Tag Archives: Exodus

Passover is more than a once a year festival (Exodus 12/1-30), Jan 25, 2015

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Today’s Devotional

Today’s background scripture comes from Exodus 12.
Passover is one of the most important of the festivals for remembrance I directed for My people. It changes the calendar for the Israelites and becomes the first month of the year because of its significance. Passover brought freedom to My people. It broke their chains of slavery to their Egyptian masters. It marks the beginning of the life of the new nation just as it marked the death of the firstborn in every Egyptian household.

What do I want you to remember from Passover? You already surmise a lot of symbolism can be found throughout the entire Passover festival from the time of year I chose for you to celebrate it, to the foods you eat, to the clothes you wear. But I want you especially to think about three things today.

Second, Passover is about urgency and preparedness. I demanded My people eat with their shoes on, their cloaks on, and a walking stick in their hand. I wanted their bags packed and nothing left to do before they walked out the door because they would leave in a hurry. The Passover had an urgency about it because as soon as the death angel visited at a time of My choosing during the night, the Egyptians would cry out and Pharaoh would tell My people to leave. I wanted them to go immediately.

It will be the same when My Son returns. Waiting for Him should create an urgency and a measure of preparedness in you. Just like with My people at the first Passover, those that were not ready could not go. They were lost to the exodus. My command for My people was to go when commanded. Don’t wait, don’t dawdle, don’t prepare anything else. Grab your pack, get on your feet, and get out of Egypt! When My Son returns, He will come in the blink of an eye to take His church. Those who are ready will come home with Him. Those who are not will remain. There is urgency in the remembrance of the Passover.

The Passover is about family and community. The Passover meal was never eaten alone. There was a reason a whole lamb or goat was required. One of the most important, a large number of people must gather together to consume it. Families must mend the differences between them and eat together. Neighbors must tear down any barriers between them and eat together. Newcomers on settlement were invited into homes to become part of the community. Meat in Goshen was too scarce to waste when many dined on onions and leeks. A lamb or goat as the Passover meal meant something extravagant and not for Me, but also something not to be wasted, so houses were filled with family and friends ready and waiting to begin the journey to a new life.

Finally, Passover is about sacrifice. It’s easy to think about the lamb and the goat that lost its life for the passover meal, but each Egyptian family also lost their firstborn in sacrifice for their failure to believe in Me, the One True God. Freedom takes sacrifice. Whether from the chains of slavery or the chains of sin, sacrifice remains a necessary component. For you, I already paid the ultimate price in the blood of My perfect Son, Jesus. The blood on the doorpost represent for you the blood of My Son, as well, to remember your salvation isn’t free. It comes at a price.

Jesus, My Son, instituted a remembrance at the last Passover meal He celebrated that many call the Lord’s Supper, Communion, the Eucharist, or other names. Like the first Passover, it brings with it a remembrance of His sacrifice for your sins, urgency and preparedness for His return, and togetherness as My family, My children, born of blood and spirit. Born into My kingdom…if you believe in Him. Passover didn’t just happen as an historical event, it remains as a permanent reminder of My grace in the lives of those who dare to believe in Me.

Today’s Scripture

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Exodus 12:1-30
Set – Exodus 12; Psalms 21
Go! – Exodus 12-13; Psalms 21; Acts 1

Exodus 12:1-30
Eternal One (to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt): 1-2 Mark this month as the first month of all months for you—the first month of your year. 3 Declare this message to the entire community of Israel: “When the tenth day of this month arrives, every family is to select a lamb, one for each household. 4 If there aren’t enough people in the family to eat an entire lamb, then they should share a lamb with their nearest neighbor according to how many people are in the neighbor’s family. Divide the portions of the lamb so that each person has enough to eat. 5 Choose a one-year-old male that is intact and free of blemishes; you can take it from the sheep or the goats. 6 Keep this chosen lamb safe until the fourteenth day of the month, then the entire community of Israel will slaughter their lambs together at twilight. 7 They are to take some of its blood and smear it across the top and down the two sides of the doorframe of the houses where they plan to eat. 8 That night, have them roast the lamb over a fire and feast on it along with bitter herbs and bread made without yeast. 9 Do not eat any meat raw or boil it in water; only eat the meat after the entire animal has been roasted over a fire with its head, legs, and intestines attached. 10 Eat whatever you can, but don’t leave any of it until morning; whatever is left over in the morning burn in the fire. 11 Here is how I want you to eat this meal: Be sure you are dressed and ready to go at a moment’s notice—with sandals on your feet and a walking stick in your hand. Eat quickly because this is My Passover.

