For Some a Time to Regret, for Others a Time to Hope, for All a Time to Remember.

Deuteronomy Chapter 1: The Preamble of the Covenant and the Start of the Review of What God has done for Israel

The Passage and Some Thoughts

The first 5 verses give us the time of this first sermon – it was the 1st day, of the 11^th month, in the 40^th year since leaving Egypt. They also give us the place where the sermon was delivered to the “new generation of the children of Israel” – across the Jordan in the land of Moab. It was there Moses tried to make the law clear and understandable.

In verse 8, he reminds them (while still in Horeb) of the promise God made to give them the land before them, way back in Genesis.

In verses 9-15, he tells them how he had realized that he could not bear the load of leadership alone, especially since God was allowing them to grow in number, and how leaders from each tribe were appointed to help him. Even that growth in their population was the beginning of the fulfilment of the promise made to Abraham (Genesis 155,6) much earlier about them being blessed and multiplying greatly. This was happening even in the wilderness.

In verses 16-19, he talks about the judges that were appointed for each tribe and how they were to judge matters impartially. Verse 17 has some gems in it. For starters there is no ‘small’ and ‘big’ cases – they are all to treated alike. And the latter part of the verse tells them not to fear “men in making their judgment” because the judgment is really God’s. Oh, that we would have judges like that today.

In verse 19, Moses reminds them that they went through that “great and terrible wilderness” on their way to Kadesh-barnea. That’s what the Christian does as well – God often leads us through a “great” and yet sometimes “terrible” period of experiences in a very lonely “wilderness”.  Have you been there? Do you know what I mean? Keep in mind, that there is a promised land still ahead.

In verses 20-25, he reminds them of how they sent spies into the promised land to check it out. He may even have regretted sending the spies in the first place as since God had promised the land, there was no need to find out if they could conquer it – God was able to do it with for them without a reconnaissance expedition.

In verses 26-33, he reminds them how they would not trust God and feared taking the land, even though He had carried them so far, and still went before them on their way to seek out a place for them to camp at night, and to show them the way – via a cloud by day and a fire by night.

In verses 34-36, he tells them how that made the Lord angry and he promised that none of them would enter the promised land except Caleb who did trust the Lord and wanted to take the land before them.

Remember that verses 35-40 (except for 37a) are spoken by God and Moses is just retelling them, remembering God’s words to them. How heavy must Moses’ heart have been knowing what he knew. And yet at the same time, he had to stay focused on the rest of his mission and to be ‘up’ for the sake of those that would enter the promised land.

Verse 37 describes a very sad fact for Moses. He tells them that God was angry with him as well “on their account” and as a result he would not see the promised land. While Moses was forbidden to enter the land because of his own disobedience, that very defiance was on behalf of the anger that the children of Israel had aroused in God and thus in him. While we can sympathize with him, in the end we cannot blame others for the consequences that we bring upon ourselves for disobedience to God. Adam tried to do so in the garden, but he bore his own penalty afterwards, as did Eve. I wonder how ashamed the Israelites felt (on behalf of their parents) when Moses was telling them that his loss was due to their disobedience, or the disobedience and lack of faith of their fathers. The tragedy of disobedience – be it towards a godly father or mother, a just judge, a learned doctor, and especially God Almighty – is a tragedy that has no bounds in life.

Verse 38 tells them that Joshua would lead them to the promised land, as he was the other one that God said would make it. And here Moses tells the sons of Israel that God wants them to “encourage him” as their new leader. New leaders need encouragement.  And they need prayers just as much as the old leaders.

In verse 39, Moses tells the people that God had said their little ones that they had all feared would “become prey” to their enemies, would indeed enter the promised land. That theme of children being precious to God continues all the way through the Bible. Yes, there are events where children suffer – but they are not brought on by God Himself. They are either a consequence of gross disobedience or the work of the Enemy.

And then comes verse 40 – what a verse. Moses reminds them how God had told any of those that were still alive and had come out of Egypt with Moses, that they were to “turn around and set out for the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea”.  Are you kidding me, God? No, God wasn’t kidding anyone. God meant what He had said. We note that this instruction of God’s was ignored by the people who felt they could still appease the Lord.

In the last six verses of the chapter, Moses reminds them how the people had repented and wanted to go ahead and fight their enemies. But that God had said, “No, because I won’t be with them.” You would think that would have stopped them, but it didn’t. And many were crushed. The rest wept before God, but He didn’t listen, causing them to stay many days at Kadesh.

Now we see why this book of Deuteronomy is also known as the book of Remembrances.

