Friday, December 9, 2011
Sorry.....
Wow...sorry I haven't posted in forever -- i've had a lot going on.....hopefully I'll start posting again soon.
Monday, November 28, 2011
Genesis 31-40
Hey! Sorry for not posting yesterday...I really have no excuse, considering that it was a Sunday. I was stuck putting up Christmas decorations with my family all day, and was too tired to post (translation: I was kinda being lazy...). Anyway, hopefully that won't happen again. No promises though.
Also, I have very little time before my bed-time, so don't expect much...
Genesis 31
vs 1-16: Laban's sons are mad because Jacob is getting such a good flock by using his trick with the rods; God appears to him and promises him great blessings; Rachel and Leah tell him to do whatever God commanded him.
vs17-24: Jacob and family flee; Rachel takes her father's images.
vs 25-35: Laban chases them, and is angry; he searches all the tents; Rachel has them, but pretends that the "custom of women" is upon her.
vs 36-42 -- Jacob asks what his sin is; says that God's seen the trials of Jacob and rebuked Laban.
vs 43-55: They make a covenant; Laban departs after blessing his sons and daughters; they make a heap as a witness -- Jacob calls it Galeed; Laban calls it Jegar-sahadutha.
This is a great example of how God will take vengeance on the righteous who are treated wrongfully. He's seen Jacob's trials, and promises to deliver him from them. Awesomeness!
Genesis 32
vs 1-5: God meets with Jacob; Jacob sends messengers to his brother Esau.
vs 6-8: They return saying that Esau is coming w/ 400 men; Jacob's afraid, and divides his flocks, etc into two groups.
vs9-12: He prays for deliverance, and remembers how the Lord had promised to do him good.
vs 13-23: he sets aside goats and rams, etc, for a gift for Esau, because he wants to appease him. They're sent over the brook.
vs 24-32: Jacob wrestles with a man(according to his chapter, it was God), day and night. Jacob's name is now Israel; He calls the place Peniel, because he saw God face to face; the children of Israel don't eat the sinew that shrank.
A great example of God being with the righteous. It's interesting how it says that Jacob wrestled w/ the man...i wonder if that's the correct translation....
Genesis 33
vs 1-20: Jacob and Esau meet, and weep; Esau sees all that the Lord gave Jacob; Jacob insists on Esau taking the gift of goats, etc; Esau goes ahead, and Jacob follows -- they go to Seir. Jacob builds an altar when he comes to Shalem, a city of SHechem -- the altar is called El-elohe-Israel.
Not much to say -- it's amazing how much can change over 20 yrs....when Jacob left, Esau wanted to kill him -- now they rejoice at meeting. Kinda a funny note -- when I first wrote that Esau "meet and weep", I thought of the old "meet and greet". I wonder what would happen if someone made a sign that said "meet and weep" instead of "meet and greet"....lol.
Genesis 34
vs 1-5: Dinah is defiled by Shechem
vs 6-31: The relatives of Shechem realize that wrong was done and agree to make it right -- Simeon and Levi lie and say that Shechem can marry Dinah if all are circumcised; however, instead, Simeon and Levi are angry, and slaughter the people, and pillaged everything -- took all the sheep, gold, etc.
Kinda an interesting story. Simeon and Levi are both interesting characters....I wonder why they didn't keep the promise they'd made -- how could they be soo angry?
Genesis 35
vs1-20: Covenants are renewed; Rachel dies and Benjamin is born.
vs 21-29 -- Generations of Israel are delineated; Isaac dies.
Aww sad...I always feel bad for Jacob when I read this part...it's sad that Rachel, who he loved the most, had to die... :(
Genesis 36
vs1-43: Generations of Esau.
Again, very cool that we have these records!
Genesis 37
vs 1-36: Joseph's brothers are jealous of him; he dreams of the sheaves, and of the sun, moon, and stars worshipping him; he is sent to check on his brothers; as they see him coming, they plot against him; Judah keeps them from killing him; he's cast into a pit, and sold to the Midianites, who sell him to Potiphar.
This story's very interesting....the brothers were also jealous because Joseph, the second youngest, was actually the birthright son, after Reuben lost the right; Joseph is the birthright son because he's the firstborn of the second wife.
Genesis 38
vs 1-30; Judah has 3 sons; Er an Onan are wicked, and slain; Tamar, Er's wife, plays a harlot, and lies with Judah -- she brings forth twins.
An extreme example of how God punishes the wicked -- I wonder why he doesn't do that anymore....of course, doing so would probably mean wiping out most of the world's population, which would probably cause several problems....still, it makes me wonder why God was soo quick to kill people when they were disobedient.....
Genesis 39
vs1-23: Joseph finds favor in Potiphar's eyes, and is essentially over all his house. Potiphar's wife tempts him; when Joseph finally flees, and leaves his garment, Potiphar's wife lies, and says that Joseph was coming on to her, instead of the other way around -- Potiphar throws him in prison, when Joseph had really said "how then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?"
I wonder why Potiphar believed his wife over Joseph....I mean, sure, she was his wife, but hadn't Joseph proven himself to be trustworthy. This shows that even the extremely righteous will have to suffer tribulations. I'm kinda hoping I don't have to go through as much as Joseph though - -betrayed by his brothers, thrown in prison for many years, 7 years of famine -- sheesh -- also shows how hard Satan can work to try and pull us down -- kudos to Joseph for remaining faithful!
Genesis 40
vs 1-23: Joseph is kinda put in charge of the prison; he interprets the dreams of the baker and the butler, both of which come to pass; the butler eventually forgets about him.
It's amazing how a really bad thing can turn into a good thing. Joseph's put in prison, but it sounds like he kinda had the run of the place -- he probably still had restrictions, but sounds like it was much better than just lying on a dirty floor all the time. Again, I feel bad for him though -- he'd told the butler that he'd be restored to his position, which I'm sure made him very happy, but then he had to go and forget the poor guy! Oh well -- shows that Joseph knew that all things would work out -- he had great faith in God!
Again, sorry for not posting yesterday -- I promise I'll do my best so that it doesn't happen again.
~Praise His Name!
Also, I have very little time before my bed-time, so don't expect much...
Genesis 31
vs 1-16: Laban's sons are mad because Jacob is getting such a good flock by using his trick with the rods; God appears to him and promises him great blessings; Rachel and Leah tell him to do whatever God commanded him.
vs17-24: Jacob and family flee; Rachel takes her father's images.
vs 25-35: Laban chases them, and is angry; he searches all the tents; Rachel has them, but pretends that the "custom of women" is upon her.
vs 36-42 -- Jacob asks what his sin is; says that God's seen the trials of Jacob and rebuked Laban.
vs 43-55: They make a covenant; Laban departs after blessing his sons and daughters; they make a heap as a witness -- Jacob calls it Galeed; Laban calls it Jegar-sahadutha.
This is a great example of how God will take vengeance on the righteous who are treated wrongfully. He's seen Jacob's trials, and promises to deliver him from them. Awesomeness!
Genesis 32
vs 1-5: God meets with Jacob; Jacob sends messengers to his brother Esau.
vs 6-8: They return saying that Esau is coming w/ 400 men; Jacob's afraid, and divides his flocks, etc into two groups.
vs9-12: He prays for deliverance, and remembers how the Lord had promised to do him good.
vs 13-23: he sets aside goats and rams, etc, for a gift for Esau, because he wants to appease him. They're sent over the brook.
vs 24-32: Jacob wrestles with a man(according to his chapter, it was God), day and night. Jacob's name is now Israel; He calls the place Peniel, because he saw God face to face; the children of Israel don't eat the sinew that shrank.
A great example of God being with the righteous. It's interesting how it says that Jacob wrestled w/ the man...i wonder if that's the correct translation....
Genesis 33
vs 1-20: Jacob and Esau meet, and weep; Esau sees all that the Lord gave Jacob; Jacob insists on Esau taking the gift of goats, etc; Esau goes ahead, and Jacob follows -- they go to Seir. Jacob builds an altar when he comes to Shalem, a city of SHechem -- the altar is called El-elohe-Israel.
Not much to say -- it's amazing how much can change over 20 yrs....when Jacob left, Esau wanted to kill him -- now they rejoice at meeting. Kinda a funny note -- when I first wrote that Esau "meet and weep", I thought of the old "meet and greet". I wonder what would happen if someone made a sign that said "meet and weep" instead of "meet and greet"....lol.
