Daily Manna, Year Two · Day 310 · November 6
Before the Commands
“I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.”
Picture a mountain with smoke rising from the top of it, while a whole nation stands back at the foot, warned not to touch even the edge of it.
The first sentence God speaks out of that fire is a statement before it is a command: "I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage." He gives His name, and He tells them what He has already done. Everything we call the law comes after a rescue that was finished before a single commandment was read out. Deuteronomy ties the sabbath to the same fact: "remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD thy God brought thee out thence."
Lord, You brought us out first, and we keep getting the order the wrong way round. We work as if we were still slaves, trying to earn a freedom You have already given us. Say that first sentence over us before You say any of the others. We learned the ten commandments and forgot the name that stands in front of them. Thank You that we belong to You because You rescued us, and teach us to obey You as people You have set free. Amen.
Daily Manna runs on a two-year cycle. The year one reading for day 310 is Healed by His Stripes (1 Peter 2:24).