We are in chapter twenty-three of Exodus with our word for today which is actually a phrase. מְעַ֥ט מְעַ֛ט little by little. It is used 2 times in the Old Testament. Since our phrase is literally the same word repeated twice with the English word by supplied to help us understand the meaning let’s look at this word. מְעַט little, trifle, a small amount or duration, fewness, a few, shortly, presently, a small thing. It is used 101 times in the Old Testament. We find our word used in the sense of small in quantity or degree, not much or almost none. Numbers 13:17-18 When Moses sent them to explore Canaan, he said, “Go up through the Negev and on into the hill country. See what the land is like and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, הַמְעַ֥ט few or many. Ruth 2:6-7 The overseer replied, “She is the Moabite who came back from Moab with Naomi. She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves behind the harvesters.’ She came into the field and has remained here from morning till now, except for a מְעָֽט short rest in the shelter.” Our word is also used in the sense of a small amount or duration. Genesis 18:4 Let a מְעַט little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. Leviticus 25:52 If only a מְעַ֞ט few years remain until the Year of Jubilee, they are to compute that and pay for their redemption accordingly. This sense of a small duration is how our word and our phrase is used in our chapter today. Exodus 23:29-31 I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the wild beasts multiply against you. מְעַ֥ט מְעַ֛ט [literally little little with our English word by inserted in the middle to help us understand the meaning. I agree with the translators doing this as the context justifies this meaning] Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and possess the land. And I will set your border from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness to the Euphrates, for I will give the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall drive them out before you. The other time our phrase is used in the Bible is later when God repeats this through Moses again. Deuteronomy 7:21-24 Do not be terrified by them, for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a great and awesome God. The Lord your God will drive out those nations before you, מְעַ֣ט מְעָ֑ט little by little. You will not be allowed to eliminate them all at once, or the wild animals will multiply around you. But the Lord your God will deliver them over to you, throwing them into great confusion until they are destroyed. He will give their kings into your hand, and you will wipe out their names from under heaven. No one will be able to stand up against you; you will destroy them. Notice that God is setting the time table that it will not be in a year or at once. We tend to want God to do things right way for us but God knows the future and what could happen if we get something all at once. We don’t always know why God doesn’t do things all at once for us but in this case he tells the people. So that the wild animals will not multiply around you. In other words, it would cause a bigger problem if he did it all at once. God is declaring that they will be successful because he will be the one going before them driving them out if they will be patient. As the people would gradually make their way through the land of Canaan, winning one victory after another, they would grow in their faith and learn better how to trust the Lord. And by following God’s timetable, they would take better care of the land. This principle of little by little is a powerful one that we need to remember. I’ll close with this great reminder. Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
