Êxodo 34
Adam Clarke · Citado em PreceptAustin
Êxodo 34
Clarke on miracles - This seems to refer to what God did in putting them in possession of the land of Canaan, causing the walls of Jericho to fall down; making the sun and moon to stand still, [and so forth].” Guzik makes an interesting point - Israel had a choice regarding those great things. Either the great things would be blessings so impressive that every nation would know that God alone had blessed Israel (as was the case with Solomon). Or, the great things would be curses so horrible that every nation would know God had chastised Israel and yet kept them a nation (as was the case with the exile For it is a fearful thing that I am going to perform with you - For is a term of explanation. God is explaining the effect of His miracles. Fearful (yare) can mean fear but in some context conveys the sense of producing reverence. So on one hand God's miracles would produce the psychological reaction of fear but would also cause people (Israel and idolaters) to stand in awe, to reverence God because of His awesome deeds. The Septuagint translates fearful with the phrase "continually be amazing (wonderful, marvelous, remarkable)." The adjective thaumastos refers to that which causes one to marvel. Thaumastos is used for example in the "Song of Moses" in Exodus 15:11+ "Who is like You, majestic in holiness, Awesome (Hebrew = yare' = fearful, dreadful; Lxx = thaumastos) in praises, working wonders?" (cf similar uses of yare' = Dt 28:58 = "awesome Name"; Josh 3:5 = "LORD will do wonders") Fear of the LORD is a foundational truth in the OT and most often is the verb (yir'ah derived from yare'). Study the associations, effects, blessings, etc of the fear of the LORD below (especially the uses in Proverbs)... Fear of the LORD - 2 Chr. 19:7; 2 Chr. 19:9; Job 28:28; Ps. 19:9; Ps. 34:11; Ps. 111:10; Prov. 1:7; Prov. 1:29; Prov. 2:5; Prov. 8:13; Prov. 9:10; Prov. 10:27; Prov. 14:26; Prov. 14:27; Prov. 15:16; Prov. 15:33; Prov. 16:6; Prov. 19:23; Prov. 22:4; Prov. 23:17; Isa. 11:2; Isa. 11:3; Isa. 33:6; Acts 9:31; 2 Co. 5:11 (compare Rev 14:6, 7+). Related Resource: Fear of the LORD Exodus 34:11 "Be sure to observe what I am commanding you this day: behold, I am going to drive out the Amorite before you, and the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite and the Jebusite. NET Exodus 34:11 "Obey what I am commanding you this day. I am going to drive out before you the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite. NLT Exodus 34:11 But listen carefully to everything I command you today. Then I will go ahead of you and drive out the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. ESV Exodus 34:11 "Observe what I command you this day. Behold, I will drive out before you the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. NIV Exodus 34:11 Obey what I command you today. I will drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. KJV Exodus 34:11 Observe thou that which I command thee this day: behold, I drive out before thee the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite. LXE Exodus 34:11 Do thou take heed to all things whatsoever I command thee: behold, I cast out before your face the Amorite and the Chananite and the Pherezite, and the Chettite, and Evite, and Gergesite and Jebusite: ASV Exodus 34:11 Observe thou that which I command thee this day: behold, I drive out before thee the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite. CSB Exodus 34:11 Observe what I command you today. I am going to drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. NKJ Exodus 34:11 "Observe what I command you this day. Behold, I am driving out from before you the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite. NRS Exodus 34:11 Observe what I command you today. See, I will drive out before you the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. YLT Exodus 34:11 'Observe for thyself that which I am commanding thee to-day: lo, I am casting out from before thee the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite; Observe : De 4:1,2,40 5:32 6:3,25 12:28,32 28:1 Mt 28:20 Joh 14:21 drive : Ex 3:8,17 33:2 Ge 15:18-21 De 7:1,19 9:4,5 Exodus 34 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries THE CONDITION: OBEY THE COVENANT Note that Jehovah's driving out the six "ITES" was in part a fulfillment of His prophetic promise in Exodus 34:10. Dt 4:38 underscores this thought ov Ex 34:10b it is a fearful thing that I am going to perform because God says He was "driving out from before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in and to give you their land for an inheritance, as it is today." Be sure to observe what I am commanding you this day - A requirement (actually a command) precedes a promise. What I am commanding you this day is referring to the Ten Commandments written on stone tablets, the renewed covenant. As we have seen this is a conditional