Genesis 34
vs 1-5: Dinah is defiled by Shechem
vs 6-31: The relatives of Shechem realize that wrong was done and agree to make it right -- Simeon and Levi lie and say that Shechem can marry Dinah if all are circumcised; however, instead, Simeon and Levi are angry, and slaughter the people, and pillaged everything -- took all the sheep, gold, etc.
Kinda an interesting story. Simeon and Levi are both interesting characters....I wonder why they didn't keep the promise they'd made -- how could they be soo angry?
Genesis 35
vs1-20: Covenants are renewed; Rachel dies and Benjamin is born.
vs 21-29 -- Generations of Israel are delineated; Isaac dies.
Aww sad...I always feel bad for Jacob when I read this part...it's sad that Rachel, who he loved the most, had to die... :(
Genesis 36
vs1-43: Generations of Esau.
Again, very cool that we have these records!
Genesis 37
vs 1-36: Joseph's brothers are jealous of him; he dreams of the sheaves, and of the sun, moon, and stars worshipping him; he is sent to check on his brothers; as they see him coming, they plot against him; Judah keeps them from killing him; he's cast into a pit, and sold to the Midianites, who sell him to Potiphar.
This story's very interesting....the brothers were also jealous because Joseph, the second youngest, was actually the birthright son, after Reuben lost the right; Joseph is the birthright son because he's the firstborn of the second wife.
Genesis 38
vs 1-30; Judah has 3 sons; Er an Onan are wicked, and slain; Tamar, Er's wife, plays a harlot, and lies with Judah -- she brings forth twins.
An extreme example of how God punishes the wicked -- I wonder why he doesn't do that anymore....of course, doing so would probably mean wiping out most of the world's population, which would probably cause several problems....still, it makes me wonder why God was soo quick to kill people when they were disobedient.....
Genesis 39
vs1-23: Joseph finds favor in Potiphar's eyes, and is essentially over all his house. Potiphar's wife tempts him; when Joseph finally flees, and leaves his garment, Potiphar's wife lies, and says that Joseph was coming on to her, instead of the other way around -- Potiphar throws him in prison, when Joseph had really said "how then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?"
I wonder why Potiphar believed his wife over Joseph....I mean, sure, she was his wife, but hadn't Joseph proven himself to be trustworthy. This shows that even the extremely righteous will have to suffer tribulations. I'm kinda hoping I don't have to go through as much as Joseph though - -betrayed by his brothers, thrown in prison for many years, 7 years of famine -- sheesh -- also shows how hard Satan can work to try and pull us down -- kudos to Joseph for remaining faithful!
Genesis 40
vs 1-23: Joseph is kinda put in charge of the prison; he interprets the dreams of the baker and the butler, both of which come to pass; the butler eventually forgets about him.
It's amazing how a really bad thing can turn into a good thing. Joseph's put in prison, but it sounds like he kinda had the run of the place -- he probably still had restrictions, but sounds like it was much better than just lying on a dirty floor all the time. Again, I feel bad for him though -- he'd told the butler that he'd be restored to his position, which I'm sure made him very happy, but then he had to go and forget the poor guy! Oh well -- shows that Joseph knew that all things would work out -- he had great faith in God!
Again, sorry for not posting yesterday -- I promise I'll do my best so that it doesn't happen again.
~Praise His Name!
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Genesis 21-30
ello! Sorry for my late start once again -- I promise it'll get better! I just spend 2 hours on chemistry, and my brain is fried, so, once again, there'll be very little commentary -- very sorry.
Genesis 21
vs 1-5: Isaac is born and circumcised when Abraham is 100.
vs9-11: Hagar and Ishmael mock him; Ishmael won't be heir with Isaac.
vs 12-21: Hagar and Ishmael leave and live in the wilderness.
vs-22-32: Abraham and Abimelech argue about some wells; Abraham sends lambs as a witness that it's his well.
vs 33-34: Abraham plants a grove in Beer-sheba, and prays to God.
This is a great example of how God keeps his promises to us. It would've been very easy for Sarah and Abraham to doubt that God would ever give them a son, and yet He still did! It's also a great example of faith in God -- they had to believe; also, at the end, Abraham worships God -- evidence of his belief in him.
Genesis 22
vs1-14: Abraham commanded to sacrifice Isaac; he agrees, and goes to the mount; right before he kills Isaac, the Lord intervenes, and provides a ram.
vs15-20: The Lord renews his covenant with Abraham; they go back home.
vs20-24: Abraham's relative Milcah bears children; they are listed.
Wow! What kind of faith would it take to sacrifice your only son, who is the only way that God's promises to you will be fulfilled? Plus, Abraham had waited sooo long for a son, and to be required to sacrifice him.....wow! I'm not sure I could do that....it's amazing how much faith he had. Talk about doing hard things (see Alex and Brett Harris's book, Do Hard Things)....It also shows that the Lord will come through for us, if we are willing to do ALL that he commands us.
Genesis 23
vs 1-2: Sarah dies at 127.
vs 3-16: Abraham buys a grave for her from Ephron, the son of Zohar; Ephron's willing to just give a field to Abraham, but Abraham insists on buying it.
vs 17-20 -- Sarah is buried in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre; or Hebron.
Aww...sad! Abraham must've been really sad when Sarah died...especially since it was probably soon after he'd almost had to kill Isaac. I thought it was interesting that Abraham insisted on paying for the field....I wonder why?
Genesis 24
vs 1-67: Long chapter, but well known story -- Abraham is old, so he tells his servant to make sure that Isaac doesn't marry outside the church. His servant goes to Abraham's family, and asks the Lord to let him know who Isaac should marry -- she'll be the one who gives both him and his camel drink. It turns out to be Rebekah, Laban's sister. The servant explains everything, and asks if Rebekah can go back with him. She agrees, and sees Isaac meditating as they approach the house.
I love Genesis! It's full of soo many examples of faith! Abraham had faith that his servant would find a good wife for Isaac; the servant had faith that the Lord would reveal to him who Isaac should marry. However, I'm mainly impressed with Rebekah -- here comes this strange person, saying that his master wants to find someone for his son to marry, and wants her to go back with him, probably a long way. It would take soo much faith to leave her family, and create a whole new life with someone she'd never met. I don't know if I could do that.....I wish I could have that kind of faith. One other interesting thing -- I thought it was interesting that Isaac had gone out to meditate -- show's that meditation might have a spiritual root -- maybe I'll have to try meditating more often....
Genesis 25
vs 1-5: Abraham marries again and has more sons
vs 6-11: Abraham gives everything to Isaac, and sends the sons of the concubines east; after Abraham dies, the Lord blesses isaac.
vs 12-18: seed of Ishamel is listed
vs 19-23 -- Rebekah was barren; Isaac prays for her; she has twins.
vs 24-28 -- Jacob and Esau are born; Esau's a hunter, and Jacob a plain man.
vs 29-34 -- Esau sells his birthright to Jacob for pottage, and thus despises his birthright.
An instance of when God blesses the righteous -- He blessed Rebekah with twins. I do wonder why Esau despised his birthright. He would've gotten a double portion of the inheritance, and would've had to take care of his mother. I wonder if he just didn't want the responsibility....
Genesis 26
vs 1-33: famine in the land; Isaac follows Abraham's example and says that Rebekah is his sister when forced to go to Gerar; they figure out that she's his wife; Abimelech and Isaac's servants argue about wells; they make an oath not to hurt each other.
vs 34-35: Esau marries Judith and Bashemath, the Hittites, thus grieving his parents.
Not much to say.....other than: don't follow Esau's example! Marry within the covenant -- you'll receive much more blessings. If you marry outside the church, you don't get to be married for eternity, and you lose the chance to become like God, unless your spouse eventually joins the church, and you're married in the temple.
Genesis 27
vs1-46: Jacob receives Esau's blessing from Isaac -- Rebekah tells Jacob how to trick his father into thinking that he's Esau -- Esau is angry, and begs his father for a blessing. After his, he hates Jacob, and tries to kill him; thus, Jacob flees, at the urging of Rebekah.
I've always thought this was an interesting story. God had told Rebekah earlier that Jacob would be greater than Esau, but I wonder how He felt about Rebekah encouraging Jacob to deceive his father. It seems like He'd look down on that. If it was meant to be, surely it could've happened in another way that didn't require deceit.....of course, there is the story of Nephi and Laban(1 Nephi, in the Book of Mormon) -- the only way for Nephi to get the plates was to kill Laban -- by killing one, he saved a nation, and made sure that his seed would have the word of God. Still.....
