I am following a chronological Bible study, the order of which was suggested by Skip Andrews. It is supposed that this psalm refers to the sentence passed on the Israelites that they would remain in the wilderness forty years and die there, never entering their promised land, as studied in the last post on Numbers 14.
(Psalm 90:1) [A Prayer of Moses the man of God.]
Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations.
This psalm is identified as a prayer of Moses. He began by recognizing that the Lord had been the people's resting place throughout their generations. Even when they had no real dwelling place of their own, their Lord was their resting place, refuge, and defense.
(2) Before the mountains were brought forth,
Or ever You had formed the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
Before the earth was ever formed, before the mountains and the dust of the earth were formed, before the inhabited world as they knew it, from eternity before time began to eternity that will continue after time has ended, always and forever, with no beginning and no end, Moses declared God to be the one true God.
(3) You turn man to destruction,
And say, “Return, you children of men.”
There are several ways to look at this verse. Albert Barnes, in his Notes on the Bible, described it as God turning man to destruction or death, and returning him to dust. Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, said it appeared to be "a clear and strong promise of the resurrection of the human body" after death. My first thought and the view of still other commentaries is that God turns men to destruction to turn them back to Him. I have come to learn that is the ultimate motive of God, to bring His children back to Him, back to their only source of life and salvation. How many times does a terrible tragedy bring people to God? How many times have people had to hit rock bottom and get to the end of themselves before they turn to God? Does God cause that tragedy? Or does He just use it? That is a debate among Christians. I have people in my own family who believe God never does anything bad, so He would never cause a tragedy. But if that tragedy brought people to their only hope of salvation, was it bad? Didn't even Jesus say if your eye or arm or foot offends you, cut if off, for it is better to enter heaven maimed than to be whole in hell? (Matthew 5:29-30 and 18:8-9; Mark 9:47) If He tells us to cut off our arms to save ourselves, would He not lovingly cut them off for us to save us? I believe scripture is pretty clear that God will use any means necessary to turn us back to Him. How awesome and truly loving is that?!
The original word that was translated as "destruction" was "dakka", and it literally meant "crushed" like powder, figuratively "contrite". In fact, in the two other places in scripture where the word was used, it was defined as "contrite". I believe the true meaning is that God brings man low, in whatever form it takes, whether maimed or depressed or without anything, to bring him back to Him. Maybe it is the death of one or several people that will bring others to Him. Does God sacrifice some to save others? There was a time in my life when I believed this wasn't fair, especially considering the early death of my father. But God is always fair and just and loving, so we don't have to worry about that. Because God knows everything that has been, is now, and will be, He knows whether or not a person would have accepted Him or His son Jesus Christ. If He takes out evil people to save others, that is good. If He takes out His own people who do accept His gift of salvation, then you can be sure those people have eternal life with Him, so that is definitely good! If He apparently takes out people who just haven't come to Him yet, again He knows the heart and what would have happened, so you can be sure He will be fair and just. You don't have to figure out whether or not God is just; it's His very nature; He can't help but be! Perhaps a person dying young is fulfilling their purpose in the kingdom of God, and will have a rich reward in heaven. I think about the incident where Jesus and His disciples saw a man that was blind from birth. The disciples asked Him who it was who sinned, the man himself or his parents, that he should be blind. Jesus said that neither did, that he was blind so that the work of God could be revealed in Him at this time, when Jesus healed him.
This brings me to another revelation I've had. I know people who believe that we are all "healed", in their minds, they believe we are all physically healed, so that no time should we ever be in poor health, if only we would accept His word that we are healed. In the case of the blind man above, that just isn't true. He could never be healed until the point where God's purpose was fulfilled. That was this man's purpose for the kingdom of God! Jesus healing him at that point was an illustration of how Jesus alone can save us from hell. When Jesus comes into our lives, He heals us from death and destruction. That doesn't mean we don't die physically, so why should it mean that we have to be physically healed if we trust Jesus? In both cases, I believe it is a healing and salvation from eternal death. That's not to say that God doesn't still presently heal people; and if that is their purpose, that through their healing, people are brought to Him, then He will do it. However, sometimes people may be brought to Him through the death of a loved one, and that was His purpose for the one who died. We should not mourn for those who have gone to their reward in Heaven. We mourn our loss, but there is no need to mourn for them. When we truly understand that this world is not where we receive our rewards, but it is in heaven, we can willingly accept and delight in God's purpose for our lives. The sixth chapter of Matthew continually speaks about how people who do things for worldly praise, have their own reward, but those who do things for God will be rewarded by Him, and His reward is everlasting!
(4) For a thousand years in Your sight
Are as yesterday when it is past,
And as a watch in the night.
I believe the meaning is that a thousand years in God's sight are gone in the blink of an eye when compared to eternity. As soon as it has occurred, it is gone in the past as yesterday. A watch in the night was just a portion of the night. As a night was divided into three watches, a single watch was only a portion of the night, an even smaller portion than a 24-hour day. A thousand years to God are not only as a day, but as a small portion of a day.
(5) You carry them away as with a flood;
They are as a sleep;
In the morning they are like grass which grows up.
Those thousand years are swept away as in a mighty torrent, or perhaps it means that men who are turned to destruction (v. 3) are carried away in an instant in comparison to an eternity with God. They (the years or men's lives) are as a sleep, the sense being they pass as quickly as time during a sleep. I had difficulty with the last part of this verse. Some commentaries suggest that the lines should have been separated as "They are as a sleep in the morning" and "They are like grass which grows up". Either way, I still struggle with grass that grows. This doesn't create an image for me of time passing as quickly as the blink of an eye, but then again, grass grows visibly each day, much faster than the life of a man or a thousand years. The original word that was translated as "grows up" was "chalaph" and literally meant "slide by", by implication meaning "hasten away", "spring up", or even "change". Indeed, grass springs up and fades away quickly, especially when compared to eternity.
(6) In the morning it flourishes and grows up;
In the evening it is cut down and withers.
It's not my experience with the grass in my yard, but perhaps in the hot desert climates, grass springs up from the dew in the morning, and withers from the heat of the day and is brought or cut down in the evening. Certainly that is the meaning of this verse--in the short period of a day, what was so green and flourishing in the morning, is, at the close of the day, dried up. So it is with man's life in God's eternity.
