Chapter 26 of Numbers consisted of a very important census which determined the sizes of the inheritances each tribe of Israel would receive. Because Blogger limits the number of labels per post, I have had to divide the study of chapter 26 into eight short posts, as all the names mentioned are of importance. The previous posts are linked here:
Census of Israel in the Plains of Moab, Part 1
Census of Israel in the Plains of Moab, Part 2
Census of Israel in the Plains of Moab, Part 3
Census of Israel in the Plains of Moab, Part 4
Census of Israel in the Plains of Moab, Part 5
Census of Israel in the Plains of Moab, Part 6
Continuing with part 7:
(Numbers 26:57) And these are those who were numbered of the Levites after their families: of Gershon, the family of the Gershonites; of
Kohath, the family of the Kohathites; of Merari, the family of the
Merarites.
The tribe of Levi was not numbered with the other tribes as it did not consist of men of war, but was rather devoted to God for His service. The sons of Levi were Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, and their families were numbered in a census.
(58) These are the families of the Levites: the
family of the Libnites, the family of the Hebronites, the family of the
Mahlites, the family of the Mushites, the family of the Korathites. And
Kohath begat Amram.
From the three sons of Levi came the families of the Libnites from Gershon's son Libni; the Hebronites from Hebron the son of Kohath; the Mahlites and the Mushites from the sons of Merari--Mahli and Mushi; and the Korathites from Korah, the son of Izhar, who was the son of Kohath. In Numbers 3:18-21 we were told of more sons of Gershon and Kohath, but they are not mentioned here as having families. Gershon's son Shimei does not appear to have a family, perhaps because he either had no sons, or if he did, they died without sons, and therefore there was no family to be counted at this time. Kohath's son Uzziel was not mentioned here although we had been told previously in Numbers 6:22 that he had sons Mishael, Elzaphan, and Zithri, but they apparently had no families tracing their descent to him. Kohath's son Amram is mentioned.
(59) The name of Amram’s wife was Jochebed the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt; and to Amram she bore Aaron and Moses and Miriam their sister.
Kohath's son Amram married Jochebed the daughter of Levi, and they were the parents of Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
Because Blogger limits the number of labels each post may have, I have to continue the numbering of the descendants of Levi in yet another short post:
Census of Israel in the Plains of Moab, Part 8
Showing posts with label Miriam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Miriam. Show all posts
Sunday, July 28, 2019
Monday, March 4, 2019
The Deaths of Miriam and Aaron and the Promise That Moses Also Would Not Enter the Promised Land
Continuing a chronological Bible study:
(Numbers 20:1) Then came the children of Israel, the whole congregation, into the desert of Zin in the first month; and the people abode in Kadesh, and Miriam died there, and was buried there.
Some time has passed since the previous chapters and posts, as we will learn later that this was the first month of the fortieth year after their departure from Egypt. The whole congregation came into the desert of Zin, but we know this was an entirely new generation, as God had said all their carcasses would fall in the wilderness (Numbers 14:29) because of their faithlessness. The people dwelt in Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, and Miriam, Moses's sister, died and was buried there.
(2) And there was no water for the congregation, and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
Here we go again! Just as their fathers had murmured against Moses over a lack of water at Rephidim (Exodus 17:3), this generation gathered themselves against Moses and Aaron. Dr. John Gill, in his Exposition of the Entire Bible, suggested that this incident was so ordered by God to demonstrate whether these people would behave any better than their fathers.
(3) And the people chided with Moses, and spoke, saying, “If only we had died when our brethren died before the LORD!"
It's absolutely incredible that the people would wish they had suffered the anger and chastisement of the Lord, rather than be grateful for His sparing them. I suppose the sense is that would have been a quick death rather than a lingering one.
(4) “And why have you brought up the congregation of the LORD into this wilderness, that we and our cattle should die here?"
It's unbelievable that these people had learned nothing about God's continual provision, especially after witnessing what had happened to their fathers for their lack of faith. However, here they are asking Moses why he brought them through this wilderness for forty years just to have them die there. It's really absurd when you think about it!
(5) “And why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to bring us to this evil place? It is no place of seed, or of figs, or vines, or pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink."
The people demand to know why Moses and Aaron had brought them to such an evil place that had no good food or water. As unconscionable as this was toward their Lord who had proved Himself faithful over and over again, think about how selfish and insensitive they were to blast Moses and Aaron with this while they were dealing with the death of their sister.
(6) And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they fell on their faces; and the glory of the LORD appeared to them.
Moses and Aaron didn't answer the people but went directly to the Lord, falling on their faces in reverence and prayer for this irreverent and undeserving people. In this, they represent a type of Christ who constantly intercedes for us undeserving people. The glory of the Lord appeared to Moses and Aaron.
(7) And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, (8) “Take the rod, and gather the assembly together, you, and Aaron your brother, and speak to the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth its water, and you shall bring forth to them water out of the rock; so you shall give the congregation and their beasts drink."
The Lord made no mention of the rebellious nature of the congregation, but simply told Moses to take his rod, the same rod with which he parted the Red Sea and smote the rock at Horeb, and gather the people together at a rock in their sight, and speak to it and it would bring forth water enough for the whole congregation and their animals.
(9) And Moses took the rod from before the LORD, as He commanded him.
Moses took the rod as the Lord had commanded he do. However, that may be where his obedience stopped.
(10) And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels! Must we fetch you water out of this rock?"
God had told Moses to gather the people and speak to the rock. He gathered the people, and spoke to them. Additionally, his language makes it sound as if the power comes from him to give them water from the rock.
