Enough Day 4 Promised Land Lost: Digging Deeper
Digging Deeper Days
Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!
Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
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The Questions
1) Why did the Israelites rebel so frequently against God? (verse 43)
2) Why did God continue to rescue and forgive His wayward people? (verse 10)
3) Why did God allow Moses and Phineas to intervene in His punishment of the people? (verse 23 and verse 30)
Psalm 106:1-48
Hallelujah!
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his faithful love endures forever.
2 Who can declare the Lord’s mighty acts
or proclaim all the praise due him?
3 How happy are those who uphold justice,
who practice righteousness at all times.
4 Remember me, Lord,
when you show favor to your people.
Come to me with your salvation
5 so that I may enjoy the prosperity
of your chosen ones,
rejoice in the joy of your nation,
and boast about your heritage.
6 Both we and our ancestors have sinned;
we have done wrong and have acted wickedly.
7 Our ancestors in Egypt did not grasp
the significance of your wondrous works
or remember your many acts of faithful love;
instead, they rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea.
8 Yet he saved them for his name’s sake,
to make his power known.
9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up;
he led them through the depths as through a desert.
10 He saved them from the power of the adversary;
he redeemed them from the power of the enemy.
11 Water covered their foes;
not one of them remained.
12 Then they believed his promises
and sang his praise.
13 They soon forgot his works
and would not wait for his counsel.
14 They were seized with craving in the wilderness
and tested God in the desert.
15 He gave them what they asked for,
but sent a wasting disease among them.
16 In the camp they were envious of Moses
and of Aaron, the Lord’s holy one.
17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan;
it covered the assembly of Abiram.
18 Fire blazed throughout their assembly;
flames consumed the wicked.
19 At Horeb they made a calf
and worshiped the cast metal image.
20 They exchanged their glory
for the image of a grass-eating ox.
21 They forgot God their Savior,
who did great things in Egypt,
22 wondrous works in the land of Ham,
awe-inspiring acts at the Red Sea.
23 So he said he would have destroyed them—
if Moses his chosen one
had not stood before him in the breach
to turn his wrath away from destroying them.
24 They despised the pleasant land
and did not believe his promise.
25 They grumbled in their tents
and did not listen to the Lord.
26 So he raised his hand against them with an oath
that he would make them fall in the desert
27 and would disperse their descendants
among the nations,
scattering them throughout the lands.
28 They aligned themselves with Baal of Peor
and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods.
29 They angered the Lord with their deeds,
and a plague broke out against them.
30 But Phinehas stood up and intervened,
and the plague was stopped.
31 It was credited to him as righteousness
throughout all generations to come.
32 They angered the Lord at the Waters of Meribah,
and Moses suffered because of them,
33 for they embittered his spirit,
and he spoke rashly with his lips.
34 They did not destroy the peoples
as the Lord had commanded them
35 but mingled with the nations
and adopted their ways.
36 They served their idols,
which became a snare to them.
37 They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons.
38 They shed innocent blood—
the blood of their sons and daughters
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
so the land became polluted with blood.
39 They defiled themselves by their actions
and prostituted themselves by their deeds.
40 Therefore the Lord’s anger burned against his people,
and he abhorred his own inheritance.
41 He handed them over to the nations;
those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them,
and they were subdued under their power.
43 He rescued them many times,
but they continued to rebel deliberately
and were beaten down by their iniquity.
44 When he heard their cry,
he took note of their distress,
45 remembered his covenant with them,
and relented according to the abundance
of his faithful love.
46 He caused them to be pitied
before all their captors.
47 Save us, Lord our God,
and gather us from the nations,
so that we may give thanks to your holy name
and rejoice in your praise.
48 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
Let all the people say, “Amen!”
Hallelujah!