(7) For we are consumed by Your anger,
And by Your wrath are we troubled.
This verse could be seen two different ways. It could be a continuation of the idea that man's life is but a quick flicker in God's eternity. Death originally occurred because of sin against God; therefore mankind is consumed or brought to death by God's displeasure beginning with His sentence given to Adam:
"In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return.” - Genesis 3:19
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin;
and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. - Romans 5:12
By God's wrath, man is troubled. Since the fall of Adam in the Garden of Eden, man has been plagued with troubles. It could also be that Moses was beginning to lament their present situation. The people were indeed to be consumed by God's anger, and would die in the wilderness, never entering their promised land.
(8) You have set our iniquities before You,
Our secret sins in the light of Your countenance.
The causes of all trouble, consumption, and death--that is, the sins of man--are before the Lord as the evidence according to which He as a righteous Judge proceeds. Even the secret sins of man's heart are in full view of the Lord, and in accordance with these, God righteously judges man.
(9) For all our days are passed away in Your wrath;
We end our years like a sigh.
The original KJV translated this verse as, "For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told." The italicized words are ones the translators added for what they thought would be a clearer understanding. Most all the other translations were similar to what I transcribed above. When I looked at the Strong's definitions of the words in question, in each case the first meaning seems to be the most appropriate. The word translated by KJV as "spend" was "kalah" and the first definition was "end", followed by "cease, be finished, perish"; indeed it was translated as "end" or "consumed" most often in the Bible. One of the last definitions and one that is used almost the least often in scripture is "spend", so I feel very comfortable accepting the translation "end". The word that was translated as "tale" by KJV and "sigh" by most of the other translations was "hegeh" and it literally meant "muttering (in sighing, thought, or as thunder)". It was used only three times in scripture, translated as "mourning", "sound", and "tale". However, consider the root word "hagah", which means "to murmur (in pleasure or anger); by implication to ponder: - imagine, meditate..." That word was used much more often in scripture and was most often translated as "meditate"; although "mourn" and "speak" were also translations, many other words like "imagine", "study", "mutter", and "utter" were used. In keeping with the theme of the lines thus far, I believe the meaning is that man's life is ended because of God's righteous anger against his sin, and that his life passes away as rapidly as a thought or a sigh.
(10) The days of our lives are seventy years;
And if by reason of strength they are eighty years,
Yet their strength is labor and sorrow;
For it is soon cut off, and we fly away.
Moses apparently stated a fact that the life of man was on average about seventy years or perhaps eighty for the stronger men. It is a fact that by Moses's time men lived a much shorter time than in the days before the flood when men lived hundreds of years. However, we will find later that Moses himself lived to be 120, Aaron was 123, Miriam was 130, and Joshua was 110 when they died. It does seem that men lived an average of 120 years in Moses's time. In Genesis 6:3, God proclaimed that the days of man would be 120 years. Why would Moses proclaim the days of man would be 70 to 80 years? This question caused Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, to state that this psalm could not have possibly been written by Moses, at least this Moses. While all transcriptions attributed it to Moses, the man of God, Mr. Clarke wrote if that were true, it would have to have been another Moses. I don't see that that must be the case. Once again, Moses could be lamenting their present circumstance. Those who were numbered in the wilderness of Sinai, from twenty years and upwards, were now condemned to die in the wilderness sometime in the next 38 years. Some would necessarily die in their 50's and 60's, but an average could certainly be 70 and probably no more than 80. At this time in Moses's life, 70-80 years could have seemed the average lifespan to him; even in our current time we would say that is the average lifespan, even though many people live past 100.
Although the days of their lives be 70 years, maybe longer by reason of strength, that strength was only through toil and sorrow, and it was soon cut off anyway, and they flew away, either intimating they disappeared as quickly as a bird flies away, or maybe referencing that they flew away to heaven. Interestingly, the word translated as "sorrow" is "aven" and means "in vain, nothingness". This reminds me of the lines in Ecclesiastes that declare all is vanity or nothingness. The sense of these lines by Moses above probably is something to the effect of "The days of our lives; what are they? Just toil and sorrow and then they are cut off!"
(11) Who knows the power of Your anger?
Even according to the fear of You, so is Your wrath.
Who can truly comprehend or measure the power of God's anger? That anger that had been expressed in His judgments against men's sins in truly awesome and powerful ways in the past? Consider the drowning of the whole world in Noah's time, the burning and destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the immediate striking dead of men in the wilderness, etc. Who could possibly understand the expanse of His power under any circumstances, but Moses contemplated His power expressed in anger. Even as God was awesome, great, and powerful beyond man's comprehension, so was His wrath.
(12) So teach us to number our days,
That we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Moses prayed that the Lord instruct them to estimate their days correctly, understanding how quickly they pass, and the uncertainty of when they might suddenly end, that they might gain a wise heart. They should live wisely in God's favor looking forward to eternity, understanding that life on earth is short and uncertain. They should live every day as if it were their last, so to speak.
(13) Return, O LORD!
How long?
And let it turn You concerning Your servants.
Moses pleaded with the Lord to return to His people, showing mercy and sparing them. He wondered how long this expression of His wrath would last. He pleaded that the Lord turn from His expression of wrath against His people, withdrawing His judgment, and showing mercy to them.
(14) Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy,
That we may rejoice and be glad all our days!
Moses prayed that the Lord satisfy them with the answer to their prayers by showing mercy soon, literally in the morning, presumably the next morning. He asked this that the people might rejoice and be glad all their lives, remembering God's love, grace, and mercy, at this time in their lives.
(15) Make us glad according to the days You have afflicted us,
The years we have seen evil.
The prayer seems to be that the people be glad in proportion to their affliction. Considering all their time in captivity and their time in the wilderness, Moses was praying that their joy be so great as to make up for all their years of affliction. In fact, as stated in Romans 8:18, "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us", there really is no comparison between the evils of this world and the joy and gladness in Heaven. However, I imagine Moses was praying for the people's hearts to be joyful in great measure comparable to the great misery they had endured in this present life.
