"In this chapter of Exodus, God declares more laws about honesty and justice. God also talks about the various sabbaths and festivals the Israelites are to follow. The Israelites are to sow the land for six years, and leave the land uncultivated during the seventh year. Every week, the Israelites are to work for six days, but rest on the seventh, or Sabbath, day. The Israelites are to celebrate a festival in God's honor three times a year; they are to observe the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Harvest, and the Festival of Ingathering. Lastly, God tells the Israelites that He will send an Angel ahead of them to protect them on their journey through the wilderness and bring them safely into the Promised Land. God's Angel will go before the Israelites and bring them to the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites, an God will wipe them out. Israel is not to bow down and worship their gods or make a covenant with their gods. These foreign people must not remain in the Promised Land, or else they will make Israel sin against God."
Exodus 23 Amplified Bible (AMP)
Various Laws“You shall not give a false report; you shall not join hands with the wicked to be a malicious witness [promoting wrong and violence]. 2 You shall not follow a crowd to do [something] evil, nor shall you testify at a trial or in a dispute so as to side with a crowd in order to pervert justice; 3 nor shall you favor or be partial to a poor man in his dispute [simply because he is poor].
4 “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey wandering off, you must bring it back to him. 5 If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying helpless under its load, you shall not leave the man to deal with it [alone]; you must help him release the animal [from its burden].
6 “You shall not pervert (bend) the justice due to your poor in his dispute. 7 Keep far away from a false charge or action, and do not condemn to death the innocent or the righteous, for I will not justify and acquit the guilty.
8 “You shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and subverts the testimony and the cause of the righteous.
9 “You shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the soul [the feelings, thoughts, and concerns] of a stranger, for you were strangers in Egypt.
- GODLINESS. The Lord continued to enumerate various laws regarding one's welfare, and the others. The law gives very detailed situations that is very helpful, I think, to all the leaders/judges and the whole community. All in all it's about God-like qualities-- COMPASSION, HONESTY, INTEGRITY, RIGHTEOUSNESS, TRUTHFULNESS, SELFLESSNESS. God cares for all the people, and He created men and women according to His image, so it makes sense that we live our lives according to His ways. When we obey God, we love Him, and we love our neighbors too (“If you love Me, keep My commandments." John 14:15) There will be challenges, struggles, and temptations, or misunderstanding with other people in this life, but knowing God's laws, and His heart about it, will greatly help us in making the right judgment, doing the right thing, and choosing God's ways.
"Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper."
Psalms 1:1-3
"Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them,
for this is the Law and the Prophets."Matthew 7:12
The Sabbath and LandWho walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper."
Psalms 1:1-3
"Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them,
for this is the Law and the Prophets."Matthew 7:12
10 “You shall sow your land six years and harvest its yield, 11 but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie uncultivated, so that the poor among your people may eat [what the land grows naturally]; whatever they leave the animals of the field may eat. You shall do the same with your vineyard and olive grove.
12 “Six days [each week] you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall stop [working] so that your ox and your donkey may settle down and rest, and the son of your female servant, as well as your stranger, may be refreshed. 13 Now concerning everything which I have said to you, be on your guard; do not mention the name of other gods [either in a blessing or in a curse]; do not let such speech be heard [coming] from your mouth.
- 7th YEAR, 7th DAY. Resting the farm lands in the seventh year so that the poor people may eat whatever the land grows naturally, was very interesting! I have never heard of a law like that, I wonder if Israel still does that up to this day, because that would be really awesome. I wish our country, and every country will have a law like that, to help feed many (poor) people. The importance of Sabbath, or 7th day of rest was reiterated here, for the refreshment of all the people, and animals (ox and donkey) alike.
14 “Three times a year you shall celebrate a feast [dedicated] to Me. 15 You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. No one shall appear before Me empty-handed [but you shall bring sacrificial offerings]. 16 Also [you shall observe] the Feast of Harvest (Weeks, Pentecost, or First Fruits), acknowledging the first fruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field. And [third] the Feast of Ingathering (Booths or Tabernacles) at the end of the year when you gather in [the fruit of] your labors from the field. 17 Three times a year all your males shall appear before the [a]Lord God.
