2988.) Numbers 18

Numbers 18

The Duties of the Priests and Levites

¹The LORD said to Aaron:

You, your sons, and the other Levites of the Kohath clan, are responsible for what happens at the sacred tent.  And you and your sons will be responsible for what the priests do. ²The Levites are your relatives and are here to help you in your service at the tent. ³You must see that they perform their duties. But if they go near any of the sacred objects or the altar, all of you will die. ⁴No one else is allowed to take care of the sacred tent or to do anything connected with it.

⁵Follow these instructions, so I won’t become angry and punish the Israelites ever again. ⁶I alone chose the Levites from all the other tribes to belong to me, and I have given them to you as your helpers. ⁷But only you and your sons can serve as priests at the altar and in the most holy place. Your work as priests is a gift from me, and anyone else who tries to do that work must be put to death.

1 Peter 2:9-10 (NIV)

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

The Priests’ Share of Offerings Given to the LORD

^8-9The LORD said to Aaron:

I have put you in charge of the sacred gifts and sacrifices that the Israelites bring to me. And from now on, you, your sons, and your descendants will receive part of the sacrifices for sin, as well as part of the grain sacrifices, and the sacrifices to make things right. Your share of these sacrifices will be the parts not burned on the altar. ¹⁰Since these things are sacred, they must be eaten near the sacred tent, but only men are allowed to eat them.

¹¹You will also receive part of the special gifts and offerings that the Israelites bring to me. Any member of your family who is clean and acceptable for worship can eat these things. ¹²For example, when the Israelites bring me the first batches of oil, wine, and grain, you can have the best parts of those gifts. ¹³And the first part of the crops from their fields and vineyards also belongs to you. The people will offer this to me, then anyone in your family who is clean may have some of it.

¹⁴Everything in Israel that has been completely dedicated to me  will now belong to you. ¹⁵The first-born son in every Israelite family, as well as the first-born males of their flocks and herds, belong to me. But a first-born son and every first-born donkey  must be bought back from me. ¹⁶The price for a first-born son who is at least one month old will be five pieces of silver, weighed according to the official standards.

¹⁷However, all first-born cattle, sheep, and goats belong to me and cannot be bought back. Splatter their blood on the altar and send their fat up in smoke, so I can smell it and be pleased. ¹⁸You are allowed to eat the meat of those animals, just as you can eat the choice ribs and the right hind leg of the special sacrifices. ¹⁹From now on, the sacred offerings that the Israelites give to me will belong to you, your sons, and your daughters. This is my promise to you and your descendants, and it will never change.

Salt speaks of purity, of preservation, and of expense. So, a covenant of salt is a pure covenant (salt stays a pure chemical compound), a covenant of salt is an enduring covenant (salt makes things preserve and endure), and a covenant of salt is a valuable covenant (salt was expensive).

–David Guzik

²⁰You will not receive any land in Israel as your own. I am the LORD, and I will give you whatever you need.

What the Levites Receive

The LORD said to Aaron:

²¹Ten percent of the Israelites’ crops and one out of every ten of their newborn animals belong to me. But I am giving all this to the Levites as their pay for the work they do at the sacred tent. ^22-23They are the only ones allowed to work at the tent, and they must not let anyone else come near it. Those who do must be put to death, and the Levites will also be punished. This law will never change.

Since the Levites won’t be given any land in Israel as their own, ²⁴they will be given the crops and newborn animals that the Israelites offer to me.

from Numbers,
by Dennis T. Olson

The special calling of the priests and Levites in Numbers 18 included having no tribal territory of their own in the land of Canaan. Jesus called his followers to a similar life of trust and dependence on God without excessive worry over material needs: “Strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matt. 6:33). The disciples of Jesus had left everything to follow him, and Jesus responds, “Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold, and will inherit eternal life” (Matt. 19:27-29). The special calling of priests and proclaimers of the gospel entails living in profound trust in God’s providential care and working in diligent obedience to the call and will of God. The community of faith, in turn, is likewise called to diligent support of those who lead and guide the community in its life of worship and service.

What the Levites Must Give

²⁵The LORD told Moses ²⁶to say to the Levites:

When you receive from the people of Israel ten percent of their crops and newborn animals, you must offer a tenth of that to me. ²⁷Just as the Israelites give me part of their grain and wine, you must set aside part of what you receive ²⁸as an offering to me. That amount must then be given to Aaron, ²⁹so the best of what you receive will be mine.

³⁰After you have dedicated the best parts to me, you can eat the rest, just as the Israelites eat part of their grain and wine after offering them to me.  ³¹Your share may be eaten anywhere by anyone in your family, because it is your pay for working at the sacred tent. ³²You won’t be punished for eating it, as long as you have already offered the best parts to me. The gifts and sacrifices brought by the people must remain sacred, and if you eat any part of them before they are offered to me, you will be put to death.

_________________________

Music:

1 Peter 2:9-10 says:  But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Having received God’s mercy as shown on the cross, we are now God’s people and God’s priests on earth. In other words — we are the Church.  HERE  is one of the best “church” songs I know — “Built On A Rock the Church Doth Stand,” written by Nicolai F.S. Grundtvig in 1837. The group singing is the Northern Lights Chorale from the Twin Cities. Lyrics of the many verses below.

1. Built on the Rock the Church doth stand,
Even when steeples are falling;
Crumbled have spires in every land,
Bells still are chiming and calling,
Calling the young and old to rest,
But above all the soul distrest,
Longing for rest everlasting.

2. Surely in temples made with hands,
God, the Most High, is not dwelling;
High above earth His temple stands,
All earthly temples excelling.
Yet He whom heavens cannot contain
Chose to abide on earth with men,
Built in our bodies His temple.

3. We are God’s house of living stones,
Builded for His habitation;
He through baptismal grace us owns
Heirs of His wondrous salvation.
Were we but two His name to tell,
Yet He would deign with us to dwell,
With all His grace and His favor.

4. Now we may gather with our King
E’en in the lowliest dwelling;
Praises to Him we there may bring,
His wondrous mercy forthtelling.
Jesus His grace to us accords;
Spirit and life are all His words;
His truth doth hallow the temple.

5. Still we our earthly temples rear
That we may herald His praises;
They are the homes where He draws near
And little children embraces.
Beautiful things in them are said;
God there with us His covenant made,
Making us heirs of His kingdom.

6. Here stands the font before our eyes
Telling how God did receive us;
The altar recalls Christ’s sacrifice
And what His table doth give us;
Here sounds the Word that doth proclaim
Christ yesterday, today, the same,
Yea, and for aye our Redeemer.

7. Grant then, O God, where’er men roam,
That, when the church-bells are ringing,
Many in saving faith may come
Where Christ His message is bringing:
“I know Mine own, Mine own know Me;
Ye, not the world, My face shall see.
My peace I leave with you.” Amen.

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

priest, high priest, levite.   http://www.studenthandouts.com/01-Web-Pages/2013-01-a/israelite-high-priest-levite-torah-times-large.jpg

altar of St. Paul Lutheran Church, Parkersburg, WV.    http://www.stpaulwv.org/images/Altar1.jpg

salt shaker.   http://homeshuling.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/salt-shaker.jpg

Trust Me.  https://ramblingthoughtsnoonewantstohear.wordpress.com/2015/09/01/the-truth-about-lying/

2987.) Numbers 17

An almond tree in bloom near Heidelberg, Germany.

Numbers 17   (CEV)

Aaron’s Walking Stick Blooms and Produces Almonds

¹The LORD told Moses:

^2-3Call together the twelve tribes of Israel and tell the leader of each tribe to write his name on the walking stick he carries as a symbol of his authority.

A rod (the CEV calls it “walking stick”) was a symbol of authority, because shepherds would use a rod to guide and correct the sheep (Psalm 23:4).

Moses, as a shepherd, had a rod in his hand when tending sheep in the wilderness (Exodus 4:2); this rod later became known as the rod of God — a symbol of the authority God gave to Moses (Exodus 4:20).