Genesis 28
vs 1-5: Isaac talks to Jacob before he leaves, and makes him promise not to marry a Canaanite; he goes to Laban, Rebekah's brother.
vs 6-9: Esau marries a Canaanite, just because he saw that it displeased his father.
vs10-15: Jacob's ladder -- he sees it as he journeys to Haran; angels go up and down it from heaven; God promises to multiply his seed; God will not leave Jacob until He's done all that He's promised him.
vs16-22 - Jacob realized the Lord is in that place, and he builds a pillar; the place was called Luz, now Jacob calls it Bethel. Jacob promises to give the 10th part of everything he has to the Lord, if the Lord will be with him and let him come back to his fathers house.
This chapter is very interesting -- on the one hand, you have Esau, who chooses to wilfully be disobedient, and then Jacob, who see's a ladder with angels on it. I think God must've been really displeased with Esau -- why would he be so wilfully disobedient? That's defiance to the extreme! I love the story of Jacob's ladder; vs 22 is very interesting -- It looks like this is where the law of tithing is first instituted -- that's way cool! I didn't know we actually had a record of when that law was instituted....awesome!
Genesis 29
vs 1-35: Jacob comes to Laban's house; sees Rachel, and agrees to serve Laban for 7 years so he can marry her. After 7 years, Laban gives Jacob Leah instead; after a week, he gives Jacob Rachel as well, but Jacob has to serve another 7 years. Leah's handmaid is Zilpah, and Rachel's is Bilhah; Leah bears 4 sons -- Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah.
Aww...talk about a romantic story!! Jacob must've reallly loved Rachel, if he was willing to spend 14 years serving Laban, just so he could marry her. I probably would've given up 1/2 way through the first seven years, and tried to find someone who was less valued by her father. Still....it shows how much he thought Rachel was worth. I would hate to have been Jacob when he realizes that Laban tricked him at first -- I would be so mad. It shows great faith on Jacob's part, to not really be angry, but to accept it and do what he has to in order to get Rachel.
Genesis 30
vs 1-13:Rachel's barren, so gives Jacob Bilhah, who bears Dan and Naphtali; Leah gives Jacob Zilpah, who bears Gad and Asher.
vs 14-21 -- Rachel wants mandrakes -- agrees to let Leah lie with Jacob in exchange for them; Leah bares Issachar, Zebulun, and a daughter Dinah.
vs 22-24: Rachel is blessed with a son -- Joseph.
vs 25-36: Laban and Jacob make a deal -- Jacob gets all the ringstraked, etc cattle, and Laban the unblemished ones; Jacob still takes care of all flocks.
vs 37-43: Jacob uses rods of green poplar, hazel, and chestnut trees to make sure that he gets the healthier cattle.
Not much to say.....whenever I read 37-43, I always think that Jacob must've been really smart -- how would he know that these rods would cause the cattle to be speckled, etc? God must've blessed him -- shows how God will bless the righteous.
Well, until tomorrow, Praise His Name!
Genesis 21
vs 1-5: Isaac is born and circumcised when Abraham is 100.
vs9-11: Hagar and Ishmael mock him; Ishmael won't be heir with Isaac.
vs 12-21: Hagar and Ishmael leave and live in the wilderness.
vs-22-32: Abraham and Abimelech argue about some wells; Abraham sends lambs as a witness that it's his well.
vs 33-34: Abraham plants a grove in Beer-sheba, and prays to God.
This is a great example of how God keeps his promises to us. It would've been very easy for Sarah and Abraham to doubt that God would ever give them a son, and yet He still did! It's also a great example of faith in God -- they had to believe; also, at the end, Abraham worships God -- evidence of his belief in him.
Genesis 22
vs1-14: Abraham commanded to sacrifice Isaac; he agrees, and goes to the mount; right before he kills Isaac, the Lord intervenes, and provides a ram.
vs15-20: The Lord renews his covenant with Abraham; they go back home.
vs20-24: Abraham's relative Milcah bears children; they are listed.
Wow! What kind of faith would it take to sacrifice your only son, who is the only way that God's promises to you will be fulfilled? Plus, Abraham had waited sooo long for a son, and to be required to sacrifice him.....wow! I'm not sure I could do that....it's amazing how much faith he had. Talk about doing hard things (see Alex and Brett Harris's book, Do Hard Things)....It also shows that the Lord will come through for us, if we are willing to do ALL that he commands us.
Genesis 23
vs 1-2: Sarah dies at 127.
vs 3-16: Abraham buys a grave for her from Ephron, the son of Zohar; Ephron's willing to just give a field to Abraham, but Abraham insists on buying it.
vs 17-20 -- Sarah is buried in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre; or Hebron.
Aww...sad! Abraham must've been really sad when Sarah died...especially since it was probably soon after he'd almost had to kill Isaac. I thought it was interesting that Abraham insisted on paying for the field....I wonder why?
Genesis 24
vs 1-67: Long chapter, but well known story -- Abraham is old, so he tells his servant to make sure that Isaac doesn't marry outside the church. His servant goes to Abraham's family, and asks the Lord to let him know who Isaac should marry -- she'll be the one who gives both him and his camel drink. It turns out to be Rebekah, Laban's sister. The servant explains everything, and asks if Rebekah can go back with him. She agrees, and sees Isaac meditating as they approach the house.
I love Genesis! It's full of soo many examples of faith! Abraham had faith that his servant would find a good wife for Isaac; the servant had faith that the Lord would reveal to him who Isaac should marry. However, I'm mainly impressed with Rebekah -- here comes this strange person, saying that his master wants to find someone for his son to marry, and wants her to go back with him, probably a long way. It would take soo much faith to leave her family, and create a whole new life with someone she'd never met. I don't know if I could do that.....I wish I could have that kind of faith. One other interesting thing -- I thought it was interesting that Isaac had gone out to meditate -- show's that meditation might have a spiritual root -- maybe I'll have to try meditating more often....
Genesis 25
vs 1-5: Abraham marries again and has more sons
vs 6-11: Abraham gives everything to Isaac, and sends the sons of the concubines east; after Abraham dies, the Lord blesses isaac.
vs 12-18: seed of Ishamel is listed
vs 19-23 -- Rebekah was barren; Isaac prays for her; she has twins.
vs 24-28 -- Jacob and Esau are born; Esau's a hunter, and Jacob a plain man.
vs 29-34 -- Esau sells his birthright to Jacob for pottage, and thus despises his birthright.
An instance of when God blesses the righteous -- He blessed Rebekah with twins. I do wonder why Esau despised his birthright. He would've gotten a double portion of the inheritance, and would've had to take care of his mother. I wonder if he just didn't want the responsibility....
Genesis 26
vs 1-33: famine in the land; Isaac follows Abraham's example and says that Rebekah is his sister when forced to go to Gerar; they figure out that she's his wife; Abimelech and Isaac's servants argue about wells; they make an oath not to hurt each other.
vs 34-35: Esau marries Judith and Bashemath, the Hittites, thus grieving his parents.
Not much to say.....other than: don't follow Esau's example! Marry within the covenant -- you'll receive much more blessings. If you marry outside the church, you don't get to be married for eternity, and you lose the chance to become like God, unless your spouse eventually joins the church, and you're married in the temple.
Genesis 27
vs1-46: Jacob receives Esau's blessing from Isaac -- Rebekah tells Jacob how to trick his father into thinking that he's Esau -- Esau is angry, and begs his father for a blessing. After his, he hates Jacob, and tries to kill him; thus, Jacob flees, at the urging of Rebekah.
I've always thought this was an interesting story. God had told Rebekah earlier that Jacob would be greater than Esau, but I wonder how He felt about Rebekah encouraging Jacob to deceive his father. It seems like He'd look down on that. If it was meant to be, surely it could've happened in another way that didn't require deceit.....of course, there is the story of Nephi and Laban(1 Nephi, in the Book of Mormon) -- the only way for Nephi to get the plates was to kill Laban -- by killing one, he saved a nation, and made sure that his seed would have the word of God. Still.....
Genesis 28
vs 1-5: Isaac talks to Jacob before he leaves, and makes him promise not to marry a Canaanite; he goes to Laban, Rebekah's brother.
vs 6-9: Esau marries a Canaanite, just because he saw that it displeased his father.
vs10-15: Jacob's ladder -- he sees it as he journeys to Haran; angels go up and down it from heaven; God promises to multiply his seed; God will not leave Jacob until He's done all that He's promised him.
vs16-22 - Jacob realized the Lord is in that place, and he builds a pillar; the place was called Luz, now Jacob calls it Bethel. Jacob promises to give the 10th part of everything he has to the Lord, if the Lord will be with him and let him come back to his fathers house.