18 “You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with [b]leavened bread; and the fat of My feast is not to be left overnight until morning.
19 “You shall bring the choice first fruits of your ground into the house of the Lord your God.
“You shall not [c]boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.
Footnotes: Exodus 23:17 “Lord” with only an initial capital is Heb Adonai (Master); “God” (all caps) represents YHWH (Yahweh) and is usually rendered “Lord” (all caps).
Exodus 23:18 Because leaven is a kind of fungus, it became a symbol of corruption and sin. But in some contexts it had positive connotations (e.g. Lev 23:17; Matt 13:33).
Exodus 23:19 This may have been a pagan practice, perhaps a fertility rite.
- FEASTS DEDICATED TO GOD. God is worthy of all glory and remembrance because He is the God who freed and rescued Israel from Egypt's slavery and oppression, and He is the God who has sent His Son Jesus Christ to save and rescue us from the 'slavery of sin'. The Lord established 3 national feasts to be observed every year-- throughout the generations. The feasts will help the Israelites to keep walking in God's ways and commandments, in avoiding the corruption of sin, and protecting themselves against paganism or turning to pagan idols/gods. Since the very beginning (Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob), God has been good and gracious, and He never failed to sustain and provide to His people-- He alone deserves the best, the first-fruits of our produce or labor! No one shall appear before God empty-handed because He will make sure that His people will be well-provided.
Conquest of the Land
20 “Behold, I am going to send an [d]Angel before you to keep and guard you on the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. 21 Be on your guard before Him, listen to and obey His voice; do not be rebellious toward Him or provoke Him, for He will not pardon your transgression, since My Name (authority) is in Him. 22 But if you will indeed listen to and truly obey His voice and do everything that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. 23 When My Angel goes before you and brings you to [the land of] the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Canaanite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, I will reject them and completely destroy them. 24 You shall not bow down to worship their gods, nor serve them, nor do [anything] in accordance with their practices. You shall completely overthrow them and break down their [sacred] pillars and images [of pagan worship]. 25 You shall serve [only] the Lord your God, and He shall bless your bread and water. I will also remove sickness from among you. 26 No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; [e]I will fulfill the number of your days. 27 I will send My terror ahead of you, and I will throw into confusion all the people among whom you come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you [in flight]. 28 I will send hornets ahead of you which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite before you. 29 I will not drive them out before you in a single year, so that the land does not become desolate [due to lack of attention] and the [wild] animals of the field do not become too numerous for you. 30 I will drive them out before you little by little, until you have increased and are strong enough to take possession of the land. 31 I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines (the Mediterranean), and from the wilderness to the River Euphrates; for I will hand over the residents of the land to you, and you shall drive them out before you. 32 You shall not make a covenant with them or with their gods. 33 They shall not live in your land, because they will make you sin against Me; for if you serve their gods, it is certain to be a trap for you [resulting in judgment].”
Footnotes: Exodus 23:20 “Angel” has been capitalized here to reflect the likelihood that it is God appearing in a visible form (see note Gen 16:7).
Exodus 23:26 I.e. grant you long life.
- PROMISED LAND. After giving all the laws, the Lord then strongly gave a detailed and step-by-step promise of how He will grant the promised land (that was currently inhabited by the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Canaanite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite) to the Israelites, wow! Reading it all throughout, I was in total awe. With God, the future is already secured! It's a done deal, no matter how the Israelites failed, disobeyed and rebelled (for 40 years). He will even personally go with the Israelites. I'd like to believe the 'Angel' is even (pre-incarnate) Christ in spirit! God said, 'My Name (authority) is in Him.', (And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Matthew 28:18). The Almighty God promised victory to the Israelites, and because of that, today we are 'victorious' in Christ too. What could be more awesome than that?🙌😭
* Study Guide Commentary from David Guzik: A. Laws promoting justice.
1. (Exo 23:1-3) Commands to respect the law, not convenience or the crowd.
2. (Exo 23:4-9) Laws promoting kindness and righteous civil conduct.
B. Laws of ceremonial devotion.
1. (Exo 23:10-13) The Sabbath principle.
