Devotional Thoughts on Numbers
Authoritative Word
“These are the commandments and the rules that the Lord commanded through Moses to the people of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.” (Numbers 36:13, ESV) We now come to the last chapter and the last verse of the book of Numbers. Here we see a summarizing truth. “These are…
Polluting the Land
“You shall not pollute the land in which you live, for blood pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land for the blood that is shed in it, except by the blood of the one who shed it. You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst…
Merciful and Just
“then you shall select cities to be cities of refuge for you, that the manslayer who kills any person without intent may flee there. The cities shall be for you a refuge from the avenger, that the manslayer may not die until he stands before the congregation for judgment.” (Numbers 35:11-12, ESV) Early on, a…
Proportional Giving
“And as for the cities that you shall give from the possession of the people of Israel, from the larger tribes you shall take many, and from the smaller tribes you shall take few; each, in proportion to the inheritance that it inherits, shall give of its cities to the Levites.” (Numbers 35:8, ESV) Here,…
Sovereign Over All
“And the border shall go down to the Jordan, and its limit shall be at the Salt Sea. This shall be your land as defined by its borders all around.” (Numbers 34:12, ESV) Often, we stand back and survey our domain as if we have achieved something that attests to our own greatness. This is…
Separation
“But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then those of them whom you let remain shall be as barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they shall trouble you in the land where you dwell.” (Numbers 33:55, ESV) Here Moses warns the nation that…
Triumphant Plan
“They set out from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month. On the day after the Passover, the people of Israel went out triumphantly in the sight of all the Egyptians,” (Numbers 33:3, ESV) Moses recounted the Journey of Israel beginning with the exodus from Egyptian bondage. God’s plan…
Sin Catches Up
“But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.” (Numbers 32:23, ESV) After Gad and Reuben had committed to go with Israel across the Jordan in the conquest of Canaan. Moses gave them this exhortation in verse 23. If they did…
A Right Way and Wrong Way (Part 2)
And they said, “If we have found favor in your sight, let this land be given to your servants for a possession. Do not take us across the Jordan.” (Numbers 32:5, ESV) Often when a church or group of people is on mission an individual or faction will not desire to continue in the mission.…
A Right and Wrong Way
And they said, “If we have found favor in your sight, let this land be given to your servants for a possession. Do not take us across the Jordan.” But Moses said to the people of Gad and to the people of Reuben, “Shall your brothers go to the war while you sit here?” (Numbers…
Arming For Battle
“So Moses spoke to the people, saying, “Arm men from among you for the war, that they may go against Midian to execute the Lord’s vengeance on Midian.” (Numbers 31:3, ESV) Our adversary is cunning. Our conflict is real. Our battle is fierce. However, our battle is not against “flesh and blood,” but “against the…
Commitments
“If a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.” (Numbers 30:2, ESV) Commitment seems to be something missing in our society today. I mean real commitment. During…
One Perfect Sacrifice
“These you shall offer to the Lord at your appointed feasts, in addition to your vow offerings and your freewill offerings, for your burnt offerings, and for your grain offerings, and for your drink offerings, and for your peace offerings.” (Numbers 29:39, ESV) In chapters 28 and 29, Moses records the feasts of Israel and…
Numbering the People
“Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, by their fathers’ houses, all in Israel who are able to go to war.” (Numbers 26:2, ESV) After the plague the Lord asks Moses to take a census to number the people. This is the second census.…
Removing Temptations
“And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Harass the Midianites and strike them down, for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the…
Champions Needed
” And the Lord said to Moses, “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give…
Be Not Unequally Yoked
“So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel.” (Numbers 25:3, ESV) While we learn from Balaam’s words that he could not curse Israel because God had blessed them, Israel could create their own problems by participating in gross idolatry. This is the case here. They…
Our King
“I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near: a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel; it shall crush the forehead of Moab and break down all the sons of Sheth.” (Numbers 24:17, ESV) In Balaam’s final oracle, the imagery speaks of a ruler…
Joining His Work
“Behold, I received a command to bless: he has blessed, and I cannot revoke it.” (Numbers 23:20, ESV) In the second oracle of Balaam, we see a key theological principle. God is sovereign and what God decrees man cannot override. Balak offered Balaam money to curse Israel to which Balaam responds that it is impossible…
