2 Timothy 3:10-17

You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness,  my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me.  Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,  while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.  But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it  and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.  All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,  that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

2 Timothy 3:10-17

In contrast to these people who Paul describes as becoming "lovers of self, lovers of money..." among other things, the focus is shifted to Timothy.  Timothy has followed Paul and all that he's about.  Timothy is doing well and Paul encourages him to "continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed".  With regards to continuing in what he has learned and believed, Paul brings to mind who he learned from.  Paul has just gone into detail about himself and the things about him that Timothy has followed, so he is probably including himself in this.  However, there is a note that says "whom" is plural and in the Greek.  So, there are probably multiple people he is referring to.  Perhaps he is also referring to his mother and grandmother who were both mentioned back in chapter 1.  In any case, he is called to remember those people.  These people are called to memory to point to the truth and trustworthiness of what he believes.  Those people taught Timothy and on the basis of their reputation, Timothy is to remember and trust in what he believes.  This makes sense when seeing the many things Paul speaks about himself, since it will remind Timothy of Paul and what Timothy has seen Paul experience.  The many experiences will show what kind of person and character Paul is and hopefully be a strong case for the trustworthiness of his teaching.  I can remember with great fondness the times shared with some of the people who taught me.  As I think about the lives of people who taught me, I am reminded of their character and it encourages me towards remaining faithful to the truths I learned from them.

The second thing brought to attention is the sacred writings.  What Timothy has learned and believed is not only based on people, but on scripture.  It is the words of God, which should certainly carry some weight to say the least.  If trust can be placed on teaching on the basis of a person's conduct and character, the words of God can certainly be trusted on the basis of God and his character.  In any case, there are a number of purposes for scripture that Paul lays out.  For one, it's "able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus".  I don't think this means that salvation is only possible through the learning of the scriptures as a child.  Instead, Paul is pointing out the truths taught through scripture to help lead one to salvation.  It's not as if "thou must knowest scripture before thou can be saved".  I'm sure that there were many who were saved who didn't know any bible at all.  Sure, one who is being preached the gospel is being taught what the scriptures say, but it's not as if they need a degree in bible before they can be saved.  In any case, scripture is also "for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness".  I think it's easy to see that scripture is for teaching.  We are taught by scripture and certainly learn things.  We are also shown sin in our lives because of scripture.  Scripture shows us what is wrong and shows us that we are sinful and that we do sin.  Sometimes it's sharp, like a sword and pierces us in ways nothing else can.  It's also useful for correcting.  I may be misguided about something and through the study of scripture I am shown the right way as opposed to the wrong way.  Sure, I may have my own ideas about a particular thing, but I know that God's word is true and to trust in it would help reveal what is true and what is false.  In any case, scripture has many purposes and scripture is certainly good.  These things are all for the completion and equipping of a person for good works.  To be aligned with God's word is to be prepared for the work God prepares for his people.

2 Timothy 3:1-9

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.  For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,  heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good,  treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,  having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.  For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions,  always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.  Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith.  But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.

2 Timothy 3:1-9

In the last chapter, there was a charge to patiently endure evil in hopes that God would grant repentance.  This was all under the backdrop of being a worker approved by God who departs from iniquity.  In contrast to correcting opponents with gentleness in hopes that God would save them, Paul gives Timothy a warning about people.  Specifically, people will become quite sinful.  They will become lovers of self and lovers of money to name a few.  Paul also mentions that they will be "lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God".  We are to be lovers of God; but unfortunately, pleasure will become their love.

What I find scary is that they will have "the appearance of godliness".  People who have become lovers of things that are not God will somehow have the appearance of godliness.  However, though they have the appearance of godliness, they will deny its power.  I know that a lot of professing Christians will point to the denial of the power of the Holy Spirit when some don't embrace certain outward manifestations.  I don't think that Paul is talking about that here.  In fact, if you were to side with NLT or AMP, we see their bent.

holding to a form of [outward] godliness (religion), although they have denied its power [for their conduct nullifies their claim of faith].

2 Timothy 3:5a (AMP)

They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly.

2 Timothy 3:5a (NLT)

The appearance of godliness seems to be an outward religious behavior.  However, the rejection of power is referring to power to make one godly.  I suppose the power in living a life for God is one that will make you more and more set apart.  However, though these people live with all the typical religiosity, their unchanged lives show that they really do not believe in the power of God in their own lives.  You can do all sorts of things in the church or in your life that looks very Christian.  Maybe you go to church or maybe you tithe or go on retreats or missions trips or even speak in tongues or heal people.  However, though you may appear to be godly, your unchanged life may show that you actually deny the power of God.

In any case, I didn't go about this in the correct order and perhaps jumped in too far.  This is all spoken to with regards to difficulty in the last days.  Why would there be difficulty in the last days?  It is because people will become lovers of things other than God.  So, Paul warns Timothy to avoid these people.  These people are dangerous.

Well, if people are to be like that, and we know that all people are sinful and not lovers of God, who are we to not avoid?  It seems like Paul is referring to everyone then?  I think that Paul is referring to people seemingly of the truth but actually not of it and deceiving others.  This is because they will have the appearance of godliness.

On the flip side, Paul uses Jannes and Jambres as an example and they certainly would not fit into the category of one within the body.  These men I believe are the magicians who contended with Moses and Aaron (according to Wikipedia).  However, their example is used to describe their opposition to the truth, not necessarily who they are.

In any case, these people are sneaky.  They "creep into households and capture weak women".  They certainly are here today and this is happening all the time.  Unfortunately, they are sneaky as Paul describes.  There is a ray of hope, since Paul tells us in verse 9 that "they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men".  Eventually, they will be found out, as Jannes and Jambres were shown to be false.  We should still beware of these people and avoid them.

One interesting thing to note is about these women who are being captured.  These women are described as "burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth".

First of all, they are burdened with sins.  We should feel broken about our sin, but we should also recognize that there is no more condemnation for those who are in Christ.  This "burdened about sin" is probably describing an unhealthy and incorrect view with regards to ones own sins.

Not only are they burdened about sin, but they are also led astray by various passions.  If sin is a burden, it probably doesn't help that they continue in sin by being led astray by various passions.  Though not specific, I'd think it is sin because of being "led astray".

Lastly, I find it most interesting that they are "always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth".  I always find it interesting seeing people going to different conferences or workshops or seminars about things of God, but I feel as if they don't really get the gospel.  They don't get it and their lives don't show change.  Instead, they learn one thing after another, but whatever they learn is either not beneficial or just doesn't stick.  This is an example of what Paul is describing here.  Sure, they are being captured by these evil men, but they too must be on guard themselves and beware of such attacks.  It is a dangerous thing to be in such a position that one is "always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth".

2 Timothy 2:20-26

Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable.  Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.
 So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.  Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels.  And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil,  correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth,  and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

-2 Timothy 2:20-26

Back in verse 19, Paul brings up God's firm foundation, referring to “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.”.  Paul continues on with the idea of the second one about departing from iniquity.  Bringing up a picture of a house and vessels, the example is given of vessels used for honorable use and vessels used for dishonorable use.  The point made is that cleansing oneself from what is dishonorable will lead to becoming a vessel for honorable use.  Because of this, Timothy is charged by Paul to "flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace".  He is not only called to flee what is bad (youthful passions), but also called to pursue what is good (righteousness, faith, love and peace).  Perhaps it is just as important to move toward what is good as it is to move away from what is bad.  In any case, this is the charge and it is not something set aside for only Timothy.  This is something that others do as well.  Timothy is called to do this "along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart".  This is what those who call on the Lord in sincerity do.

Another instruction is given, and that is to "have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies".  The reason for this is because "they breed quarrels".  This is a bad thing because "the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome".  If we (servants of God) are not to be quarrelsome and foolish, ignorant controversies breed quarrels, then we should have nothing to do with them.  That only makes sense.  Instead of being quarrelsome, servants of God are to be "kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness".  This is important because it is right and in line with God.  However, Paul also speaks of this with regards to salvation.  Acting in such a way is in the hopes that they may be saved.  Sure, God can save someone regardless of what we do.  However, we must do our best to present and convey who God is by what we say and what we do.  Through that, God may perhaps bring the lost to their senses.  This is actually a passage that I am quite fond of.  I am prone to be harsh, abrasive and mean towards others, especially when they don't see the truth.  My actions are obviously sinful and I have hurt people in the past.  However, this verse reminds me not to be like that (and I certainly need to hear it).  It is a beautiful reminder of how I am to act and that it is God who may perhaps grant repentance.  It is not what I do that saves them, but what God does.

