a place for us.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.