Desert Happenings And Other News Series

June 21, 2025

Last week was not a good week. There was lots of whining and complaining and rebellion. What we learned is that even though Yahweh judged the people, his judgments did not curb their rebellion. No matter what he did, for their benefit or in discipline, complaining and rebellion were not far behind.

Despite the peoples continued insubordination and rebellion, however, God remained faithful – he would fulfill his promises. He chose to wander for 40 years with 2 million bitter, quarrelsome and rebellious people.

In Chapter 19 we have the Red Heifer Ritual. The ritual dealt mainly with ceremonial uncleanness and was intended to remove impurity caused by contact with a dead body. In an interesting twist, the process by which a defiled person was cleansed resulted in the defilement of the person who was clean.

Hebrews 9:13-14 - The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

Transitioning to chapter 20, it would seem that nearly the entire 40 years of wandering have passed without comment. Most of the old generation had died off and a new generation had taken its place.

It is the 1st month of the year and the people have returned to Kadesh.

Here Miriam died and was buried.

There was no water at Kadesh. The whole community got together and confronted Moses and Aaron: “If only we had died when our brothers died before Yahweh! Why did you bring Yahweh’s people into this desert that we should all die here?! Why did you bring us out of Egypt to this terrible place? There is no grain, no figs, no grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water!"

• Ellen White (PP 413.3) - Just before the Hebrew host reached Kadesh, the living stream ceased that for so many years had gushed out beside their encampment. It was the Lord's purpose again to test His people. He would prove whether they would trust His providence or imitate the unbelief of their fathers.

How’d the people do – on a scale of 1 to 10?

What did the test reveal? A rotten apple doesn’t fall far from the tree………. They were just as quick to grumble and complain as their parents had been.

Moses and Aaron fell facedown before the Tent of Meeting and Yahweh met them there in the cloud.

Yahweh said to Moses: “Take your staff, and you and Aaron gather the people. Speak to that rock in the presence of the people and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the people and their livestock to drink." (compare with Exodus 17:6)

Moses did as Yahweh commanded. He gathered the people, but as he did, the red mist descended. He had had it!

Yahweh had said, “speak to the rock,” but that wasn’t going to adequately express Moses’ rage. So, at the rock, Moses turned on the assembly, "Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?" Then he struck the rock, not once, but twice.

Psalm 106:32-33 - By the waters of Meribah they angered Yahweh, and trouble came to Moses because of them; for they rebelled against the Spirit of God, and rash words came from Moses' lips.

In his anger, Moses acted in a thoughtless, reckless and self-important manner and in doing so, he and Aaron misrepresented and dishonored God.

Yet, in his mercy and faithfulness, Yahweh brought water from the rock.

Moses and Aaron exercised significant influence over the people of Israel. This great honor was also a great responsibility and required from them a higher standard of conduct. If God had ignored their actions and imposed no consequences, it would have demonstrated partiality and a lack of “right doing” on God’s part. The people could have rightly argued that God was not fair and righteous in his dealings with them because he had let Moses and Aaron off the hook.

Numbers 20:12 - But Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them."

In that moment the people learned that Yahweh does not excuse sin nor does he play favorites.

What a blow that must have been to Moses and Aaron. After all they had endured on behalf of these people to now be denied The Promised Land!!!??

• Ellen White (419.1) – Had Moses and Aaron been cherishing self-esteem or indulging a passionate spirit in the face of divine warning and reproof, their guilt would have been far greater. But they were not chargeable with willful or deliberate sin; they had been overcome by a sudden temptation, and their contrition was immediate and heartfelt. The Lord accepted their repentance, though because of the harm their sin might do among the people, He could not remit its punishment.