Tag: eleazar

48.u. Wilderness – 13. “Then you shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession”

 

Num 32:26  Our little ones, our wives, our livestock, and all our cattle shall remain there in the cities of Gilead, but your servants will pass over, every man who is armed for war, before the LORD to battle, as my lord orders.” So Moses gave command concerning them to Eleazar the priest and to Joshua the son of Nun and to the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes of the people of Israel. And Moses said to them, “If the people of Gad and the people of Reuben, every man who is armed to battle before the LORD, will pass with you over the Jordan and the land shall be subdued before you, then you shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession. However, if they will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan.” And the people of Gad and the people of Reuben answered, “What the LORD has said to your servants, we will do. We will pass over armed before the LORD into the land of Canaan, and the possession of our inheritance shall remain with us beyond the Jordan.” And Moses gave to them, to the people of Gad and to the people of Reuben and to the half-tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land and its cities with their territories, the cities of the land throughout the country.

The possession of the land of Gilead was on the condition of their faithfulness to their promise. Moses told Eleazar to make sure they honored their promise before granting them Gilead. Numbers 32:33 introduces another tribe – actually, half the tribe of Manasseh – who were likewise content to settle on the lands east of the Jordan River. In total, two and one-half tribes received their possession of land east of the Jordan River. (Guzik)

Concerning the settlement of these tribes, observe, that they built the cities, that is, repaired them. They changed the names of them; probably they were idolatrous, therefore they should be forgotten. A spirit of selfishness, of seeking our own, not the things of Christ, when each one ought to assist others, is as dangerous as it is common. It is impossible to be sincere in the faith, sensible of the goodness of God, constrained by the love of Christ, sanctified by the power of the Holy Ghost, and yet be indifferent to the progress of religion, and the spiritual success of others, through love of ease, or fear of conflict. Let then your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. (Henry)

We will pass over armed before the Lord into the land of Canaan,…. This is repeated again and again, for the confirmation of it, assuring that it should be strictly performed according to the true intent of it:

that the possession of our inheritance on this side Jordan may be ours; that is, that the possession and inheritance they desired, and which had been granted them, on conditions to be performed by them, might be ratified and confirmed unto them on their fulfilment of them. (Gill)

I really don’t know what to say about these tribes and their want to stay out of the promised land. Yet, then again I might. When we have an option for something less hard and more certain than the alternative we mostly choose the less hard and more certain. I wonder how many times God has set something before and we look ahead with all of the uncertainties and hard work and say: “I just make do here”.  

It is good for our hearts and minds to be ever-longing for the promised land – Eternity in Heaven! Being content with and having more desire for things of this world than eternity in heaven is not grasping hold of the promise. It is like saying I will help you get there but I personally want to stay on this side. 

Keep your eyes focused on Jesus and eternity in heaven and don’t let the things of this world entice you to forget it or put it aside.

48.s. Wilderness – 12.y. “Do not take us across the Jordan.”

 

Num 32:1-18  Now the people of Reuben and the people of Gad had a very great number of livestock. And they saw the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead, and behold, the place was a place for livestock. So the people of Gad and the people of Reuben came and said to Moses and to Eleazar the priest and to the chiefs of the congregation, “Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon, the land that the LORD struck down before the congregation of Israel, is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock.” And they said, “If we have found favor in your sight, let this land be given to your servants for a possession. Do not take us across the Jordan.” But Moses said to the people of Gad and to the people of Reuben, “Shall your brothers go to the war while you sit here? Why will you discourage the heart of the people of Israel from going over into the land that the LORD has given them? Your fathers did this, when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land. For when they went up to the Valley of Eshcol and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the people of Israel from going into the land that the LORD had given them. And the LORD’s anger was kindled on that day, and he swore, saying, ‘Surely none of the men who came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, because they have not wholly followed me, none except Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite 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 gone. And behold, you have risen in your fathers’ place, a brood of sinful men, to increase still more the fierce anger of the LORD against Israel! For if you turn away from following him, he will again abandon them in the wilderness, and you will destroy all this people.” Then they came near to him and said, “We will build sheepfolds here for our livestock, and cities for our little ones, but we will take up arms, ready to go before the people of Israel, until we have brought them to their place. And our little ones shall live in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land. We will not return to our homes until each of the people of Israel has gained his inheritance.

