We will build sheepfolds

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Numbers 32:16–27, “And they came near unto him, and said, We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and cities for our little ones: But we ourselves will go ready armed before the children of Israel, until we have brought them unto their place: and our little ones shall dwell in the fenced cities because of the inhabitants of the land. We will not return unto our houses, until the children of Israel have inherited every man his inheritance. For we will not inherit with them on yonder side Jordan, or forward; because our inheritance is fallen to us on this side Jordan eastward. And Moses said unto them, If ye will do this thing, if ye will go armed before the LORD to war, And will go all of you armed over Jordan before the LORD, until he hath driven out his enemies from before him, And the land be subdued before the LORD: then afterward ye shall return, and be guiltless before the LORD, and before Israel; and this land shall be your possession before the LORD. But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out. Build you cities for your little ones, and folds for your sheep; and do that which hath proceeded out of your mouth. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben spake unto Moses, saying, Thy servants will do as my lord commandeth. Our little ones, our wives, our flocks, and all our cattle, shall be there in the cities of Gilead: But thy servants will pass over, every man armed for war, before the LORD to battle, as my lord saith.”

The people from the two and a half tribes who wanted to stay on the eastern side of the Jordan didn’t want to avoid their responsibilities. They understood that the entire Promised Land would need to be defeated and possessed before the nation had satisfied the Lord’s commands to them. They had already won the victory in the portion of the Land that they wanted and began to take possession by establishing their families, herds and flocks. They were able to prevent a major civil war in Israel by promising to send their armed divisions with the rest of Israel to take part in the invasion but they wouldn’t take part in the process of possession because they had their own territory to possess. It is interesting to note that many years later, when the kingdom was divided, the nation of Israel went into Assyrian exile in two waves. The people who settled on the eastern side of the River went into exile first and the rest went into their exile later. (1 Chronicles 5:26, “And the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, and the spirit of Tilgathpilneser king of Assyria, and he carried them away, even the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and brought them unto Halah, and Habor, and Hara, and to the river Gozan, unto this day.) There is a lesson for modern Christians who want to try and exist outside the protection of the church.

When they saw the Land

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Numbers 32:1–15, “Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle: and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead, that, behold, the place was a place for cattle; The children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spake unto Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and unto the princes of the congregation, saying, Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Shebam, and Nebo, and Beon, Even the country which the LORD smote before the congregation of Israel, is a land for cattle, and thy servants have cattle: Wherefore, said they, if we have found grace in thy sight, let this land be given unto thy servants for a possession, and bring us not over Jordan. And Moses said unto the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben, Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here? And wherefore discourage ye the heart of the children of Israel from going over into the land which the LORD hath given them? Thus did your fathers, when I sent them from Kadeshbarnea to see the land. For when they went up unto the valley of Eshcol, and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel, that they should not go into the land which the LORD had given them. And the LORD’S anger was kindled the same time, and he sware, saying, Surely none of the men that came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob; because they have not wholly followed me: Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite, and Joshua the son of Nun: for they have wholly followed the LORD. And the LORD’S anger was kindled against Israel, and he made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation, that had done evil in the sight of the LORD, was consumed. And, behold, ye are risen up in your fathers’ stead, an increase of sinful men, to augment yet the fierce anger of the LORD toward Israel. For if ye turn away from after him, he will yet again leave them in the wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this people.”

The land on the eastern side of the Jordan river was well watered and had good grasslands. Two and a half of the tribes had large herds and flocks and decided that they would like to have their inheritance on that side of the river. The Lord had promised Israel that, in the first instance, they would be given the land on the western side of the river. Although the full extent of the Land was to include that side of the river as well. When these tribes came and asked Moses if they could take possession of that land there was some consternation. Forty years before this time, the people had refused to go into the Promised Land because they were afraid of giants. Moses was concerned that they people might discourage everyone from taking possession of the Promised Land for a second time. There wouldn’t be a second chance this time and they would never be able to take possession of the Promised Land.

There lacketh not one man

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Numbers 31:48–54, “And the officers which were over thousands of the host, the captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds, came near unto Moses: And they said unto Moses, Thy servants have taken the sum of the men of war which are under our charge, and there lacketh not one man of us. We have therefore brought an oblation for the LORD, what every man hath gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before the LORD. And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of them, even all wrought jewels. And all the gold of the offering that they offered up to the LORD, of the captains of thousands, and of the captains of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty shekels. (For the men of war had taken spoil, every man for himself.) And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the tabernacle of the congregation, for a memorial for the children of Israel before the LORD.”