This same rod demonstrated Moses’ authority in action, by miraculously becoming a serpent, and then becoming a rod again (Exodus 7:9-10), by turning the waters of the Nile into blood (Exodus 7:17), by bringing forth plagues of frogs (Exodus 8:5), lice (Exodus 8:16-17), hail (Exodus 9:23), and locusts (Exodus 10:13). God commanded Moses to raise the rod over the Red Sea when it was to be parted (Exodus 14:16), the rod was raised in prayer over Israel in victorious battle (Exodus 17:9), the rod struck the rock and brought forth water (Numbers 20:11). The rod is a picture of God’s authority over man (Psalm 2:9, 23:4, 89:32; Isaiah 10:24; 11:4, Ezekiel 20:37); Jesus, in His divine authority, is given the title “the Rod” (Isaiah 1:11; Micah 6:9); the rod is an emblem of an apostle’s authority in the church (1 Corinthians 4:21).

–David Guzik

Make sure Aaron’s name is written on the one from the Levi tribe, then collect all the sticks.

⁴Place these sticks in the tent right in front of the sacred chest where I appear to you. ⁵I will then choose a man to be my priest, and his stick will sprout. After that happens, I won’t have to listen to any more complaints about you.

⁶Moses told the people what the LORD had commanded, and they gave him the walking sticks from the twelve tribal leaders, including Aaron’s from the Levi tribe. ⁷Moses took them and placed them in the LORD’s sacred tent.

⁸The next day when Moses went into the tent, flowers and almonds were already growing on Aaron’s stick.

Blossoms of an almond tree

Some scholars think that some parts were in bud, other parts were in bloom, and other parts had fruited, all at the same time.

If God demonstrated His choice of Aaron and his descendants as priests for Israel, how can Jesus be our high priest, as Hebrews 2:17 says? Because Jesus is a high priest of the order of Melchizedek, not Aaron (Hebrews 7).

⁹Moses brought the twelve sticks out of the tent and showed them to the people. Each of the leaders found his own and took it.

¹⁰But the LORD told Moses, ” Put Aaron’s stick back! Let it stay near the sacred chest as a warning to anyone who might think about rebelling.

Hebrews 9:1-4 (NIV)

Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary. A tabernacle was set up. In its first room were the lampstand, the table and the consecrated bread; this was called the Holy Place. Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant.

If these people don’t stop their grumbling about me, I will wipe them out.” ¹¹Moses did what he was told.

¹²The Israelites cried out to Moses, ” We’re done for ¹³and doomed if we even get near the sacred tent!”

This blooming plant is called Aaron’s rod.

from Numbers,
by Dennis T. Olson

The community of Israel has discovered that God’s power in their midst is experienced either as threat or promise, death or life. Two visual aids are set up in the sanctuary for future remembrance by succeeding generations of the danger and the blessing associated with approaching God’s presence. One visual aid is the bronze covering of the altar made from the charred fire pans. The rebels had used the bronze fire pans to offer fire to God without priestly mediation, and they had died in a fiery holocaust. The altar covering of bronze is a cold, metallic, and lifeless reminder of death (16:39-40). The second visual aid displayed in the sanctuary is the budding, blossoming, fruit-bearing staff of Aaron. It signifies the blessing power of God’s holy presence as conveyed through the Aaronic priesthood that gives life and bears fruit among God’s sinful people. These two visual signs capture both the potential power of death and the power of life that flow from God’s presence in the midst of God’s people.

_________________________

Music:

The International Standard Version translates verse 12 this way: Then the Israelis told Moses, “We’re sure to die! We’re all going to perish—all of us!”  Well, yes, we are all sure to die! But we must not let the dread of dying overcome our passion for living, especially since we have God’s promises and wonderful examples from Scripture and our own acquaintances to guide us! Be encouraged!  Lift up your eyes to that “great crowd of witnesses”  around you, cheering you on, inviting you on — for Christ’s sake!  HERE  is Sara Groves and “When the Saints.”  Lyrics follow below.

Lord I have a heavy burden of all I’ve seen and know
It’s more than I can handle
But your word is burning like a fire shut up in my bones
and I cannot let it go

And when I’m weary and overwrought
with so many battles left unfought

I think of Paul and Silas in the prison yard
I hear their song of freedom rising to the stars
And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them

Lord it’s all that I can’t carry and cannot leave behind
it often overwhelms me
but when I think of all who’ve gone before and lived the faithful life
their courage compels me
And when I’m weary and overwrought
with so many battles left unfought

I think of Paul and Silas in the prison yard
I hear their song of freedom rising to the stars

I see the shepherd Moses in the Pharaoh’s court
I hear his call for freedom for the people of the Lord

And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them
And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them

I see the long quiet walk along the Underground Railroad
I see the slave awakening to the value of her soul

I see the young missionary and the angry spear
I see his family returning with no trace of fear

I see the long hard shadows of Calcutta nights
I see the sister standing by the dying man’s side

I see the young girl huddled on the brothel floor
I see the man with a passion come and kicking down the door

I see the man of sorrows and his long troubled road
I see the world on his shoulders and my easy load

And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them
and when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them
I want to be one of them
I want to be one of them
I want to be one of them

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

almond tree in flower.  http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2009/4/15/1239810803983/Blossom-Almond-tree-bloss-011.jpg

almond blossoms.   http://www.mooseyscountrygarden.com/gardening-articles/almond-blossom.jpg

Aaron’s rod flower.  http://farm1.static.flickr.com/46/171565607_7188f4c642.jpg?v=0

 

2986.) Numbers 16

Buried alive!  Vesuvius’ volcanic eruption in A.D. 79 buried the Roman city of Pompeii and many of its citizens.

Numbers 16   (CEV)

Korah, Dathan, and Abiram Lead a Rebellion

“The fourth book of the Torah, which we know by the title Book of Numbers or, in Hebrew, Bemidbar (“in the wilderness”) might also be called the book of quarrels. It tells of recurring arguments and rebellions by the Israelites against Moses and God. The most serious of these is the rebellion of Korah, a cousin of Moses and Aaron who questioned their leadership of the nation.”   
–Rabbi Lewis Warshauer

^1-2Korah son of Izhar was a Levite from the Kohathite clan. One day he called together Dathan, Abiram, and On  from the Reuben tribe, and the four of them decided to rebel against Moses. So they asked two hundred fifty respected Israelite leaders for their support, and together they went to Moses ³and Aaron and said, ” Why do you think you’re so much better than anyone else? We’re part of the LORD’s holy people, and he’s with all of us. What makes you think you’re the only ones in charge?”

Korah was not content with what the Lord had called him to do in serving with the other Levites of the family of Kohath. (The Kohathites had the most exalted duty among the Levites; their charge was to carry the most holy things of the temple.) He accused Moses of pride and exclusionary leadership.

⁴When Moses heard this, he knelt down to pray.  ⁵Then he said to Korah and his followers: Tomorrow morning the LORD will show us the person he has chosen to be his priest, and that man will faithfully serve him.

Psalm 75:6-7 (NIV)

No one from the east or the west
or from the desert can exalt a man.

But it is God who judges:
He brings one down, he exalts another.

These verses were first brought to my attention many years ago when I was newly married to an Army officer. The wife of a sergeant-major shared this passage with me when my husband had not received the promotion he had been hoping for. She assured me that a sovereign God knows best. As it turned out, my husband received his promotion the following year and was sent to a plum assignment that hadn’t been open the previous year; the delay was truly a blessing for his career. So for promotions, and elections, and retributions, let God be the judge. We pray, “Thy will be done.”

^6-7Korah, now here is what you and your followers must do: Get some fire pans, fill them with coals and incense, and place them near the sacred tent. And the man the LORD chooses will be his priest. Korah, this time you Levites have gone too far! ^8-9You know that the God of Israel has chosen you Levites from all Israel to serve him by being in charge of the sacred tent and by helping the community to worship in the proper way. What more do you want? ¹⁰The LORD has given you a special responsibility, and now, Korah, you think you should also be his priest. ¹¹You and your followers have rebelled against the LORD, not against Aaron.

After praying to God and receiving a sense of direction, Moses did not doubt the outcome of the test. He knew that God would prove him right and Korah wrong. Therefore, Moses was unafraid to put it to the test.

¹²Then Moses sent for Dathan and Abiram, but they sent back this message: ” We won’t come! ¹³It’s bad enough that you took us from our rich farmland in Egypt to let us die here in the desert. Now you also want to boss us around! ¹⁴You keep promising us rich farmlands with fertile fields and vineyards–but where are they? Stop trying to trick these people. No, we won’t come to see you.”

