Kingdom Come

The Exodus has reverberated through world history”, and is such a significant biblical event, perhaps second only to creation, that it is as vehemently denied by Bible critics as creation itself.

There is no question that belief in the Exodus requires faith in an infinitely omnipotent Creator including the ability to control the triggering, timing and intensity of what could very likely have been a cascade of natural events comprising the plagues on Egypt.  The Exodus takes up four entire books for a reason. It is the seminal redemption event that drives all the rest of human history. The circumstances proved that

• invoking the name does establish a relationship,
• and that believing in the name does grant access to power over humanly insolvable problems and even death,
• which must be acted upon in faith to achieve salvation.

For the persons who are at the least willing to consider the biblical narrative, the point I would like to drive home in this post is that the Exodus occurred to Hebrews, NOT Jews or Israelites.

“God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses…I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob…I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and… I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the…king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go. (Exodus 3)

The Hebrew people are the source of a unique but vital contribution to our Western heritage…it is the treasure of sacred literature which constitutes the Hebrew legacy. The tradition of a monotheistic religion upon which Christianity would build and out of which the modern world would emerge, has arguably served as the wellspring of Western civilization. Monotheism (the belief that God is one) set the Hebrews apart from the other ancient Near Eastern civilizations…The Hebrew belief that each individual was equal before the law became a fundamental notion in Western culture, establishing for the first time the greater worth of the human person over physical property

The LORD God reiterates himself as the God of the Hebrew to be rescued out of Egypt.

“God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said…I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham the Hebrew, the God of Isaac the Hebrew, and the God of Jacob the Hebrew. I have surely seen the affliction of my [Hebrew] people which are in Egypt…And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians…Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel [only one of Abraham’s many nations in the Hebrew federation of ethnicities with a unique promise of inheriting the land described above] is come unto me: 

Come now therefore, and I will send thee…And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee [as my representative / embassador / vicar / priest]: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God [as a priest] upon this mountain…Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning…And thou shalt say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness. (Exodus 3, 9:1,13, 10:3)

The text plainly states that the children of Israel did not become identified as a unique nation ruled by God until after the Exodus from Egypt and the establishment of the Mosaic Covenant with God on Mount Sinai.

^“And Moses and the priests the Levites spake unto all Israel, saying…O Israel; this day thou art become the people of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt therefore

1. obey the voice of the LORD thy God,
2. and do his commandments and his statutes”(Deuteronomy 27:9-10)

Historically and hermeneutically, besides the frank statements by Moses, statistical evidence for the multinational genetics of the Hebrew nation at the time of the Exodus is that it increased from a total of just 70 direct descendants from Jacob to 603,550 warriors in just two generations after entering Egypt.

“And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai…in the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying, Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, after their families, by the house of their fathers, with the number of their names, every male by their polls; From twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel: So were all those that were numbered…603,550  (Numbers 1)

And that doesn’t include women, children and infirm. “Based on historical data, the adult population in a typical polity in the Middle Ages could support one fighting man for every 15 adults maximum.” In terms of proportion of fighting men per extended family of geriatrics, other infirm, women and children, this is realistic. So multiplying 600,000 fighting men x 15 we calculate a census of 9 million people. But the alert reader protests – this says the children of Israel, families, fathers! Follow the chronology.

1. During the Passover and three months into the Exodus the group was a mixed bag of nationalities within the Egyptian Empire who, for personal benefit, had joined the Hebrew nation led by its Fighter God who had proven himself superior to the Egyptian gods.
2. Two years later there was a nation of Israel.

We need to track what happened in between, starting at three months into the Exodus at Mount Sinai when God addresses the multi-ethnic Hebrew nation within which is contained the genetically and spiritually related nation of Israel. The Exodus from Egypt wasn’t unique in the history of the Hebrew Nation. Recall that many nationalities left Nimrod’s Empire under Abram. In both case various ethnicities within an oppressive empire renounced their allegiance to their source of daily bread and joined the Hebrew nation, which specifically meant trusting in the Hebrew God for provision and protection of their lives. Why did a polyglot multitude of people have the faith to do so? Because they heard about the marvelous exploits God worked on behalf of his people. At the time of the Egyptian Exodus the amazing rescues of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph were as recent as our own heroic events of World Wars I and II. Instead of watching television or reading books, the tales of the gods were recounted around the fires at night. The Hebrews’ accounts of their God’s empowerment were the source of their identity. Even more compelling were the current eyewitness accounts of Moses surviving unscathed from confrontation after confrontation with Pharoah. God was proving that he would protect the people who served him by obeying his word.

“Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die.

• He that feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses:
• And he that regarded not the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field…(Exodus 9:19-23) 

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether...the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants, and in the sight of the people. And Moses said, Thus saith the LORD, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt: And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die…Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house.

It is vitally important that we ascertain understanding of an ancient cultural practice that is taken for granted in this passage. “House” in this context includes both concrete meaning of a building for safety from the environment, and abstract meaning of all the people who were under the head man’s authority / protection. Not just family members, but servants as well.

• “when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house” [indicative of others not born in his own house therefore not as trustworthy, good example being Theon Greyjoy] (Genesis 14:14)
• “Abram said…I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus…one born in my house is mine heir.” (Genesis 15:2-3)
• “Pharaoh said unto Joseph…Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou…I have set thee over all the land of Egypt.” (Genesis 41:39-41)
• ^“And the fame thereof was heard in Pharaoh’s house, saying, Joseph’s brethren are come: and it pleased Pharaoh…and his servants.” (Genesis 45:16)
• “Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man’s wife. But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, LORD, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation?…For the LORD had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech.” (Genesis 20)
• “And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother…saying…I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants…Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him…” (Genesis 32:, 35:2)
• “Esau cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him…And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house [a substantial number of servants required to herd all the animals], and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his substance, which he had got in the land of Canaan; and went into the country from the face of his brother Jacob. For their riches [in cattle and consequently herdsmen] were more than that they might dwell together (Genesis 32:6, 36:6-7)
• “Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me…thou, and thy children, and thy children’s children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and thy household…And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his father’s house, I will go up, and shew Pharaoh, and say unto him, My brethren, and my father’s house [two different groups], which were in the land of Canaan, are come unto me; And the men are shepherds [obviously lots of them, not just Jacob’s immediate family] (Genesis 45:9-11, 46:31-32)
• “Now these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt; every man and his household came with Jacob…And [making a distinction between servants] all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled [with their households including servants.]” (Exodus 1:1-7)
• “Christ our passover is sacrificed for us…ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;” (I Corinthians 5:7, Ephesians 2:19)

Of major significance to this study, it must be understood that a man’s household included not only permanent servants but temporary guests who by custom came under the protection of the head of the house.

• “when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair…and the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house…And Pharaoh called Abram and said…Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife [in his harem, but he didn’t, she was simply a guest]..” (Genesis 12:14-19
• “And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and…Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and…he pressed upon them greatly; and they…entered into his house; and…the men of the city…called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, And said…unto these men do nothing; for therefore [for my protection] came they under the shadow of my roof.” (Genesis 19:1-8)

Egypt was the most prosperous nation at the time, as is America today, for the same reasons. Consequently it was packed with people from surrounding nations who came as traders, politicians, slaves, immigrants escaping hardships, especially the recent famine. All these people, not just the Egyptians, experienced the plagues. Imagine you are one of them, and have just heard the breaking news on the pandemic – the next plague will be the death of the first-born in every family in Egypt. By now you’ve seen enough to believe that the Hebrew Fighter God means what he says and he does it. You are desperate to save the life of your son, your grandsons, your nephews, your neighbors, and like Lot, rush around begging family and friends to seek shelter with the Hebrew Fighter God’s people who have been given a way of escape. On the dreaded night of doom you crowd into the house of a Hebrew acquaintance with so many other people the door can hardly be closed, but closed it must be, and thank goodness, because the smell of blood on the door is sickening. Between the panic, the heat and the crush of sweaty bodies you are about to heave your guts but your host – speaking in a mix of a foreign language and broken Egyptian, urgently presses upon you the absolute necessity of eating the unfamiliar and unappetizing food, and you are not about to go against whatever covenantal ritual required of his God. Hour after hour passes in what becomes almost unbearable, you think you’ll pass out. Not that it would make a difference – the crowd around you will hold you up if that should happen. To be frank, you need to use the bathroom badly but you’re not going outside even if you could make your way through the crowd. And just when you think you’ve lost it and hear yourself screaming you realize that piercing shriek is coming from next door, follow seconds later by another, and another, until the whole world is a cacophony of horror. Frantically you begin screaming your son’s name, of course you can’t see him because he had squeezed between legs to join other kids and you will literally claw people out of your way if you have to, when suddenly you see his white face and wide eyes. He’s alive! And that’s all that matters. And from that point on you are sticking with them Hebes, wherever they go, whatever they do.

