SHOW ME YOUR GLORY

Despite their unfaithfulness, Yahweh would remain

faithful to bring the descendents of Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob into the Promised Land. However, note:
1. The people were now the people whom Moses
(not Yahweh) brought out of the land of
Egypt; and,
2. An angel, rather than Yahweh, would go with
the people I will not go up in your midst.
Many people are happy to have Gods blessings,
but not have God Himself - but not Moses. He
pleaded with Yahweh:
"If Your Presence does not go with us, do not
bring us up from here. For how then will it be
known that Your people and I have found grace
in Your sight, except You go with us? (Exodus
33:15, 16)

While Moses was on Mount Sinai receiving the

details of the Tabernacle (i.e., the tent where Yahweh
would dwell in the midst of His people [Exodus
25:8]), the children of Israel molded a golden calf
and worshiped it as the god that delivered them from
slavery in Egypt. These same people, just 40 days
previously, had agreed to be obedient to Yahwehs
commands, which begin:
"I am Yahweh your God, who brought you out
of the land of Egypt, out of the house of
bondage.
You shall have no other gods before Me.
You shall not make for yourself a carved
image, or any likeness of anything that is in
heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath,
or that is in the water under the earth.
You shall not bow down to them nor serve
them. (Exodus 20:2-5a)
Despite Yahwehs deliverance, they did all three
shall nots they made an image, accepted it as a
god in place of Yahweh, and worshiped it. As a
result of their sin, Yahweh said to Moses:
"Depart and go up from here, you and the people
whom you have brought out of the land of
Egypt, to the land of which I swore to Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob, saying, To your descendants I
will give it. And I will send an angel before you,
and I will drive out the Canaanite and the
Amorite and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the
Hivite and the Jebusite. Go up to a land flowing
with milk and honey; for I will not go up in your
midst, lest I consume you on the way, for you are
a stiff-necked people." (Exodus 33:1-3)

Moses had no interest in getting to the Promised

Land without the Promiser.
When Yahweh
consented to go, Moses made the request that is the
title of this Christmas devotional:
Please, show me Your glory. (vs. 18)
To this request, Yahweh said:
"I will make all My goodness pass before you,
and I will proclaim the name of Yahweh before
you. You cannot see My face; for no man shall
see Me, and live. Here is a place by Me, and you
shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My
glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of
the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I
pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you
shall see My back; but My face shall not be
seen." (Exodus 33:19-22)
You may be wondering what this has to do with
Christmas, but stay with me. I would like to look at:
(1) Gods Glory Defined; (2) Gods Glory
Expounded; (3) Gods Glory Fleshed Out: and,
(4) Gods Glory Glorified.

GODS GLORY DEFINED

There is no way to do justice to the topic of Gods
glory in a couple of pages. But much can be learned
from the meaning of the Hebrew word translated
glory, namely, kabowd. Its ancient pictograph root
is . Regarding this root, Jeff Benner writes in his
Ancient Hebrew Lexicon:
The pictograph is a picture of the palm of the
hand and represents a covering, the is a
picture of a tent. Combined these mean "covering
of the tent". The black goat hair fabric used for
the roof of the tent allows some light through
giving the appearance of stars overhead.

The Hebrew word for star (kowkab) comes from

the same pictograph root. Stars are numerous,
massive and brilliant:
1. Numerous: In Genesis 15:5, Yahweh told
Abraham that he could not count the stars - and
for good reason, as there are an estimated 10
septillion (1025) stars in the universe. Even you
could count a million stars a second and lived
to the age of 175 as Abraham did, you would
only have counted 0.00000005% of the stars.
2. Massive: The suns diameter is 100 times
greater than the earths. The sun represents
99.86% of the mass of the solar system. As a
result of its size, the gravitational force of the
sun draws 8 planets, 5 dwarf planets & an
asteroid belt to circle it.
3. Brilliant: Stars are visible as a result of nuclear
reactions occurring in their cores, which
generate energy that radiates outward. Light
intensity is measured in lux. Standard lighting
in a house is about 500 lux. However, even
though the sun is 93,000,000 miles away, the
light we receive from it on a clear day is about
25,000 lux 50 times more intense than the
lighting in our houses.
Putting together the ideas of numerous, massive &
brilliant, we will use the following definition:
Gods glory is the sum (numerous), substance
(massive) and stunningness (brilliant) of His
perfections.
Moses had asked to see Gods glory and Yahweh had
indicated that He would allow all My goodness to
pass before His servant.