12 I am going to pass through the land of Egypt during the night and put to death all their firstborn children and animals. I will also execute My judgments against all the gods of the Egyptians, for I am the Eternal One! 13 The blood on the doorframes of your houses will be a sign of where you are. When I pass by and see the blood, I will pass over you. This plague will not afflict you when I strike the land of Egypt with death.

14 This will be a day for you to always remember. I want you and all generations after you to commemorate this day with a festival to Me. Celebrate this feast as a perpetual ordinance, a permanent part of your life together. 15 You are to eat bread made without yeast for seven days. On the first day get rid of any yeast you find in your house. Anyone who eats bread made with yeast during the seven festival days must be cut off from the rest of Israel. 16 On the first day of the festival and again on the seventh, gather the community together for a time of sacred worship. No one may work on those two days except to prepare what every person needs to eat. 17 Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread because it commemorates the day that I led your forces out of Egypt. Honor and celebrate this day throughout all your generations as a perpetual ordinance, a permanent part of your life together. 18 From the evening of the fourteenth day of that first month to the evening of the twenty-first day of that month, eat bread made without yeast. 19-20 No yeast is to be found in any of your houses during the seven festival days. Whoever eats anything that has yeast in it must be cut off from the community of Israel. It doesn’t matter whether he is a foreigner or a native; the same standards apply. During the seven festival days, do not eat anything made with yeast; wherever you live and gather together, be sure you eat only unleavened bread.

21 Then Moses called all of Israel’s elders together and gave them instructions.

Moses: Go and pick out lambs for each of your families, and then slaughter your family’s Passover lamb. 22 Take a handful of hyssop branches, dip them down into the bowl of blood you drained from the sacrifice, and mark the top of the doorway and the two doorposts with blood from the bowl. After you do this, no one should go out that door until the next morning.

23 The Eternal will pass through the land during the night and bring death to the Egyptians. But when He sees the blood-markings across the tops of your doorways and down your two doorposts, He will pass over your houses and not allow His messenger of death to enter into your houses and strike you down. 24 You and all your descendants are obligated to keep these instructions for all time. 25 Even after you arrive in the land the Eternal has promised you—the land flowing with milk and honey—you must keep these instructions and perform this ritual. 26 When your children ask you, “What does this ritual mean to you?” 27 you will answer them, “It is the Passover sacrifice to the Eternal, for He passed over the houses of the Israelites when we were slaves in Egypt. And although He struck the Egyptians, He spared our lives and our houses.”

When Moses finished these instructions, the people bowed down and worshiped.

28 The Israelites went and did as they were instructed; they were obedient to what the Eternal had commanded Moses and Aaron.

29 Now this is what happened: at midnight, He struck down all the firstborn sons in Egypt—from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sat on his throne, to the firstborn son of the prisoners locked in the dungeon, and even the firstborn of all the livestock in the land. 30 Pharaoh woke up during the night. He wasn’t the only one. His servants, as well as all of the Egyptians in the land, had awoken. A great scream shattered the night in Egypt, for there was not a single Egyptian house where someone was not dead.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Don’t forget your history (Exodus 9:13-35), Jan 24, 2015

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Today’s Devotional

Today’s background scripture comes from Exodus 9
Edmund Burke, one of America’s supporters in the British House of Commons during its disputes leading to the American Revolution is known for saying, “Those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it.” Such was Pharaoh’s problem. He failed to know the history of Egypt and the role My people played in rescuing it from ruin. He failed to learn about Joseph, the second highest leader in the nation during the greatest famine in Egypt’s history.

Pharaoh saw the Hebrew’s as a blight in his country instead of an asset to him. He saw their growth as a threat instead of a blessing. He didn’t read his history to find I would bless all nations through My covenant with Abraham. Instead, Pharaoh enslaved My chosen people and tried to crush them. He began to kill My children to try to wipe out My Hebrew race. But as with all such leaders bent on the genocide of My people, I will never let it happen. They are My people.