2 Timothy 2:14-19

Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers.  Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.  But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,  and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus,  who have swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some.  But God's firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.”

2 Timothy 2:14-19

Timothy is told to "Remind them of these things".  What is he to remind people of?  Well, most immediately preceding this verse is about remembering Jesus Christ.  They are to remember Jesus and that he was risen from the dead.  They are to remember salvation that is in Christ Jesus and that we have died with him and will live with him.  These are great things to be reminded of, but who is Timothy called to remind?  I am first thinking of those who he is leading.  This is probably true.  Also, looking back towards verse 9, we see who Paul is enduring everything for: "the elect".  This would also make sense because what people are being reminded of are things that would apply to the elect.  I guess they're both true and it is applying to both those who he is leading and those who are elect.

Beyond reminding, Timothy is told to charge the same people "not to quarrel about words".  We are not told much about what this means, but there were perhaps many similar issues.  For example, we read about "foolish ignorant controversies" in verse 23.  Even looking back at 1 Timothy, we read about people who "devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies".  Whatever "quarreling about words" means, it's not good.  In fact, Paul explains that, "which does no good, but only ruins the hearers".

The following verses probably shed some more light on the meaning of this verse.

Skipping ahead, we read about "irreverent babble", which should be avoided.  This is in contrast to the previous verse, where Paul instructs Timothy to be a worker approved by God.  A worker approved by God does not need to be ashamed and should rightly handle the word of truth.  What would he be ashamed of?  Perhaps not working hard would bring shame.  Well, working hard and being approved by God would avoid this shame.

I'm still not sure why Paul warns against quarreling about words and against irreverent babble.  Well, I get that they're not good things, but how does this fit?  Perhaps that's what Timothy was facing by those around him?  Perhaps working hard to be a worker approved by God is contrast to quarreling about words and engaging in irreverent babble.  Apparently, quarreling about words does no good and irreverent babble leads people into more and more ungodliness.  If that's the case, it would make sense that a worker approved by God would not do something that would not be good and would not do something that would lead others into more and more ungodliness.

Another bad thing about irreverent babble is that this talk will spread very fast.  Paul describes it as spreading like gangrene.  Apparently, gangrene is a type of cell death and spreads to connected tissues.  I think it will continue to spread until the dead cells are removed.  This irreverent babble spreads quickly and produces death in some sense.  As an example, Paul talks about Hymenaeus and Philetus.  So what does this look like?  They have swerved from the truth.  This irreverent babble is that which is off the path and not of the truth.  Specifically, they are saying that the resurrection has already happened.  I'm assuming this refers to the resurrection that is to take place in the end times.  By doing so, they upset the faith of some.  What they are doing is very destructive and not good at all.

God's firm foundation is in direct contrast to this.  Compared to those who have their faith upset, or have left the faith, there is a firm foundation that says "the Lord knows those who are his".  Some may turn away and depart, but we shouldn't be worried because God isn't worried.  God knows who are his.  For those who are his, they are to depart from iniquity.

2 Timothy 2:8-13

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound! Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. The saying is trustworthy, for:
If we have died with him, we will also live with him;
if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he also will deny us;
if we are faithless, he remains faithful—
for he cannot deny himself.

2 Timothy 2:8-13

What does Paul say next?  "Remember Jesus Christ".  What is it to be remembered about Jesus Christ?  First, he was "risen from the dead".  Second, he's "the offspring of David".  So he defeated death and rose as he said he would.  Also, he is the offspring of David which is a fulfillment of scripture.  This Jesus is the one Paul preached.

It is for what he is preaching that he is suffering.  Specifically, he is currently in chains because of what he is preaching.  However, Paul makes an interesting statement "But the word of God is not Bound!".  Paul may be bound in chains, but unlike Paul, God's word is not bound.  There is hope in God's word even if he is in chains and so Paul endures.  He endures for the sake of the elect.  Those whom God chose in ages past that he would graciously save.  Paul endures for their sake that they might be saved.  That actually sounds a bit odd.  If they were chosen in eternity past, why would Paul need to endure for their sake what has already been set?  Well, they still need to hear the gospel and God is using Paul as his instrument to save.  Also, Paul doesn't know who the elect are and he needs to simply preach for the sake of souls he doesn't know whether or not they will be granted repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth.

Paul presents a saying that I guess is relating to what he has said.

The saying is trustworthy, for:
If we have died with him, we will also live with him;
if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he also will deny us;
if we are faithless, he remains faithful—
for he cannot deny himself.

2 Timothy 2:11-13

Dying with Christ leads to living with him.  Paul just mentioned Jesus raised from the dead.  This also reminds me of Romans 6, talking about not continuing in sin.  Why not?  We have died to sin and were baptized into his death.  This leads to be raised with him.

Enduring leads to reigning with him.  Paul also just mentioned about enduring everything for the sake of the elect.  He endures hardship and enduring leads to reigning with Jesus.  It's not how you start but how you finish that counts and endurance is how you finish well.
Unfortunately, denying him leads to him denying us.  Fortunately, if we lack faith, he is still faithful.  Why is that?  He cannot deny himself.  We may fail but there is still hope because Jesus is faithful.  He is who he says he is and does what he says he'll do.

2 Timothy 1:15-2:7

You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes.  May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains,  but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me— may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day!—and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.
You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

2 Timothy 1:15-2:7

Apparently, "all who are in Asia turned away from me" says Paul.  This is something that Timothy is already aware of.  He points out two people who have turned away from him, Phygelus and Hermogenes.  This next group perhaps is included among the people who have turned away from Paul, but I'm not entirely sure.  Paul actually speaks well of the household of Onesiphorus.  He often refreshed Paul and was not ashamed of his chains.  I guess being associated with someone in prison was not necessarily a good thing.  In fact, that's probably true nowadays.  Associating with prisoners may result in some kind of shame brought.  However, this is not true for the household of Onesiphorus.  Paul was strengthened and encouraged by the household of Onesiphorus.

On that same note, Paul turns to Timothy and encourages him to be strengthened.  Paul was helped by the household of Onesiphorus, but he now encourages Timothy to "be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus".  The next thing Paul tells Timothy is to pass along the message.  Paul preaches Christ and so teaches Timothy to preach as well.  Paul's death may come soon and he wants Timothy to do as he did and pass along the message to more people to carry it along.  It doesn't just end with Paul and it doesn't just end with Timothy.

Paul now presents Timothy with three pictures.  The first is of a good soldier of Jesus.  With this picture, Paul explains that a soldier doesn't bother himself with civilian matters.  Instead, a soldier's main goal is to please his officer.  The second picture is of an athlete.  An athlete can only properly win by following all the rules.  The last picture is of a hard-working farmer.  It is expected or perhaps due to the farmer that he enjoy the first share of his harvest.  After these three pictures, Paul simply tells Timothy to "Think over what I say".  I don't really know what they all mean.  Fortunately, Paul's instruction is to think it over.  God will give understanding, so I will ponder and think it over.

2 Timothy 1:8-14

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to[a] a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.

2 Timothy 1:8-14

Beginning with "therefore" in this verse, I suspect that it is referring to this God given spirit mentioned in verse 7.  Because of this God given spirit, Paul encourages Timothy to not be ashamed.  Don't be ashamed of the testimony nor of Paul himself.  It may be shameful because people try to bring shame upon those who preach Christ raised from the dead.  But it isn't something to be fearful of.  Perhaps it was shameful to be a friend of Paul who was now a prisoner.  He used to be so prominent within the Jewish world, but now he preaches Christ.  These aren't thing to be ashamed of.  Instead, the encouragement is to share in these sufferings.  How is this to be done?  Certainly not by a spirit of fear but by the power of God.  This same God is the one who saved us.  I'm not sure if Paul is talking only about himself and Timothy or of believers in general.  In any case, the truth remains the same.  Whether Paul and Timothy or believers in general, God is the one who saves and calls.

Why does God save and call?  He does so not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace.  In Ephesians 2:8-9 Paul writes about salvation by grace through faith and not by works.  Here in 2 Timothy it is similar.

