Harlotry -- A combination of sexual and spiritual sin come together in idol worship.

Numbers Chapter 25: Israel Commits Harlotry; Phinehas Stays the Plague; and God Tells Moses to Strike the Midianites.

Numbers 25:1-18

Day 78. No change. No comment on the fact that there’s no change. Yesterday I was able to tell the Ontario Premier’s people that I was very disappointed in his extreme caution at the expense of the economy, suicide, and even domestic physical and other abuses. They appreciated my comments. Yeah, and Santa Claus loves the cookies you leave him on Christmas Eve. We press on. Chapter 25 of the book of Numbers is a shorter one, but also quite packed with surprises. Read on and thank you for the comments some of you are leaving.

The Passage

25 While Israel remained at Shittim, the people began to play the harlot with the daughters of Moab. ² For they invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods.

³ So Israel joined themselves to ^[a]Baal of Peor, and the Lord was angry against Israel. ⁴ The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them ^[b]in broad daylight before the Lord, so that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” ⁵ So Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you slay his men who have joined themselves to ^[c]Baal of Peor.”

⁶ Then behold, one of the sons of Israel came and brought to his ^[d]relatives a Midianite woman, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, while they were weeping at the doorway of the tent of meeting. ⁷ When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he arose from the midst of the congregation and took a spear in his hand, ⁸ and he went after the man of Israel into the ^[e]tent and pierced both of them through, the man of Israel and the woman, through the ^[f]body. So the plague on the sons of Israel was checked. ⁹ Those who died by the plague were 24,000.

¹⁰ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹¹ “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned away My wrath from the sons of Israel in that he was jealous with My jealousy among them, so that I did not destroy the sons of Israel in My jealousy.¹² Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give him My covenant of peace; ¹³ and it shall be for him and his ^[g]descendants after him, a covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the sons of Israel.’”

¹⁴ Now the name of the ^[h]slain man of Israel who was ^[i]slain with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, a leader of a father’s household among the Simeonites. ¹⁵ The name of the Midianite woman who was ^[j]slain was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, ^[k]who was head of the people of a father’s household in Midian.

¹⁶ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹⁷ “Be hostile to the Midianites and strike them; ¹⁸ for they have been hostile to you with their tricks, with which they have deceived you in the affair of Peor and in the affair of Cozbi, the daughter of the leader of Midian, their sister who was slain on the day of the plague because of Peor.”

Footnotes

1. Numbers 25:3 Or Baal-peor
2. Numbers 25:4 Lit in front of the sun
3. Numbers 25:5 Or Baal-peor
4. Numbers 25:6 Lit brothers
5. Numbers 25:8 Or inner rooms
6. Numbers 25:8 Or belly
7. Numbers 25:13 Lit seed
8. Numbers 25:14 Lit smitten
9. Numbers 25:14 Lit smitten
10. Numbers 25:15 Lit smitten
11. Numbers 25:15 Lit he

Thoughts on the Passage

In the previous chapter (24), we left the Israelites at Kittim or Shittim on the coast. And that’s where the Israelites got into trouble. They started playing the harlot or prostituting themselves with women of Moab. The Moabite women were inviting them to their sacrificial ceremonies for their idol gods, and there, the people ate and bowed down to their gods. Now the text does refer to Israelite ‘people’ (male & female) invited by the ‘daughters’ (female) of the Moabites, and it was the people (male & female) that bowed down to the heathen gods, in particular (verse 3) to Baal of Peor (the name of the mountain there). Most commentators, however, stick to the traditional thinking of harlotry – involving, in this case, the Israelite men and the Midianite women. It was the women who seduced the men to commit both sexual sin and idolatry, likely connected through perverse forms of idol worship, as was common in the ancient world.

Some Bible versions may also use the word ‘Moabites’ to describe the ‘Midianites’ and David Guzik says this may well be “because the Midianites were a nomadic group, and at this time, were in high numbers among the Moabites”.

And of course, God gets very angry with them. I mean really angry. In verse 4 he tells Moses to execute all the “leaders of the people” (that led this idolatry) before Him in broad daylight. And why? In order that God’s anger may subside. And Moses asks the ‘judges’ of Israel (the 70 elders), the leaders and wise men of each tribe, to slay those from their tribe that did indeed bow down to Baal. Guzik writes: “God thought it important that the offenders be judged openly; this was not sin to keep hidden. Open sin had to be dealt with openly.” What kind of sin are we committing? How are we being judged by God? Let’s be thankful that often His judgment is not public.

