Exodus:Chapter 4 Questions and Comments

Ch. 4, 8:

"if they will not believe you, nor heed the message of the first sign, they should believe the message of the second"

• Question: If he gave the Egyptians hints before his plagues, will he infact give us hints before the end of our world?
• I'm sure plenty of people will understand the foreshadowing ...

Ch. 4, 21:

"I will make him obstinate, however, so that he will not let the people go"

Ch, 4, 23:

"hence, I tell you. Let my son go, that he may serve me. If you refuse to let him go, I warn you, I will kill your son, your first-born"

• My Question is for both quotes above.
• Obstinate = stubborn
• Why make the Pharaoh stubborn?
• So, instead of just having the Pharaoh say yes he wants confrontation? Drammatic much?
• he wants to kill off all the 1st borns and really gives the Pharaoh no choice in the matter
• Horrible!
• Why would he do this?

Ch. 4, 24-26:

• I'm really just confused about the circumcision
• Question: Why was God about to kill Moses after all that had happened?
• Moses didn't even want to go to Egypt and talk to the Pharaoh and God yelled at him and told him he had to, then he goes and almost kills him? If Zipporah hadn't spilled his blood, God would have.

See how it can all be confusing? I would really love to hear your explanations. :)

Exodus:Chapter 3 Questions and Comments

Ch. 3, 14:

"I am who am" / "I am sent me to you"

• I didn't even know what this meant?!?! Looking in the references portion of my bible it said in astericks that phrase became the source of the word 'Yahweh' the proper personal name of the God of Israel.
• Question: Why exactly did he say this, in that way?
• Was he humanizing, or rather personalizing, himself for others to understand him in a new way?

Ch. 3, 22:

"thus you will despoil the Egyptians"

• Is this a reference to 'the rich giving to the poor' in present time?
• He is not saying you cannot be rich, there are many references in Genesis where he says he will make them rich if they pray to him.
• If your rich/corrupted/bad: you should therefore give to the poor and all will be good?
• Movies/people today say that the rich should always give to the poor, being rich is bad if you dont help people with it.
• Robin Hood is about taking money from the king and giving it to his people...
• What exactly does he mean by "despoiling" the eqyptians?

Exodus:Chapter 2 Questions and Comments

Ch. 2, 24:

"As their cry for release went up to God he heard their groaning and was mindful of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He saw the Israelites and knew..."

• I would like to think that bad times/suffering happens for a reason.
• When nothing changes in your life, something is changing somewhere else, so the effects wont greet you right away, but in the future when you will appreaciate it more.
• Am I correct with the meaning?
• God heard their cries and ends up sending Moses for their release in the future.

Exodus: Chapters 1 Questions and Comments

With Genesis done and read, I've moved on to the second book of the Old Testament. From the beginning I was already confused.

Ch. 1, 8:

"then a new king, who knew nothing of Joseph, came to power in Egypt."

• Exodus starts off in the time when Joseph and a couple of generations after him have already died.
• The New Pharaoh hates the Israelite people, believes that since they are multiplying like crazy that they will one day join his enemies and fight against him.
• so he decides to enslave them, to keep them as a rare minority, but instead of dying out, the Israelite people end up multiplying even more.
• 1st Question: Why would there be a Pharaoh who doesn't know the story of Joseph? Wouldn't the people remember him? He was pretty important; a foreigner, servant of a courtier, who ended up being an equal to the Pharaoh and still managed to help Egypt survive its years of famine. You would think that people knew their history and still favored what he did to their country.
• No written records? I don't really believe that.

Ch. 1, 14:

"hard work in mortar and brick"

• I just thought this was funny, since we still use this term today.
• Brick and mortar, was this the first time it was said or written down?

Ch. 1, 21:

"and because the midwives feared God, he built up families for them"

• Question: Does God want us to fear him? Why?
• Is it the fact that he is God and can do whatever he wants?

Genesis Done

So, I finally finished the first book in the Old testament. I was suprised with it's content. Some stories I grew up reading were not in Genesis like I believed they were.

Anyways, I'm gathering my questions and comments and will be back soon with them for you all to help me analyze.

First Fight

Going home this evening, I told my mom what I was doing. Reading the Bible and then comprehending it. Figuring out my life etc....

She was happy I was actively reading the Bible for the first time in my life. She was angry that I wanted to question it or had doubts about it's true nature. Fact or Fiction. My Mother told me the Bible was the most important book a person could ever read and that I should read it with out question. Believe and have faith, the Bible is right.

I asked her why couldn't I question the Bible. She told me that it just shouldn't be done.
I'm not one to just believe every book or tale I hear/read. Why can't I question or ponder my findings? Her reaction to my thought was that I should'nt believe in everything I hear or read; but, the Bible is true and Holy. Questioning it would be the equivalent in questioning my faith and my belief in God.

How could she say that? Do I have a point or am I reading the Bible for all the wrong reasons?
Does questioning the Bible question my faith?

Belief & Introduction

I'm 20 years old, a Roman Catholic at heart, & a girl who doesn't believe that church is detrimental to the growth or the continuation of my chosen faith. Growing up I attended CCD Classes, the youth group at my church, was baptized as a baby, held onto my first communion, and went as far as confirmation before leaving the church. Present count is a little over 3 years.

Growing up in the Catholic Church I had many unanswered questions, no one could give me a solid answer and today I have an idea why. The Bible, which I haven't read fully, to my understanding is a series of stories that help people live a happy life with God and their faith. These stories to me are just stories, whether true or made up, time is unaccounted for which makes specifically asked questions hard to comprehend and talk about. As a little girl growing up, when I asked a question in return all I got was a speculative half answered theory that my mentors told me when they knew no other option. "Just have faith and the answers you seek won't matter as much."

Why believe in something without having all the answers? I continue to ask myself daily; yet, my faith hasn't wavered once. I may have rebelled a few times during my youth and gotten to know my father better to get through the faze, but I was young. After finishing my "studies" and officially joining the church, my faith has stuck with me when church hasn't.
While companionship in a church setting is becoming a more and more appealing thought I gather I should at least know the basics of Christianity and the Bible.

My Goal: To see the Bible in a better light. Gain some answers, pose more questions, and continue to strengthen my faith to the best of my ability.

I would love for you to follow me on my journey as I continue to learn more about the world around me and its roots in the Christian religion.

Bible Version: The New American Bible
Supplements: The Message by Eugene H. Peterson and The Children's Daily Devotional Bible


Will I change?