A Newsletter of weekly meditations on Biblical Theology and curated resources from The Carson Center

March 25, 2026

“Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve me’” (Ex. 4:22–23).

“And behold, a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.’ Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil” (Matt. 3:17–4:1).

Read Exodus 4; Matthew 3

Children often physically resemble their parents. You can walk into a crowded room filled with children and their parents milling about and, given enough time, you can begin to match parents to their children merely by their physical appearances. The Bible also gives us another way that sons resemble their fathers, namely, in terms of their conduct. One of the chief elements of what it means to be made in the image of God is that humans are supposed to be holy as God is holy (e.g., Lev. 19:2; Matt. 5:43–48). Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? “He who has clean hands and a pure heart” (Ps. 24:4), that is, those who morally resemble God. This truth especially comes to bear in the life of Christ, the son and very image of God (Col. 1:15). We see a contrast between Israel, God’s son, and Jesus, the Son of God. When God commanded Moses to confront Pharaoh, he told Moses to tell Pharaoh: “Israel is my firstborn son” (Ex. 4:22). As a nation, Israel did not physically resemble God since he does not have a body (John 4:24). Instead, Israel was supposed to ethically and morally resemble God. Their resemblance was supposed to shine forth in their wilderness wanderings where they submitted to God’s commands in the face of the unknown, hunger, and the Spirit’s leading by means of the cloud by day and pillar of fire by night (Ex. 13:21; Num. 14:14; 1 Cor. 10:1–4). Israel, however, grumbled, complained, and disobeyed (Ex. 15:24; 16:2, 7–12).

When Jesus came to the Jordan to be baptized by John, God the Father rent the heavens and bellowed from above, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17). God was telling the world that Jesus is his only begotten Son and, in contrast to Israel, his disobedient and stiff-necked son, Jesus is the perfect image of his heavenly Father. God declared this fact and Jesus proved it through his conduct. Like Israel of old, the Spirit led God’s Son into the wilderness where Jesus fasted for forty days (Matt. 4:2), a period analogous to Israel’s forty-year wilderness wanderings. But unlike Israel, Jesus was faithful in the face of hunger, thirst, and great temptation. Jesus is the obedient and faithful Son—he is the true Israel. – John Fesko 

Reflect: Meditate upon the fact that through Jesus’ obedience and suffering, you have received the gift of salvation, so that you now can reflect God’s image into this sin-darkened world. Rejoice in your salvation, Christ’s work, and in the privilege of bearing Christ’s image.