The Lord had sent Israel on this raid into Midianite territory. He sent them to take vengeance on Midian for their attempts to hinder the Lord’s work in bringing Israel into the Promised Land. In this case, the Lord asked them to send a reduced force and they did. The Lord wanted them to know that He was the One Who won the victory, it wasn’t something they had achieved in their own might. However, the Lord protected this reduces force and they didn’t lose one soldier in the entire process. The military leaders of this force were grateful and they offered the Lord a special gift from the spoils of war that they took after the battle.

Share the plunder

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Numbers 31:25–47, “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Take the sum of the prey that was taken, both of man and of beast, thou, and Eleazar the priest, and the chief fathers of the congregation: And divide the prey into two parts; between them that took the war upon them, who went out to battle, and between all the congregation: And levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep: Take it of their half, and give it unto Eleazar the priest, for an heave offering of the LORD. And of the children of Israel’s half, thou shalt take one portion of fifty, of the persons, of the beeves, of the asses, and of the flocks, of all manner of beasts, and give them unto the Levites, which keep the charge of the tabernacle of the LORD. And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the LORD commanded Moses. And the booty, being the rest of the prey which the men of war had caught, was six hundred thousand and seventy thousand and five thousand sheep, And threescore and twelve thousand beeves, And threescore and one thousand asses, And thirty and two thousand persons in all, of women that had not known man by lying with him. And the half, which was the portion of them that went out to war, was in number three hundred thousand and seven and thirty thousand and five hundred sheep: And the LORD’S tribute of the sheep was six hundred and threescore and fifteen. And the beeves were thirty and six thousand; of which the LORD’S tribute was threescore and twelve. And the asses were thirty thousand and five hundred; of which the LORD’S tribute was threescore and one. And the persons were sixteen thousand; of which the LORD’S tribute was thirty and two persons. And Moses gave the tribute, which was the LORD’S heave offering, unto Eleazar the priest, as the LORD commanded Moses. And of the children of Israel’s half, which Moses divided from the men that warred, (Now the half that pertained unto the congregation was three hundred thousand and thirty thousand and seven thousand and five hundred sheep, And thirty and six thousand beeves, And thirty thousand asses and five hundred, And sixteen thousand persons;) Even of the children of Israel’s half, Moses took one portion of fifty, both of man and of beast, and gave them unto the Levites, which kept the charge of the tabernacle of the LORD; as the LORD commanded Moses.”

The entire nation of Israel were held as slaves in Israel and the Lord miraculously intervened to save them all. The nation was made up of many different people and each one was important for the overall functioning of the nation. Some may have had more visible roles and some had more access to things like plunder from warfare but the nation could only exist as a functioning whole. In those days, soldiers were not paid when they were in the army and went to war. They would take their pay from the enemies they defeated. This was called plunder was considered to be legitimate military pay by everyone in those day. However, Israel was commanded to keep their national integrity and make sure that the soldiers shared their plunder after this was. This was to make sure that every member of the nation was bound together and felt the security of belonging to the Lord’s nation, under His control and, individually and collectively loved by Him.

Went forth to meet them

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Numbers 31:13–24, “And Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and all the princes of the congregation, went forth to meet them without the camp. And Moses was wroth with the officers of the host, with the captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, which came from the battle. And Moses said unto them, Have ye saved all the women alive? Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD. Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him. But all the women children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves. And do ye abide without the camp seven days: whosoever hath killed any person, and whosoever hath touched any slain, purify both yourselves and your captives on the third day, and on the seventh day. And purify all your raiment, and all that is made of skins, and all work of goats’ hair, and all things made of wood. And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war which went to the battle, This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD commanded Moses; Only the gold, and the silver, the brass, the iron, the tin, and the lead, Every thing that may abide the fire, ye shall make it go through the fire, and it shall be clean: nevertheless it shall be purified with the water of separation: and all that abideth not the fire ye shall make go through the water. And ye shall wash your clothes on the seventh day, and ye shall be clean, and afterward ye shall come into the camp.”

