March 3: Numbers 18-20

March 3, Numbers 18-20

Numbers 18. As the rebellion was related to the Levites and Aaron’s roles, we have God spelling out for Moses the duties and responsibilities of the Levites again and in additional detail. The priests were to handle the Holy things of the Lord and they need to do a better job of guarding it. We learn again that the inheritance for the Levites would not be land (like the other tribes), but they would receive the tithe of the Israelites as their inheritance. Notice, God is speaking directly with Aaron on the rules - which signifies Aaron’s status… Basically, they would be taken care of for taking care of the Tabernacle and God’s people. Not a bad deal really. God wants His body of believers to take care of each other and He uses the body to provide sometimes. 

Numbers 19. This is where God sets up through Moses and Aaron the rules for purification for someone that comes into contact with a dead person. This is critical for the Israelites to know and be reminded of, especially in light of all the recent deaths. God sets forth the cleansing procedure for them to reenter the camp. If a person refused to be cleansed, they were to be kicked out of the camp 

Numbers 20 seems as an accumulation of tragic events and struggles. It is the record of Miriam’s death while traveling. And then we proceed to learn about the Israelites complaining (again!) about not having enough water to drink and they accuse Moses of bringing them out there to die. God tells Moses to take his staff with Aaron. and speak to the rock and water will come gushing out - showing God’s power and providence for them. Notice - even in their disobedience, God still provides for His people. Moses gets frustrated at the Israelites and smacks the rock twice with his staff and water gushes out. God is not pleased! Basically Moses didn't obey God or fully trust him and gave a very poor example. The result of his disobedience? He doesn't get to lead his people into the Promised Land. Remember, in Exodus 17 God told Moses to strike the rock for water and it came out? Well, this time, God explicitly tells him to speak to the rock and Moses disobeyed. When reading it, are you asking yourself if this seems too harsh for all that Moses has done? The real issue is in vs 12 - Moses didn't believe in God and to be holding God’s Words to the Israelites. A lot of the Israelites will not enter the Promised Land because of their unbelief, and now the same goes for Moses and Aaron. 

Then we move onto their neighbors (Edom) not letting the Israelites to pass through (Remember, Esau is where the Edomites came from). The King’s Highway, where they wanted to travel, went right through Edom. The Edomites threatened to kill them if they came through and actually came out against them, as if to go to war. Long story short - no go on passing through. 

Not done with the saga just yet (hang tight, we keep going for a while only to see the glory of God revealed). God decides that it is Aaron’s time to die and instructs Moses to take the priestly garments from Aaron and give them to his son Eleazar (symbolically passing the torch sort of speak). Just as the Lord said, it happened. They went to the top of the mountain, Moses took the garments and put them on Eleazar, Aaron died, and they walked down to the Israelites. The congregation wept for Aaron for 30 days!

To sum it all up:

• If God tells you to do something with instructions - obey as He commanded. No need to put your own spin on it or let your frustrations come out in it, causing you to disobey. 
• When current leaders die, God is raising up others to take their place and continue on the work of God. Fear not, God is in control of all things!!!