Now you can imagine someone who is “anti-God” to begin with reading this chapter and saying, “Who on earth wants to trust in a God like that?”  And I wouldn’t blame them. But they’d need to know the whole story – both for the Israelites and what God did, was doing, and would do, for them – as well as what God did for us all through Jesus Christ. So, if you come across a person like that, ask them to consider the whole story of the Bible and then form their conclusions.

The story now takes a further most interesting turn. One Israelite man brings a Midianite woman to his relatives in the sight of Moses. Everybody apparently was weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting deploring the dreadful wickedness, supplicating the mercy of God to stop the plague that was killing the Israelites that God had allowed because of this harlotry.

So a young Levite, the grandson of Aaron, the first high priest, and son of Eleazar, the second high priest, arose before the congregation, and killed both the Israelite who brought the Midianite woman into the camp and the woman herself, with a spear. That stopped the plague that had killed 24,000.  We can only assume God stopped the plague. But it took someone like Phinehas, and perhaps others, who took a strong stand in this case, and Phinehas who turned his disgust into action.

Then God told Moses that what Phinehas did worked, and His wrath was indeed subsided, and the people were not destroyed in totality. And at that time, God renews His covenant with regard to the perpetual priesthood of Aaron’s family. Now what gave rise to God saying that again? It was the fact that Phinehas “was jealous for his God and made atonement for the sons of Israel”.  What can we take from that? God wants us to jealous as He is jealous for what is right and in His honor. He wants us to stand up for what is right when God is being dishonored. He wants us to “make atonement” for our sins and the sins of our people who should know better. That does not mean we are to go out kill people today as there are laws in our land, but somehow, we need to figure out what that ‘atonement’ is to look like. Guzik says the atonement was in the form of Phinehas’ zeal for God. God honored his zeal. Matthew Henry says it took just one man’s action to stop God from destroying all of Israel.  One man with conviction and courage.

In the next section of the passage, we are given the name of the man who brought the Midianite woman into the camp – he was Zimri, the son of Salu, a leader among the Simeonites. This was a prince yet Phinehas did not hold back. And we also get the name of the Midianite woman – Cozbi, a daughter of ‘the’ leader of Midian.

Then I must admit the next paragraph was totally unexpected by me. God actually told Moses to be hostile towards and to strike the Midianites. And that command from God came because the Midianites had been hostile to the Israelites, had played tricks on them, had deceived them with respect to their gods (the affair of Peor) and in the affair of Cozbi (the slain woman). Their “sister” is translated by many as “countrywoman”. 

We also note here that since the Midianites among the Moabites were not able to get their way through Balaam who could not curse Israel, they were determined to do it through seduction of Israel’s men. Guzik observes, “Satan’s violence and sorcery can have no lasting influence on the believer; but if he can lead us to sin, we can [end up being]destroyed.”

But what’s the deal with God telling His people to “strike” and “be hostile” towards others? Guzik gives us an answer which can be used as our guide even today.  The people of God, he says, “were to show no tolerance towards that which brought the sin in their midst and turned their hearts away from God. They were to battle against the Midianites every opportunity they had.”  Wow. What are we doing with those who lead our people, and in particular, our children, to sin and to turn our/their hearts away from God? Can we learn something here?

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Bottom line for me today is simply this, “have I lost my zeal for the things of God?”  I pray not. As I watched the George Floyd Memorial service today, my heart hurt for the aches and sufferings of our Black brothers and sisters in the world – from New York to South Africa and here in Toronto. I don’t know how man can fix the situation we’ve created. I know God never intended it to be like this. And I know that only He can fix it. Only He can fix me. Only He can fix us. And as we all get made right before Him, the world will heal.  Hang in there.

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.

When You're Grumbling Against God, Who's Your Moses?

