INQUIRING OF GOD

Old Testament:

Inquire -  shaal shael = to inquire, to request, ask counsel on, desire, pray     

Urim – uryim (plural) = lights, the oracular brilliancy of the figures in the High
            ur
= fire, lights Priests breastplate; 

Thumim – tummim = perfection                                                              

Ephod – ephod = a girdle, high priest’s shoulder piece, image

Lot/lots, Cast Lots – goral = pebble, small stone

    chalaq =smooth stones used to apportion or separate,   deal or distribution

     lagchano = to cast a lot, obtain by lot

1.     Exodus 28:30 “And thou shalt put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thumim; and they shall be upon Aaron’s heart, when he goeth in before the Lord: and Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel upon his heart before the Lord continually.”

2.     Leviticus 8:7-8 “And Moses put upon Aaron the coat, girded him with the girdle, and clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod upon him, and he girded him with the curious girdle of the ephod, and bound it unto him therewith.  And he put the breastplate upon him: also he put in the breastplate the Urim and the Thumim.”

3.     Numbers 26:55 “Notwithstanding the land shall be divided by lot: according to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit.  According to the lot shall the possession thereof be divided between many and few.”

4.     Numbers 27:21 “And he(Joshua)shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall ask counsel for him after the judgment of Urim before the Lord: at his word shall they go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he, and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation.”

5.     Numbers 33:54 “And he shall divide the land by lot for an inheritance among your families: and to the more ye shall give the more inheritance, and to the fewer ye shall give the less in heritance: every man’s inheritance shall be in the place where his lot falleth; according to the tribes of your fathers ye shall inherit.”

6.     Numbers 34:13 “And Moses commanded the children of Israel, saying, this is the land which ye shall inherit by lot, which the Lord commanded to give unto the nine tribes, and to the half tribe:”

7.     Deuteronomy 33:8 “And of the Levi he said, Let thy Thumim and thy Urim be with thy holy one, whom thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah;”

8.     Joshua 18:8, 10f “And the man arose, and went away: and Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying, go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come again to me, that I may here cast lots for you before the Lord in Shiloh.  And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the Lord: and there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions.”

9.     Judges 18:20 “And the priest’s heart was glad, and he took the ephod, and the teraphim, and the graven image, and went in the midst of the people.”

10.Judges 20:18 “And the children of Israel arose, and went up to the house of God, and asked counsel of God, and said, Which of us shall go up first to battle against the children of Benjamin?  And the Lord said, Judah shall go up first. “I Samuel 23:2 “There David inquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I go and smite these Philistines?  And the Lord said unto David, Go, and smite the Philistines, and save Kalah.”

11.Judges 20:23 “And the children of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until even, and asked counsel of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up again to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother?  And the Lord said, Go up against him.”

12.Judges 20:27-28 “And the children of Israel inquired of the Lord, for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days.  And Phinehas, the son of Elleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days, saying, Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease?  And the Lord said, Go up; for tomorrow I will deliver them into thine hand.”

13.I Samuel 2:18, 28  “But Samuel ministered before the Lord, being a child, girded with a linen ephod.  And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me?  And did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel?”

14.I Samuel 14:37, 41 “And Saul asked counsel of God, Shall I go down after the Philistines?  Wilt thou deliver them into the hand of Israel?  But he answered him not that day.  Therefore Saul said unto the Lord God of Israel, Give a perfect lot.  And Saul and Jonathan were taken: but the people escaped.”

15.I Samuel 21:9 “And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slayest in the valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod: if thou will take that, take it: for there is no other save that here.  And David said, There is none like that; give it me.”

16.I Samuel 22:18 “And the king said to Doeg, Turn thou, and fall upon the priests.  And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and slew on that day fourscore and five persons that did wear a linen ephod.”

17.I Samuel 23:4 “Then David inquired of the Lord yet again.  And the Lord answered him and said, Arise, go down to Kellah; for I will deliver the Philistines into thine hand.”

18.I Samuel 23:6 “And it came to pass, when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled to David to Kellah, that he came down with an ephod in his hand.”

19.I Samuel 23:9-10 “And David knew that Saul secretly practiced mischief against him; and he said to Abiathar the priest, Bring hither the ephod.  Then said David, O Lord God of Israel, thy servant hath certainly heard that Saul seeketh to come to Kellah, to destroy the city for my sake.

20.I Samuel 23 11-12Will the men of Kellah deliver me up into his hand?  Will Saul come down, as thy servant hath heard?  O Lord God of Israel, I beseech thee, tell thy servant.  And the Lord said, He will come down.  Then said David, Will the men of Kellah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul?  And the Lord said, They will deliver thee up.”

21.I Samuel 28:6 “And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord

answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets.”

22.I Samuel 28:7-14 “The said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and inquire of her.  And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor…”

23.I Samuel 28:15-16 “And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up?  And Saul answered, I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do.  Then said Samuel, Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the Lord is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy?  And the Lord hath done to him, as he spake by me: for the Lord hath rent the kingdom out of thine hand, and given it to thy neighbor, even to David: Because thou obeyest not the voice of the Lord, nor executedst his fierce wrath upon Amalik, therefore hath the Lord done this thing unto thee this day.

24.II Samuel 5:19 “And David inquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up to the Philistines?  Wilt thou deliver them into mine hand?  And the Lord said unto David, Go up: for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into thine hand.”

25.II Samuel 6:14 “And David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod.”

26.I Chronicles 15:27 “And David was clothed with a robe of fine linen, and all the Levites that bare the ark, and the singers, and Chenaniah the master of the song with the singers: David also had upon him an ephod of linen.”

27.Ezra 2:63 “And the Tirshatha said unto them, that they should not eat of the most holy things, till there stood up a priest with Urim and with Thummim.”

28.Nehemiah 7:65 “And the Tirshatha said unto them, that they should not eat of the most holy things, till there stood up a priest with Urim and Thummim.”

29.Esther 3:7 “In the first month, that is, the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of king Ahasuerus, they cast Pur, that is, the lot, before Haman from day to day, and from month to month, to the twelfth month, that is the month Adar.”

30.Esther 9:24 “Because Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had devised against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur, that is, the lot, to consume them, and to destroy them;”

31.Psalm 105:11 “Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance:”

32.Proverbs 16:33 “The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord.”

33.Proverbs 18:18 “The lot causeth contentions to cease, and parteth between the mighty.”

34.Hosea 3:4 “For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and with out teraphim:”

New Testament:

Lot/lots – klreos =

1.     Matthew 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:34; John19:24 “And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.”

2.     Luke 1:8-9 “And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, according to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.”

3.     Acts 1:23-26 “And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.  And they prayed, and said, Thou Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, that he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.  And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.”

4.     Acts 8:20-21 “But Peter said unto Simon, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.  Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.”

5.     Acts 13:19 “And when he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, he divided their land to them by lot.”

In contrast to the Old Testament way of “Inquiring of God”, the Holy Spirit was given to dwell in the New Testament believers “to guide them to all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.  He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.  All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.”(John 16:13-15)

Note: See other website Teachings on the “Holy Spirit”, “Mind of Christ”, “Shew Bread”, “In The Midst”, “Intimacy With God”, “In His Presence”, ”Knowing Jesus, etc.
 

© 2011 New Testament Church