📅 June 28, 2025
📖 DAILY BIBLE READING
✨ Exodus 23 – Justice, Mercy, and God’s Guidance
⛺ Divine Order for Personal, Social, and Spiritual Life
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📜 Bible Text – Exodus 23 (KJV)
1 Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.
2 Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment:
3 Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause.
4 If thou meet thine enemy’s ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.
5 If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.
6 Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.
7 Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.
8 And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
9 Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
10 And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof:
11 But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard.
12 Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.
13 And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.
14 Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.
15 Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)
16 And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.
17 Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord God.
18 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning.
19 The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the Lord thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk.
20 Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
21 Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.
22 But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.
23 For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off.
24 Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images.
25 And ye shall serve the Lord your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.
26 There shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfil.
27 I will send my fear before thee, and will destroy all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee.
28 And I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee.
29 I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee.
30 By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.
31 And I will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river: for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee.
32 Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods.
33 They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me: for if thou serve their gods, it will surely be a snare unto thee.
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🔵 Introduction
In Exodus 23, God speaks to Israel through Moses – setting a standard that goes far beyond external legislation. It’s not just about the “what” but the “how” of living a life of faith. The God of Israel demands a life marked by truth, mercy, justice – and a clear separation from idolatry. This chapter builds a bridge between human action and divine promise, between social justice and spiritual obedience.
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🟡 Commentary
1. Justice and Impartiality in Daily Life (verses 1–9)
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Do not support lies
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Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong
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Do not take sides out of pity or hatred
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Show justice toward the poor and the foreigner
Core message: True justice is not based on emotions, sympathies, or societal pressure. Mercy is required even toward enemies.
2. Sanctification through Sabbath and the Sabbatical Year (verses 10–13)
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Six years of work, one year of rest for the land
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Six days of work, the seventh is a Sabbath
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The names of other gods must not be mentioned
Core message: Sabbath and sabbatical years are signs of trust in God’s provision – they bless people, animals, and nature alike.
3. Feasts of the Lord – Remembrance and Gratitude (verses 14–19)
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Three main feasts: Passover, Feast of Weeks, Feast of Tabernacles
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No mixing of the sacred with the common
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The firstfruits belong to God
Core message: The feasts are God’s way of spiritually realigning His people, reminding them of deliverance and provision – and cultivating gratitude.
4. Promise of Divine Guidance and Driving Out Enemies (verses 20–33)
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An angel will go ahead of the people
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Warning against serving foreign gods
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Promises of health, fertility, long life
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Enemies will be driven out gradually
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No covenants with foreign nations or their gods
Core message: Obedience to God brings protection, provision, and victory – but only with complete separation from idolatry.
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🟢 Summary
Exodus 23 shows that God’s law encompasses far more than religious rituals – it governs social life, protects the vulnerable, upholds justice, and guards the heart against compromise with the world. God is a holy Lord, but also a caring Provider. He calls for faithfulness – and promises guidance and victory.
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📢 Message for Us Today
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Justice begins in everyday life: In our words, decisions, willingness to help – especially toward the weak and even enemies.
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Rest is a command of faith: The Sabbath reminds us weekly of God’s creation, redemption, and provision – it’s more relevant today than ever.
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Spiritual compromise leads to confusion: When God’s people mix with worldly standards, true worship is weakened.
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God leads in stages: His deliverance is sometimes gradual – so that we grow spiritually and are ready to inherit the promise.
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💡 Thought Impulse
Am I still willing to help my enemy, as God commands – or am I shaped by the spirit of the age?
How do I keep the Sabbath? Is it a burden, a routine – or a joy, as Isaiah 58 says?
Which “gods” – modern dependencies or ideologies – have quietly slipped into my heart?
~~~~~⛺~~~~~
📆 June 22 – 28, 2025
📆 WEEKLY SPIRIT OF PROPHECY READING
📖 Ellen G. White │ Patriarchs and Prophets – Chapter 13
✨ The Test of Faith
📖 Read online here
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🔵 Introduction
Abraham – the father of faith. And yet, his faith wasn’t a static possession, but a journey shaped by challenges, doubts, and divine tests. In Chapter 13 of Patriarchs and Prophets, it becomes clear: true faith proves itself not in the easy times, but in the difficult ones.
God tested Abraham with a command that is almost impossible to comprehend: “Sacrifice your son, your only son, whom you love.” This story is not just an ancient tale about a man long ago – it is a mirror reflecting our own journey of faith.
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🟡 Commentary
1. The Beginning of Doubt (Hagar and Ishmael)
- Abraham accepts God’s promise – but does not wait patiently.
- Sarah’s suggestion to take Hagar as a wife is a human solution to a divine promise.
- Consequences: unrest, jealousy, brokenness in the family, mockery, and rejection.
➡️ Lesson: When we replace God’s timing with our own methods, we create conflict, not solutions.
2. God’s Promise Stands (Isaac is born)
- Despite human mistakes, God renews His promise.
- Isaac – the child of the miracle – becomes the center of the covenant.
- Ishmael and Hagar are sent away – with divine comfort, but not without pain.
➡️ Lesson: God’s plans prevail, even when we take detours. His faithfulness remains constant.
3. The Great Test – The Sacrifice of Isaac
- Abraham receives the hardest command: Sacrifice your son.
- Inner struggle, silence, prayer – no excuses, only obedience.
- Isaac shows willing obedience – he is not forced, but trusts.
- At the last moment, God intervenes: a ram is sacrificed in Isaac’s place.
➡️ Lesson:
- Faith without works is dead (James 2:17).
- God tests to strengthen – not to destroy.
- Obedience is rewarded – even when we don’t understand everything.
4. God’s Covenant and Prophetic Meaning
- God confirms His covenant with Abraham through an oath.
- The ram as a substitute offering prophetically points to Christ.
- Even angels gain deeper understanding of the plan of redemption through this scene (see 1 Peter 1:10–12).
➡️ Lesson: This story is a prophetic shadow of Golgotha.
God gave what Abraham did not have to give – His only Son.
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🟢 Summary
Chapter 13 shows: Faith doesn’t mean never doubting – it means trusting despite the doubts.
Abraham’s life is a journey from impatience to surrender, from human solutions to divine obedience.
The greatest evidence of his faith was not words, but action. And in that obedience, God’s grace is revealed: He saves – through a sacrifice He Himself provides.
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📢 Message for Us Today
God doesn’t test to destroy, but to strengthen.
True faith is shown in action, not in talk.
Obedience to God may cost sacrifice – but it is never in vain.
God’s timing is better than our own impatience.
Our trust in God often becomes most visible when we understand the least.
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💬 Reflection Question
What would you do if God asked something “incomprehensible” of you?
Are there “Ishmaels” in your life – human solutions trying to replace God’s promises?
How is your obedience shown today – even when no one sees it?
Do you know the God who provides “a ram” for you – the solution, when you are ready to trust?
