Tag Archives: ILMA ARTS STUDIO

April 27

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EXODUS 3

16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, 17 and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ 18 And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go. 21 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, 22 but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians.” – Exodus 3:16-22

EXODUS 3 GOD’S PROMISE OF DELIVERANCE

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

At the burning bush, God gives Moses further directives

Moses has to assure the Israelites of their deliverance

Simultaneously, he also assured Moses that he will be heard

God sends his people a reminder that he is promise keeper

Their cries have been heard and God will avenge their oppression

God will lead them to the Promised Land and they’ll plunder the Egyptians.

In this account, we witness a God of compassion and devotion. He reveals to Moses how he heard the cries of his people and gives him some detail of what is going to happen and how Moses is going to be the vessel to deliver God’s people. God manifests his many different nature such as his faithfulness, steadfast love, provision, protection and his power. It was such a privilege and honor for Moses to hear God reveal secrets to him so that his love for his people will be known and so that they will in turn stay faithful to him.

REFLECTION

  • Which of God’s different nature mentioned above have you experienced in life?

EXODUS 2 MOSES SETTLES DOWN IN MIDIAN

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April 24

EXODUS 2

16 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. 17 The shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and saved them, and watered their flock. 18 When they came home to their father Reuel, he said, “How is it that you have come home so soon today?” 19 They said, “An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds and even drew water for us and watered the flock.” 20 He said to his daughters, “Then where is he? Why have you left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.” 21 And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah. 22 She gave birth to a son, and he called his name Gershom, for he said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.”23 During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. 24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 God saw the people of Israel—and God knew. – EXODUS 2:16-24

EXODUS 2 MOSES SETTLES DOWN IN MIDIAN

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Fearing for his life after killing an Egyptian, Moses fled to Midian

It was in the well that he met the daughters of Reul, the priest

Moses saved them from the shepherds and drew water for them

So, their father Reuel gave his daughter to him and he settled in Midian.

David Guzik comments on that “If Moses went into the area of Canaan and Syria, he would have found no refuge – there was a treaty between Rameses II and the Hittite king to the effect that fugitives along the northern route to Syria would be arrested and extradited. So, Moses went southeast instead, to Midian. In that day Midian described the area on both the west and east sides of the Reed Sea, land that today is both Saudi Arabia (on the east of the Reed Sea) and Egypt (on the Sinai Peninsula, on the west of the Reed Sea).

Moses was at the right place and at the right time. God made him settle there, have a wife and a son and be ready for the bigger calling he had at hand. God will use him to deliver the Israelites from the cruelty of the Egyptians into his promised land.

REFLECTION

  • How was Midian a place for training and preparation for Moses’ calling?

EXODUS 2 MOSES’ COMPASSION FOR HIS PEOPLE

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April 23

EXODUS 2

11 One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. 12 He looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 13 When he went out the next day, behold, two Hebrews were struggling together. And he said to the man in the wrong, “Why do you strike your companion?” 14 He answered, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid, and thought, “Surely the thing is known.” 15 When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and stayed in the land of Midian. And he sat down by a well. – Exodus 2:11-15

EXODUS 2 MOSES’ COMPASSION FOR HIS PEOPLE

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When Pharaoh’s daughter adopted Moses in their household

Moses was raised and educated in the Egyptian ways and culture

But he had so much compassion for these oppressed Hebrews

When he witnessed them being beaten up, he defended them.

In this account, we witness God’s work in Moses’ heart. Even though he must have been raised in the household of Pharaoh as an Egyptian, he still belonged to God. According to Brittanica.com, Moses must have been twenty-five when this event happened. He took the inspection tour of his oppressed people at the height of his youth. That is probably why he was strong enough to strike the abusive Egyptian and bury him himself. Some commentaries say he was forty when he left Egypt.  According to bibleref.com, the mother of Moses cared for him until the time he was weaned and could eat solid food. This would have been at least a year. Many children in ancient cultures were nursed until two or even three years old. The most formative time of Moses’ early life remained in the arms of his own mother during a time when baby boys his age were killed.  Naturally, when he saw the hardship of his own people, he had that compassion for them.

