ESV Chronological Plan, Day 52 | Numbers 5-7

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read Numbers 5:1-7:89

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

The Structure of Numbers. To get the most out of reading Numbers, you have to know how the book is built. There is a lot of disagreement on that subject (so I wrote a paper about it in Seminary), but I'll share with you how I understand it. The book of Numbers is broken down into: First, "Hope" (Numbers 1:1-10:11 or 35). In this section Israel is preparing to enter into the Promised Land and there are no signs of trouble, and we finish off with Israel setting out from the land of Sinai for the first time in over a year. Second, "Loss" (Numbers 10:11 or 35-15:41). In this section we see the grumbling of Israel, leading up to Israel's sentence to wander the desert for 40 years. Third, "Wandering" (Numbers 16-21). In this section we see the rebellion of Korah, the deaths of Miriam and Aaron, the account of the bronze serpent, and then -finally- a "mini-conquest" where spies are sent into the land of Jazer to capture it, giving Israel their own land for the first time in history: a big moment! Fourth, "The Balaam Conspiracy" (Numbers 22-31), which is the best bit of the book and I won't spoil it here. And Fifth, "Redemption" (Numbers 32-36), where Israel is finally permitted to settle the land they captured back in the third section and where a new generation is counted and prepared to enter the Promised Land.

All good so far...? Things seemed to be in trouble after the incident with the golden calf in Exodus 32. But then there was restoration: Moses stood in the gap, and interceded for the people, and the covenant was reaffirmed. The tabernacle was built. The glory of God descended on the tent. And in this section things seem to continue going well: "as the LORD said to Moses, so the people of Israel did" (Number 5:4). The people are given laws here, which is a big deal because a set of laws are what sets apart a nation as its own thing--by giving Israel laws, he's making them a legitimate nation before they enter into the Promised Land. God is giving his people something like the prestigious Code of Hammurabi, which at that time in history was already a legendarily important marker of Babylonian wisdom. And God is giving them something that is in many ways superior as wisdom from God; parts of the Law of Moses can actually be considered a response to and elevation above the Code of Hammurabi. So we see this, and the willingness of the people to serve God in their offerings (Numbers 7), as good signs of what's to come. The section closes off by noting the presence of God in the midst of the people: "And when Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with the LORD, he heard the voice... above the mercy seat... the ark of the testimony... between the two cherubim; and it spoke to him" (Numbers 7:89).

The priestly blessing in the oldest-ever Bible manuscript. The Ketef Hinnom "silver scrolls," date to before the time of the exile, and before King Nebuchadnezzar, during what is generally called The First Temple Period. These scrolls were carried around by some faithful Jewish person during the time of the Kings of Judah. These are the oldest currently known manuscripts of Bible passages, more than 500 years older than the Dead Sea Scrolls, and they contain passages from both Deuteronomy and from the Aaronic blessing in Numbers 6:24-25.

RESPOND | WHAT IS OUR PART?

Because I've spoiled the flow of the story for you -but it's not really a spoiler if the book is nearly 3500 years old!- we know that the promising start of Israel in these passages falls apart pretty quickly, through mistrust and grumbling and fear and complaining. I wonder what kind of blessing God wants to bring into our lives, but we lose out on it because we have a bad attitude or we're trying to get things done on our terms and ours alone. I hope that in our attitudes, this would cause us to soften up in the areas where we need to, and to deal with those areas where we are like the Israelites. And, because they seem to be doing well so far, let's take this as a warning: just because we're doing well now doesn't mean we can't slip later. We have to keep up our vigilance: "Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall" (1 Corinthians 10:12). The journey of faith is taken one step, one day, at a time. We might be keeping up a pretty good pace, but until we reach The Celestial City (a Pilgrim's Progress reference) we're not there yet.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US CLOSER TO GOD?

Here is a suggested prayer prompt: "God, thank you for calling me into the place of Promise. Thank you for being by my side, walking with me, and guiding me. Help me not to get too overconfident in my own performance as a follower of God, so that I end up focusing on how well I'm doing and take my eyes off of you. Please rid me of any attitude of grumbling, or pride, or fear that you won't come through, or wanting to do things my own way. Give me a humble heart to know you each day."