So, I raised Moses to show Pharaoh My power. I allowed Pharaoh to take his place on the throne in the first place. I could remove him as well. Pharaoh would hear from one who grew up in the palace. The rest of Egypt might think him a god, but Moses lived with him in the palace and knew he was nothing but a man, and a flawed one. My message, delivered by one who knew Pharaoh well, would shake the faith of the man on the throne who teaches others to bow to him. He would know only I am worthy of worship.

The plagues I would bring would attack the icons of their religions. I would turn their most sacredly held things against them. I would show them the power of the One True God. And beginning with the plague of hail, I would make a distinction between the Egyptians and My people. My people would not feel the effects of my power, but all those outside the bounds of My chosen family would feel the wrath of God.

What do I want you to learn from Pharaoh’s story? He failed to remember his nation’s history. My people saved his country from ruin. Today, many in America want to rewrite its history and take Me out of it. But America was founded on, thrived and grew to become a mighty nation because the majority of its people trusted and believed in Me. Today, belief in Me is slipping away. Don’t let forget your history. More important, don’t forget My story.

Today’s Scripture

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Exodus 9:13-35
Set – Exodus 9; Luke 24
Go! – Exodus 9-11; Luke 24

Exodus 9:13-35
Eternal One (to Moses): 13 Get up early tomorrow morning and stand before Pharaoh. Tell him, “The Eternal, the God of the Hebrews, has a message for you: ‘Release My people, so that they may serve Me. 14 This time, if you refuse, I’m going to send a series of plagues upon you yourself, your servants, and your people. Then you will see that there is no one else as great as I am in all the earth. 15 For by now I could have easily raised my hand and struck you and your people with a disease so lethal that you would be erased entirely from the earth. 16 But I have kept you in power for a reason, to show you My greater power and to see that My name and reputation spread through all the earth. 17 But you still try to dominate My people and refuse to release them from the land. 18 This time tomorrow, I will unleash an enormous hailstorm upon you—a storm like no other that has ever occurred in Egypt since its beginning until now. 19 So gather all your livestock and anything left in your fields into a safe place. Protect it the best you can, for every man or animal left unprotected in the field when the hailstorm arrives will die.’”

20 Some of Pharaoh’s servants feared the Eternal’s message, so they gathered their servants and livestock into the safety of their houses. 21 But there were others who did not take seriously the Eternal’s word, and they left their servants and livestock unprotected in the field.

Eternal One (to Moses): 22 Raise your hand up toward the heavens, and hail will rain from the sky across the entire land of Egypt—upon people and animals and all the crops in the field throughout the land of Egypt.

23 So Moses raised his staff up toward the heavens, and the Eternal released loud thunder and hail from the sky, and fire streaked down upon the earth. He caused hail to rain down upon all of Egypt. 24 As the hail fell, lightning pierced the darkness and lit up the sky. The hailstorm was so intense that it was like no other that had ever occurred in Egypt since its beginning. 25 The hail pounded everything to the ground that remained in the fields, both people and their animals; it crushed every crop, it shattered every tree. 26 There was only one place the hail did not fall—Goshen—where the people of Israel lived.

27 Pharaoh then sent for Moses and Aaron.

Pharaoh: I admit that this time I’ve gone too far. I have sinned. The Eternal is in the right; I and my people have done wrong. 28 Go back to the Eternal and plead my case. We have had enough of your God’s thunder and hail. I will agree to release you—you and your people will not stay any longer.

Moses: 29 Watch closely. The moment I step outside the city gates, I will lift up my hands to the Eternal, and the thunder and hail will stop. Then you will know that the earth belongs to Him. 30 But I know very well that you and your servants do not yet fear the Eternal God.

31 (The flax and barley crops were both destroyed, because the barley heads were nearly ripe and buds had formed on the flax when the hail fell. 32 But the wheat and the spelt had not yet sprouted, so these crops were spared.)

