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Numbers 1:1-46; No Longer Slaves; Not Yet Home
2025/09/07 Numbers 1:1-46; No Longer Slaves; Not Yet Home; Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20250907_numbers-1_1-46.mp3
Last time we looked at the map, where we have been and where we are going in this study of the fourth book of what we know as the Old Testament, Numbers, or ‘In the Wilderness’, and why we would take time to study it. Genesis brought us from creation, through rebellion and judgment and promise to trace the promised seed of the woman through Seth, and then through Noah, and through Shem. God made promises to Abraham, then to Isaac and Jacob, and Jacob (or Israel)’s twelve sons, who sold the younger favorite brother as a slave, whom God brought to Egypt to become ruler over all of Egypt to save his family.
400 years later, and Exodus tells us that the family of 70 that arrived in Egypt had grown to an oppressed slave force that intimidated Egyptian royalty. God raised up Moses to set his people free. After God demonstrated his superiority over all the gods of Egypt, he parted the sea and led his people out to Mount Sinai, where God entered into a covenant relationship with his people, gave them his law, and directions to construct a royal tent where he would dwell in the middle of their camp. After their rebellion and God’s forgiveness, they built the tabernacle, and God made his presence known in the glory cloud and in flame.
But God dwelling in the camp with hard hearted rebellious people is dangerous, so Leviticus declares the holiness of God and how he is to be approached through sacrifice and purification.
This brings us to Numbers, or ‘In the Wilderness;’ the tale of two generations, one who saw the mighty deeds of YHWH and then shrank back in fear, and fell in the wilderness, and the next generation, their children, who in faith prepared to enter in to take possession of the promises.
YHWH Spoke
Numbers begins this way:
Numbers 1:1 (And) The LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying,
YHWH God spoke. Let’s pause and just reflect on the gift that is. The Lord spoke; what a treasure! Revelation; communication. He didn’t have to; he wanted to. Our God is not aloof, distant, silent. God initiates. God means for us to know him. Exodus 25 describes the Holiest place;
Exodus 25:22 There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.
YHWH God spoke to Moses, to a man. In his grace, he met with Moses, spoke to Moses and Moses lived. In God’s grace, Moses served as mediator between God and the people; served as prophet, bringing God’s words to God’s people.
In the Wilderness (Already and Not Yet)
YHWH spoke to Moses in the wilderness. The wilderness is a wild place, not a domestic or settled place. It may be a place you go to explore, to adventure, to survive; but not to settle, not to dwell. The wilderness is a dangerous place, a vulnerable place, a place of scarcity of resources. It is the place between here and there. It’s not the destination; it’s the journey. God’s people were no longer slaves in Egypt. But they were not yet in the promised land, the land flowing with milk and honey (Ex.6:6-8). Already freed from slavery; not yet in full possession of what God has prepared for them. It is a place of transition, of testing.
The New Testament speaks of salvation in three tenses. The past tense; ‘you have been saved’ (Eph.2:8). The present; ‘you are being saved’ (1Cor.15:2). The future; our coming salvation (1Pet.1:5,9). Like Israel from Egypt, believers in Jesus have been rescued, delivered, set free. We have been set free from slavery, but we have been set free for something, to something; we have been promised a heavenly home, and we will one day come into full possession and enter in. But now in the wilderness, as we hold fast, stand firm, we are being saved. This is the fight, the struggle, the testing. Sometimes the Scriptures speak of the past tense as justification, the future as glorification, and the present and sanctification; the process by which we become set apart, holy. This is where we live. This wilderness experience is so relevant to us today.
But what a treasure; God is not silent in the wilderness. It is God’s word that sustains us, strengthens us, equips and enables us to stand firm and hold fast even in the wilderness.
God’s Command; Prepare for War
Numbers 1:1 gives us a time stamp; It was the first day of second month; in the second year after the exodus out of Egypt. Israel had spent a year at Mt Sinai; receiving the law, affirming the covenant; breaking the covenant, renewing the covenant; building the tabernacle, setting up and purifying the tabernacle.
It was at this time that YHWH spoke to Moses. This is an historic event that happened at a specific point in time. This was no fuzzy impression, this was concrete revelation. It was not subjective; it was objective. It was a date-able event. At a specific time, in a specific place, YHWH God spoke. And this message had content. It was communicable. It was actionable. It was instruction to do something, and God expected them to do it.
