Day Seventeen - 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge - Exodus 17 - 20 - The Great Adventure A Journey Through the Bible

Day Seventeen 

90 Day Bible Reading Challenge 

Exodus 17 - 20  

By Sarah Christmyer 

Bible Time Period:  Egypt and Exodus 
You freed your people from slavery in Egypt so they could worship you. Free me from sin so I can serve and worship.  

Reflection 

If the question in Exodus 1 – 18 was “Who will you serve?”  then the question starting in chapter 19 might be “How will you serve?”  Israel spends a year at the base of Mt. Sinai after leaving Egypt.  During that time they meet God, they hear His voice, and they become his people. 

You will read about the Ten Commandments in chapter 20.  They are not commands that bind, as Pharaoh’s did.  They are commands that liberate.  They tell Israel how to live as redeemed people, to keep from falling back into bondage. 

Today’s Reading
Exodus 17 – 20

Today’s Question
What kind of nation does God say Israel will be,  if they obey him and keep his covenant?  (19:1-6) 

Commentary 
Discussion Boards Day Seventeen
Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology notes on A Kingdom of Priests, A Holy Nation  
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Exodus 16:1 - 18:27
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Exodus 19:1 - 20:21

The above 10-minute study was taken from the Great Adventure Bible Study for Catholics. 

For items devotional items related to the Catholic Church 

please visit Lynn's Timeless Treasures  

Back to Index 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge

Art
Moses and the Ten Commandments - Rembrandt 

Day Sixteen - 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge - Exodus 13 - 16 - The Great Adventure A Journey Through the Bible

Day Sixteen 

90 Day Bible Reading Challenge 

Exodus 13 - 16  

Bible Time Period:  Egypt and Exodus 
You freed your people from slavery in Egypt so they could worship you. Free me from sin so I can serve and worship.  

Reflection
The firstborn of God’s people are consecrated and the Lord leads them out of slavery and through the Red Sea, narrowly escaping the wrath of the Egyptians who are themselves destroyed.  For our (Christian) vantage point, this deliverance is seen as a picture of our baptism.  We are led out of slavery to sin and through the waters of baptism to a new life on the other side.  Think of this as you read the triumphant song of praise in chapter 15.  

Prayer
Lord of our every need:  How gently You escorted Israel on her courtship journey through the desert wilderness, feeding her manna from heaven and quenching her thirst with water from the rock. You provided for the Israelites’ every need, all the while teaching them to trust You, to rely upon You, and to be obedient to Your commands.  With the same covenant faithfulness You continue to guide the New Israel, the virgin Bride of Your Son, Jesus Christ, feeding your New Covenant people the spiritual food of Your Son’s Body and Blood, the necessary nourishment for the journey to salvation.  We thank You and praise You, Lord, for your faithfulness and we submit ourselves to Your commands as we obediently and thankfully receive the spiritual and eternal blessings that the first generation of the Old Covenant Church only hoped to receive.  Guide us now, Lord, as we study Israel’s journey to holy nationhood.  We pray in the name of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.  (Agape Catholic Bible Study, Lesson 9) 

Today’s Reading
Exodus 13 – 16 

Today’s Question
Freedom from Egypt doesn’t free the people from their old habits.  When you read about the ways they are tested and the ways God provided for them, how does their experience speak to you?

The New Testament is hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is revealed in the New

In the Bread of Life Discourse, Jesus compares Himself to the manna in the wilderness (Gen 16:15).  “Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.  For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”  So they said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”  (John 6:32-35)

Just as the children of Israel’s hunger drove them to ask for food, so should our hunger for the Lord Jesus drive us to seek Him in the Eucharistic bread of life.  Encouraging the faithful to seek Christ in the Eucharist, Saint Peter Chrysologus wrote:  "The Father in heaven urges us, as children of heaven, to ask for the bread of heaven.  [Christ] himself is the bread who, sown in the Virgin, raised up in the flesh, kneaded in the Passion, baked in the oven of the tomb, reserved in churches, brought to altars, furnishes the faithful each day with food from heaven." (#2837 Catechism of the Catholic Church)   

Commentary 
Discussion Boards for Day Sixteen 
Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology - Images of a New Exodus 
Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology - Testing in the Wilderness
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Exodus 12:21 - 13:22
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Exodus 14:11 - 15:27

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The above 10-minute study was taken from the Great Adventure Bible Study for Catholics. 

For items devotional items related to the Catholic Church 

please visit Lynn's Timeless Treasures  

Back to Index 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge

Art
Crossing the Red Sea - Cosimo Rosselli
Manna from Heaven - Fabrizio Boschi 

Day Fifteen - 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge - Exodus 9 - 12 - The Great Adventure A Journey Through the Bible

Day Fifteen 

90 Day Bible Reading Challenge 

Exodus 9 - 12  

Bible Time Period:  Egypt and Exodus 
You freed your people from slavery in Egypt so they could worship you. Free me from sin so I can serve and worship.