This chapter is very interesting -- on the one hand, you have Esau, who chooses to wilfully be disobedient, and then Jacob, who see's a ladder with angels on it. I think God must've been really displeased with Esau -- why would he be so wilfully disobedient? That's defiance to the extreme! I love the story of Jacob's ladder; vs 22 is very interesting -- It looks like this is where the law of tithing is first instituted -- that's way cool! I didn't know we actually had a record of when that law was instituted....awesome!
Genesis 29
vs 1-35: Jacob comes to Laban's house; sees Rachel, and agrees to serve Laban for 7 years so he can marry her. After 7 years, Laban gives Jacob Leah instead; after a week, he gives Jacob Rachel as well, but Jacob has to serve another 7 years. Leah's handmaid is Zilpah, and Rachel's is Bilhah; Leah bears 4 sons -- Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah.
Aww...talk about a romantic story!! Jacob must've reallly loved Rachel, if he was willing to spend 14 years serving Laban, just so he could marry her. I probably would've given up 1/2 way through the first seven years, and tried to find someone who was less valued by her father. Still....it shows how much he thought Rachel was worth. I would hate to have been Jacob when he realizes that Laban tricked him at first -- I would be so mad. It shows great faith on Jacob's part, to not really be angry, but to accept it and do what he has to in order to get Rachel.
Genesis 30
vs 1-13:Rachel's barren, so gives Jacob Bilhah, who bears Dan and Naphtali; Leah gives Jacob Zilpah, who bears Gad and Asher.
vs 14-21 -- Rachel wants mandrakes -- agrees to let Leah lie with Jacob in exchange for them; Leah bares Issachar, Zebulun, and a daughter Dinah.
vs 22-24: Rachel is blessed with a son -- Joseph.
vs 25-36: Laban and Jacob make a deal -- Jacob gets all the ringstraked, etc cattle, and Laban the unblemished ones; Jacob still takes care of all flocks.
vs 37-43: Jacob uses rods of green poplar, hazel, and chestnut trees to make sure that he gets the healthier cattle.
Not much to say.....whenever I read 37-43, I always think that Jacob must've been really smart -- how would he know that these rods would cause the cattle to be speckled, etc? God must've blessed him -- shows how God will bless the righteous.
Well, until tomorrow, Praise His Name!
Friday, November 25, 2011
Genesis 11-20
Okay, here we go -- here's hoping this doesn't take more than an hour. I'm kinda getting a late start today, so, it probably won't be the best.....
Genesis 11
vs 1-9 -- Story of the tower of Babel -- languages are counfounded, and people are scattered.
vs 10-26 -- generations of Shem, down to Terah, Abraham's(or, as the was then called, Abram) father.
vs 27-32 - Abram's siblings, etc -- Lot's dad is Haran; Terah and family move to land of Canaan; Terah lives to be 205.
It's amazing how long people used to live! I wish I could live to be 205. There's another example here of how God punishes the unrighteous. I also thought it was interesting that God thought that the people would be able to do everything that they imagine(vs 6).
Genesis 12
vs 1-5 -- the Lord makes a covenant with Abraham, and tells him to depart; Abram leaves, and they go to the land of Canaan.
vs 6-9 -- they come to the place of Sichem; God promises to give the land of Canaan to Abraham; he continues traveling to the south.
vs 10-13 -- Abram goes down to Egypt, and tells Sarai to say that she's his sister, rather than his wife.
vs14-20 -- Sarai does that; Egyptians think she's fair; Pharaoh's house is plagued b/c of Sarai; Pharaoh gets mad b/c Abram lies, and sends him away.
It was cool that God made a covenant with Abram. I was impressed that Abram followed the Lord's direction to move to a new place -- it must've taken a lot of faith.
Genesis 13
vs1-4 -- Abram journeys to bethel, to the altar he first made.
vs 5-13 -- Lot and Abram argue -- Lot takes the land of Jordan as his own, where Sodom and Gomorrah were, because the land looks good. Abram dwells in Canaan, and Lot near Sodom, where the people are wicked.
vs14 - 18 -- God promises to give Abram the land east, north, south, and west; his seed will be as the dust of the earth; the length and breadth of the land are given to Abram
I love all the promises that God gives Abraham -- what would it be like, to know that you'll have as many posterity as the dust of the earth? That's amazing! Of course, in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, we believe that we are descended from Abram, and thus also heirs to the Abrahamic covenant. I can't wait to see the fulfilment of this.
Genesis 14
vs 1-12 -- People go to war; they end up taking the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and their victuals; they also take Lot, and his goods.
vs 13-16 -- Abram is told off this; he took 318 of his servants, and pursued those who took Lot, and brought him and his goods back.
vs 17-24 -- Melchizedek blesses Abraham; the King of Sodom tells him to take the goods to himself; Abram says no, but his servants get to take their portion.
This illustrates that God is willing to help those who are faithful to him when they are in difficult situations -- He blessed Lot, who was righteous, and delivered him from those that took him. It also shows that God can use other people to help us -- in this case, he used Abraham to deliver him.
Genesis 15
vs 1-20 -- God promises to give Abraham a son, even though he and Sarah had not been able to have children. Abraham also offers sacrifices; God promises to give Abraham the land of the Hittites, Perizzites, and many other people.
It's amazing how generous God can be -- he promised to give Abraham soo much -- it shows that, if we are righteous, God will do anything and everything for us.
Genesis 16
vs 1-3 -- Sarah gives Abraham Hagar to wife.
vs 4-6 -- Hagar conceives; Hagar despised her mistress, so Sarah dealt hardly with her.
vs 7-14 -- Hagar flees; the Lord's angel finds her in the wilderness, and promises that her seed will be multiplied; her son will be a wild man; the well that she was by was called Beer-lahai-roi; between Kadesh and Bered.
vs15-16 -- Hagar bare Abram a son, and called his name Ishmael; Abraham was 80.
It's amazing how God knows everyone -- he knew where Hagar was, and blessed her as well.
Genesis 17
vs1-8 -- when Abram was 99, God changed his name to Abraham; he'll be fruitful, and nations will come out of him; God makes his covenant with him -- God will be the God of his posterity.
vs 9-14 -- circumcision is established; God tells Abraham to keep his covenant;
vs 15-22 -- Sarai's name changed to Sarah; she'll be blessed to be a mother of nations; sarah will bear a son, and call his name Isaac. Ishmael will also have 12 princes come from him.
vs 23-27 -- all of Abraham's house is circumcised; Abraham was 99 when he was circumcised.
Again, awesome promises made to Abraham!
Genesis 18
vs 1-15 - -three men(angels) come to Abraham, and promise that Sarah will bear a son; they eat while at Abraham's. Sarah laughs, the angels know, and she denies it.
vs 16-22 -- The men look to Sodom and Gomorrah, and tell Abraham that they'll be destroyed.
vs 23-33 -- Abraham pleads with the Lord, who eventuallly agrees to not destroy Sodom and Gomorrah if there are 10 righteous -- Abraham started at 50, and gradually went down to 10.
I love the second 1/2 of this chapter -- it shows that the Lord is willing to be merciful if there's even very few people who are righteous.
Genesis 19
vs 1-11 -- 2 men come to warn Lot that Sodom and Gomorrah will be destroyed; the men of Sodom and Gomorrah come and want them; Lot offers his daughters in exchange for them not hurting the men. When the wicked men try to take them, the angels make them blind.
vs 12-14 -- Lot and his daughters leave; his sons mock him
vs 15-16 -- Lot and his family are taken outside the city.
vs 17-22 -- they escape to the city of Zoar.
vs 23-16 -- the Lord destroys Sodom and Gomorrah; Lot's wife looks back and is turned to salt.
vs 27-29 -- Abraham sees the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah; the Lord remembers him.
vs 30-38 -- Lot's daughters lie with him, and each bear a son -- Ben-ammi, and Moab.
It's great the the Lord chooses to warn the righteous of what he'll do before it actually happens.
Genesis 20
vs1-18 -- Abraham and Abimelech -- once again, Abraham tells Sarah to say she's his sister; Abimelech is warned by the Lord not to touch Sarah; she's the daughter of Abraham's father, but not mother; Abimelech gives sheep, etc to Abraham; the Lord removes the curse of barrenness that he put on the women in Abimelech's house.
