The Israelites in the Promised Land
And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim: And they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the LORD to anger. And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth. And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies. Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn unto them: and they were greatly distressed. Nevertheless the LORD raised up judges, which delivered them out of the hand of those that spoiled them. And yet they would not hearken unto their judges, but they went a whoring after other gods, and bowed themselves unto them: they turned quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in, obeying the commandments of the LORD; but they did not so. And when the LORD raised them up judges, then the Lord was with the judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented the LORD because of their groanings by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them. And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they returned, and corrupted themselves more than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down unto them; they ceased not from their own doings, nor from their stubborn way. And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel; and he said, Because that this people hath transgressed my covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not hearkened unto my voice; I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations which Joshua left when he died: That through them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of the LORD to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not. Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.-Judges 2:11-23***Abraham (Abram the Hebrew) was married and childless when the Lord God promised to give Canaan to Abraham's descendants and Abraham. Ishmael was born to 86-year-old Abraham and Hagar, the maidservant of Abraham's wife Sarah (Sarai). Isaac was born to 100-year-old Abraham and 90-year-old Sarah. When Isaac was 40 years old, he was married to Rebekah, Abraham and Sarah's grandniece. Fraternal twin sons Esau (Edom) and Jacob (Israel) were born to 60-year-old Isaac and Rebekah. In Padan Aram, Haran, Jacob was married to Leah and Rachel, the daughters of Rebekah's brother Laban the Syrian (Aramean). Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and daughter Dinah were born to Jacob and Leah. Dan and Naphtali were born to Jacob and Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant. Gad and Asher were born to Jacob and Zilpah, Leah's maidservant. Joseph was the 1st son born to Jacob and Rachel. During Jacob's 20th year in Haran, he began journeying home to Canaan with his family, servants, animals, and possessions. Near Bethlehem, Benjamin was born to Jacob and Rachel, and Rachel died. Joseph was 17 years old when his brother sold him to merchants traveling to Egypt and led Jacob to believe that Joseph was killed by a wild beast. The merchants sold Joseph to Potiphar, an Egyptian official. After Potiphar's wife made a false accusation, Potiphar put Joseph in prison. At least 2 years after Joseph explained the meaning of a dream to the imprisoned cupbearer who served Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and explained the meaning of a dream to Pharaoh's imprisoned baker, 30-year-old Joseph explained the meaning of a dream to Pharaoh, and Pharaoh proclaimed Joseph second-in-command. After the 2nd time that Joseph's brothers were in Egypt during a famine to buy corn (grain), Joseph identified himself to them and told his brothers to move to Egypt with their families, including Jacob. Pharaoh heard about the reunion and expressed his generosity and hospitality. During the journey, the Lord God spoke to 130-year-old Jacob. In Egypt, Jacob proclaimed Manasseh and Ephraim, the sons born to Jacob and his wife Asenath, to be his own sons, and the tribe of Joseph became the tribe of Manasseh and the tribe of Ephraim. Sometime after 147-year-old Jacob died in Egypt, and Jacob's family buried his body in Canaan, and 110-year-old Joseph and his siblings were dead, their descendants the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt. Miriam and her younger brothers Aaron and Moses were born into the tribe of Levi to Amram and Jochebed. Miriam and Aaron lived with their parents, and Moses lived in the palace as the son of the daughter of Pharaoh. When Moses was 40 years old, he killed an Egyptian and hid the body. After the murder was mentioned to Moses, and Pharaoh wanted to kill him, Moses bolted from Egypt and began living in Midian, and was married to Zipporah, a Midianite woman descended from Abraham and his 2nd wife Keturah and their son Midian. Moses was 80 years old and herding his father-in-law's sheep amid the region of Mount Horeb, the mountain of God, when he saw a fiery sight and heard the Lord God call his name. Moses answered the Lord God, and the Lord God and Moses spoke with