Original Intent
1) Why did the Israelites rebel so frequently against God? (verse 43)
We learn in Psalm 106:43 that God rescued the Israelites “many times, but they continued to rebel deliberately and were beaten down by their iniquity.” Throughout their history, Israel had a pattern of sin and rebellion, followed by captivity, then redemption and rescue by God. Why did they continuously put themselves in harm’s way by disobeying God and forsaking His commands? Author Matthew Henry explains, “the way of sin is down-hill: . . . One sin led to many more, and brought the judgments of God on them.” Instead of obeying God, the Israelites chose to either ignore His warnings or blatantly rebel against Him. The Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament states, “God’s counsel was to make Israel free and glorious, but they leaned upon themselves, following their own intentions . . . wherefore they perished in their sins.” The Scriptures warn us against choosing our own way over God’s in Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way that seems right to a person, but its end is the way to death.” Likewise, Proverbs 3:5 encourages, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding.” Still, Israel repeatedly trusted her own understanding over the counsel of the Lord. As a result, they repeatedly reaped negative consequences for their sin. Christians today face the same choice Israel did in the Old Testament. Will we trust in God and obey His commands or go our own way? Because He is the same today as He was to Israel, God allows us to face the consequences of our sin, and He also extends mercy to rescue us. My prayer is that we turn to Him for redemption every time we falter.
2) Why did God continue to rescue and forgive His wayward people? (verse 10)
Psalm 106 references Israel’s repeated rebellion against God. They grumbled and complained (Psalm 106:25), ignored God (Psalm 106:13), worshipped idols (Psalm 106:19), followed after sinful nations (Psalm 106:35), and even sacrificed their children to demons (Psalm 106:37). Repeatedly, God rescued and forgave them with incredible mercy! They suffered punishment, but God’s mercy always delivered them. Why would a just and righteous God continue to forgive such a rebellious people? Psalm 106:8 declares, “He saved them for His name’s sake, to make His power known.” Charles Spurgeon asserts, “The Lord very jealously guards His own name and honour. It shall never be said of Him that He cannot or will not save His people, or that He cannot abate the haughtiness of His defiant foes. This respect unto his own honour ever leads Him to deeds of mercy.” God saves to glorify His name and demonstrate His power. He also saved them because He had made a covenant with His people. “When he heard their cry, he took note of their distress, remembered his covenant with them, and relented according to the abundance of his faithful love.” (verses 44-45) Albert Barnes says God “had made gracious promises to the patriarchs; He had promised to be the God of their posterity; He had His own great purposes to accomplish through their nation in the distant future; and on these accounts, He came and blessed them.” His great love motivated Him to provide rescue. The author of this Psalm marveled at the goodness of the Lord by exclaiming, “Hallelujah! Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His faithful love endures forever. Who can declare the Lord’s mighty acts or proclaim all the praise due Him?”. (Psalm 106:1-2) We can rejoice along with the psalmist that God’s love and mercy endure even unto today!
3) Why did God allow Moses and Phineas to intervene in His punishment of the people? (verse 23 and verse 30)
In Psalm 106:15 God sent a disease because the people tested Him. In verses 16-18, the people sinned again and were punished by the earth opening up to devour them and a fire that consumed them. Sometimes, though, God was swayed by the pleas of the righteous. Verse 23 describes how God intended to pour out His wrath on the people, but Moses intervened and God relented. Another time, God sent a plague because of their sin, but Phineas intervened and the plague was removed. (verse 30) God intentionally allowed the prayers and actions of these righteous men to move Him to mercy. Author Charles Spurgeon argues, “Mighty as was the sin of Israel to provoke vengeance, prayer was mightier in turning it away.” Even when Israel’s sin set holy consequences in motion, there was still power in calling on God to save. Author John Gill suggests Moses was a type of Christ, “As Moses was a mediator between God and the people of Israel, so is Christ between God and his people.” John Gill also asserts that Phineas was a type of Christ “who, by doing righteousness, by the atoning sacrifice of himself, and by his intercession, has appeased the wrath of God. . .” The salvation foreshadowed by Moses and Phineas would come to the world through Christ Jesus, who gave His life as a ransom for all so our sins would be forgiven and we would have direct relationship to the Father. (John 14:6) God used Moses and Phineas to demonstrate to us the importance of intercessory prayer while also pointing our hearts toward the One who would take our sins’ punishment for us (2 Corinthians 5:21), presenting us blameless to Father God if we surrender to Him.