Num 32:23  But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the LORD, and be sure your sin will find you out.

Here is a proposal made by the Reubenites and Gadites, that the land lately conquered might be allotted to them. Two things common in the world might lead these tribes to make this choice; the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. There was much amiss in the principle they went upon; they consulted their own private convenience more than the public good. Thus to the present time, many seek their own things more than the things of Jesus Christ; and are led by worldly interests and advantages to take up short of the heavenly Canaan. The proposal showed disregard to the land of Canaan, distrust of the Lord’s promise, and unwillingness to encounter the difficulties and dangers of conquering and driving out the inhabitants of that land. Moses is wroth with them. It will becomes any of God’s Israel to sit down unconcerned about the difficult and perilous concerns of their brethren, whether public or personal. He reminds them of the fatal consequences of the unbelief and faint-heartedness of their fathers, when they were, as themselves, just ready to enter Canaan. If men considered as they ought what would be the end of sin, they would be afraid of the beginning of it.

Here is the good effect of plain dealing. Moses, by showing their sin, and the danger of it, brought them to their duty, without murmuring or disputing. All men ought to consider the interests of others as well as their own; the law of love requires us to labour, venture, or suffer for each other as there may be occasion. They propose that their men of war should go ready armed before the children of Israel into the land of Canaan, and that they should not return till the conquest of Canaan was ended. Moses grants their request, but he warns them of the danger of breaking their word. If you fail, you sin against the Lord, and not against your brethren only; God will certainly reckon with you for it. Be sure your sin will find you out. Sin will surely find out the sinner sooner or later. It concerns us now to find our sins out, that we may repent of them, and forsake them, lest they find us out to our ruin. (Henry)

48.r. Wilderness – 12.x. “Take the count of the plunder”

 

Num 31:25-40  The LORD said to Moses, “Take the count of the plunder that was taken, both of man and of beast, you and Eleazar the priest and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the congregation, and divide the plunder into two parts between the warriors who went out to battle and all the congregation. And levy for the LORD a tribute from the men of war who went out to battle, one out of five hundred, of the people and of the oxen and of the donkeys and of the flocks. Take it from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest as a contribution to the LORD. And from the people of Israel’s half you shall take one drawn out of every fifty, of the people, of the oxen, of the donkeys, and of the flocks, of all the cattle, and give them to the Levites who keep guard over the tabernacle of the LORD.” And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the LORD commanded Moses. Now the plunder remaining of the spoil that the army took was 675,000 sheep, 72,000 cattle, 61,000 donkeys, and 32,000 persons in all, women who had not known man by lying with him. And the half, the portion of those who had gone out in the army, numbered 337,500 sheep, and the LORD’s tribute of sheep was 675. The cattle were 36,000, of which the LORD’s tribute was 72. The donkeys were 30,500, of which the LORD’s tribute was 61. The persons were 16,000, of which the LORD’s tribute was 32 persons.

 “The booty is equally divided between the people and the soldiers; a five-hundredth part being given to the Lord, and a fiftieth part to the Levites.” (Clarke)

This accounting of spoil from the defeat of the Midianites shows a remarkable amount of plunder. Israel’s officers made this remarkable report to Moses and Eleazar. They took 12,000 men to battle against the Midianites, and not a man of them was missing. “This wondrous indication of Yahweh’s providence and protection would provide the armies of Israel with assurance and confidence for the coming campaigns in the land of Canaan.” (Guzik)

There was a lot of plunder. There was no death to any of Israel’s army. God determined the distribution of the plunder. This act of the sovereignty of God and His awesome power over the assignments given to Israel is given to us in scripture as another example of God’s love and provision, and His wrath and judgment. No matter what people may think, God is in control and His purposes and plans are right and just and holy. There can be no question of this. We may think some things to harsh and other things to soft, but how God directs His grace, mercy, love, anger, wrath, or judgment is His alone. It will always be just and right and holy.