GODS GLORY EXPOUNDED

Returning to Moses in the book of Exodus, we read:
And Yahweh passed before him and proclaimed,
"Yahweh, Yahweh God, merciful, gracious,
longsuffering, abounding in lovingkindness and
faithfulness,
keeping
lovingkindness
for
thousands [generations of those who love Him
and keep His commandments], forgiving iniquity
and transgression and sin, and making innocent,
He will not make innocent, visiting the iniquity of
the fathers upon the children and upon the
childrens children upon the third and upon the
fourth generation [of those who hate Him].
(Exodus 34:5-7)
In Judaism, this passage is said to contain the
Thirteen Attributes of Mercy. This is one of the
clearest self-declarations of Yahwehs numerous,
massive and brilliant perfections.

1. Yahweh
Yahweh is the name of the one true God. Before
Moses began his mission of leading Israel out of
bondage, he had asked God about His name. He
received the following answer:
I AM WHO I AM. Thus you shall say to the
children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you.
Yahweh God of your fathers, the God of
Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name for
the ages, and this is My memorial to all
generations. (Exodus 3:14, 15)
I AM WHO I AM, I AM and Yahweh all come
from the Hebrew word hayah, which comes from an
ancient root meaning to breathe or exist. Yahweh is
the only being that has always existed and out of
whom all else was created. It is in Him that we live
and move and have our being (Acts 17:28).
Yahweh alone brings all things to pass and alone
does whatever He wants.

2. God
Hebrew word translated God is el. It comes from
the ancient pictograph root . Jeff Benner writes:
The pictograph is a picture of an ox head and
also represents its strength. The is a picture of
a shepherd staff and also represents the authority
of the shepherd. Combined these two pictographs
mean "the strong authority" and can be anyone
or thing of strong authority. The yoke is
understood as a "staff on the shoulders" (see
Isaiah 9:4) in order to harness their power for
pulling loads such as a wagon or plow. Hence,
the two pictographs can also represent "the ox in
the yoke". Often two oxen were yoked together.
An older, more experienced ox would be teamed
up (yoked) with a younger, less experienced ox.
The older ox in the yoke is the "strong authority"
who, through the yoke, teaches the younger ox.
That is the Hebrew idea of God not some distant
deity, but rather the Strong Authority to Whom they
were yoked and from Whom they learned.

3. Merciful
The Hebrew word translated merciful is rachuwm.
It comes from an ancient pictograph root ()
meaning man covered. A related word is used in
this passage:
Listen to Me, O house of Jacob, and all the
remnant of the house of Israel, who have been
upheld by Me from birth, who have been carried
from the womb (racham): even to your old age, I
am He, and even to gray hairs I will carry you! I

have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and

will deliver you. (Isaiah 43:3, 4)
The weakest and most helpless person is an unborn
baby. A mothers womb is the place where a baby is
covered protected and nurtured. Even after the
baby is born, it is a mothers love that generally
continues to shelter her baby from harm. Yahweh
says:
"Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not
have compassion (racham) on the son of her
womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not
forget you. (Isaiah 49:15)
Gods mercy is the womb that carries us all the days
of our lives.

4. Gracious
The Hebrew word translated gracious is channuwn.
In 12 of 13 times it is used in Scripture, it is coupled
with a form of rachuwm. It comes from an ancient
pictograph root () of which Jeff Benner writes:
The pictograph is a picture of a wall. The
is a picture of a seed meaning "to continue".
Combined these mean "wall continues". A
nomads camp consisted of many family tents,
which make up the clan camp. The camp can
have as many as fifty tents or more in it. The tents
are placed in a circular configuration, forming
one continuous wall surrounding the camp.
Within this wall is the family clan, a place of
freedom, compassion and beauty.
We have a picture of God drawing us into His family,
a place of unmerited favor:
Be gracious (chanan) to me, O God, be gracious
(chanan) to me! For my soul trusts in You; and in
the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge,
until these calamities have passed by. (Psalm
57:1, 2)

5. Longsuffering
The Hebrew phrase translated longsuffering is
arek aph or literally slow nostrils. A person's
nostrils will flare when he or she is angry. It takes a
long time for Gods nostrils to flare He is slow to
anger. In 7 of 13 times it is used in Scripture, it is
coupled with both rachuwm and channuwn.

6. Abounding in Lovingkindness
The Hebrew word translated lovingkindness is
checed. According to Benner, it means:
The bowing of the neck as a sign of respect and
kindness to an equal.