“In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai…And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house[hold] of Jacob, and tell [a separate entity] the children of Israel, “Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagle’s wings, and brought you unto myself [both the children of Israel and the larger group of genetically unrelated household members].” (Exodus 19:3-4)

But Moses is a true Levite. A Fighter.

“By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God…Esteeming the reproach of The Promised Redeemer / Messiah / Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.” That is, resurrection to eternal life. (Hebrews 11:24-26)

When Moses flees the country he sensibly heads to a safe haven within one of Abraham many Hebrew nations.

“Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian…Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. And the shepherds came and drove them away: but Moses stood up and helped them [one against many], and watered their flock…And Moses was content to dwell with the man: and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.” (Exodus 2:16-21)

De ja vu of Jacob watering Laban’s flock! Bear in mind that what is also repeated is that when Moses joined Reuel’s household, Reuel had complete authority over him, just as Laban had over Jacob. Unlike the pagan Laban who had a self-serving agenda of enlarging his household and increasing his wealth through enslaving Jacob, this priest of Midian is reported to be a righteous priest in line with his  ancestor Abraham. His name Reu-el means “friend of God,” This is an honorary title only bestowed previously on Abraham, then later on close associates of the Son of God.

“Who raised up the righteous man from the east, called him to his foot, gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings?…I the LORD, the first, and with the last…Abraham my friend…I have chosen thee…I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” (Isa 41:2-10)

“Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you…for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you…I have chsen you.” (John 15:14-16)

Significantly, Jethro is also identified as “the Kenite.” The significance of his confusion of names and identities is that the Kenites were a cursed nation aligned with monstrously wicked nations.

“the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: [taking it from] The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.” (Genesis 15:18-21)

“Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of the city…the Kenite shall be wasted, until Asshur shall carry thee away captive.” (Numbers 24:19-22)

How interesting that Moses, a Levite cursed to wander, found a haven with another cursed Hebrew. 

Now [at age 80] Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb…And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight…God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses. Moses!

Why twice? Any parent can explain that. You raise your voice and shout the second time because your child is too intent on what they are doing to pay attention to your first call.

And [Moses] said, Here am I. And [God] said, [this was not casually thrown out over his shoulder but thundered out as orders!]

1. Draw not nigh hither!
2. Put off thy shoes from off thy feet!

for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground!”

Can’t you just hear Jethro having to bark out at Moses “Don’t come in the house! (laced with a tone of “you moron!”) Take your filthy sandals off, you’ve been mucking about in sheep ___ all day!! Get washed up outside, this place is clean and I intend to keep it that way!!” I know I do with my preschool granddaughter. Can we not figure out for ourselves that when Moses first came to Jethro’s house he had deeply ingrained pompous mannerisms and attitudes and expectations of being treated with the utmost deference and respect and habits of being waited on? Didn’t happen. No question about it. Moses must have experienced a great deal of depression from his losses, his unmet expectations, and his complete fall from grace. As you read the following, read them as Moses heard them spoken in the original language.

• I am the God of thy Father (Levi)
  • “United – Not! Cursed to be Divided and Scattered”
• the God of Abraham
  • The Father of Many Nations – the man who had no sons for 100 years, none of whom have any land of their own to speak of, most are under the boot of a cruel empire. It used to be a great setup for hysterical laughter in Abraham’s day but its just a bad joke now.
• the God of Isaac
  • Mocking / Scorning / Laughing At Such A Ridiculously Impossible Idea,
• and the God of Jackob
  • The Trickster /  Supplanter. 

