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.
Unlike the people, they accepted their punishment and continued to do the work God had for them to do.
The shortest route to Canaan lay through the land of Edom. When Israel arrived on her border, Moses sent word to the King of Edom (descendants of Esau) requesting Israel be allowed to pass through their land. The Edomites refused the request and the King sent his army to the border. Yahweh led the people away from Edom – they’d go the long way around.
From Kadesh, the people arrived at Mount Hor:
Numbers 20:23-29 - Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron, "Aaron will be gathered to his people. He will not enter the land I give the Israelites, because both of you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah. Get Aaron and his son Eleazar and take them up Mount Hor. Remove Aaron's garments and put them on his son Eleazar, for Aaron will be gathered to his people; he will die there." Moses did as Yahweh commanded: They went up Mount Hor in the sight of the whole community. Moses removed Aaron's garments and put them on his son Eleazar. And Aaron died there on top of the mountain. Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain, and when the whole community learned that Aaron had died, the entire house of Israel mourned for him thirty days.
From Nount Hor, the people made steady progress to the Promised Land. When the Canaanite king of Arad, heard they were moving down the road, he sent out his army to stop them – capturing some of the people. This time the people turned to Yahweh and he gave the Canaanites into their hands.
However, with the blush of victory still on their cheeks, Israel became impatient and once again complained and spoke against both Yahweh and Moses: "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!"
In response to their grumbling, Yahweh sent venomous snakes among the people and many die.
Numbers 21:7 - The people came to Moses and said, "We sinned when we spoke against Yahweh and against you. Pray that Yahweh will take the snakes away from us." So, Moses prayed for the people.
Moses was instructed to make a bronze snake and mount it on a pole. If anyone was bitten they could look at the snake and live. There was no power in the bronze snake. Healing belonged to God. Looking at the snake expressed faith in Yahweh’s promise to save.
John 3:14-16 - “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (2Corinthians 5:21)
Jesus was God’s means of salvation to all those who chose to look and live.
Again, despite the grumbling and complaining and ensuing judgment, Yahweh continued to lead Israel toward the Promised Land. They headed north east toward the land of Moab.
When they arrived in the valley where Mount Pisgah overlooks the “wasteland,” Israel sent messages to Sihon, king of the Amorites, requesting passage through the land.
Not only did king Sihon say “NO,” he gathered his army and attacked Israel. Israel put him and his army to the sword and took possession of the land – from the Arnon to the Jabbok and as far as Ammonite territory. They captured all the cities and occupied them. So Israel settled in the land of the Amorites.
Next, Israel turned and went up the raod to Bashan. King Og and his entire army came out to meet them.
Numbers 21:34-35 - The LORD said to Moses, "Do not be afraid of him, for I have handed him over to you, with his whole army and his land. Do to him what you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon." 35 So they struck him down, together with his sons and his whole army, leaving them no survivors. And they took possession of his land.
Finally, Israel arrived on the plains of Moab and camped along the Jordan opposite Jericho.
Until Next Time………