The Lord gave Israel a specific command through Moses and they didn’t do what the Lord had told them. The Midianites had already led Israel astray so that some of their people died in a plague. The Lord didn’t want any of the Midianites to pollute Israel but they decided that it didn’t matter and saved some of them alive. The issue here concerns cross cultural marriages. People believe that they way they do things in right because that is all they have known. However, people from different cultures do different things in different ways; this leads to problems. It is also true with religion. Some people believe that their gods are real while others don’t, this leads to clashes and them compromise. The Lord didn’t want Israel to compromise, He wanted them to be a shining example of His goodness to the whole world.

As the Lord commanded Moses

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Numbers 31:7–12, “And they warred against the Midianites, as the LORD commanded Moses; and they slew all the males. And they slew the kings of Midian, beside the rest of them that were slain; namely, Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, five kings of Midian: Balaam also the son of Beor they slew with the sword. And the children of Israel took all the women of Midian captives, and their little ones, and took the spoil of all their cattle, and all their flocks, and all their goods. And they burnt all their cities wherein they dwelt, and all their goodly castles, with fire. And they took all the spoil, and all the prey, both of men and of beasts. And they brought the captives, and the prey, and the spoil, unto Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and unto the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the camp at the plains of Moab, which are by Jordan near Jericho.”

The Lord gave Moses a command to send some of the Israelis army against Midian. They went under the command of Phinehas, was was the high priest’s son. The did what the Lord told them, following His commands exactly. The important lesson for any who want to follow the Lord is that we should obey the Lord. (compare Matthew 6:33–34, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”

Avenge the children of Israel

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Numbers 31:1–6, “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites: afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people. And Moses spake unto the people, saying, Arm some of yourselves unto the war, and let them go against the Midianites, and avenge the LORD of Midian. Of every tribe a thousand, throughout all the tribes of Israel, shall ye send to the war. So there were delivered out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand of every tribe, twelve thousand armed for war. And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand of every tribe, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the holy instruments, and the trumpets to blow in his hand.”

The Midianites attempted to stop the Lord’s plan when they hired Balaam to curse Israel. The Lord told Moses that it was legitimate for them to fight against Midian and refuse to let them stop the Lord’s plan. Because Midian wanted to fight against Israel in battle the Lord told Moses to fight against them as well. Moses was given this task as his last task for Israel. He was to bring them to borders of the Promised Land fully prepared to enter that Land. However, Midian was an obstacle along the way so they were to be dealt with by Moses. This was a sacred task so the armies were to be led by priests with their priestly accoutrements. This was also the Lord’s task so they were told to bring a small army so that they could see that the Lord brought the victory and not the strength of their own armies.

More on vows

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Numbers 30:3–16, “If a woman also vow a vow unto the LORD, and bind herself by a bond, being in her father’s house in her youth; And her father hear her vow, and her bond wherewith she hath bound her soul, and her father shall hold his peace at her: then all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she hath bound her soul shall stand. But if her father disallow her in the day that he heareth; not any of her vows, or of her bonds wherewith she hath bound her soul, shall stand: and the LORD shall forgive her, because her father disallowed her. And if she had at all an husband, when she vowed, or uttered ought out of her lips, wherewith she bound her soul; And her husband heard it, and held his peace at her in the day that he heard it: then her vows shall stand, and her bonds wherewith she bound her soul shall stand. But if her husband disallowed her on the day that he heard it; then he shall make her vow which she vowed, and that which she uttered with her lips, wherewith she bound her soul, of none effect: and the LORD shall forgive her. But every vow of a widow, and of her that is divorced, wherewith they have bound their souls, shall stand against her. And if she vowed in her husband’s house, or bound her soul by a bond with an oath; And her husband heard it, and held his peace at her, and disallowed her not: then all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she bound her soul shall stand. But if her husband hath utterly made them void on the day he heard them; then whatsoever proceeded out of her lips concerning her vows, or concerning the bond of her soul, shall not stand: her husband hath made them void; and the LORD shall forgive her. Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may establish it, or her husband may make it void. But if her husband altogether hold his peace at her from day to day; then he establisheth all her vows, or all her bonds, which are upon her: he confirmeth them, because he held his peace at her in the day that he heard them. But if he shall any ways make them void after that he hath heard them; then he shall bear her iniquity. These are the statutes, which the LORD commanded Moses, between a man and his wife, between the father and his daughter, being yet in her youth in her father’s house.”

