B90Days Recap: Genesis 1:1 – Exodus 40:38

What a great week!   So many familiar people and events … and tied to all of it this great promise of God’s redemption.

So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.  And I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head and you will strike his heel.” ~ Genesis 3:14-15

Throughout these two books we find the redemptive love of the Father etched into each chapter.  From the birth of Enoch to the rainbow following the flood, God is always seeking the restored relationship with man He had in the garden.

Today, I want to cruise through these books by looking at God’s promises to Abraham and follow their fulfillment in the lives of the Israelites as they escaped their bondage in Egypt.

Then the Lord said to him (Abram), “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated for four hundred years.  But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions.  You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age.  In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached full measure.” Genesis 15:13-16

As I read the rest of this week’s reading, God’s faithfulness to keep these promises was revealed.

1. The people will be strangers in a land not their own –  Joseph, Abraham’s great-grandson, was sold by his brothers out of their jealousy for their father Jacob’s great love for him.  And he ended up in Egypt {Genesis 37:28}.   Ultimately, Joseph was made a ruler in Egypt and brought his entire family, Abraham’s descendants though Isaac, to Egypt to dwell {Genesis 46-50}.
2. They will be enslaved and mistreated for four hundred years – As time passed and the Hebrews’ number increased, a new Pharaoh who did not remember the acts of Joseph was raised to power.  His fear of being overthrown by the Israelites led to their slavery for the Egyptian people {Exodus 1:8-14}.  The Israelites remained in Egypt for 430 years {Exodus 12:41-42}.
3. God would punish the nation that had enslaved them – Remember the plagues?  {Exodus 7:14 – 12:30}
4. The Hebrews would come out with great possessions – The Lord made the Egyptians desire to give their valuables to the Israelites {Exodus 11:2-3}.   And with the abundance they received from the Egyptians, the Hebrews were able to provide the gifts and items necessary for the construction of the Tabernacle {Exodus 25:1-9}.
5. The Israelites would come back to the Promised Land (Canaan) in the fourth generation – We know this happened; but, this promise is not fulfilled during this week’s reading … we’ll get to it in a couple of weeks!

One of my favorite things about reading the Bible in 90 days is the way I can put so many pieces of God’s promise and plan together … linked throughout Scripture for our confidence in Him and His faithfulness to us.

My favorite verse this week was:

The Lord is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will exalt Him. ~ Exodus 15:2  {From Moses’ song of celebration upon crossing the Red Sea}

Are you doing the Bible in 90 Days challenge?  Or any other sort of plan to read through the Bible this year?   Whether you are or not, I’d love to know what verse or passage was especially meaningful to you over the past week.