(16) Let Your work appear to Your servants,
And Your glory to their children.
I believe the meaning is that Moses asked that the Lord's great work in what he prayed for at that time, God's mercy in withdrawing His judgment on His people, be done, and seen, and truly appreciated by His people. In addition, His glory, displayed in the acts of providence and grace for which Moses prayed, would be known and celebrated by their children. Put simply, Moses's prayer was that all the glory be given to God in answering his request.
(17) And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us,
And establish the work of our hands on us;
Yes, establish the work of our hands.
The word translated as "beauty", "noam", literally means "agreeableness". Moses prayed that the pleasure of the Lord be upon His people, and that He would guide them in their work and endeavors. The fact that this last part was repeated suggests an intense desire that God would enable them to carry out their plans; in this case, it was surely that they be allowed to reach their promised land.
According to Albert Barnes, if this was truly a prayer of Moses, as stated in verse 1, then it was "the only one of his compositions which we have in the Book of Psalms". We had a song of Moses recorded in Exodus 15, and there is another song of his recorded in Deuteronomy 32. Whereas the original word "mizmor" translated as "psalm" literally means "song" or "poem set to notes", this particular psalm was said to be a "tephillah", meaning "intercession", "supplication", "prayer". However, this prayer was very poetic, and it seems appropriate that it be considered among the psalms. The next post will return to Numbers 15, after this intermission of poetic prayer and supplication by Moses.
Saturday, November 24, 2018
Sunday, November 4, 2018
The Israelites Are Sentenced to Wandering in the Wilderness for Forty Years
Continuing a chronological Bible study:
(Numbers 14:1) And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.
At the end of the last chapter and post, ten of the twelve men who had spied out the land of Canaan that the Lord had already stated He was giving them and driving out its inhabitants, came back with a bad report that the land was filled with giants and fortified cities and that there was no way they could go up against those people. At the news of this, the people cried throughout the night. So it appears that none of the congregation believed as Caleb did in the last chapter, that all they had to do was to go in and possess the land the Lord had already given them. They all believed the bad report rather than the word of their Lord God.
(2) And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron; and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness!"
Once again, as seen before, a few sowed discord, and soon the entire congregation was complaining about Moses and Aaron, and actually saying to them that they wished they had died in Egypt or in this wilderness rather than to be brought to this moment in time. Spoiler alert--be careful what you wish for!
(3) "And why has the LORD brought us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children should be prey? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?”
Incredibly, the people start complaining against the Lord, too. Why had He brought them to this land only to be killed, not just them, but their wives and children to be innocent victims of beasts of prey. After all the miraculous things they had seen the Lord do for them, they now thought it better that they return to their life in bondage in Egypt. It's just unbelievable to me when I read this, but I know in so many ways that while God is carrying us through difficult situations, we may become frightened and doubtful, and long to go back within our comfort zones, unwilling to possess the great things the Lord is trying to give us. It's easy to see that those degenerate Israelites acted so foolishly and in rebellion to their Lord; it's often that we cannot see ourselves accurately. But what a wonderful lesson to remind us that we should always remember the continual blessings of our Lord, and never doubt Him by allowing our hearts to be troubled by our present situations. The same Lord who has brought us to this present time is well able to continue to carry us through! Why do we always try to put limits on God? I know in my case, sometimes it's not that I doubt that He can do something, but that He will do it in a particular case. Sometimes I feel unworthy to expect that He will do something for me. Then I am reminded that of course, I am unworthy! We are all unworthy! (Rom. 3:10 and 23) But He loves us in spite of that! He cares about every hair on our heads (Luke 12:7); He works all things to the good of those who love Him (Rom. 8:28); He wants to prosper and not harm us (Jer. 29:11). God is all good, all loving, all faithful, and sees all things that are and will be, so we can completely trust Him. Regarding the limits we put on God, I recall a perfect analogy in the book, The Case for Christ, by Lee Strobel, that I read some years ago. Just as we cannot comprehend the mind and abilities of God, and may not recognize what God is doing in our present situation is actually good, compare that to the mind and abilities of a person with a wounded bear. The bear will feel attacked when it is shot with a tranquilizer gun, not realizing that the man is actually doing that to save it. Our simple human selves cannot comprehend the mind of God and what He is doing to save us, but we know that we can always trust Him.
(4) And they said one to another, "Let us make a captain, and let us return to Egypt."
Astonishingly, the people actually decided among themselves to appoint a captain, rejecting Moses, and selecting a new leader who would lead them back to Egypt. What madness! Not only were they going back to bondage, but suggesting they leave the care and provision of their Lord? Who was going to feed them every day as had been the case in their journey to this point? Or did they expect that even after they had rejected their Lord, His word, and His servant Moses, that He would bless and provide for them all the way back into their captivity? I liken this one to our country and the motto that "God Bless America". We ask Him to bless us even though we kill millions of innocent babies, celebrate homosexuality and immorality in all sorts of forms, etc. What madness! It comes down to a simple choice between life everlasting with our Lord or death with the ways of the world:
"I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live." - Deuteronomy 30:19
"Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage." - Galatians 5:1
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death." - Psalm 14:12
"You adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." - James 4:4
Once again, if we are an enemy of God, can we expect Him to bless us? Can we survive without the blessing of God? Consider these verses:
"Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD..." - Psalm 33:12a
"The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God." - Psalm 9:17
"For the nation and kingdom which will not serve You shall perish, and those nations shall be utterly wasted." - Isaiah 60:12
"Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people." - Proverbs 14:34
What's a person to do when his country has gone mad and is wicked? There will be blessed people within a cursed nation:
"If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?...Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest; this shall be the portion of their cup. For the righteous LORD loves righteousness; his countenance beholds the upright." - Psalm 11:3, 6-7
"But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him." - Acts 10:35
"And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt." - Genesis 19:29
Now back to the 14th chapter of Numbers:
(5) Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.
Obviously, Moses and Aaron recognized the madness of what the people suggested, and fell on their faces in prayer for this ungrateful lot.
(6) And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had searched the land, tore their clothes.
Joshua and Caleb who had been among the twelve spies who searched out the land, obviously recognized the blasphemous madness of the people, too. They tore their clothes in mourning over what they heard.