2. (Exo 23:14-17) Three national feasts.
3. (Exo 23:18-19) Laws regarding sacrifice and firstfruits offering.
C. The promise of God’s presence and blessing.
1. (Exo 23:20-21) The Angel who has the name of God in Him.
2. (Exo 23:22-26) Blessing promised to an obedient Israel.
3. (Exo 23:27-30) How God will help Israel take possession of the land.
4. (Exo 23:31-33) Boundaries of Israel’s inheritance.
c. Keep yourself far from a false mater; do not kill the innocent and righteous: The promotion of truth was essential under God’s law. God knew how much evil and injustice is justified among men by lies, so He emphasized truth telling in Israel’s daily life and legal practices.
ii. Jesus simply summarized these laws promoting kindness and fair conduct in the community of Israel: You shall love…your neighbor as yourself (Luke 10:27).
i. “The law of the Sabbatical Year. This was unique in the world, and associated only with Israel.” (Thomas)
a. I send an Angel before you: This unique angel commanded obedience from Israel and had the right of judgment over the nation. Most of all, the name of God was in this angel (for My name is in Him).
i. We only know a few angels by name, and in a sense, Micha-el and Gabri-el each have the name of God in their name. But neither Michael nor Gabriel commanded this kind of obedience from Israel or presumed to sit in judgment over them. This is the specific Angel of the Lord, Jesus appearing in the Old Testament, before His incarnation in Bethlehem, who often speaks directly as the Lord.
ii. “The Angel (v. 20) was not a created angel but a divine manifestation, the Second Person of the Trinity in angelic form.” (Thomas) “My name is in him seems to translate the ‘messenger’ into the supernatural realm, for God’s ‘name’ is the equivalent of His revealed nature.” (Cole)
iii. My name is in Him: Of course, the name Yahweh is in Jesus. His name is literally Yah-shua. Jesus was with Israel in all their wilderness experience. “This Angel with the authority and prestige of the name of God was evidence enough that God himself was present in his Son.” (Kaiser)
b. And to bring you into the place which I have prepared: The Angel would go before them into the place which I have prepared. The same principle is true of our life with Jesus today. Not only is it true that Jesus goes before us to prepare a place for us in heaven (John 14:2-3), but the place we walk in today was prepared by God, and where we will walk tomorrow is prepared by Him also.
b. My Angel will go before you: God did not bring Israel out of Egypt to leave them in the wilderness. His plan was to bring them into His land of promise and abundance. Though there were mighty nations in Canaan, His Angel would bring an obedient Israel into the Promised Land.
c. You shall not bow down to their gods: The Canaanite people were deeply depraved and morally degraded, and this was a natural result of the depraved and degraded idol gods they served. Therefore it was essential that Israel did not imitate their idol worship or allow it to continue.
i. “Concerning the people to be driven out, it is worthy of note that this paragraph shows that ‘their gods’ were their undoing. Everything in the life of a man or a nation depends on the character of its worship.” (Morgan)
b. Little by little: God promised to drive out the enemies of Israel from Canaan, but He would not drive them out all at once. Israel may have wanted to have the land all cleared out before them, but God knew it was not best for the land or for them.
i. Though it sometimes frustrates us, this is often the way God works in our life. He clears things out little by little, though we might prefer it all at once. But God wanted Israel to have increased in the process of taking the Promised Land. He wanted them to grow. God cares that we grow, and so He often grows us little by little.
i. There is a spiritual principle here. God may grant, but we must possess. He withholds our possession of many blessings until we will partner with Him in bold faith and obedience. We have been granted every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ (Ephesians 1:3); but will only possess what we will partner with Him in faith and obedience to receive.
iii. God is not an indulgent, spoiling father, pouring out on His children resources, blessings, and gifts they are not ready to receive or be responsible with. When His people are ready to possess in faith, what was promised becomes realized.
b. You shall make no covenant with them: Through lack of discernment, Israel did end up making a covenant with some of the people of the land (Joshua 9). There is no area of the law that Israel – or anyone – has ever kept perfectly.
Reference and credits to https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/guzik_david/StudyGuide2017-Exd/Exd-23.cfm ©2013 David Guzik
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