Oh, my! Such arrogance! They color their past, remembering slavery in Egypt as a comfortable life in a land flowing with milk and honey. They accused Moses of being a mini-Pharaoh. They claim Moses and Aaron have an ulterior motive against the people. They show no respect for their leaders or for the truth of their situation.

¹⁵Moses was very angry and said to the LORD, ” Don’t listen to these men! I haven’t done anything wrong to them. I haven’t taken as much as a donkey.”

¹⁶Then he said to Korah, ” Tomorrow you and your followers must go with Aaron to the LORD’s sacred tent. ¹⁷Each of you take along your fire pan with incense in it and offer the incense to the LORD.”

First one side gets mad. Then the other side gets angry in return. They decide to meet for a showdown, settle it once and for all. Really! This story is starting to sound like Gunfight at the OK Corral!

¹⁸The next day the men placed incense and coals in their fire pans and stood with Moses and Aaron at the entrance to the sacred tent. ¹⁹Meanwhile, Korah had convinced the rest of the Israelites to rebel against their two leaders.

Humanly speaking, the odds were not good. It was Moses and Aaron stand alone against all the congregation. Yet God would make this choice, and not popular opinion.

When that happened, the LORD appeared in all his glory ²⁰and said to Moses and Aaron, ²¹” Get away from the rest of the Israelites so I can kill them right now!”

²²But the two men bowed down and prayed, ” Our God, you gave these people life. Why would you punish everyone here when only one man has sinned?”

James 5:16 (KJV)

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

²³The LORD answered Moses, ²⁴” Tell the people to stay away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.”

²⁵Moses walked over to Dathan and Abiram, and the other leaders of Israel followed.

This was glorious! God had appointed elders back in Numbers 10:16-30, in response to another attack on Moses’ leadership. There, the elders were to be men with the same spirit and vision as Moses, men to help him bear the burden, men to stand with Moses. Here they did exactly what God appointed them to do.

²⁶Then Moses warned the people, ” Get away from the tents of these sinful men! Don’t touch anything that belongs to them or you’ll be wiped out.” ²⁷So everyone moved away from those tents, except Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and their families.

²⁸Moses said to the crowd, ” The LORD has chosen me and told me to do these things–it wasn’t my idea. And here’s how you will know: ²⁹If these men die a natural death, it means the LORD hasn’t chosen me. ³⁰But suppose the LORD does something that has never been done before. For example, what if a huge crack appears in the ground, and these men and their families fall into it and are buried alive, together with everything they own? Then you will know they have turned their backs on the LORD!”

³¹As soon as Moses said this, the ground under the men opened up ^32-33and swallowed them alive, together with their families and everything they owned. Then the ground closed back up, and they were gone.

Psalm 106:16-17 (ESV)

When men in the camp were jealous of Moses
and Aaron, the holy one of the LORD,
the earth opened and swallowed up Dathan,
and covered the company of Abiram . . .

³⁴The rest of the Israelites heard their screams, so they ran off, shouting, ” We don’t want that to happen to us!”

³⁵Suddenly the LORD sent a fire that burned up the two hundred fifty men who had offered incense to him.

Psalm 106:18 (ESV)

. . . Fire also broke out in their company;
the flame burned up the wicked.

³⁶Then the LORD said to Moses, ³⁷” Tell Aaron’s son Eleazar to take the fire pans from the smoldering fire and scatter the coals. The pans are now sacred, ³⁸because they were used for offering incense to me. Have them hammered into a thin layer of bronze as a covering for the altar. Those men died because of their sin, and now their fire pans will become a warning for the rest of the community.”

³⁹Eleazar collected the pans and had them hammered into a thin layer of bronze as a covering for the altar, ⁴⁰just as the LORD had told Moses. The pans were a warning to the Israelites that only Aaron’s descendants would be allowed to offer incense to the LORD. Anyone else who tried would be punished like Korah and his followers.

The true priests took the censors of the 250 deceased imposters from their charred remains and hammered them into bronze sheets for the altar as a memorial of the folly of a self-proclaimed priest.
–notes from The NIV Study Bible

The Israelites Rebel and Are Punished

⁴¹The next day the people of Israel again complained against Moses and Aaron, ” The two of you killed some of the LORD’s people!”

Absurd! When the earth opens up and swallows more than 250 people, it is evidently the hand of God, not of Moses.

⁴²As the people crowded around them, Moses and Aaron turned toward the sacred tent, and the LORD appeared in his glory in the cloud covering the tent. ⁴³So Moses and Aaron walked to the front of the tent, ⁴⁴where the LORD said to them, ⁴⁵” Stand back! I am going to wipe out these Israelites once and for all.”

They immediately bowed down and prayed. ⁴⁶Then Moses told Aaron, ” Grab your fire pan and fill it with hot coals from the altar. Put incense in it, then quickly take it to where the people are and offer it to the LORD, so they can be forgiven. The LORD is very angry, and people have already started dying!”

^47-48Aaron did exactly what he had been told. He ran over to the crowd of people and stood between the dead bodies and the people who were still alive. He placed the incense on the pan, then offered it to the LORD and asked him to forgive the people’s sin.

A censer filled with burning incense was used to stop the plague. Incense is a picture of prayer in the Bible (as in Revelation 8:3-4), because the sweet-smelling smoke of incense ascends to heaven as our prayers would. This was a dramatic picture of Aaron, as high priest, interceding for God’s people.
–David Guzik

The disease immediately stopped spreading, and no one else died from it. ⁴⁹But fourteen thousand seven hundred Israelites were dead, not counting those who had died with Korah and his followers.

⁵⁰Aaron walked back and stood with Moses at the sacred tent.

_________________________

Music:

So much rebellion and unfaithfulness in recent chapters. It makes me grateful for all the people who have stood firm in the Lord to show me the right way — parents, Sunday School teachers, pastors, Bible Study leaders, authors, friends, and the list goes on. As you listen  HERE  to Steve Green singing  “Find Us Faithful,”  spend a moment counting up the faithful witnesses in your life!

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

Pompeii.  http://impressive.net/people/gerald/2002/10/08/11-44-07-sm.jpg

arrows pointing up and down.  https://www.colourbox.com/preview/4485526-red-down-and-green-up-arrows-isolated-on-white.jpg

Gunfight at the OK Corral.   https://www.cowboysindians.com/2016/11/100-best-westerns-ever-made/tombstone/

the earth opens.   https://alephtavscriptures.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/earth-open.jpg

the Lord sends fire.   https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/a6/bb/99/a6bb99f9a57e51a5df2fdae8f7f8e73f.jpg

2985.) Numbers 15

Jewish man wearing a prayer shawl with tassels at each corner.

Numbers 15   (CEV)

Laws about Sacrifices

¹The LORD told Moses ²to give the Israelites the following laws about offering sacrifices:

Israel was at one of its lowest points in history. It had just rebelliously rejected God’s offer to bring the nation into the Promised Land. God had consigned them to wander in the wilderness for 38 years, until the unbelieving generation had perished in the wilderness and a new generation of faith would take the Promised Land. Yet, immediately after this stinging rebellion and the chastisement from the Lord, Israel received precious tokens of God’s mercy, care, and help to Israel.

–David Guzik

³Bulls or rams or goats  are the animals that you may burn on the altar as burnt offering sacrifices to please me.  You may also offer sacrifices voluntarily or because you made a promise, or because they are part of your regular religious ceremonies. The smell of the smoke from these sacrifices is pleasing to me.

Thank you, Lord, for the wonderful fragrance of, among other things,  gardenias!

Genesis 8:20-21 (NIV)

Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though  every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.”

Ephesians 5:1-2 (NLT)

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

Philippians 4:18 (ESV)

I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.

^4-5If you sacrifice a young ram or goat, you must also offer two pounds of your finest flour mixed with a quart of olive oil as a grain sacrifice. A quart of wine must also be poured on the altar.

Part of the offering included flour . . .

^6-7And if the animal is a full-grown ram, you must offer four pounds of flour mixed with one and a half quart of olive oil. One and a half quarts of wine must also be poured on the altar. The smell of this smoke is pleasing to me.

. . . mixed with olive oil . . .

