Were there two different copies of the Ten Commandments?

Most of us are used to thinking that the stone tablets called the Ten Commandments, which received and written with the finger of God, and that Moses later smashed after coming down from Mount Sinai, were later replicated as originally given when Moses went back up the mountain to appear before the Lord, but is this actually the case? The following study will explore this question in some detail.

Exodus 34: 1

The Lord said to Moses, “Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones, and I will write on them the [same] words that were on the first tablets, which you broke

Exodus 34: 11b

I will drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites
(Cp. Exodus 23: 23).

Exodus 34: 13-14

Break down their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles. Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God (Cp. Exodus 20: 3, 5b, 23a; 23: 24b).

Exodus 34: 15

Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land (Cp. Exodus 23:32).

Exodus 34: 17

Do not make cast idols (Cp. Exodus 20: 4, 23??).

Exodus 34: 18

Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For seven days eat bread without yeast, as I commanded you (Cp. Exodus 13: 6-7). Do this at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in that month you came out of Egypt (Cp. Exodus 13: 3-4; 23: 15).

Exodus 34: 19-20

The first offspring of every womb belongs to me [the Lord], including all the firstborn males of your livestock, whether from the herd or flock (Cp. Exodus 13: 12). Redeem your firstborn sons.

NOTE: This latter part of verse twenty is not found in the earlier version, as well as verse nineteen; which is found in the thirteenth chapter of Exodus.

Exodus 34: 20b

No one is to appear before the Lord empty handed (Cp. Exodus 23: 15b).

Exodus 34: 21

Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during plowing season and harvest you must rest (Cp. Exodus 20: 9-11; 23: 12).

Exodus 34: 22-23

Celebrate the Feast of Weeks with the first-fruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year. Three times a year all your men are to appear before the Sovereign Lord, the God of Israel (Cp. Exodus 23: 16-17).

Exodus 34: 25

Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice to me along with anything containing yeast; and do not let any of the sacrifice from the “Passover Feast” remain until morning (Cp. Exodus 23: 18).

NOTE: The Passover Feast is not mentioned in the previous account, but only “the fat of my festival offerings”??

Exodus 34: 26

Bring the best of the first-fruits of your spoil to the house of the Lord your God (Cp. Exodus 23: 19).

Exodus 24: 6b

Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk (Cp. Exodus 23: 19b).

Exodus 34: 27, 28b

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write down [all] these words, for in accordance to these words I have made a covenant with you and Israel. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant- The Ten Commandments (Cp. Exodus 24: 12).

 

CONCLUSION: It is commonly believed that the Ten Commandments were just those statutes listed in chapter twenty in the Book of Exodus, but that just might be an oversimplification. Those statutes certainly are the main body of a moral as well as religious code for the Israelites but there is much more to it. The way I look at it, and the biblical text confirms this, some of the precepts from chapter thirteen were incorporated into the original instructions of the ten Commandments starting in chapter twenty, and then reintroduced in chapter thirty-four; but even so, there was additional material added that was not present in the original version. In Exodus 34: 1 the Lord says that he will write the words that were in the first set of stone tablets that Moses broke. It seems to me that Exodus 20: 1-17 comprises the first set of Ten Commandments and Exodus 23: 1-13 expands on those principles.

After Exodus 20: 18 thru 23: 13 appears to be an addition to the original Ten Commandments of Exodus 20. I surmise that Exodus 23: 14-33 is a somewhat altered repetition of the first set of Ten Commandments. Interestingly, or I might say oddly, Exodus 24: 7 says, “The he [Moses] took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. So, the words graven on stone tablets (“Ten Commandments”) in Exodus 20 are now, or become part of a book four chapters later. Then from Exodus 25 thru 34: 1, 27, 28b there are more instructions that are in themselves more amendments. So, it is not unreasonable to accept that the Ten Commandments were edited and expanded upon from the point when these instructions were initially given, by some unknown redactor or priestly scribe throughout generations to accommodate the evolving religious, cultural, social, and historical development of this mixed heterogeneous grouping of a specific offshoot of Canaanite clans called Hebrews or Israelites.

Robert Randle

776 Commerce St Apt 701
Tacoma, WA 98402
October 28, 2016
robertrandle51@yahoo.com

Which copy of the Covenant was used to inaugurate Israelite kings?

It may come as quite a surprise to many readers of the Bible that there were in fact, two sets of statutes in the Old Testament regarding how Jewish kings were supposed to behave, as well as govern. This study will provide an interesting comparison/contrast among the narrative sources as it pertains to the responsibilities that the kings were to act among the Israelite people.

Deuteronomy 17: 14-20

When you enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you have (take) possession of it and settled it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,” be sure to appoint over you the king the Lord your God chooses. He must be from among your own brothers. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not a brother Israelite. The king ⁽¹⁾ must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself, or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them; for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back this way again.” He ⁽²⁾ must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He ⁽³⁾ must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold. When he takes the throne of his kingdom, ⁽⁴⁾ he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites. It is to be with him and he is to ⁽⁵⁾ read it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God, and to ⁽⁶⁾ follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees, and ⁽⁷⁾ not consider himself better than that of his brothers; and turn away from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over the kingdom of Israel.