Reflection

In chapters 9 -12, the plaques on Egypt continue until they culminate in the death of the first-born sons of Egypt.  This is no surprise – back in 4:22-23, God told Pharaoh through Moses:  “Israel is my first-born son, and I say to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve me’; if you refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay your first born son.”  This being done, the stage will be set for the Exodus from Egypt itself. 

Prayer
“Lord, in the exodus narrative each of the nine Egyptian plaques were followed by your merciful acts of redemption sending a reprieve from the suffering to allow the Egyptian Pharaoh and his subjects the opportunity to turn away from their sins and their false gods and to turn back to you.  These acts of mercy, in the midst of judgment, remind us that your judgments Lord are meant to call men and women to repentance and to restoration of fellowship with you.  As Saint Peter wrote to the Universal Church, you are patient with us “wanting nobody to be lost and everybody to be brought to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).  It is a teaching also voiced by Saint Paul when he wrote to Saint Timothy, affirming that “…he wants everyone to be saved and reach full knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:3).  May the story of the Egyptian plagues inspire each of us, Lord, in the desire to turn away from sin, to be restored to your fellowship in our repentance and in the yielding of our hearts softened by the work of your Holy Spirit in our lives. “(Agape Catholic Bible Study, Exodus Lesson 6)   

Today’s Reading 

Exodus 9 -12

The New Testament is hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is revealed in the New

Old Testament Passover victim was selected for sacrifice on the 10^th of Abib/Nisan (Ex 12:3).  Jesus rode into Jerusalem to keep the Passover on the 10^th of Nisan; He was the Lamb selected for sacrifice (Jn 1:29; 12:1-2, 12-14).

  

Old Testament Passover victims were to be kept in the community for five days (Ex 12:3, 6).  For five days Jesus taught the community of Israel in the Temple (Mt 21-26:2).

Hyssop was used to put the blood on the door posts and lintels (Ex 12:22).  Hyssop was used to give Jesus His last drink on the Cross ( Jn 19:29).

No bones of the victim were to be broken (Ex 12:46).  Jesus’ bones were not broken (Jn 19:32-36).

The Israelite's were redeemed from slavery when they fled out of Egypt on the 15^th of Abib/Nisan (Ex 12:29-42).  Jesus gave up His life on the Cross, redeeming mankind from sin and death on the 15^th of Nisan (Jn 18:28, 17-18).

Each Passover victim died so that the Israelite's might live temporally.  Jesus was the Passover victim who died so that mankind might live eternally.

The Passover victims were the food of the sacred feast which the Israelites ate so that they might live (Ex 12:8, 13).  Saint Paul identified Jesus as our Passover Lamb that we might celebrate the feast of the Eucharist (1 Cor 5:7-8) and eat Jesus’ flesh that we might live (Jn 6:50 -58).

The sacrifice of the Passover victim was God’s plan for the salvation of Israel (Ex 12:13). The sacrifice of Jesus the Messiah was God’s plan for the salvation of mankind (Jn 3:1-16; 1 Jn 4:9)  (Agape Catholic Bible Study, Lesson 7) 

Commentary 
Discussion Boards for Day Fifteen
Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology - Plaguing Pharaoh
Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology - The Passover
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Exodus 7:26 - 10:20
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Exodus 10:21 - 12:20

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The above 10-minute study was taken from the Great Adventure Bible Study for Catholics. 

For items devotional items related to the Catholic Church 

please visit Lynn's Timeless Treasures  

Back to Index 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge

Art 

Passover (Exodus 12:7)

Day Fourteen - 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge - Exodus 5 - 8 - The Great Adventure A Journey Through the Bible

Day Fourteen 

90 Day Bible Reading Challenge 

Exodus 5 - 8  

Bible Time Period:  Egypt and Exodus 
You freed your people from slavery in Egypt so they could worship you. Free me from sin so I can serve and worship.

Reflection 

In Exodus 4:23, God said to Pharaoh, “Let my son go [halak] that he may serve [obed] me.”  Now in 5:18, Pharaoh replies:  “Go[halak] now and work [obed].”  The battle here is not between Pharaoh and the Hebrew people but between Pharaoh and God.  Whose people are they? To whom do they owe service and worship?  Watch the interaction between God and Pharaoh as the drama unfolds.

Prayer 

Lord, your promise has always been that you would be with those who seek you and strive to live according to your will during our journey to eternity.  You never promised, however, that the journey would be without struggles and sufferings.  The struggles and sufferings of the Israelites under Egyptian bondage in Exodus, and your mighty works to bring them to salvation and freedom are a comfort to us in our daily journey as we struggle with our personal sin and our desire to be freed from all suffering.   Just  as you persevered to bring the Israelites out of Egypt, so too do you persevere with us, Lord, giving us strength when we are weak and resolve to make the right choices when we waver under the pressures of worldly wisdom. (Exodus Lesson 4 Agape Catholic Bible Study) 

Today’s Reading
Exodus 5 – 8

Today’s Question
Underline all the “I ams” and “I wills” in chapter 6 and notice how they expand on the meaning of “I AM (YHWH).

Commentary 
Discussion Boards Day Fourteen
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary on Exodus 5-7

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The above 10-minute study was taken from the Great Adventure Bible Study for Catholics. 