(11) And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice; and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also.
Moses struck the rock twice when the Lord had told him just to speak to it, again perhaps demonstrating his own power. However, even though Moses had not done exactly what He had been commanded, the Lord still brought forth water from the rock, and the people and their animals drank.
(12) And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe Me, to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them."
The Lord then spoke to Moses and Aaron, telling them that because they had not believed Him to sanctify Him in the eyes of the children of Israel, they would not be allowed to bring the congregation into the promised land. Perhaps they did not believe that merely speaking to the rock was enough, that they must strike it to bring forth the water. However, it is not by their actions that water was brought forth. The language Moses used in saying "Must we fetch you water...?" does indeed make it sound as if he believed it was by his power that water was provided for the people. His words and actions did not sanctify the Lord in the eyes of the children of Israel because they seem to credit himself and Aaron. Aaron was apparently complicit in this act.
(13) This is the water of Meribah, because the children of Israel strove with the LORD, and He was sanctified in them.
This place was called "Meribah" which means "strife, contention". Biblical scholars say it was called Meribah-Kadesh to distinguish it from the other Meribah where the people also tempted the Lord (Exodus 17:7). The Lord was sanctified after all by His own actions, even though Moses and Aaron had not sanctified Him as they should have. Matthew Henry put it this way in his Commentary on the Whole Bible, "If He be not glorified by us, He will be glorified upon us."
(14) And Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, “Thus says your brother Israel, ‘You know all the hardship that has befallen us, (15) How our fathers went down into Egypt, and we have dwelt in Egypt a long time; and the Egyptians vexed us, and our fathers. (16) And when we cried to the LORD, He heard our voice and sent an angel, and brought us forth out of Egypt; and, behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost of your border. (17) Please let us pass through your country; we will not pass through the fields or through the vineyards, nor will we drink water from the wells; we will go by the king's highway, we will not turn to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed your borders.'"
Moses sent messengers from where they were in Kadesh to the king of Edom. The message began with the reminder that the Israelites and the Edomites were brothers, descending from Jacob and Esau. They went on to explain the hardships they had experienced in Egypt and that the Lord had brought them to Kadesh, a city in the uttermost part of their border. They asked that they be able to pass through their country. They assured him they would not pass through any fields or vineyards, not drink any water from their wells, but go by the king's highway until they had passed their border.
(18) And Edom said to him, “You shall not pass by me, lest I come out against you with the sword.”
However, the king of Edom sent message back that he would not allow them to pass through his land, that he would come out against them with a sword if they did.
(19) And the children of Israel said to him, “We will go by the highway, and if I or my cattle drink of your water, then I will pay for it; let me only pass through on foot, without doing any thing else."
The children of Israel replied back that they would only pass through on the highway on foot, and would do nothing else. However, if any of their people or cattle drank their water, they would pay for it.
(20) And he said, “You shall not go through.” And Edom came out against them with many people, and with a strong hand.
The king of Edom still refused to let the Israelites pass through and came out against them with many people and powerful force.
(21) Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his border; therefore Israel turned away from him.
The king of Edom refused to give the Israelites passage through his land, and it appears that they patiently bore his refusal and turned away.
(22) And the children of Israel, the whole congregation, journeyed from Kadesh, and came to Mount Hor.
The congregation of Israel then journeyed from Kadesh to Mount Hor.
I am following a chronological Bible study by Skip Andrews, and it now takes me to Numbers 33:
(Numbers 33:37) And they removed from Kadesh, and pitched in Mount Hor, in the edge of the land of Edom.
Chapter 33, being an account of the journeys of Israel from when they came out of Egypt, also reported their move from Kadesh to Mount Hor, still at the edge of the land of Edom.
(Numbers 20:23) And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor by the border of the land of Edom, saying, (24) “Aaron shall be gathered to his people, for he shall not enter the land which I have given to the children of Israel, because you rebelled against My word at the water of Meribah."
At Mount Hor the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, and told them Aaron would die and would not enter the promised land because he had rebelled against the word of the Lord at the water of Meribah.
(25) “Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up to Mount Hor."
The Lord continued speaking to Moses and Aaron, and told them to bring Aaron and his son Eleazar up to the top of Mount Hor.
(26) "And strip Aaron of his garments, and put them on Eleazar his son; and Aaron shall be gathered to his people, and shall die there."
Aaron was to be stripped of his priestly garments and they were to be put on his son Eleazar, transferring the office of high priest to him. Then there would Aaron die.
(27) And Moses did as the LORD commanded, and they went up to Mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation.
Moses did as the Lord had commanded and took Aaron and Eleazar up Mount Hor in view of all the congregation of Israel.
(28) And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son; and Aaron died there on the top of the mountain. And Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain.
Moses stripped Aaron of his priestly garments and put them on Eleazar, Aaron's son. Aaron died there on top of Mount Hor, and then Moses and Eleazar came back down from the mountain.
(Numbers 33:38) And Aaron the priest went up to Mount Hor at the commandment of the LORD, and died there in the fortieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, on the first day of the fifth month.
Numbers 33 also tells of this incident with a little more detail. Aaron went up to Mount Hor at the Lord's commandment and died there on the first day of the fifth month in the fortieth year after the children of Israel had come out of Egypt. This was the month called Ab, which contains parts of our July and August. This would have been four months after Aaron's sister, Miriam, had died (Num. 20:1).
(39) And Aaron was a hundred and twenty-three years old when he died on Mount Hor.
Aaron was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor.
(Numbers 20:29) And when all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead, they mourned for Aaron thirty days, all the house of Israel.
When Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain, and the people realized Aaron was dead, all of them mourned for Aaron for thirty days.
In this chapter, we had the deaths of Miriam and Aaron, and the promise that Moses also would not live to enter the promised land. These great leaders of the children of Israel, Moses the representative of the law, Aaron the high priest, and the prophetess Miriam, could not bring the people into possession of their promised land because of their rebellion. Some Biblical scholars have suggested this was by divine design in order to show there was no salvation in the law or the priesthood or the prophets. If all these failed and were not good enough, how could anyone be? Once again we see how we cannot be good enough to enter God's presence and that we need a Savior, and only the sinless perfect Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, can save us.
(Numbers 20:1) Then came the children of Israel, the whole congregation, into the desert of Zin in the first month; and the people abode in Kadesh, and Miriam died there, and was buried there.
Some time has passed since the previous chapters and posts, as we will learn later that this was the first month of the fortieth year after their departure from Egypt. The whole congregation came into the desert of Zin, but we know this was an entirely new generation, as God had said all their carcasses would fall in the wilderness (Numbers 14:29) because of their faithlessness. The people dwelt in Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, and Miriam, Moses's sister, died and was buried there.
(2) And there was no water for the congregation, and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
Here we go again! Just as their fathers had murmured against Moses over a lack of water at Rephidim (Exodus 17:3), this generation gathered themselves against Moses and Aaron. Dr. John Gill, in his Exposition of the Entire Bible, suggested that this incident was so ordered by God to demonstrate whether these people would behave any better than their fathers.
(3) And the people chided with Moses, and spoke, saying, “If only we had died when our brethren died before the LORD!"
It's absolutely incredible that the people would wish they had suffered the anger and chastisement of the Lord, rather than be grateful for His sparing them. I suppose the sense is that would have been a quick death rather than a lingering one.
(4) “And why have you brought up the congregation of the LORD into this wilderness, that we and our cattle should die here?"
It's unbelievable that these people had learned nothing about God's continual provision, especially after witnessing what had happened to their fathers for their lack of faith. However, here they are asking Moses why he brought them through this wilderness for forty years just to have them die there. It's really absurd when you think about it!
(5) “And why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to bring us to this evil place? It is no place of seed, or of figs, or vines, or pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink."
The people demand to know why Moses and Aaron had brought them to such an evil place that had no good food or water. As unconscionable as this was toward their Lord who had proved Himself faithful over and over again, think about how selfish and insensitive they were to blast Moses and Aaron with this while they were dealing with the death of their sister.
(6) And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they fell on their faces; and the glory of the LORD appeared to them.
Moses and Aaron didn't answer the people but went directly to the Lord, falling on their faces in reverence and prayer for this irreverent and undeserving people. In this, they represent a type of Christ who constantly intercedes for us undeserving people. The glory of the Lord appeared to Moses and Aaron.
(7) And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, (8) “Take the rod, and gather the assembly together, you, and Aaron your brother, and speak to the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth its water, and you shall bring forth to them water out of the rock; so you shall give the congregation and their beasts drink."
The Lord made no mention of the rebellious nature of the congregation, but simply told Moses to take his rod, the same rod with which he parted the Red Sea and smote the rock at Horeb, and gather the people together at a rock in their sight, and speak to it and it would bring forth water enough for the whole congregation and their animals.
(9) And Moses took the rod from before the LORD, as He commanded him.
Moses took the rod as the Lord had commanded he do. However, that may be where his obedience stopped.
(10) And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels! Must we fetch you water out of this rock?"
God had told Moses to gather the people and speak to the rock. He gathered the people, and spoke to them. Additionally, his language makes it sound as if the power comes from him to give them water from the rock.
(11) And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice; and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also.
Moses struck the rock twice when the Lord had told him just to speak to it, again perhaps demonstrating his own power. However, even though Moses had not done exactly what He had been commanded, the Lord still brought forth water from the rock, and the people and their animals drank.
(12) And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe Me, to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them."
The Lord then spoke to Moses and Aaron, telling them that because they had not believed Him to sanctify Him in the eyes of the children of Israel, they would not be allowed to bring the congregation into the promised land. Perhaps they did not believe that merely speaking to the rock was enough, that they must strike it to bring forth the water. However, it is not by their actions that water was brought forth. The language Moses used in saying "Must we fetch you water...?" does indeed make it sound as if he believed it was by his power that water was provided for the people. His words and actions did not sanctify the Lord in the eyes of the children of Israel because they seem to credit himself and Aaron. Aaron was apparently complicit in this act.
(13) This is the water of Meribah, because the children of Israel strove with the LORD, and He was sanctified in them.
This place was called "Meribah" which means "strife, contention". Biblical scholars say it was called Meribah-Kadesh to distinguish it from the other Meribah where the people also tempted the Lord (Exodus 17:7). The Lord was sanctified after all by His own actions, even though Moses and Aaron had not sanctified Him as they should have. Matthew Henry put it this way in his Commentary on the Whole Bible, "If He be not glorified by us, He will be glorified upon us."
(14) And Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, “Thus says your brother Israel, ‘You know all the hardship that has befallen us, (15) How our fathers went down into Egypt, and we have dwelt in Egypt a long time; and the Egyptians vexed us, and our fathers. (16) And when we cried to the LORD, He heard our voice and sent an angel, and brought us forth out of Egypt; and, behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost of your border. (17) Please let us pass through your country; we will not pass through the fields or through the vineyards, nor will we drink water from the wells; we will go by the king's highway, we will not turn to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed your borders.'"