God said; ‘take a census’.
Numbers 1:2 “Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by clans, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head. 3 From twenty years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go to war, you and Aaron shall list them, company by company.
Count the men able to go to war. God promised to give his people the land, but he didn’t say he would give it to them without a fight. He had told them, and they knew that the land was already occupied. God had patiently waited 400 years until the sins of the people in the land had escalated to the point where he was ready to wipe them out (Gen.15:16), to cleanse the land of them. Now it was time to prepare for war. This was a community effort; everyone had a part to play. Every person mattered. The men 20 and older were the ones who bore the responsibility for fighting, for their obedience to the Lord’s command, for the success or failure of the mission.
The Lord even gave instructions on how to carry out the census; it was not up to Moses and Aaron alone.
Numbers 1:4 And there shall be with you a man from each tribe, each man being the head of the house of his fathers. 5 And these are the names of the men who shall assist you.
A List of Would-be Heroes who Fell through Unbelief
Hard name son of hard name from each of the tribes except Levi. What do we do with these lists of names? Is this merely a test of our skills at pronunciation? Maybe its a good place to look for unique baby names; try ‘Shelumiel’ or ‘Zurishaddai’. Names have meaning. Rodney comes from ‘Hroda’s island’ or the fame of the island; island dweller. I have no idea what that has to do with anything. But the angel said to Joseph ‘you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins’ (Mt.1:21). Jesus, or Joshua, Yeshuah, means YHWH is Salvation. Now that’s significant! Parents gave their children names in hope, in faith. Often one of God’s names was part of the name. Here are the names and their probable meanings: [from Allen, (1990), EBC; cf. Cole (2000), NAC]
From Reuben; Elizur (“[My] God Is a Rock”) son of Shedeur (“Shaddai Is a Flame”),
From Simeon; Shelumiel (“[My] Peace Is God”) son of Zurishaddai (“[My] Rock Is Shaddai”).
From Judah; Nahshon (“Serpentine”) son of Amminadab (“[My] Kinsman [God] Is Noble”).
From Issachar; Nethanel (“God Has Given”) son of Zuar (“Little One”).
From Zebulun; Eliab (“[My] God Is Father”) son of Helon (“Rampart-like” [?]).
From Ephraim; Elishama (“[My] God Has Heard”) son of Ammihud (“[My] Kinsman [God] Is Majesty”).
From Manasseh; Gamaliel (“Reward of God”) son of Pedahzur (“The Rock [God] Has Ransomed”).
From Benjamin; Abidan (“[My] Father [God] Is Judge”) son of Gideoni (“My Hewer”).
From Dan; Ahiezer (“[My] Brother [God] Is Help”) son of Ammishaddai (“[My] Kinsman [God] Is Shaddai”).
From Asher; Pagiel (“Encountered by God”) son of Ocran (“Troubled”).
From Gad; Eliasaph (“God Has Added”) son of Deuel (“Know God!”).
From Naphtali; Ahira (“My Brother Is Evil”) son of Enan (“Seeing”).
This list of names is a list of the would-be heroes of the story; the heads of the tribes of Jacob or Israel, connected to the family history and the promises to Abraham. Instead this becomes a list of a generation who turned tail and ran, who failed to take hold of the promises God had offered to them, who failed to listen to and live up the the names their parents had given. God will fulfill all his promises; will we benefit from them? The author of Hebrews reminds us:
Hebrews 3:16 For who were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not all those who left Egypt led by Moses? 17 And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? 19 So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.
Hebrews exhorts us:
Hebrews 3:12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
The Lord Fulfills His Promises even to Rebellious People
Numbers 1:16 reads:
Numbers 1:16 These were the ones chosen from the congregation, the chiefs of their ancestral tribes, the heads of the clans of Israel. 17 Moses and Aaron took these men who had been named, 18 and on the first day of the second month, they assembled the whole congregation together, who registered themselves by clans, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names from twenty years old and upward, head by head, 19 as the LORD commanded Moses. So he listed them in the wilderness of Sinai.