This is not your usual introduction. Without a good introduction, the audience will not have a strong enough reason to be open to the speaker’s ideas because they might not know the credibility of the speaker. Actually, God was presenting his credentials. Moses could totally believe that God would choose him

• despite being a member of the tribe Cursed To Never Be United With The Other Tribes
  • to become the Father of the promised Nationhood and Land.

Because (drum roll),

• childless Abram
  • had become Abraham with many children against all odds,
• and the idea of two geriatrics having a baby
  • had become a reality against all odds,
• and the Narcissist Manipulating Everything To His Advantage
  • had become an Upright One in his old age against all odds.

And the LORD said

• I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt…
• I am come down to deliver them…
• I will send THEE unto Pharaoh,
• that THOU mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt…
• THOU shalt be to him instead of God. (Exodus 3:5-10, 4:16)

No problem with Pharaoh, who would of course accept any national leader as the incarnation of that nation’s lead god, but Moses quite rightly didn’t expect the nation itself to accept him. Not a murdering, cursed Levite!!

“And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name / attributes / powers? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses,

• • • Past truth, evidence on which to base belief: I Am That I Am…Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel,
      • I Am / Ani Eternal All Powerful i.e. Creator hath sent me unto you…the LORD God of your fathers… this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations…
      • AND I appeared unto / in order to interact with and bless Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob…
      • And I have also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, wherein they were strangers.
    • Present truth, reason / need for belief: And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered my covenant.
    • Future promise to be believed: Wherefore say unto the children of Israel,
      • I am the LORD,
      • and I will…redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments…
      • ye shall know / personally experience that I am the LORD your God...
      • I am the LORD / YHVH / Creator / Singularity / Infinite Source of Energy and Mass.” (Exodus 3:6-15, 6:2-8))

Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh… that THOU mayest bring forth MY PEOPLE the children of Israel out of Egypt.

Moses is repeatedly called “the man of God”, where “man” is translated from the Hebrew word “ish“. The online concordance referenced above translates this Hebrew word אִישׁ as simply “man, male.” However, note that this translation is not consistent across Bible versions. The King James Version, translated 4 centuries before modern versions, by translators steeped in the ancient languages and cultures, exclusively uses the word “ish” to express “the identical nature of one to another.”

• The first wife to the first husband because she was taken out of / cloned from him, becoming the prototype for all successive relationships in which “two become one” (Genesis 2:23, 24, 3:16)
• The first seed of the woman, which Eve considered, in a rush to judgment, as being the replacement for the original ha-Adam with the power to destroy the serpent: “a man from the LORD”. (Genesis 4:1)
• “every one” who speaks the same language. This can be understood abstractly as well to mean “those who understand the same deeper meaning” contrasted with those to whom the message remains a mystery. (Genesis 10:15)

When Moses is defined as אִישׁ, it must be that he also is identified as identical to…YHVH.

“And the LORD spake unto Moses [his] face to [Moses’] face, as a man / one of an identical pair speaketh unto his friend / another like himself. (Exodus 33:11)

This exact situation is a replication of Jacob’s experience face to face with YHVH.

“Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed….And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” (Genesis 32:27-30)

What did they have in common? Most certainly not innate righteousness. It was being cursed.

“And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart…then will I slay my brother (Genesis 27:41)

This is replicated by another one [get it?] of YHVH’s Chosen Saviors / Yeshua haMessiachs about 1,500 years later.

“Pilate knew that for envy they had delivered Jesus. But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should…all say unto him, Let him be crucified. And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified. When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it…and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.” (Matthew 27:18-26)

“Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:” (Galatians 3:13)

And is replicated yet again by YHVH’s Chosen Savior / Yeshua haMessiach.

“Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth:

• but I have called you friends; for…I have made known unto you…all things that I have heard of my Father.
• I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit / be productive, and that your fruit / product of your work should remain:
• that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

Moses is never explicitly called Melchizedek, but he doesn’t need to be. His function as Sacred King / Priest King leader of the Hebrew nation representing God to the whole world defines his position in this order. The LORD God reiterates himself as the God of the Hebrews even as he is putting into action specific plans for the nation of Israel. There are just too many verses using different words to express various aspects of Melchizedek of the Most High God’s salvation through identification with his Righteousness and Reconciliation that they can’t all be quoted here. Or to convince anyone who is not ready to accept a new idea. It’s like the classic story of three blind men only being able to lay hold of one part of an immense elephant and arguing amongst themselves that the others got the elephant’s features wrong. You’ve got to spend time exploring the entirety of the identity. Moses is explicitly called the LORD’s priest.

“The LORD reigneth…let the earth be moved…Moses…among his priests…” (Psalm 99:1-6)

In other words, Moses was the current heir to the royal priesthood of Melchizedek, culminating in YHVH’s Savior Seed of the Woman. The passages in the New Testament letter to the Hebrews apply as much to Moses as it does to Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Moses functioned as Priest-King before the Levitical priesthood was set up for the nation of Israel.

“consider how great this man was…blessed him that had the promises. And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better...it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec Shem there ariseth another priest, Who is made, not after the law.” (Hebrews 7:4-15)

“the LORD…said…thou shalt be to [Aaron] instead / Representative / of God.” (Exodus 4:14-16)

“And Moses brought Aaron and his sons, and washed them with water. And he put upon him / Aaron the coat, and girded him with the girdle, and clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod upon him, and he girded him with the curious girdle of the ephod, and bound it unto him therewith. And he put the breastplate upon him: also he put in the breastplate the Urim and the Thummim. And he put the mitre upon his head; also upon the mitre, even upon his forefront, did he put the golden plate, the holy crown; as the LORD commanded Moses. And Moses took the anointing oil, and anointed the tabernacle and all that was therein, and sanctified them. And he sprinkled thereof upon the altar seven times, and anointed the altar and all his vessels, both the laver and his foot, to sanctify them. And he poured of the anointing oil upon Aaron’s head, and anointed him, to sanctify him.” (Leviticus 8:6-12)

Moses is also explicitly stated to be the king, which is, after all, a given, in an era and culture when all lawgivers, AKA rule-rs, were autocratic kings.

“Moses commanded us a law, even the inheritance of the congregation of Jacob. And he was king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people and the tribes of Israel were gathered together…

Jeshurun is “the era of the Upright Ones of the eternal God.” This is not a place, but a golden time when things were at their best.

There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun, who rideth upon the heaven in thy help, and in his excellency on the sky. The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them.“ (Deuteronomy 33:4-5, 26-27)

Note how the LORD identifies himself as one with Moses through shared responsibility for his people, as, in an oxymoronic way, they toss responsibility back and forth like parents of misbehaving children – “your” children.

“And the Lord said unto Moses…thy people, which thou brightest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves…Now therefore, let me alone that that my wrath may wax hot against themand that I may consume them.

And Moses said…why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people which thou has brought forth out of the and of Egypt?

And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people. (Exodus 32)

This includes the evil that had been called down upon the Levites by Jacob’s curse. God turns the curse itself into a blessing.

“The priests, the Levite, and all the tribe of Levi, shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and his inheritance…the LORD is their inheritance.” (Deuteronomy 18:1-2

With that in mind, let’s return to Jethro of the cursed Kenites. Who is the household of Jacob which Moses brought unto the God of the whole world? No doubt some are the generational servants of the children of Israel who came with them into Egypt in Jacob’s household four generations earlier, but don’t forget the Hebrews had become slaves. Like the Jews in Hitler’s Germany, they would have had their wealth confiscated when they were sent to labor camps. The household of Jacob the Hebrew would have consisted mainly of the Hebrews’ non-Israelite house guests who joined them in accepting their Fighter God’s offer of salvation through the Passover.