This definition holds in human-human relationships;

however, Yahweh has no equals. Therefore, checed
denotes Divine Love condescending to His creatures
in unmerited kindness. It is often used in parallel
with covenant:
For the mountains shall depart and the hills be
removed. My lovingkindness (checed) shall not
depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace
be removed, says Yahweh, who has mercy
(racham) on you. (Isaiah 54:10)
Two things, which we generally do not think about
being moved (mountains and hills), may be removed,
but not Gods checed. Yahweh says:
I have loved you with an age-abiding love;
therefore, with lovingkindness (checed) I have
drawn you. (Jeremiah 31:3)
Checed is Gods steadfast, age-abiding love that
continually reaches out to its objects to draw them
into a relationship with Him.

7. Abounding in Faithfulness
The Hebrew word translated faithfulness is emeth.
It comes from an ancient pictograph root () of
which Jeff Benner writes:
The pictograph is a picture of water or other
liquid such as blood, the is a picture of a seed
representing continuance. Combined these mean
"blood continues". Each species continues by
passing its blood to the following generation,
which comes from the parent.
Species continue because of the robust traits that are
passed on from generation to generation to
generation. In over 30 Old Testament passages,
emeth is coupled with checed.
I will praise You, O Yahweh, among the peoples,
and I will sing praises to You among the nations.
For Your lovingkindness (checed) is great above
the heavens, and Your faithfulness (emeth)
reaches to the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above
the heavens, and Your glory (kabowd) above all
the earth. (Psalm 108:3-5)
A related word of emeth (emuwnah) is used with
checed in this passage, the basis for a famous hymn:
This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope.
Through Yahwehs lovingkindness (checed) we
are not consumed, because His compassions
(racham) fail not. They are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness (emuwnah).
(Lamentations 3:21-23)
This statement was made during one of the low
points in Israels history the Babylonian Captivity.
Despite the nations terrible sin and unfaithfulness,

the prophet Jeremiah was convinced that Yahweh

remained faithful and His steadfast love did not
waiver or come to an end.

8. Extending Lovingkindness to a Thousand

Generations
We have already looked at the word checed
(lovingkindness). Here in Exodus 34, checed is
extended to thousands. However, in other passages,
it is extended to a thousand generations:
Therefore know that Yahweh your God, He is
God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and
lovingkindness (checed) for a thousand
generations with those who love Him and keep
His commandments. (Deuteronomy 7:9)
A thousand generations stands in stark contrast to the
3rd and 4th generations in Attribute #13.

9. Forgiving Iniquity
The next three attributes focus on forgiving. The
Hebrew word is nasa. It comes from an ancient
pictograph root () of which Jeff Benner writes:
The pictograph is a picture of a seed
representing continuance, the is a picture of a
thorn representing the idea of grabbing hold.
Combined these mean "continue to grab hold".
It has the idea of lifting up a load and carrying it.
The load that Yahweh lifts and carries is described as
iniquity, transgression and sin.
The Hebrew word translated iniquity is avon. It
comes from a root that means to twist, bend, distort
or make crooked. Avon speaks to the evil bent
within humans the predisposition to sin. It causes
us to walk in crooked directions and commit
warped deeds.

10. Forgiving Transgression

The Hebrew word translated transgression is pesha.
It comes from a root that means to rebel or revolt.
The verb form is used in 1 Kings 12:19, Israel has
been in rebellion (pasha) against the house of David
to this day. This is speaking of the time when the 10
tribes of the house of Israel transferred their
allegiance from Davids grandson, King Rehoboam,
to Jeroboam. Pesha speaks to our rebellion against
Yahweh as Lord of heaven and earth our tendency
to depose God and sit upon the thrones of our lives.

11. Forgiving Sin

The Hebrew word translated sin is chattaah. It
comes from a root meaning to miss the mark. The
verb form is used in Judges 20:16, Among all this

people were seven hundred select men who were lefthanded; every one could sling a stone at a hairs
breadth and not miss (chata). Chattaah speaks to
our failures, when we fall short of Gods standard.
We often miss the mark unintentionally, rather than
as an act of outright rebellion.
Regardless of whether we are looking at sin as
crookedness or rebellion or failure, Yahweh
can lift and carry it away. David writes:
Blessed is he whose transgression (pesha) is
forgiven (nasa), whose sin (chata) is covered.
Blessed is the man to whom Yahweh does not
impute iniquity (avon), and in whose spirit there
is no deceit. (Psalm 32:1, 2)
Be gracious (chanan) unto me, O God, according
to Your lovingkindness (checed); according to
the multitude of Your mercies (racham), blot out
my transgressions (pesha). Wash me thoroughly
from my iniquity (avon), and cleanse me from my
sin (chattaah). (Psalm 51:1, 2)
David had committed adultery and murder and yet
because of Yahwehs grace, mercy and
lovingkindness, he experienced his crookedness,
rebellion and failure being lifted and carried away.