⁸If a bull is offered as an offering of well-being, as a sacrifice to please me or to ask my blessing,  ⁹you must offer six pounds of flour mixed with two quarts of olive oil. ¹⁰Two quarts of wine must also be poured on the altar. The smell of this smoke is pleasing to me. ^11-13If you are a native Israelite, you must obey these rules each time you offer a bull, a ram, or a goat as a sacrifice. ¹⁴And the foreigners who live among you must also follow these rules. ^15-16This law will never change. I am the LORD, and I consider all people the same, whether they are Israelites or foreigners living among you.

Everyone who made a sacrifice had to bring it with the thanksgiving of grain and the joy of wine; God did not want grudging, griping sacrifices brought to Him. If one could not serve the Lord with gladness (Psalm 100:2), then God didn’t want his service at all.

–David Guzik

. . . in addition to some wine.

^17-19When you eat food in the land that I am giving you, remember to set aside some of it as an offering to me. ²⁰From the first batch of bread dough that you make after each new grain harvest, make a loaf of bread and offer it to me, just as you offer grain. ²¹All your descendants must follow this law and offer part of the first batch of bread dough.

^22-23The LORD also told Moses to tell the people what must be done if they ever disobey his laws:

²⁴If all of you disobey one of my laws without meaning to, you must offer a bull as a sacrifice to please me, together with a grain sacrifice, a wine offering, and a goat as a sacrifice for sin. ²⁵Then the priest will pray and ask me to forgive you. And since you did not mean to do wrong, and you offered sacrifices, ²⁶the sin of everyone–both Israelites and foreigners among you–will be forgiven.

²⁷But if one of you does wrong without meaning to, you must sacrifice a year-old female goat as a sacrifice for sin. ²⁸The priest will then ask me to forgive you, and your sin will be forgiven.

Sin — even if committed with the best of intentions — is still sin. Do we excuse or ignore our own sins, thinking that they aren’t so bad because we meant well? Better to confess and be forgiven and renewed in holy living!

²⁹The law will be the same for anyone who does wrong without meaning to, whether an Israelite or a foreigner living among you.

^30-31But if one of you does wrong on purpose, whether Israelite or foreigner, you have sinned against me by disobeying my laws. You will be sent away and will no longer live among the people of Israel.

Psalm 19:12-13 (NIV)

Who can discern his errors?
Forgive my hidden faults.

Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then will I be blameless,
innocent of great transgression.

A Man Put to Death for Gathering Firewood on the Sabbath

“The Sabbath Breaker Stoned”  by James Tissot, 1900 (Jewish Museum, New York)

³²Once, while the Israelites were traveling through the desert, a man was caught gathering firewood on the Sabbath.  ³³He was taken to Moses, Aaron, and the rest of the community. ³⁴But no one knew what to do with him, so he was not allowed to leave. ³⁵Then the LORD said to Moses, ” Tell the people to take that man outside the camp and stone him to death!” ³⁶So he was killed, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

The Tassels on the People’s Clothes

The Lord commanded a fringe religion! To obey this command, some Jews wear a four-cornered prayer shawl, called a tallit, with tassels at each corner, during certain services.

³⁷The LORD told Moses ³⁸to say to the people of Israel, ” Sew tassels onto the bottom edge of your clothes and tie a purple string to each tassel. ^39-40These will remind you that you must obey my laws and teachings. And when you do, you will be dedicated to me and won’t follow your own sinful desires. ⁴¹I am the LORD your God who led you out of Egypt.”

God is so concrete and practical! Our very clothing is to remind us of who he is and therefore encourage us to behave as his obedient children.

_________________________

Music:

What I do, what I think, what I say, what I wear, who I am —  HERE  is “All to Jesus I Surrender.”

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

man wearing prayer shawl.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/15-jewish-man-wearing-prayer-shawl.jpg?w=450

gardenias.    http://homouniversalisgr.blogspot.com/2014/02/blog-post_4601.html

flour.  https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2015/07/860bf-flour.jpg

olive oil.   https://salutwineco.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/heart_healthy_secrets_olive_oil_v-708152.jpg

wine.  https://sofabfood.com/5-red-wine-health-benefits/

Tissot.     https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/the-sabbath-breaker-stoned/QgFdHnf3bl7R6w?hl=en&ms=%7B%22x%22%3A0.5%2C%22y%22%3A0.5%2C%22z%22%3A8.578032841774625%2C%22size%22%3A%7B%22width%22%3A3.2662342000913647%2C%22height%22%3A1.2375229471883598%7D%7D

tallit.   http://www.talentshare.org/~mm9n/articles/tallit/1.htm

2984.) Numbers 14

Years in the Desert. Coming up!

Numbers 14   (CEV)

The Israelites Rebel against Moses

Those who do not trust God, continually vex themselves.

–Matthew Henry

¹After the Israelites heard the report from the twelve men who had explored Canaan, the people cried all night

They cried because they were afraid, because it was not going to be as easy as they had wanted, because they were walking by sight and not by faith. (How often do I do the same?)

²and complained to Moses and Aaron, ” We wish we had died in Egypt or somewhere out here in the desert!

Tragically for this generation, God would give them what their rebellious, unbelieving hearts wanted.

³Is the LORD leading us into Canaan, just to have us killed and our women and children captured? We’d be better off in Egypt.” ⁴Then they said to one another, ” Let’s choose our own leader and go back.”

⁵Moses and Aaron bowed down to pray in front of the crowd. ⁶Joshua and Caleb tore their clothes in sorrow ⁷and said:

We saw the land ourselves, and it’s very good. ⁸If we obey the LORD, he will surely give us that land rich with milk and honey. ⁹So don’t rebel. We have no reason to be afraid of the people who live there. The LORD is on our side, and they won’t stand a chance against us!

¹⁰The crowd threatened to stone Moses and Aaron to death.

from Numbers,
by Dennis T. Olson:

In the end, the issue is not competing estimates about the human strength of the Israelite army versus the Canaanites. The question is not who is taller or who has the larger fortifications or who has more weapons. Ultimately, all such reliance on human power and estimates is irrelevant. The issue is trusting in the power of Israel’s God. God is with the Israelites in the midst of their camp; God can be trusted to make good on God’s promise to bring the Israelites into the land. God’s promise and presence alone are more than adequate basis for their confidence.

But just then, the LORD appeared in a cloud at the sacred tent.

Moses Prays for the People

¹¹The LORD said to Moses, ” I have done great things for these people, and they still reject me by refusing to believe in my power.

Psalm 78:11-22 (NIV)

They forgot what he had done,
the wonders he had shown them.

He did miracles in the sight of their fathers
in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan.

He divided the sea and led them through;
he made the water stand firm like a wall.

He guided them with the cloud by day
and with light from the fire all night.

He split the rocks in the desert
and gave them water as abundant as the seas;

he brought streams out of a rocky crag
and made water flow down like rivers.

But they continued to sin against him,
rebelling in the desert against the Most High.

They willfully put God to the test
by demanding the food they craved.

They spoke against God, saying,
“Can God spread a table in the desert?

When he struck the rock, water gushed out,
and streams flowed abundantly.
But can he also give us food?
Can he supply meat for his people?”

When the LORD heard them, he was very angry;
his fire broke out against Jacob,
and his wrath rose against Israel,

for they did not believe in God
or trust in his deliverance.

¹²So they will no longer be my people. I will destroy them, but I will make you the ancestor of a nation even stronger than theirs.”

^13-16Moses replied:

With your mighty power you rescued your people from Egypt, so please don’t destroy us here in the desert. If you do, the Egyptians will hear about it and tell the people of Canaan. Those Canaanites already know that we are your people, and that we see you face to face. And they have heard how you lead us with a thick cloud during the day and flaming fire at night. But if you kill us, they will claim it was because you weren’t powerful enough to lead us into Canaan as you promised.

Moses brought God’s promise before Him. He begged God not to give the nations any opportunity to think God had not been true to His word.

¹⁷Show us your great power, LORD. You promised ¹⁸that you love to show mercy and kindness. And you said that you are very patient, but that you will punish everyone guilty of doing wrong–not only them but their children and grandchildren as well.

¹⁹You are merciful, and you treat people better than they deserve. So please forgive these people, just as you have forgiven them ever since they left Egypt.