(7) And they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, “The land we passed through to search, is an exceedingly good land. (8) If the LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey."
Joshua and Caleb pleaded with the people, assuring them that the land was indeed an exceedingly good land flowing with milk and honey. They pointed out that if the Lord delighted in them, He would bring them into the land and give it to them, recognizing that provoking the Lord in this manner after all He had done and promised to them, was not the way to bring the promise to fruition.
(9) “Only do not rebel against the LORD, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their defense has departed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them."
Joshua and Caleb continued pleading with the people, trying to reassure them that with their Lord with them, they had nothing to fear. Having complete faith in what the Lord had told them, that He would drive out the inhabitants from before them to give them this land, they reasoned those inhabitants were merely bread to them, meaning either they could be devoured as bread, or maybe that all their substance would now be the provision (bread) for the Israelites.
(10) But all the congregation said to stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.
Incredibly, the people would not listen to the wisdom of Joshua and Caleb, and started calling for them to be stoned! It was at this point that the Lord intervened, and His glory in a visible manifestation appeared in the tabernacle before all the people.
(11) And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will these people provoke Me? And how long will it be before they believe me, with all the signs which I have shown among them?"
The Lord spoke to Moses. The word "provoke" generally means to us to incite anger, but the original word "naats" also meant "scorn, despise, blaspheme", which would understandably provoke. With all the visible miraculous signs God had shown the people, He asked how long it would be before they would believe and trust in Him.
(12) “I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.”
The Lord continued speaking to Moses, declaring He would strike the people with pestilence and disinherit them, and make from Moses a greater nation with whom He would continue His covenant.
(13) And Moses said to the LORD: “Then the Egyptians will hear it, for by Your might You brought these people up from among them, (14) And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land; they have heard that You, LORD, are among these people; that You, LORD, are seen face to face and Your cloud stands above them, and You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. (15) Now if You kill these people as one man, then the nations which have heard of Your fame will speak, saying, (16) 'Because the LORD was not able to bring this people to the land which He swore to give them, therefore He has killed them in the wilderness.’"
Moses answered the Lord, interceding for this ungrateful and undeserving people. Perhaps it was also (maybe more so) because he did not want such actions to diminish His Lord in the eyes of the world, as suggested by his words. He reasoned that if the Lord killed His people and disinherited them, the Egyptians, from whom the Lord had rescued His people, would hear about it. Word would spread to Canaan. These other people had heard that the Lord was seen among His people, visible in the pillar of cloud and fire, leading them through the wilderness to their promised land. Moses reasoned that if the Lord killed all His people in one fell swoop, then the other nations would believe that it was because He was unable to bring them into the land He had sworn to give them.
(17) "And now, I beseech You, let the power of my Lord be great, just as You have spoken, saying, (18) ‘The LORD is longsuffering and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation.’"
Moses begged the Lord to let His power be shown to the world as great. Moses prayed according to the word of His Lord (Exodus 34:6-7), in which he held as truth that the Lord was patient and merciful, forgiving iniquity and sin. Also remembering His word, Moses realized this by no means meant the guilty should be let off completely scot-free. His prayer appears to be (although he realized the Lord would visit the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations) that He not utterly destroy them, thus destroying their succeeding generations. He knew the people must be punished, but pleaded that they not be utterly destroyed.
(19) "Pardon, I beseech You, the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of Your mercy, and as You have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”
Moses pleaded with the Lord to forgive them according to the greatness of His mercy. I believe the suggestion here is that the greatness of the Lord's mercy was much greater than the great sin of the people. He acknowledged that the Lord had exercised His great capacity to forgive these people on multiple occasions from the time they left Egypt until now, and he pleaded that He do it again.
(20) And the LORD said, “I have pardoned, according to your word."
The Lord agreed to pardon the people according to Moses's prayerful request, not completely, to be sure, but in that He would not utterly destroy them. Matthew Henry, in his Commentary on the Whole Bible, put it this way, "Here is a whole nation rescued from ruin by the effectual fervent prayer of one righteous man", a direct reference to James 5:16.
(21) “But truly, as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD."
The Lord continued speaking with Moses, in the form of an oath, that all the earth indeed would be filled with His glory. Perhaps this was also in answer to prayer. Moses had shown great concern for the glory of His Lord. In this response, the Lord assured him that in whatever manner He chose to deal with this people, the earth would indeed know that it was by His power and glory.
(22) "Because all those men who have seen My glory and My miracles which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted Me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to My voice, (23) Surely they shall not see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who provoked Me see it."
The Lord went on to proclaim that all those men of His people who had witnessed His miracles, but had rejected and rebelled against Him ten times, would not see the land that He had sworn to their fathers. Some of the commentaries I study suggested that ten was the number indicating completeness, the sense being that the measure of their provocation was now full. Others enumerate exactly ten times when the people rebelled against the Lord: twice at the sea, twice concerning water, twice about manna, twice about quails, once by the calf, and once in the wilderness of Paran.
(24) “But My servant Caleb, because he had a different spirit in him and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land where he went, and his descendants shall possess it."
None of the people would see the land except for Caleb, who had a different spirit in him than the other men and had followed the Lord fully. The Lord would bring Caleb into the land and his descendants would possess it. Joshua is not mentioned here, but we will see later he is included. Perhaps as Moses's servant, his faithfulness was taken for granted, but the Lord took this opportunity to recognize Caleb.
(25) “Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valley; tomorrow turn and move out into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.”
Whereas before the Lord had promised to drive out the inhabitants from before them to give them this land, now He proclaimed them an enemy to be feared, and told them to turn back the next day, and move into the wilderness back toward the Red Sea.
(26) And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, (27) “How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who murmur against Me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they make against Me."
The Lord still speaking to just Moses and Aaron, seemed to wearily ask how long He would have to put up with this unfaithful and ungrateful lot who complained against Him, as He had heard all their grumblings.
(28) “Say to them, ‘As I live,’ says the LORD, ‘just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you.'"
It was at this point that the Lord told Moses and Aaron to tell the people what He had decided to do with them. They were to tell the people that just as they had murmured and wished for, He would do to them.