33 Moses left Pharaoh and departed the city. He lifted up his hands to the Eternal and prayed. When he did, the thunder and hail and heavy rains stopped. 34 But as soon as Pharaoh saw that the weather had changed, and he and his servants were certain that the hail and thunder and heavy rains were no longer a threat, they became utterly defiant and Pharaoh hardened his stubborn heart once again. 35 Because his heart was as hard as stone, he refused to release the Israelites as he promised. This happened exactly as the Eternal One predicted through Moses.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Doubt is okay, just don’t give up (Exodus 6:1-13), Jan 23, 2015

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Today’s Devotional

Today’s background scripture comes from Exodus 6.
Sometimes doing what I ask of you will seem like beating your head against the wall. You will tell Me you’ve done that before with no results. Jesus’ disciples felt that way sometimes. They were expert fishermen. They had fished all night and caught nothing and Jesus told them to do what seemed foolish. “Cast your nets on the other side of the boat.” They thought, “What do we have to lose? One more cast won’t make a difference, so we might as well try.” They filled their nets with a haul that almost sank their little trawler.

Noah probably felt the same way sometimes as he cut lumber for an ark. The world had never seen a drop of rain in his day. His neighbors ridiculed him, mocked him, and laughed at him, for the 100 years it took to build the ark. But he kept at the task until one day I told him to go in with his family and the animals and I shut the door. Then the rain began. Everyone else wanted in, but I shut the door and Noah couldn’t open it. Noah saved his family by doing what others thought foolish.

Moses and Aaron spoke their people about My coming deliverance. The people were excited until the labor doubled and the supplies didn’t increase to do the work. Then they only got angry at Moses and Aaron for what they thought was foolishness. Moses and Aaron weren’t so sure it was a good idea to talk to Pharaoh either. But that’s okay. They didn’t quit.

That’s the secret in following Me. It’s okay to doubt Me sometimes. The disciples did. Noah did. Moses and Aaron did. The important thing, though, they continued to follow My directions even though they didn’t make sense to them. They believed in Me enough to keep going. They knew for My past interventions with them that I would follow through on My promises with them and they continued to do what I asked of them.

Doubts can creep in at times, but I’m big enough to take those. Just keep pushing onward and upward. Keep doing what I ask of you, complete with doubts. I will reward you richly in the end. Your doubts will melt away and you’ll see that I always make good on the promises I give you. Now, go do what I asked you to do today. You know what it is.

Today’s Scripture

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Exodus 6:1-13
Set – Exodus 6; Luke 23
Go! – Exodus 6-8; Luke 23

Exodus 6:1-13
1 The Eternal One spoke to Moses.

Eternal One: Now you will see what I have in store for Pharaoh. When Pharaoh sees the power of My hand, he will not only send My people from this land, he will drive them out.

2 (pointedly to Moses) I am the Eternal. 3 I revealed Myself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God-All-Powerful; but I did not reveal My name, the Eternal One, to them. 4 I also made My covenant with them. I promised I would give them Canaan—the land where their ancestors lived as strangers. 5 In addition, I have heard the constant cries of the Israelites who have been enslaved by the Egyptians. I have remembered My covenant; 6 go now and tell the people of Israel, “I am the Eternal, and I will rescue you from the heavy load the Egyptians have laid on you. I will liberate you from their oppression. I will stretch out my powerful arm and free you with amazing acts of judgment. 7 Then I will gather you to Me as My people, and I will be your God. You will know that I am the Eternal who rescued you from the heavy load the Egyptians have put on you. 8 I will lead you into Canaan—the very land I promised Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession for I am the Eternal.”

9 So Moses went and told these things to the Israelites, but they turned a deaf ear to him because they were in such low spirits and exhausted from their harsh labor.

10 The Eternal One once again instructed Moses.

Eternal One: 11 Go speak with Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and tell him to release the Israelites from his land.

Moses: 12 The Israelites haven’t paid attention to anything I’ve said. How do You expect Pharaoh to listen to me if my own people won’t? I am not fit to speak for You.