Psalm 78:38 (NIV)

Yet he was merciful;
he forgave their iniquities
and did not destroy them.
Time after time he restrained his anger
and did not stir up his full wrath.

²⁰Then the LORD said to Moses:

In answer to your prayer, I do forgive them.

This means that Moses’ prayer mattered. Some may wonder if prayer is some elaborate game, where God threatens to do something He will never do anyway, and we pray, pretending to believe God will do what He has threatened, and when God hears us pray, He forgets His idle threat and does what He was going to do anyway. Prayer definitely does not work that way.

We don’t understand the relationship between the eternal, sovereign plan of God and our prayers; but we know it is no game. God never wanted Moses to think of it as a game, and wanted Moses to at least think that his prayers had directly affected the outcome: I have pardoned, according to your word! We should pray as if life and death, heaven and hell, would be decided by our prayers!

–David Guzik

²¹But as surely as I live and my power has no limit, ^22-23I swear that not one of these Israelites will enter the land I promised to give their ancestors. These people have seen my power in Egypt and in the desert, but they will never see Canaan. They have disobeyed and tested me too many times.

²⁴But my servant Caleb isn’t like the others. So because he has faith in me, I will allow him to cross into Canaan, and his descendants will settle there.

Caleb’s stand of faith seemed futile when Israel rejected him; but it was richly rewarded by God.

²⁵Now listen, Moses! The Amalekites and the Canaanites live in the valleys of Canaan.  And tomorrow morning, you’ll need to turn around and head back into the desert toward the Red Sea.

The Israelites Are Punished for Complaining

²⁶The LORD told Moses and Aaron ^27-28to give this message to the people of Israel:

You sinful people have complained against me too many times! Now I swear by my own life that I will give you exactly what you wanted. ²⁹You will die right here in the desert, and your dead bodies will cover the ground.

God gave them what they wanted.  In verse 2, the Israelites said,”We wish we had died in Egypt or somewhere out here in the desert!”

You have insulted me, and none of you men who are over twenty years old ³⁰will enter the land that I solemnly promised to give you as your own–only Caleb and Joshua  will go in.

God gave them what they wanted.  In verse 3, they said they did not want to enter the promised land: “Is the Lord leading us into Canaan just to have us killed?”

³¹You were worried that your own children would be captured. But I, the LORD, will let them enter the land you have rejected. ³²You will die here in the desert! ³³Your children will wander around in this desert forty years, suffering because of your sins, until all of you are dead.

God gave them what they wanted.  In verse 3, they used their children as an excuse for not entering the land:  “Is the Lord leading us into Canaan just to have . . .  our children captured?”

³⁴I will cruelly punish you every day for the next forty years–one year for each day that the land was explored. ³⁵You sinful people who ganged up against me will die here in the desert.

The old generation will wander and die.  Forty years of funerals, beginning now. . .

³⁶Ten of the men sent to explore the land had brought back bad news and had made the people complain against the LORD. ³⁷So he sent a deadly disease that killed those men, ³⁸but he let Joshua and Caleb live.

from Experiencing God Day-By-Day,
by Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby

But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunnen remained alive, of the men who went to spy out the land.
— Numbers 14:38

The decisions and disobedience of others will not cancel God’s will for you.  Other people’s actions will affect you, but no one can prevent what God wants to do in and through you.  Joshua and Caleb trusted God and yet were forced to wander in a wilderness for forty years because of the fear and disbelief of others.

Have you ever felt that someone was thwarting God’s will for you?  Perhaps someone kept you from getting a job or earning a promotion.  Perhaps the government would not approve your application or a committee disagreed with your recommendation.  Do you believe that mere man can stop God from accomplishing His purposes in your life?

God did everything He intended to do in the lives of Joshua and Caleb.  His primary assignment for them had not been to enter the Promised Land but rather to serve as godly leaders for the people.  Joshua and Caleb could not lead the people if they were in the Promised land by themselves while the people were still wandering in the wilderness!  God kept these leaders in a position where they could exert a godly influence upon their nation, and, as a result, they became models of spiritual leadership for generations to come.  Even so, God ultimately brought Caleb and Joshua into the Promised Land just as He had said.  They had been delayed but not thwarted.  Be assured of this:  No one can hinder God from carrying out His plan for your life.  Once God sets something in motion, no one can stop it (In Isaiah 46:11, God says —  “What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that will I do.”).

The Israelites Fail To Enter Canaan

³⁹The people of Israel were very sad after Moses gave them the LORD’s message. ⁴⁰So they got up early the next morning and got ready to head toward the hill country of Canaan. They said, ” We were wrong to complain about the LORD. Let’s go into the land that he promised us.”

⁴¹But Moses replied, ” You’re disobeying the LORD! Your plan won’t work, ^42-43so don’t even try it. The LORD refuses to help you, because you turned your backs on him. The Amalekites and the Canaanites are your enemies, and they will attack and defeat you.”

⁴⁴But the Israelites ignored Moses  and marched toward the hill country, even though the sacred chest and Moses did not go with them. ⁴⁵The Amalekites and the Canaanites came down from the hill country, defeated the Israelites, and chased them as far as the town of Hormah.

They just don’t get it!

God had just said, “None of you will enter the land!”

Moses had just said, “Your plan won’t work!”

“The bravery of presumption is just as fatal as the cowardice of unbelief.”   — N. E. Constance

_________________________

Music:

HERE  is the theme song for the old generation:  “I Did It My Way.” And who else but Frank Sinatra?

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

Forty.  https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/14-forty.jpg?w=450

In God We Trust.    http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lhq016yvXb1qe3nnq.jpg

mercy cross.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/14-divine-mercy.jpg?w=450

skeletons in the desert.  http://www.foxnews.com/images/417699/1_61_sahara_graves_family.jpg

No Entry.  http://www.health-safety-signs.uk.com/productimages/No-Entry-outdoor-sign.gif

family in the desert of Arizona.  http://showcase.netins.net/web/scooter/web_-_family_at_desert_museum.JPG

photo of Gold Dust Cemetery, by Bill Johnson.  https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/14-gold-dust-cemetery-web.jpg?w=450

my way.   http://lukedancy.com/marketing-my-way/

2983.) Numbers 13

Numbers 13   (CEV)

Twelve Men Are Sent into Canaan

¹The LORD said to Moses, ²” Choose a leader from each tribe and send them into Canaan to explore the land I am giving you.”

God used the report of the spies as a test of Israel’s faith.

³So Moses sent twelve tribal leaders from Israel’s camp in the Paran Desert ^4-16with orders to explore the land of Canaan. And here are their names:

Shammua son of Zaccur from Reuben,

Shaphat son of Hori from Simeon,

Caleb son of Jephunneh from Judah,

Igal son of Joseph from Issachar,

Joshua son of Nun from Ephraim,

Palti son of Raphu from Benjamin,

Gaddiel son of Sodi from Zebulun,

Gaddi son of Susi from Manasseh,

Ammiel son of Gemalli from Dan,

Sethur son of Michael from Asher,

Nahbi son of Vophsi from Naphtali,

and Geuel son of Machi from Gad.

¹⁷Before Moses sent them into Canaan, he said:

After you go through the Southern Desert of Canaan, continue north into the hill country ¹⁸and find out what those regions are like. Be sure to remember how many people live there, how strong they are, ^19-20and if they live in open towns or walled cities. See if the land is good for growing crops and find out what kinds of trees grow there. It’s time for grapes to ripen, so try to bring back some of the fruit that grows there.

This was an entirely reasonable pursuit for Moses, and representative of the curiosity of the whole nation. After all, they had never seen this land, nor had any Israelite for some 400 years. But God already told them what the land was like. At Moses’ calling at the burning bush, God told him the land of Canaan was a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8), and Moses told the people of the goodness of the land (Exodus 13:5).

–David Guzik

²¹The twelve men left to explore Canaan from the Zin Desert in the south all the way to the town of Rehob near Lebo-Hamath in the north. ²²As they went through the Southern Desert, they came to the town of Hebron, which was seven years older than the Egyptian town of Zoan. In Hebron, they saw the three Anakim  clans of Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai. ^23-24When they got to Bunch Valley,  they cut off a branch with such a huge bunch of grapes, that it took two men to carry it on a pole. That’s why the place was called Bunch Valley. Along with the grapes, they also took back pomegranates  and figs.