Paul says something interesting here regarding this saving work: "which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began".  What does this mean?  NLT seems to think that this means a plan made long time ago: "that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus".  However, the other translations seem to say a bit more than that.  It says, "he gave us", meaning it has already been given in the past.  I'm not so sure that it's referring to "making a plan", then again, I'm only reading translations and am not a Greek or biblical expert.

Moving on, in contrast to this which took places before the ages began, it "has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus".  It happened long time ago in some sort of fashion, but it is NOW being manifested and coming to pass.  It has now been "revealed" and "fully disclosed" though it was already given in the past.

What did Jesus do?  Jesus "abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel".  I am reminded about what it says in 1 Corinthians 15.

“O death, where is your victory?
    O death, where is your sting?”
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:55-57

Death is abolished.  There is no victory for death because those who are saved are no longer defeated by death.  Death isn't the end for there is everlasting life for those who believe in Jesus.  Instead, life and immortality is brought to light through the gospel.  He showed the way, which is himself.

For all this, Paul suffers.  He suffers for what Christ has done, his great saving work on the cross.  Paul is not ashamed and I guess that's part of the reason why he has encouraged Timothy not to be ashamed either.  Why is Paul not ashamed?  I really love this part: "for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me".  Paul knows and trusts Jesus.

So, Paul is now saying to Timothy that he should follow him.  Specifically, what is to be followed is his sound words.  This too is to be "in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus".  I take that to mean sound words that are rooted or always accompanied by faith in Jesus and love for Jesus.  This isn't the end, since Paul has a bit more to add here.  The last is to say that all this is to be done "by the Holy Spirit".  The Holy Spirit is the one by whom this is all done, not by yourself.  The Holy Spirit dwells within us.

Okay, now there's a lastly, not just this part about the Holy Spirit.  Now, the last word of this paragraph is "guard the good deposit entrusted to you".  I'm not entirely sure what Paul is referring to here.  He could be talking about the Holy Spirit, since the Holy Spirit is referred to as a deposit or guarantee in Ephesians and 2 Corinthians.  However, he could also be referring to this gift of God he was talking about earlier in this passage.  Some translators probably take this approach because of the paragraph headers.  I'd probably suspect it's that way as well.  So all this to ultimately talk about this which was entrusted to Timothy that he is to fan into flame and not be ashamed.

2 Timothy 1:1-7

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God according to the promise of the life that is in Christ Jesus,
 To Timothy, my beloved child:
Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
 I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

2 Timothy 1:1-7

Lately, I have been thinking a bit about a part in 2 Timothy 4, so perhaps it would be good to go over 2 Timothy.

This, Paul's second letter to Timothy is more personal than first Timothy, if I remember correctly.  As typical letters begin, we read that it's from Paul and to Timothy.

Paul is an apostle by the will of God.  As you know Paul's story, it wasn't his decision to be an Apostle.  If anything, knowing who he was, you cannot conclude any other answer other than the fact that this was all God's doing.

Not only is Paul an apostle, but he is an Apostle, by the will of God, according to the promise.  His sending or mission or whatever is according to this promise.  What is the promise?  The promise of the life that is in Christ Jesus is the good news of the gospel.  NLT translates it to say, "I have been sent out to tell others about the life he has promised through faith in Christ Jesus".  Paul, an apostle, by God's will, according to the promise.  He is sent out to tell others about Jesus, which is what we read that he does.

Timothy is Paul's "beloved child".  There is a special relationship there as perhaps a father is to his son.  We also recognize that Timothy is a younger man, so this father/son relationship makes more sense (it would be weird to be "father" to a "son" who is older than you, wouldn't it?).

Yes, "grace, mercy, and peace" are typical greetings in the introduction of a letter.  Finishing up the introduction we are.

Beginning the middle of the letter, Paul begins with thanksgiving.  He is thankful for Timothy.  Paul really wishes to see Timothy.  I'm sure he misses him, and he wants to see him, "that I may be filled with joy".  This, Paul says, "as I remember your tears".  The memory of Timothy's tears compels him to say that he wants to see Timothy for the purpose of joy.  Perhaps they had some special moments in the past where tears brought immense joy.

One of the things Paul remembers about Timothy is his sincere faith.  This faith is also found in his mother and grandmother.  I guess they seemed to pass this along.  I think of a roast or a wedding speech as one talks about some of the redeeming qualities of a person.  Paul is thinking fondly about Timothy, a person who is very dear to him.  Now, he begins to switch and encourage Timothy.  The encouragement is to "fan into flame the gift of God".  He has a gift and should use it and use it to the fullest.  This is even something that was imparted to him through the laying on of hands.  Why is he to do this and act in such a way?  The verse some of us may be familiar with tells us why Timothy is to use this gift to the fullest, "for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control".  We are not to be afraid but to be moving forward in God's spirit, which consists of power and love and self-control.

Exodus 17

The Israelites complain again.  This time, there is no water to drink and they complain that they'll die.  Well, Moses asks God because the people are ready to stone him and the Lord tells him to strike a rock with his staff and water will come out.  So, he does it and water is provided for them.  We should pay careful attention to this because there is another water incident that is similar to this one and Moses deals with it a bit differently.

We move on to a story about Amalek coming to fight with Israel.  This is also the first time we hear of Joshua.  Moses asks him to gather men to fight and they do.  Moses, Aaron and Hur go up to a hill top and whenever Moses' hands were held up, Israel was winning the battle.  However, when his hands were not held up, Israel was losing.  Well, Moses' was getting tired, so they put stones for him to rest on while Aaron and Hur held up Moses' hands.  So, the Israelites won the battle.  God also gets Moses to write down that he will blot out the memory of Amalek.  We will read more about them later.

Exodus 16

The Israelites come to the wilderness of Sin and they grumbled against Moses and Aaron: “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger”.  The Lord hears their grumbling and decides to provide for them.  He does this to test them: "Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not".  There are a number of specific instructions they are to follow with regards to this food that they are to receive.  They're to go out and gather it each day and not keep any leftover.  On the 6th day, they are to gather twice as much.  Whatever is leftover is to be kept for the 7th day where they are to eat the leftovers.  However, they do not listen and some leave leftovers and it breeds worms.  On the 7th day, some still go out to gather but there is none.  Even in these simple tasks the Israelites cannot follow God's instruction.

Well, this food that is provided is called Manna.  It is what the Israelites eat for 40 years while in the wilderness.  Moses is commanded to keep a portion of it so that generations after can see what they ate.

Exodus 15

They have just witnessed an amazing thing.  God has saved them miraculously.  They all sing a song to the Lord, singing of what he has done and how great God is.  Miriam starts singing afterwards along with the women saying “Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea”.

They're on their way and cannot find any water.  They make it to a place where the water is too bitter to drink.  Then, they start complaining, wondering what they are to drink since they cannot drink the water there.  Well, after Moses cries to the Lord, the Lord shows him a log.  Moses throws the log into the water and the water became sweet so that they could drink it.  This is immediately followed by a statute made for them by the Lord saying "If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer".  They need to follow God and his way, not their own.  As we will continue to see, they keep complaining and screwing up...

Exodus 14

The Lord tells Moses to tell the people to camp by the sea.  He also tells Moses that Pharaoh will come after them and that the Lord will harden Pharaoh's heart.  Ultimately, God will get glory for all this and "the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord".

So, Pharaoh and 600 chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt come after Israel.  The Israelites see them and are afraid, but Moses encourages them, "Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent".  They wont see them again, the Lord will fight for them.  I like what he says last, "and you have only to be silent".  They don't have to really do anything, they just have to sit back and watch quietly.  God will take care of it.

The angel of God moves behind them between the Egyptians and the Israelites, keeping them separated.  The sea is parted and they walk on dry ground with a wall of water on both their right and their left.  Well, the Egyptians foolishly go in after them and God even "threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, 25 clogging[b] their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily".  It isn't until then that they say “Let us flee from before Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians".  Why didn't they say this earlier?

Well, the sea returns to normal and the Egyptians are killed.  This chapter ends well, "Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses"

Exodus 11-13

There is yet one more plague, the death of the firstborn.  Every firstborn will be killed, even the firstborn of the animals.  Moses tells this to Pharaoh and leaves.  He apparently left "in hot anger".  I wonder why Moses was so angry.  Probably because Pharaoh had been so hard-hearted and refused to listen thus far.