Numbers 14:1-19 Israel Rebels and Moses Intercedes Again

Day 59. I can’t believe it – 8 weeks and three days of “please stay at home”. Protests grow in number. As do lawsuits. The people and democracy seem to be gaining momentum but as always, there’s a cost. I’ve been called some pretty bad things; others have lost their job. Still others don’t know what to think and millions don’t know what to believe. But hey, we were told this would happen. Of course, everything is not a “knowing conspiracy” but may I remind folks that there are two levels of conspiracy for the Christian: first, the intentional conspiracy of people (think of what has happened to General Flynn that came to light this week); second, I believe there is an evil, Satanically driven conspiracy against God in such a way that even blinds the Devil’s stooges from knowing they’re part of it and certainly fools Christian from seeing it. And this latter kind, takes its sweet, long time, trying time and again, to make any progress it can. But we know the Truth and are freed by Him, press on – praying for the world, its leaders, our country, city, church, family, and ourselves. And we continue studying the Word. Thanks to so many of you joining us regularly in this endeavor.

The Passage

14 Then all the congregation ^[a]lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept ^[b]that night. ² All the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron; and the whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! ³ Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” ⁴ So they said to one another, “Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt.”

⁵ Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces in the presence of all the assembly of the congregation of the sons of Israel. ⁶ Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, of those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; ⁷ and they spoke to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, saying, “The land which we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. ⁸ If the Lord is pleased with us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us—a land which flows with milk and honey. ⁹ Only do not rebel against the Lord; and do not fear the people of the land, for they will be our ^[c]prey. Their ^[d]protection has been removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them.” ¹⁰ But all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Then the glory of the Lord appeared in the tent of meeting to all the sons of Israel.

¹¹ The Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people spurn Me? And how long will they not believe in Me, despite all the signs which I have performed in their midst? ¹² I will smite them with ^[e]pestilence and dispossess them, and I will make you into a nation greater and mightier than they.”

¹³ But Moses said to the Lord, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for by Your strength You brought up this people from their midst, ¹⁴ and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that You, O Lord, are in the midst of this people, for You, O Lord, are seen eye to eye, while Your cloud stands over 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 slay this people as one man, then the nations who have heard of Your fame will ^[f]say, ¹⁶ ‘Because the Lord could not bring this people into the land which He promised them by oath, therefore He slaughtered them in the wilderness.’ ¹⁷ But now, I pray, let the power of the Lord be great, just as You have ^[g]declared, ¹⁸ ‘The Lord is slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children ^[h]to the third and the fourth generations.’ ¹⁹ Pardon, I pray, the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of Your lovingkindness, just as You also have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”

Footnotes

1. Numbers 14:1 Lit lifted and gave their voice
2. Numbers 14:1 Lit in that
3. Numbers 14:9 Lit food
4. Numbers 14:9 Lit shadow
5. Numbers 14:12 Lit the pestilence
6. Numbers 14:15 Lit speak, saying
7. Numbers 14:17 Lit spoken, saying
8. Numbers 14:18 Lit on

Thoughts on the Passage

Numbers chapter 14 is a very critical chapter. It is the turning point for Israel. Up to this point, they followed Moses, did some grumbling, but for the most part, they toed the line. Now they become more adamant in their complaining, starting to demand how things should be done. Their story has reached a turning point. In our next study, we’ll hit the actual “most key verses” of the book from God’s perspective. But there’s a lot of meat in these first 19 verses of the chapter.

The previous passage ends with almost all the spies that had gone into the promised land shouting down Caleb who believed that God would allow the Israelites to conquer the inhabitants of the land. And this chapter starts off, we note, with “all the congregation” yelling and crying during the night. How miserable they must have all felt. We’re not talking about some, but “all”. They’d come all this way and now the majority word is there’s no way they can attain the promise of God for a new homeland. What a disappointment that must have been. So, what did they do? They grumbled some more against Moses and Aaron.

David Guzik says this about being angry with God which reflects my own personal position:

“Some counsel it is a healthy thing to be angry with God, and to let it all out, so that God and you can be reconciled, as sort of a matter of counseling therapy. While it is true that one may be angry with God, and should take every such feeling to God, it is wrong to ever assume or imply that such feelings are justified. If we are angry at God, we are in sin, because God has never done anything that deserves us being angry. We should honestly bring such sin before God, but never for a moment feeling it to be justified.”