Imagine eating nothing much but quail and manna for as long as you can remember — and then you taste these grapes! . . .

 

and these pomegranates! . . .

. . . and these figs!

_________________________

Music:

I remember the first time I saw and ate a kiwi; it was a magical, wonderful moment.  What a creative and kind God we have, to give us such good gifts!  HERE  is John Rutter’s “Look at the World.”  Listen and say Thank you, Lord.

Look at the world, everything all around us
Look at the world and marvel every day.
Look at the world: so many joys and wonders,
So many miracles along our way.

Praise to thee, O lord for all creation.
Give us thankful hearts that we may see
All the gifts we share, and every blessing,
All things come of thee.

Look at the earth bringing forth fruit and flower,
Look at the sky, the sunshine and the rain.
Look at the hills, look at the trees and mountains,
Valley and flowing river, field and plain.

Think of the spring, think of the warmth of summer
Bringing the harvest before the winters cold.
Everything grows, everything has a season,
till it is gathered to the Father’s fold.

Every good gift, all that we need and cherish.
Comes from the Lord in token of his love
We are his hands, stewards of all his bounty
His is the earth and his the heavens above.

_________________________

The Men Report Back to the People

²⁵After exploring the land of Canaan forty days, ²⁶the twelve men returned to Kadesh in the Paran Desert and told Moses, Aaron, and the people what they had seen. They showed them the fruit ²⁷and said:

Look at this fruit! The land we explored is rich with milk and honey. ²⁸But the people who live there are strong, and their cities are large and walled. We even saw the three Anakim  clans. ²⁹Besides that, the Amalekites live in the Southern Desert; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites are in the hill country; and the Canaanites  live along the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River.

³⁰Caleb calmed down the crowd and said, ” Let’s go and take the land. I know we can do it!”

Psalm 27:1-3 (NIV)

The LORD is my light and my salvation—
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?

When evil men advance against me
to devour my flesh,
when my enemies and my foes attack me,
they will stumble and fall.

Though an army besiege me,
my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me,
even then will I be confident.

³¹But the other men replied, ” Those people are much too strong for us.” ³²Then they started spreading rumors and saying, ” We won’t be able to grow anything in that soil. And the people are like giants. ³³In fact, we saw the Nephilim who are the ancestors of the Anakim. They were so big that we felt as small as grasshoppers.”

as small as grasshoppers!

Unbelief often presents itself as being “factual” or “practical” or “down to earth.” Yet, the most factual, practical, and down to earth thing we can to is trust the word of the living God. Their unbelief was not according to the facts, but despite the facts.

Significantly, two men could see the exact same sights — the same grapes, the same men, the same land, the same cities — one can come away singing in faith, and the other is filled with a sense of certain doom. Ultimately, faith or unbelief does not spring from circumstances or environment, but from our hearts, which God must change.

–David Guzik

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

men with grapes:  Israeli tourism logo.    https://journeymanpreacher.wordpress.com/2015/05/04/gods-big-story-10-unbelief-numbers-1314/

grapes.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/13-grapes-lg.jpg?w=450

pomegranates.  https://www.wish.com/product/5db2aee147c45609bb4e50fa?hide_login_modal=true&from_ad=goog_shopping&_display_country_code=US&_force_currency_code=USD&pid=googleadwords_int&c=%7BcampaignId%7D&ad_cid=5db2aee147c45609bb4e50fa&ad_cc=US&ad_curr=USD&ad_price=2.00&campaign_id=7203534630&gclid=Cj0KCQjwu8r4BRCzARIsAA21i_A0Mq745YvUh69SEM1RWJZVlRovsDqCci2cQp3J0B_bru5Y9OqLksUaAhLSEALw_wcB&share=web

figs.  http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3077/2830402939_05b3f69263.jpg

spies return with fruit.   https://anglicansablaze.blogspot.com/2011/01/will-you-lead-in-fear-or-in-faith-this.html

grasshopper.  http://johnbokma.com/mexit/2006/12/31/large-grasshopper-resting-on-my-fingers.jpg

2982.) Numbers 12

“Miriam Dancing” — Miriam in better days! — tapestry by Anna Kocherovsky

Numbers 12

Miriam and Aaron Are Jealous of Moses

Proverbs 27:4 (NIV)

Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming,
but who can stand before jealousy?

^1-3Although Moses was the most humble person in all the world,

Numbers 12:3 (NIV)

Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.

from Wishful Thinking:  A Seeker’s ABC
by Frederick Buechner

HUMILITY

Humility is often confused with the polite, self-deprecation of saying you’re not much of a bridge player when you know perfectly well you are. Conscious or otherwise, this kind of humility is a form of gamesmanship.

If you really aren’t much of a bridge player, you’re apt to be rather proud of yourself for admitting it so humbly. This kind of humility is a form of low comedy.

True humility doesn’t consist of thinking ill of yourself but of not thinking of yourself much differently from the way you’d be apt to think of anybody else. It is the capacity for being no more and no less pleased when you play your own hand well than when your opponents do.

Miriam and Aaron started complaining, ” Moses had no right to marry that woman from Ethiopia!  Who does he think he is? The LORD has spoken to us, not just to him.”

The complaint against Moses’ wife was just a cover; the real problem was their taking offense at Moses getting more credit than they. It’s pride.

Matthew 10:36 (NIV)

A man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.

The LORD heard their complaint ⁴and told Moses, Aaron, and Miriam to come to the entrance of the sacred tent. ⁵There the LORD appeared in a cloud and told Aaron and Miriam to come closer. ⁶Then after commanding them to listen carefully, he said:

” I, the LORD, speak to prophets

in visions and dreams.

⁷But my servant Moses

is the leader of my people.

⁸He sees me face to face,

and everything I say to him

is perfectly clear.

You have no right to criticize

my servant Moses.”

⁹The LORD became angry at Aaron and Miriam. And after the LORD left ¹⁰and the cloud disappeared from over the sacred tent, Miriam’s skin turned white with leprosy.

When Aaron saw what had happened to her, ¹¹he said to Moses, ” Sir, please don’t punish us for doing such a foolish thing. ¹²Don’t let Miriam’s flesh rot away like a child born dead!”

Proverbs 30:32 (NIV)

“If you have played the fool and exalted yourself,
or if you have planned evil,
clap your hand over your mouth!”

_________________________

Aaron’s action of turning to Moses as the only one who can help is in itself an ironic confirmation of what Aaron and Miriam had earlier denied—Moses’ unique relationship to God.

¹³Moses prayed, ” LORD God, please heal her.”

¹⁴But the LORD replied, ” Miriam would be disgraced for seven days if her father had punished her by spitting in her face. So make her stay outside the camp for seven days, before coming back.”

This was appropriate, because Miriam had done something even more shameful than spitting in her father’s face; she tried to bring down a leader of God’s people with petty, false, and self-interested criticism.

¹⁵The people of Israel did not move their camp until Miriam returned seven days later. ¹⁶Then they left Hazeroth and set up camp in the Paran Desert.

Micah 6:4 (NIV)

Listen to what the Lord says:

I brought you up out of Egypt
and redeemed you from the land of slavery.
I sent Moses to lead you,
also Aaron and Miriam.

_________________________

Music:

Having just read one of the most shameful and saddest chapters in the Old Testament, let’s take a break.  Now  HERE  is an odd connection to the whole Numbers story — do you remember the “Moses Supposes” sequence from the movie Singing in the Rain?  As you watch Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor sing and dance, you may start to feel more cheerful!

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

Kocherovsky.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/12-miriam.jpg?w=450

jealous.    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/12-jealous.jpg?w=450

cards.   http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Anglo-American_card_suits.png

Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.  http://www.marshotelonline.com/SFGsigns.JPG

man with hand over mouth.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/12-man-w-hand-over-mouth.jpg?w=450

oops!   https://biblicallife.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/oops.jpg

2981.) Numbers 11

Be careful what you wish for.

Numbers 11

The Israelites Complain

¹One day the Israelites started complaining about their troubles. The LORD heard them and became so angry that he destroyed the outer edges of their camp with fire.

²When the people begged Moses to help, he prayed, and the fire went out. ³They named the place ” Burning,”  because in his anger the LORD had set their camp on fire.