48.l. “Wilderness” – 12.r. “Appoint a man over the congregation who shall go out before them and come in before them”

 

Num 27:12-23  The LORD said to Moses, “Go up into this mountain of Abarim and see the land that I have given to the people of Israel. When you have seen it, you also shall be gathered to your people, as your brother Aaron was, because you rebelled against my word in the wilderness of Zin when the congregation quarreled, failing to uphold me as holy at the waters before their eyes.” (These are the waters of Meribah of Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.) Moses spoke to the LORD, saying, “Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the LORD may not be as sheep that have no shepherd.” So the LORD said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him. Make him stand before Eleazar the priest and all the congregation, and you shall commission him in their sight. You shall invest him with some of your authority, that all the congregation of the people of Israel may obey. And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before the LORD. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the people of Israel with him, the whole congregation.” And Moses did as the LORD commanded him. He took Joshua and made him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation, and he laid his hands on him and commissioned him as the LORD directed through Moses.

Moses explained that he did – on some occasion – ask God to relent from His judgment that Moses would never set foot in the land of Canaan. God did not relent, and Moses made himself content with knowing he would see the land and be gathered to His God. God reminded Moses of the reason why he would not be allowed to enter Canaan, because of his sin of misrepresenting God at Meribah. After hearing of his coming fate, Moses did not try to change God’s mind, and he did not complain. His only concern was for the congregation of Israel, for the people, not for himself. (Guzik)

Envious spirits do not love their successors; but Moses was not one of these. We should concern ourselves, both in our prayers and in our endeavours, for the rising generation, that religion may be maintained and advanced, when we are in our graves. God appoints a successor, even Joshua; who had signalized himself by his courage in fighting Amalek, his humility in ministering to Moses, and his faith and sincerity in witnessing against the report of the evil spies. This man God appoints to succeed Moses; a man in whom is the Spirit, the Spirit of grace. He is a good man, fearing God and hating covetousness, and acting from principle. He has the spirit of government; he is fit to do the work and discharge the trusts of his place. He has a spirit of conduct and courage; he had also the Spirit of prophecy. That man is not fully qualified for any service in the church of Christ, who is destitute of the graces and gifts of the Holy Spirit, whatever human abilities he may possess. And in Joshua’s succession we are reminded that the law was given by Moses, who by reason of our transgression could not bring us to heaven; but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ, for the salvation of every believer. (Henry)

48.k. “Wilderness” – 12.q. “Moses brought their case before the LORD”

 

Num 27:1-7  Then drew near the daughters of Zelophehad the son of Hepher, son of Gilead, son of Machir, son of Manasseh, from the clans of Manasseh the son of Joseph. The names of his daughters were: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. And they stood before Moses and before Eleazar the priest and before the chiefs and all the congregation, at the entrance of the tent of meeting, saying, “Our father died in the wilderness. He was not among the company of those who gathered themselves together against the LORD in the company of Korah, but died for his own sin. And he had no sons. Why should the name of our father be taken away from his clan because he had no son? Give to us a possession among our father’s brothers.” Moses brought their case before the LORD. And the LORD said to Moses, “The daughters of Zelophehad are right. You shall give them possession of an inheritance among their father’s brothers and transfer the inheritance of their father to them.