This shows that if we do righteous, God will be merciful, and if wer're unrighteous, God will take action against us.
So, sorry for the virtual lack of commentary. I'll do better tomorrow.
~Praise His Name
Genesis 11
vs 1-9 -- Story of the tower of Babel -- languages are counfounded, and people are scattered.
vs 10-26 -- generations of Shem, down to Terah, Abraham's(or, as the was then called, Abram) father.
vs 27-32 - Abram's siblings, etc -- Lot's dad is Haran; Terah and family move to land of Canaan; Terah lives to be 205.
It's amazing how long people used to live! I wish I could live to be 205. There's another example here of how God punishes the unrighteous. I also thought it was interesting that God thought that the people would be able to do everything that they imagine(vs 6).
Genesis 12
vs 1-5 -- the Lord makes a covenant with Abraham, and tells him to depart; Abram leaves, and they go to the land of Canaan.
vs 6-9 -- they come to the place of Sichem; God promises to give the land of Canaan to Abraham; he continues traveling to the south.
vs 10-13 -- Abram goes down to Egypt, and tells Sarai to say that she's his sister, rather than his wife.
vs14-20 -- Sarai does that; Egyptians think she's fair; Pharaoh's house is plagued b/c of Sarai; Pharaoh gets mad b/c Abram lies, and sends him away.
It was cool that God made a covenant with Abram. I was impressed that Abram followed the Lord's direction to move to a new place -- it must've taken a lot of faith.
Genesis 13
vs1-4 -- Abram journeys to bethel, to the altar he first made.
vs 5-13 -- Lot and Abram argue -- Lot takes the land of Jordan as his own, where Sodom and Gomorrah were, because the land looks good. Abram dwells in Canaan, and Lot near Sodom, where the people are wicked.
vs14 - 18 -- God promises to give Abram the land east, north, south, and west; his seed will be as the dust of the earth; the length and breadth of the land are given to Abram
I love all the promises that God gives Abraham -- what would it be like, to know that you'll have as many posterity as the dust of the earth? That's amazing! Of course, in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, we believe that we are descended from Abram, and thus also heirs to the Abrahamic covenant. I can't wait to see the fulfilment of this.
Genesis 14
vs 1-12 -- People go to war; they end up taking the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and their victuals; they also take Lot, and his goods.
vs 13-16 -- Abram is told off this; he took 318 of his servants, and pursued those who took Lot, and brought him and his goods back.
vs 17-24 -- Melchizedek blesses Abraham; the King of Sodom tells him to take the goods to himself; Abram says no, but his servants get to take their portion.
This illustrates that God is willing to help those who are faithful to him when they are in difficult situations -- He blessed Lot, who was righteous, and delivered him from those that took him. It also shows that God can use other people to help us -- in this case, he used Abraham to deliver him.
Genesis 15
vs 1-20 -- God promises to give Abraham a son, even though he and Sarah had not been able to have children. Abraham also offers sacrifices; God promises to give Abraham the land of the Hittites, Perizzites, and many other people.
It's amazing how generous God can be -- he promised to give Abraham soo much -- it shows that, if we are righteous, God will do anything and everything for us.
Genesis 16
vs 1-3 -- Sarah gives Abraham Hagar to wife.
vs 4-6 -- Hagar conceives; Hagar despised her mistress, so Sarah dealt hardly with her.
vs 7-14 -- Hagar flees; the Lord's angel finds her in the wilderness, and promises that her seed will be multiplied; her son will be a wild man; the well that she was by was called Beer-lahai-roi; between Kadesh and Bered.
vs15-16 -- Hagar bare Abram a son, and called his name Ishmael; Abraham was 80.
It's amazing how God knows everyone -- he knew where Hagar was, and blessed her as well.
Genesis 17
vs1-8 -- when Abram was 99, God changed his name to Abraham; he'll be fruitful, and nations will come out of him; God makes his covenant with him -- God will be the God of his posterity.
vs 9-14 -- circumcision is established; God tells Abraham to keep his covenant;
vs 15-22 -- Sarai's name changed to Sarah; she'll be blessed to be a mother of nations; sarah will bear a son, and call his name Isaac. Ishmael will also have 12 princes come from him.
vs 23-27 -- all of Abraham's house is circumcised; Abraham was 99 when he was circumcised.
Again, awesome promises made to Abraham!
Genesis 18
vs 1-15 - -three men(angels) come to Abraham, and promise that Sarah will bear a son; they eat while at Abraham's. Sarah laughs, the angels know, and she denies it.
vs 16-22 -- The men look to Sodom and Gomorrah, and tell Abraham that they'll be destroyed.
vs 23-33 -- Abraham pleads with the Lord, who eventuallly agrees to not destroy Sodom and Gomorrah if there are 10 righteous -- Abraham started at 50, and gradually went down to 10.
I love the second 1/2 of this chapter -- it shows that the Lord is willing to be merciful if there's even very few people who are righteous.
Genesis 19
vs 1-11 -- 2 men come to warn Lot that Sodom and Gomorrah will be destroyed; the men of Sodom and Gomorrah come and want them; Lot offers his daughters in exchange for them not hurting the men. When the wicked men try to take them, the angels make them blind.
vs 12-14 -- Lot and his daughters leave; his sons mock him
vs 15-16 -- Lot and his family are taken outside the city.
vs 17-22 -- they escape to the city of Zoar.
vs 23-16 -- the Lord destroys Sodom and Gomorrah; Lot's wife looks back and is turned to salt.
vs 27-29 -- Abraham sees the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah; the Lord remembers him.
vs 30-38 -- Lot's daughters lie with him, and each bear a son -- Ben-ammi, and Moab.
It's great the the Lord chooses to warn the righteous of what he'll do before it actually happens.
Genesis 20
vs1-18 -- Abraham and Abimelech -- once again, Abraham tells Sarah to say she's his sister; Abimelech is warned by the Lord not to touch Sarah; she's the daughter of Abraham's father, but not mother; Abimelech gives sheep, etc to Abraham; the Lord removes the curse of barrenness that he put on the women in Abimelech's house.
This shows that if we do righteous, God will be merciful, and if wer're unrighteous, God will take action against us.
So, sorry for the virtual lack of commentary. I'll do better tomorrow.
~Praise His Name
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Trial 1
ello! So, before I commit to doing this daily, I'm doing a trial run to see how long it'll take. I plan to cover 10 chapters of the Bible daily so that I can complete it before registrataion for the 2012 National Bible Bee opens. We'll see if that actually works......
So, without further ado, here are my notes for Genesis 1-10, as well as reasons to praise God that I've found while reading.
Genesis 1
1st Day: light and dark
2nd Day: Divides waters above from waters below
3rd Day: Dry land appears; grass and herbs and fruit created
4th Day: Sun, Moon, and Stars
5th Day: Ocean creatures and fowls of the air
6th Day: Earth brings forth living creatures -- cattle, creeping things, etc. God creates man in his own image, and gives them dominion over the earth.
I thought it was very interesting that God created man in his own image. It makes me realize that whenever I look at another human being, I get a small glimpse of what God looks like -- amazing. I'ts also very....humbling....to realize that God gave us dominion over everything on earth. It shows that he must trust us greatly, to give us that much responsibility. It makes me wonder what he thinks when he sees all of the pollution, and how we've driven some species to extinction. Here's hoping we can turn things around.
Genesis 2
I actually memorized the first four verses of this chapter, as part of this years Bible Bee Memory verses.....
vs:1-4 -- Heaven and earth are finished; God rests, and thus blesses the seventh day.
vs5-6 -- God made everything before they had grown; He causes a mist to go up from the ground.
vs7 -- Man is formed of the dust of the earth; the breath of life is breathed into his nostrils, and he becomes a living soul.
vs8-14 -- God plants the Garden in Eden (hmm....was the earth formerly called Eden? makes you go hmmm.....); rivers go out from Eden -- Pison, Gihon, Hiddekel, and Euphrates.
vs15-17 -- don't eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil
vs 18-25 -- God forms the woman; Adam names all creatures; man should leave father and mother, and cleave to his wife.
I thought it was very interesting that God realized that man should not be alone, but that he needed some help. I noticed that it was a woman that he created, rather than another man. Right from the start, you get an idea of what God's idea is about homosexuality. The best thing to help a man is a woman, and, we can infer, vice versa. It gives me more insight into why He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah -- they went against the order that he had established since the very beginning. I imagine that He felt as though they were acting like they knew better than He did. As if that could ever happen -- what do we know, compared to an omniscient God? Praise God that we have scriptures so we can know his views.