Now therefore,

• if ye – the household of Jacob and the children of Israel – will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant
• then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people:

for all the earth is mine:

And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the word which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel. (Exodus 19:3-6) 

Now, don’t hastily jump to the conclusion that “the children of Israel” in this context is referring to the political nation of Israel. Take your time, read carefully and most importantly keep the history in accurate chronological order. For example, did you pay attention to the big IF at the beginning of what is an OFFER to BECOME a special nation? It hasn’t happened yet! The passage clearly states that God is addressing the multi-ethnic Hebrew nation. Even Judaism itself acknowledges that the original offer at Mount Sinai was to all the nationalities, not just the children of Israel.

The message of the Torah is for all mankind. Before giving the Torah to Israel, God offered it to the other nations, but they refused it.

Read on in Exodus 19. The passage describes how God does not arbitrarily impose service on anyone. His plan develops as he interacts with people who willingly work with him.

“And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him. And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And…the LORD said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud [shielding his death-dealing brightness], that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever.

• Go unto the people, and sanctify them [spiritually clean them up to encounter holy God by leading them in confessing, repenting, and renouncing their sins]
• And let the priests also, which [already are used to] come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves

Are you catching the significance of “the priests”? Like Job, and Abraham, Isaac and Jacob who offered sacrifices on behalf of their households. Furthermore, the Levitical priesthood doesn’t get established until 8 chapters later, so this is the Hebrew priesthood. Hermeneutically, there is no getting around the fact that God offered favored nation status to the multi-ethnic Hebrew nation headed by its Melchizedekian priesthood. Next, in Exodus chapter 19, God descends on Mount Sinai in the presence of the Melchizedekian priests and the Hebrew people and interacts with them all directly, as priests, exactly as he had offered.

“And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders, and lightenings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount.”

So far so good. Things going according to God’s plan.

“The LORD…rose up from Seir unto them; he shined forth from mount Paran, and he came with ten thousands of saints: from his right hand went a fiery law for them. Yea, he loved / united with the people; all his saints are in thy hand: and they sat down at thy feet; every one shall receive of thy words.” (Deuteronomy 33:1-3)

If you’ve seen Stephen Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind you’ll recognize where he got his light and sound concepts.

And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled…

1. And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount:
2. and the LORD called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up.
3. And the LORD said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish.

It must have appeared like the whole mountain was ready to blow like a massive volcano. Naturally, the reaction was pure terror. So when God became too real for them these Melchizedekian priest-leaders turned in their resignations

“And it came to pass, when ye heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, (for the mountain did burn with fire)…even all the heads of your tribes, and your elders; And ye said…this great fire will consume us: if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any more, then we shall die. For who is there of all flesh, that hath heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived? [Unbelief!] Go thou near, and hear all that the LORD our God shall say: and speak thou unto us [refusing responsibility]…

and the LORD said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee, they have well said all that they have spoken. O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always…Go say to them, Get you into your tents again. But as for thee, stand thou here by me, and I will speak unto thee all the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which thou shalt teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them to possess it.” (Deuteronomy 5:23-31)

(Sigh) Notice how their reaction is completely the opposite of Moses’ when he first met God in a fire on this same mountain. I think we can all empathize with the unwillingness of Moses’ Hebrew people to share the burden of government with him. How many of us are willing to serve a few hours a week on so much as a PTA committee, or a few days on a jury? Consider what Moses was asking them to do. Become full time priests! Consume all one’s waking hours in service to God! And if everyone in the kingdom were priests, who needed their intercession? Why, their competitors, adversaries, enemies. That would seriously cut into the quality of life. Plan B. The Melchizedekian priests’ responsibilities towards their clans were given to another brotherhood / nation. What the text clearly states, but what has been glossed over in the various religions’ application of this passage to their paradigm, is that the Melchizedekian priests within the multiethnic Hebrew nation rejected election to government in God’s kingdom. So God simply gave it to another nation deserving it. He did not exterminate the Hebrew nation just as he did not exterminate the Jewish nation when their priests rejected YVHH’s Savior as their kings. Follow the patterns of history. As on wallpaper, they repeat and reveal what came before and what comes after.

“Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom [rulership] of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits [productivity] thereof.“ (Matthew 21:43)

And here is when the nation of Israel comes into its own, as God’s elect.  As a tight-knit royal family with a generations-long heritage of personal relationships and experience with YHVH and proven partnership with him in action, it’s just common sense that the Israelites would be elected to positions of responsibility in the new government.

“What advantage then hath the Jew? …chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God.” (Romans 3:1-2) 

The nation of Israel became a specialized offshoot of the existing and ongoing Hebrew Nation. Its function was to detail and exemplify specifically, what it means to “walk before me and be thou perfect” as stated by YHVH to Abraham.

“Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added…”

Added! To what? An existing covenant! And that is detailed as the passage continues:

“because of transgressions, till the seed / Melchizedek should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator…Is the law then against the [pre-existing] promises of God? God forbid: for…the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of YHVH’s Promised Savior / Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe…Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Melchizedek / Christ, that we might be justified by faith.“ 

Just like our modern individual states are subsets of the United States of America with laws applicable only to them but subject to federal regulations, all the tribes, not just the Levites, can have rules and boundaries that apply only to them while being primarily subject to the regulations governing all Israel. Likewise the nation of Israel can have laws that apply only to them while remaining subject to the larger Hebrew nation led by Melchizedek. Although treated as such thousands of years later, “Hebrew” is not the equivalent of “Israelite” or “Jew”. Israel was constituted as a subset of the Hebrew nation. Each serves a different purpose with a different population, as explained in Hebrews 7-8.

• Purpose
  • Levitical: under it the people received the law
    • “Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the [seed [of the Woman should come to whom the promise was made [to deliver from death through resurrection]” (Galatians 3:19)
    • “Now we know that what things soever the law saith it saith to them who are under the law [follow rules of good behavior to be accepted by God into everlasting life after death]: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world [every religious system of good works] may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified [including the Jews] in his sight:”” (Romans 3:19-20)
  • Melchizedekian: “able also to save them that come unto God by him”
• Population
  • Levitical: “the house of Israel and the house of Judah”
  • Melchizedekian:  “the uttermost parts of the earth  i.e. the whole world
• Time frame
  • Levitical: “that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.”
  • Melchizedekian: “he ever liveth to make intercession for them.”

“(Brethren, I speak after the manner of men; Though it be but a man’s covenant, yet if it be confirmed, no man disannulleth, or addeth thereto….And this I say, that the covenant [with Abraham the Hebrew], that was confirmed before of God in The Promised Seed / Christ, the law [of Moses], which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise [to Abraham to Abraham the Hebrew] of none effect. (Galatians 3:10-17)

The citizens in the newly constituted nation of Israel along with the other Hebrews gathered at Mount Sinai were saved just like their forefathers – and those after as well – by believing and proving their faith in their actions.

1. Believing on the power of the LORD / YHVH / Creator’s Word
   1. “And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said…YVHH / I AM THAT I AM / Singularity / Creator / Sound Energy…say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you….the LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.” (Exodus 3:13-15) 
   2. “He that is of God heareth God’s words…Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day [promise of resurrection]  – and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.
2. Professing their faith through the Passover,
   1. the LORD thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt…Thou shalt therefore sacrifice the passover unto the LORD thy God…in the place which the LORD shall choose to place his name there. Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with it…neither shall there any thing of the flesh…remain all night until the morning….at the going down of the sun, at the season that thou camest forth out of Egypt.” (Deuteronomy 16:1-6)
   2. “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us” (I Corinthians 5:7)
3. United as one body / corporation with the savior in baptism
   1. I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;” (I Corinthians 10:1-2)
   2. “We are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk…in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.” (Romans 6:4-6) signifying death to the old life and resurrection to new.

I admit that modern baptism has degenerated into a ritual of joining a denomination, with sprinkling vs dunking and infant vs age of reason distinguishing between the rival factions. Maybe you’ll grasp the parallel between Paul’s explanation of baptism into Messiah / Christ and the ancient Hebrews crossing the Red Sea with Moses more readily with Antichrist Caesar’s famous crossing of the Rubicon. There is no going back now. You’ve identified yourself with Public Enemy #1 in the sight of the existing World Order.