The Passover meal is explained.  This is the meal they eat when the Lord passes over them and does not kill their firstborn.  When the blood on the doorposts is seen, the Lord passes over and does not kill the firstborn in that house.  They are also to keep eating this Passover meal every year.  This way, it is remembered and explained to the generations to come.

Well, all the firstborn are killed and Pharaoh finally tells them to go.  They leave quickly, not even allowing the dough to rise.  This is why, as explained, they eat unleavened bread in part of their observances.  The firstborn is also consecrated to the Lord.  They all belong to the Lord, and are required to be "bought back" or "redeemed".

As they travel, the Lord appears to them as a cloud by day and as a pillar of fire by night.  They take Joseph's bones because he made the people swear to bring his bones with them when they left Egypt.

Exodus 8-10

Plague number 2: frogs.

They come up and invade Egypt.  Somehow, the magicians are able to re-create this plague.  Pharaoh asks for Moses to take away the frogs and he will let them go to sacrifice to the Lord.  However, when the frogs are gone, he hardened his heart and wouldn't listen to them.

Plague number 3: gnats.

This time, the magicians are unable to re-create the plague.  They even warn Pharaoh that "this is the finger of God".  However, Pharaoh's heart was hardened and wouldn't listen to them.

Plague number 4: flies.

The flies are unleashed and it is said "Throughout all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of flies".  Pharaoh calls them and tells them to sacrifice to their God within the land, hoping that he can work out a compromise.  However, Moses replies saying that they cannot since if they sacrifice offerings that are not good in the sight of Egyptians, the Egyptians might kill them.  They would need to go far away in order to avoid such a problem.  Anyway, Pharaoh agrees to let them go sacrifice in the wilderness, only that they shouldn't go very far.  Moses isn't convinced, saying "Only let not Pharaoh cheat again by not letting the people go sacrifice to the Lord".  When the flies are gone, Pharaoh's heart is hardened and does not let the people go (big surprise).

Plague number 5: livestock die.

All of the Egyptian livestock die, but of course, none of the livestock of Israel die.  Though it doesn't say specifically for each of the plagues (some it does say), I'm assuming that in these plagues a distinction is made between the Egyptians and the Israelites.

If you look ahead to the seventh plague, you'll notice the Egyptians taking their livestock into shelter.  How do they have livestock if all are killed in this fifth plague?  I'm assuming that either "all" did not really mean all when referring to the livestock of the Egyptians.  It could've meant all in comparison to not one of the livestock of Israel.  However, it is probably more likely that some of the Egyptians acquired livestock between the fifth and the seventh plague.  Maybe it's a bit of both, I'm not entirely sure.  There are a couple of other possibilities that I just looked up.  Regardless, it doesn't take away from the authority and scripture since it doesn't mean for sure that scripture is contradicted.

Plague number 6: boils.

Boils break out into sores on man and beast throughout Egypt.  This is not pleasant and the Magicians cannot even stand before Moses because of the boils.  However, Pharaoh still hardens his heart and will not listen.

Plague number 7: hail.

This time in what God tells Moses to say to Pharaoh, we hear a bit more.  We see a purpose to the plagues, which is "so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth".  He even mentions that he could have cut them off from the earth and completely wipe them out, but he has not.  However, God has another plan: "But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth".  That is quite scary.

Some of the Egyptians actually listened and took their slaves and livestock into shelter.  I'm actually surprised that some did not.  Considering the track record of the first 6 plagues, you'd think that people would simply believe what Moses and Aaron was saying.  However, God must've hardened their hearts as well, not just Pharaoh's heart.  Actually, skipping ahead to chapter 10, we do see that mentioned: "Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them".

So hail rains down and destroys quite a lot.  They get called back to please with the Lord to cease the hail.  Moses still doesn't believe that they'll let the Israelites go, "But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the Lord God".  As expected, Pharaoh doesn't let them go even after the hail has stopped.

Pharaoh even says "This time I have sinned; the Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong".  I'm guessing that he doesn't really mean it considering he goes back on his word right after the hail ceases to fall.

Plague number 8: locusts.

We read of another reason given for these plagues: "that you may tell in the hearing of your son and of your grandson how I have dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them".  I'm sure you could talk to most Jews nowadays and they'd be able to tell you about how God saved the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.

It's interesting that we hear of another voice of reason among the Egyptians, "Then Pharaoh's servants said to him, “How long shall this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God. Do you not yet understand that Egypt is ruined?”".  Pharaoh tries to reason with Moses and Aaron again, thinking only the men would go worship and leave the women and children behind.  This doesn't work and Moses and Aaron refuse.

Locust swarm Egypt and Pharaoh asks for God to relent.  Once again Pharaoh admits his sin to Moses and Aaron, "Then Pharaoh hastily called Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you. Now therefore, forgive my sin, please, only this once, and plead with the Lord your God only to remove this death from me.”".  Yes, you were right, Pharaoh doesn't let them go yet again.

Plague number 9: darkness.

Great darkness falls upon Egypt.  it is so severe that people can't go anywhere or do anything.  I wonder if they had candles or something like that.  Perhaps it was so dark that they were unable to even find the candles to light them.  Or perhaps the darkness was so great that the candles wouldn't work or would be snuffed out.

Pharaoh calls them again and tries to reason with them again.  This time, he tries to have them leave their livestock behind.  However, this will not work since they need the livestock.  Pharaoh sends them away saying "Then Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me; take care never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face you shall die.”".  Actually, looking ahead you can see that Pharaoh does see Moses again.  I guess Pharaoh didn't kill Moses as he said he would if he saw him again.

Exodus 4-7

Moses doesn't really want to be chosen and keeps trying to find excuses.  Back in chapter 3 it started with “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”.  To this, God tells Moses that he will be with him.  Then Moses brings worry of whether or not they will believe him.  To this, God provides Moses with miraculous signs to show as proof.  Next, Moses complains that he is not eloquent with words.  To this, God replies, "Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?  Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak”.  Lastly, Moses asks God to send someone else and God finally gets angry with him and provides his brother, Aaron, to speak for him.  Wow, that's a lot of excuses.  However, this isn't so bad in light of the fact that I often make many excuses or complaints for myself.

I find it very interesting how God makes mention of the firstborn so early on.

"Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’”

God already makes mention of the firstborn, seeing ahead of time the final plague he will bring about on Egypt.

There's a weird story about circumcision.  Perhaps Moses didn't circumcise his son when he was supposed to and Zipporah does it to save Moses.  Well, he doesn't die and gets to continue on to Egypt.

Moses, along with Aaron, make their first appearance to Pharaoh and ask to let the people go worship God (as God instructed them to say).  Pharaoh will not let them and because of this, places heavier burdens on the Israelites.  They are no longer given straw to make bricks, but are still required to produce the same amount of bricks.  As they describe, Moses has made the Israelites "stink in the sight of Pharaoh".  Though the people initially believed Moses, they are not liking how things are turning out for them so far.  Fortunately, things take a turn for the better in chapter 6.

God promises deliverance and tells Moses what he is about to do.  When the people are told, they don't listen "because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery".

We read a genealogy of Moses and Aaron oddly inserted in the story at this point.  Perhaps this was a good of a place as any?

Well, they go back to Pharaoh who obviously is still not listening.  They then get to see the first plague, turning the Nile into blood.  The magicians of Egypt were able to do the same thing and Pharaoh still remained hard-hearted.  Because of the Nile turning into blood, the Egyptians are forced to dig along the Nile to get water to drink, since they cannot drink the blood water of the Nile  anymore.  These plagues are meant so that they don't affect the Israelites, and so I guess the Israelites have water where they are.

Exodus 1-3

Starting out in Exodus, we read about how time passes and there is a new king who doesn't remember Joseph.  Worried about these Israelites, he sets taskmasters over them making them slaves.  As another precaution, he has all their baby boys killed to keep a man from rising up among them to oppose him.  However, we learn of the midwives who do not listen and save the babies.  As a result, God deals well with the midwives.

Moses is born and his mother hides him so that he is not killed.  Eventually, she cannot hide him and sets him to float in a basket on the river bank with his sister watching from a distance.  Pharaoh's daughter finds him, takes pity on him and takes him as her own.  He grows up and sees an Egyptian beating a Hebrew.  He kills the Egyptian but eventually this is found out and Moses flees.