Moses sent messengers from where they were in Kadesh to the king of Edom. The message began with the reminder that the Israelites and the Edomites were brothers, descending from Jacob and Esau. They went on to explain the hardships they had experienced in Egypt and that the Lord had brought them to Kadesh, a city in the uttermost part of their border. They asked that they be able to pass through their country. They assured him they would not pass through any fields or vineyards, not drink any water from their wells, but go by the king's highway until they had passed their border.
(18) And Edom said to him, “You shall not pass by me, lest I come out against you with the sword.”
However, the king of Edom sent message back that he would not allow them to pass through his land, that he would come out against them with a sword if they did.
(19) And the children of Israel said to him, “We will go by the highway, and if I or my cattle drink of your water, then I will pay for it; let me only pass through on foot, without doing any thing else."
The children of Israel replied back that they would only pass through on the highway on foot, and would do nothing else. However, if any of their people or cattle drank their water, they would pay for it.
(20) And he said, “You shall not go through.” And Edom came out against them with many people, and with a strong hand.
The king of Edom still refused to let the Israelites pass through and came out against them with many people and powerful force.
(21) Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his border; therefore Israel turned away from him.
The king of Edom refused to give the Israelites passage through his land, and it appears that they patiently bore his refusal and turned away.
(22) And the children of Israel, the whole congregation, journeyed from Kadesh, and came to Mount Hor.
The congregation of Israel then journeyed from Kadesh to Mount Hor.
I am following a chronological Bible study by Skip Andrews, and it now takes me to Numbers 33:
(Numbers 33:37) And they removed from Kadesh, and pitched in Mount Hor, in the edge of the land of Edom.
Chapter 33, being an account of the journeys of Israel from when they came out of Egypt, also reported their move from Kadesh to Mount Hor, still at the edge of the land of Edom.
(Numbers 20:23) And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor by the border of the land of Edom, saying, (24) “Aaron shall be gathered to his people, for he shall not enter the land which I have given to the children of Israel, because you rebelled against My word at the water of Meribah."
At Mount Hor the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, and told them Aaron would die and would not enter the promised land because he had rebelled against the word of the Lord at the water of Meribah.
(25) “Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up to Mount Hor."
The Lord continued speaking to Moses and Aaron, and told them to bring Aaron and his son Eleazar up to the top of Mount Hor.
(26) "And strip Aaron of his garments, and put them on Eleazar his son; and Aaron shall be gathered to his people, and shall die there."
Aaron was to be stripped of his priestly garments and they were to be put on his son Eleazar, transferring the office of high priest to him. Then there would Aaron die.
(27) And Moses did as the LORD commanded, and they went up to Mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation.
Moses did as the Lord had commanded and took Aaron and Eleazar up Mount Hor in view of all the congregation of Israel.
(28) And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son; and Aaron died there on the top of the mountain. And Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain.
Moses stripped Aaron of his priestly garments and put them on Eleazar, Aaron's son. Aaron died there on top of Mount Hor, and then Moses and Eleazar came back down from the mountain.
(Numbers 33:38) And Aaron the priest went up to Mount Hor at the commandment of the LORD, and died there in the fortieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, on the first day of the fifth month.
Numbers 33 also tells of this incident with a little more detail. Aaron went up to Mount Hor at the Lord's commandment and died there on the first day of the fifth month in the fortieth year after the children of Israel had come out of Egypt. This was the month called Ab, which contains parts of our July and August. This would have been four months after Aaron's sister, Miriam, had died (Num. 20:1).
(39) And Aaron was a hundred and twenty-three years old when he died on Mount Hor.
Aaron was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor.
(Numbers 20:29) And when all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead, they mourned for Aaron thirty days, all the house of Israel.
When Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain, and the people realized Aaron was dead, all of them mourned for Aaron for thirty days.
In this chapter, we had the deaths of Miriam and Aaron, and the promise that Moses also would not live to enter the promised land. These great leaders of the children of Israel, Moses the representative of the law, Aaron the high priest, and the prophetess Miriam, could not bring the people into possession of their promised land because of their rebellion. Some Biblical scholars have suggested this was by divine design in order to show there was no salvation in the law or the priesthood or the prophets. If all these failed and were not good enough, how could anyone be? Once again we see how we cannot be good enough to enter God's presence and that we need a Savior, and only the sinless perfect Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, can save us.
Monday, September 3, 2018
God Rebukes the Murmuring of Aaron and Miriam
Continuing a chronological Bible study:
(Numbers 12:1) And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman.
In the last chapter and post, we saw the Israelites grumbling and rebelling against their Lord in the wilderness of Paran. It seems the grumbling continued. Miriam and Aaron were Moses's siblings. They both had high honor and position among the Israelites. Miriam was a prophetess and Aaron was the high priest. From a later scripture in Micah 6:4 (For I brought you up from the land of Egypt...I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam), we see that God called them with Moses to deliver His people from Egypt. Yet here they are grumbling against Moses. It is stated that they spoke against him because he had married an Ethiopian woman. The original word translated as "Ethiopian" was "kushiyth", or "Cushite". There is much disagreement among Biblical scholars as to whom this refers. We know that Moses had married Zipporah, a Midianite, not a Cushite. Because Midian bordered on Ethiopia, they may have been calling Zipporah a Cushite in scorn. Perhaps this was not even Zipporah. "For he had married an Ethiopian woman" seems to be an explanation for the woman Moses had married. We already learned about the marriage to Zipporah and she was not an Ethiopian, so it seems logical that this was another wife. Either Zipporah had died, or Moses took another wife as was often done in his time. I don't believe it really matters who the wife was; the fact was that they were grumbling against Moses.