But what they said is interesting. They preferred to have died in Egypt, and if not there, at least from Egypt to this point in the wilderness. They wanted to know why God was taking them to the promised land so they would die in battle. Well, at least they realized that it was God in control and not Moses or Aaron. They didn’t want their spouses and children raped, etc. So, they wanted to go back to Egypt. They wanted to go back to slavery if need be. And since Moses wasn’t about to do that, then they needed to appoint a new leader. So, you’ve got the picture – angry people afraid of dying if they move forward, willing to go back to slavery, and demanding a new leader to take them back. Robert Jamieson tells us that later on in the Bible, in Nehemiah 9:17, we read that they actually went as far as to appoint such a leader that would lead them on their return to their slavery in Egypt. Don’t you think that would have upset God? I mean they were rejecting His appointment of Moses. 

In response to all this, we now have Moses and Aaron falling on their faces before the people; and Caleb (the spy who said they could take the land), and Joshua (who sided with him) tearing their clothes. They all spoke to the people about the “exceedingly good land”.

But notice what they say: “If the Lord is pleased with us, then He will bring us to this land and give it to us.” Basically, folks, you can’t behave like this and expect the results you want. Keep rebelling, keep fearing the people of that land, and you’ll never get there. Right now, folks, you’re not pleasing the Lord. And not only that, we know that God has rendered our enemies powerless and “He is with us.” Now, can we move forward?

Their reply: “No. I don’t think so. Instead, Moses, Aaron, Caleb, and Joshua we all want to stone you.” As one of my daughter’s often says to her children when they can’t understand the reaction of some people to something that happened in their lives, “Sometimes it be like that.” In this case, these four were trying to suggest to the Israelites that they needed to see the error of their way, that they had or were losing their belief in God, and they needed to have faith, and they wanted to do in exchange was to stone them all. Nice. And they would have except, or but, for one thing: The “glory of the Lord appeared in the tent to all of them.” (verse 10) How to stop a fight between siblings the  – just let the parent show up in their full authority.

Now God speaks directly to Moses with a question and a heads up. He knows the people are past listening to Him. “How long will these people reject or repulse me given all I have done for them?” was the question and then His statement: “I will smite with plagues and disinherit them; but you, I will make into a nation larger and stronger than them.” It appears God was distinguishing between those Israelites that left Egypt with Moses and spurned Him, with others like Moses who were faithful. Yet they were all His people. Makes me think about how God is viewing different groups of “His people” today. There certainly is a precedent for Him to be ticked up with some of us.

This special offer to Moses, that he would be the one through whom God would bless His people, was one great offer to Moses. It was not unlike the one he had received in Exodus 32:7-10. [Check it out.] Moses had turned that offer down choosing instead to plead on behalf of his people. And God listened then. Would Moses behave in a similar fashion this time; and would accept his pleading if he did?

With respect to God not speaking directly to the Israelites at this point, David Guzik points out that sometimes Christians who have disobeyed God wonder why He doesn’t speak to them. They seem to forget it is they that have already rejected God and His directions.

Now Moses appeals to God by first telling Him all that He was currently doing for them; and then asking whether it would be good for the Egyptians to hear of the fact that He had slain His own people. Moses told God that if that happened, they would think it was because of God’s inability to deliver what He had promised – taking them to the land of Canaan. And with that Moses pleads to God that He exercise His power and channel it into be “slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression.” What a plea that was. And if God was to do this, Moses says, that would not mean that He was “clearing the guilty” but instead would visit the wickedness of the guilty on their children for four generations to come. That is understandable by Moses, but He pleads that God forgives the people at this time. Really “once more”, as God had forgiven, he realizes and points out, ever since they were still in Egypt until that point.

David Guzik writes well on this point:

Moses knew God's power and appealed to it; Moses knew God's promise and appealed to it, and Moses knew God's glory and appealed to it. This was a spectacular example of intercession.

i. What made this intercession spectacular was not primarily Moses' method (appealing to God's glory, power, and promise); but Moses' heart. Here, Moses is totally others-centered, not concerned for his own glory, but only for Israel. He displays he shares the heart of God towards His people, and that is what made Moses' intercession spectacular.

ii. This, of course, was God's intention all along: To develop and draw out of Moses just this kind of heart, transforming Moses into the image of His Son (Romans 8;29), long before the time of Jesus.

Are you or I grumbling today? Are we grumbling against God’s leadership and direction? Do we have anyone that would intercede for us like Moses did for his people? Or we might ask, if we know of someone grumbling against God, would we be willing to intercede for them? We all have a part to play going through this life – for ourselves, and for others. It’s not easy. Life is very complex; relationships are very taxing. The goal is to not lose our faith in the God Who saved us. He will see us through to our promised land.  

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