David begins and ends this psalm by saying he trusts in the Lord. Yet in the middle, he pleads with God several times that he needs forgiveness. He wants to know God better but realizes that his own sins are what he needs to be released from more than just deliverance from his enemies. This is true for each of us. We may need deliverance from trouble and protection but what we need more is forgiveness.
"Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord" vs. 8b. Here is a great reminder for those in church leadership (and you're doing the right things), when people grumble it isn't your problem it's God's to solve. Too often people take offense when people grumble/complain about the direction things are going in a church and those in leadership take it personally. However, if the leader follows God's path (double check you are) then the complaint isn't against you. This is God's issue to fix.
A thing for everyone to remember is that hard times come. You can be in the center of God's will and it may seem you are going to starve or die (like what Israel faced a few chapters before). Some may quote the song and say God "Never promised you a rose garden," or a bed of roses and he didn't. In this life, it may seem he gives us a bed of roses but only when you consider how many thorns are on those roses. In this life there are troubles. The key is when you follow God's way there are a lot of issues you don't have to worry about and when things go wrong God promises to work it out for you (Romans 8:28). So even here it's not our problem, it's God's.
If we sin then that is another issue. If the issues we face are a result of our actions then we can ask for forgiveness and God will help us through this problem we have created. If we don't ask for forgiveness then there may be other issues but we will see that later in the story.
Miriam the prophet.
Here is another example in scripture of God using women in leadership. Though we don't have any prophecies of Miriam handed down that doesn't mean that her messages were less important they were evidently not messages for us today. This doesn't diminish her work or her role as a messenger of God. Yes, when we see this and other examples written it does mean that we have to ask ourselves what Paul might have meant in the New Testament (if read out of cultural context) but what we see here is God uses women as he uses men to deliver His word to people.
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For two more times, Pharoah is going to make horrible decisions and once more he is going to have his heart hardened. First, in chasing after Israel when he answered the question wrongly about why they let Israel go. They let them go because God was fighting and winning against your gods. However, the only thing Pharoah saw was the loss of labor. The second was when he chose to chase Israel through the Red Sea. Here looking at what had happened before with God protecting Israel and judging Egypt it should have been a no-brainer not to go into the sea, but they did it anyway. This is what happens when we refuse to recognize God, we make bad choices.
To continue on the thought I made in my original post on this chapter, God warns the helper. It is good to help others but there are times when we shouldn't. This was one of those times for Egypt. They should not have helped. Were they destined to be conquered? Yes, according to other prophecies, but perhaps it would have been different if they had not joined in alliance with God's rebellious people.
The lesson for us is that if we are trying to help someone God is trying to correct or judge, we may face that judgment. Listening to God isn't just for when we need help it is also something we should be doing when giving it. There are times when the worst thing you can do is help someone. Especially if you are weak yourself. Your intentions may be noble but if you're offering help you shouldn't then you're going to be hurting.
To say it another way, a way that has been said before, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions."
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Job 26 begins Job's final reply to his "comforters." It is his chance to speak again about how he is innocent and how he sees God and His works. One of these works is cutting Rahab into pieces. It may seem confusing for someone with just a little knowledge of the Bible and no access to a Bible commentary. Isn't Rahab a Prostitute in Jericho? Yes, she is but that is not who this is talking about. The Hebrew here can refer to the "Storm" or a "sea monster." Either way, The powers of the sea are no match for God. The sea was and still is one of the most uncontrollable forces known to man, yet for God it is nothing. God is greater than it all. If this is a monster, I can't help but steal a line from Veggie Tales: "God is bigger than the Boogieman and the monsters on TV," or any monster in the sea.
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On the scene comes Stephen a deacon but something more. Stephen seems to be not just a person who helps the poor but who also can defend the faith and through whom God is doing miracles. Stephen is probably a Hellenistic Jew and may have been part of the Synague of the Freemen before following Jesus. What we do know for sure is that the logic of Stephen and the miracles done by him could not be argued against. So what do you do if you can't win an argument? Bring false accusations and recriminations, and take their words out of context. Seems like the same thing people do today.
Here again, is a perfect example of what to do and not to do. First, the don't. Don't try and win the argument by deception, character assassination, or literal killing but that is later in the story. Do trust God and let him shine through.
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