Study Desk

I was kidnapped and taken from the land of my people, the Hebrews. I have done nothing wrong! I should not be in prison."

The servants seated Joseph at a table by himself. His brothers were at another table by themselves, and the Egyptians were at a table by themselves. The Egyptians believed that it was wrong for them to eat with Hebrews.

The nurses trusted God, so he was good to them and allowed them to have their own families. The Hebrews continued to have more children, and they became very strong.

Moses grew and became a man. He saw that his own people, the Hebrews, were forced to work very hard. One day he saw an Egyptian man beating a Hebrew man.

"The elders will listen to you. And then you and the elders will go to the Pharaoh. You will tell him, ‘ Yahweh is the God of the Hebrews. He came to us and told us to travel three days into the desert. There we must offer sacrifices to Yahweh our God.'

Then Aaron and Moses said, "The God of the Hebrews has talked with us. So we beg you to let us travel three days into the desert. There we will offer a sacrifice to the Lord our God. If we don't do this, he might become angry and destroy us. He might make us die from sickness or war."

Tell him this: ‘The Lord , the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you. He told me to tell you to let his people go worship him in the desert. Until now you have not listened to the Lord.

Then the Lord told Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him: "The Lord , the God of the Hebrews, says, ‘Let my people go to worship me!'

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Get up in the morning and go to Pharaoh. Tell him that the Lord , the God of the Hebrews, says, ‘Let my people go to worship me!

So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh. They told him, "The Lord , the God of the Hebrews, says, ‘How long will you refuse to obey me? Let my people go to worship me!

Jonathan defeated the Philistines at their camp in Geba. The Philistines heard about this. They said, "The Hebrews have rebelled." Saul said, "Let the Hebrew people hear what happened." So Saul told the men to blow trumpets through all the land of Israel.

Some Hebrews even went across the Jordan River to the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul was still at Gilgal. All the men in his army were shaking with fear.

So Jonathan and his helper let the Philistines see them. The Philistine guards said, "Look! The Hebrews are coming out of the holes they were hiding in."

There were Hebrews who served the Philistines in the past and who stayed in the Philistine camp. But now these Hebrews joined the Israelites with Saul and Jonathan.

The Philistine captains asked, "What are these Hebrews doing here?" Achish told the Philistine captains, "This is David. He was one of Saul's officers, but he has been with me for a long time. I found nothing wrong in David since the time he left Saul and came to me."

I said to your ancestors, "At the end of every seven years, everyone must set their Hebrew slaves free. If you have fellow Hebrews who have sold themselves to you, you must let them go free after they have served you for six years." But your ancestors did not listen to me or pay attention to me.

A short time ago you changed your hearts to do what is right. Everyone set free their fellow Hebrews who were slaves. And you even made an agreement before me in the Temple that is called by my name.

"So this is what the Lord says: ‘You people have not obeyed me. You have not given freedom to your fellow Hebrews. So, because you have not given them freedom, I will give a special kind of freedom—freedom to die in war or by disease or by hunger! This message is from the Lord . When the other nations see what I have done to you, they will all be shocked.

Are those people Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they from Abraham's family? So am I.