Ancient Israel was a strongly patriarchal society and they were bound by the traditions of the time in which they existed. Under these circumstances a woman was bound to obey her father or her husband. This meant that her father, or her husband, had the right to counteract any vow that she made to the Lord when he first heard about it. However, the principle is the same, when a person makes a vow to the Lord they are expected to keep that vow. When we choose to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and become Christians then, legally, before God, we come under the Christian conditions as expounded by the apostle Paul (see Galatians 3:28, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.”) This doesn’t mean that men and women are the same, physically, just that we are all sinners who can believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved by grace. The whole thrust of the passage is to make us be careful when we make promises and not make them wildly without considering the consequences.

He shall not break his word

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Numbers 30:1–2, “And Moses spake unto the heads of the tribes concerning the children of Israel, saying, This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded. If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.”

In the book of Psalms we read about the Lord’s holy hill (Psalm 15:1–5, “LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? 2 He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the LORD. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.”) This place is also called Paradise (2 Corinthians 12:3,4, “How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.”) and the third heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2, “I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.”) This is the place where the Lord lives and there is no sin (compare Habakkuk 1:13, “Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?”) There are some important things about this place: One of the significant aspects of this place is that a person will swear to their own hurt and keep it. This means that someone from the Lord’s holy hill is willing to keep their promises even though it will cost them in some way. The Lord made this requirement of Israel, if someone promised that he would do something then he was bound to do it. This should also be true of the church. There are many people today who talk about good stewardship but are willing to break a promise because it may cost them money. They suggest that the Lord has given them the money in trust so it must be treasured. However, there won’t be any money in paradise but people can be put off by the behaviour of people who claim to be Christians.

An holy convocation

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Numbers 29:12–40, “And on the fifteenth day of the seventh month ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work, and ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: And ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD; thirteen young bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year; they shall be without blemish: And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto every bullock of the thirteen bullocks, two tenth deals to each ram of the two rams, And a several tenth deal to each lamb of the fourteen lambs: And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering. And on the second day ye shall offer twelve young bullocks, two rams, fourteen lambs of the first year without spot: And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and the meat offering thereof, and their drink offerings. And on the third day eleven bullocks, two rams, fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish; And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering. And on the fourth day ten bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish: Their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering. And on the fifth day nine bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without spot: And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering. And on the sixth day eight bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish: And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering. And on the seventh day seven bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish: And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering. On the eighth day ye shall have a solemn assembly: ye shall do no servile work therein: But ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: one bullock, one ram, seven lambs of the first year without blemish: Their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullock, for the ram, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering. These things ye shall do unto the LORD in your set feasts, beside your vows, and your freewill offerings, for your burnt offerings, and for your meat offerings, and for your drink offerings, and for your peace offerings. And Moses told the children of Israel according to all that the LORD commanded Moses.”

There was an assumption that the holiday was earned. They didn’t just sit around and do nothing. There were sacrifices to be offered every day. The sacrifices had to taken from the flocks and herds of Israel. In order to provide these sacrifices the people had to do their work as shepherds efficiently and effectively otherwise they wouldn’t be in a position to have the animals to offer as sacrifices.

The seventh month

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Numbers 29:1–11, “And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you. And ye shall offer a burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year without blemish: And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals for a bullock, and two tenth deals for a ram, And one tenth deal for one lamb, throughout the seven lambs: And one kid of the goats for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you: Beside the burnt offering of the month, and his meat offering, and the daily burnt offering, and his meat offering, and their drink offerings, according unto their manner, for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD. And ye shall have on the tenth day of this seventh month an holy convocation; and ye shall afflict your souls: ye shall not do any work therein: But ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD for a sweet savour; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year; they shall be unto you without blemish: And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals to a bullock, and two tenth deals to one ram, A several tenth deal for one lamb, throughout the seven lambs: One kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the sin offering of atonement, and the continual burnt offering, and the meat offering of it, and their drink offerings.”

Not only did the Lord call upon Israel to celebrate the fact that He created the heavens and earth in six days by resting on the Sabbath, He also offered them the opportunity to have seasons of rest as well. This was the beginning of the concept of holidays. They were called upon to remember the Passover but there were also other holidays as well. They were called to celebrate the Lord’s goodness in the autumn as well. They had to offer special sacrifices to honour the Lord as well. The Lord understood that mankind, whom He had created, needed to rest to produce the best results. He is Almighty God, Who is in complete control of His creation but we are subject to the problems of living in a world that has been marred by sin. He rests when there is nothing left to do but for us there is always something to do but we need to rest so that we can have the energy to keep going.