covenant, and the blessings God would bestow on Israel were directly related to Israel's obedience. The Hebrew verb for observe can be translated "Obey" (NET, NIV). The Hebrew verb shamar is a command which means to watch, to keep, to preserve, to guard, to be careful, to watch over, to watch carefully over, to be on one's guard and was what Adam and Eve were to do -- to watch over and care for the Garden of Eden where the Lord had placed them (Ge 2:15 = "keep [shamar] it") and we know how that turned out! The Septuagint translates shamar with the verb prosecho in the present imperative (command calling for continued practice) which means literally to hold (one's mind) and to means “to remain on course” (cf Paul's command in Acts 20:28+). Bush helps us understand God's warnings - The grand prohibition which God saw to be most needful for his people was that against idolatry; and this accordingly occupies the series of verses from the 12th to the 17th. The interdiction of a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, to which they were going, was but the planting of a safeguard around the main precept. It was scarcely possible that they should form treaties and alliances of any kind with those idolatrous nations without being inveigled into a participation of their sin. Such connexions would be sure to be a snare to them, and how reasonable was it that they should be forbidden to make peace with those with whom God was making war? So far indeed from tolerating these abominations, they were to hold themselves bound utterly to destroy all their altars, images, and groves, and as far as in them lay to efface every vestige of their foul and odious worship. For this a reason full of awful import is given; Stuart - The requirement is that of covenant obedience—the sine qua non of any expectation for divine blessing in the long term. “Obey what I command you today” is nothing less than a demand for complete adherence to the complete Sinai covenant as it is reinstated by a merciful God on this occasion. Behold - Here is another hinneh calling for Israel to pay attention to what God promises regarding their enemies. I am going to drive out the Amorite before you, and the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite and the Jebusite - This promise goes all the way back to Genesis 15:16 when God told Abraham "in the fourth generation they (ABRAHAM'S OFFSPRING NOW THE NATION OF ISRAEL) will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.” The implication is that the Amorites would be dispossessed because their iniquities had become "complete." God gave them time but their sin became worse and worse, more heinous and more abominable. God is always just and He was not dispossessing the "ITES" on a whim but ultimately because of their sin. And He knew they would corrupt the Israelites if they were allowed to stay in the promised land, which is why they had to be driven out. Recall that God had given this promise to Moses at the burning bush encounter... Exodus 3:8; 17+ “So I have come down to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite....17 “So I said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite, to a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ Exodus 34:12 "Watch yourself that you make no covenant with the inhabitants of the land into which you are going, or it will become a snare in your midst. NET Exodus 34:12 Be careful not to make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land where you are going, lest it become a snare among you. NLT Exodus 34:12 "Be very careful never to make a treaty with the people who live in the land where you are going. If you do, you will follow their evil ways and be trapped. ESV Exodus 34:12 Take care, lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you go, lest it become a snare in your midst. NIV Exodus 34:12 Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land where you are going, or they will be a snare among you. KJV Exodus 34:12 Take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land whither thou goest, lest it be for a snare in the midst of thee: LXE Exodus 34:12 take heed to thyself, lest at any time thou make a covenant with the dwellers on the land, into which thou art entering, lest it be to thee a stumbling-block among you. ASV Exodus 34:12 Take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land whither thou goest, lest it be for a snare in the midst of thee: CSB Exodus 34:12 Be careful not to make a treaty with the inhabitants of the land that you are going to enter; otherwise, they will become a snare among you. NKJ Exodus 34:12 "Take heed to yourself, lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land where you are going, lest it be a snare in your midst. NRS Exodus 34:12 Take care not to make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you are going, or it will become a snare among you. YLT Exodus 34:12 