Wrap-up

If this first chapter of Deuteronomy is any indication of what we’ll find as we go through the rest of the book, our study time will have been well spent.

My main takeaways are as follows:

1.     For those who serve God, there will always be some regret due to our disobedience to God at various times in our lives. There may also be regret on behalf of the disobedience of others – because we know that disobedience to God has its consequences.

2.     Our job is to be faithful with God’s instructions to the very end. Moses was 120 when he was delivering this “Remembrance” sermon as a warning to those entering the promised land.

3.     God is faithful. When He takes us through rough waters or arid rugged wilderness, He will see us through. He will also guide us both day and night and protect us. And in the scheme of our own lives, because of Who God is, He has already been where I will be tomorrow, and He’ll lead the way.

May that be true for all of us.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

Almost Four Decades of Numerical and Spiritual Stagnation -- Would the Israelites Ever Learn?

Numbers Chapter 26: The 2^nd Census; Dividing the Land; and No Inheritance for the Levites and the Old Generation

Numbers 26:1-65

Day 81 of “please stay home; please wear a mask; please keep six feet apart; and no you can’t go out to eat; no, you can’t get your hair cut; no, you can’t have church services in person; but feel free to get an abortion; go to a casino; and now, feel free to protest (even riot and loot) in large groups – we won’t touch you, and if we do, you’ll be out of jail in a few hours.”  Okay, you get my point. But heck, those 81 days are twice the number of years the children of Israel spent in the desert. So, I guess I can’t really complain. My wife is still with and My God isn’t leaving. I have a calmness in my heart as I learn more about God and His children, studying the book of Numbers.  Thanks for joining me.

The Passage

Verses 1-51 give us an account of the second census that took place after the plague we recently talked about. Again, this was for those 20 years old and up males by their fathers’ households (not equivalent to tribes please note). (That’s verse 2). However, the instructions that Moses and Eleazar passed on in verse 4 refers to “people” not just “sons” or males.

In verses 9-10, there is reference to those sons of Eliab (Dathan and Abiram) that had died, along with Korah, in chapter 16 after they had rebelled against Moses. But the sons of Korah were still alive. So, they were counted.

And in verse 51, we learn that the total number of the sons of Israel remaining at that time were 601,730. [Don’t worry, I counted the twelve figures given for the twelve households (again not tribes) and that total is correct.] The Levites were excluded from that number.

Verses 52-56 describe God’s way of dividing the land they were to possess by tribe, as an inheritance. The bigger the tribe, the bigger the inheritance and vice-versa.  The actual land to be selected would be done so by drawing of lots.

Verses 57-62 tell us that the Levites would not have any land as an inheritance. They were 23,000 in number, but they were numbered from a month old and up (verse 62). There are some other interesting things going on in those verses, but the main point is that they weren’t included in the second census as they weren’t getting any land. And this census seemed to be about that.

In verses 63-65, we also learn that no one who had left Egypt with Moses and counted in the first census were still around to be counted except for Caleb and Joshua.  They weren’t getting any land inheritance or any inheritance for that matter, since they had all died.

Thoughts on the Passage

I am amazed by the exactness of this chapter’s numbers. I also find it interesting that the Levites were not counted in either the first or this second census because they were not to get any land but more importantly, because they were not to go to war. They were counted separately at another time.

The author also talks about there not being any of the “old generation” who left Egypt with Moses and Aaron. Of course, Aaron, is dead at this point, and it is his son, Eleazar that works with Moses in this census. On the other hand, this census too was a military one as we see from the end of verse 2.

You can compare the gains and losses of each tribe’s men from the fiest census (38 years earlier) to the second census. For example, Reuben lost 6%, while Simeon lost 63%. Gad lost 11%; Judah on the other hand gained 3%. Issachar gained 18%, Zebulun 5%, and Manasseh had a remarkable gain of 64%. Ephraim lost 20% while Benjamin gained 29%, although Dan only gained 3%. Asher gained 29% and Naphtali lost 15%.

Overall, however, the numbers stained relatively the same, with mere loss of 1,820 men or 0.3%. Remember, Israel was supposed to grow and multiply. But during their 40 years they remained basically stagnant much like their spiritual condition.

It is the first and the second censuses that give the book of Numbers its name.

Matthew Henry would have us note that Moses did not count the people unless or until God told him to. This contrasts with David we did it on his own initiative and paid dearly for it. God was Israel’s King, not Moses and a census is an act of authority that would only be exercised at the command of the King.