In Midian, he saves the daughters of the priest of Midian from shepherds and he is taken in by them.  He is given Zipporah as a wife and has a son named Gershom.  Back in Egypt, the Israelites are groaning over their tough labor.  Chapter 2 ends with God hearing their groaning and remembering his covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  Now was the time for God to act.

The famous burning bush is in chapter 3 and God speaks to Moses.  Moses is being sent to save his people.  Moses questions choosing him and is reassured that God will be with him.  When asking who to say sent him and what is his name, he is told to say "I Am" has sent you.  God's title of "I Am" is found here in chapter 3.  God is sending Moses and they will be brought up out of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, ther Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites.  Pharaoh will not let them leave, but God will stretch out his hand to strike Egypt with wonders and then Pharaoh will let them leave.  They will ask for things as they leave and will not leave empty handed.  In so doing, they will plunder the Egyptians.

Why doesn't God just save his people?  Why does he have to go through all these plagues and signs and wonders?  Why did they need to be slaves in the first place?  Well, we read in Exodus 9, "But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth".  This is all for God's name and his glory.  In any case, we see his plan and see what he is about to do.

Genesis 39-50

After a short but important interruption to zoom in on Judah, we resume back with Joseph.  He's sold to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard.  There, Joseph prospers and he is put in charge of just about everything in Potiphar's house.  This is when trouble begins, because Potiphar's wife begins to desire Joseph.  She continues to ask him to sleep with her, but he refuses.  We not only see how God is blessing Joseph, but also Joseph's moral character.  One day, she seems to have an opportune moment to get him to sleep with her (planned?).  He manages to escape, leaving his coat behind.  Potiphar's wife spins a story saying Joseph tried to sleep with her.  So, Joseph is thrown into prison.  This isn't any prison, but the prison where the king's prisoners were confined.  However, even there, Joseph prospers and is blessed.  He becomes in charge of all the prisoners.  How does this happen?  Because the Lord was with him and the Lord made whatever he did succeed.

In prison, we learn of two new characters, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker.  They both have a dream and Joseph interprets their dreams.  The interpretation is that the chief cupbearer is to be restored to his position in three days, and the chief baker is to be hanged.  They come to pass and Joseph asks the chief cupbearer to remember him, but he forgets Joseph.

Two years later, Pharaoh has a dream and nobody can interpret it.  This is when the chief cupbearer finally remembers Joseph and tells Pharoah.  He is brought before Pharoah and interprets the dream.  What's interesting is that Joseph says "It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer".  Joseph doesn't take credit for himself, but rightfully gives credit to God.  The interpretation of the dream is that there will be 7 years of plenty followed by 7 years of famine and the 7 years of famine will greatly overshadow the 7 years of plenty.  Joseph is rewarded and promoted to 2nd only to Pharoah.  He is to take charge of preparing for the coming famine.  He gets a new name and Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On as a wife.  He gathers food during the 7 years of plenty.  During that time, two sons are born to him, Manasseh and Ephraim.

Well, the famine begins and people start going to Joseph to buy food.  What's interesting is that Jacob and his family are looking to buy food, so the sons of Jacob go to Egypt to buy food (except for Benjamin).  Joseph recognizes his brothers but they don't recognize him.  Joseph speaks harshly to them and accuses them of being spies and puts them in custody.  He questions them about who they are and finds out about a younger brother as well as the fact that their father is doing well.  Well, when they are released, they are told that if they return, they must bring their brother Benjamin with them.  Also, Simeon is kept captive until they return.

Well, they leave with the food they wanted, but Joseph instructs his men to put back the money in their sack as well as provisions for the journey.  On the way back, when they find out about their money returned, they are surprised and a bit scared.  Well, they told everything to Jacob and Reuben even steps in to put his children on the line for the sake of Benjamin.  However, Jacob will hear none of this.

Well, eventually the food runs out and they have to go back for more food.  However, they can't go back without Benjamin.  This time, Judah puts himself on the line for Benjamin, guaranteeing his safety.  The blame is to be placed on Judah and Jacob agrees.  They return to Egypt with double the money, in hopes to return what was placed in their sacks when they left.  They also brought presents from the land as gifts.  When they arrive, they are received well and they eat with Joseph.  Actually, they were worried because they were taken to Joseph's house and they thought they were going to be assaulted.  Anyway, Simeon is released and when they try to return the money placed in their sacks, they are told that they already received payment for the food.

They eventually make their way with food as well as money.  One important thing left is Joseph's silver cup left in Benjamin's sack.  After they have left, Joseph sends men after them to ask about the silver cup and it is found in Benjamin's sack.  What's interesting is that Judah offers to take Benjamin's place.  He has already gauranteed Benjamin's safety to Jacob and now he must follow through with that.  To Joseph, what can he offer except his own life in place of Benjamin's?  Judah explains how Jacob cares for Benjamin and how Judah offered to bear the blame should anything happen to Benjamin.

Finally, Joseph cannot control himself any longer and lets himself be known.  They don't believe him at first, but they eventually realize that he really is Joseph.  What's interesting is that he tells them "And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life".  He recognizes part of God's plan and that they shouldn't be angry with themselves or distressed.  All is made well, they send for Jacob who doesn't believe at first.  Joseph embraces his brothers and eventually gets to see his father.  They settle in the land of Goshen.

The famine continues and people run out of money to pay for food, so Joseph buys their livestock in return for food.  When they run out of livestock, they sell their land and themselves for food.  Joseph buys all of Egypt for Pharoah and they all have to pay a fifth from then on or something like that.

Jacob lives another 17 years in Egypt and dies at 147 years of age.  He wants to be buried back with his fathers and has Joseph swear to him.  And, 3 chapters shy of the end of Genesis.  I guess I could try...

Jacob blesses Joseph's sons and swaps hands, blessing the younger more than the older (which is unusual).  Jacob blesses his sons and dies.  He gets buried with his fathers.  The brothers are afraid of Joseph because they think he might repay them now that Jacob is dead.  However, that isn't the case and everything is fine.  Joseph dies and that's the end of Genesis.

Genesis 35-38

God speaks to Jacob again and it seems like he's reminding him about his name change.  We also read about the death of Rachel.  She dies giving birth to Benjamin.  Isaac also dies and he is buried by his sons, Esau and Jacob.

Chapter 36 is full of Esau's descendants.  One interesting thing that was noticed (not by me) was that the listing of Esau's wives is slightly different from a few chapters earlier.  I've quickly looked at a 6 wife theory and a 4 wife theory to put the two together.  Anyway, I don't really know what's going on here.

Moving on, Joseph, being Jacob's favorite, is given a coat by his father.  He is hated by his brothers, since they know that he is favored.  Also, he begins having dreams about them having to bow down to him, and they hate him even more.  There is also mention of him rating out his brothers with a bad report.  They don't like Joseph.

One day, Jacob sends Joseph to check on his brothers.  They see him from far away and plan against him.  They take his coat and throw him into a cistern.  Rueben convinces them not to kill Joseph and Judah gets them to sell Joseph as a slave.  Reuben returns, wanting to save Joseph, but he is too late.  They return the coat to Jacob after dipping it in blood and Jacob believes that Joseph was killed by a wild animal.

Suddenly, the story shifts to Judah has 3 sons and get a wife, Tamar, for his firstborn.  God kills his fistborn because he is wicked.  Then, Judah instructs his secondborn to sleep with Tamar to produce children for his dead older brother.  The second born son is also wicked, not performing his duty properly by spilling his seamen on the ground, so God kills him too.  Judah is worried about his youngest son and though he promises to give him to Tamar eventually, he does not.

So, Tamar, recognizing this, dresses up as a prostitute in order to sleep with Judah.  Judah does and she gets pregnant.  Judah didn't know it was Tamar and eventually finds out what she did and that she is pregnant with his child.  Though what she did was "wrong", Judah still says "She is more righteous than I".  This probably refers to the fact that Judah was wrong for not giving his youngest son to her even though he said he would.  Anyway, she bears twins, Perez and Zerah.