And then follows the list of tribes in this repetitive formula
…Of the people of [tribe], their generations, by their clans, by their fathers’ houses, those of them who were listed, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go to war: those listed of the tribe of ________ were [number].
Here’s a summary:
21 Reuben … 46,500.
23 Simeon … 59,300.
25 Gad … 45,650.
27 Judah … 74,600.
29 Issachar … 54,400.
31 Zebulun … 57,400.
33 Ephraim … 40,500.
35 Manasseh … 32,200.
37 Benjamin … 35,400.
39 Dan … 62,700.
41 Asher … 41,500.
43 Naphtali … 53,400.
44 These are those who were listed, whom Moses and Aaron listed with the help of the chiefs of Israel, twelve men, each representing his fathers’ house. 45 So all those listed of the people of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war in Israel— 46 all those listed were 603,550. [cf. Ex.38:26]
Fruitful In Affliction
We may be tempted to gloss over the long lists of names and numbers, but these numbers are significant. These numbers matter; They tell us that God has been faithfully fulfilling his promises to his people, even if his people didn’t know him, weren’t seeking him.
Exodus began with a census of the people who went down to Egypt:
Exodus 1:1 These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household: 2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, 3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, 4 Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. 5 All the descendants of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph was already in Egypt. 6 Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. 7 But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.
The Lord was fulfilling his promises to Abraham;
Genesis 12:2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
Genesis 15:5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
Many have estimated that if the total number of men 20 or over, not counting the tribe of Levi was 603,550, then the total number of people leaving Egypt was somewhere around 2 or 3 million. God was faithful, blessing, causing them to be fruitful, even in the land of affliction, fulfilling his promises even to his rebellious people.
Past Rescue, Future Hope; Present Process of Purification
When we believe in Jesus, God sets us free from slavery, free from the consequences of our sins. Jesus promises to prepare a place for us, that we will one day be with him where he is (Jn.14:1-3). In the mean time, he walks with us, through this wilderness, as we are tested and refined, purified, made holy. He has given us his Spirit as a guarantee. He makes us fruitful, even in the face of opposition.
Here’s what Peter says about our past rescue, our future hope, and our present process of purification in the wilderness;
1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
***
Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org
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By Rodney Zedicher2025/09/07 Numbers 1:1-46; No Longer Slaves; Not Yet Home; Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20250907_numbers-1_1-46.mp3
Last time we looked at the map, where we have been and where we are going in this study of the fourth book of what we know as the Old Testament, Numbers, or ‘In the Wilderness’, and why we would take time to study it. Genesis brought us from creation, through rebellion and judgment and promise to trace the promised seed of the woman through Seth, and then through Noah, and through Shem. God made promises to Abraham, then to Isaac and Jacob, and Jacob (or Israel)’s twelve sons, who sold the younger favorite brother as a slave, whom God brought to Egypt to become ruler over all of Egypt to save his family.
400 years later, and Exodus tells us that the family of 70 that arrived in Egypt had grown to an oppressed slave force that intimidated Egyptian royalty. God raised up Moses to set his people free. After God demonstrated his superiority over all the gods of Egypt, he parted the sea and led his people out to Mount Sinai, where God entered into a covenant relationship with his people, gave them his law, and directions to construct a royal tent where he would dwell in the middle of their camp. After their rebellion and God’s forgiveness, they built the tabernacle, and God made his presence known in the glory cloud and in flame.
But God dwelling in the camp with hard hearted rebellious people is dangerous, so Leviticus declares the holiness of God and how he is to be approached through sacrifice and purification.
This brings us to Numbers, or ‘In the Wilderness;’ the tale of two generations, one who saw the mighty deeds of YHWH and then shrank back in fear, and fell in the wilderness, and the next generation, their children, who in faith prepared to enter in to take possession of the promises.
YHWH Spoke
Numbers begins this way:
Numbers 1:1 (And) The LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying,
YHWH God spoke. Let’s pause and just reflect on the gift that is. The Lord spoke; what a treasure! Revelation; communication. He didn’t have to; he wanted to. Our God is not aloof, distant, silent. God initiates. God means for us to know him. Exodus 25 describes the Holiest place;
Exodus 25:22 There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.