(2) And they said, “Has the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? Has He not spoken also by us?" And the LORD heard it.
Here we see the real reason for their grumbling. It had nothing to do with Moses's wife. They were jealous. As Micah 6:4 stated, they were called by God also, yet it seemed to them that Moses had done all the talking of late. He had just chosen the seventy elders to help divide his charge. Perhaps because they weren't included in selecting the elders, or perhaps because they felt their position was diminished because of the selection of seventy others, they spoke against Moses. Bringing up his wife may have been because they felt she, too, may have had an elevated position above them because she was Moses's wife, and they were jealous, pure and simple. The Lord heard their grumblings.
(3) (Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all the men who were on the face of the earth.)
This is a parenthetical statement explaining that Moses was the meekest man on the face of the earth. If Moses was so meek, would he have written this about himself? Yes, if he was Holy Spirit inspired to write it. Perhaps it being parenthetical as it was, some later scribe and prophet added it. The word translated as "meek" was "anav", and also means "lowly, poor, afflicted". We know that Moses was definitely afflicted in spirit when he had complained so much to God about his burdens in the last chapter. In whatever manner this came to be written, the reason is basically the same; it was inserted to explain why Moses himself did not vindicate himself, and why the Lord intervened on his behalf, as we will see.
(4) And the LORD spoke suddenly to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tabernacle of the congregation." And the three came out.
It seems the Lord spoke immediately upon hearing Miriam and Aaron, and called them with Moses to the tabernacle. They all three came.
(5) And the LORD came down in the pillar of the cloud and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam; and they both came forth.
The Lord came down in that pillar of cloud that was always over the most holy place of the tabernacle, and which was a symbol of His continual presence. He came to the door of the tabernacle where he called forth Miriam and Aaron, and they came forward to Him.
(6) And He said, "Hear now my words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, will make Myself known to him in a vision, and will speak to him in a dream."
The Lord told Aaron and Miriam to listen to Him, and understand that if there was a prophet, one with a prophetic message from the Lord, among the two of them, then they would receive their message in a dream or vision, as were the usual means of hearing from the Lord.
(7) "My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all My house. (8) With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches, and the similitude of the LORD he shall behold; why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?”
The Lord told Aaron and Miriam that that was not the case with Moses, who was faithful in the house of Israel. He told them that He spoke face to face with Moses plainly, not in obscure riddles or proverbs. Moses would also see an image or likeness of the Lord. We have already learned that no man could have seen God directly and lived (Exodus 33:20), but Moses saw a representation of God as in the burning bush, or something of the glory of God as when He passed by Moses in the cleft of the rock. How could it be that they weren't afraid to speak against God's servant whom He held in such high personal regard?
(9) And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them, and He departed.
God's anger burned against Aaron and Miriam, and He departed from their presence without hearing what they had to say for themselves, which was a plain indication of His anger against them.
(10) And the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow; and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous.
God had already departed from the door of the tabernacle; now it seems the pillar of cloud departed from the tabernacle itself, representing God's deep displeasure with Miriam and Aaron that He would not suffer the cloud to continue over the tabernacle with them there. Miriam was immediately struck with leprosy, her skin turned white as snow. Aaron looked at Miriam and saw that she was leprous. I believe this wasn't meant to be a casual statement that he saw that she was leprous, but rather as the priest, it was his business to inspect her and pronounce her leprous, according to the law of leprosy. Miriam was struck with leprosy, but Aaron was not. It was probably because Miriam was the chief instigator. Her name was mentioned first in verse 1, and Aaron probably followed her lead, just as he had been willing to follow the mob in the making of the golden calf in Exodus 32. Additionally, perhaps God would not have his priesthood so dishonored. Perhaps it was punishment enough and very humbling for Aaron to have to pronounce his sister leprous, knowing the reason why and realizing he also deserved such a punishment.
(11) And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord! Please do not lay this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned. (12) Do not let her be as one dead, whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb.”
Aaron humbled himself to Moses, calling him his lord, confessing his foolish sin, and begging him not to allow their sin to be imposed on them this way. He asked that Miriam not be as one who was dead, as she would ceremonially be, separated and shut off from her people; and not one whose flesh was half consumed like a miscarried or stillborn child who perhaps never fully developed, or one who had been dead for awhile in his mother's womb. It's not as if Moses had the power to make Miriam leprous and to take it away, but thusly Aaron humbled himself to Moses, magnifying to the highest degree Moses's position and power, and perhaps realizing at this point that only Moses's intercession could help them now.
(13) And Moses cried to the LORD, saying, "Heal her now, O God, I beseech You."
Moses cried out to the Lord in prayer, asking that He please heal Miriam. Matthew Henry, in his Commentary on the Whole Bible, wrote about what a beautiful example this was, praying for one who despitefully used him (Matthew 5:44 and Luke 6:28). Moses took no pleasure in the righteous judgment and punishment of the Lord, but in forgiveness prayed for mercy and healing for Miriam.
(14) And the LORD said to Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face, would she not be shamed seven days? Let her be shut out of the camp seven days, and afterward she may be received again.”
God answered Moses, saying that if Miriam's earthly father had spit in her face, showing his displeasure in her, would she not be ashamed and shut herself away for some time? How much more should she be ashamed by her sin against God! He told Moses to shut her out of the camp for seven days, and after that, she could be allowed back in again.
(15) And Miriam was shut out from the camp seven days; and the people did not journey till Miriam was brought in again.