God led Moses into the land of Midian to flee so he can be prepared for the deliverance of God’s people. He was humbled to tend to his father-in-law’s sheep in the land of Midian, where God showed himself in the burning bush to him.

REFLECTION

  • Why do you think it was necessary for Moses to flee to go to Midian?

EXODUS 2 THE BIRTH OF MOSES

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April 22

EXODUS 2

Now a man from the house of Levi went and took as his wife a Levite woman. 2 The woman conceived and bore a son, and when she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him three months. 3 When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes and daubed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank. 4 And his sister stood at a distance to know what would be done to him. 5 Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her young women walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her servant woman, and she took it. 6 When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the baby was crying. She took pity on him and said, “This is one of the Hebrews’ children.” 7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and call you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?” 8 And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Go.” So, the girl went and called the child’s mother. 9 And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages.” So, the woman took the child and nursed him. 10 When the child grew older, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses, “Because,” she said, “I drew him out of the water.”– Exodus 2:1-10

EXODUS 2 THE BIRTH OF MOSES

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

During the order of the Pharaoh to kill all the Hebrew male children

A Levite couple bore a very fine and beautiful male infant

They hid him long enough until he was getting bigger

Then they placed him on a basket to have him float on the river

Then Pharaoh’s daughter saw the child and have compassion on him

The sister offered to have her own mother nurse the baby for her.

Moses’ story is fascinating and is a manifestation of how God brought into this world a deliverer of his people. Moses’ life is almost a foreshadowing of our Savior Jesus Christ when the male infants were being brutally killed by the king. Moses was born to Levite people who were the priestly tribe. Jesus was our High Priest. Moses had to be hidden by his parents and Jesus had to be born in a manger away from danger to be killed.

REFLECTION

  • How can you clearly see God’s hand in the life of Moses from his birth?

EXODUS 1 THE MIDWIVES WHO FEARED GOD

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April 21

EXODUS 1

15 Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16 “When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.” 17 But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. 18 So the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this, and let the male children live?” 19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.” 20 So God dealt well with the midwives. And the people multiplied and grew very strong. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families. 22 Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, “Every son that is born to the Hebrews you shall cast into the Nile, but you shall let every daughter live.”

                                                                   – EXODUS 1:15-22

EXODUS 1 THE MIDWIVES WHO FEARED GOD

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

As the king of Egypt continue to feel threatened by the Israelites’ multiplication

He ordered the midwives to stop the Hebrew women from bearing male infants

But the midwives feared God, they disobeyed Pharaoh’s order and let them live

When Pharaoh confronted them, they reasoned that they were fast to give birth.

Pharaoh’s order to the midwives assigned to the Hebrew women to kill the male infants manifests the manipulativeness and cowardice of this tyrant. He didn’t even have the courage to fight with the male grown ups because of his fear of their number. So, he slyly made this order to the midwives to hide his plot to stop the number of the Hebrews from reproducing. It is ironic that he ordered the female infants to survive not thinking that they are the ones who give birth and not the male children. By the time they grow up, they can give birth to more Hebrews. The midwives must have been Egyptians who were ordered to stop the male babies from living. It is probably God’s plan to have Shiphrah and Puah have the wisdom to follow their calling to give life and not kill infants. Somehow, God’s fear has been passed on to them by the Hebrew women.

REFLECTION

·       How was the disobedience of the midwives a manifestation of God’s protection?

EXODUS 1 PHARAOH’S CRUELTY OVER THE ISRAELITES

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April 20

EXODUS 1

These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household: 2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, 3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, 4 Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. 5 All the descendants of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph was already in Egypt. 6 Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. 7 But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.8 Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. 9 And he said to his people, “Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. 10 Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and, if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.” 11 Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store cities, Pithom and Raamses. 12 But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel. 13 So they ruthlessly made the people of Israel work as slaves 14 and made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and brick, and in all kinds of work in the field. In all their work they ruthlessly made them work as slaves. – EXODUS 1:1-14

EXODUS 1 PHARAOH’S CRUELTY OVER THE ISRAELITES

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

After Joseph and his brothers’ generation, a new ruler got in power

This new Pharaoh didn’t know Joseph and what he had done to Egypt

He felt threatened by the multiplication of the Israelites so he oppressed them

He was so cruel that he made Israelites lives bitter with forced labor & slavery.