take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitant of the land into which thou art going, lest it become a snare in thy midst; Watch yourself : Ex 23:32,33 De 7:2 Jdg 2:2 Or it: De 7:16 Jos 23:12,13 Jdg 2:3 8:27 Ps 106:36 Exodus 34 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries CUTTING A COVENANT WITH PAGANS IS A SEDUCTIVE SNARE! Related Passages: Deuteronomy 7:2 and when the LORD your God delivers them before you and you defeat them, then you shall utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them and show no favor to them Judges 2:2+ and as for you, you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall tear down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed Me; what is this you have done? Psalm 106:35+ But they mingled with the nations And learned their practices, Note the pattern - mingling leads to entanglement and is not "innocent." This warning is basically a reiteration of what God had warned Israel against in Exodus 23:33+ - “They (THE VARIOUS "ITES") shall not live in your land, because (WHY?) they will make you sin against Me; for (HOW?) if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare (moqesh) to you.” In context Yahweh has just renewed His covenant with Israel and now warns against cutting a covenant with the idol worshipping pagans. Watch yourself that you make no covenant with the inhabitants of the land into which you are going - The command in v11 was watch (guard, obey) the commandments and here the command is to watch yourself! Watch yourself (masculine singular = speaks of the need for each individual) is a command in niphal (reflexive) calling for each person to focus on their own heart. Watch is shamar translated again with prosecho in the present imperative (continually pay attention/take heed to this command). Note that this is a warning to enter into NO covenant agreements with the polytheistic pagans. There were no exception clauses! The Israelites were warned against making ANY agreements with the Canaanites, against participating in their idolatrous practices, and against intermarriage. God's commands are for our good. They are for our freedom. They are for our life. Or it will become a snare in your midst - This is one of God's prophetic promises that you won't find in "God's Promise Book!" God does not say you might be ensnared but you WILL be ensnared. Stuart says the snare would be "a means of entrapment into sinful covenant breaking—that would lead to disaster." THOUGHT - If you take the "bait" of covenanting with the pagans, you will soon be "playing" like the pagans. It was true then, and is still true today. Be careful with whom you make serious agreements! (cf Paul's warnings in 2 Cor 6:14-18) The English dictionary defines snare as a trapping device, often consisting of a noose, used for capturing birds and small mammals (or stupid, foolish men!). Snare (04170)(moqesh from yaqosh) is a masculine noun meaning a snare, a trap, bait. The picture is of the lure or bait being placed in the hunter’s trap, which gives rise to moqesh referring to the snare itself. Traps were used to capture birds or beasts (Amos 3:5). As used in Judges 8:27 moqesh refers to a moral pitfall (Pr. 18:7; 20:25). Moqesh can be anything that lures one to ruin and disaster (Jdg. 2:3; Pr 29:6). The Septuagint translates moqesh in this passage with proskomma (also in Ex 23:33) which refers to that which causes one to stumble (figuratively) as in Ro 9:32; Ro 9:33; Ro 14:13; Ro 14:20; 1 Co. 8:9; 1 Pet. 2:8. Moqesh - 28x in 27v - bait(1), barbs(1), ensnared(2), snare(12), snares(8), trap(4). - Exod. 10:7; Exod. 23:33; Exod. 34:12; Deut. 7:16; Jos. 23:13; Jdg. 2:3; Jdg. 8:27; 1 Sam. 18:21; 2 Sam. 22:6; Job 34:30; Job 40:24; Ps. 18:5; Ps. 64:5; Ps. 69:22; Ps. 106:36; Ps. 140:5; Ps. 141:9; Prov. 12:13; Prov. 13:14; Prov. 14:27; Prov. 18:7; Prov. 20:25; Prov. 22:25; Prov. 29:6; Prov. 29:25; Isa. 8:14; Amos 3:5 Believers today are in the same danger of being ensnared if they begin to "covenant" with the fallen world system. One is reminded of the warning in James in the New Covenant James 4:4+ You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. John gives a similar warning: Do not love (present imperative with a negative see need to depend on the Holy Spirit to obey) the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. (1 John 2:15-17+) Related Resource: Are You Entangled? Why is idol worship such a powerful temptation? | GotQuestions.org Exodus 34:13 "But rather, you are to tear down their altars and smash their sacred pillars and cut down their Asherim NET Exodus 34:13 Rather you must destroy their altars, smash their images, and cut down their Asherah poles. NLT Exodus 34:13 Instead, you must break down their pagan altars, smash their sacred pillars, and cut down their Asherah poles. ESV Exodus 34:13 You shall tear down their altars and break their pillars and cut down their Asherim NIV Exodus 34:13 Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles. KJV Exodus 34:13 But ye shall destroy their altars, break their images, and cut down their groves: LXE Exodus 34:13 Ye shall destroy their altars, and break in pieces their pillars, and ye shall cut down their groves, and the graven images of their gods ye shall burn with fire. ASV Exodus 34:13 but ye shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and ye shall cut down their Asherim; CSB Exodus 34:13 Instead, you must tear down their altars, smash their sacred pillars, and chop down their Asherah poles. NKJ Exodus 34:13 "But you shall destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and cut down their wooden images NRS Exodus 34:13 You shall tear down their altars, break their pillars, and cut down their sacred poles YLT Exodus 34:13 for their altars ye break down, and their standing pillars ye shiver, and its shrines ye cut down; you are to: Ex 23:24 De 7:5,25,26 12:2,3 Jud 2:2 6:25 2Ki 18:4 23:14 2Ch 31:1 34:3,4 Exodus 34 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries DESTROY THEIR IDOLATRY Related Passages: Exodus 23:24 “You shall not worship their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their deeds; but you shall utterly overthrow them and break their sacred pillars in pieces. Deuteronomy 7:5 “But thus you shall do to them: you shall tear down their altars, and smash their sacred pillars, and hew down their Asherim, and burn their graven images with fire. Deuteronomy 7:25-26 “The graven images of their gods you are to burn with fire; you shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, nor take it for yourselves, or you will be snared by it, for it is an abomination to the LORD your God. 26 “You shall not bring an abomination into your house, and like it come under the ban; you shall utterly detest it and you shall utterly abhor it, for it is something banned. Deuteronomy 12:2; 3 “You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess serve their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree. 3 “You shall tear down their altars and smash their sacred pillars and burn their Asherim with fire, and you shall cut down the engraved images of their gods and obliterate their name from that place. But rather - This is a strong term of contrast. Instead of making (covenant) they are to tear, smash, and cut down. Some of the parallel passages above add burn their grave images with fire (Dt 7:5). God is deadly serious about the danger of idols/idolatry. And where you find idolatry, you also usually encounter immorality. The two are frequently "bed fellows" in the Bible. You are to tear down their altars - Altars is first in the sentence for emphasis. Tear down (nathats) means to destroy and is used most often of destroying idolatrous altars. The Septuagint translates nathats with kathaireo which means to take down and is used figuratively by Paul in 2 Cor 10:4+ writing "the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses." So in the NT we are to take down "fortresses" (ideas, thoughts that are basically anti-God, anti-Biblical) and in the OT take down altars which can place horrible ensnaring images and practices in one's mind. Altars (04196)(mizbeah from zabach = to slaughter for sacrifice or for food) is a masculine noun that is frequent in the OT (338x) and describes the place of sacrifice where offerings were made to a deity. The first use in Ge 8:20 describes the altar built by Noah as his first act after he survived the flood. Abraham is associated with an altar in Ge 12:7,8; 13:4, 18; Ge 22:9. Not surprisingly the majority of OT occurrences are in Leviticus (88x in 72v and Exodus is not far behind - 61x in 53v). The first offering by Cain and Abel does not mention a specific altar (Ge 4:3). and smash their sacred pillars and cut down their Asherim (Dt 7:5,16:21) - Smash means break them to pieces. Show no mercy. Don't try to save a piece of the smashed pillar for a keepsake! Cut down is the word karath used figuratively in Ex 34:10 of cutting a covenant with idol worshipers, and here literally of cutting down the idol worshiper's image (often a carved idolatrous image of a tree stump)! Smash (07665)(shabar) means to break in pieces, to shatter, to smash. The first biblical occurrence of shabar is in Ge 19:9, where the men of Sodom "pressed hard against Lot and came near to break the door." In another use, God says "I will also break down your pride of power" (Lev 26:19). In Ezekiel 6:9 God describes how He has "been hurt (broken) by their adulterous hearts which turned away from" Him "and by their eyes which played the harlot after their idols" (describing faithless Judah now in captivity in Babylon). The Lxx often translates shabar here in Exodus 34:13 with suntribo which means to cause destruction of something by making it come apart (by shattering, smashing or crushing). Suntribo is used by Paul of the destruction of the one behind idolatrous altars (actually his