In the orders for the division of the land, just given, no provision had been made for females, in case of failure of male issue. The five daughters of Zelophehad, therefore, considered themselves as destitute, having neither father nor brother, and being themselves entirely overlooked; and they agreed to refer the case to Moses and the rulers, whether it were not equitable that they should inherit their father’s portion. This led to the enactment of an additional law to the civil code of Israel, which satisfactorily ascertained and amply secured the right of succession in cases of inheritance. This law, which is as reasonable as it is just, stands thus –

1. On the demise of the father, the estate descends to the sons.

2. If there be no son, the daughters succeed.

3. If there be no daughter, the brothers of the deceased inherit.

4. If there be no brethren, or paternal uncles, the estate goes to the grand uncles, or brothers of his father.

5. If there be no grand uncles, then the nearest of kin succeeds to the inheritance.

Beyond this fifth degree the law does not extend, because there must always have been some among the Israelites who could be called kinsmen.

 “For it was a hard case; and though their plea seemed reasonable, yet Moses showed his humility and modesty, that he would not determine it himself without God’s particular direction.” (Poole)

 “Allowing daughters to inherit, where there were no sons in the family, created another problem though. When they married, they would take the family land with them, thus destroying the father’s estate. To deal with this, Numbers 36 brings in additional rules governing the marriage of heiresses.” (Wenham)

These laws were made in anticipation – in faith – of coming into the inheritance of land in Canaan. This was only an issue for the daughters of Zelophehad because they were women of faith, who really believed Israel would possess the land of Canaan. (Guzik)

48.j. “Wilderness” – 12.p. “Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel”

 

Num 26:1-4  After the plague, the LORD said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest, “Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, by their fathers’ houses, all in Israel who are able to go to war.” And Moses and Eleazar the priest spoke with them in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying, “Take a census of the people, from twenty years old and upward,” as the LORD commanded Moses. 

Num 26:53-55  “Among these the land shall be divided for inheritance according to the number of names. To a large tribe you shall give a large inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall give a small inheritance; every tribe shall be given its inheritance in proportion to its list.  But the land shall be divided by lot. According to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit.

Num 26:64-65  But among these there was not one of those listed by Moses and Aaron the priest, who had listed the people of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai. For the LORD had said of them, “They shall die in the wilderness.” Not one of them was left, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.

Moses did not number the people but when God commanded him. We have here the families registered, as well as the tribes. The total was nearly the same as when numbered at mount Sinai. Notice is here taken of the children of Korah; they died not, as the children of Dathan and Abiram; they seem not to have joined even their own father in rebellion. If we partake not of the sins of sinners, we shall not partake of their plagues.  The execution of the sentence passed on the murmurers, chap. 14:29, is observable. There was not one man numbered now, who was numbered then, but Caleb and Joshua. Here appeared the righteousness of God, and his faithfulness to his threatenings. Especially observe the truth of God, in performing his promise to Caleb and Joshua. Death makes awful havoc of the human species, and causes surprising changes in families and nations; yet all is appointed in perfect wisdom, justice, and truth, by the Lord himself. This should stir us up to think upon the hateful nature of sin, the cause of all these devastations. We should renew our repentance, seek forgiveness, value the salvation of Christ, remember how frail we are, prepare for the summons of death, and fill up our days in serving our generation according to the will of God.(Henry)

Narrow is the gate that leads to righteousness and wide is the road that leads to destruction. Notice only two of the original generation made it to the promised land. Unbelief, grumbling, and rejecting God’s commands had consequences on those who were originally given the promise of a land flowing with milk and honey. They were given a promise but rejected the commands of the promise giver – God. They were given warnings and examples but failed to listen or obey God. 

Eternal life is a promise from God for all who would trust, rely upon, and cling to Jesus Christ for their forgiveness, salvation, and redemption. Likewise, eternal hell is promised for those who reject God’s plan of salvation. 

48.i. “Wilderness” – 12.o. “Because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel”

 

Num 25:10-18  And the LORD said to Moses, “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’” The name of the slain man of Israel, who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, chief of a father’s house belonging to the Simeonites. And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was the tribal head of a father’s house in Midian. And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Harass the Midianites and strike them down, for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague on account of Peor.”