Miriam was indeed shut out of the camp for seven days, and the people did not journey from their camps until she was brought in again. This was certainly due to the fact that the cloud did not direct them to move, but it also taught an important lesson. Those like Miriam under censure and rebuke for sin ought to be treated with forgiveness, comfort, and love (2 Corinthians 2:7-8), and not counted as an enemy (2 Thessalonians 3:15) that they would leave behind.
(16) And afterward the people removed from Hazeroth, and pitched in the wilderness of Paran.
After the seven days and when Miriam was returned to the camp, the people moved from Hazeroth to another campsite within the wilderness of Paran.
As I am doing a chronologically ordered Bible study as set forth by Skip Andrews, I now move on to Numbers 33 as that study directed:
(Numbers 33:16) And they removed from the desert of Sinai, and pitched at Kibroth Hattaavah. (17) And they departed from Kibroth Hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth. (18) And they departed from Hazeroth and pitched in Rithmah.
Actually, these three verses take a step backward and tell us where the Israelites had traveled since leaving the desert of Sinai up to this point. Kibroth Hattaavah is where the people lusted after flesh and the place was so named. From there they moved to Hazeroth where Miriam was struck with leprosy. From Hazeroth they moved to another camp in the wilderness of Paran (Numbers 12:16), and we see in Numbers 33:18 that the name of that place was Rithmah.
(19) And they departed from Rithmah, and pitched at Rimmon Perez. (20) And they departed from Rimmon Perez and pitched in Libnah. (21) And they removed from Libnah and pitched at Rissah. (22) And they journeyed from Rissah and pitched in Kehelathah. (23) And they went from Kehelathah and pitched at Mount Shepher. (24) And they removed from Mount Shepher and camped in Haradah. (25) And they removed from Haradah and pitched in Makheloth. (26) And they removed from Makheloth and camped at Tahath. (27) And they departed from Tahath and pitched at Terah. (28) And they removed from Terah and pitched in Mithcah. (29) And they went from Mithcah and pitched in Hashmonah.
The people continued to journey from place to place, and I can only assume nothing of real importance happened in these places. Dr. John Gill, in his Exposition of the Entire Bible, summarized these travels in the following manner, and I can only take his word for it:
Six miles from Rithmah, and then from Rimmon to Libnah, which was six miles also; and from thence to Rissah, which was six miles more; and from Rissah to, Kehelathah, which was the same number of miles; and from thence to Shapher, which was six miles also; and then they came to Haradah, which was four miles from thence; the next remove was to Makheloth, which was four miles and a half from the last place; then they went to Tahath, which was four miles more; and from thence to Tarah, which also was four miles; the next place they came to was Mithcah, four miles from Tarah; and then to Hashmonah, which was eight miles more.
(30) And they departed from Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth. (31) And they departed from Moseroth and pitched in Bene Jaakan.
The people left Hashmonah and continued their journey. Dr. Gill compared these two verses to the account in Deuteronomy 10:6 and explained: "Thirty two miles from Hashmonah. In Deu 10:6 it is called Mosera; and according to the account there, they came hither from the following place, Benejaakan; probably they went first thither from Hashmonah, and then from Mosera or Moserot, and so to Benejaakan again, going backwards and forwards, so Jarchi; the distance of the two places was twenty four miles."
(32) And they removed from Bene Jaakan and camped at Hor Hagidgad. (33) They went from Hor Hagidgad and pitched in Jotbathah. (34) And they removed from Jotbathah and camped at Abronah. (35) And they departed from Abronah and camped at Ezion Geber. (36) And they removed from Ezion Geber and pitched in the wilderness of Zin, which is Kadesh.
The people continued their journey, and once again I turn to Dr. Gill's summation of these verses:
And they removed from Benejaakan, and encamped at Horhagidgad. In the Targum Jonathan called Gudgod, as it is Gudgodah in Deu 10:7, where the remove to this place is said to be from Mosera; it was twenty miles from Benejaaken; from thence they went to Jotbathah, twenty four miles from Horhagidgad; and from thence to Ebronah, twenty miles more; and so to Eziongeber, of which see 1 Ki 9:26 which was twenty eight miles from Ebrorah; and their next remove was to the wilderness of Zin, which was Kadesh, forty eight miles from Eziongeber.
This is where my chronological Bible study (suggested by Skip Andrews) tells me to stop for now. Again I can only assume that nothing of importance happened in these travels. Hopefully, the people had finally learned their lessons about complaining and murmuring after seeing Miriam, the sister of Moses, a prophetess, and probably the most highly regarded woman among them, struck with leprosy for her murmuring against Moses. Before their journeying was ended, the people will have spent forty years in the wilderness for a journey that could have been completed in a few weeks, because of their unfaithfulness and transgression. Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, compared this to our present-day acts of rebellion that keep us from immediately receiving God's best for us: "How many through their unfaithfulness have been many years in gaining that for which, in the ordinary procedure of Divine grace, a few days had been sufficient! How much ground may a man lose in the Divine life by one act of unfaithfulness or transgression!"
(Numbers 12:1) And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman.