minions), Satan, writing "The God of peace will soon crush (suntribo) Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you." (Ro 16:20+) Pillars (04676)(matstsebah from natsab = to take a stand) means something set upright, most often "a standing, unhewn block of stone utilized for religious and memorial purposes. Moses set up an altar and also twelve pillars at the base of Mount Sinai to represent the twelve tribes of Israel (Ex. 24:4). These pillars were erected as monuments to God (Hos. 3:4); or, more commonly, to pagan deities (1 Ki. 14:23, Mic. 5:13). Many times in 2 Kings, the term refers to a sacred pillar that aided people in their worship of pagan gods, especially the Canaanite god Baal. In most of these passages, the sacred columns were used by Israelites, contrary to the Lord's prohibition concerning the worship of any other god (2 Ki. 3:2; 10:26, 27; 18:4; 23:14; cf. Hos. 10:1, 2; Mic. 5:13). Asherim - 40x in 40v - Asherah(18), Asherim(20), Asheroth(2). Exod. 34:13; Deut. 7:5; Deut. 12:3; Deut. 16:21; Jdg. 3:7; Jdg. 6:25; Jdg. 6:26; Jdg. 6:28; Jdg. 6:30; 1 Ki. 14:15; 1 Ki. 14:23; 1 Ki. 15:13; 1 Ki. 16:33; 1 Ki. 18:19; 2 Ki. 13:6; 2 Ki. 17:10; 2 Ki. 17:16; 2 Ki. 18:4; 2 Ki. 21:3; 2 Ki. 21:7; 2 Ki. 23:4; 2 Ki. 23:6; 2 Ki. 23:7; 2 Ki. 23:14; 2 Ki. 23:15; 2 Chr. 14:3; 2 Chr. 15:16; 2 Chr. 17:6; 2 Chr. 19:3; 2 Chr. 24:18; 2 Chr. 31:1; 2 Chr. 33:3; 2 Chr. 33:19; 2 Chr. 34:3; 2 Chr. 34:4; 2 Chr. 34:7; Isa. 17:8; Isa. 27:9; Jer. 17:2; Mic. 5:14 NET Note - Asherah was a leading deity of the Canaanite pantheon, wife/sister of El and goddess of fertility. She was commonly worshiped at shrines in or near groves of evergreen trees, or, failing that, at places marked by wooden poles. These were to be burned or cut down (Deut 12:3; 16:21; Jdg 6:25, 28, 30; 2 Kgs 18:4). Related Resource: .Why is idol worship such a powerful temptation? | GotQuestions.org Question - Who was Asherah / Ashtoreth? Answer: Asherah, or Ashtoreth, was the name of the chief female deity worshiped in ancient Syria, Phoenicia, and Canaan. The Phoenicians called her Astarte, the Assyrians worshiped her as Ishtar, and the Philistines had a temple of Asherah (1 Samuel 31:10). Because of Israel’s incomplete conquest of the land of Canaan, Asherah-worship survived and plagued Israel, starting as soon as Joshua was dead (Judges 2:13). Asherah was represented by a limbless tree trunk planted in the ground. The trunk was usually carved into a symbolic representation of the goddess. Because of the association with carved trees, the places of Asherah worship were commonly called “groves,” and the Hebrew word “asherah” (plural, “asherim”) could refer either to the goddess or to a grove of trees. One of King Manasseh’s evil deeds was that he “took the carved Asherah pole he had made and put it in the temple” (2 Kings 21:7). Another translation of “carved Asherah pole” is “graven image of the grove” (KJV). Considered the moon-goddess, Asherah was often presented as a consort of Baal, the sun-god (Judges 3:7, 6:28, 10:6; 1 Samuel 7:4, 12:10). Asherah was also worshiped as the goddess of love and war and was sometimes linked with Anath, another Canaanite goddess. Worship of Asherah was noted for its sensuality and involved ritual prostitution. The priests and priestesses of Asherah also practiced divination and fortune-telling. The Lord God, through Moses, forbade the worship of Asherah. The Law specified that a grove of trees was not to be near the altar of the Lord (Deuteronomy 16:21). Despite God’s clear instructions, Asherah-worship was a perennial problem in Israel. As Solomon slipped into idolatry, one of the pagan deities he brought into the kingdom was Asherah, called “the goddess of the Sidonians” (1 Kings 11:5, 33). Later, Jezebel made Asherah-worship even more prevalent, with 400 prophets of Asherah on the royal payroll (1 Kings 18:19). At times, Israel experienced revival, and notable crusades against Asherah-worship were led by Gideon (Judges 6:25-30), King Asa (1 Kings 15:13), and King Josiah (2 Kings 23:1-7).(Source - GotQuestions.org) Question: What is an Asherah pole? Answer: An Asherah pole was a sacred tree or pole that stood near Canaanite religious locations to honor the pagan goddess Asherah, also known as Astarte. While the exact appearance of an Asherah pole is somewhat obscure, it is clear that the ancient Israelites, after entering the land of Canaan, were influenced by the pagan religion it represented. In the Bible, Asherah poles were first mentioned in Exodus 34:13. God had just remade the Ten Commandment tablets, and Moses had requested God graciously forgive the Israelites for worshiping the golden calf. Verse 10 begins the covenant God made: if the Israelites obey Him, He will drive out the tribes living in Canaan. But they must cut down the Asherah poles. Deuteronomy 7:5 and Dt 12:3 repeat the command nearly verbatim, while Deuteronomy 16:21 commands the Israelites not set up any