__________________________

Music:

“Dear Lord and Father of Mankind — forgive our foolish ways” — sung  HERE  by Katherine Jenkins to the British tune, Repton.

__________________________

The People Grumble about Being Hungry

⁴One day some worthless foreigners among the Israelites became greedy for food, and even the Israelites themselves began moaning, “We don’t have any meat! ⁵In Egypt we could eat all the fish we wanted, and there were cucumbers, melons, onions, and garlic.

⁶But we’re starving out here, and the only food we have is this manna.”

The complaining heart romanticizes the past but it also exaggerates the problems of the present. Just how wonderful was life in Egypt, when they were slaves? And how can they be starving when they have manna every day?

⁷The manna was like small whitish seeds ^8-9and tasted like something baked with sweet olive oil. It appeared at night with the dew. In the morning the people would collect the manna, grind or crush it into flour, then boil it and make it into thin wafers.

¹⁰The Israelites stood around their tents complaining.

Oh, you Israelites!

Moses heard them and was upset that they had made the LORD angry. ¹¹He prayed:

I am your servant, LORD, so why are you doing this to me? What have I done to deserve this? You’ve made me responsible for all these people, ¹²but they’re not my children. You told me to nurse them along and to carry them to the land you promised their ancestors. ¹³They keep whining for meat, but where can I get meat for them? ¹⁴This job is too much for me. How can I take care of all these people by myself? ¹⁵If this is the way you’re going to treat me, just kill me now and end my miserable life!

Oh, Moses!

from Morning and Evening,
by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

“Wherefore hast Thou afflicted Thy servant?”
–Numbers xi.11.

Our heavenly Father sends us frequent troubles to try our faith.  If our faith be worth anything, it will stand the test.  It is a poor faith which can only trust God when friends are true, the body full of health, and the business profitable; but that is true faith which holds by the Lord’s faithfulness when friends are gone, when the body is sick, when spirits are depressed, and the light of our Father’s countenance is hidden.  A faith which can say, in the direst trouble, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him,” is heaven-born faith.

The Lord afflicts His servants to glorify himself, for He is greatly glorified in the graces of His people, which are His own handiwork.  When “tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope,” the Lord is honored by these growing virtues.  We should never know the music of the harp if the strings were left untouched; nor enjoy the juice of the grape if it were not trodden in the wine-press; nor discover the sweet perfume of cinnamon if it were not pressed and beaten; nor feel the warmth of fire if the coals were not utterly consumed.  The wisdom and power of the great Workman are discovered by the trials through which His vessels of mercy are permitted to pass.

Present afflictions tend also to heighten future joy.  There must be shades in the picture to bring out the beauty of the light.  Could we be so supremely blessed in heaven, if we had not known the curse of sin and the sorrow of earth?  Will not peace be sweeter after conflict, and rest more welcome after toil?  Will not the recollection of past sufferings enhance the bliss of the glorified?  There are many other comfortable answers to the question with which we opened our brief meditation; let us muse upon it all day long.

Oh, my own heart!

Seventy Leaders Are Chosen To Help Moses

¹⁶The LORD said to Moses:

Choose seventy of Israel’s respected leaders and go with them to the sacred tent. ¹⁷While I am talking with you there, I will give them some of your authority, so they can share responsibility for my people. You will no longer have to care for them by yourself.

The elders were there to help Moses carry the spiritual load — to help him care for and minister to the people, and to be a support for him in the ministry. God’s help was going to come to Moses through the support of godly men. This is a customary way for God to meet our needs.

¹⁸As for the Israelites, I have heard them complaining about not having meat and about being better off in Egypt. So tell them to make themselves acceptable to me, because tomorrow they will have meat. ^19-20In fact, they will have meat day after day for a whole month–not just a few days, or even ten or twenty. They turned against me and wanted to return to Egypt. Now they will eat meat until they get sick of it.

²¹Moses replied, ” At least six hundred thousand grown men are here with me. How can you say there will be enough meat to feed them and their families for a whole month? ²²Even if we butchered all of our sheep and cattle, or caught every fish in the sea, we wouldn’t have enough to feed them.”

²³The LORD answered, ” I can do anything! Watch and you’ll see my words come true.”

²⁴Moses told the people what the LORD had said. Then he chose seventy respected leaders and went with them to the sacred tent. While the leaders stood in a circle around the tent, Moses went inside, ²⁵and the LORD spoke with him. Then the LORD took some authority  from Moses and gave it to the seventy leaders. And when the LORD’s Spirit took control of them, they started shouting like prophets. But they did it only this one time. ²⁶Eldad and Medad were two leaders who had not gone to the tent. But when the Spirit took control of them, they began shouting like prophets right there in camp. ²⁷A boy ran to Moses and told him about Eldad and Medad.

²⁸Joshua  was there helping Moses, as he had done since he was young. And he said to Moses, ” Sir, you must stop them!” ²⁹But Moses replied, ” Are you concerned what this might do to me? I wish the LORD would give his Spirit to all his people so everyone could be a prophet.” ³⁰Then Moses and the seventy leaders went back to camp.

The LORD Sends Quails

³¹Some time later the LORD sent a strong wind that blew quails in from the sea until Israel’s camp was completely surrounded with birds, piled up about three feet high for miles in every direction. ³²The people picked up quails for two days–each person filled at least fifty bushels. Then they spread them out to dry. ³³But before the meat could be eaten, the LORD became angry and sent a disease through the camp.

³⁴After they had buried the people who had been so greedy for meat, they called the place ” Graves for the Greedy.”

Proverbs 28:25 (NIV)

A greedy man stirs up dissension,
but he who trusts in the LORD will prosper.

³⁵Israel then broke camp and traveled to Hazeroth.

Psalm 105:39-41 (NIV)

He spread out a cloud as a covering,
and a fire to give light at night.

They asked, and he brought them quail
and satisfied them with the bread of heaven.

He opened the rock, and water gushed out;
like a river it flowed in the desert.

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

quail on the ground.   https://www.chron.com/sports/outdoors/article/Texas-quail-population-drought-is-over-10415971.php

fire flames.   http://www.sxc.hu/pic/m/h/hu/huibidos/1093985_fire_flames.jpg

spicy cold cucumber salad (with cucumbers, green onions, and garlic).   http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3277/2577344164_60bd12efc9.jpg

Stop whining.   http://edbatista.typepad.com/edbatista/images/2005/02/Stop%20Whining.jpg

quail.  https://www.thelectionarycompany.org/bible-readings/tag/Christ+the+cornerstone

He cares for you.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/34-he-cares-for-you.jpg?w=450

2980.) Numbers 10

silver trumpets

Numbers 10

The Silver Trumpets

¹The LORD told Moses:

²Have someone make two trumpets out of hammered silver. These will be used to call the people together and to give the signal for moving your camp. ³If both trumpets are blown, everyone is to meet with you at the entrance to the sacred tent. ⁴But if just one is blown, only the twelve tribal leaders need to come together.

^5-6Give a signal on a trumpet when it is time to break camp. The first blast will be the signal for the tribes camped on the east side, and the second blast will be the signal for those on the south. ⁷But when you want everyone to come together, sound a different signal on the trumpet. ⁸The priests of Aaron’s family will be the ones to blow the trumpets, and this law will never change.

⁹Whenever you go into battle against an enemy attacking your land, give a warning signal on the trumpets. Then I, the LORD, will hear it and rescue you. ¹⁰During the celebration of the New Moon Festival and other religious festivals, sound the trumpets while you offer sacrifices. This will be a reminder that I am the LORD your God.

Psalm 81:1-4 (CEV)

Be happy and shout to God

who makes us strong!

Shout praises to the God

of Jacob.

Sing as you play tambourines

and the lovely sounding

stringed instruments.

Sound the trumpets and start

the New Moon Festival.

We must also celebrate

when the moon is full.

This is the law in Israel,

and it was given to us

by the God of Jacob.

_________________________

Music:

Today is a day for trumpet music!  And who better than Phil Driscoll?  He sings with that unmistakable gravel in his throat, but you forgive him for that once you hear him play his instrument!  HERE  he is with “Holy, Holy, Holy.”