Phinehas was passionate about the things God was passionate about. In this situation, Phinehas faithfully demonstrated the zeal of God against Israel’s unfaithfulness to their covenant with God. Zimri the son of Salu…. Cozbi the daughter of Zur: These were the names of the previously unnamed (Numbers 25:6, 8) Israelite man and Moabite woman who so publicly and offensively sinned. This naming was to their everlasting shame. Both of them came from fathers who were leaders.

God commanded Israel to show no tolerance towards the Midianites, who played a role in seducing Israel to these sins of immorality and idolatry. Israel was commanded to battle against the Midianites at every opportunity they had.

We read not that any Midianites died of the plague; God punished them with the sword of an enemy, not with the rod of a father. We must set ourselves against whatever is an occasion of sin to us, Mt 5:29,30. Whatever draws us to sin, should be a vexation to us, as a thorn in the flesh. And none will be more surely and severely punished than those who, after Satan’s example, and with his subtlety, tempt others to sin. (Henry)

The hearts and minds of those who reject and deny God are full of evil ideas that find their way into actions. Sometimes these are overt and other times they subtle nudges to get others to follow after their ungodly acts. Much of the time we do not see the evil intents that others have. They know their intents. They know what they are doing is wrong but have given their hearts and minds over to that which is wrong. It is wrong because God has called it wrong. It is wrong because it is fed by evil desires that result in thoughts, words, and actions that do not honor God or His holiness. There is a point of no return, where the hearts and minds of these people are hardened beyond redemption and god gives them over to the lusts of their hearts. We live in a time of mass communication availability. Literally a person can have a thought posted on social media and it can be sent and picked up by millions of views. Evil thoughts and ideas can be spewed out every second of every day. Some of these thoughts try to defend overt acts of unrighteousness and others try to convince with worldly wisdom that their acts are ok to do. Homosexuality, Abortion, Pornography, Transgenderism, Looting and Destruction, Rewriting or Denying Historical Events, Cancelling Opposition, ETC………… All have evil roots and hurt the souls of those who proclaim and defend them. People void of God and the Word of God will be led astray little by little until what would have been totally absurd 5-10 years ago is now defended and common place. It does not matter how many smooth words are used to convince and proclaim wrong thoughts, words, and actions, Wrong is wrong. When God is removed from the hearts and minds of people they will do what seems right in their own eyes to the eternal damning of their souls. God’s Word rightly says, “The fool says in their heart there is no God”. 

48.h. “Wilderness” – 12.n. “Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor”

 

Num 25:1  While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel. And the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people and hang them in the sun before the LORD, that the fierce anger of the LORD may turn away from Israel.” And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor.” And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meetingWhen Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. Thus the plague on the people of Israel was stopped. Nevertheless, those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand.

The friendship of the wicked is more dangerous than their enmity; for none can prevail against God’s people if they are not overcome by their inbred lusts; nor can any enchantment hurt them, but the enticements of worldly interests and pleasures. Here is the sin of Israel, to which they are enticed by the daughters of Moab and Midian. Those are our worst enemies who draw us to sin, for that is the greatest mischief any man can do us. Israel’s sin did that which all Balaam’s enchantments could not do; it set God against them. Diseases are the fruits of God’s anger, and the just punishments of prevailing sins; one infection follows the other. Ringleaders in sin ought to be made examples of justice. (Henry)

Moabites and Midianites found ways and means to become familiar with the Israelites, and to introduce their daughters into their company and conversation, and being ensnared and enamoured with them, they were drawn to commit lewdness with them, and hereby were led on to commit other abominations, which brought the divine displeasure upon them; so that what they dared not attempt by war, and could not effect by sorceries and divinations, they accomplished by those iniquitous arts, namely, bringing the wrath, the curse, and plague of God upon them. (Brown)

Neglect of God’s Word and complacency to Things of God will do harm to the soul. They will darken paths that honor and glorify God. They will deafen the ears to hear God’s leading. They will give sight and purpose to worldly things that dishonor God. They will harden the heart and things of God will become void in their heart. They will make what is clearly wrong seem right. They will allow you to be led astray by false words of hope. They will harm your soul, darken your mind, deafen your ears, and give you false beliefs. 