wooden Asherah poles of their own. Two books later, In Judges 3:7, “The sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and forgot the LORD their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth.” Gideon became the first to fight against the infestation of Asherah poles, although, in his fear, he chopped his father’s Asherah pole down at night (Judges 6:25-27). The books of 1 & 2 Kings and 1 & 2 Chronicles tell a long story of one king chopping down Asherah poles and another building them back up. King Manasseh of Judah went so far as to install a pole in the temple of the Lord (2 Kings 21:3, 7). In the midst of a great cleansing, King Josiah took out the Asherah pole and ground it to powder, further defiling it by spreading the dust over graves (2 Kings 23:6). Most areas in that time and place had a god and goddess designated as responsible for the well-being of crops and livestock. Likely, in the constant evolution of pagan gods and goddesses, Asherah was one of the names given for a fertility goddess in the region. Asherah’s consorts varied, depending on the cultic beliefs of the people—sometimes Asherah was said to consort with the Canaanite creator-god, El; or with the god of fertility, Ba’al; or, horrifically, with the Lord God Himself. Asherah poles were wood poles (sometimes carved, sometimes not) or trees planted by the “high places” where pagan worshipers sacrificed, although the specific purpose of the poles is not clear. It’s interesting to note that, while the once-essential “Asherah” has morphed from goddess to wooden pole to obscurity, Father God, Creator of the universe, has never changed. (Source: Gotquestions) Question - Why was the worship of Baal and Asherah a constant struggle for the Israelites? Answer: Throughout the Old Testament in the Bible, we find what seems a confusing trend of idol worship among the Israelites, who especially struggled with the worship of Baal and Asherah (or Ashtoreth). God had commanded Israel not to worship idols (Exodus 20:3; Deuteronomy 5:7)—indeed, they were to avoid even mentioning a false god’s name (Exodus 23:13). They were warned not to intermarry with the pagan nations and to avoid practices that might be construed as pagan worship rites (Leviticus 20:23; 2 Kings 17:15; Ezekiel 11:12). Israel was a nation chosen by God to one day bear the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. Yet, even with so much riding on their heritage and future, Israel continued to struggle with idol worship. After the death of Joshua, the worship of Baal and Asherah became a plague upon the Israelites and was a perennial problem. Baal, also known as the sun god or the storm god, is the name of the supreme male deity worshiped by ancient Phoenicians and Canaanites. Asherah, the moon goddess, was the principal female deity worshiped by ancient Syrians, Phoenicians, and Canaanites. The Israelites neglected to heed the Lord’s warning not to compromise with idolaters. The ensuing generations forgot the God who had rescued them from Egypt (Judges 2:10–12). Of course, the period of the judges wasn’t the first time Israel had been tempted by idol worship. In Exodus 32, we see how quickly the Israelites gave up on Moses’ return from Mount Sinai and created an idol of gold for themselves. Ezekiel 20 reveals a summary of the Israelites’ affairs with idols and God’s relentless mercy on His children (also see 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles). As for why the worship of Baal and Asherah specifically was such a problem for Israel, there are several reasons we can cite: first, the worship of Baal and Asherah held the allure of illicit sex, since the religion involved ritual prostitution. This is exactly what we see in the incident of Baal of Peor, as “the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women, who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods” (Numbers 25:1–2). It was during this episode that an Israelite named Zimri brazenly brought a Midianite woman into the camp and went straight to his tent, where the two began having sex (verses 6–8, 14). Another reason that the worship of Baal and Asherah was a perennial problem for Israel is due to what we could call national peer pressure. Israel wanted to be like the other nations (see 1 Samuel 8:5, 20). The other nations worshiped Baal and Asherah, and so many Israelites felt a pull to do the same. Of course, we cannot overlook the fact of Satan’s temptations and mankind’s basic sinfulness. The enemy of our souls tempted Israel to worship idols; the sacrifices made to Baal and Asherah were really sacrifices to demons (1 Corinthians 10:20). The stubborn willfulness of humanity works in tandem with Satan’s seductions and causes us to jump at any chance to rebel against God. Thus Israel repeatedly forsook God’s commands, despite losing God’s blessings, and chased after the Baals and Asherahs to their own destruction. The book of