12. Making Innocent, He Will Not Make

Innocent
The repeated Hebrew word, translated make
innocent is naqah. It comes from an ancient
pictograph root () of which Jeff Benner writes:
The pictograph is a picture of a seed and
represents the sons of the next generation, the
is a picture of the sun at the horizon and the
drawing in of light. Combined these mean "child
drawn in" - the bringing in and holding close of
an infant to the breast.
The suckling child is the picture of innocence. I
believe that the meaning of this seemingly
contradictory statement is making innocent, but not
without consequences.
Despite Gods forgiveness, David did experience
Gods chastening.
The prophet Nathan, in
confronting the king regarding his sin, had the
following message from Yahweh:
Why have you despised the commandment of
Yahweh, to do evil in His sight? You have killed
Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken
his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with
the sword of the people of Ammon. Now
therefore, the sword shall never depart from your
house, because you have despised Me, and have
taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your

wife. Thus says Yahweh: Behold, I will raise up

adversity against you from your own house; and I
will take your wives before your eyes and give
them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your
wives in the sight of this sun. For you did it
secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel,
before the sun. (2 Samuel 12:9-12)
When confronted with his sin, David replied, I have
sinned against Yahweh. And Nathan replied,
Yahweh has put away your sin; you shall not die.
However, because by this deed you have given great
occasion to the enemies of Yahweh to blaspheme, the
child who is born to you shall surely die. There
were serious consequences that impacted the rest of
Davids life.

13. Visiting the Iniquity to the Fourth

Generation
The Hebrew word translated visiting is paqad. Jeff
Benner indicates that its meaning is overseer:
The role of the overseer is to watch over, direct,
command, chastise, review and count those in his
charge for the purpose of producing work.
When Jacobs sons sold their brother Joseph to some
Ishmaelite traders traveling to Egypt, he was bought
by a man named Potiphar. We read:

But even suffering the consequences of our sin is part

of Gods goodness. King Solomon, another son of
David and Bathsheba, wrote:

And his master saw that Yahweh was with him

and that Yahweh made all he did to prosper in
his hand. So Joseph found favor in his sight, and
served him. Then he made him overseer (paqad)
of his house, and all that he had he put under his
authority. (Genesis 39:3, 4)

My son, do not despise the chastening of

Yahweh, nor detest His correction; for whom
Yahweh loves He corrects, just as a father the
son in whom he delights. (Proverbs 3:11, 12)

So Yahweh oversees the iniquity of the fathers upon

the children and upon the childrens children, upon
the third and upon the fourth generation [of those
who hate Him]. What does that mean?

The Hebrew words translated chastening and

correction
are
muwcar
and
towkechah,
respectively. In the Ancient Hebrew Lexicon, we
read regarding their pictograph roots:

The little Hebrew word al (), translated upon,

has an interesting meaning:

The pictograph is a picture of a thorn

representing a turning, the is a picture of a
head. Combined these mean "turn the head". The
turning the head, through instruction or force, of
the child or student into a particular direction.
The pictograph is a picture of the palm of the
hand, the is a picture of a wall. Combined
these mean "palm wall". To correct or chastise
with a firm hand.
Chastening and correction are meant to get us going
back in the right direction and stay there acts of
Gods steadfast love. Remember the Hebrew idea of
God was the Strong Authority to Whom they were
yoked and from Whom they learned. In one of the
two Psalms associated with Davids repentance
following his sin (Psalms 32 and 51), Yahweh says:
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you
should go; I will guide you with My eye. Do not
be like the horse or like the mule, which have no
understanding, which must be harnessed with bit
and bridle, else they will not come near you.
(Psalm 32:8, 9)
When we sin, we are acting like a mule without
understanding and Gods chastening is like a bit and
bridle that draws us back to Himself.

The pictograph is a picture of the eye

representing knowledge and experience, the is a
picture of a shepherd staff or yoke. Combined
these mean "experience the yoke". The yoke is
lifted over the shoulder, is attached to the oxen for
performing work.
In both the word visit and upon, we have the
ideas of accomplishing work. Spiros Zodiates in his
Lexicon of Old Testament words says of paqad:
Its true meaning is an action taken on the part of
God which produces a beneficial result for His
people (Ruth 1:6; I Samuel 2:21; and Jeremiah
29:10)
When I quoted from Yahwehs answer to Moses
about seeing His glory, I left out one phrase found in
Exodus 33:19:
I will be gracious (chanan) to whom I will be
gracious (chanan), and I will be merciful
(racham) to whom I will be merciful (racham).
The statements are in the same form as the phrase we
looked at earlier I AM WHO I AM which was
Gods way of saying that He can be and accomplish
whatever He chooses. He decides when He will be
gracious and merciful to those who deserve only His
punishment. The Apostle Paul writes:
Do you despise the riches of His goodness,
forbearance and longsuffering, not knowing that

the goodness of God leads you to repentance.