Guard your hearts and minds. Stay in His Word and seek to honor and glorify Him in all thoughts, words, and actions.

47.s. “Wilderness” – 11.y. “Aaron Dies”

 

Num 20:22  And they journeyed from Kadesh, and the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came to Mount Hor. And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron at Mount Hor, on the border of the land of Edom, “Let Aaron be gathered to his people, for he shall not enter the land that I have given to the people of Israel, because you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah. Take Aaron and Eleazar his son and bring them up to Mount Hor. And strip Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son. And Aaron shall be gathered to his people and shall die there.”  Moses did as the LORD commanded. And they went up Mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation. And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son. And Aaron died there on the top of the mountain. Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain. And when all the congregation saw that Aaron had perished, all the house of Israel wept for Aaron thirty days.

God bids Aaron prepare to die. There is something of displeasure in these orders. Aaron must not enter Canaan, because he had failed in his duty at the waters of strife. There is much of mercy in them. Aaron, though he dies for his transgression, dies with ease, and in honour. He is gathered to his people, as one who dies in the arms of Divine grace. There is much significancy in these orders. Aaron must not enter Canaan, to show that the Levitical priesthood could make nothing perfect; that must be done by bringing in a better hope. Aaron submits, and dies in the method and manner appointed; and, for aught that appears, with as much cheerfulness as if he had been going to bed. It was a great satisfaction to Aaron to see his son, who was dear to him, preferred; and his office preserved and secured: especially, to see in this a figure of Christ’s everlasting priesthood. A good man would desire, if it were the will of God, not to outlive his usefulness. Why should we covet to continue any longer in this world, than while we may do some service in it for God and our generation? (Henry)

There is little record of what happened during these years. The history of the period is compressed into only five and one-half chapters, while the single year at Mount Sinai is given almost 50 chapters. This was to demonstrate these years accomplished nothing, except the death of the generation of unbelief.  During those 38 years, there was much movement – but no progress. Our walk with God can be the same way. “The larger part of the sojourn in the desert is left without record. This may be deliberate on Moses’ part. It is as though the time of sojourn was time that did not really count in the history of salvation.” 

The passing of Aaron was a significant landmark in the history of Israel. The high priest died, but the institution of the priesthood continued. It would continue through Aaron’s descendants until it was fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah (Guzik)

After many years perhaps – perhaps after a whole lifetime – of wandering in dry places they find themselves once more at the very point to which they had come before, and not one step closer.”  (Winterbotham)

It is one thing to be old and becoming aware of your time on earth is closer to death, and another to be told today you die. Imagine waking up in the morning and being told that you will pass your duties on to your son and then die. I think this was a blessing to Aaron in that he was able to know that the High Priest service was being passed onto His son and that he witnessed the transfer of honor. But still, hearing “today you will be gathered to your people”, die, has to be somewhat of a jolt. 

When we are young we have all kinds of ideas about our future and we live out our lives with these thoughts, though they may change as time passes on, but we do not think “today I will die”.  Even as we grow old we still make plans for today and tomorrow with little thought “today I will die”. No, very little, if any thoughts will be given to this being our last day. What if we gave this more than a glancing thought? What if we woke each morning with the thought this could be my last day? Would I think, act, or speak differently? Would I embrace coming into eternity? Would I rejoice knowing? Would I reflect on my life and wonder if I truly was giving honor and glory to Jesus Christ in all my thoughts, words, and actions? Would I be different for knowing today is the day? 