With this census near the end of their journeys in the wilderness, God was saying these are those that are ‘registered’ to inherit the Promised Land and thus its land, according to their numbers. And remember, while this instruction was given to Moses, as he was not to get to the promised land, it was meant for him to pass on to Joshua. How hard that must have been for Moses.

In the last two verses of the chapter we see that the righteousness of God is fully present as none of the complainers and murmurers were left to go into the Promised Land. We also see that the Goodness of God to His people is fully evident in that God raised up another generation, as numerous, and through it, Israel’s name would not vanish. The inheritance of the Promise would still be given to their children.

Finally, Henry reminds that herein is also shown the Truth of God, in performing His promise made to Caleb and Joshua. They were to be “preserved from falling in this common ruin.” We must remember that in all of things God allows, God has perfect control of who is impacted by death and who lives. We need to be fully aware of that.

What are our takeaways here? Simply these:

1. God is our King.

2. He keeps His word and His promises.

3. He loves us more than we deserve.

4. He warns us more than we deserve.

5. The rest is indeed up to us.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

The Israelites learn Repentance even with the right Deeds and Words, means nothing without a change of Heart.

Numbers 14:36-45 The Immediate Consequences of the Israelites’ Disobedience

Day 61 and still no word from our Premier on further openings in our province. No problem, we’re getting used to this.  But, hey, that’s exactly what they want. More and more in the world are standing up for their rights. Politicians just need a little more time to “save face”.  No problem. Meanwhile we’re finding gems in our study of Numbers.

The Passage

³⁶ As for the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land and who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing out a bad report concerning the land,³⁷ even those men who brought out the very bad report of the land died by a plague before the Lord. ³⁸ But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive out of those men who went to spy out the land.

³⁹ When Moses spoke these words to all the sons of Israel, the people mourned greatly.⁴⁰ In the morning, however, they rose up early and went up to the ^[a]ridge of the hill country, saying, “Here we are; ^[b]we have indeed sinned, but we will go up to the place which the Lord has promised.” ⁴¹ But Moses said, “Why then are you transgressing the ^[c]commandment of the Lord, when it will not succeed? ⁴² Do not go up, or you will be struck down before your enemies, for the Lord is not among you. ⁴³ For the Amalekites and the Canaanites will be there in front of you, and you will fall by the sword, inasmuch as you have turned back from following the Lord. And the Lord will not be with you.”⁴⁴ But they went up heedlessly to the ^[d]ridge of the hill country; neither the ark of the covenant of the Lord nor Moses left the camp.

⁴⁵ Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down, and struck them and beat them down as far as Hormah.

Footnotes

1. Numbers 14:40 Or top of the mountain
2. Numbers 14:40 Or and we will go up...for we have sinned
3. Numbers 14:41 Lit mouth
4. Numbers 14:44 Or top of the mountain

Thoughts on the Passage

The people grumbled, Moses intercedes, God forgives (again) but issues His justice (none of the grumblers will enter into the Promised Land), and the Israelites will spend forty more years in the wilderness. But are there are immediate consequences? Absolutely. This passage tells us that all those that caused the grumbling or stirred up the grumblers, plus all the spies that gave a negative report died by a plague God allowed. And of course, that caused all to mourn. But as Matthew Henry suggests, by these deaths God was communicating a message to the people – He could have wiped them all out just like that; just like the spies. Sometimes we have close calls due to our sinning or disobedience and we still fail to recognize the lesson God is trying to teach us.

The spies that had faith in God’s ability to deliver, Caleb and Joshua, were spared. These days, living in the 21^stcentury, it is not always acceptable to answer the question of why did so and so live, while others die by saying “perhaps because God wanted to spare them due to their faith and obedience to Him”.  That wouldn’t fly well today, but yet that is exactly the situation we have in this passage. And I believe it is still sometimes (not always) the situation as we try to address that question of “why”?

But by the morning, the people had come to their senses, albeit too late. They realized they had sinned and now wanted to go the land God had promised them. There was no more talk of returning to Egypt. Yes, they were sorry, no doubt like many of us are often sorry about the sins we commit. But as David Guzik says perhaps they were not sorry enough to turn their hearts into a genuine trust and reliance on the Lord going forward. Uttering the right words and even doing the right things without a change of heart does not cut it in these circumstances. Sometimes, folks, we take too long to come to our senses. Sometimes we run to make things right without really seeking to change in the way God wants us to change. As a consequence, we get to watch the train we missed leave the station.

