Genesis 18:25

Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”

From Background Notes [BN] for July 5th & 6th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

The quarrel of the colonies with Great Britain appealed to "the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of [their] our intentions", saying as much in its closing paragraph [Declaration of Independence]. This is remarkable language, again found only in the Congressional version before publication.

Genesis 39:19

When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is how your slave treated me,” he burned with anger.

From Background Notes [BN] for June 28th & 29th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Which is worse: a pit or a prison? For certain, the pit had no water, according to our writer. Presumably prison did. But then again, Joseph ends up in both places without just provocation. He could have whined, "it's just not fair!"

Genesis 39:1

Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.

From Background Notes [BN] for June 28th & 29th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Potiphar must have marveled at his Hebrew servant. Not only was Joseph successful, he brought blessing to the house and field of his master.

Genesis 37:19-20

“Here comes that dreamer!” they said to each other. “Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we’ll see what comes of his dreams.”

From Background Notes [BN] for June 28th & 29th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

"He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief". Those words were not written about Joseph, but about the Suffering Servant of the Lord in Isaiah 53. Yet...

Genesis 37:5

Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more.

From Background Notes [BN] for June 28th & 29th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Joseph comes to play a pivotal role in advancing the purposes of God for his people. Therefore, the life of Joseph is not just about him as a solitary hero who attracts notoriety for his own exploits, but belongs to the larger narrative in the flow of salvation history.

Esther 3:2

All the royal officials at the king’s gate knelt down and paid honor to Haman, for the king had commanded this concerning him. But Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor.

From Background Notes [BN] for June 21st & 22nd written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Xerxes makes Haman, a descendent of the Amalekites, the vizier. Ironically, Amalekites were ancient enemies of Israel, and Mordercai and Esther's own genealogies trace back to King Saul's father, Kish. It was Saul who failed to completely destroy the Amalekites when God ordered it centuries before.

 

Esther 7:7

The king got up in a rage, left his wine and went out into the palace garden. But Haman, realizing that the king had already decided his fate, stayed behind to beg Queen Esther for his life.

From Background Notes [BN] for June 21st & 22nd written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Our photographic copies of the original Masora reveal other interesting "accents" to the biblical text, one of them in the book of Esther. In four different verses (1:20; 5:4; 5:13; 7:7) the scribes, when they copied the Hebrew Text, made certain letters larger than others.

Ezekiel 39:29

"I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the people of Israel, declares the Sovereign LORD.”

From Background Notes [BN] for June 21st & 22nd written by Pastor Bob Brown:

In other words, a day is coming when God will send His Spirit to live within His people, and when that day comes, God will not longer hide His face and Israel will no longer be in exile.

Esther 4:14

For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?

From Background Notes [BN] for June 21st & 22nd written by Pastor Bob Brown:

What makes him think that Esther has "come to the kingdom for such a time as this"? Evidently Mordecai believes in a deeper, hidden presence, guiding the lives of the Jewish people:

 

Genesis 18:25

Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”

From Background Notes [BN] for June 14th & 15th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Abraham's sense of justice is certainly justified, and Yahweh does not contend with it. What appears from the story is that the way of deliverance does not come with sparing evil, but with rescuing the righteous out of it!

Genesis 18:25

Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”

From Background Notes [BN] for June 14th & 15th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Abraham's sense of justice is certainly justified, and Yahweh does not contend with it. What appears from the story is that the way of deliverance does not come with sparing evil, but with rescuing the righteous out of it!

Genesis 12:1-2

The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you

From Background Notes [BN] for June 14th & 15th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Through Abram, God will do what Nimrod failed to do: he will make him a source of blessing. For pagan heroes, every personal success meant the diminishing of others in battle or conquest. Not so for Abram.

Genesis 17:5

No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.

From Background Notes [BN] for June 14th & 15th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

So the big question before us becomes: whose name will be glorious on the earth? It is clear that the contest is between those who make a name for themselves, and...

Genesis 10:8

Cush was the father of Nimrod, who became a mighty warrior on the earth.

From Background Notes [BN] for June 14th & 15th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

The human quest, under the rule of sin, seeks to "make a name for itself", rather than exalt the name of God. Of course, this is the classic definition of the pagan hero: one who makes a name for himself.

Exodus 4:11-12

The LORD said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”

From Background Notes [BN] for June 7th & 8th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

The story of Moses’ call to a new identity begins with the sort of wonder that takes off its sandals and continues in the presence of slaves who see signs and then bow and worship. There is no new self, no new person, or no new identity without the profound experience of the Sacred before whom we bow and worship.

Exodus 4:10

Moses said to the LORD, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”

From Background Notes [BN] for June 7th & 8th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

“That’s just who I am,” holds no muster with the God whose name is “I am who I am”! Karl Barth wrote in the earliest pages of his Church Dogmatics...

Exodus 3:4

When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.”

From Background Notes [BN] for June 7th & 8th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

The time has come to tell the truth about you, Moses, and bring to the level of consciousness all the submerged secrets about who you really are. It will not be easy knowing your true identity, because with that knowledge comes serious responsibility that you will need to take for yourself.

John 8:28

So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me."

From Background Notes [BN] for June 7th & 8th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

In other words, the answer to the question, “Who am I?” for Jesus, rests with his relationship to God as his Father. He does not label himself (“I do nothing on my own”), but allows God to give him his identity (“he has not left me alone”).