For some reason, Samson thinks this whole beehive in the lion chest cavity phenomenon is really neat. So neat, he turns it into pretty much the main event at his wedding feast. It’s a modest company, with 30 guests, so Samson says he’ll give them each two new outfits if they can guess his riddle; conversely, they’ll give him the same 60 new garments if they miss. He then proceeds to pose them this as the riddle: “Out of the eater, something to eat. Out of the strong, something sweet.”[1] They don’t have to come up with a riddle in return,[2] just the answer.

[1] Judges 14:14

[2] À la Bilbo.

Read More

How does that transfer to your life? Am I asking you to start breaking jars, blowing trumpets, and hollering things about Me around your office when you feel like you’re being oppressed? Only if you’re tired of your job and want to be fired immediately! In the case of a tough job, or difficulty getting ahead in one way or another in your habitat, the important thing is to… listen to the episode!

Read More

Moses and I had our stony pocket on the mountaintop as Our recurring meeting-place; Gideon and I have his winepress-turned-threshing floor. Gideon comes to speak with Me there, and says, “Just to make sure about this, that you’re going to deliver Israel from the mighty, marauding Midianites using little ol’ me, could you do me the tiniest favor and give me a sign of Your presence? I mean, the fiery rock was great, but I’m having some doubts here...” He then proceeds to ask Me to be selective in My “dewing” that night, requesting that I do dew the wool of a sheepskin he’s going to leave out, but that there be no dew on the ground around it. Seriously? Okay, Gideon. I’ll play along. Because part of your story is going to be how well I use you to bring victory in spite of the fact that at this point in your career you’re a FRAIDY-CAT!

Read More

Deborah and Jael, quite obviously, are not men, which, according to their habitat’s standard, strictly excludes them from anything but housework and childcare, and certainly from the weighty affairs of state. Well, just because their habitat excludes them doesn’t mean I do. Got that? A lot of the things folks take potshots at Me for are practices that stem solely from the humans and their habitats as We move along. I Am, of course, always working on human maturity in general as part of the Plan’s implementation over time; however, you all are mighty slow learners, resulting in a protracted gradual process…

Read More

Israel is playing with fire by doubling up its worship of both Me and the local “gods.” And like a parent with children, I level consequences on Israel that are directly related to their dangerous behavior in order to teach them to leave the fire alone. In this case, those consequences are attacks by the people left in the land. Then, like a child who says they’re sorry for what they’ve done after they’ve been caught in the act and suffered the punishment for it, Israel turns back to Me and asks for forgiveness and help. When they do, I go ahead and send them a new judge to make things right. And things go well for the rest of that judge’s life. Israel is supposed to mature, though, and break the cycle, trusting and following Me without the need for grammar school level scolding and rehabilitation through the judges. If only they would fully turn to Me to lead and care for them, this cycle of repeated downward spirals would stop.

Read More

The first considered action Israel takes after the death of Joshua is this: they ask Me for direction. If My heart had cockles, they’d have been warmed. Of course, Moses and Joshua did this all the time – turning to Me for guidance – but this is the first foray of Israel as a nation-at-large without a pegged leader. So this is exactly the start I was hoping for – they see Me as their leader and ask Me what to do next. It’s good to be the King. And it’s good for the kids to get that I’m the King, if only for a moment. And so the very first sentence in the Book of Judges is, “After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked Yahveh, ‘Who of us is to go up first to fight against the Canaanites?’” Brilliant.

Read More

And thus, Jericho is no more. My “battle plan” made no sense whatsoever, but Joshua and My people make clear they’ve learned their lesson and simply do as I command this time, with earth-shattering (or at least wall-shattering) results. Is there a lesson in there? You betcha. There are going to be times when the things I ask of you seem to be, shall We say, counterintuitive to your and/or your habitat’s way of thinking. Marching and trumpets and shouts? Oh my! Not the way to win a battle according to Sun-Tzu,[1] but take a page from Joshua’s notes here: hang in there with Me and My Way all the way through to the end of the battle and see how things fare, friend.

[1] Author of the book, “The Art of War” (written a good seven centuries after Jericho’s conquest).

Read More

Angels see Me face to face, full access. I rub off easily on them, so when they step from My presence to earth on a mission, they’re pretty scary to look at. Moses has the same problem after being with Me on the mountain, so he wears a scarf over his face until his face dims down a bit, otherwise the people are too freaked out to listen to what he has to say. This whole glory transfer takes humans by frightening surprise every time, so much so that practically every angel I send on a mission to humans is always instructed to begin with these four words: “Do not be afraid!”

Now, over the years, I’ve been sketchy with My details about angels with you all on purpose. Yes, they are really cool. I made them, didn’t I? But I don’t want you obsessing about them or following them or worshipping them. (They don’t either; well, most of them at least.) At this point, they’re supposed to be helping you and pointing you to Me.