NOTE: The decrees are quite explicit in the Deuteronomist version but it seems that Solomon didn’t know about it, or instead, chose to ignore it entirely (Cp. 1 Kings 10: 14-21, 22a, 28; 1 Kings 11: 1-5). This also brings up another important point, namely, that the Torah (including the book of Deuteronomy) was not written down or orally transmitted during his reign or lifetime.

1 Samuel 8: 4-7, 9-17

So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint a king to lead us.” This disturbed Samuel, so he inquired to the Lord. And the Lord said to him, “Listen to all that the people are saying to you: It is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. Now listen to them: but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who reigns over them will do.” Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. He said, “This is what the king who will reign over you will do: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest; and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage, and give it to his officials and attendants. Your menservants and maidservants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves.

1 Samuel 10: 25a

Samuel explained to the people the regulations of the kingship. He wrote down on a scroll and deposited it before the Lord.

NOTE: This last part would imply that Samuel placed these decrees in the custody of the priests, the Levites who ministered before the Lord in the temple. It is also worth noting that Samuel‘s version doesn’t seem to be a continuation of Moses’ law but something different altogether. The source in Deuteronomy anticipates the request for a king as a natural progression, whereas in Samuel’s version the Israelites reject God ruling over them outright, using the excuse that it was due to Samuel’s old age and his sons’ bad behavior.

2 Kings 11: 12a

Jehoiada brought out the king’s son [Joash] and put the crown on him; he presented him with a copy of the Covenant and proclaimed him king.

2 Kings 22: 8; 23: 2

And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. The king went up to the house of the LORD and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests and the prophets and all the people, both small and great; and he read in their hearing all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the LORD.

CONCLUSION:

It seems that the Book of the Law/Torah (incl. Deuteronomy) wasn’t found until the time of King Josiah, which means that it must have been lost. This makes sense because Solomon would have devoted his heart fully to the Lord if it had existed at the time; at least, this is what I think. Jehoiada the priest probably found a copy of the scroll written by the prophet Samuel, which he used to administer the oath of office to Joash. The Mosaic commandment contained in Deuteronomy was still unknown or missing until the High priest Hilkiah discovered either the entire Torah or portions of it in the temple some eleven chapters later.

 

Robert Randle

776 Commerce St Apt 701
Tacoma, WA 98402
October 25, 2016
robertrandle51@yahoo.com

Who is the Father?

The mystery of God is not easy to understand, let alone trying to explain in a rational way based on empirical proof. The various encounters that people had with deity were unique and special. In some instances God appeared out of nowhere and stood right next to someone; God spoke from a burning bush; God has communicated in a dream or vision; God spoke from a dark cloud and fire; God is described as flying on the wind or wings of creatures called cherubim. Moses, Aaron and the seventy elders of Israel saw God and sat down and had a meal in the Lord’s presence (Cp. Exodus 24: 9-11). The prophet Micaiah saw God sitting on his heavenly throne (Cp. 1 Kings 22: 9); so did Isaiah (Cp. Isaiah 6: 1). God, or rather the Lord, is described as one of the sons of The Most High/El Most High (Heb. Elyon), who was allotted Israel as his inheritance (Cp. Deuteronomy 32: 8-8). So, all these appearances or revelations (“theophany”) of God in the Old Testament should settle the matter as to the Father; but does it? Let’s hear what Jesus had to say about the matter, and this is where the study will start with the following:

John 1: 18

No one has “ever” seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side (right hand??), has made him known (revealed him).

John 5: 37, 43a

And the Father who sent me has himself testified of me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form. I have come in my Father’s name and you do not accept me.

John 6: 46a

No one has seen the Father “except” the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father.

John 14: 8-9a, 10b

Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and it will be enough for us.” Jesus answered, “Don’t you know me Philip; even after I have been among you such a long (short??) time?” Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. It is the Father living (abiding??) in me, who is doing his work.

John 17: 25a

[Jesus said] “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you.”

1 Corinthians 8: 6

But to us there is but one God (Heb. El), the Father (Heb. ha’ Ab), from whom are all things, and we exist for him; and one Lord (Heb. `Adonai), the Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through him.

Ephesians 4: 6

One God (Heb. El) and Father (Heb. Ab) of all, who is over all, through all, and in all.