“Exodus” is a Greek word which means “going out”. It points to the narrative of how
God led the Israelites to exit out of Egypt. The book of Exodus begins where the book of Genesis ends. It starts with the enumeration of Jacob’s household. It is a transition period of probably 430 years according to one of the commentaries. Joseph and his brothers died then and so their children. This new Pharaoh didn’t know history. He didn’t know Joseph was the reason why Egypt still existed at his time. He was anxious of the increase in the number of the Israelites, so he decided to inflict cruelty on them.

REFLECTION

·       Why is verse 8 very important in this first chapter of the book of Exodus?

GENESIS 49 JACOB BLESSES JOSEPH & BENJAMIN & DIES

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April 16

GENESIS 49


22 “Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a spring; his branches run over the wall.
23 The archers bitterly attacked him, shot at him, and harassed him severely, 24 yet his bow remained unmoved; his arms were made agile by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob (from there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel), 25 by the God of your father who will help you, by the Almighty who will bless you with blessings of heaven above,
blessings of the deep that crouches beneath, blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
26 The blessings of your father are mighty beyond the blessings of my parents, up to the bounties of the everlasting hills. May they be on the head of Joseph, and on the brow of him who was set apart from his brothers.27 “Benjamin is a ravenous wolf, in the morning devouring the prey and at evening dividing the spoil.”28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel. This is what their father said to them as he blessed them, blessing each with the blessing suitable to him. 29 Then he commanded them and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 in the cave that is in the field at Machpelah, to the east of Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite to possess as a burying place. 31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife. There they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah— 32 the field and the cave that is in it were bought from the Hittites.” 33 When Jacob finished commanding his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed and breathed his last and was gathered to his people.

                                                                   – Genesis 49:22-32

GENESIS 49 JACOB BLESSES JOSEPH & BENJAMIN & DIES

Charles Spurgeon comments on Joseph’s blessing from Jacob as his being well-watered and provided for in his deep and real relationship with God. “The main point in Joseph’s character was that he was in clear and constant fellowship with God, and therefore God blessed him greatly. He lived to God, and was God’s servant; he lived with God, and was God’s child.” Though Joseph encountered a lot of cruelty, the Lord never left him and use them to strengthen and prepare him for ruling Egypt wisely. Benjamin was blessed with fierceness to devour the prey which we see in Judges 3 in Ehud who was a Benjamite. After blessing all his sons, Jacob requested he be buried to his father’s land and he died.

REFLECTION

  • Why did Jacob want to be buried in the cave where his father was buried?

GENESIS 49 MORE PROPHETIC WORDS FOR SIX SONS OF JACOB

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April 15

GENESIS 49

13 “Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea; he shall become a haven for ships, and his border shall be at Sidon.14 “Issachar is a strong donkey, crouching between the sheepfolds. 15 He saw that a resting place was good, and that the land was pleasant, so he bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant at forced labor. 16 “Dan shall judge his people as one of the tribes of Israel. 17 Dan shall be a serpent in the way, a viper by the path, that bites the horse’s heels so that his rider falls backward. 18 I wait for your salvation, O Lord.19 “Raiders shall raid Gad, but he shall raid at their heels. 20 “Asher’s food shall be rich, and he shall yield royal delicacies.21 “Naphtali is a doe let loose that bears beautiful fawns. – Genesis 49:13-21

GENESIS 49 MORE PROPHETIC WORDS FOR SIX SONS OF JACOB

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

On his deathbed, Jacob continues to speak out prophecies for his sons

He spoke of Zebulun becoming a haven for ships and spread through Sidon

Issachar shall be crouching between sheepfolds and will be a servant

Dan shall judge his people and be the serpent but Gad shall raid at their heels

Asher’s food shall be rich and yield royal delicacies while Naphtali is a doe

These are Jacob’s prophetic words for six of his own sons before he died.