Hosea aptly uses adultery as a metaphor in describing Israel’s problem with idol worship. The Israelites were trapped in a vicious cycle of idol worship, punishment, restoration, then forgiveness, after which they went back to their idols once more. God’s patience with Israel is unfathomable by human standards; God’s nature is the essence of love, and He gives His sons and daughters chances to repent (1 John 4:8; Romans 8:38–39; 2 Peter 3:9). The problem of Baal and Asherah worship was finally solved after God removed Israel from the Promised Land. Due to the Israelites’ idolatry and disregard of the Law, God brought the nations of Assyria and Babylon against them in an act of judgment. After the exile, Israel was restored to the land, and the people did not dally again with idols. While Christians today may be quick to judge the Israelites for their idolatry, we must remember that idols take many forms. Idolatrous sins still lure and tempt the modern-day believer (Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8–10), though perhaps they have taken new shapes. Instead of ancient forms of Baal and Asherah, we today sometimes honor possessions, success, physical pleasure, and religious perfection to the dishonoring of God. Just as God disciplined the Israelites for their idolatry and forgave them when they repented, He will graciously discipline us and extend the offer of forgiveness in Christ (Hebrews 12:7–11; 1 John 1:9; 2 Peter 3:9). Source: GotQuestions.org Exodus 34:14 --for you shall not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God-- NET Exodus 34:14 For you must not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. NLT Exodus 34:14 You must worship no other gods, for the LORD, whose very name is Jealous, is a God who is jealous about his relationship with you. ESV Exodus 34:14 (for you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God), NIV Exodus 34:14 Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. KJV Exodus 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God: LXE Exodus 34:14 For ye shall not worship strange gods, for the Lord God, a jealous name, is a jealous God; ASV Exodus 34:14 for thou shalt worship no other god: for Jehovah, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God: CSB Exodus 34:14 You are never to bow down to another god because Yahweh, being jealous by nature, is a jealous God. NKJ Exodus 34:14 `(for you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God), NRS Exodus 34:14 (for you shall worship no other god, because the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God). YLT Exodus 34:14 for ye do not bow yourselves to another god -- for Jehovah, whose name is Zealous, is a zealous God. worship : Ex 20:3-5 De 5:7 Mt 4:10 whose : Ex 34:5-7 33:19 Isa 9:6 57:15 jealous God : Ex 20:5 De 5:24 6:15 29:20 32:16,21 Jos 24:19 Na 1:2 1Co 10:22 Exodus 34 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries JEHOVAH'S NAME IS JEALOUS! Related Passages: Exodus 20:3-5+ “You shall have no other gods before Me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. 5 “You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, For - A strategic term of explanation. This explains why you need to completely obliterate idolatry. You shall not worship any other god - This is essentially a reiteration of Commandment number 1. Alan
Êxodo 34
Clarke- What a manifest proof was this of the power and particular providence of God! How easy would it have been for the surrounding nations to have taken possession of the whole Israelitish land, with all their fenced cities, when there were none left to protect them but women and children! Was not this a standing proof of the Divine origin of their religion?” NET Note on covet - The verb “covet” means more than desire; it means that some action will be taken to try to acquire the land that is being coveted. It is one thing to envy someone for their land; it is another to be consumed by the desire that stops at nothing to get it (it, not something like it). Exodus 34:25 "You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread, nor is the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover to be left over until morning. NET Exodus 34:25 "You must not offer the blood of my sacrifice with yeast; the sacrifice from the feast of Passover must not remain until the following morning. NLT Exodus 34:25 "You must not offer the blood of my sacrificial offerings together with any baked goods containing yeast. And none of the meat of the Passover sacrifice may be kept over until the next morning. ESV Exodus 34:25 "You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened, or let the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover remain until the morning. NIV 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. KJV Exodus 34:25 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven; neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover be left unto