1Timothy 6: 15b, 16

God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen

CONCLUSION:

This last reference sums up this study nicely and reinforces what Jesus said earlier, and there can be no greater authority than his. Since the dawn of time when mankind had the first contact with God, it was like in the Greek plays, I surmise, behind a mask of sorts. It was very much like what was revealed to Moses when he asked to see God’s glory. Although the translation was a bit awkward and strained, it reveals that mortals cannot experience the awesome incorporeal essence and celestial splendor of God’s divinity in a direct sense (Cp. Exodus 33: 18-20, 23b). Even the different names associated with God had to do with a particular purpose and appearing that deity wanted to accomplish or reveal. For the most part, God was referred to as the Lord God or God Almighty. Even God’s memorial name “I AM that I AM” (Cp. Exodus 3: 14) was never invoked at any other point in the Scriptures. I think the Psalmist confirms the closest approximation to the divine name, or at least the root or cognate in Psalms 68: 4, where God’s name is Yah.  Jesus did use an abbreviated form in the gospel of John (ex. “I AM….”) but not the full expression as in the account in third chapter of Exodus. Nevertheless, even this is not revealed as the Father until Jesus introduces mankind to this aspect of deity. Lastly, in Colossians 1: 19; 2: 9, it reads: For God [the Father] was pleased to have “all” his fullness dwell (abide) in him [Jesus Christ]. For in Christ “all” the fullness of the ‘godhead’ (“Divine Nature”) dwells in bodily form.

 

Robert Randle

776 Commerce St. Apt 701
Tacoma, WA 98402
October 19, 2016
robertrandle51@yahoo.com

Is everything that God does considered good?

Hardly anyone, at least those who believe in God, Ultimate reality, or Source would disagree that one of the characteristics of such a being rests in the notion of One who is the perfect Good. Exodus 34: 6-7a, says: “The Lord, the Lord the compassionate and gracious God, and slow to anger; abounding in love and faithfulness [mercy??], maintaining love to thousands and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.” Who can accuse God of anything outside of how God describes these qualities to the divine nature? Nevertheless, let’s look at what the Scriptures also reveal about God; as in the following:

Exodus 4: 21

The Lord said to Moses, “When you return to Egypt. See that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders that I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go.

Joshua 11: 18a, 19b-20

Joshua waged war against all these kings for a long time. Not one city made a treaty of peace with the Israelites who took them all in battle. For it was the Lord himself who hardened their hearts to wage war against Israel, so that he might destroy them totally, exterminating them without mercy, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Judges 9: 23a, 24

God sent an “evil spirit” between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem. God did this in order that the crime against Jerub-Baal’s seventy sons, the shedding of their [innocent] blood might be avenged on their brother Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem.

1 Samuel 16: 14-15; 19: 9a, 11

Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an “evil spirit” from the Lord tormented him. Saul’s attendants said to him, “See, an ‘evil spirit’ from God is tormenting you. But an “evil spirit” from the Lord came upon Saul. Saul sent men to David’s house to watch it and to kill him in the morning.

2 Samuel 24: 1, 3a, b, 10

Again, the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and he [the Lord] “incited” David against them, saying, “Go and take a census of Israel and Judah” But Joab replied to the king, “but why does my lord want to do such a thing?” David was conscious-stricken after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, O Lord, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.”

NOTE: Another version of the same event is recorded in the Chronicles, as in below:

1 Chronicles 21: 1a, 8a

Satan (??) rose up against Israel and “incited” David to take a census of Israel. Then David said to God, “I have sinned greatly by doing this.”

1 Kings 22: 20-22

And the Lord said, “Who will ‘entice’ Ahab into attacking Ramoth-Gilead and going to his death there?” One suggested this, and another that. Finally a “spirit” came forward, stood before the Lord and said, “I will entice him.” “By what means?” the Lord asked. I will go out and be a “lying spirit” in the mouths of all his prophets, he said. You will succeed in ‘enticing’ him, said the Lord. “Go and do it.”

2 Kings 19: 6a, 7, 9a, 36-37a

This is what the Lord says, I am going to put a “spirit” in him that when he hears a certain report, he will return to his own country, and there I will have him cut down with the sword. Now Sennacherib received a report that Tirhakeh the Cushite king of Egypt, was marching out against him. So Sennacherib, king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh and stayed there. One day, while he was worshipping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer cut him down with the sword.

Job 2: 1, 3

On another day when the angels came to present themselves before the Lord and Satan also came with them. The Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job?” There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright; a man who fears God and shuns evil. And he still maintains his integrity, though you “incite” me to ruin (destroy) him without a cause.

Job 2: 10b; 42: 7

Job replied. . . “Shall we accept [only??] good from God, and not evil (trouble/adversity)?”
After the Lord said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your friends because you have not spoken of me what is right; as my servant Job has.

Isaiah 45: 6b-7

I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form the light and create [the] darkness. I make peace, and create evil. I, the Lord, do all these things.

CONCLUSION: It seems that “good and evil” are not quantifiable in the human sense of the word as absolutes when it pertains to the Lord. The purpose for which God acts in human history is consistent with his “essential” goodness and as such, any action by God that makes us uncomfortable or which is not easily understood cannot be sufficient proof or evidence to indict the Creator of wrongdoing. Did not God say in Isaiah 55: 8, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD.

Robert Randle

776 Commerce St #701
Tacoma, WA 98402
October 18, 2016
robertrandle51@yahoo.com