Everyday Application
1) Why did the Israelites rebel so frequently against God? (verse 43)
Years ago a family with five boys showed up at our children’s church. They quickly gained a reputation for their creative ability to defy classroom rules and procedures. Even decades later, I whisper their last name to my husband, one of their teachers, to watch his facial expression! Our teachers redirected, gave warnings, provided think time, connected with parents, and, inevitably, followed through with consequences for unacceptable behavior. Each week the boys arrived with good intentions for following rules, yet, each week they received some kind of consequence. The Israelites in the Old Testament were similar to our lively group of boys; they started out intending to follow God, but frequently got off track. Psalm 106 summarizes Israel’s history as they escaped captivity in Egypt, wandered in the desert, entered Canaan, and endured oppression by their enemies. Every time they disobeyed God, they faced consequences, then repented and cried out to God, who rescued them. It’s not just the Israelites, or rambunctious little boys, who choose to disobey God in favor of their own selfish ways, this is the way of all humans. We know what to do, but we can’t do it for long in our own strength. (Romans 7:18) We need the power of the Holy Spirit to help us obey God and refuse sin, we simply cannot do this without Him! Romans 8:12-13 tells those who have trusted Jesus for salvation, “we are not obligated to the flesh to live according to the flesh, because if you live according to the flesh, you are going to die. But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” God graciously comes to our rescue when we fall, but He also gives us the Holy Spirit to equip us to follow Him!
2) Why did God continue to rescue and forgive His wayward people? (verse 10)
It is easy to read if Israel’s repeated sin pattern in Psalm 106 and conclude their rebellion was extraordinary. God led them out of slavery in Egypt and on a journey through the wilderness to the Promised Land, yet despite His faithfulness, they rebelled and disobeyed. Time after time, God blessed and rescued them, and after a brief season of repentance and piety, they passionately returned to their sin. If our own “wilderness years” deeds and thoughts were all recorded, however, the failures of Israel may seem similar to our own. I know I’ve complained about my circumstances to the Lord right in the midst of answered prayers and an outpouring of blessings. It’s so easy to focus on discomfort and selfish desires and miss the miracles God is doing. There was a time my mother was sick in the hospital for nearly 2 years. I concentrated on the longevity of her illness and the hardships on our family, nearly ignoring how God saved her from death at least twice and answered our prayers for improvement on a near daily basis. My eyes were on the Promised Land of her recovery, but I was ignoring all the blessings of the journey. We are blessed that God does not give up on us when we complain or disobey. He pours out His mercy and saves us for the sake of His name. My prayer is to recognize His provision in my everyday rhythms and accept His grace and forgiveness when I go astray.
3) Why did God allow Moses and Phineas to intervene in His punishment of the people? (verse 23 and verse 30)
For many children, there is no greater advocate than a grandparent. When I was about to get in trouble with my parents at my grandparent’s home, I always knew that running to my “Papaw” would work in my favor. I generally deserved whatever punishment my parents doled out, but my grandpa could get my sentence repealed or reduced, or, if not, he would do something that would make me forget my troubles. I always felt so important and cared for (and relieved!) when Papaw would step in and save the day. Moses and Phineas provided this type of intervention for the Israelites when God was prepared to punish them for their sin and disobedience. Psalm 106:23 tells us God would have destroyed the Israelites if Moses hadn’t pleaded for them. Author John Butler describes Phinehas, “the grandson of Aaron, who made a gallant stand for holiness in a time of degradation to stop the judgment of God upon the people. It is an outstanding example of service.” This encourages me to pray for people when all hope seems lost or when I despair for their lives or their souls. The intercession of Moses and Phineas instructs me to pray for those who are choosing sin over obedience to God or who seem stuck in destructive behaviors. When righteous people pray, God promises that those prayers have a powerful effect. (James 5:16) We are blessed that God hears those prayers for mercy and honors them; pray on! (2 Chronicles 30:9)
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Digging Deeper is for Everyone!
1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
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Why Dig Deeper?
Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.
In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!
Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.
Study Tools
We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.
Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!
Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))
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