I don't know or don't remember the significance, but this story is quite significant.  I'll have to look into it more, but at the very least, we know that it is through him and his line that Jesus is born.  That is significant.  Why did God choose Judah?  What about Rueben, the oldest?  What about Levi, from whom are the priests?  What about Joseph, who God used to save many from the famine?  One thing I read was about how Rueben had a moral failing causing him to be overlooked.  He defiled his father's bed (he slept with Bilhah).  As for Simeon and Levi, the next in line, the reason why they didn't get picked was probably because of the incident with Dinah.

Genesis 32-34

Well, it's been a long time since Jacob saw his brother, Esau.  If you remember, Jacob stole Esau's blessing just before fleeing and Esau declared that he wanted to kill Jacob.  Well, they were about to meet and Jacob is afraid.  So, he divides his camp thinking that at least one could escape if the other was attacked.  Also, He sends gifts ahead in hopes to appease Esau.

That night, he takes everything he owns and sends it across the ford of Jabbok, "and Jacob was left alone".  All alone there, he wrestles with a man until daybreak.  The man touches Jacob's hip and puts it out of joint.  Even still, Jacob refuses to let the man go until he blesses him.  The man blesses Jacob and gives him a new name, Israel.  This man he wrestles with is God, for he names the place Peniel, saying "For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered".

So, Jacob meets Esau and Esau is happy to see his brother.  They argue about the gifts, but Esau finally accepts them.  Esau goes back to Seir and Jacob goes to Succoth.  What I find weird is why it sounds like Jacob intended to go to Seir with Esau, but then seems to just go to Succoth without telling him?  Apparently, we read later in chapter 36 that because the land could not support both Esau and Jacob, they separated.

Moving on, we read about Dinah, the only daughter of Jacob that is mentioned.  There might be others, but we wouldn't know how many to be exact.  Anyway, a man named Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite rapes Dinah, but then falls in love with her.  He wants her as his wife and goes with his father to get her.  However, Jacob's sons (I'm guessing Simeon and Levi mainly) only agree to giving their sister to them if they all get circumcised.  Shechem and Hamor happily agree.  However, while they and all their people are still in pain from the circumcision, Simeon and Levi go and kill them all and plunder all their goods.  This displeases Jacob, but Simeon and Levi only think it right for what Shechem did to Dinah.

Genesis 24-31

Abraham gets his servant to swear to him that he'll find a wife for his son.  Specifically, he wants his servant to go back to Abraham's country to find a wife there, not from the land in which they are currently living.  They do this thing where they put their hand under the other person's thigh, which is kinda weird.  Anyway, the servant heads out to find a wife for Isaac and asks the Lord to show him a sign regarding this person who he is to find for Isaac.  She is to offer to water his camels when he asks her for a drink.  And guess what, this happens.  Excited, the servant gives her a bunch of jewelry and asks her a bunch of questions.  He tells his story to the girl and her family and they agree to allow the girl to go with him.  Lots of gifts are given and the they eventually are on their way back.  So, she goes back and they get married.  They even go into the Sarah's tent and the chapter ends saying how Isaac was comforted after his mother's death.

Abraham dies at 175 years old and gives all he has to Isaac.  We read about Abraham's descendants and then about Esau and Jacob.  Rebekah, Isaac's wife was barren, so Isaac prays to God regarding this.  She gives birth to twins, Esau and Jacob.  It would be expected for the older to do well, but this is not the case.  This is an example of the younger succeeding the older.  This is also an example of favoritism, where Isaac favors Esau, but Rebekkah favors Jacob.

Well, as they grow up, we learn what kind of man Esau is.  He despises his birthright, selling it for bread and a bowl of stew.  He didn't really care for it and didn't value it as it should be valued.  It was definitely worth more than a meal.  He was probably exaggerating to say that he was about to die.  He may have been hungry, but he could've survived long enough to find food some other way.

Moving on, we see God makes a promise to Isaac.  It moves on down the line and God decides to establish his oath he made to Abraham to Isaac.  Because of Abraham, his children are blessed and we see this through the life of Isaac.  Unfortunately, we also see similar failings.  Isaac follows in his father's footsteps by lying about his wife and saying that she is his sister.

Isaac prospers in the land and is sent away from the land because of how great he has become.  We read about these wells he re-digs and quarrels over with the people.  Eventually, they find a spot and a well where there aren't people to quarrel over.  Eventually, the people who sent him away find him to make them swear an oath.  The recognize that Isaac is so great that they should try to agree to some sort of treaty.  I guess this is pretty smart on their behalf.  We also read about how Esau takes for himself two wives, both Hittites.  The last verse in the chapter shows that things aren't going well for the family, "and they made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah".

We finally get to the story where Jacob deceives his blind father to give him the blessing and not Esau.  I always wondered the difference between the birthright and the blessing.  The birthright is the double inheritance that the firstborn receives, as well as the position of leadership over the family line.  I'm not entirely sure, but the blessing is given by the father to the children.  I guess a special blessing is given to the eldest.  Anyway, it is stolen by Jacob and Esau wants to kill Jacob, so he flees to Rebekah's family.  Rebekah also hopes that he will find a wife there, unlike Esau who has Hittite woman for wives.

Esau realizes how his wives are not favorable in the sight of his parents, so he goes to find a wife from the descendants of Ishmael.  There's actually a weird bit about the different wives that Esau has.  It's a bit confusing, but you can go try to look it up for yourself.

Jacob has a dream about a stairway to heaven (not related to the rock song) and God speaks to Jacob through the dream and blesses him.  He builds an altar to God there and decides to follow God as his God and also decides to tithe a tenth to God.

He finds Laban, his relative and wants to marry his daughter, Rachel.  He works for Laban for 7 years for Rachel, but he is tricked and given Leah instead of Rachel.  He works another 7 years for Rachel and now has two wives.  Rachel is barren and Leah isn't loved by her husband, since Jacob wanted Rachel in the first place.  Also, Leah has weak eyes.  Anyway, God sees this and blesses Leah  with children.  He gives birth to Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah.  Rachel has Jacob sleep with her servant, Bilhah, to have children through her.  Bilhah bears Dan and Naphtali.  Leah uses the same trick and tries to have children through her servant, Zilpah.  Zilpah bears Gad and Asher.  Later, in some weird exchange we read that Rachel allows Leah to sleep with Jacob for Rueben's mandrakes.  So, Leah bears Issachar and later Zebulun.  It is also noted that she bears Dinah, the only daughter mentioned so far.  Finally, after all this, God finally opens Rachel's womb and she bears Joseph.

Genesis 20-23

Yet again we read of this whole issue where Abraham pretends that Sarah is his sister.  This is technically true since they are half siblings, but it is still wrong to mislead people.  In any case, there is yet another mishap.  What's interesting is that it's stated how God keeps Abimelech from sinning.  I have been reading a book recently and it mentions how God has the ability to keep people from sinning.  Here in Genesis 20, we read one example of this.

Well, in this case, Abimelech does not send Abraham away but instead allows him to simply choose where he would like to live in this land.  Abimelech and his people have also become sick because of this mishap.  Specifically, God had closed the wombs of Abimelech's wife and female slaves.  So, Abraham prays over them and God heals them.

One interesting thing that was brought to my attention by my wife was how old Sarah is at this point.  More specifically, how she is so old yet people still find her beautiful.  Can you imagine someone wanting a 90 year old as their wife because of her beauty?

Isaac is born and Abraham sends Hagar and Ishmael away.  Wandering in the wilderness, they run out of water and are about to die.  However, an angel speaks to her and God opens her eyes to a well of water.  So, they survive and the boy grows up to be good with the bow.

Abimelech realizes that Abraham is blessed by God.  He asks Abraham to promise to deal well with him and his descendants.  There is also an issue about a well.  Abraham agrees to deal well with Abimelech and his people and there is an exchange of sheep and oxen over a well that Abraham dug.

Now we get to the famous story where Abraham has to sacrifice his son, Isaac.  This is quite a story because he finally has a son in his old age and God asks Abraham to sacrifice him.  God even told him about the blessings through Isaac, which would be weird if Isaac was to die already.  In the book of Hebrews, we actually get an inside look to what was going through Abraham's head.  He thought that God would raise Isaac from the dead.

Just before Abraham is about to sacrifice Isaac, an angel stops him and they sacrifice a ram instead (which God provided).  This was obviously a test, seeing whether or not Abraham was willing to give up his son for God.

What's interesting is that when Isaac asks Abraham about not having an animal to sacrifice, he tells him that God will provide a lamb.  God does provide in the end, but he provides a ram, not a lamb.  I remember hearing of some significance to this very fact.  It is a possible reference to how God will provide a lamb, meaning Jesus.