each other, and the Lord God sent Moses and 83-year-old Aaron to speak to the Israelite elders and Pharaoh. The Israelites believed, bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord God. Pharaoh did not believe, and made the work of the Israelites harder, and did not let the Israelites go into the wilderness and hold a feast to the Lord God. After the Lord God brought the 10th and final plague upon Pharaoh and Egypt, Pharaoh told Moses and Aaron to get the Israelites and their animals and go worship the Lord God. Moreover, Pharaoh told Moses and Aaron to bless him. Before Moses and Aaron led the Israelites, and those with them, away from Egypt, the Israelites asked for and were given an abundance of valuable goods, fulfilling the words that the Lord God spoke to Abraham. Near the Red Sea, the 1st instance of distrust began when the Israelites saw the Egyptian army pursuing them and cried and complained. The Lord God gave Moses commands, and caused the water of the Red Sea to divide, and the Israelites walked across the dry bed, and the Egyptians drowned. In the desert wilderness of Sin, the Israelites disobeyed the commands that the Lord God gave Moses about manna, the bread that the Lord God rained from heaven for the Israelites to eat. In the desert wilderness of Sinai, in the region of Mount Sinai, the Israelites heard the voice of the Lord God proclaim the Ten Commandments to them, and the Lord God began giving Moses judgments, statutes, and laws for the Israelites, and the Lord God made a covenant with the Israelites, and the Israelites said they would obey the words of the Lord God. When Moses was upon Mount Sinai 40 days and nights with the Lord God, the Lord God gave Moses commands about the offering that willing Israelites were to bring, and the Lord God described to Moses and showed Moses the likeness of the tabernacle, and the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the other sacred items that the Israelites were to make, and the Lord God told Moses that only Aaron, and Aaron's sons and the sons born to their descendants were to serve the Lord God as priests. Meanwhile, the Israelites thought they were abandoned and told Aaron to make gods to lead them. Aaron told the Israelites to bring him their gold earrings, and Aaron made a golden calf that the Israelites worshiped and Moses burned and ground. In the desert wilderness of Paran, after 10 of the 12 spies Moses sent to Canaan, the Promised Land returned with a frightening report, the Israelites disobeyed the commands of the Lord God. When Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and their followers rebelled against Moses and Aaron, the divinely inspired Scriptures of the Holy Bible reveal that they were also rebelling against the Lord God. In Shittim, the Israelite men were involved with the Moabite women and worshiped their gods. During the 40-year journey to the Promised Land, Miriam the prophetess died and was buried in Kadesh, in the desert wilderness of Zin. Upon Mount Hor, 123-year-old Aaron the high priest died. When Moses went upon Mount Nebo, the Lord God showed Moses the Promised Land, and 120-year-old Moses the prophet died, and was divinely buried. Joshua, Moses' aide and successor from the tribe of Ephraim, led the Israelites across the divinely parted Jordan River and onto the land that the Lord God promised to give to Abraham, and Isaac, and to Jacob, and their descendants. Sometime after 110-year-old Joshua died, and was buried in his tribe's portion of the Promised Land, the Lord God revealed that the generation of Israelites who lived throughout the Promised Land after Joshua died behaved worse than the Israelites who lived before and during the journey from Egypt to Canaan. When Samuel, the priest prophet and judge from the tribe of Levi was elderly, and his sons Joel (Vashni) and Abiah (Abijah) were not obeying the commands of the Lord God, and King Nahash and his Ammonite army were preparing to attack, the Israelite elders demanded that Samuel appoint a king to lead them, and Samuel anointed Saul, from the tribe of Benjamin, to reign, according to the command of the Lord God. At least twice, Saul did not obey the commands of the Lord God. While Saul reigned, the Lord God sent Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint David, from the tribe of Judah, to reign as king. Approximately 1,000 years after 37-year-old David became the 2nd king to rule over all of the Israelites, Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, was born. Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit in the womb of Mary, a virgin, and Jesus was born in Bethlehem into the tribe of Judah to Mary and her husband Joseph when Mary was a virgin.-Genesis 11:26-50:26, Exodus, Numbers 10:1-25:18, 26:1-27:23, 31:1-54, Deuteronomy 1:1-13:18, 31:1-30, 32:44-52, 34:1-12, Joshua, Judges, 1 Chronicles 1:1-34, 2:1-17, 3:1-24, 6:1-81, 7:20-29, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts 1:1-26