Moses tries to knock some real sense into their heads knowing that God had said that had they gone to get the land now, it would be a disaster. He warned them not to go up and try to take the Promised Land because the Lord was not “among them” at this time. Doing so now would be further sin against the Lord. And it would also be outright insanely dangerous. Thank God for some people that God sends to warn us of potential disaster. But did the Israelites listen even then?

No? Instead, they went right up to the land to take it. We are told that the ark of the covenant and Moses (and we assume Aaron, Caleb, and Joshua, among others) remained behind in the camp.

And like clockwork, as God had said, and as Moses had warned them of, the Amalekites and the Canaanites came down and “struck them and beat them down” as far as Hormah. We cannot change what God has determined will happen. For the Israelites, Hormah represents the beginning of the judgment that was to last forty years – allowing the carcases of the “old men” to die in the wilderness.

Hormah, means “devotion – a place laid waste” and according to Robert Jamieson was named afterwards as such in memory of the immense slaughter of the Israelites on this occasion. We need to be cautious of our potential “Hormah” and avoid it all costs.

What is the-big picture lesson for us? For me, at least, it is this: God is not to be ignored for He has the right to do with us as He said He would, both with respect to our obedience and more critically for us, in respect to our disobedience. I often ask myself, even at my age, “Have I really learned that lesson yet?” And I often wonder how many more times God will say about me as He said about the Israelites to Moses, “How long shall I bear with this evil man who is sinning against Me?”  May He, remembering the years of prayers my mother (and after her, my wife) uttered on my behalf, and also say, “I have pardoned him [again] according to their word.” May it be like that for you as well.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

God's Mercy and Grace is Exercised with Justice w.r.t. the Israelites

Numbers 14:20-35 God Responds Again to the Grumbling and to Moses’ Plea

Day 60. It is a Sunday and as I have done for three weeks now (with my wife accompanying me for two) we met a friend at the parking lot of our church. The Associate pastor came out to say hello and we gave him our offering (saves the postage) and asked him to pray with us. We just don’t want to get too comfortably out of practice of going to church and we know the Enemy has that very thing in mind. But with no shopping to do today, the rest of the day has us staying in our homes or outside in our yards.  I feel sorry for those that don’t have them although parks are now supposedly open. We press on.  Last time, we studied how the Israelites once again grumbled against God and how Moses pleaded with God to forgive them. And now we study God’s response.

The Passage

²⁰ So the Lord said, “I have pardoned them according to your word; ²¹ but indeed, as I live, ^[i]all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord. ²² Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice, ²³ shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who spurned Me see it. ²⁴ But My servant Caleb, because he has had a different spirit and has followed Me fully, ^[j]I will bring into the land ^[k]which he entered, and his ^[l]descendants shall take possession of it. ²⁵ Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites live in the valleys; turn tomorrow and set out to the wilderness by the way of the ^[m]Red Sea.”

²⁶ The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ²⁷ “How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who are grumbling against Me? I have heard the complaints of the sons of Israel, which they are ^[n]making against Me. ²⁸ Say to them, ‘As I live,’ says the Lord, ‘just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will surely do to you; ²⁹ your corpses will fall in this wilderness, even all your ^[o]numbered men, according to your complete number from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against Me. ³⁰ Surely you shall not come into the land in which I ^[p]swore to settle you, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun. ³¹ Your children, however, whom you said would become a prey—I will bring them in, and they will know the land which you have rejected. ³² But as for you, your corpses will fall in this wilderness. ³³ Your sons shall be shepherds for forty years in the wilderness, and they will ^[q]suffer for your ^[r]unfaithfulness, until your corpses ^[s]lie in the wilderness. ³⁴ According to the number of days which you spied out the land, forty days, for every day you shall bear your ^[t]guilt a year, even forty years, and you will know My opposition. ³⁵ I, the Lord, have spoken, surely this I will do to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me. In this wilderness they shall be destroyed, and there they will die.’”

Footnotes

i.      and all

j.      him I

k.     where

l.      seed

m.   Sea of Reeds

n.     Complaining

o.     mustered

p.      raised My hand

q.     bear

r.      fornications

s.     are finished

t.      or iniquities

Thoughts on the Passage

God right away responds to Moses and once again grants his prayer immediately. He pardons His people. What is key for us to note here is that the fervent prayer of those who love others is not wasted on God. Our prayers can and do make a difference – perhaps not always the way we want or to the degree that we want, but I believe God listens and consider our prayers, and where appropriate may ‘adjust’ (for lack of a better word) His judgment on those on whose behalf we are petitioning Him.  God said He did this, the pardoning, “according to [Moses’] word”.

