ONE-YEAR JOURNEY OF THE BIBLE
Day 50 -Numbers 16-17 (One Word That Best Describes Man)
“Now it came to pass, as he finished speaking all these words, that the ground split apart under them, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and all the men with Korah, with all their goods. So they and all those with them went down alive into the pit; the earth closed over them, and they perished from among the assembly. Then all Israel who were around them fled at their cry, for they said, "Lest the earth swallow us up also!" And a fire came out from the LORD and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering incense.” (Numbers 16:31-35)
Rebellious - that perhaps is the most apt description of man and nowhere else in history is it depicted more graphically than in our reading for today. It starts with Korah, Dathan and Abiram, all sons of Levi who ministered in the service of the tabernacle, and who wanted to usurp the priesthood from Aaron and his sons. These wicked men even convinced the entire congregation to side with them.
In response, God told Moses that He would consume the congregation in an instant and were it not for the intercession of Moses and Aaron, God would have done so. Instead, God destroyed the entire families of Korah, Dathan and Abiram and the 250 men who offered unauthorized incense which apparently only the priests were allowed to offer.
Surprisingly, the next day, all the congregation rebelled again against Moses and Aaron accsusing them of killing the people of the Lord. Again, God told Moses that He would consume the entire congregation and again, were it nor for the intercession of Moses and Aaron, God would have done so. As a result of this rebellious episode, God killed four thousand seven hundred besides those who died in the Korah incident.
It was at this time that God told Moses to call twelve representatives of Israel each bringing a rod to once and for all settle the matter of who God called for the priesthood by making the rod of the person whom God has chosed to bud, blosson and yield ripe almonds. Aaron’s rod was it. You would think that the congregation would have calmed down after all these things, but no, they all threw their hands up in rebellion and frustration and said that God will kill them all. Actually, they were right; were it not for the intercessions of Moses and Aaron, God would have killed them all by this time.
It is no wonder that the author of Hebrews in the New Testament refers to those incidents in the wilderness as the day of rebellion:
"Today, if you will hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,
In the day of trial in the wilderness,
Where your fathers tested Me, tried Me,
And saw My works forty years.
Therefore I was angry with that generation,
And said, "They always go astray in their heart,
And they have not known My ways.'
So I swore in My wrath,
"They shall not enter My rest."' (Hebrews 3:7-11)
God is telling you and me today that if we will hear His voice, let us not harden our hearts as in the rebellion of the Jews in the wilderness. Although it is hard for me to imagine myself rebelling against God’s annointed leaders the same way that the Jews rebelled against Moses and Aaron, I know that by the grace of God in my life, I will be doing exactly the same as those wicked men who perished in the wilderness.
“Father, thank you for your loving grace and mercy so that I am not consumed because of my own wickedness. Help me to always hear your voice and obey your commands. Thank you for your Son Jesus and for His blood that was shed for the remission of my sins. Help me to support your annointed leaders so they can joyfully serve you which will be for everyone’s good. Amen.”
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