In the last chapter and post, we saw the Israelites grumbling and rebelling against their Lord in the wilderness of Paran. It seems the grumbling continued. Miriam and Aaron were Moses's siblings. They both had high honor and position among the Israelites. Miriam was a prophetess and Aaron was the high priest. From a later scripture in Micah 6:4 (For I brought you up from the land of Egypt...I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam), we see that God called them with Moses to deliver His people from Egypt. Yet here they are grumbling against Moses. It is stated that they spoke against him because he had married an Ethiopian woman. The original word translated as "Ethiopian" was "kushiyth", or "Cushite". There is much disagreement among Biblical scholars as to whom this refers. We know that Moses had married Zipporah, a Midianite, not a Cushite. Because Midian bordered on Ethiopia, they may have been calling Zipporah a Cushite in scorn. Perhaps this was not even Zipporah. "For he had married an Ethiopian woman" seems to be an explanation for the woman Moses had married. We already learned about the marriage to Zipporah and she was not an Ethiopian, so it seems logical that this was another wife. Either Zipporah had died, or Moses took another wife as was often done in his time. I don't believe it really matters who the wife was; the fact was that they were grumbling against Moses.
(2) And they said, “Has the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? Has He not spoken also by us?" And the LORD heard it.
Here we see the real reason for their grumbling. It had nothing to do with Moses's wife. They were jealous. As Micah 6:4 stated, they were called by God also, yet it seemed to them that Moses had done all the talking of late. He had just chosen the seventy elders to help divide his charge. Perhaps because they weren't included in selecting the elders, or perhaps because they felt their position was diminished because of the selection of seventy others, they spoke against Moses. Bringing up his wife may have been because they felt she, too, may have had an elevated position above them because she was Moses's wife, and they were jealous, pure and simple. The Lord heard their grumblings.
(3) (Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all the men who were on the face of the earth.)
This is a parenthetical statement explaining that Moses was the meekest man on the face of the earth. If Moses was so meek, would he have written this about himself? Yes, if he was Holy Spirit inspired to write it. Perhaps it being parenthetical as it was, some later scribe and prophet added it. The word translated as "meek" was "anav", and also means "lowly, poor, afflicted". We know that Moses was definitely afflicted in spirit when he had complained so much to God about his burdens in the last chapter. In whatever manner this came to be written, the reason is basically the same; it was inserted to explain why Moses himself did not vindicate himself, and why the Lord intervened on his behalf, as we will see.
(4) And the LORD spoke suddenly to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tabernacle of the congregation." And the three came out.
It seems the Lord spoke immediately upon hearing Miriam and Aaron, and called them with Moses to the tabernacle. They all three came.
(5) And the LORD came down in the pillar of the cloud and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam; and they both came forth.
The Lord came down in that pillar of cloud that was always over the most holy place of the tabernacle, and which was a symbol of His continual presence. He came to the door of the tabernacle where he called forth Miriam and Aaron, and they came forward to Him.
(6) And He said, "Hear now my words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, will make Myself known to him in a vision, and will speak to him in a dream."
The Lord told Aaron and Miriam to listen to Him, and understand that if there was a prophet, one with a prophetic message from the Lord, among the two of them, then they would receive their message in a dream or vision, as were the usual means of hearing from the Lord.
(7) "My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all My house. (8) With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches, and the similitude of the LORD he shall behold; why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?”
The Lord told Aaron and Miriam that that was not the case with Moses, who was faithful in the house of Israel. He told them that He spoke face to face with Moses plainly, not in obscure riddles or proverbs. Moses would also see an image or likeness of the Lord. We have already learned that no man could have seen God directly and lived (Exodus 33:20), but Moses saw a representation of God as in the burning bush, or something of the glory of God as when He passed by Moses in the cleft of the rock. How could it be that they weren't afraid to speak against God's servant whom He held in such high personal regard?
(9) And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them, and He departed.
God's anger burned against Aaron and Miriam, and He departed from their presence without hearing what they had to say for themselves, which was a plain indication of His anger against them.
(10) And the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow; and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous.
God had already departed from the door of the tabernacle; now it seems the pillar of cloud departed from the tabernacle itself, representing God's deep displeasure with Miriam and Aaron that He would not suffer the cloud to continue over the tabernacle with them there. Miriam was immediately struck with leprosy, her skin turned white as snow. Aaron looked at Miriam and saw that she was leprous. I believe this wasn't meant to be a casual statement that he saw that she was leprous, but rather as the priest, it was his business to inspect her and pronounce her leprous, according to the law of leprosy. Miriam was struck with leprosy, but Aaron was not. It was probably because Miriam was the chief instigator. Her name was mentioned first in verse 1, and Aaron probably followed her lead, just as he had been willing to follow the mob in the making of the golden calf in Exodus 32. Additionally, perhaps God would not have his priesthood so dishonored. Perhaps it was punishment enough and very humbling for Aaron to have to pronounce his sister leprous, knowing the reason why and realizing he also deserved such a punishment.
(11) And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord! Please do not lay this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned. (12) Do not let her be as one dead, whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb.”
Aaron humbled himself to Moses, calling him his lord, confessing his foolish sin, and begging him not to allow their sin to be imposed on them this way. He asked that Miriam not be as one who was dead, as she would ceremonially be, separated and shut off from her people; and not one whose flesh was half consumed like a miscarried or stillborn child who perhaps never fully developed, or one who had been dead for awhile in his mother's womb. It's not as if Moses had the power to make Miriam leprous and to take it away, but thusly Aaron humbled himself to Moses, magnifying to the highest degree Moses's position and power, and perhaps realizing at this point that only Moses's intercession could help them now.
(13) And Moses cried to the LORD, saying, "Heal her now, O God, I beseech You."
Moses cried out to the Lord in prayer, asking that He please heal Miriam. Matthew Henry, in his Commentary on the Whole Bible, wrote about what a beautiful example this was, praying for one who despitefully used him (Matthew 5:44 and Luke 6:28). Moses took no pleasure in the righteous judgment and punishment of the Lord, but in forgiveness prayed for mercy and healing for Miriam.