(29) "'Your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, who have murmured against me, (30) Undoubtedly, you shall not come into the land which I swore I would make you dwell in, except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.'"
The Lord said to tell the people that they would indeed die in the wilderness just as they had called for in verse 2. All those mighty men who had been before counted, from twenty years old and upward, who had murmured against the Lord, would not come into the land the Lord had promised to give them. He made an exception for Caleb and Joshua, who had trusted their Lord.
(31) "‘But your little ones, whom you said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.'"
However, their children, whom the people had said in verse 3 should be prey for the Canaanites, the Lord would bring into the promised land and they would get to know and enjoy the land which their fathers had rejected.
(32) "‘But as for you, your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness.'"
Once again the Lord reiterated that this present generation would die in the wilderness.
(33) "'And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcasses are wasted in the wilderness.'"
The children would have to wander in the wilderness forty years because of their fathers' several acts of infidelity and faithlessness, until the time when the fathers had all died in the wilderness.
(34) "‘According to the number of the days in which you searched the land, forty days, each day for a year, you shall bear your iniquities forty years, and you shall know My breach of promise.'"
The Israelites would be made to wander in the wilderness forty years, a year for each day that they searched out the land, content to wait forty days for the testimony of men because they would not take God's word; and therefore they are justly kept forty years waiting for the fruition of God's promise. God would never actually breach His promise; the meaning of the original word "tenuah", translated as "breach of promise" here, means more of an alienation for a time, or a turning away for a time. The only other place in scripture it was used was in Job 33:10 where it was translated as "occasions"; in neither case was it a permanent breach of promise. All the biblical commentaries I study agree that this would be an additional 38 1/2 years in the wilderness added to the year and a half it had been since they left Egypt, totaling forty years in the wilderness after their exodus from Egypt. In this time a new generation would be raised up, and the children, being brought up bearing their fathers' whoredoms, the punishment of their sins, might take warning not to tread in the steps of their fathers' disobedience. Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, made it a point that God made them to wander in the wilderness; they couldn't do anything else! They would be unable to make for themselves a captain and go back to Egypt (v. 4), but would die in the wilderness as they had wished (v. 2).
(35) "'I the LORD have said, I will surely do it to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me; in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.'"
As the Lord had spoken, He vowed to surely do to all that evil congregation who had gathered against Him, faithless and ungrateful for all He had done, turning from Him, wishing to go back to the bondage in Egypt. They would all be consumed and die in the wilderness.
(36) And the men whom Moses sent to search the land, who returned and made all the congregation complain against him by bringing a slander on the land, (37) Even those men who brought the evil report about the land, died by the plague before the LORD.
The ten men of the twelve who had been sent out to spy on the land, the ones who came back with a slanderous report about the land and stirred up the congregation to complain against Moses, even those chosen spies died by the plague before the Lord. The original word translated as "plague", that is "maggephah", meant "plague, pestilence", and even "slaughter". Dr. John Gill wrote in his Exposition of the Entire Bible, that the Jews' traditional relating of the story was that the men were eaten by worms that came out of their bodies. Whatever form it took, I'm sure it was immediate and understood by all to be by the hand of God.
(38) But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were of the men who went to search the land, remained alive.
Joshua and Caleb, two of the twelve spies, were spared and did not die in the plague, because they believed God and did not participate in the delivery of the bad report. Some of the commentaries I study pointed out that it was very probable that the twelve spies stood together, making it very remarkable that just the ten with the bad reports fell dead before the congregation, and these two remained alive.
(39) And Moses told these words to all the children of Israel, and the people mourned greatly.
Moses told the people what the Lord had told him to tell them about how they would never see the promised land, but would wander in the wilderness forty years and die there. The people greatly mourned, but whether it was for true repentance, or just on account of the evil that was coming to them, we don't really know.
(40) And they rose early in the morning and went up to the top of the mountain, saying, “Here we are, and we will go up to the place which the LORD has promised, for we have sinned!”
The next morning the people went up to the top of the mountain which was the way the spies had gone into the land of Canaan, saying they were now ready to go into the land the Lord had promised them. They seemed to acknowledge they had sinned in believing the bad report, but in this action, they were ignoring the word of God that they would not go into the promised land, but would die in the wilderness.
(41) And Moses said, “Why now do you transgress the command of the LORD? For this will not succeed. (42) Do not go up, for the LORD is not among you, that you be not smitten before your enemies. (43) For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and you shall fall by the sword; because you have turned away from the LORD, the LORD will not be with you.”
Moses pointed out to the people they were again transgressing the word of the Lord. He had said they would not enter the promised land, so their attempt to go into it would not succeed. He told them not to go up the mountain and into the land because the Lord was not with them to protect them from being killed by their enemies, the Amalekites and the Canaanites, the current inhabitants of the land.
(44) But they presumed to go up to the mountaintop. Nevertheless, neither the ark of the covenant of the LORD nor Moses departed from the camp.
Incredibly, in an audacious and presumptuous manner, the people continued up the mountaintop, ignoring Moses's warning. A flood of thoughts come to me when I consider how often we continue with our godless ways, ignoring what God has said about certain topics like life and marriage and sexual purity and idolatry. Again I think of how we dare to say, "God Bless America" when we are a country killing innocent babies and celebrating homosexual marriage, a thing God called an abomination. God cannot bless this country, yet we think we can continue in our ways without His blessing? Indeed the actions of the Israelites at this point are perfect illustrations of our current ways.
Neither the ark of the covenant nor Moses departed from the camp. I believe the point here is that the cloud of the Lord which rested over the ark was not taken up indicating they should move forward. Neither the Lord nor Moses were with them, yet they moved forward anyway.
(45) Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who dwelt in that mountain came down and smote them, and beat them back as far as Hormah.
