Trusting God in the Storm

I’m studying Exodus now. In Exodus 14 we see that through Moses, God led Israel out of Egypt into what appeared to be an inescapable trap, cornered at the edge of the sea across from a village of Ba’al worshippers known as Ba’al Tsephon.

God led them there with a purpose, to be honored through Pharaoh’s defeat at the hands of God himself. But this was not at all how Israel saw the situation. It appeared to Israel that they would either die at the hands of Pharaoh's army or be forcibly taken back to Egypt and re-enslaved.

The name Ba’al Tsephon is significant. It means Lord of the Storm. The word typhoon is closely related, a violent fearful wind storm. God was going to use this violent wind to bring deliverance to Israel and destruction to the enemy.

There are a couple of lessons to be learned from this episode in the Bible.

First, our deliverance from slavery may begin with trouble. Israel experienced many troubles escaping slavery even before this event. Their work became unbearable, there were plagues all around them, and ultimately they had to assemble in the night to run into a future of great uncertainty. The decision to leave a lost and sinful past can bring this kind of hardship. God intentionally brought Israel to the edge of the sea to destroy the slave masters, and to build their faith.

Second, there is no turning back. When Israel's deliverance was completed there was a stormy sea left behind them, separating the people from their lives of bondage in Egypt. We must cross boundaries to leave our sinful past and these boundaries become barriers to protect us from returning there. Sin can never be sweet again, though it beckons and threatens to take us back. Passing through a storm of deliverance is a cleansing experience, symbolized by baptism when we begin to walk by faith.

Though we pass through many storms in life, we should always remember that God brings us there with a purpose. We must learn to trust him, as better things lie just on the other side.

The Valley of Jehoshaphat

"I will gather all the nations

    And bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat.

    Then I will enter into judgment with them there
    On behalf of My people and My inheritance, Israel,
    Whom they have scattered among the nations;
    And they have divided up My land.
"They have also cast lots for My people,
    Traded a boy for a harlot
    And sold a girl for wine that they may drink."
Joel 3:2-3 NASB

Joel prophesied that the LORD will execute vengeance on the nations in the last days. This would happen in the "Valley of Jehoshaphat". Another way to translate this is "Valley of God's Judgment" since Jehoshaphat means "God is Judge". This is no doubt in reference to the valley where God destroyed the nations who came against Judah, in response to their fasting and prayer and praise and worship.

It is from this chapter that John draws at least two quotations in the book of Revelation:

Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe.
            Come, tread, for the wine press is full;
            The vats overflow, for their wickedness is great.

The sun and moon grow dark
            And the stars lose their brightness.
Joel 3:13,15 NASB

These verses are clearly referring to the battle of the ages between the armies of the LORD and the armies of the nations. What have the nations done to merit this day of vengeance?

• Scattered His people among the nations - desolation of the church by persecution and corruption
• Divided up His land - confiscation of property and occupation of holy ground
• Cast lots for His people - slave trade
• Traded a boy for a harlot, sold a girl for wine - sex and drug trafficking

These atrocities happen around the world, but mostly outside America. My church has committed to fighting human trafficking and the sex trade. I must believe that as heinous as the persecution of the church has been throughout history, rampant sex trafficking of innocent children must surely fill the cup of God's wrath to overflowing.

We are working to stop the tide of human trafficking and sex slavery, and I have to believe from studying these verses about Jehoshaphat that we can:

• Recognize that we are powerless before this great multitude coming against us
• Stand before the LORD with our infants and wives and children
• Bow with our face to the ground and worship the LORD
• Rise up early and put our trust in the LORD our God
• Begin singing and praising God
• Stand and see the salvation of the LORD on our behalf 
• Take back the spoil, which are the poor desperate young people caught in these traps

We will surely overcome, but if not, surely this cup of reeling will one day overflow in the Valley of Jehoshaphat and bring the armies of the LORD to the final battle.

Mercy and Atonement

Reading Psalm 136, you can't help but notice that every verse ends with "His steadfast love endures forever". (It would help if we also had the original tune to go along with this "praise chorus"!)

So being overly analytical I wanted to see what those words are in Hebrew.  Ki le'ovlam chasdow - Because of His eternal mercy.  The Hebrew word for "steadfast love" or "mercy" is chasdow or Chesed (start by snoring backwards, then add "hess-said").  Chesed is one of the core attributes of God.  It refers to how God treats those in need - to care for them and help them.  A Chesed organization in Israel would be called a charitable organization in America.

So I got curious if this word was used in the "mercy seat" of the Torah.  Not at all.  Actually I was surprised to see that the "mercy seat" is really mistranslated and would be more accurately translated "the covering" or "the atonement cover".  The Hebrew is "Hakkaporet" or simply "The Cover".  The root word "kopher" (KPR) in Hebrew has several meanings, most often translated "ransom" or the price one must pay to redeem a life from debtor's prison or slavery.  I think this must be where we get the usage of "covering a debt" in English.

OK, so step back for a moment and consider what the the Kopher is covering.  It's the lid on the ark of the covenant.  Inside the ark of the covenant is the Law of Moses, which is the law of sin and death.  We could go back one more step and note that "kopher" also means "pitch" or "bitumen" which was used to seal and protect another ark - Noah's ark.

So, why does the ark need a covering?  In Noah's case the ark needed to be sealed so it could float for a year without leaking or getting waterlogged.  The "kopher" kept the creatures inside the ark separate from the water outside the ark.  In that sense it stood between the redeemed and judgment.

In the case of the ark of the covenant, the cover was to stand between man and the law of sin and death. This is the concept of atonement.  Yom Kippur - the day of atonement - would ensure that the sins of the people were covered for another year.  Why is this translated "the mercy seat"?  "Seat" because the cover is seated on the top of the ark (an artifact of King James English I suppose).  "Mercy" because it is only by God's great mercy that we are not consumed by His wrath.  The law requires death as the penalty for sin, and all of us stand in need of His mercy to save us from the just sentence of death.


So now we come to what covers our sins as Christians.  It is the righteousness of Christ. Unlike the black tar used to cover the ark of Noah, the righteousness of Christ is a white linen garment, fine and clean.

Genesis 3:21 The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.

Isaiah 61:10 For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness.

Galatians 3:27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

Revelation 19:18 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

Yet there is something more than atonement available for followers of Christ.  Atonement is temporary, and our sins are covered by the blood of Christ while we are in the flesh, but we are also:

Redeemed (all our debts under the Law are paid by Christ's sacrifice),

Reconciled (brought back into the presence of God),

Saved (delivered from the power of sin and spared from the wrath of God),

Reborn (resurrected to a new life in Christ),

Justified (imputed with the righteousness of Christ),

Sanctified (purified from sin and re-formed into the image of Christ),

Anointed (filled with the Holy Spirit of God),

Appointed (sent into the world to make disciples of all men), and

Glorified (together with Christ) when our earthly bodies are exchanged for heavenly bodies in the world to come.

Now that I think about this list, I think I will memorize it for a time of thanksgiving and praise!