(Romans 2:4)
Gods grace and mercy work toward our repentance.
The first time we read about the 4th generation it
relates to Gods timing for bringing the descendents
of Abraham into the Promised Land. Yahweh said to
Abram:
Know certainly that your descendents will be
strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will
serve them, and they will afflict them 400 years.
And also the nation whom they serve I will judge;
afterward they shall come out with great
possessions. In the 4th generation they shall
return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is
not yet complete. (Genesis 15:13-16)
When the Israelites finally entered the Promised
Land, God executed judgment on the inhabitants of
the land. This was not because of the iniquity of their
fathers, but because they had persisted in the iniquity
of their fathers. This demonstrates how slow God is
in the execution of His judgment. God was merciful
and gracious to the Canaanites they were given 400
years to repent and turn to Yahweh, but instead we
read:
Do not defile yourselves with any of these
things, by which all these nations are defiled,
which I am casting out before you. For the land
is defiled; therefore, I visit the iniquity upon it;
and the land vomits out its inhabitants
(Leviticus 18:24, 25)
The things that the nations did to defile the land are
listed earlier in the chapter incest, adultery, offering
child sacrifices, homosexuality, and bestiality all of
which Yahweh calls abominations or things that He
hates. For 400 years, He oversaw the iniquity in the
land of Canaan, exercising grace and mercy and
longsuffering, but the people did not repent. And
finally they received the punishment they deserved.
All thirteen attributes of Yahwehs self-revelation,
including the last two, speak to the truth that He is a
merciful God. Jeremiah writes in Lamentations:
Though Yahweh causes grief, yet He will show
mercy (racham) according to the multitude of
His lovingkindness (checed). For He does not
afflict from His heart, nor grieve the children of
men. (Lamentations 3:32, 33)
To quote Adam Clarke in his commentary, It is no
pleasure to God to afflict men. He takes no delight in
our pain and misery; yet, like a tender and intelligent
parent, He uses the rod; not to gratify Himself, but to
profit and save us.

GODS GLORY FLESHED OUT

The gospel of John begins with the following words:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God. He was in
the beginning with God. All things were made
through Him, and without Him nothing was made
that was made. In Him was life, and the life was
the light of men. And the light shines in the
darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend
it. And the Word became flesh and
tabernacled among us, and we beheld His glory,
the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,
full of grace and truth. For the law was given
through Moses, but grace and truth came
through Jesus the Messiah. No one has seen God
at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the
bosom of the Father, He has declared Him. (John
1:1-18)
This is Johns Christmas account. No mention of
Joseph and Mary OR Bethlehem OR shepherds OR
angels OR crowded inns OR mangers OR stars OR
wise men. But rather, Jesus, the Word of God, came
from the bosom of the Father, took on human flesh
and set up His tent among us. This passage has many
connections to the message of Exodus 34.
Gods power and wisdom can be seen in His creation.
But you cannot look at the stars and learn about
Gods grace, mercy, longsuffering, lovingkindness,
faithfulness, and forgiveness. The writer of the
Epistle to the Hebrews begins his letter with these
words:
God, who at various times and in various ways
spoke in times past to the fathers by the prophets,
has in these last days (of the Old Covenant) has
spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir
of all things, through whom He made the ages;
who being the brightness of His glory, and the
express image of His person. (1:1-3)
Pastor John Piper defines Gods glory this way:
I believe the glory of God is the going public of
His infinite worth.
That is really what Christmas is about God going
public with His infinite worth, as seen clearly in His
only begotten Son, Jesus the Messiah. Moses was
told that He could not see Gods face, only His back.
John concurs that no one has seen God, but we are
able to see Jesus, the One who makes the invisible
God visible. Regarding Jesus, the Apostle Paul
writes, In Him dwells all the fullness of the
Godhead bodily (Colossians 2:9). Lets look briefly
seeing the Thirteen Attributes of Gods Mercy in
Jesus:

1. Yahweh
We know Him by the name Jesus, but when He
lived here on earth His name was Yahushua, which
means Yahweh is Savior. Remember, the angel
had told Joseph, You shall call His name Yahushua,
for He will save His people from their sin (Matthew
1:21).