However, those who have seen God’s glory and signs, and were yet testing Him (the passage says “ten times” – really just means “many times”), or who spurned Him, were not to see the Promised Land. Those two verses of this 14^th chapter – verses 22 and 23 are seen by many as the most key verses in the whole book. You can be pardoned by God, and all may not be lost – but you may not necessarily have the easiest of lives for the rest of your days. We must remember that sinning against God in this most blatant manner as carried out by the Israelites is not a small matter. There are still consequences to our sins. David Guzik has an interesting comment on this. He points out that we should remember how earlier they were saying, “Oh, if only we had died in this wilderness.” We studied that recently. Well, God, was going to grant the grumblers that wish or complaint as well. The alternative Matthew Henry points out is that God could have cut them off all at once (including the children) and disinherited them. One could almost say the Israelites got a deal that day.

Caleb, on the other hand, would see the land because of his different “spirit” and because he had followed God “fully”. And his descendants were also to benefit from that. Robert Jamieson says that Caleb was perhaps not named here because he was already not among the people that God wanted addressed as he was already assigned to be a constant attendant to Moses.

Is there something there for us? Caleb would see the Promised Land because of his heart and obedience, and so would his descendants. Is there a possibility that God might save our descendants simply because of our heart and obedience? But doesn’t the New Testament require each of us to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as savior on our own? It does. So, did something change between the two Testaments? I don’t think so. I think we need more study here. One possibility is that Canaan and heaven are not one and the same. So we can’t draw the same conclusion for who can get into heaven by looking at who God allowed to enter Canaan.

And God does not want to debate His decision with Moses, but simply told him that the Canaanites and Amalekites lived in the valley before them, and the next day he was to lead the people back to the wilderness by way of the Red Sea, and away from the land they were to have possessed.

Some English translations put this comment amount the Canaanites and Amalekites in parenthesis, as a secondary comment.  It is not.  This was central to the story. God did not want even these faithless and unprepared, spiritually and perhaps physically, people and their children to be slaughtered by those they feared. But would the people obey Moses instructions? (We’ll find out in our next study.) For now, we know that God had brought them to the borders or edges of the Promised Land – they could have possessed it, they could have taken it – with His help. But they lost their faith and they were disobedient.  So, it was back to “boot camp” in the wilderness for more training that would allow, not them but their descendants, to take the land. Forty more years – what a price to pay for disobedience.

Then God addressed Moses and Aaron together. He asked them how long He was expected to put up with these ‘evil’ grumblers. He wanted Moses and Aaron to tell them that they would fall dead in the wilderness – every single one of those that grumbled and were over twenty years of age. Only Caleb and Joshua were going to make it to the land that God had promised. And here God next extends His goodness to their generations as well. They would see the Promised Land that their fathers rejected. And by the way, the Israelites were to be told that they were to spend forty years in the wilderness as shepherds suffering in life for the unfaithfulness of their fathers.

If you remember back to Numbers 14 and verse 3, the Israelites had accused God of not caring for their children and that He was gone to allow them to be murdered in the wilderness. Well, as Guzik points out, ironically, God was going to see that their children made it to the promised and that they, the parents, were going to die in the wilderness.

But did you notice that not even Moses or Aaron were excluded from those that would not make it? No sir. They didn’t make it for their own separate reasons as we’ll learn later. But even here, we can point out that Moses also played a part in God’s anger as he had agreed to sending spies to the land rather than trusting God and just going in and taking it.

In fact, God said that the number of years the Israelites had to spend in the desert were based on the number of days the spies spied out the land. During that period, they would bear their guilt and know His anger and opposition to their behavior. [The King James version says His “breach of promise” but I see it as a temporary breach of forty years.] So, God pronounced a verdict and He was going to carry it out -- death in the wilderness after a forty-year period of suffering. Wow. You see, God was not going to allow any “old man of disbelief” into His promised land. They had to die in the wilderness. Similarly, there is no room for those who are unbelievers in the Kingdom.

But perhaps there were other reasons why God sent them back into the wilderness for forty years. Henry suggests the following. First, that time was needed for another adult generation to grow up and be able to take the land in battle. Second, and perhaps more representative of the character of God was that now, in the wilderness, having understood their sin, having been forgiven, some of the grumblers could get their hearts and lives right before, and with, God. Henry says it this way:

“That hereby they might be brought to repentance, and find mercy with God in the other world, whatever became of them in this. Now they had time to bethink themselves, and to consider their ways.”

Once again, God shows us that “mercy there was great” in His dealings with His people.  It reminds me of the that wonderful hymn, At Calvary by the Collingsworth family.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.