The Passover of the Lord

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Numbers 28:16–31, “And in the fourteenth day of the first month is the passover of the LORD. And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten. In the first day shall be an holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work therein: But ye shall offer a sacrifice made by fire for a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, and seven lambs of the first year: they shall be unto you without blemish: And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil: three tenth deals shall ye offer for a bullock, and two tenth deals for a ram; A several tenth deal shalt thou offer for every lamb, throughout the seven lambs: And one goat for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you. Ye shall offer these beside the burnt offering in the morning, which is for a continual burnt offering. After this manner ye shall offer daily, throughout the seven days, the meat of the sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: it shall be offered beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering. And on the seventh day ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work. Also in the day of the firstfruits, when ye bring a new meat offering unto the LORD, after your weeks be out, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: But ye shall offer the burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; two young bullocks, one ram, seven lambs of the first year; And their meat offering of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto one bullock, two tenth deals unto one ram, A several tenth deal unto one lamb, throughout the seven lambs; And one kid of the goats, to make an atonement for you. Ye shall offer them beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, (they shall be unto you without blemish) and their drink offerings.”

While the Sabbath rest was given to Adam and is general advice for all mankind, the Passover was specific to Israel. The Lord justified His giving of the Ten Commandments using the words, “I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.” (Exodus 20:2) He was qualified to give them instruction for He had chosen them and loved them while they were slaves in Egypt. In fact, He had chosen them long before that. The Lord had a purpose for Israel, they were to be the means whereby He would bless all the families 

of the earth. In order for this to happen they had to accept the Lord’s plan and fit in with it. However, they were to remember every year that they had been slaves in Egypt and the Lord had miraculously delivered them from their slavery. As long as they remembered what the Lord had done they would be grateful and as long as they were grateful they would obey Him and further His gracious plans for all the families of the earth.

Celebrate the Sabbath

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Numbers 28:9–15, “And on the sabbath day two lambs of the first year without spot, and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, and the drink offering thereof: This is the burnt offering of every sabbath, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering. And in the beginnings of your months ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, seven lambs of the first year without spot; And three tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, for one bullock; and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, for one ram; And a several tenth deal of flour mingled with oil for a meat offering unto one lamb; for a burnt offering of a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD. And their drink offerings shall be half an hin of wine unto a bullock, and the third part of an hin unto a ram, and a fourth part of an hin unto a lamb: this is the burnt offering of every month throughout the months of the year. And one kid of the goats for a sin offering unto the LORD shall be offered, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.”

The Sabbath day was very important for it celebrated the Lord’s perfection and demonstrates mankind’s dependence on Him. The Lord God rested on the seventh day because He finished creating the heavens and the earth. He didn’t rest because He was tired or had put too much of Himself into creation. The Lord’s creation is entirely distinct from the Lord, He is Divine and Almighty was all creation is anchored in time and space. The Lord rested on the seventh day because He had achieved perfection and there was nothing left for Him to do. Everything in creation was established according to the Lord’s perfect patterns but everything that He had made depended on Him to continue. This is why creation, especially mankind, was called upon to rest on the Sabbath. Mankind is to show the Lord that we understand He is perfect and independent while we are dependent and incomplete without Him. If we are willing to remember this on a weekly basis then the Lord will improve the quality of His life because He is entirely consistent.

Shall ye observe

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Numbers 28:1–8, “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, My offering, and my bread for my sacrifices made by fire, for a sweet savour unto me, shall ye observe to offer unto me in their due season. And thou shalt say unto them, This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer unto the LORD; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering. The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning, and the other lamb shalt thou offer at even; And a tenth part of an ephah of flour for a meat offering, mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil. It is a continual burnt offering, which was ordained in mount Sinai for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.  And the drink offering thereof shall be the fourth part of an hin for the one lamb: in the holy place shalt thou cause the strong wine to be poured unto the LORD for a drink offering. And the other lamb shalt thou offer at even: as the meat offering of the morning, and as the drink offering thereof, thou shalt offer it, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.”

Even though Moses was going to be replaced as Israel’s leader, the ceremonial processes were to continue unabated. The Lord had chosen Israel as the apple of His eye and He wasn’t going to allow anything like the death of their first leader to interfere with His love and care for them. He was still interested in their offerings and pleased with their sacrifices.

