1997-07-05 - Moses and the Prophets
The Comprehensive Study Series, Part 4
I'd like to give some Scriptures that show how the concept of God was revealed to mankind through Moses and also the prophets.
Exodus 3:13-15 And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? What shall I say unto them? 14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, Jehovah, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name forever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.
God spoke of himself as "I AM"
- the self-existing One
- the uncaused Cause of all things
- He causes things to come into being
God revealed His law to Israel at Sinai in the Ten Commandments, Exodus chapter 20 and Deuteronomy, Chapter 5
At the giving of this law, God and Israel entered into a covenant which was ratified with the proper ceremonies and sacrifices.
In Exodus 24:1-8 we see that Moses stood far above all the prophets of his time.
Exo 24:1-8 And he said unto Moses, Come up unto Jehovah, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off: 2 and Moses alone shall come near unto Jehovah; but they shall not come near; neither shall the people go up with him. 3 And Moses came and told the people all the words of Jehovah, and all the ordinances: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which Jehovah hath spoken will we do. 4 And Moses wrote all the words of Jehovah, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the mount, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 5 And he sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt-offerings, and sacrificed peace-offerings of oxen unto Jehovah. 6 And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. 7 And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that Jehovah hath spoken will we do, and be obedient. 8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, "Behold the blood of the covenant, which Jehovah hath made with you concerning all these words."
In Numbers 12:6-8 There is a foretelling of a Prophet in the future that would stand far above all others of His time.
Num 12:6-8 And he said, Hear now my words: if there be a prophet among you, I Jehovah will make Myself known unto him in a vision, I will speak with him in a dream. 7 My servant Moses is not so; he is faithful in all my house: 8 with him will I speak mouth to mouth, even manifestly, and not in dark speeches; and the form of Jehovah shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses?
If we carefully look at the next three passages of Scripture we see beyond any shadow of a doubt God would do something in Israel that would be different then the Mosaic covenant.
Deuteronomy 18:18-19 I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee; and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. 19 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto My words which he shall speak in My name, I will require it of him.
This prophet spoken of is none other than Jesus of Nazareth, The Hebrew Messiah, the Savior of the world.
Jeremiah 31: 31-34 Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was a husband unto them, saith Jehovah. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith Jehovah: I will put My law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people: 34 and they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know Jehovah; for they shall all know Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith Jehovah: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more.
Here is promised an additional revelation from God other than that delivered at Sinai. The Lord is specific in stating that this new covenant will be different than the one which was entered into when Israel was brought up out of Egypt. The books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy contain the law covenant, but according to Jeremiah, God will supercede this old covenant by another one which will be on a different basis.
In Ezekiel chapter 34 we see the great masses of the people were neglected by unfaithful services of these false shepherds. God declared through the prophet:
Ezekiel 34:11-12 For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I myself, even I, will search for My sheep, and will seek them out. 12 As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered abroad, so will I seek out My sheep; and I will deliver them out of all places whither they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.
This is a prediction that the Lord Himself will take the part of the Shepherd and will no longer depend on men to shepherd His sheep!!
In our next and final series of this 5-part examination of the existence of God, we will examine the revelation of God through Jesus of Nazareth and the New Testament.
In His Service,
Liv4Yeshua