Absolute Unchanging Truth
“God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” (Numbers 23:19, ESV) This passage, from Balaam’s second oracle, presents some obvious but vital theology. “God is…
Fear Not
“How can I curse whom God has not cursed? How can I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?” (Numbers 23:8, ESV) The situation was that Balak, king of Moab made an allegiance with Midian because of the perceived threat of Israel. Balak, summoned Balaam, a non-Israelite prophet, and asked him to curse Israel. While…
Devotion In Life
“Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, ‘What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?’ And Balaam said to the donkey, ‘Because you have made a fool of me. I wish I had a sword in my hand, for then I would…
Spiritual Blindness
“But God’s anger was kindled because he went, and the angel of the Lord took his stand in the way as his adversary. . . When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam. And Balaam’s anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff. Then the Lord…
Antivenom For Sin
“So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.” (Numbers 21:9, ESV) Once again, the people grumbled against God and Moses stating that they loathed the food, the “manna,” that God had provided. Because of this, the…
Cleansing and Restoration
“If the man who is unclean does not cleanse himself, that person shall be cut off from the midst of the assembly, since he has defiled the sanctuary of the Lord. Because the water for impurity has not been thrown on him, he is unclean.” (Numbers 19:20, ESV) The Lord instituted a process for person…
Tithe Of the Tithe
““Moreover, you shall speak and say to the Levites, ‘When you take from the people of Israel the tithe that I have given you from them for your inheritance, then you shall present a contribution from it to the Lord, a tithe of the tithe.” (Numbers 18:26, ESV) There is much debate among Christians over…
The Branch
“On the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony, and behold, the staff of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds.” (Numbers 17:8, ESV) Because Aaron’s priestly authority was challenged, the Lord commanded the head of each of the…
Atonement
“And he stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped.” (Numbers 16:48, ESV) After the Lord brought judgment on Korah and those actively engaged in the rebellion, the people grumbled against Moses and Aaron saying they had “killed the people of the Lord” (v41-42). In making this statement, the people disregarded…
Dangerous Entanglements
“And he spoke to the congregation, saying, “Depart, please, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest you be swept away with all their sins.”” (Numbers 16:26, ESV) The context of this verse has to do with Korah’s rebellion where Korah seems to have been the leader. The situation is…
Significant Clothing
“And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the Lord, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after.” (Numbers 15:39, ESV) The Lord commanded that the people of Israel wear tassels on their…
The First Fruits
“Some of the first of your dough you shall give to the Lord as a contribution throughout your generations.” (Numbers 15:21, ESV) Giving to the Lord is a precept that we find throughout the Scriptures. Here, the Lord commands that the people should give of the first of their dough, the product of the grain…
Faith Not Presumption
“But they presumed to go up to the heights of the hill country, although neither the ark of the covenant of the Lord nor Moses departed out of the camp. Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and defeated them and pursued them, even to Hormah.” (Numbers 14:44-45,…
True Compassion
“Please pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt until now.” (Numbers 14:19, ESV) It is an awesome picture of compassion as Moses interceded for the very people who rebelled against his leadership. If we know the story, the Lord…
Superior Versus Inferior
“And they said to one another, “Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.”” (Numbers 14:4, ESV) “If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey.” (Numbers 14:8, ESV) What a contrast in opinions. Here we…
Faith Challenges
“The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.”” (Numbers 13:1-2, ESV) If you remember the story, ten of the spies came back…
Humility is Strength
“Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.” (Numbers 12:3, ESV) The world’s standards equate meekness with weakness. The passage states that Moses was the meekest person on the face of the earth. Meekness or humility is a virtue of the great servants of…
Humble Encouragement
“And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” And Joshua the son of Nun, the assistant of Moses from his youth, said, “My lord Moses, stop them.” But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that…
Curb Your Cravings
“Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also wept again and said, “Oh that we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. But now our strength is…
Unholy Cravings
“Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also wept again and said, “Oh that we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. But now our strength is…