Many years pass and Sarah dies at the age of 127.  Abraham seeks for a place to bury her and the people he is living among, the Hittites, are happy to provide him with a place to bury Sarah.  This shows that Abraham is well liked and respected among the people of the land.  He wants to buy a cave from a man named Ephron, but Ephron wants to just give it to Abraham.  They argue and he finally agrees to receive payment for this cave (and field).  So, he buries Sarah in the cave that he now owns because he bought it.

Genesis 18-19

Now the Lord appeared to Abraham.  To Abraham, he looked up and saw 3 men.  Immediately, he asks them to stay and allow him to serve them.  They agree and he runs to get things prepared to serve them.  They ask about Sarah and tell about how she will bear a son.  Sarah, listening to the conversation, laughs at this thinking it impossible since she is very old.  Then, they ask why she laughed and Sarah denies that she laughed.

As they are leaving, the Lord wonders to himself whether or not he should tell Abraham of what he is about to do.  There is a great outcry in Sodom and Gomorrah and the Lord is going to go check it out.  Now, God knows everything and doesn't need to "check it out"; however, we read this progression of this story and how God chose to play out this story.

Abraham asks about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and asks if he will spare the city for the sake of 50 righteous people.  The Lord says he will not.  Abraham continues to lower the number, asking whether or not he will spare the city for the sake of a certain number of righteous people in the city.  The last number is 10.  If you know how this turns out, you realize that he still destroys the city.  This means that there were not even 10 righteous people in the city.

The Lord arrives in the city and Lot "pressed them strongly" to stay with him instead of in the town square.  They do and eat with him, but they are soon surrounded by young and old men of the city.  They demand Lot hand over the men so that they may have sex with them.  Obviously, this is wrong and Lot refuses.  In a weird turn of events, Lot offers his daughters to them instead of his guests.  This is also wrong, but perhaps the sinfulness of the city had been rubbing off on him.  In any case, they turn on Lot but his guests save him and blind them men.

Lot is told that the city will be destroyed, so he goes to warn his to be sons-in-law, but they think he's joking.  The angels urge him to leave, but he lingers.  So, they take him by force to leave the city along with his daughters and wife.  He asks them to allow him to escape to a nearby city instead of the hills and they allow.  As they flee, they are told not to look back, but Lot's wife looks back and is turned into a pillar of salt.  They leave and Sodom and Gomorrah is destroyed.

I guess these men are angels, and they talk about how the Lord is to destroy the city.  In the previous chapter, Abraham speaks to the Lord and these men visit.  It's interesting that 3 men visit Abraham, but only 2 men visit Lot.  I'm not sure what to make of this, but we know that Abraham speaks to the Lord and Lot is visited by 2 men who are referred to angels.  Those angels also refer to the Lord as sending them to destroy the place, as well as saying that the Lord is about to destroy the city.  I'm not entirely sure...

Anyways, we read about how Lot's daughters get him drunk to sleep with him so that they can bear children.  The son of the firstborn becomes the father of the Moabites and the son of the younger becomes the father of the Ammonites.  This is important to note for later when we read about these people.  They are not well looked upon because of their dark beginnings.

Genesis 15-17

The Lord speaks again to Abram, this time in a vision.  “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great”.  But in light of this, Abram wonders what use is a reward to him when he is childless.  All that he has will be passed down to someone who is not even related to him.  So, what good is a reward?  Well, God simply tells him that he will have a son and that his offspring will be so many that they will be like the many stars in the sky.

Abram believed and this was counted as righteousness.  I remember this because it is a point that Paul makes in the New Testament.  Some of the Jews took pride in their circumcision or in their works, but Paul reminds them that Abram's righteousness was by faith and it was before he was circumcised.

The Lord tells Abram about the land that he will possess, but Abram asks for assurance of this.  I guess he still questions this.  So, the Lord gets Abram to arrange some animals.  The Lord confirms what he says by having "a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch" pass between the pieces (the animal carcasses).  There is also a bit of a foretelling of what will happen.  Abram's offspring will sojourners in a foreign land and be afflicted for 400 years (slavery in Egypt).  Then, they will be delivered and the Egyptians will be judged and they will leave with great possessions.  Abram will be buried in a good old age.  Then, they will return back here, to this land that is promised by God.

Next, we read a story about Sarai and Hagar.  Sarai is still barren, and they decide to have Abram have children by Hagar, Sarai's servant.  This is obviously a bad idea, but they do it anyways and Hagar is pregnant.  However, this immediately causes strife and Hagar looks with contempt on Sarai and Sarai deals harshly towards Hagar and then Hagar runs away.  Having run away, an angel appears to Hagar and tells her about the child she is to bear.  So, Ishmael is born and I guess things continue on.

The Lord tells Abram about of circumcision and all the males are to circumcised.  This is part of the covenant, that all the males are to be circumcised.

Abram is also renamed Abraham and Sarai is renamed Sarah.  I guess there is great meaning to these names.  Abraham means "father of a multitude" and Sarah means "princess".  I understand "Abraham" because God tells of his offspring being many, but I don't quite get "Sarah".  Perhaps this is to reinforce the idea that Sarah is important, even though she still hasn't been able to bear any children.

Abraham thinks the covenant will be established with Ishamel, but the Lord tells him that it will be established with the son Sarah is to bear, Isaac.  And with this, Abraham circumcises all the men of his house.  That must've been painful...

Genesis 12-14

Wow, so now my homework is to read chapters 11 to 50 in 2 weeks.  That's a bit crazy, but we'll see how it goes...  I guess it's not impossible, just a lot more reading than I'm used too (sadly?).

Abram gets called by God to leave.  This was apparently not common since most people live where they grow up and stay in their communities and don't venture far off.  Yes, I guess Abram is already in a bit of a different situation since he has already moved with his dad Terah.  However, this still doesn't change the fact that what he was being called to was uncommon to say the least.

God chooses Abram and is going to make him into a great nation and will bless him.  It is through Abram that God will bless the whole world.  We don't read of any hint of disobedience or questioning.  Abram simply follows what the Lord tells him and goes.  Lot goes with him and they take their possessions (animals, servants, etc).

Why did God choose Abram?  Why didn't he choose someone else?  Was Abram a good guy or something?  We read nothing of this and we actually learn later about some shady things that Abram does do.  He isn't the best of dudes.  However, to his credit, he does obey and simply goes as the Lord instructs him.  So why does he choose him?  I don't know.  God does what he does and he obviously had a plan.  At the very least, I don't think there was anything special about Abram that caused God to pick him.

We then read about some trouble arising.  There is a famine, and for people of those days, this was quite a hardship.  With a famine, how would they grow food to feed themselves?  So, they decide to go down to Egypt to live there.  In Egypt, Abram does something that is far from upright, he tells everyone that Sarai is his sister and asks her to do the same.  He fears for his own life, thinking they would kill him in order to take his beautiful wife from him.  They do take Sarai, thinking her to be Abram's sister and give Abram many gifts for the sake of Sarai.  However, God sends plagues and it is found out that she really is his wife.  So, upset about this whole situation, they return his wife and send them away.

Moving on, we learn that Abram and Lot's wealth has grown a lot.  It is so much that it is hard for them to live in the same place together.  As a result, they decide to separate so that they don't run into more problems.  Lot settles in Sodom and Abram moves on to live in Canaan.  Though Abram seems to be on the right path, Lot is in for trouble.  Lot originally got first pick of where to live, and he chose Sodom because the land was well watered.  However, we read "Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord".  This will only spell trouble for him later on.

A large war breaks out in the land and 4 kings go up against 5 kings.  As a result of the battle, the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah flee and the enemy chases them and takes the lands and the things in the lands as possessions.  This includes Lot and all that he owns.  One escapes to tell Abram of this and he embarks to save Lot.  With only 318 trained men of his own, he manages to save Lot along with his possessions.

It is here that we read of a notable (albeit brief) character, Melchizedek.  Melchizidek is both a priest and a king, which makes him quite unique.  He is special because he is referred to in the New Testament with respect to Jesus.  We read in the book of Hebrews how Jesus is a priest after the order of Melchizedek.