Read More

After he’s completed his first Passover of the new era, Joshua has his final Echo of Moses experience. Before he makes the next move, I want Joshua to be certain all the way down in the marrow of his toe bones that I Am with him with all My might and strength. And so, as he surveys Jericho from a distance, Joshua is met with a warrior, sword drawn and at the ready, whom he’s never seen before. When Joshua asks the warrior if he’s an Israelite or a Jerichonian, the warrior says, “Neither, but as commander of the army of Yahveh I have now come.” (Joshua 5:13-15)

[1] Joshua 5:13-15

Read More

I love this woman! She’s a real spitfire, that Rahab, and an important lesson sticking up out of Our story. She is NOT a descendant of Ike, Jake or his boys. She is OUTSIDE My special covenant with Israel. She is DEFINITELY breaking My law[1] on a REGULAR basis. And not only is she playing a key role that leads to victory, she is going to be remembered for her faith in ME for millennia. She’s got more faith in Me than did the entire last generation of Israelites – the ones who actually walked through that sea on that dry land! They didn’t think I could give them the Promised Land. This woman does. I’ll say it again. I LOVE this gal! Wait a minute. How can I love HER? How can she be an important lesson for ANYbody?I mean, with her sordid lifestyle and all?Well, friend, you’ll note I’m not saying that I’m a fan of her sexual exploits.What I AM saying, though, is that she isn’t letting herself be defined by her sin, and is in fact courageously stepping out of the box it would like to keep her in.She knows I AM on the move, and boldly believes in Me.

[1] Prescribed at this time solely for Israel, by the way, but that’s another topic for another time.

Read More

It’s been a long time coming. Imagine 40 years of “Are we there yet?” Talk about being ready for a change, the nation of Israel is ready! Buried in plots across the wilderness now are all but two of the members of the older generation that had been so conditioned by their Egyptian slavery that they could not walk into the freedom I was handing them. Their children are grown now, strong adults poised at the edge of the Promised Land, ready to leave the past behind and claim in faith that which I Am promising to give them. Ready to claim not just an area of land in which to settle and dwell, but to claim their unique place in history as both My children and as the agents of My rescue of all humankind. And it all starts with a pep talk.

Read More

As you can imagine, Moses has got some parting words for the people of Israel. Like a parent making sure their child that’s off to college remembers to brush their teeth, use an umbrella, and keep red socks out of the white laundry, Moses reminds the people of My commands. He reminds them that My commands are terms for their contractual relationship with the Creator (that would be ME): follow My commands, and I’ll have your back; ignore them, and…

Read More

This next, younger generation of Israel serves as a powerful example for you on another level as well. Think about it. They are totally living out consequences of the generation before them. If Mom and Dad hadn’t pooh-poohed Caleb’s report at the end of the spy mission, they’d already be ensconced in a comfy Promised Land home. Instead, as a direct result of their parents’ lack of faith, they are stuck wandering in the wilderness until their parents die off. Once the old folks are gone, they finally have the chance to move forward. You don’t need to kill off your parents to move forward. I’d very much rather you not harm them.

Read More

Our last episode ended with Caleb and Joshua standing before the people of Israel saying that if I was with them like I said I was, the giants of the north would crumble like bread in their hands and yield the bounty of Canaan with barely a fight. Caleb and Joshua are the only two of the twelve spies who brought back hope with their report. But those two will be enough… eventually.

Read More

As Season III comes to a close, We Are still early in Our exposition, and just as parents issue rules to younger children before they fully explain the abstract reasoning behind them, Our commands are given to Our children with a view towards greater understanding of it all as the maturation process (of both Israel and all humanity) continues. In other words, We’ll be in this “Because I said so” stage for a while. However, We’ve come a long way with Israel already, and it’s time to move on to the next major stage in the Abraplan. Won’t you join Us On The Way?

Read More

Everybody goes to a lot of trouble to make things just right, and it’s not just busywork, mind you. Again, you’re in the omnipresence age, so it seems pointless to be having all these people jump through hoops to build this elaborate portable structure for Me, the One Who made the planets themselves portable. At the time, though, My children are totally getting that this is the way I AM going to be with them on the rest of their journey; and once again, it’s really, really important that they have a clear sense that I AM with them, and that I AM holy. That sense of closeness and holiness is worth going to a lot of trouble for, on both your and My side, in fact.

Read More

Of course, I know how important it is for My people to sense My presence with them. I am working on that with Moses even now in our tabernacle planning. I Am going to meet the need for Presence in the way I know is best, the same way I meet every human need. But Israel has grown impatient and is feeling lonely, so they come up with a quick fix to scratch the itch. And how they meet that need in their own way does not come into the remote neighborhood of being close to how well I Am going to meet it for them in the best way at the right time, which if you haven’t figured out yet, is the way of all things. Read this paragraph again and apply it to your own situation and you’ll feel better about it. Or better prepared next time.

Read More

This is why blood is so important in all the rituals I prescribe. You don’t have to go to Harvard medical school to know that without blood, there is no life. Thus, blood is life, both symbolically and evidentially. Which brings us back to the altar. The blood that is sprinkled on the four horns of the altar with each sacrifice is packed with significance. It was shed by something other than those who are guilty, and thus conveys mercy. It reminds that there are no “freebies” – there is always consequence to sin. It signifies the distance that yet remains between human ethic and the life you were originally designed to live. Get that? At its metaphysic heart, ritual sacrifice far exceeds Our clunky scorekeeping analogy and instead speaks to the core of human identity. I created you in My image, to walk in My ways and to represent Me to the rest of creation.

Read More