Lessoning the Load
“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. And I will come down and talk with…
Complaining
“And the people complained in the hearing of the Lord about their misfortunes, and when the Lord heard it, his anger was kindled, and the fire of the Lord burned among them and consumed some outlying parts of the camp.” (Numbers 11:1, ESV) If we are honest with ourselves, complaining is something with which we…
Our Guarantee
“So they set out from the mount of the Lord three days’ journey. And the ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them three days’ journey, to seek out a resting place for them.” (Numbers 10:33, ESV) As Israel journeyed to Canaan, the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord went before them.…
Sound the Trumpets
“And when you go to war in your land against the adversary who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, that you may be remembered before the Lord your God, and you shall be saved from your enemies. On the day of your gladness also, and at your appointed feasts and…
Observe and Join
“And whenever the cloud lifted from over the tent, after that the people of Israel set out, and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the people of Israel camped.” (Numbers 9:17, ESV) While I was in Savannah, a parishioner asked me a question. “Do you remember how the Lord led the people…
Impartiality
“And if a stranger sojourns among you and would keep the Passover to the Lord, according to the statute of the Passover and according to its rule, so shall he do. You shall have one statute, both for the sojourner and for the native.” (Numbers 9:14, ESV) In today’s world, there are many things that…
Remembrance
” And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, “Let the people of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time.” (Numbers 9:1-2, ESV) Here, the Lord told Moses to have the people…
The Pattern
“And this was the workmanship of the lampstand, hammered work of gold. From its base to its flowers, it was hammered work; according to the pattern that the Lord had shown Moses, so he made the lampstand.” (Numbers 8:4, ESV) In the Tabernacle were seven golden lampstands. These were to cast light upon the table…
Hearing From the Lord
And when Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with the Lord, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim; and it spoke to him. (Numbers 7:89, ESV) Is it possible for us to hear from…
Our Blessings
The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. (Numbers 6:24-26, ESV) God called upon “Aaron and his sons,” the priests of Israel, to pronounce this blessing upon the “sons of…
Our Devotion
When a man or woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazarite, to separate himself to the Lord . . . All the days of his separation he is holy to the Lord. (Numbers 6:2, 8) The title Nazarite, naziyr, literally means consecrated one or devotee. Certain men or women of Israel would…
Purity Part 3
“The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the people of Israel that they put out of the camp everyone who is leprous or has a discharge and everyone who is unclean through contact with the dead. You shall put out both male and female, putting them outside the camp, that they may not defile their…
Purity Part 2
“The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the people of Israel that they put out of the camp everyone who is leprous or has a discharge and everyone who is unclean through contact with the dead. You shall put out both male and female, putting them outside the camp, that they may not defile their…
Purity in the Church
“The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the people of Israel that they put out of the camp everyone who is leprous or has a discharge and everyone who is unclean through contact with the dead. You shall put out both male and female, putting them outside the camp, that they may not defile their…
Our Only Right Way
“But Nadab and Abihu died before the LORD when they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD in the wilderness of Sinai” (Numbers 3:4a, ESV) I have heard it said there is a right way, a wrong way, and my way to do anything. It is a rather confusing statement. For how could there be three…
Our Privileged Position
“These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he ordained to serve as priests. . . So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests in the lifetime of Aaron their father.” (Numbers 3:3–4, ESV) In my lifetime, I have seen many people who have maneuvered to get into the inner circle.…
Proper Focus
“They shall camp facing the tent of meeting on every side.” (Numbers 2:2, ESV) I learned a long time ago that I needed to keep my eyes focused on where I was headed. I was driving one day in the Chicago area. I was trying to get to the library to do some research. Unfortunately,…
Our Banner
“The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “The people of Israel shall camp each by his own standard, with the banners of their fathers’ houses. They shall camp facing the tent of meeting on every side.” (Numbers 2:1–2, ESV) There was a time in my life when I was keenly interested in my family…
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