Genesis 3
vs 1-5 -- the serpent beguiles the woman, telling her that if they eat the fruit, they'll be like God.
vs6-7 -- They eat, realize they're naked, and cover themselves with fig leaves.
vs8-13 -- God calls for Adam, who hides from him because Adam knew that he was naked; God asks him if he ate the fruit -- he blames the woman, who in turn blames the serpent.
vs14-15 -- serpent is cursed, and there's enmity between the serpent's seed, and the woman's seed.
vs 16-19 -- Eve will bear children in her sorrow; Adam will till the ground, which will bring forth thorns and thistles; eat bread in sweat of face.
vs20-21 -- Adam's wive is Eve, because she's the mother of all living; God makes them coats of skins.
vs 22-24 -- God drives them out from the garden, lest they should eat of the tree of life, and live forever. A flaming sword was placed to keep them from the tree of life.
I thought it was very interesting, in vs 14-15, that God says the serpent will bruise man's heel, and man the serpent's head. I remembred that in most stories of snake bites, the snake usually bites near the bottom of the leg -- aka the heel. Also, in killing snakes, people will usually hit it on the head, or cut off the head. I know there was more symbolism than that, but it's still interesting. I know, in terms of symbolism, 'bruising the head' refers to Christ, who has ultimate victory over Satan, or the serpent. I'm so grateful that Christ was willing to die for us, and that God loves us enough to give him up.
Genesis 4
vs 1-8 – Eve bears Cain and Abel; God respects Abel’s offering, but not Cain; Cain is angry – Lord tells him that he should do well – instead, he kills Abel.
Vs 9-12 – the Lord asks Cain where his brother is, and tells him that Abel’s blood cries out to him from the dust – Cain is then cursed – the earth won’t yield it’s fruit fully, and he’ll be a vagabond.
Vs13-15 – Cain realizes that anyone who finds him will kill him; the Lord says that if anyone kills Cain, vengeance will be taken on him 7 fold.
Vs16-18 – Cain’s wife bears a son; they build a city; Enoch has children and grand children.
Vs 19-24 – Lamech, Cain’s grandchild, kills someone; he has 2 wives – Adah, and Zillah, and sons Jabal and Tubal-cain; Lamech will be avenged 70 and 7 fold.
Vs 25-26 – Eve bears Seth, who’s son is Enos – after Enos is born, men call upon the Lord.
The story of Cain and Abel illustrates a basic principle – if we do well, God will bless and accept us; if we don’t do well, if we sin, we will be punished. If only today’s world would realize that – there would be much less evil in the world. If people realized that all of their acts have a consequence attached to them, they’d be much less likely to do wrong. It’s cool that this principle has been illustrated since almost the beginning of time – it helps prove it’s truthfulness.
Genesis 5
Vs1-32 – the generations of Adam, until Noah, are detailed. We learn that Methuselah, at 969, is the oldest person to have ever lived. Noah’s sons are Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Not much to comment on in this scripture. Praise God that we have a record of these generations. I’m guessing that this is where the idea of a “book of remembrance” comes from. It’s a good idea -- it’s amazing that although these people lived forever ago, we still have a record of them, and of how old they are.
Genesis 6
Vs1-3 – the Sons of God marry the daughters of men(sounds like marrying outside the covenant….); God’s spirit will not always strive with men, whose days will be 120 years.
Vs 4 – giants are in the earth
Vs 5-8 – God sees great wickedness, and it repents that Lord that he made men; He says that He’ll destroy man; however, Noah found grace in God’s eyes.
Vs 9-13 – God tells Noah that he’ll destroy the earth, because the earth was corrupt and filled with violence.
Vs 14-16 – a description of the ark.
Vs 17-22 – God will bring a flood on the earth, and establish his covenant with Noah. Noah should bring 2 of all animal into the ark.
I love the story of Noah. It illustrates God’s mercy. It shows that, if there are even a few people who are righteous, God will show mercy to them, and save them. It also shows that God can use people to show forth his power. He could have easily just taken them from the earth, and from the wickedness. Instead, he chose to show forth his power by saving them in the ark. One awesome example of God’s power – he truly is omnipotent.
Genesis 7
Vs 1-6 – God has found Noah and his house to be righteous; every clean beast and fowl taken by 7’s, and ever unclean beast by 2, into the ark. God will cause it to rain from 40 days/nights. Noah fulfilled God’s commandments.
Vs7-9 – the flood came 7 days after Noah had done this.
Vs 11-24 -- the flood comes; destroys all; Noah was 600 yrs old and 2 months. God shut them into the ark. The waters prevailed 15 cubits upward, and were on the earth for 150 days.
I love how this chapter points out that Noah did all that the Lord commanded him. It shows that even after we’ve obtained God’s favor, we should still continue to obey his words – especially if not doing so could cause us to be killed. However, I doubt that Noah obeyed God’s words simply because he was afraid that he’d be killed in the flood. No, I believe that Noah truly loved God, and sought to please him. It reminds me of a question that Brett Harris asked in one of his presentations at this year’s Bible Bee. He asked how often we did the right things simply because we trusted in God. I imagine that Noah’s answer would have been “often”, if not “always.”
Genesis 8
Vs 1-3 -- God remembers Noah, and the waters recede.
Vs 4-5 – the waters decrease daily, and the ark rests on the mountains of Ararat.
Vs 6-12 – Noah sends out a raven, and then a dove in order to see if the waters were receded enough so that they could come out of the ark. He sends the dove three times.
Vs 13-19 – Noah sees that the earth is dry – God tells him and his family to go out of the ark, and multiply abundantly. They, and all the animals, go out.
Vs 20-22 – Noah builds an altar; the Lord smells a sweet savor; he promises to never again smite every living thing. Seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night will not cease.
I love the first verse of this chapter. “And God remembered Noah, and every living thing….” I imagine that after close to 200 days, Noah would wonder if God had forgotten about him. He must’ve been really happy then, to see the waters begin to go down. This teaches me that God may allow us to go through hard times, and it may seem as though he’s forgotten us. However, God will never forget, and he’ll eventually come through for us. It may not be when or how we expect or want, but he will help us, and remember us.
Genesis 9
Vs 1-7 – God blesses Noah and his sons, commands them to multiply, and gives them all things; however, those who kill will be punished. God made man in His image.
Vs 8-17 – God makes a covenant with Noah, to never bring such a devastating flood on the earth again. He sets his bow in the cloud, as proof of this covenant. Whenever God sees the bow, he’ll remember his covenant.
Vs18-29 – Noah begins to be a husbandman, and has a vineyard; he get’s drunk, and is uncovered in his tent; Ham tells his brethren – they go and cover him up. God curses Ham and Canaan, but blesses Shem and Japheth. Noah lives 350 years after the flood – a total of 950.
One lesson that I learned from this is that we should not take advantage of others. Ham took advantage of his father – probably intending to make fun of him. By looking at the example of Shem and Japheth, we learn that we should not take part in ridiculing others. Rather, we should stand up for them. We’ll be blessed if we do well to others.
Genesis 10
Vs 1-32. Hmm – another chapter with 32 verses that details generations. The generations of the sons of Noah are detailed. One note of interest – Eber had two sons – Peleg, and Joktan. In the days of Peleg, the earth was divided…..I wonder what that means….
As with before, I’m grateful that we have the chance to know all the generations of Noah. It’s interesting to look at the different names. One name is Havilah – if we go back to Genesis 2, it’s interesting to see that Havilah was encompassed about by the river Pison. Within Havilah, there was gold, bdellium, and onyx. It makes me wonder what type of person Havilah was….
Well, there we go – the first 10 chapters of Genesis. Looks like this'll be longer, and take longer than I expected. Oh well -- we'll see how it goes! Sorry if I offend anyone with my comments. I’ve found that it’s better not to “fear man more than God” (Doctrine and Covenants 3:7)
Coming Tomorrow: Genesis 11-20.
~Praise His Name!
So, without further ado, here are my notes for Genesis 1-10, as well as reasons to praise God that I've found while reading.
Genesis 1
1st Day: light and dark
2nd Day: Divides waters above from waters below
3rd Day: Dry land appears; grass and herbs and fruit created
4th Day: Sun, Moon, and Stars
5th Day: Ocean creatures and fowls of the air
6th Day: Earth brings forth living creatures -- cattle, creeping things, etc. God creates man in his own image, and gives them dominion over the earth.