Sure enough, the Amalekites and Canaanites who dwelt in that mountain came down and killed the Israelites, and drove those they did not kill back to Hormah. Bible scholars are not sure where this was exactly, but you can be sure it was far enough back into the wilderness to prevent the people from thinking they should try that again. It was probably "into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea", as the Lord had told them to go in verse 25. I like the words of Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, regarding this episode:
How vain is the counsel of man against the wisdom of God! Nature, poor, fallen human nature, is ever running into extremes. This miserable people, a short time ago, thought that though they had Omnipotence with them they could not conquer and possess the land! Now they imagine that though God himself go not with them, yet they shall be sufficient to drive out the inhabitants, and take possession of their country! Man is ever supposing he can either do all things or do nothing; he is therefore sometimes presumptuous, and at other times in despair. Who but an apostle, or one under the influence of the same Spirit, can say, I can do All Things Through Christ who strengtheneth me?
This chapter told how it came to be that the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years, when they could have reached their promised land in a much shorter time. Matthew Henry summed up this chapter this way: "This chapter gives us an account of that fatal quarrel between God and Israel upon which, for their murmuring and unbelief, he swore in his wrath that they should not enter into his rest."
(Numbers 14:1) And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.
At the end of the last chapter and post, ten of the twelve men who had spied out the land of Canaan that the Lord had already stated He was giving them and driving out its inhabitants, came back with a bad report that the land was filled with giants and fortified cities and that there was no way they could go up against those people. At the news of this, the people cried throughout the night. So it appears that none of the congregation believed as Caleb did in the last chapter, that all they had to do was to go in and possess the land the Lord had already given them. They all believed the bad report rather than the word of their Lord God.
(2) And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron; and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness!"
Once again, as seen before, a few sowed discord, and soon the entire congregation was complaining about Moses and Aaron, and actually saying to them that they wished they had died in Egypt or in this wilderness rather than to be brought to this moment in time. Spoiler alert--be careful what you wish for!
(3) "And why has the LORD brought us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children should be prey? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?”
Incredibly, the people start complaining against the Lord, too. Why had He brought them to this land only to be killed, not just them, but their wives and children to be innocent victims of beasts of prey. After all the miraculous things they had seen the Lord do for them, they now thought it better that they return to their life in bondage in Egypt. It's just unbelievable to me when I read this, but I know in so many ways that while God is carrying us through difficult situations, we may become frightened and doubtful, and long to go back within our comfort zones, unwilling to possess the great things the Lord is trying to give us. It's easy to see that those degenerate Israelites acted so foolishly and in rebellion to their Lord; it's often that we cannot see ourselves accurately. But what a wonderful lesson to remind us that we should always remember the continual blessings of our Lord, and never doubt Him by allowing our hearts to be troubled by our present situations. The same Lord who has brought us to this present time is well able to continue to carry us through! Why do we always try to put limits on God? I know in my case, sometimes it's not that I doubt that He can do something, but that He will do it in a particular case. Sometimes I feel unworthy to expect that He will do something for me. Then I am reminded that of course, I am unworthy! We are all unworthy! (Rom. 3:10 and 23) But He loves us in spite of that! He cares about every hair on our heads (Luke 12:7); He works all things to the good of those who love Him (Rom. 8:28); He wants to prosper and not harm us (Jer. 29:11). God is all good, all loving, all faithful, and sees all things that are and will be, so we can completely trust Him. Regarding the limits we put on God, I recall a perfect analogy in the book, The Case for Christ, by Lee Strobel, that I read some years ago. Just as we cannot comprehend the mind and abilities of God, and may not recognize what God is doing in our present situation is actually good, compare that to the mind and abilities of a person with a wounded bear. The bear will feel attacked when it is shot with a tranquilizer gun, not realizing that the man is actually doing that to save it. Our simple human selves cannot comprehend the mind of God and what He is doing to save us, but we know that we can always trust Him.
(4) And they said one to another, "Let us make a captain, and let us return to Egypt."
Astonishingly, the people actually decided among themselves to appoint a captain, rejecting Moses, and selecting a new leader who would lead them back to Egypt. What madness! Not only were they going back to bondage, but suggesting they leave the care and provision of their Lord? Who was going to feed them every day as had been the case in their journey to this point? Or did they expect that even after they had rejected their Lord, His word, and His servant Moses, that He would bless and provide for them all the way back into their captivity? I liken this one to our country and the motto that "God Bless America". We ask Him to bless us even though we kill millions of innocent babies, celebrate homosexuality and immorality in all sorts of forms, etc. What madness! It comes down to a simple choice between life everlasting with our Lord or death with the ways of the world:
"I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live." - Deuteronomy 30:19
"Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage." - Galatians 5:1
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death." - Psalm 14:12
"You adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." - James 4:4
Once again, if we are an enemy of God, can we expect Him to bless us? Can we survive without the blessing of God? Consider these verses:
"Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD..." - Psalm 33:12a
"The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God." - Psalm 9:17
"For the nation and kingdom which will not serve You shall perish, and those nations shall be utterly wasted." - Isaiah 60:12
"Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people." - Proverbs 14:34
What's a person to do when his country has gone mad and is wicked? There will be blessed people within a cursed nation:
"If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?...Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest; this shall be the portion of their cup. For the righteous LORD loves righteousness; his countenance beholds the upright." - Psalm 11:3, 6-7
"But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him." - Acts 10:35
"And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt." - Genesis 19:29
Now back to the 14th chapter of Numbers:
(5) Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.
Obviously, Moses and Aaron recognized the madness of what the people suggested, and fell on their faces in prayer for this ungrateful lot.
(6) And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had searched the land, tore their clothes.
Joshua and Caleb who had been among the twelve spies who searched out the land, obviously recognized the blasphemous madness of the people, too. They tore their clothes in mourning over what they heard.
(7) And they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, “The land we passed through to search, is an exceedingly good land. (8) If the LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey."
Joshua and Caleb pleaded with the people, assuring them that the land was indeed an exceedingly good land flowing with milk and honey. They pointed out that if the Lord delighted in them, He would bring them into the land and give it to them, recognizing that provoking the Lord in this manner after all He had done and promised to them, was not the way to bring the promise to fruition.
(9) “Only do not rebel against the LORD, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their defense has departed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them."
Joshua and Caleb continued pleading with the people, trying to reassure them that with their Lord with them, they had nothing to fear. Having complete faith in what the Lord had told them, that He would drive out the inhabitants from before them to give them this land, they reasoned those inhabitants were merely bread to them, meaning either they could be devoured as bread, or maybe that all their substance would now be the provision (bread) for the Israelites.