Set a man over

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Numbers 27:15–23, “And Moses spake unto the LORD, saying, Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation, Which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd. And the LORD said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him; And set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight. And thou shalt put some of thine honour upon him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient. And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall ask counsel for him after the judgment of Urim before the LORD: at his word shall they go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he, and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation. And Moses did as the LORD commanded him: and he took Joshua, and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation: And he laid his hands upon him, and gave him a charge, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.”

We noticed last time that the Lord commissioned Joshua to replace Moses as Israel’s leader. Even though Moses was a great prophet and there wasn’t another prophet like him in the Old Testament era (Deuteronomy 34:10–12, “And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, In all the signs and the wonders, which the LORD sent him to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land, And in all that mighty hand, and in all the great terror which Moses shewed in the sight of all Israel.”) he still had to submit to the Lord because the Lord is supreme and should be obeyed. Moses did what the Lord told him but he was still concerned for the people even though he knew he was going to die. This shows the importance of succession planning in the Lord’s work. No one is indispensable and the work is more important than the individual. While the work is important, the most important obligation is to obey the Lord (1 Samuel 15:22–23, “And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.”)

Into this mount

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Numbers 27:12–14, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Get thee up into this mount Abarim, and see the land which I have given unto the children of Israel. And when thou hast seen it, thou also shalt be gathered unto thy people, as Aaron thy brother was gathered. For ye rebelled against my commandment in the desert of Zin, in the strife of the congregation, to sanctify me at the water before their eyes: that is the water of Meribah in Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.”

Moses wanted to enter the Promised Land but the Lord told him that he couldn’t do that. However, the Lord allowed Moses to see the Land and appreciate all it beauty before he died. This is why the Lord took him up to the top of Mount Abarim. He could see the Promised Land from there and get a good idea of what a wonderful land it was. Aaron had already died and been buried, his role as high priest was taken over by his son, Eleazar (Numbers 20:25–26, “Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up unto mount Hor: And strip Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son: and Aaron shall be gathered unto his people, and shall die there.”) Moses wasn’t replaced by his son. Moses had two sons Gershom and Eliezer (1 Chronicles 23:14–15, “Now concerning Moses the man of God, his sons were named of the tribe of Levi. 15 The sons of Moses were, Gershom, and Eliezer.”) and they became part of the tribe of Levi and followed that calling. Joshua replaced Moses as the leader of Israel, to take them into the Promised Land (see Deuteronomy 34:9, “And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the LORD commanded Moses.” and compare Deuteronomy 31:14, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, thy days approach that thou must die: call Joshua, and present yourselves in the tabernacle of the congregation, that I may give him a charge. And Moses and Joshua went, and presented themselves in the tabernacle of the congregation.” for example). Even though Moses was being punished it was much better for Joshua to be given the leadership role without Moses looking over his shoulder. Joshua was faithful and fulfilled his role as he was commanded as well (Judges 2:7, “And the people served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the LORD, that he did for Israel.”)

Only daughters

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Numbers 27:1–11, “Then came the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph: and these are the names of his daughters; Mahlah, Noah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah. And they stood before Moses, and before Eleazar the priest, and before the princes and all the congregation, by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying, Our father died in the wilderness, and he was not in the company of them that gathered themselves together against the LORD in the company of Korah; but died in his own sin, and had no sons. Why should the name of our father be done away from among his family, because he hath no son? Give unto us therefore a possession among the brethren of our father. And Moses brought their cause before the LORD. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, The daughters of Zelophehad speak right: thou shalt surely give them a possession of an inheritance among their father’s brethren; and thou shalt cause the inheritance of their father to pass unto them. And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a man die, and have no son, then ye shall cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter. And if he have no daughter, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his brethren. And if he have no brethren, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his father’s brethren. And if his father have no brethren, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his kinsman that is next to him of his family, and he shall possess it: and it shall be unto the children of Israel a statute of judgment, as the LORD commanded Moses.”

In that era, inheritance was determined by sons. A son would be able to inherit his share of the family land but a daughter would live with her husband on his land. This was to make sure that the land didn’t become disconnected as families mixed and then there wouldn’t be any portion large enough to farm properly. However, the land was meant to stay within each tribe and not to move from one tribe to another. This led to the question raised in this case. One man only had daughters and not sons. If the daughters married someone then their land would belong to their husband and could easily move from one tribe to another. In time it might mean that one tribe would lose all its land and other tribes would have more than their allotted land. In order to make sure this didn’t happen the Lord said that women would be able to keep their father’s share of the Land.