Kameel Majdali's Road Ahead

Introduction Some of your favourite Bible stories and characters are found in this book. Yet it also serves as a solemn warning about the perils of disobeying God. In all cases, it is folly and madness to say ‘No’ to Him. Welcome to the Book of Numbers, the fourth of the five books of Moses, known as the Pentateuch or Torah (the Law). The stories are great, and the lessons even greater.   The name in the original Hebrew is wayyedabber or ‘ and he said.’ The reason for the name ‘Numbers’ is that it has to do with two censuses. The first is of the ‘generation of the exodus’ (Chapter 1), namely the children of Israel who miraculously departed from Egypt. The second census or numbering was of the ‘generation of the wilderness,’ the generation of Israelites born in the wilderness (chapter 26), to the ‘generation of the exodus.’ Though the exodus generation was headed towards the promised land of Canaan, they never reached it. Numbers will explain the dire reasons why. Key Characters Mos...

Prophet to the North: Why Study the Book of Hosea For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: it hath no stalk: the bud shall yield no meal: if so be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up. 8 Israel is swallowed up: now shall they be among the Gentiles as a vessel wherein is no pleasure — Hosea 8:7-8 Introduction A prophet from the Northern Kingdom of Israel, prophesying to the Northern Kingdom, Hosea is a faithful man who marries an exceptionally unfaithful wife named Gomer. How else can it be since she was a prostitute? The prophet’s marriage was like a metaphor of God’s relationship with Israel, which is likened to a troubled marriage with an unfaithful spouse. Hebrew Name of Hosea The prophet’s name comes from Hoshea, meaning ‘salvation.’ The great conqueror of Canaan, Joshua the son of Nun, has the Hebrew name Yehoshua, meaning ‘Yahweh’ or ‘God’ is salvation. Author of Hosea Though the text is written in the first and thi...