(10) But all the congregation said to stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.
Incredibly, the people would not listen to the wisdom of Joshua and Caleb, and started calling for them to be stoned! It was at this point that the Lord intervened, and His glory in a visible manifestation appeared in the tabernacle before all the people.
(11) And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will these people provoke Me? And how long will it be before they believe me, with all the signs which I have shown among them?"
The Lord spoke to Moses. The word "provoke" generally means to us to incite anger, but the original word "naats" also meant "scorn, despise, blaspheme", which would understandably provoke. With all the visible miraculous signs God had shown the people, He asked how long it would be before they would believe and trust in Him.
(12) “I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.”
The Lord continued speaking to Moses, declaring He would strike the people with pestilence and disinherit them, and make from Moses a greater nation with whom He would continue His covenant.
(13) And Moses said to the LORD: “Then the Egyptians will hear it, for by Your might You brought these people up from among them, (14) And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land; they have heard that You, LORD, are among these people; that You, LORD, are seen face to face and Your cloud stands above them, and You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. (15) Now if You kill these people as one man, then the nations which have heard of Your fame will speak, saying, (16) 'Because the LORD was not able to bring this people to the land which He swore to give them, therefore He has killed them in the wilderness.’"
Moses answered the Lord, interceding for this ungrateful and undeserving people. Perhaps it was also (maybe more so) because he did not want such actions to diminish His Lord in the eyes of the world, as suggested by his words. He reasoned that if the Lord killed His people and disinherited them, the Egyptians, from whom the Lord had rescued His people, would hear about it. Word would spread to Canaan. These other people had heard that the Lord was seen among His people, visible in the pillar of cloud and fire, leading them through the wilderness to their promised land. Moses reasoned that if the Lord killed all His people in one fell swoop, then the other nations would believe that it was because He was unable to bring them into the land He had sworn to give them.
(17) "And now, I beseech You, let the power of my Lord be great, just as You have spoken, saying, (18) ‘The LORD is longsuffering and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation.’"
Moses begged the Lord to let His power be shown to the world as great. Moses prayed according to the word of His Lord (Exodus 34:6-7), in which he held as truth that the Lord was patient and merciful, forgiving iniquity and sin. Also remembering His word, Moses realized this by no means meant the guilty should be let off completely scot-free. His prayer appears to be (although he realized the Lord would visit the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations) that He not utterly destroy them, thus destroying their succeeding generations. He knew the people must be punished, but pleaded that they not be utterly destroyed.
(19) "Pardon, I beseech You, the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of Your mercy, and as You have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”
Moses pleaded with the Lord to forgive them according to the greatness of His mercy. I believe the suggestion here is that the greatness of the Lord's mercy was much greater than the great sin of the people. He acknowledged that the Lord had exercised His great capacity to forgive these people on multiple occasions from the time they left Egypt until now, and he pleaded that He do it again.
(20) And the LORD said, “I have pardoned, according to your word."
The Lord agreed to pardon the people according to Moses's prayerful request, not completely, to be sure, but in that He would not utterly destroy them. Matthew Henry, in his Commentary on the Whole Bible, put it this way, "Here is a whole nation rescued from ruin by the effectual fervent prayer of one righteous man", a direct reference to James 5:16.
(21) “But truly, as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD."
The Lord continued speaking with Moses, in the form of an oath, that all the earth indeed would be filled with His glory. Perhaps this was also in answer to prayer. Moses had shown great concern for the glory of His Lord. In this response, the Lord assured him that in whatever manner He chose to deal with this people, the earth would indeed know that it was by His power and glory.
(22) "Because all those men who have seen My glory and My miracles which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted Me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to My voice, (23) Surely they shall not see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who provoked Me see it."
The Lord went on to proclaim that all those men of His people who had witnessed His miracles, but had rejected and rebelled against Him ten times, would not see the land that He had sworn to their fathers. Some of the commentaries I study suggested that ten was the number indicating completeness, the sense being that the measure of their provocation was now full. Others enumerate exactly ten times when the people rebelled against the Lord: twice at the sea, twice concerning water, twice about manna, twice about quails, once by the calf, and once in the wilderness of Paran.
(24) “But My servant Caleb, because he had a different spirit in him and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land where he went, and his descendants shall possess it."
None of the people would see the land except for Caleb, who had a different spirit in him than the other men and had followed the Lord fully. The Lord would bring Caleb into the land and his descendants would possess it. Joshua is not mentioned here, but we will see later he is included. Perhaps as Moses's servant, his faithfulness was taken for granted, but the Lord took this opportunity to recognize Caleb.
(25) “Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valley; tomorrow turn and move out into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.”
Whereas before the Lord had promised to drive out the inhabitants from before them to give them this land, now He proclaimed them an enemy to be feared, and told them to turn back the next day, and move into the wilderness back toward the Red Sea.
(26) And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, (27) “How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who murmur against Me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they make against Me."
The Lord still speaking to just Moses and Aaron, seemed to wearily ask how long He would have to put up with this unfaithful and ungrateful lot who complained against Him, as He had heard all their grumblings.
(28) “Say to them, ‘As I live,’ says the LORD, ‘just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you.'"
It was at this point that the Lord told Moses and Aaron to tell the people what He had decided to do with them. They were to tell the people that just as they had murmured and wished for, He would do to them.
(29) "'Your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, who have murmured against me, (30) Undoubtedly, you shall not come into the land which I swore I would make you dwell in, except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.'"
The Lord said to tell the people that they would indeed die in the wilderness just as they had called for in verse 2. All those mighty men who had been before counted, from twenty years old and upward, who had murmured against the Lord, would not come into the land the Lord had promised to give them. He made an exception for Caleb and Joshua, who had trusted their Lord.
(31) "‘But your little ones, whom you said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.'"
However, their children, whom the people had said in verse 3 should be prey for the Canaanites, the Lord would bring into the promised land and they would get to know and enjoy the land which their fathers had rejected.
(32) "‘But as for you, your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness.'"
Once again the Lord reiterated that this present generation would die in the wilderness.