We do not know the time or day of our death normally. We do know that it is coming. We know that every single person will die. We know God has created both heaven and hell. We know eternity in either place awaits every single person. We know that the gate to heaven is narrow and wide is the road to hell. We know God will judge every single person. Are you ready to enter eternity? Many will say they are ready and have based their “readiness” on how good they are. Others will say all this God stuff is foolishness. Others will say with confidence, Jesus Christ is my redeemer, my hope, and my salvation.  In and through Him alone do I enter eternity into heaven. Trust, belief, reliance, and hope in anything else falls way short. 

How would your life change if you knew today or tomorrow or next week you would die? 

45.t. “Wilderness” – 9.z. “Unauthorized fire before the LORD”

 

Numbers 3:1-4  These are the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the LORD spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. These are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.  These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he ordained to serve as priests.  But Nadab and Abihu died before the LORD when they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests in the lifetime of Aaron their father.

Lev 10:1-7  – 1 Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them. 2 So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD. 3 And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD spoke, saying: ‘By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; And before all the people I must be glorified.’ ” So Aaron held his peace. 4 Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.” 5 So they went near and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had said. 6 And Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons, “Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, lest you die, and wrath come upon all the people. But let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the LORD has kindled. 7 “You shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die, for the anointing oil of the LORD [is] upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.

What was their sin in thus offering it? Plainly, the narrative points to the essence of the crime in calling it ‘fire which He had not commanded.’ So this was their crime, that they were tampering with the appointed order which but a week before they had been consecrated to conserve and administer; that they were thus thrusting in self-will and personal caprice, as of equal authority with the divine commandment; that they were arrogating the right to cut and carve God’s appointments, as the whim or excitement of the moment dictated; and that they were doing their best to obliterate the distinction on the preservation of which religion, morality, and the national existence depended; namely, the distinction between holy and common, clean and unclean. To plough that distinction deep into the national consciousness was no small part of the purpose of the law; and here were two of its appointed witnesses disregarding it, and flying in its face.  They have had many successors, not only in Israel, while a ritual demanding punctilious conformity lasted, but in Christendom since. Alas! our censers are often flaming with ‘strange fire.’ How much so-called Christian worship glows with self-will or with partisan zeal! When we seek to worship God for what we can get, when we rush into His presence with hot, eager desires which we have not subordinated to His will, we are burning ‘strange fire which He has not commanded.’ The only fire which should kindle the incense in our censers, and send it up to heaven in fragrant wreaths, is fire caught from the altar of sacrifice. God must kindle the flame in our hearts if we are to render these else cold hearts to Him. (MacLaren)

This may be an emblem of dissembled love, when a man performs religious duties, prays to God, or praises him without any cordial affection to him, or obeys commands not from love, but selfish views; or of an ignorant, false, and misguided zeal, a zeal not according to knowledge, superstitious and hypocritical; or of false and strange doctrines, such as are not of God, nor agree with the voice of Christ, and are foreign to the Scriptures; or of human ordinances, and the inventions of men, and of everything that man brings of his own, in order to obtain eternal life and salvation. (Gill)

Hearing and reading God’s Word must come into willing, obedient, and reliant hearts. If not we will have worldly desires of what is right and wrong and try to mix the Word of God with that which is not ordained by God, nor does it give Honor and Glory to Him. The Word of God has little benefit in a disobedient heart that is set on its own desires and paths in life. Without a desire to be led by God for the single purpose of honoring and glorifying Him our hearts and minds become dull and our ears deaf and our hearts like stone. It is easy to spot and identify the first steps away from God that lead to such lukewarm commitment – Neglect and Complacency. The loss of desire to honor and glorify God is always preceded by a lacking desire to honor and glorify Him in all thoughts, words, and actions, which is closely followed by neglect of His Word. We might live content with our place in life but we should never be content with our growth, maturity, and service to God.