Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• The creation of man 2:4-17
  2:4 Having related the creation of the universe as we know it, God next inspired Moses to explain for his readers what became of it.129Sin entered it and devastated it."The destiny of the human creation is to live in God's wo...
• 2. Quails and manna in the wilderness of Sin ch. 16
  This chapter records another crisis in the experience of the Israelites as they journeyed from Goshen to Mt. Sinai that God permitted and used to teach them important lessons.16:1-3 The wilderness of Sin evidently lay in the ...
• 2. Contributions for the construction of the sanctuary 25:1-9
  "Only voluntary gifts were acceptable as materials for the Lord's house (25:2; 35:3, 21-22, 29), since love rather than compulsion is the basis of all truly biblical giving (2 Cor. 9:7)."431Moses employed four different terms...
• The lampstand 25:31-40
  This piece of furniture was probably similar in size to the table of showbread (v. 39). It stood opposite that table in the holy place against the south (left) wall. It weighed about 75 pounds. The tabernacle craftsmen fashio...
• Fire from the Lord 9:22-24
  After offering these sacrifices, Aaron blessed the people (v. 22). He "stepped down"perhaps from a platform near the altar of burnt offerings on which he may have been standing to address the people. Probably Moses took Aaron...
• Message8
  To formulate a statement that summarizes the teaching of this book it will be helpful to identify some of the major revelations in Numbers. These constitute the unique values of the book.The first major value of Numbers is th...
• Outline
  I. Experiences of the older generation in the wilderness chs. 1-25A. Preparations for entering the Promised Land from the south chs. 1-101. The first census and the organization of the people chs. 1-42. Commands and rituals t...
• 1. The cycle of rebellion, atonement, and death chs. 11-20
  The end of chapter 10 is the high point of the Book of Numbers spiritually. The beginning of chapter 11 records the beginning of the spiritual decline of Israel that resulted in God's judging the nation. He postponed the fulf...
• The presumption of the people 14:39-45
  Having received their sentence from the Lord, the people then presumptuously proceeded to go up on their own to take the land (vv. 40-42)."They are like children who had broken a valuable vase and decided to make it better' b...
• Laws given during the 38 years of discipline chs. 15-19
  Moses recorded few events during the years of Israel's wandering in the wilderness, but those he did preserve have instructive value. Most important among them is the rebellion of Korah's group against Moses and Aaron, and Go...
• The rebellion of Korah and his followers ch. 16
  "As the laws increase and the constraints grow, the people seem less willing or less capable of following them. At this point in the narrative we see that the whole order of the priesthood is thrown open to direct confrontati...
• The confirmation of Aaron's high-priesthood ch. 17
  The fact that God halted the plague in response to Aaron's atoning action with his censer (16:47-48) would have proved that God accepted him as the high priest and not the rebels. God gave the miracle of the budding rod to ma...
• The service and income of the priests and Levites ch. 18
  A complete and comprehensive explanation of the official duties and revenues of the priests and Levites appropriately follows the confirmation of Aaron's priesthood. This was God's reply to the frightened cries of the people ...
• The departure from Kadesh ch. 20
  Here begins the fourth and last leg of the Israelites' journey from Egypt to the Promised Land.1. From Egypt to Sinai (Exod. 12-19)2. From Sinai to Kadesh (Num. 11-12)3. From Kadesh back to Kadesh--38 years of wilderness wand...
• Conclusion
  The Book of Numbers is a lesson in the importance of trust and obedience. The Israelites frequently failed to trust and obey God in the hours of their trials, and consequently God postponed His blessing. Most of them never en...
• 4. The preservation of God's words 31:24-29
  Moses charged the priests with the care and keeping of the law he had written (vv. 25-26), perhaps the whole Book of Deuteronomy.333It was normal for priests to bear this responsibility in the ancient Near East.334They kept t...
• Scope
  The Book of Samuel covers the period of Israel's history bracketed by Samuel's conception and the end of David's reign. David turned the kingdom over to Solomon in 971 B.C.3David reigned for 40 and one-half years (2 Sam. 2:11...
• The restoration of David's dynasty and the legitimate priesthood 33:14-26
  This section consists of a small collection of messianic prophecies.33:14 Future days would come, the Lord promised, when He would fulfill His promises concerning the restoration of all Israel."The predicted restoration (the ...
• The destruction of the whole land ch. 7
  This chapter, like the previous one, probably contains several separate oracles. Together they make up a lamentation. Here the nature of the coming judgment of Jerusalem and Judah receives primary emphasis."There are six part...
• The heavenly sanctuary 9:1-10
  In this pericope the writer concentrated on the tabernacle and its provisions for cultic worship.254The word "first"(Gr. prote) links this section with the former one (cf. 8:13). The writer introduced two subjects in the firs...