In any case, we read about how Abram gives to Melchizedek 10%.  Why does he do this?  Apparently, he doesn't want anything to think that he was made rich by Sodom or the spoils.  Instead, he prospers because God makes him to prosper.  This is probably where most get the idea to tithe 10%.  I remember later hearing of a teaching on this refuting the 10% tithe.  With reference to 2 Corinthians 8-9, we are to be cheerful givers and to give generously.  So, instead of a 10% tithe (though, 10% isn't necessarily a bad thing), we should focus on being a cheerful giver and giving generously.

Genesis 10-11

We read about the descendants of Japheth, Ham and Shem.  This is typically the part that most people gloss over (myself included), but there are some interesting things in here.  We read about Japheth's descendants and how they became seafaring peoples.  A descendant of Ham was the first heroic warrior on earth.  I'm sure someone much smarter than me could tell you way more about this and it's importance.

Moving on, we read about the line from Shem to Abram.  This gets more interesting because Abram (or as we may know him, Abraham) is a very important character in the book of Genesis.  We also read about how people continue living for long periods of time.  Living 500 years or 403 years or 430 years happens to some of these people well past the flood.

Abram lives in Ur of the Chaldeans where he was born.  Him and his family all live there.  His father is Terah and Abram marries Sarai (who we may know as Sarah).  There's also Lot who is Abram's nephew.  Terah, Abram's father, takes Abram and Lot (and Sarai) toward Canaan but they settle in Haran.  As we move from chapter 11 to chapter 12, we have a brief picture of where the story of Abram begins.

Oh, and I guess there's also the story of the Tower of Babel.  Everyone speaks the same language and they begin an epic project, “Come, let’s build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world”.  However, God steps in to put an end to their work.

But the Lord came down to look at the city and the tower the people were building. “Look!” he said. “The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them! Come, let’s go down and confuse the people with different languages. Then they won’t be able to understand each other.”
Genesis 11:5-7

The Lord confused their languages and scattered them.  Why is it such a big deal if they all unite?  Is it really such a big deal if "nothing will be impossible for them" as the Lord says?  I don't think that God was really worried or sweating in any way.  However, God was moreso putting an end to their pursuit to display their own greatness.  They built the tower for themselves to make them famous.  In contrast to this clear opposition to God, God put an end to their work.

Genesis 7-9

It's finally time.  Noah is told to go into the ark with his family and all the animals.  So, he goes in and we read that "the Lord shut him in".  I guess God closed the door or sealed it or something like that.

Once again, the age of these people is kinda hard to comprehend.  Nowadays, people don't live this long so I always wonder what it's like for a person this old to be going about his life.  Even for Noah who is 600 years old at the time, how does he have the energy to build an ark and gather a whole bunch of animals?  Well, it takes a lot of help from God, that's for sure.

So, it rains for 40 days.  The waters rise so high that even the high mountains were submerged in water.  That's a lot of water!  With so much water, just about all mankind and animals died.  I assume that this doesn't include the sea creatures, since they wouldn't really be affected that much by the flood.  In any case, the ark floats and the flood remains for 150 days.

At the start of chapter 8, we read "But God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the livestock that were with him in the ark".  God could've just let the flood remain and everything on the ark wouldn't have been able to survive.  However, God remembered them and made sure he took care of them.  So, he causes the waters to recede.  As mentioned in the last chapter, it takes 150 days for the waters to recede and finally the ark comes to rest on the mountains of Ararat.

The waters continue to subside and Noah sends out a dove to test whether or not it is safe to leave the ark.  The dove finds no place to land, so it returns.  After another 7 days the dove is sent out again and this time returns with a freshly plucked olive leaf.  Seeing this Noah knew it was almost time.  So, after another 7 days the dove is sent out and it does not return.

Finally, they open the doors and leave the ark.  What is the first thing that they do?  Noah builds an altar and makes a burnt offering to the Lord.  This was a pleasing aroma to the Lord and he promises to never again curse the ground because of man nor to kill everything as he has done.  The flow of time and seasons will continue.

God blesses them and tells them "be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth".  This is similar to what he says to Adam at the beginning of Genesis.  I guess this is a new start and his instruction remains the same.

God also warns them about eating flesh with its life.  I guess that means to not eat something that is still alive.  Looking into it a bit, it more has to do with the blood itself.  Part of it could be the significance of blood as well as clean/unclean issues.  Also, sacrifices play a part since blood was key to many sacrifices.  In addition, humane treatment of animals, as well as health reasons.  Does this affect the things that we eat nowadays?  Well, we read in the new testament about how all foods have been declared clean.  Also, if they're referring to ceremonial cleanliness, we know that it is Jesus' blood that cleanses us now.  That isn't to say that we don't need to fight sin, but certain laws had a purpose that no longer have a purpose because of Christ's work on the cross.  Uh... Maybe someone will come in and help correct some of what I have said... I'm a bit off my rocker perhaps...

Anyway, the covenant is established with Noah and his offspring.  The rainbow in the clouds is a sign of this covenant.  So, looking at a rainbow, remember that God has promised to not destroy all living creatures with a flood.

There is another small story about Noah and his sons.  He plants a vineyard and gets drunk from the wine.  Then, Ham does something weird and wrong to his father while he is drunk and naked.  It's not specific, so we can leave it at that.  In any case, the other two sons, Shem and Japheth do the right thing and cover their father's nakedness.  While doing so, they do it in such a way as to not look at their father's nakedness.  When Noah wakes up, he curses his son Ham for whatever it is that he did.  He then blesses Shem and Japheth.

Noah lived till he was 950 years old.  He lived 350 years after the flood.  So, apparently, people did not have a cap on their life at 120 years since Noah lived past 120 years after God had made that statement.  However, we see nowadays that people don't even come close to the lifespan that we read about in the first half of Genesis.

Genesis 6

When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them,  the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose.  Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be  years.”  The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.
 The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.  And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.  So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.”  But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
 These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God.  And Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
 Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with violence.  And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.  And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.  Make yourself an ark of gopher wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch.  This is how you are to make it: the length of the ark  cubits, its breadth  cubits, and its height  cubits.  Make a roof for the ark, and finish it to a cubit above, and set the door of the ark in its side. Make it with lower, second, and third decks.  For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Everything that is on the earth shall die.  But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you.  And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female.  Of the birds according to their kinds, and of the animals according to their kinds, of every creeping thing of the ground, according to its kind, two of every sort shall come in to you to keep them alive.  Also take with you every sort of food that is eaten, and store it up. It shall serve as food for you and for them.”  Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him.

Genesis 6

After reading about a bunch of people who live way beyond 100 years old, God says that our lives will be limited to 120 years.  Most people don't live past 100 years old nowadays, so 120 years old is quite a stretch.  Looking it up, the current record is 122 years by a woman named Jeanne Louise Calment.  This is weird, does this contradict God's word?  Well, I needed some help so I did some searching.  Apparently, this is referring to the time till God's judgment, not man's lifespan.  Good thing there are people wiser than me, though I wish I had spent more time with the word to dig in myself...

There are a bunch of things here I don't quite understand.  We read about sons of God taking wives and about the Nephilim.  What is going on here?  Well, one thing is for sure, things are very bad.  It is so bad that God decides to "blot out man" and he says "I am sorry that I have made them".  Wow, that's harsh.  There is a ray of hope, "But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord".

In walks Noah.  We read about how great this guy is.  As a quick note, we know that "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).  This applies to everyone, including Noah.  So, when we read that "Noah was a righteous man", we know that he is still a sinner.  To learn more about what this means, we read about Noah that he is "blameless in his generation".  So, everyone is really bad, but Noah is really good compared to them, even though he's still a sinner like everyone.

God instructs Noah to build an ark and there are details as to how is he to build it.  God decides to establish a covenant with Noah in spite of his decision to destroy everything.  So, Noah and his family will be saved.  This is where we learn about how he is to take 2 of every animal to keep alive with him when everything else is to be destroyed.  I don't really know how he did this apart from God's help.  He was also instructed to take every sort of food that is eaten.  They are to be floating about for a long time and they would obviously need food to eat.  And so, Noah followed all of God's instructions.

I wonder, did it smell on that ark?  There were a lot of animals and I'm guessing that there were a lot of animal (and human) waste on the ark.  There was probably a lot of feeding and cleaning that Noah and his family had to do.  Again, probably something that I can't imagine how he would do apart from God's help.