(33) "'And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcasses are wasted in the wilderness.'"
The children would have to wander in the wilderness forty years because of their fathers' several acts of infidelity and faithlessness, until the time when the fathers had all died in the wilderness.
(34) "‘According to the number of the days in which you searched the land, forty days, each day for a year, you shall bear your iniquities forty years, and you shall know My breach of promise.'"
The Israelites would be made to wander in the wilderness forty years, a year for each day that they searched out the land, content to wait forty days for the testimony of men because they would not take God's word; and therefore they are justly kept forty years waiting for the fruition of God's promise. God would never actually breach His promise; the meaning of the original word "tenuah", translated as "breach of promise" here, means more of an alienation for a time, or a turning away for a time. The only other place in scripture it was used was in Job 33:10 where it was translated as "occasions"; in neither case was it a permanent breach of promise. All the biblical commentaries I study agree that this would be an additional 38 1/2 years in the wilderness added to the year and a half it had been since they left Egypt, totaling forty years in the wilderness after their exodus from Egypt. In this time a new generation would be raised up, and the children, being brought up bearing their fathers' whoredoms, the punishment of their sins, might take warning not to tread in the steps of their fathers' disobedience. Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, made it a point that God made them to wander in the wilderness; they couldn't do anything else! They would be unable to make for themselves a captain and go back to Egypt (v. 4), but would die in the wilderness as they had wished (v. 2).
(35) "'I the LORD have said, I will surely do it to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me; in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.'"
As the Lord had spoken, He vowed to surely do to all that evil congregation who had gathered against Him, faithless and ungrateful for all He had done, turning from Him, wishing to go back to the bondage in Egypt. They would all be consumed and die in the wilderness.
(36) And the men whom Moses sent to search the land, who returned and made all the congregation complain against him by bringing a slander on the land, (37) Even those men who brought the evil report about the land, died by the plague before the LORD.
The ten men of the twelve who had been sent out to spy on the land, the ones who came back with a slanderous report about the land and stirred up the congregation to complain against Moses, even those chosen spies died by the plague before the Lord. The original word translated as "plague", that is "maggephah", meant "plague, pestilence", and even "slaughter". Dr. John Gill wrote in his Exposition of the Entire Bible, that the Jews' traditional relating of the story was that the men were eaten by worms that came out of their bodies. Whatever form it took, I'm sure it was immediate and understood by all to be by the hand of God.
(38) But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were of the men who went to search the land, remained alive.
Joshua and Caleb, two of the twelve spies, were spared and did not die in the plague, because they believed God and did not participate in the delivery of the bad report. Some of the commentaries I study pointed out that it was very probable that the twelve spies stood together, making it very remarkable that just the ten with the bad reports fell dead before the congregation, and these two remained alive.
(39) And Moses told these words to all the children of Israel, and the people mourned greatly.
Moses told the people what the Lord had told him to tell them about how they would never see the promised land, but would wander in the wilderness forty years and die there. The people greatly mourned, but whether it was for true repentance, or just on account of the evil that was coming to them, we don't really know.
(40) And they rose early in the morning and went up to the top of the mountain, saying, “Here we are, and we will go up to the place which the LORD has promised, for we have sinned!”
The next morning the people went up to the top of the mountain which was the way the spies had gone into the land of Canaan, saying they were now ready to go into the land the Lord had promised them. They seemed to acknowledge they had sinned in believing the bad report, but in this action, they were ignoring the word of God that they would not go into the promised land, but would die in the wilderness.
(41) And Moses said, “Why now do you transgress the command of the LORD? For this will not succeed. (42) Do not go up, for the LORD is not among you, that you be not smitten before your enemies. (43) For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and you shall fall by the sword; because you have turned away from the LORD, the LORD will not be with you.”
Moses pointed out to the people they were again transgressing the word of the Lord. He had said they would not enter the promised land, so their attempt to go into it would not succeed. He told them not to go up the mountain and into the land because the Lord was not with them to protect them from being killed by their enemies, the Amalekites and the Canaanites, the current inhabitants of the land.
(44) But they presumed to go up to the mountaintop. Nevertheless, neither the ark of the covenant of the LORD nor Moses departed from the camp.
Incredibly, in an audacious and presumptuous manner, the people continued up the mountaintop, ignoring Moses's warning. A flood of thoughts come to me when I consider how often we continue with our godless ways, ignoring what God has said about certain topics like life and marriage and sexual purity and idolatry. Again I think of how we dare to say, "God Bless America" when we are a country killing innocent babies and celebrating homosexual marriage, a thing God called an abomination. God cannot bless this country, yet we think we can continue in our ways without His blessing? Indeed the actions of the Israelites at this point are perfect illustrations of our current ways.
Neither the ark of the covenant nor Moses departed from the camp. I believe the point here is that the cloud of the Lord which rested over the ark was not taken up indicating they should move forward. Neither the Lord nor Moses were with them, yet they moved forward anyway.
(45) Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who dwelt in that mountain came down and smote them, and beat them back as far as Hormah.
Sure enough, the Amalekites and Canaanites who dwelt in that mountain came down and killed the Israelites, and drove those they did not kill back to Hormah. Bible scholars are not sure where this was exactly, but you can be sure it was far enough back into the wilderness to prevent the people from thinking they should try that again. It was probably "into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea", as the Lord had told them to go in verse 25. I like the words of Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, regarding this episode:
How vain is the counsel of man against the wisdom of God! Nature, poor, fallen human nature, is ever running into extremes. This miserable people, a short time ago, thought that though they had Omnipotence with them they could not conquer and possess the land! Now they imagine that though God himself go not with them, yet they shall be sufficient to drive out the inhabitants, and take possession of their country! Man is ever supposing he can either do all things or do nothing; he is therefore sometimes presumptuous, and at other times in despair. Who but an apostle, or one under the influence of the same Spirit, can say, I can do All Things Through Christ who strengtheneth me?
This chapter told how it came to be that the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years, when they could have reached their promised land in a much shorter time. Matthew Henry summed up this chapter this way: "This chapter gives us an account of that fatal quarrel between God and Israel upon which, for their murmuring and unbelief, he swore in his wrath that they should not enter into his rest."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)