Bible Talks

From: Messages of God's Love: 1951

Numbers 20:12-21:3¹²And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them. ¹³This is the water of Meribah; because the children of Israel strove with the Lord, and he was sanctified in them. ¹⁴And Moses sent messengers from Kadesh unto the king of Edom, Thus saith thy brother Israel, Thou knowest all the travail that hath befallen us: ¹⁵How our fathers went down into Egypt, and we have dwelt in Egypt a long time; and the Egyptians vexed us, and our fathers: ¹⁶And when we cried unto the Lord, he heard our voice, and sent an angel, and hath brought us forth out of Egypt: and, behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost of thy border: ¹⁷Let us pass, I pray thee, through thy country: we will not pass through the fields, or through the vineyards, neither will we drink of the water of the wells: we will go by the king's high way, we will not turn to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed thy borders. ¹⁸And Edom said unto him, Thou shalt not pass by me, lest I come out against thee with the sword. ¹⁹And the children of Israel said unto him, We will go by the high way: and if I and my cattle drink of thy water, then I will pay for it: I will only, without doing any thing else, go through on my feet. ²⁰And he said, Thou shalt not go through. And Edom came out against him with much people, and with a strong hand. ²¹Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his border: wherefore Israel turned away from him. ²²And the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, journeyed from Kadesh, and came unto mount Hor. ²³And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron in mount Hor, by the coast of the land of Edom, saying, ²⁴Aaron shall be gathered unto his people: for he shall not enter into the land which I have given unto the children of Israel, because ye rebelled against my word at the water of Meribah. ²⁵Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up unto mount Hor: ²⁶And strip Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son: and Aaron shall be gathered unto his people, and shall die there. ²⁷And Moses did as the Lord commanded: and they went up into mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation. ²⁸And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son; and Aaron died there in the top of the mount: and Moses and Eleazar came down from the mount. ²⁹And when all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead, they mourned for Aaron thirty days, even all the house of Israel. ¹And when king Arad the Canaanite, which dwelt in the south, heard tell that Israel came by the way of the spies; then he fought against Israel, and took some of them prisoners. ²And Israel vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said, If thou wilt indeed deliver this people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities. ³And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Israel, and delivered up the Canaanites; and they utterly destroyed them and their cities: and he called the name of the place Hormah. (Numbers 20:12‑21:3)

As we noticed last week, Moses lost sight of the only way by which God could go on with a weak and failing people. It was through the priesthood, and when Moses used his rod and smote the rock in anger, he failed to sanctify the Lord before the people, as well as spoiling the type. The rock must not he smitten the second time. Moses, however, acted in the spirit of law instead of in grace, and because of this he could not bring the people into the land of promise. They could never enter Canaan on the ground of obedience to the law, but through. the priesthood alone; and so it is only by the priesthood of Christ that we are maintained in our “wilderness journey” until we enter our “promised land”—our home above.

After this the children of Israel came to the borders of the country of Edom, and if they could have passed through their land it would have shortened the journey to Canaan. However, when they asked permission, the Edomites refused, and so they turned away, taking a longer route. Surely there are many difficulties in the way, and often, when it seemingly could be made eaer, God allows us to feel, through the enmity of the world, that “we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.” Acts 14:22²²Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. (Acts 14:22). Sometimes we must go into actual spiritual conflict, while at other times we are just to turn away, and the Lord will give wisdom for each case if we look to Hint. We would sometimes like to be spared the trouble of seeking His rind in each case, but He wants us to walk quietly with Him and then He teaches us His mind and leads us “by the right way.”

Aaron died in Mt. Hor and the priestly garments were put upon Eleazar his son. The people mourned, but they were soon to enter the promised land, and God was breaking the links that connected then with the wilderness.

Indeed, He often does with us too, through the death of a dear friend and helper in the path of faith.

King Arad then came out to fight against the children of Israel and took some of them prisoners. The children of Israel therefore vowed to the Lord that if He would give them the victor, over these enemies they would destroy them completely. The Lord then heard their prayer and gave them the victory.

We might say here that, as Christains, we should not make vows, for a vow supposes something good and worthy of confidence in the flesh. God says “The flesh profited’ nothing.” John 6:63⁶³It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. (John 6:63). We ought to walk daily to please the Lord, and when we walk thus, by the power of the Spirit, we do not need vows. Let us seek to please Him in all we do.

We learn here, however, that we must not make any compromise with the enemy. If someone is known to be the enemy of God, we must not give them any quarter at all. We are told, “Make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.” Romans 13:14¹⁴But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof. (Romans 13:14), and again, “Neither give place to the devil.” Ephesians 4:27²⁷Neither give place to the devil. (Ephesians 4:27). It is often the little things we allow that become snares to us later on. Perhaps some casual or secret friendship with some “enemy of God” which may seem, very trivial, will, in the end, lead us away from the Lord and right into the world. Let us be sure to make a clean break with the world and set out to follow Christ wholeheartedly. It is the only way of blessing and growth.

ML 12/09/1951

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