YHWH God spoke to Moses, to a man. In his grace, he met with Moses, spoke to Moses and Moses lived. In God’s grace, Moses served as mediator between God and the people; served as prophet, bringing God’s words to God’s people.
In the Wilderness (Already and Not Yet)
YHWH spoke to Moses in the wilderness. The wilderness is a wild place, not a domestic or settled place. It may be a place you go to explore, to adventure, to survive; but not to settle, not to dwell. The wilderness is a dangerous place, a vulnerable place, a place of scarcity of resources. It is the place between here and there. It’s not the destination; it’s the journey. God’s people were no longer slaves in Egypt. But they were not yet in the promised land, the land flowing with milk and honey (Ex.6:6-8). Already freed from slavery; not yet in full possession of what God has prepared for them. It is a place of transition, of testing.
The New Testament speaks of salvation in three tenses. The past tense; ‘you have been saved’ (Eph.2:8). The present; ‘you are being saved’ (1Cor.15:2). The future; our coming salvation (1Pet.1:5,9). Like Israel from Egypt, believers in Jesus have been rescued, delivered, set free. We have been set free from slavery, but we have been set free for something, to something; we have been promised a heavenly home, and we will one day come into full possession and enter in. But now in the wilderness, as we hold fast, stand firm, we are being saved. This is the fight, the struggle, the testing. Sometimes the Scriptures speak of the past tense as justification, the future as glorification, and the present and sanctification; the process by which we become set apart, holy. This is where we live. This wilderness experience is so relevant to us today.
But what a treasure; God is not silent in the wilderness. It is God’s word that sustains us, strengthens us, equips and enables us to stand firm and hold fast even in the wilderness.
God’s Command; Prepare for War
Numbers 1:1 gives us a time stamp; It was the first day of second month; in the second year after the exodus out of Egypt. Israel had spent a year at Mt Sinai; receiving the law, affirming the covenant; breaking the covenant, renewing the covenant; building the tabernacle, setting up and purifying the tabernacle.
It was at this time that YHWH spoke to Moses. This is an historic event that happened at a specific point in time. This was no fuzzy impression, this was concrete revelation. It was not subjective; it was objective. It was a date-able event. At a specific time, in a specific place, YHWH God spoke. And this message had content. It was communicable. It was actionable. It was instruction to do something, and God expected them to do it.
God said; ‘take a census’.
Numbers 1:2 “Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by clans, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head. 3 From twenty years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go to war, you and Aaron shall list them, company by company.
Count the men able to go to war. God promised to give his people the land, but he didn’t say he would give it to them without a fight. He had told them, and they knew that the land was already occupied. God had patiently waited 400 years until the sins of the people in the land had escalated to the point where he was ready to wipe them out (Gen.15:16), to cleanse the land of them. Now it was time to prepare for war. This was a community effort; everyone had a part to play. Every person mattered. The men 20 and older were the ones who bore the responsibility for fighting, for their obedience to the Lord’s command, for the success or failure of the mission.
The Lord even gave instructions on how to carry out the census; it was not up to Moses and Aaron alone.
Numbers 1:4 And there shall be with you a man from each tribe, each man being the head of the house of his fathers. 5 And these are the names of the men who shall assist you.
A List of Would-be Heroes who Fell through Unbelief
Hard name son of hard name from each of the tribes except Levi. What do we do with these lists of names? Is this merely a test of our skills at pronunciation? Maybe its a good place to look for unique baby names; try ‘Shelumiel’ or ‘Zurishaddai’. Names have meaning. Rodney comes from ‘Hroda’s island’ or the fame of the island; island dweller. I have no idea what that has to do with anything. But the angel said to Joseph ‘you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins’ (Mt.1:21). Jesus, or Joshua, Yeshuah, means YHWH is Salvation. Now that’s significant! Parents gave their children names in hope, in faith. Often one of God’s names was part of the name. Here are the names and their probable meanings: [from Allen, (1990), EBC; cf. Cole (2000), NAC]
From Reuben; Elizur (“[My] God Is a Rock”) son of Shedeur (“Shaddai Is a Flame”),
From Simeon; Shelumiel (“[My] Peace Is God”) son of Zurishaddai (“[My] Rock Is Shaddai”).
From Judah; Nahshon (“Serpentine”) son of Amminadab (“[My] Kinsman [God] Is Noble”).