I thought it was very interesting that God created man in his own image. It makes me realize that whenever I look at another human being, I get a small glimpse of what God looks like -- amazing. I'ts also very....humbling....to realize that God gave us dominion over everything on earth. It shows that he must trust us greatly, to give us that much responsibility. It makes me wonder what he thinks when he sees all of the pollution, and how we've driven some species to extinction. Here's hoping we can turn things around.
Genesis 2
I actually memorized the first four verses of this chapter, as part of this years Bible Bee Memory verses.....
vs:1-4 -- Heaven and earth are finished; God rests, and thus blesses the seventh day.
vs5-6 -- God made everything before they had grown; He causes a mist to go up from the ground.
vs7 -- Man is formed of the dust of the earth; the breath of life is breathed into his nostrils, and he becomes a living soul.
vs8-14 -- God plants the Garden in Eden (hmm....was the earth formerly called Eden? makes you go hmmm.....); rivers go out from Eden -- Pison, Gihon, Hiddekel, and Euphrates.
vs15-17 -- don't eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil
vs 18-25 -- God forms the woman; Adam names all creatures; man should leave father and mother, and cleave to his wife.
I thought it was very interesting that God realized that man should not be alone, but that he needed some help. I noticed that it was a woman that he created, rather than another man. Right from the start, you get an idea of what God's idea is about homosexuality. The best thing to help a man is a woman, and, we can infer, vice versa. It gives me more insight into why He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah -- they went against the order that he had established since the very beginning. I imagine that He felt as though they were acting like they knew better than He did. As if that could ever happen -- what do we know, compared to an omniscient God? Praise God that we have scriptures so we can know his views.
Genesis 3
vs 1-5 -- the serpent beguiles the woman, telling her that if they eat the fruit, they'll be like God.
vs6-7 -- They eat, realize they're naked, and cover themselves with fig leaves.
vs8-13 -- God calls for Adam, who hides from him because Adam knew that he was naked; God asks him if he ate the fruit -- he blames the woman, who in turn blames the serpent.
vs14-15 -- serpent is cursed, and there's enmity between the serpent's seed, and the woman's seed.
vs 16-19 -- Eve will bear children in her sorrow; Adam will till the ground, which will bring forth thorns and thistles; eat bread in sweat of face.
vs20-21 -- Adam's wive is Eve, because she's the mother of all living; God makes them coats of skins.
vs 22-24 -- God drives them out from the garden, lest they should eat of the tree of life, and live forever. A flaming sword was placed to keep them from the tree of life.
I thought it was very interesting, in vs 14-15, that God says the serpent will bruise man's heel, and man the serpent's head. I remembred that in most stories of snake bites, the snake usually bites near the bottom of the leg -- aka the heel. Also, in killing snakes, people will usually hit it on the head, or cut off the head. I know there was more symbolism than that, but it's still interesting. I know, in terms of symbolism, 'bruising the head' refers to Christ, who has ultimate victory over Satan, or the serpent. I'm so grateful that Christ was willing to die for us, and that God loves us enough to give him up.
Genesis 4
vs 1-8 – Eve bears Cain and Abel; God respects Abel’s offering, but not Cain; Cain is angry – Lord tells him that he should do well – instead, he kills Abel.
Vs 9-12 – the Lord asks Cain where his brother is, and tells him that Abel’s blood cries out to him from the dust – Cain is then cursed – the earth won’t yield it’s fruit fully, and he’ll be a vagabond.
Vs13-15 – Cain realizes that anyone who finds him will kill him; the Lord says that if anyone kills Cain, vengeance will be taken on him 7 fold.
Vs16-18 – Cain’s wife bears a son; they build a city; Enoch has children and grand children.
Vs 19-24 – Lamech, Cain’s grandchild, kills someone; he has 2 wives – Adah, and Zillah, and sons Jabal and Tubal-cain; Lamech will be avenged 70 and 7 fold.
Vs 25-26 – Eve bears Seth, who’s son is Enos – after Enos is born, men call upon the Lord.
The story of Cain and Abel illustrates a basic principle – if we do well, God will bless and accept us; if we don’t do well, if we sin, we will be punished. If only today’s world would realize that – there would be much less evil in the world. If people realized that all of their acts have a consequence attached to them, they’d be much less likely to do wrong. It’s cool that this principle has been illustrated since almost the beginning of time – it helps prove it’s truthfulness.
Genesis 5
Vs1-32 – the generations of Adam, until Noah, are detailed. We learn that Methuselah, at 969, is the oldest person to have ever lived. Noah’s sons are Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Not much to comment on in this scripture. Praise God that we have a record of these generations. I’m guessing that this is where the idea of a “book of remembrance” comes from. It’s a good idea -- it’s amazing that although these people lived forever ago, we still have a record of them, and of how old they are.
Genesis 6
Vs1-3 – the Sons of God marry the daughters of men(sounds like marrying outside the covenant….); God’s spirit will not always strive with men, whose days will be 120 years.
Vs 4 – giants are in the earth
Vs 5-8 – God sees great wickedness, and it repents that Lord that he made men; He says that He’ll destroy man; however, Noah found grace in God’s eyes.
Vs 9-13 – God tells Noah that he’ll destroy the earth, because the earth was corrupt and filled with violence.
Vs 14-16 – a description of the ark.
Vs 17-22 – God will bring a flood on the earth, and establish his covenant with Noah. Noah should bring 2 of all animal into the ark.
I love the story of Noah. It illustrates God’s mercy. It shows that, if there are even a few people who are righteous, God will show mercy to them, and save them. It also shows that God can use people to show forth his power. He could have easily just taken them from the earth, and from the wickedness. Instead, he chose to show forth his power by saving them in the ark. One awesome example of God’s power – he truly is omnipotent.
Genesis 7
Vs 1-6 – God has found Noah and his house to be righteous; every clean beast and fowl taken by 7’s, and ever unclean beast by 2, into the ark. God will cause it to rain from 40 days/nights. Noah fulfilled God’s commandments.
Vs7-9 – the flood came 7 days after Noah had done this.
Vs 11-24 -- the flood comes; destroys all; Noah was 600 yrs old and 2 months. God shut them into the ark. The waters prevailed 15 cubits upward, and were on the earth for 150 days.
I love how this chapter points out that Noah did all that the Lord commanded him. It shows that even after we’ve obtained God’s favor, we should still continue to obey his words – especially if not doing so could cause us to be killed. However, I doubt that Noah obeyed God’s words simply because he was afraid that he’d be killed in the flood. No, I believe that Noah truly loved God, and sought to please him. It reminds me of a question that Brett Harris asked in one of his presentations at this year’s Bible Bee. He asked how often we did the right things simply because we trusted in God. I imagine that Noah’s answer would have been “often”, if not “always.”
Genesis 8
Vs 1-3 -- God remembers Noah, and the waters recede.
Vs 4-5 – the waters decrease daily, and the ark rests on the mountains of Ararat.
Vs 6-12 – Noah sends out a raven, and then a dove in order to see if the waters were receded enough so that they could come out of the ark. He sends the dove three times.
Vs 13-19 – Noah sees that the earth is dry – God tells him and his family to go out of the ark, and multiply abundantly. They, and all the animals, go out.
Vs 20-22 – Noah builds an altar; the Lord smells a sweet savor; he promises to never again smite every living thing. Seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night will not cease.
I love the first verse of this chapter. “And God remembered Noah, and every living thing….” I imagine that after close to 200 days, Noah would wonder if God had forgotten about him. He must’ve been really happy then, to see the waters begin to go down. This teaches me that God may allow us to go through hard times, and it may seem as though he’s forgotten us. However, God will never forget, and he’ll eventually come through for us. It may not be when or how we expect or want, but he will help us, and remember us.
Genesis 9
Vs 1-7 – God blesses Noah and his sons, commands them to multiply, and gives them all things; however, those who kill will be punished. God made man in His image.
Vs 8-17 – God makes a covenant with Noah, to never bring such a devastating flood on the earth again. He sets his bow in the cloud, as proof of this covenant. Whenever God sees the bow, he’ll remember his covenant.
Vs18-29 – Noah begins to be a husbandman, and has a vineyard; he get’s drunk, and is uncovered in his tent; Ham tells his brethren – they go and cover him up. God curses Ham and Canaan, but blesses Shem and Japheth. Noah lives 350 years after the flood – a total of 950.
