Scripture Study for

As Israel travels to Mt. Sinai to meet their God and to enter into covenantal relationship with this God, they are attacked by the  Amalekites. Although it is Moses’ arms that must remain raised during the battle, he is holding the staff that he held to part the Red  Sea. Both the staff and Moses are thus instruments of God’s power. It is relevant that this scene takes place before Israel arrives at Sinai. As Israel prepares to enter into an exclusive relationship with God, they must be assured that this God can provide for all their needs, so that they can trust this God and not turn to other gods. Thus, in addition to providing water and food for them (Exodus 15:22 — 17:7), God shows them that God can protect them in battle. This battle scene,  then, is not randomly placed here, but contributes to the overall theme of this section of Exodus, which is God’s providential care for Israel. 

The pressure to abandon Christian teaching must have been  considerable, for once again Paul exhorts Timothy to “remain  faithful to what you have learned and believed.” Undoubtedly there were those who claimed that the Christian teachings were ignorant,  ludicrous, or simply false. Paul thus reminds Timothy that they are based on Scripture, which is inspired by God and therefore cannot lie. These scriptures give wisdom for salvation, not worldly wisdom;  (1 Corinthians 1:18–30), and Timothy should refer to them frequently and ground his teaching in them. No matter what opposition or clever arguments he faces, Timothy must patiently and persistently proclaim the word. This mandate comes ultimately not from Paul but from  Christ himself, for only through proclaiming the word can God’s saving will for all be fulfilled (1 Timothy 2:1–8, 2 Timothy 2:10).

Jesus’ story of the widow and the judge reflects two fundamental realities of a life of Christian faith. The first, articulated frequently in the Psalms, is that God very often appears to be ignoring our prayers;  things do not move fast enough or in the way we intend. The second is that the demands of discipleship are rigorous and require constant recourse to God for help to meet them. Thus the exhortation to pray always, even when God does not seem to be listening. Although the judge in some way represents God, obviously we are not intended to ascribe injustice to God because of this, which would be taking the metaphor too far. The point is the widow’s persistence until she gets what she deserves. Jesus wonders, though, if anyone will be able to be as persistent, as “faithful,” as the widow in the face of the internal and external trials disciples will face (17:22–37).