13 The Eternal then addressed Moses and Aaron and gave them instructions about dealing with the Israelites and Pharaoh, king of Egypt. The instructions had to do with bringing the Israelites out of Egypt.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

I AM – Now! (Exodus 3:1-18), Jan 22, 2015

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Today’s Devotional

Today’s background scripture comes from Exodus 3

Time has no bounds with me. I surprised Moses by announcing My name to him. Those living today are not so surprised because language changed immediately upon My announcement. But in the Hebrew language they had no word for now, the immediate present. It really doesn’t exist. As soon as you think about the present it becomes the past. And if you think about what comes ahead and will become the present soon, you speak of the future. So there really is no present…. Except for Me.

I am not bound by the limits of space and time and exist in the past, present, and future. Time has no meaning with me and so I gave Moses My name as “I AM”. The present. The impossible moment. The one who exists that cannot exist. The one who creates from nothing. The one who knows all. The one who spans time from beginning to end and beyond either end of time itself.

When you meditate on it, you realize there is no now, except for Me. Everything else is past or future. You can do nothing about the past because it is gone. You cannot change the past. It happened and you can only plan and act for the future to make it better. Your hopes and dreams always cue to future events, never past events. They have disappeared and cannot come back for you. You can learn from your past, but you cannot change your past.

You can look toward your future, but you have no promise of tomorrow. No one knows the day or the hour death will knock on his door and call life to an end. You can hope for the future, but there are never promises for tomorrow. So what about the now that really doesn’t exist? What can you do with that? You can only give it to Me because I am the only One and the only thing that truly exists in the present. You can trust Me to hold you in my hands as you slip from future hopes to past events in your journey of life. One day you will face eternity and time will become meaningless for you, too. Until then, trust Me with your present. I AM will always be there when nothing else can.

Today’s Scripture

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Exodus 3:1-18
Set – Exodus 3; Luke 22
Go! – Exodus 3-5; Luke 22

Exodus 3:1-18
1Now one day when Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, he guided the flock far away from its usual pastures to the other side of the desert and came to a place known as Horeb, where the mountain of God stood. 2 There, the Special Messenger of the Eternal appeared to Moses in a fiery blaze from within the bush. Moses looked again at the bush as it blazed; but to his amazement, the bush did not burn up in flames.

Moses (to himself): 3 Why is this bush not burning up? I need to move a little closer to get a better look at this amazing sight.

4 When the Eternal One saw Moses approach the burning bush to observe it more closely, He called out to him from within the bush.

Eternal One: Moses! Moses!

Moses: I’m right here.

Eternal One: 5 Don’t come any closer. Take off your sandals and stand barefoot on the ground in My presence, for this ground is holy ground. 6 I am the True God, the God of your father, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

A feeling of dread and awe rushed over Moses; he hid his face because he was afraid he might catch a glimpse of the True God.

Eternal One: 7 I have seen how My people in Egypt are being mistreated. I have heard their groaning when the slave drivers torment and harass them; for I know well their suffering. 8 I have come to rescue them from the oppression of the Egyptians, to lead them from that land where they are slaves and to give them a good land—a wide, open space flowing with milk and honey. The land is currently inhabited by Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 9 The plea of Israel’s children has come before Me, and I have observed the cruel treatment they have suffered by Egyptian hands. 10 So go. I’m sending you back to Egypt as My messenger to the Pharaoh. I want you to gather My people—the children of Israel—and bring them out of Egypt.

Moses (to God): 11 Who am I to confront Pharaoh and lead Israel’s children out of Egypt?

Eternal One: 12 Do not fear, Moses. I will be with you every step of the way, and this will be the sign to you that I am the One who has sent you: after you have led them out of Egypt, you will return to this mountain and worship God.

Moses: 13 Let’s say I go to the people of Israel and tell them, “The God of your fathers has sent me to rescue you,” and then they reply, “What is His name?” What should I tell them then?

Eternal One: 14 I AM WHO I AM. This is what you should tell the people of Israel: “I AM has sent me to rescue you.”

15 This is what you are to tell Israel’s people: “The Eternal, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob is the One who has sent me to you.” This is My name forevermore, and this is the name by which all future generations shall remember Me.