One lesson that I learned from this is that we should not take advantage of others. Ham took advantage of his father – probably intending to make fun of him. By looking at the example of Shem and Japheth, we learn that we should not take part in ridiculing others. Rather, we should stand up for them. We’ll be blessed if we do well to others.
Genesis 10
Vs 1-32. Hmm – another chapter with 32 verses that details generations. The generations of the sons of Noah are detailed. One note of interest – Eber had two sons – Peleg, and Joktan. In the days of Peleg, the earth was divided…..I wonder what that means….
As with before, I’m grateful that we have the chance to know all the generations of Noah. It’s interesting to look at the different names. One name is Havilah – if we go back to Genesis 2, it’s interesting to see that Havilah was encompassed about by the river Pison. Within Havilah, there was gold, bdellium, and onyx. It makes me wonder what type of person Havilah was….
Well, there we go – the first 10 chapters of Genesis. Looks like this'll be longer, and take longer than I expected. Oh well -- we'll see how it goes! Sorry if I offend anyone with my comments. I’ve found that it’s better not to “fear man more than God” (Doctrine and Covenants 3:7)
Coming Tomorrow: Genesis 11-20.
~Praise His Name!
Thanksgiving Day....
So, as this is a blog about praising God, and today's thanksgiving, I figured that I should have a post where I list everything that I'm thankful for. So, here goes.....
What am I thankful for this year? I’m thankful that I was able to go to the 2011 National Bible Bee - -it was exceptionally awesome this year! I’m thankful that I was able to hang out with my friends a lot of the time at the Bee. I’m thankful that I was able to see Brett Harris’s presentations, one of the Hendry Plays presentations, and the square dance. I’m thankful that, even though I didn’t advance, I was able to still obtain the true prize – a great knowledge and understanding of the scriptures. And, as Elyssa’s grandma said, what I did on Saturday was worth more than any Bible Bee. I totally agree with her. Even though I didn’t get what I wanted at the Bible bee, I received what I needed. I came away with a true commitment to Christ, a realization that he truly is Lord, and a determination to be a better person.
I’m grateful for the Atonement – I’m so glad that God loved his son enough to let him die for us(John 3:16). I’m grateful for all of the scriptures that I’ve been able to memorize that testify of that. I’m grateful that Christ was willing to accept the responsibility of performing the atonement. I’m so thankful that because of Him, I have the chance to return to live with God again, and to become like him.
I’m so thankful that I was able to go to trek. It was an amazing experience, and I learned a lot. It gave me a better insight into what the pioneers had to go through when they were traveling from Nauvoo to Salt Lake. I’m thankful for the family that I was put in. They were amazing. I also really enjoyed trek because it gave me a chance to get to know more people in the stake, and to make some great friends –Tiffany, Steve, and Trevor.
I’m thankful that I was able to get such a good ACT score. I’m also thankful that I was able to maintain my 4.0. I’m thankful that calculus has become easier for me. I’m soooo thankful for all of my great friends – at home, and at church. I’m thankful for great teachers, who are willing to explain things when I don’t understand a particular concept.
I’m thankful that I was able to go to prom this year. It was epically amazing! I had such a great time! I loved how Andrew asked me.
I’m grateful for how well I was able to do at science fair. I’m grateful for Ms Wion and Ms Budd’s help and encouragement. After I analyzed my results, I didn’t think that I had a good project b/c only one of my hypotheses were supported. Ms Budd was great at encouraging me, and telling me that I’d do well at the fair. Well, she was right. J
I’m grateful that I had the chance to participate in the Bioscience Research Program. I learned a lot! I’m grateful that I was able to gain Professor Letsou as a contact. I’m grateful that she’s willing to help with my science fair project this year. I’m grateful that I was able to work in such a good lab, where everyone was friendly, willing to explain things to me, and a fun group of people to be with. I loved “Bad Movie Friday’s” – the movie’s truly were bad, or in other words, completely ridiculous. I still remember the movie about the orange beach ball with feet that was supposedly an alien – hilarious!
I’m thankful for my seminary class. After I switched from Sander’s class, into Geilman’s, I wasn’t sure what would happen – I’d never switched classes in the middle of a term – lol – the only other time I’d switched classes was during 10th grade. However, they were very welcoming, and I’ve actually made some friends, something that hasn’t really happened before – I usually don’t talk to the people in my class, unless we’re working on group work. I’m thankful for the new teacher, Sister Biesinger. She’s great, and really manages to connect things to today – at least so far.
I’m thankful for my family. I’m grateful that they’ve been so supportive during the bible bee. I realize that I asked a lot of them – they’ve probably spend close to 1000 hours quizzing me over the last 3 years. I’m grateful that they were soo willing to help – to quiz me, to come up with quizzes. I’m thankful that they took the time to ask how the sword study was going – it helped me make sure that I was staying on track with that. I’m thankful for Preston – even though he drives me crazy some times, he’s awesome! I’m grateful that he’s always willing to give me a hug. I’m thankful that, even when he says that he’s mad at me, he doesn’t really stay mad.
I’m grateful for the scriptures! They’re awesome! I’m thankful that I was able to study them so much. I’ve learned soo much. I’m thankful that the Shelby Kennedy Foundation was willing to put on the Bible bee once again this year. I’m grateful for the scriptures that they chose -- they are truly very important ones. I’m grateful for latterday scriptures that we have through the prophets. I’m grateful that we have the chance to listen to general conference every 6 months.
I’m thankful that we have a great house to live in. I’m thankful that dad was able to get a great job. I’m grateful that Brother Clay was willing to help us, and give us soo much money. I’m grateful that we have electricity. I’m grateful that we live in such a great ward! I’m thankful that my parents are willing to send me to AMES, instead of Bountiful High, or just having me do EHS. I’m thankful for my young women’s leaders – they’re epically awesome! I’m thankful for the awesome thanksgiving dinner that we’ve had, and I’m grateful for all of the awesome desserts that we’re going to have - -they’ll be great!
I’m thankful for grandma as well – I’m so grateful that she’s always willing to let me stay with her, to quiz me, and to be helpful. I'm grateful that she's willing to take me to Marie Callender's, to get me brownies from Dan's, and more.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
A Bit of Background....
Hi! I competed in the 2009-2011 National Bible. I advanced to Nationals all three years, but haven't advanced to the semi-finals. As I'm a senior this year, I'm not sure if I'll compete again. However, I've decided to read the bible the entire way through before next years registration, for two reasons. First, I've never read it all the way through. Second, should I choose to compete, it'll be great preparation.
So why have I created this blog? First, it's a chance for me to record my notes and impressions in a fun way that'll allow others to comment and provide additional insights. Second, something very important happened at this years Bible Bee. I came to Christ. I'd believed on Him before, but hadn't truly accepted him as my Savior. At the Bee, I chose to stand and proclaim that "Jesus Christ is Lord!!". After this, I thought about my Bible Study plan, and really wanted to find a way to help others know about Christ. As I'd recently discovered blogging, I decided that that would be my primary mode of communication.
The blog title was inspired in part by a song by Kenneth Cope, where it says "praise his name, my God loves broken things". I've had this song stuck in my head, and so decided that that would be a perfect title. Also, we sang many songs of worship and praise to God at the Bee, so I wanted a title that went back to that as well.
So, yeah. On this blog, I will post any notes I've had while reading, especially all of the reasons I've found to praise God, based on my daily reading. Feel free to post comments regarding any insights you've had. However, please make sure all comments are appropriate. If I feel that they are not, they'll be removed.
~Praise His Name!
So why have I created this blog? First, it's a chance for me to record my notes and impressions in a fun way that'll allow others to comment and provide additional insights. Second, something very important happened at this years Bible Bee. I came to Christ. I'd believed on Him before, but hadn't truly accepted him as my Savior. At the Bee, I chose to stand and proclaim that "Jesus Christ is Lord!!". After this, I thought about my Bible Study plan, and really wanted to find a way to help others know about Christ. As I'd recently discovered blogging, I decided that that would be my primary mode of communication.
The blog title was inspired in part by a song by Kenneth Cope, where it says "praise his name, my God loves broken things". I've had this song stuck in my head, and so decided that that would be a perfect title. Also, we sang many songs of worship and praise to God at the Bee, so I wanted a title that went back to that as well.
So, yeah. On this blog, I will post any notes I've had while reading, especially all of the reasons I've found to praise God, based on my daily reading. Feel free to post comments regarding any insights you've had. However, please make sure all comments are appropriate. If I feel that they are not, they'll be removed.
~Praise His Name!
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