the morning. LXE Exodus 34:25 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifices with leaven, neither shall the sacrifices of the feast of the passover remain till the morning. ASV Exodus 34:25 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover be left unto the morning. CSB Exodus 34:25 "Do not present the blood for My sacrifice with anything leavened. The sacrifice of the Passover Festival must not remain until morning. NKJ Exodus 34:25 "You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leaven, nor shall the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover be left until morning. NRS Exodus 34:25 You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven, and the sacrifice of the festival of the passover shall not be left until the morning. YLT Exodus 34:25 'Thou dost not slaughter with a fermented thing the blood of My sacrifice; and the sacrifice of the feast of the passover doth not remain till morning: leavened : Ex 12:20 Ex 23:18 De 16:3 1Co 5:7,8 be left : Ex 12:10 23:18 Ex 29:34 Lev 7:15 Nu 9:12 Exodus 34 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries NO BLOOD WITH BREAD Related Resource: Exodus 23:18+ “You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread; nor is the fat of My feast to remain overnight until morning. Exodus 12:10+ ‘And you shall not leave any of it over until morning, but whatever is left of it until morning, you shall burn with fire. Exodus 12:20+ ‘You shall not eat anything leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.’” Exodus 29:34+ “If any of the flesh of ordination or any of the bread remains until morning, then you shall burn the remainder with fire; it shall not be eaten, because it is holy. 1 Corinthians 5:7; 8 Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. 8 Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread, Leaven was a symbol of corruption and evil (cf. Matt. 16:6). Some suggest these regulations apply only to the Passover, but others think they refer to all three (I am in the latter camp). All leaven was to have been previously purged (Ex 12:15+). Douglas Stuart has an excellent note to help understand the reason for this prohibition - Type of law: apodictic (unconditional, applying to all sacrifices by all Israelites at all times). Paradigmatic range: implicitly outlaw all sorts of other pagan rituals as well, not merely those specifically mentioned here because they represented some of the most common temptations for the Israelites...Ancient peoples were well aware that when the blood was drained from an animal, the animal would die. (The main reason for their familiarity with this fact was their regular observation of the common practice of slaughtering an animal by first stunning it, then bleeding it while it was still alive so that its heart would pump out its blood, a process that greatly speeds the removal of blood from the animal.) They thus rightly concluded that the life of an animal was in its blood (Cf. Gen 9:4; Lev 17:11, 14; Dt 12:23. The life of an animal is, of course, in other things as well (ancients knew that you could beat an animal to death without drawing much blood), but the absence of blood does indeed bring about the absence of life in animals.). In an attempt to strengthen or prolong their own lives, they started drinking or eating blood from animals sacrificed for worship or merely for eating, performing in effect an act of what is known as “sympathetic magic.” This was strictly forbidden to the Israelites (Lev 3:17; 7:26; Deut 15:23) and even to the patriarchs long before there was an Israel (Gen 9:4). Drinking blood is somewhat unappetizing, but using the blood as an ingredient in breads of various sorts (indicated here by the wording “anything containing yeast”) was a method sometimes employed to enable people to consume the blood in a palatable way (Note that the wording of the prohibition in Hb. (לאֹ־תִזְבּח עַל־חָמֵץ דַּם־זִבְחִי) clearly speaks of mixing blood and yeast (to which flour and oil would be added) rather than simply consuming blood and yeast in the same meal or the like.) Of special interest in this connection is the fact that Jesus did allow—even required—the drinking of blood symbolically in the observance of the Lord’s Supper. (cf Jn 6:53, 55, 1 Cor 11:25) In this regard, the Lord’s Supper is actually a purer symbol of the transfer of life from the sacrificial Lamb (Christ) to the worshiper than any sacrifice in the Old Testament could be, in which the lamb’s death was simply understood as a substitute for that of the worshiper, without the aspect of transfer of life per se. Currid - "The blood of a sacrifice is not to be mixed with leavened bread—although that practice is strictly forbidden in connection with Passover (Exod. 34:25; Deut. 16:4), here the prohibition applies to all the major festivals. The law probably means that all leavened bread must be removed from the house during the festival periods."