(14) And the LORD said to Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face, would she not be shamed seven days? Let her be shut out of the camp seven days, and afterward she may be received again.”
God answered Moses, saying that if Miriam's earthly father had spit in her face, showing his displeasure in her, would she not be ashamed and shut herself away for some time? How much more should she be ashamed by her sin against God! He told Moses to shut her out of the camp for seven days, and after that, she could be allowed back in again.
(15) And Miriam was shut out from the camp seven days; and the people did not journey till Miriam was brought in again.
Miriam was indeed shut out of the camp for seven days, and the people did not journey from their camps until she was brought in again. This was certainly due to the fact that the cloud did not direct them to move, but it also taught an important lesson. Those like Miriam under censure and rebuke for sin ought to be treated with forgiveness, comfort, and love (2 Corinthians 2:7-8), and not counted as an enemy (2 Thessalonians 3:15) that they would leave behind.
(16) And afterward the people removed from Hazeroth, and pitched in the wilderness of Paran.
After the seven days and when Miriam was returned to the camp, the people moved from Hazeroth to another campsite within the wilderness of Paran.
As I am doing a chronologically ordered Bible study as set forth by Skip Andrews, I now move on to Numbers 33 as that study directed:
(Numbers 33:16) And they removed from the desert of Sinai, and pitched at Kibroth Hattaavah. (17) And they departed from Kibroth Hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth. (18) And they departed from Hazeroth and pitched in Rithmah.
Actually, these three verses take a step backward and tell us where the Israelites had traveled since leaving the desert of Sinai up to this point. Kibroth Hattaavah is where the people lusted after flesh and the place was so named. From there they moved to Hazeroth where Miriam was struck with leprosy. From Hazeroth they moved to another camp in the wilderness of Paran (Numbers 12:16), and we see in Numbers 33:18 that the name of that place was Rithmah.
(19) And they departed from Rithmah, and pitched at Rimmon Perez. (20) And they departed from Rimmon Perez and pitched in Libnah. (21) And they removed from Libnah and pitched at Rissah. (22) And they journeyed from Rissah and pitched in Kehelathah. (23) And they went from Kehelathah and pitched at Mount Shepher. (24) And they removed from Mount Shepher and camped in Haradah. (25) And they removed from Haradah and pitched in Makheloth. (26) And they removed from Makheloth and camped at Tahath. (27) And they departed from Tahath and pitched at Terah. (28) And they removed from Terah and pitched in Mithcah. (29) And they went from Mithcah and pitched in Hashmonah.
The people continued to journey from place to place, and I can only assume nothing of real importance happened in these places. Dr. John Gill, in his Exposition of the Entire Bible, summarized these travels in the following manner, and I can only take his word for it:
Six miles from Rithmah, and then from Rimmon to Libnah, which was six miles also; and from thence to Rissah, which was six miles more; and from Rissah to, Kehelathah, which was the same number of miles; and from thence to Shapher, which was six miles also; and then they came to Haradah, which was four miles from thence; the next remove was to Makheloth, which was four miles and a half from the last place; then they went to Tahath, which was four miles more; and from thence to Tarah, which also was four miles; the next place they came to was Mithcah, four miles from Tarah; and then to Hashmonah, which was eight miles more.
(30) And they departed from Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth. (31) And they departed from Moseroth and pitched in Bene Jaakan.
The people left Hashmonah and continued their journey. Dr. Gill compared these two verses to the account in Deuteronomy 10:6 and explained: "Thirty two miles from Hashmonah. In Deu 10:6 it is called Mosera; and according to the account there, they came hither from the following place, Benejaakan; probably they went first thither from Hashmonah, and then from Mosera or Moserot, and so to Benejaakan again, going backwards and forwards, so Jarchi; the distance of the two places was twenty four miles."
(32) And they removed from Bene Jaakan and camped at Hor Hagidgad. (33) They went from Hor Hagidgad and pitched in Jotbathah. (34) And they removed from Jotbathah and camped at Abronah. (35) And they departed from Abronah and camped at Ezion Geber. (36) And they removed from Ezion Geber and pitched in the wilderness of Zin, which is Kadesh.
The people continued their journey, and once again I turn to Dr. Gill's summation of these verses:
And they removed from Benejaakan, and encamped at Horhagidgad. In the Targum Jonathan called Gudgod, as it is Gudgodah in Deu 10:7, where the remove to this place is said to be from Mosera; it was twenty miles from Benejaaken; from thence they went to Jotbathah, twenty four miles from Horhagidgad; and from thence to Ebronah, twenty miles more; and so to Eziongeber, of which see 1 Ki 9:26 which was twenty eight miles from Ebrorah; and their next remove was to the wilderness of Zin, which was Kadesh, forty eight miles from Eziongeber.
This is where my chronological Bible study (suggested by Skip Andrews) tells me to stop for now. Again I can only assume that nothing of importance happened in these travels. Hopefully, the people had finally learned their lessons about complaining and murmuring after seeing Miriam, the sister of Moses, a prophetess, and probably the most highly regarded woman among them, struck with leprosy for her murmuring against Moses. Before their journeying was ended, the people will have spent forty years in the wilderness for a journey that could have been completed in a few weeks, because of their unfaithfulness and transgression. Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, compared this to our present-day acts of rebellion that keep us from immediately receiving God's best for us: "How many through their unfaithfulness have been many years in gaining that for which, in the ordinary procedure of Divine grace, a few days had been sufficient! How much ground may a man lose in the Divine life by one act of unfaithfulness or transgression!"
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