2. God - El
We saw that the Hebrew idea of God was the Strong
Authority to Whom they were yoked and from
Whom they learned. Knowing this gives special
meaning to these well-known words of Jesus:
"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke
upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and
lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your
souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is
light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

3. Merciful - Rachuwm
Many times in the gospels we are told of the
compassion that Jesus had for the needs of those He
ministered to. For instance:
Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages,
teaching in their synagogues, preaching the
gospel of the kingdom, and healing every
sickness and every disease among the people.
But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved
with compassion for them, because they were
weary and scattered, like sheep having no
shepherd. (Matthew 9:35, 36)
The Greek word translated moved with compassion
is splagchnizomai or moved in ones bowels. The
Hebrews saw the bowels as the seat of their tender
emotions. This is similar to the connection between
rachuwm and the womb.

4. Gracious - Channuwn
When the Hebrew Scriptures were translated into
Greek (Septuagint [LXX]), the Hebrew channuwn
was rendered with the Greek eleemon. When Jesus
showed a willingness to accept less than desirable
people, his disciples were questioned by the
Pharisees (religious leaders), Why does your
Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners? Jesus
answered them:
Those who are well have no need of a
physician, but those who are sick. But go and
learn what this means, I desire mercy (eleos)
and not sacrifice. (Hosea 6:6) But I did not
come to call the righteous, but sinners, to
repentance. (Matthew 9:12, 13)

Recall that channuwn expressed the idea of Gods

willingness to draw undeserving people into His
family. This is exactly why Jesus said He came.

5. Longsuffering Arek Aph

We saw that God has slow nostrils it takes a long
time for his nostrils to flare in anger. The evangelists
do not record very often that Jesus was angry. On
one occasion, Jesus entered a synagogue on the
Sabbath and met a man with a withered hand. He
asked the Pharisees who were constantly watching
Him to accuse Him of wrongdoing:
Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do
evil, to save life or to destroy? (Mark 3:3).
The point of Jesus question is to point out that is
never lawful to do evil or destroy life, and always
lawful to do good or save life Sabbath or not
Sabbath. Based on a misunderstanding of the
purpose for the Sabbath, the Pharisees had a long list
of things that could and couldnt be done on the
Sabbath and helping this suffering man was not on
the first list. When they did not answer Jesus
question, we are told:
And He looked around at them in anger, being
grieved by the hardness of their hearts. (vs. 4)
Even when Jesus was angry, it was tempered with
compassion. After He restored the mans hand, we
are told the Pharisees went out and immediately
plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they
might destroy Him. Although healing someone was
not on the approved list of Sabbath activities, plotting
murder did make the list.

6. Abounding in Lovingkindness - Checed

7. Abounding in Faithfulness - Emeth
I want to address these attributes together because it
very obvious that John had the phrase abounding in
lovingkindness and faithfulness in mind when he
writes:
And the Word became flesh and tabernacled
among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as
of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth. (John 1:14)
Yahweh abounds in lovingkindness and faithfulness
Yahushua is full of grace and truth. The New
Living Translation has He was full of unfailing love
and faithfulness.
Delitzschs Hebrew New
Testament has checed vaemeth. The Law came
through Moses and it was good for it shows us our
sin and our need for a Savior. But it is through Jesus
that we can come to fully understand and experience

the steadfast love and faithfulness of God. John the

Baptizers father, Zachariah, said regarding Jesus:
"Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for He has
visited and redeemed His people, And has raised
up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His
servant David, as He spoke by the mouth of His
holy prophets, who have been since the world
began, that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us, to perform
the mercy promised to our fathers and to
remember His holy covenant, the oath which He
swore to our father Abraham. (Luke 1:68-73)
In Jesus, Yahweh came to show His steadfast love
and His faithfulness to His promises.

8. Extending Lovingkindness to a Thousand

Generations
It is through Jesus that Gods steadfast love is
extended to all. The Apostle John writes:
In this the love of God was manifested toward us,
that God has sent His only begotten Son into the
world that we might live through Him. In this is
love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us
and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our
sins. We have seen and testify that the Father
sent the Son as the Savior of the world. (1 John
4:9, 10, 14)
As Jesus hung on the cross, His outstretched arms
were the arms of Yahweh saying to the world, I love
you this much.