From Issachar; Nethanel (“God Has Given”) son of Zuar (“Little One”).
From Zebulun; Eliab (“[My] God Is Father”) son of Helon (“Rampart-like” [?]).
From Ephraim; Elishama (“[My] God Has Heard”) son of Ammihud (“[My] Kinsman [God] Is Majesty”).
From Manasseh; Gamaliel (“Reward of God”) son of Pedahzur (“The Rock [God] Has Ransomed”).
From Benjamin; Abidan (“[My] Father [God] Is Judge”) son of Gideoni (“My Hewer”).
From Dan; Ahiezer (“[My] Brother [God] Is Help”) son of Ammishaddai (“[My] Kinsman [God] Is Shaddai”).
From Asher; Pagiel (“Encountered by God”) son of Ocran (“Troubled”).
From Gad; Eliasaph (“God Has Added”) son of Deuel (“Know God!”).
From Naphtali; Ahira (“My Brother Is Evil”) son of Enan (“Seeing”).
This list of names is a list of the would-be heroes of the story; the heads of the tribes of Jacob or Israel, connected to the family history and the promises to Abraham. Instead this becomes a list of a generation who turned tail and ran, who failed to take hold of the promises God had offered to them, who failed to listen to and live up the the names their parents had given. God will fulfill all his promises; will we benefit from them? The author of Hebrews reminds us:
Hebrews 3:16 For who were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not all those who left Egypt led by Moses? 17 And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? 19 So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.
Hebrews exhorts us:
Hebrews 3:12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
The Lord Fulfills His Promises even to Rebellious People
Numbers 1:16 reads:
Numbers 1:16 These were the ones chosen from the congregation, the chiefs of their ancestral tribes, the heads of the clans of Israel. 17 Moses and Aaron took these men who had been named, 18 and on the first day of the second month, they assembled the whole congregation together, who registered themselves by clans, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names from twenty years old and upward, head by head, 19 as the LORD commanded Moses. So he listed them in the wilderness of Sinai.
And then follows the list of tribes in this repetitive formula
…Of the people of [tribe], their generations, by their clans, by their fathers’ houses, those of them who were listed, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go to war: those listed of the tribe of ________ were [number].
Here’s a summary:
21 Reuben … 46,500.
23 Simeon … 59,300.
25 Gad … 45,650.
27 Judah … 74,600.
29 Issachar … 54,400.
31 Zebulun … 57,400.
33 Ephraim … 40,500.
35 Manasseh … 32,200.
37 Benjamin … 35,400.
39 Dan … 62,700.
41 Asher … 41,500.
43 Naphtali … 53,400.
44 These are those who were listed, whom Moses and Aaron listed with the help of the chiefs of Israel, twelve men, each representing his fathers’ house. 45 So all those listed of the people of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war in Israel— 46 all those listed were 603,550. [cf. Ex.38:26]
Fruitful In Affliction
We may be tempted to gloss over the long lists of names and numbers, but these numbers are significant. These numbers matter; They tell us that God has been faithfully fulfilling his promises to his people, even if his people didn’t know him, weren’t seeking him.
Exodus began with a census of the people who went down to Egypt:
Exodus 1:1 These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household: 2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, 3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, 4 Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. 5 All the descendants of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph was already in Egypt. 6 Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. 7 But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.
The Lord was fulfilling his promises to Abraham;
Genesis 12:2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
Genesis 15:5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
Many have estimated that if the total number of men 20 or over, not counting the tribe of Levi was 603,550, then the total number of people leaving Egypt was somewhere around 2 or 3 million. God was faithful, blessing, causing them to be fruitful, even in the land of affliction, fulfilling his promises even to his rebellious people.
Past Rescue, Future Hope; Present Process of Purification
When we believe in Jesus, God sets us free from slavery, free from the consequences of our sins. Jesus promises to prepare a place for us, that we will one day be with him where he is (Jn.14:1-3). In the mean time, he walks with us, through this wilderness, as we are tested and refined, purified, made holy. He has given us his Spirit as a guarantee. He makes us fruitful, even in the face of opposition.
Here’s what Peter says about our past rescue, our future hope, and our present process of purification in the wilderness;
1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
***
Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org