If we go to the first book of Chronicles 12:32- 37, these prophetic words of Jacob over his six sons were fulfilled. Issachar’s men had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, 200 chiefs, and all their kinsmen under their command. Zebulun had 50,000 seasoned troops, equipped for battle with all the weapons of war, to help David with singleness of purpose. From Naphtali’s tribe came 1,000 commanders with whom were 37,000 men armed with shield and spear.  From Dan’s tribe, 28,600 men were equipped for battle. From Asher 40,000 seasoned troops were ready for battle.  Of the Reubenites and Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh from beyond the Jordan, 120,000 men armed with all the weapons of war. From this account, we clearly witness how Jacob’s prophecy over his sons were all revealed to him by God’s Spirit. How else could he have foreseen all of these future events if it wasn’t from God? They were not chance they were all in God’s plan, every detail of it.

REFLECTION

  • Why do you think God revealed to Jacob all these future events before he died?

GENESIS 49 JACOB DECLARES PROPHECY & CURSES ON HIS DEATHBED

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April 14

GENESIS 49

Then Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you what shall happen to you in days to come.2 “Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob, listen to Israel your father.3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the firstfruits of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.4 Unstable as water, you shall not have preeminence, because you went up to your father’s bed; then you defiled it—he went up to my couch! 5 “Simeon and Levi are brothers; weapons of violence are their swords. 6 Let my soul come not into their council; O my glory, be not joined to their company. For in their anger, they killed men, and in their willfulness, they hamstrung oxen.7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.8 “Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons shall bow down before you.9 Judah is a lion’s cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him? 10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him;[a]and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.11 Binding his foal to the vine and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, he has washed his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes. 12 His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk.

                                                                      – Genesis 49:1-12

GENESIS 49 JACOB DECLARES PROPHECY & CURSES ON HIS DEATHBED

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

On his deathbed, Jacob finally declares all thoughts he had on his sons

He began to declare all things that he had kept quiet for many years

The Spirit of the Lord was upon Jacob as he wisely utters prophetic words

One among four was blessed but the rest received curses from Jacob.

It was finally on his deathbed when Jacob spoke of his son’s sins. He can now finally speak of the prophetic vision that the Lord showed him, just before he breathed his last. Even though he kept silent about all the evil deeds his sons did, he spoke of the consequences of those sins they committed. Only Judah seemed to be blessed among the first four sons of Jacob. It was from him that David will come forth and so will the Messiah as well

REFLECTION

  • Why do you think Jacob kept his mouth shut all those years his sons sinned?

GENESIS 48 MORE BLESSING FOR EPHRAIM

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April 13

GENESIS 48

17 When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him, and he took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. 18 And Joseph said to his father, “Not this way, my father; since this one is the firstborn, put your right hand on his head.” 19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great. Nevertheless, his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his offspring shall become a multitude of nations.” 20 So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying, ‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.’ ”Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh. 21 Then Israel said to Joseph, “Behold, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will bring you again to the land of your fathers. 22 Moreover, I have given to you rather than to your brothers one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and with my bow.” – Genesis 48:17-22

GENESIS 48 MORE BLESSING FOR EPHRAIM

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When Joseph noticed that Jacob’s right hand was on Ephraim

He corrected his father and directed it to Manasseh’s head

But Jacob said that he wanted Ephraim to get more blessings

Manasseh will also get favor but the promise will be on Ephraim’s

Jacob also gives his mountain slope to Joseph and not to his brothers

It was to honor the Lord’s plan to hand over what he had to Joseph.

According to Wikepedia.com, the firstborn or firstborn son (Hebrew בְּכוֹר bəḵōr) is an important concept in Judaism. The role of firstborn son carries significance in the redemption of the first-born son, in the allocation of a double portion of the inheritance, and in the prophetic application of “firstborn” to the nation of Israel.

No wonder Joseph wanted his firstborn son Manasseh to get the double portion instead of the younger son. I wonder if Jacob was repeating history since he wasn’t the firstborn son either and yet he was chosen by God to be the one to receive the covenant promise of multiplication and the promised land.

REFLECTION

  • How do we know if Jacob’s blessings on Ephraim was God’s will?