For items devotional items related to the Catholic Church 

please visit Lynn's Timeless Treasures  

Back to Index 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge

Art
Moses Speaks to Pharaoh - James Tissot
Aaron Changes Water of Nile into Blood - Jan Pynas

Day Thirteen - 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge - Exodus 1 -4 - The Great Adventure A Journey Through the Bible

Day Thirteen 

90 Day Bible Reading Challenge 

Exodus 1 - 4 

By Sarah Christmyer 

Bible Time Period:  Egypt and Exodus
You freed your people from slavery in Egypt so they could worship you. Free me from sin so I can serve and worship. 

Reflection
The focus of the Patriarchs period, which we finished yesterday, was on God’s promise to Abraham:  to give him many descendants and a nation in the land of Canaan to build from them a royal kingdom; and finally to make them a blessing to the entire world.

Today we enter the period of “Egypt and Exodus,” which is told in the book of Exodus.  The opening words of the book show how God is beginning to make good on that promise: Abraham’s grandson Jacob brought his family to Egypt and there they have prospered and multiplied to the point where the new Pharaoh, 400 years later, is threatened by their presence.  They may be slaves at the start of this period, but God has promised to make of them a nation.  Watch how He does it.  The Exodus will become the defining event in Israel’s history and it will be referred back to many times in the rest of the Bible.

In Exodus 3, you will read about Moses’ encounter with God in the burning bush.  When God says his name is “I Am” (or “I AM WHO I AM”), notice that it is written in all capital letters.  This translates the Hebrew YHWH, which is sometimes written Yahweh or Jehovah, the “tetragrammaton.” Any time you see “I AM” written this way in the Old Testament, or “LORD” (in all capitals or with the “ORD” in small capitals) in the New, it is this personal, covenant name of God that is being referenced.  

Today's Reading 
Exodus 1 - 4 

Today's Question 

This is the first time God has revealed his name and therefore his character.  What does the story of Moses and the burning bush tell you about God? 

Commentary 
Discussion Boards Day Thirteen
Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology - Moses and Jesus
Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology - God's First Born Son
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Exodus 1
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Exodus 2
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Exodus Chapter 3 - 4

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The above 10-minute study was taken from the Great Adventure Bible Study for Catholics. 

For items devotional items related to the Catholic Church 

please visit Lynn's Timeless Treasures  

Back to Index 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge

Art
Moses and the Burning Bush - Dieric Bouts the Elder

Posts on the Rosary and How to Pray the Rosary

Pray the Rosary
Pray the Gospels

The Holy Rosary
Our Lady of the Rosary 
Joyful Mysteries in Art
Glorious Mysteries in Art
Glorious Mysteries Scriptural Rosary
Sorrowful Mysteries Scriptural Rosary
Sorrowful Mysteries in Art
Luminous Mysteries Scriptural Rosary
Luminous Mysteries in Art
Saint Louis Marie de Montfort 

Day Twelve - 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge - Genesis 46 - 50 - The Great Adventure A Journey Through the Bible

Day Twelve 

90 Day Bible Reading Challenge 

Genesis 46 -50 

As Genesis comes to an end, Joseph’s story illustrates how God can take what man has intended as a great evil and for the sake of the righteous He can turn it for the greater good:  “In time we can discover that God in his almighty providence can bring a good from the consequences of an evil, even a moral evil, caused by his creatures:  “It was not you,” said Joseph to his brother, “who sent me here, but God…You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good to bring it about that many people should be kept alive.”  From the greatest moral evil ever committed – the rejection and murder of God’s only Son, caused by the sins of all men – God, by his grace that “abounded all the more,” brought the greatest  of goods”  the glorification of Christ and our redemption.  But for all that, evil never became a good.”  (# 312 Catechism of the Catholic Church)

Bible Time Period:  Patriarchs 
In the time of the Patriarchs, you called Abraham and promised his children land, a royal kingdom, and worldwide blessing:  Help me to trust in your promises today.

Reflection

These five chapters bring the period of the Patriarchs to a close and set the stage for what is to follow.  You may be tempted to rush through chapters 48 – 49, which record Jacob’s blessings on his 12 sons.  But the details will be important later – the 12 tribes of Israel come from these men and the blessings hint of their future.

Key Verse From the Period of the Patriarchs
“Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.  And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you, and him who curse you I will curse; and by you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves.”  (Genesis 12: 1-3)

Today’s Reading
Genesis 46 – 50 

Today’s Question
Meditate on Genesis 50:20 – 21.  What do these verses mean to you? 

Commentary 
Discussion Boards for Day Twelve
Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology Joseph and Judah
Catholic Scripture Study Commentary Genesis 46 - 47
Catholic Scripture Study Commentary Genesis 48 - 50
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Genesis 46:1-48:22
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary Genesis 49:1 - 50:26

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The above 10-minute study was taken from the Great Adventure Bible Study for Catholics. 

For items devotional items related to the Catholic Church 

please visit Lynn's Timeless Treasures  

Back to Index 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge

Art
Jacob Blessing the Children of Joseph - Rembrandt