9. Forgiving Iniquity Nasa Avon

10. Forgiving Transgression Nasa Pesha
11. Forgiving Sin Nasa Chattaah
We saw that the Hebrew word translated forgiving
(nasa) had the idea of lifting and carrying. We also
saw that Yahweh lifted and carried our crookedness
(avon), our rebellion (pesha) and our failures
(chattaah). Each of these is used of Jesus work on
the cross in the great Messianic prophecy in Isaiah
53:
He was wounded for our transgressions (pesha),
He was bruised for our iniquities (avon); the
chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and
by His stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have
turned, every one, to his own way; and Yahweh
has laid on Him the iniquity (avon) of us all.
He was taken from prison and from judgment,
and who will declare His generation? For He

was cut off from the land of the living; for the
transgressions (pesha) of My people He was
stricken.
He shall see the labor of His soul, and be
satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant
shall justify many, for He shall bear their
iniquities (avon).
Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the
great, and He shall divide the spoil with the
strong, because He poured out His soul unto
death, and He was numbered with the
transgressors (pasha), and He bore the sin (chet)
of many, and made intercession for the
transgressors (pasha). (vv. 5, 6, 8, 11, 12)
Also in the great Messianic prophecy of Daniel 9, we
read about what would be accomplished at the cross
when the Messiah was cutoff:
To finish the transgression (pesha), to make an
end of sins (chattaah), to make reconciliation
for iniquity (avon), to bring in age-abiding
righteousness. (vs. 24)
It is through the death of Jesus on the cross that
Yahweh deals with our crookedness, rebellion and
failures.

12. Making Innocent, He Will Not Make

Innocent - Naqah
13. Visiting the Iniquity to the Fourth
Generation - Paqad
Much of what was said under these two attributes
pointed to Gods work in leading us to repentance
overseeing our sin and allowing us to experience its
consequences to draw us back to Himself. I would
just end this with a passage with quotes from both the
Apostle Paul and Apostle Peter:
God our Savior desires all men to be saved and
come to the knowledge of the truth - there is one
God and one Mediator between God and men,
the Man Messiah Jesus, who gave Himself a
ransom for all, to be testified in due time. (1
Timothy 2:3-6)
The Lord is longsuffering toward you, not willing
that any should perish but that all should come to
repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)
The only way you can know God is through Jesus the
Messiah. For He came forth from the heart of the
Father to show us that God is merciful, gracious,
longsuffering, abounding in lovingkindness and
faithfulness, forgiving, even overseeing our sin and
its consequences to draw us back to Himself when we
go astray.

GODS GLORY GLORIFIED

After God made all His goodness pass by Moses, we
read:
Moses made haste and bowed his head toward
the earth, and worshiped. (Exodus 34:8)
The Hebrew word translated worshiped is shachah.
Regarding its ancient pictograph root (), Jeff
Benner comments:
The pictograph is a picture of the teeth
representing sharpness, the is a picture of
wall. Combined these mean "sharp walls".
We have the idea of being in a deep pit with vertical
walls. No matter how hard you try to climb out it is
not possible. Either you die trying or eventually, you
come to the conclusion that you are fighting a losing
battle and you bow down, defeated by the walls of
the pit. What does this have to do with worship?
What are the steep walls that we either die fighting
against or we bow down before? Consider these
words said to the Apostle Paul on the road to
Damascus in Acts 9:5:
I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is
hard for you to kick against the goads.

The connection between resisting deity and kicking

against the goad is also found in Pindars ode known
as Pythian 2:
One must not fight against a god, who raises up
some men's fortunes at one time, and at another
gives great glory to others. But even this does not
comfort the minds of the envious; they pull the
line too tight and plant a painful wound in their
own heart before they get what they are scheming
for. It is best to take the yoke on one's neck and
bear it lightly; kicking against the goad makes the
path treacherous. (88-94)
The choices in our dealings with God are two:
joyfully take the yoke or painfully kick against the
goad.
This hearkens back again to Hebrew
understanding about God, the Strong Authority to
Whom they were yoked and from Whom they
learned.
The steep wall, which we can either bow to or
destroy our lives butting against, is Gods will.
Scripture makes clear that whatever Yahweh pleases
He does, in heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all
deep places (Psalm 135:5, 6). God does not change
His sovereign will we either joyfully submit to the
yoke or ruin our lives fighting against it.

A goad is a stick with a pointed piece of iron fastened

to the end of it, used to prod cattle when driving them
from place to place, or plowing with them. Cattle
can either submit to the will of their owner or they
can injury themselves by butting up against the goad.
In Aeschylus Agamemnon, the character Aegisthus
says:

The heart of worship is surrendering our will and

submitting to Gods will. When Abraham was going
to sacrifice his son Isaac in obedience to Yahweh, he
said to his servants:

You speak like that, you who sit at the lower oar
when those upon the higher bench control the
ship? Do you have eyes and lack understanding?
Do not kick against the goads lest you strike to
your own hurt. (1617-1624)

Yahweh had commanded him, Take now your son,

your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the
land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt
offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell
you. As he was submitting to Yahwehs will,
Abraham could call the sacrifice of Isaac worship.

