We will build sheepfolds

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

Sinking Sand

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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.