Welcome to the Daily Bible Chapter. My name is James Leroy Wilson and I invite you to join me as we discover new insights and new perspectives from a very old book.
EXODUS 13
I'm reading Young's Literal Translation (YLT) and the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV).
Some observations on Exodus 13:
I don't know the significance of unleavened bread; I'm assuming it is to have very plain and simple meals in the days before the Passover festival.
The meaning of "consecrating" first-born sons is unclear to me. Are they to be set apart with special privileges or responsibilities?
While the LORD demands sacrifices of first-born livestock, even he sees the value of a donkey - you can sacrifice another sheep in place of the donkey. So the LORD isn't that unreasonable.
A brief search tells me the month of Abib is nearly identical to our month of April. It therefore overlaps in large part with Aries in the Zodiac. Domestic sheep are ovis aries. There isn't necessarily anything mystical or superstitious about the Zodiac; constellations of the night sky are the means by which months, seasons, and years have been marked throughout history (and much of prehistory)..
In the NRSV a note says that the Red Sea could also be translated as the "Sea of Reeds," implying a different body of water. A brief Internet search indicates that its location is a matter of conjecture and may no longer exist.
Taking Israel into the "wilderness" after their liberation seems to parallel uncertainty after a dark chapter is over: prisoner released from the penitentiary, spouse leaving an abusive marriage, employee quitting a bad job: "That's finally over, but where am I, and what's next?"
The movements of the "pillar of cloud," and certainly the "pillar of fire" would have certainly seemed to an outside observer to be an "unidentified flying object" (UFO) or "unexplained aerial phenomena" (UAP).
If I'm carrying over the metaphor that "Israel is You" from yesterday, perhaps these pillars of cloud and fire are a reminder of God's presence within you during a time of transition; you are still being guided. I think I'm borrowing this idea from Robert Brumet's Finding Yourself in Transition.
James Leroy Wilson writes Daily Miracles, The Daily Bible Chapter, JL Cells, and The MVP Chase. Thanks for your subscriptions and support!
(Photo credit: TyshkunVictor)