_________________________

The Israelites Begin Their Journey

— one theory about the route followed by the Israelites —

¹¹On the twentieth day of the second month  of that same year, the cloud over the sacred tent moved on. ¹²So the Israelites broke camp and left the Sinai Desert.

This was the first time Israel marched as an organized, prepared nation. They were not the same group that escaped Egypt as a mob. They had been fully prepared to walk as Promised Land people:

• They were ordered and organized
• They were cleansed and purified
• They were set apart and blessed
• They were taught how to give and how to function as priests
• They were made to remember judgment spared and deliverance brought
• They were given God’s presence as a guide and the tools needed to lead the people

One would be tempted to think that after such extensive preparation — a virtual transformation from slave people to Promised Land people — the actual entering into the Promised Land would be easy. This was not the case. The preparation was exactly that, preparation. Ahead of them are the greatest challenges, challenges that can only be met by faith. A soldier might think boot camp finishes something, but it doesn’t. It only prepares for a greater challenge: the actual battle itself.

–David Guzik

And some time later, the cloud stopped in the Paran Desert.  ¹³This was the first time the LORD had told Moses to command the people of Israel to move on. ¹⁴Judah and the tribes that camped alongside it marched out first, carrying their banner. Nahshon son of Amminadab was the leader of the Judah tribe, ¹⁵Nethanel son of Zuar was the leader of the Issachar tribe, ¹⁶and Eliab son of Helon was the leader of the Zebulun tribe.

¹⁷The sacred tent had been taken down, and the Gershonites and the Merarites carried it, marching behind the Judah camp.

¹⁸Reuben and the tribes that camped alongside it marched out second, carrying their banner. Elizur son of Shedeur was the leader of the Reuben tribe, ¹⁹Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai was the leader of the Simeon tribe, ²⁰and Eliasaph son of Deuel was the leader of the Gad tribe.

²¹Next were the Kohathites, carrying the objects for the sacred tent, which was to be set up before they arrived at the new camp.

²²Ephraim and the tribes that camped alongside it marched next, carrying their banner. Elishama son of Ammihud was the leader of the Ephraim tribe, ²³Gamaliel son of Pedahzur was the leader of the Manasseh tribe, ²⁴and Abidan son of Gideoni was the leader of the Benjamin tribe.

²⁵Dan and the tribes that camped alongside it were to protect the Israelites against an attack from behind, and so they marched last, carrying their banner. Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai was the leader of the tribe of Dan, ²⁶Pagiel son of Ochran was the leader of the Asher tribe, ²⁷and Ahira son of Enan was the leader of the Naphtali tribe.

The tribes marched in the same order as they had been placed around the tabernacle.

²⁸This was the order in which the Israelites marched each time they moved their camp.

²⁹Hobab the Midianite, the father-in-law of Moses, was there. And Moses said to him, ” We’re leaving for the place the LORD has promised us. He has said that all will go well for us. So come along, and we will make sure that all goes well for you.” ³⁰” No, I won’t go,” Hobab answered. ” I’m returning home to be with my own people.”

³¹” Please go with us!” Moses said. ” You can be our guide because you know the places to camp in the desert. ³²Besides that, if you go, we will give you a share of the good things the LORD gives us.”

³³The people of Israel began their journey from Mount Sinai.  They traveled three days, and the Levites who carried the sacred chest led the way, so the LORD could show them where to camp. ³⁴And the cloud always stayed with them. ³⁵Each day as the Israelites began their journey, Moses would pray, ” Our LORD, defeat your enemies and make them run!” ³⁶And when they stopped to set up camp, he would pray, ” Our LORD, stay close to Israel’s thousands and thousands of people.”

Psalm 68:1-3 (NIV)

May God arise, may his enemies be scattered;
may his foes flee before him.

As smoke is blown away by the wind,
may you blow them away;
as wax melts before the fire,
may the wicked perish before God.

But may the righteous be glad
and rejoice before God;
may they be happy and joyful.

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

silver trumpets.   https://i1.wp.com/www.cuttingedgechristianity.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/silver_trumpets.jpg

red trumpets.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/10-trumpets-red.jpg?w=450

map of the route of the exodus.    http://www.bible-history.com/maps/Map-Route-Exodus-Israelites-Egypt.jpg

tribes around the tabernacle.  http://www.yashanet.com/images/tribes.gif

candle dripping wax.  http://www.acornadvisors.com/Kitchen%20Newsletters/2007-09-06%20Setting_the_Table/Candle_Dripping.jpg

2979.) Numbers 9

Numbers 9

Regulations for Celebrating Passover

¹During the first month of Israel’s second year in the Sinai Desert,  the LORD had told Moses ²to say to the people, ” Celebrate Passover ³in the evening of the fourteenth day of this month  and do it by following all the regulations.” ^4-5Moses told the people what the LORD had said, and they celebrated Passover there in the desert in the evening of the fourteenth day of the first month.

Passover was meant to be a reminder of God’s “passing over” Israel in the judgment of the firstborn at the Exodus from Egypt.

The blood of the lamb, applied to the door posts of the home, would be seen by the angel of God’s judgment — and seeing the blood, the angel would “pass over” and spare the home covered by the blood. Passover was meant to be a continual reminder of this occasion of being spared judgment, and of the deliverance that followed in the Exodus.

Jesus fulfilled the Passover sacrifice by His death on the cross (1 Corinthians 5:7); the covering of His blood causes the judgment of God to “pass over” us. We are commanded to continually remember our occasion of being spared judgment and the deliverance that followed, by remembering Jesus’ work on the cross through the Lord’s Supper.

–David Guzik

⁶Some people in Israel’s camp had touched a dead body and had become unfit to worship the LORD, and they could not celebrate Passover. But they asked Moses and Aaron, ⁷” Even though we have touched a dead body, why can’t we celebrate Passover and offer sacrifices to the LORD at the same time as everyone else?”

⁸Moses said, ” Wait here while I go into the sacred tent and find out what the LORD says about this.”

⁹The LORD then told Moses ¹⁰to say to the community of Israel:

If any of you or your descendants touch a dead body and become unfit to worship me, or if you are away on a long journey, you may still celebrate Passover. ¹¹But it must be done in the second month,  in the evening of the fourteenth day. Eat the Passover lamb with thin bread and bitter herbs, ¹²and don’t leave any of it until morning or break any of the animal’s bones. Be sure to follow these regulations. ¹³But if any of you refuse to celebrate Passover when you are not away on a journey, you will no longer belong to my people. You will be punished because you did not offer sacrifices to me at the proper time.

¹⁴Anyone, including foreigners who live among you, can celebrate Passover, if they follow all the regulations.

The Cloud over the Sacred Tent

1 Corinthians 10:1 (NLT)

I don’t want you to forget, dear brothers and sisters, about our ancestors in the wilderness long ago. All of them were guided by a cloud that moved ahead of them.

^15-16As soon as the sacred tent was set up,  a thick cloud appeared and covered it. The cloud was there each day, and during the night, a fire could be seen in it.

This was more than proof of God’s presence. The cloud by day and the fire by night were actual helps and comforts to Israel. The fire at night was obviously a comfort to Israel in the midst of a dark wilderness, and the cloud by day would be a shade from the hot wilderness sun.

^17-19The LORD used this cloud to tell the Israelites when to move their camp and where to set it up again. As long as the cloud covered the tent, the Israelites did not break camp. But when the cloud moved, they followed it, and wherever it stopped, they camped and stayed there, ^20-22whether it was only one night, a few days, a month, or even a year. As long as the cloud remained over the tent, the Israelites stayed where they were. But when the cloud moved, so did the Israelites. ²³They obeyed the LORD’s commands and went wherever he directed Moses.

Numbers 9:23 (ESV)

At the command of the LORD they camped, and at the command of the LORD they set out.

Matthew 4:18-22 (ESV)

While walking by the Sea of Galilee, Jesus saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

_________________________

Music:

I have decided to follow Jesus . . .  HERE  is a song of offering ourselves to the Lord — “Christ is enough for me,” by Hillsong.

_________________________

Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

Images courtesy of:

Passover blood on door.   https://alephtavscriptures.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Passover-I.pdf

Passover matzah and wine.   https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/uk/first-day-of-passover

cloud covering.   http://revelationofjesuschrist.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/thunderstorm_1.png

follow me.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/6-followme.gif