Those who sit at the lower oar are the underrowers. Roman warships were equipped with
anywhere from one to three banks of oars. Life in the
bottom level was severe, with these slave rowers
often dying in service. The vessels captain, who
controlled the ship, was the one upon the higher
bench. As they were chained to their seats, they
would only suffer further if they kicked against the
goads, trying to do their own will rather than the
will of the captain. In Euripides Bacchae, the
character Penthius is warned about the futility of
resisting the god Dionysos:
Id sacrifice to him rather than angrily kick
against the pricks, a mortal against a god. (795)

Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go

yonder and worship (shachah). (Genesis 22:5)

Abraham indicated that Isaac would be worshipping

also. Did Isaac surrender his will to Gods will? The
best evidence is that Isaac was a 33 year man in the
prime of life. On the other hand, Abraham was 133
years old. As he would go on to have 6 sons after the
death of Sarah, he was not exactly decrepit; however,
I am sure at this point in their lives, Isaac was
stronger and faster.
Therefore, the only way
Abraham was able to bind Isaac and place him on the
altar was that Isaac also submitted to Yahwehs will.
If worship is surrendering our will and submitting to
Gods will, then Isaac was worshipping. Josephus
writes that Isaac felt that:
He was not worthy to be born at first, if he should
reject the determination of God and of his father,

and should not resign himself up readily to both

their pleasures (AOJ, 1.13.4)
The Greek word translated readily used by
Josephus is hetoimos. This word is used by the
Apostle Paul in the following passage:
I am ready (hetoimos) not only to be bound, but
also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord
Jesus. (Acts 21:13)
Paul did not have a martyr complex; he just wanted
to please His Master and was willing to do whatever
it took to do so. Abrahams and Isaacs worship was
not done in an attitude of Ill do Gods will, but Ill
hate it every moment that I am doing, but rather out
of a desire to please God.
In Hebrews 10, we are given the words of Jesus when
He came into the world:
Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; but a
body You have prepared for Me. In burnt
offerings and sacrifices for sin You have no
pleasure. Then I said, Behold I come in the
volume of the book it is written of Me to do
Your will, O God. (vv. 5-7)
Jesus life, from the time He left the bosom of the
Father and was born in Bethlehem until He returned
after His death and resurrection, was characterized by
pleasing His Father, doing His will in other words,
His life was characterized by worship.
Why do we find this so hard to do? It must be that
we have not come to believe that God is merciful,
gracious, longsuffering, abounding in lovingkindness
and faithfulness, forgiving, even overseeing our sin
and its consequences to draw us back to Himself
when we go astray. Despite all that we can see in
Scripture and Jesus, we are not always convinced that
God is for us.
When we talk about glorifying God, what we are
really talking about is an ever increasing appreciation
for and satisfaction with the sum, substance and
stunningness of His perfections. John Piper writes:
If you don't feel strong desires for the
manifestation of the glory of God, it is not
because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied.
It is because you have nibbled so long at the
table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small
things, and there is no room for the great.
God is most glorified in us when we are most
satisfied in Him.
This time of year one commercial after another
informs us of stuff that we need to make our lives
happier in fact we generally need two of them if we
are just willing to pay the extra shipping and handling
costs. The whole idea of giving Christmas presents

supposedly hearkens back to the magi, who followed

the star of the One born King of the Jews. We read
concerning them:
When they saw the star, they rejoiced with
exceedingly great joy. And when they had come
into the house, they saw the young Child with
Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped
Him. And when they had opened their treasures,
they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense,
and myrrh. (Matthew 2:10, 11)
They worshiped Jesus somehow they recognized
that this Baby was God in the flesh. They gave their
treasures to their King. The wise men with gold
didnt give their gifts to the wise men with
frankincense, who gave their gifts to the wise men
with myrrh. They didnt exchange gifts with each
other they recognized the gift God had given them.
We want all kinds of things when God has already
given us all that we need in Jesus. C.S. Lewis wrote
in an essay entitled The Weight of Glory:
Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but
too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling
about with drink and sex and ambition when
infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child
who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum
because he cannot imagine what is meant by the
offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily
pleased.
All the things in those commercials are simply mud
pies in the slums. God is the only one who can
satisfy the longings of our heart. We are so much
like Israel of Whom Yahweh said:
My people have committed two evils: they have
forsaken Me, the Fountain of Living Waters, and
hewn themselves cisterns broken cisterns that
can hold no water. (Jeremiah 2:13)
Do we want to keep drinking stagnant, muddy water
from a broken clay pot or do we want to drink clean,
cool, refreshing water from a never ending fountain?
If you are satisfied with the former, keep seeking
what the world has to offer. But if you want the
latter, then ask God as Moses did, Show me Your
glory!

God Bless You & Your Family

Merry Christmas
In Jesus Love, Donald