Numbers

Numbers / chapter 36 (read the chapter)

After God instituted the inheritance rules for women (in response to the request of Zelophehad’s daughters), the family heads of their tribe came to Moses with a concern over the “unintended consequences” of such a rule. They were concerned that if the women married men from another tribe, the land would become the property of their husbands, thereby passing the land from one tribe to another. Theoretically, over time, one or two tribes could potentially amass a good deal of land through marriage. Continue Reading »

Numbers / chapter 35 (read the chapter)

There is a beautiful analogy about God in this chapter of Numbers. If a person had unintentionally killed another person, the cities of refuge provided a place for them to flee when they were being pursued by the “avenger.” If the “avenger” found them outside the city, they could be killed, thus “avenging” the death. But if the person made it to the city of refuge, they could request a trial. If found innocent, they would be allowed to stay in the city. If they were found guilty, however, they would be turned away from the city. Continue Reading »

Numbers / chapter 34 (read the chapter)

I’m having an awe-filled moment with God right now. I love this little chapter. I just love the straightforwardness of it. It’s God, simply spelling out to His people the land they will inherit in Canaan. He plots out the land for them with no ceremony, no pomp, no fanfare. What I absolutely love about this is, the Canaanites were living in this land. Undoubtedly, they thought the land belonged to them. They thought they were the rightful inhabitants. They were wrong. Continue Reading »

Numbers / chapter 33 (read the chapter)

So, right off the bat, you know that there is a lot in the Old Testament that would seem to contradict the title of this particular blog. If God is not a destroyer, He certainly has a lot of explaining to do . . . because it seems like He has gone around and done (or condoned) an awful lot of destruction in the Bible. Continue Reading »

Numbers / chapter 32 (read the chapter)

So, the Israelites are again poised to enter the Promised Land, when the Reubenites and Gadites come to Moses and request to settle where they already are, outside the border of Canaan. After Moses makes sure they don’t intend to desert their Israelite brothers in the effort to drive out the Canaanites from the land, Moses makes the deal to let them have the land on the other side of the Jordan as their inheritance. Continue Reading »

Numbers / chapter 31 (read the chapter)

This has to rank right up there as one of those “horrifying” chapters in the Old Testament that make us cringe and want to run to the “safety” of Gentle Jesus, Meek and Mild in the New Testament. But there is a lot going on here, and I would suggest that there is much more going on than meets the eye. Continue Reading »

Numbers / chapter 30 (read the chapter)

There is a very simple point in this chapter: God listens when we speak. Our words are important to Him. And He wants us to take our words as seriously as He takes them.

Nowadays, business is run on the basis of written contracts. If you have to take a business partner to court, the court will make a judgment based on the terms of the signed contract. With little exception, what is contained in “the four corners of the contract” determines the outcome of the case. Continue Reading »

Numbers / chapter 29 (read the chapter)

There’s an interesting observation to be made in Numbers 29. Here, we find instructions for three religious festivals that the Israelites were to observe in the seventh month. Actually, this was a very practical thing, because this was the time of year between harvest and seed-time, so it was the perfect opportunity for the people to slow down and attend to worship. Continue Reading »

Numbers / chapter 28 (read the chapter)

Before the Israelites entered the Promised Land, once again, God went through His expectations of them regarding the offerings and sacrifices they were to bring to Him at the sanctuary. This included daily offerings, Sabbath offerings, monthly offerings, and sacrifices to be offered during The Passover and The Festival of Weeks. With daily, weekly, monthly, and annual sacrifices prescribed, it sounds like God wanted the Israelites to come see Him often. Continue Reading »

Numbers / chapter 27 (read the chapter)

Long before there was the National Organization of Women, there was God. In this chapter, the daughters of a man named Zelophehad came to Moses to plead their case: their father had died, never having had any sons, and under the current rules of ownership in Israel, they would be left without any land inheritance. So they said, “Why should our father’s name disappear from his clan because he had no son? Give us property among our father’s relatives.” (vs 4) Continue Reading »