16 Round up all the elders in Israel and tell them, “The Eternal, the God of your fathers and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, has revealed Himself to me and said, ‘I have been watching over you, and I am deeply troubled by what has been done to you in Egypt. 17 So I will rescue you from the oppression you have suffered in Egypt, and lead you to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—a rich and productive land flowing with milk and honey.’” 18 They will listen to all that you tell them; you and the elders will then go to visit Egypt’s king and tell the king, “The Eternal, the Hebrews’ God, has appeared to us. We ask that you allow us to travel three days’ distance into the desert to offer sacrifices to the Eternal.”

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.

In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

My plans will happen (Exodus 2:1-10), Jan 21, 2015

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Today’s Devotional

Today’s background scripture comes from Exodus 2:1-10.

I work My will in ways that seem impossible to you. Pharaoh ordered the death of all Hebrew boys. His soldiers continually went through the land spying out homes to capture and kill each male infant to keep the population under control. His daughter knew the orders well. Disobeying the Pharaoh could mean death to any who disobeyed. His daughter, if caught, would not necessarily find any solace from the Pharaoh. He and the people considered his law as coming from god himself.

Moses’ mother could never imagine Pharaoh’s daughter would look with favor on her son. Nor could she imagine she would become a paid nurse to raise her own son until he passed beyond his toddler years. Nor could she imagine her son would grow up in the palace of the Pharaoh and become heir to the throne or become the leader of the Hebrew nation, taking them out of bondage. Moses’ parent could never imagine his future.

Pharaoh’s daughter could not imagine the future of this Hebrew child she rescued. She had compassion on him in that basket that day. She saw thousands of Hebrew children killed before this day, but she had compassion on this one and wanted this particular one rescued from the future her father planned for him. She wanted a new future for this little boy. I made it possible for her to convince her father to let him live when she brought him into the palace. Moses adopted him as her own and he lived and trained as one of the grandsons of Pharaoh.

I watched after him because I had something special in mind for him. He had choices to make along the way and didn’t always make the right ones. I didn’t intend for him to kill the Egyptian. That wasn’t My plan. But his escape into the desert afterward let Me humble him like I humbled Joseph in the prisons of Egypt. Moses’ choices changed his pathway, but it still came around to the plan I had for him because My plan will always be carried out.

I am God and can work My will in ways you cannot see. None of the players in the drama of Exodus 2 understood their part as it unfolded. But they played their parts because I moved in their hearts. Moses’ mother wanted desperately to save her son and did it the only way she could think might work. Pharaoh’s daughter saw enough death. She desired to see life and took compassion on this one child on this one day. Miriam stood by faithfully watching over her brother. My plans will happen as I foretell them.

So when Jesus told His followers, “Be ready for My return.” You can be sure that I will send Him back to you. My plans will happen.

Today’s Scripture

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Exodus 2:1-10
Set – Exodus 2; Luke 21
Go! – Exodus 1-2; Psalms 88; Luke 21

Exodus 2:1-10
1One day a man and woman—both from the tribe of Levi—married. 2 She became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that her son was healthy and beautiful, she feared for his safety; so she kept him hidden from view for three whole months.

3 When she could no longer keep him hidden away, she took a basket made of reeds, sealed it with tar and pitch, and placed her baby boy in it. Then she wedged the basket among the reeds along the edge of the Nile River.

4 All the while, the child’s sister watched from a distance to see what might happen to her baby brother.

5 Later on Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe in the river while her young attendants walked along the bank nearby. Pharaoh’s daughter noticed the basket wedged among the reeds and wondered what it might contain. So she instructed her maid to bring it to her. 6 When Pharaoh’s daughter opened the basket, she found the baby boy. He was crying, and her heart melted with compassion.

Pharaoh’s Daughter: This is a Hebrew child.

Child’s Sister (coming out of her hiding place): 7 Would you like me to find a Hebrew woman to nurse the child for you?

Pharaoh’s Daughter: 8 All right. Go find a nurse.

So the baby’s sister went and fetched his mother. The boy’s mother approached Pharaoh’s daughter.

Pharaoh’s Daughter (to the nurse): 9 Here! Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay you for your services.

So the woman took the child—who was secretly her own son—and nursed him just as Pharaoh’s daughter had instructed.

10 The boy grew, and when the time was right, the woman brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and she adopted him as her own. She named him Moses because, as she explained, “I took him out of the water.”

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
Music by the Booth Brothers from Room for More, “Faithful One” ©2008.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.