Tag: chapter 14

Numbers | Chapter 14

Post author By Ben Fust
Post date April 29, 2020

The fear-mongering of chapter 13 has worked and the rabble is sufficiently roused. The people weep and wail and grumble against Moses and Aaron (a familiar tactic from not only this journey but also the journey from Egypt to Mt. Sinai). Keeping consistent with the form of their greatest hits (grumblings) from those episodes, they ask why YHWH would bring them this far to die in the wilderness by the sword of their enemies. Why would He do such a thing to their wives and children? Isn’t it better that we go back to Egypt? Now, obviously the answer is that YHWH wouldn’t do that so they should proceed and trust His promises in the matter. But, of course, that isn’t what they do. They conclude that they should choose a new leader (take that, Moses!) and head on back to Egypt under their own volition.

Moses and Aaron recognize a straight-up rebellion when they see it and fall on their faces. The two spies who tried to calm the situation down, Joshua and Caleb, tear their clothes (a strong lament). This is a good reminder for wise men recognize trouble and weep for it. Perhaps we run the risk of being too passive at the evil and rebellion we see in our midst (and even in our own lives). Caleb and Joshua try re-engage the people, begging them not do this thing and to trust in God’s word and provision. In reaction to this faithful and reasonable plea, the people decided it would be best to kill them with stones. YHWH will stand for this no more and His glory (presence) appears at the tent of meeting. Kind of the ultimate, “Just wait ’til your Father gets here” kind of moment.

God asks Moses a few rhetorical questions that make it clear that He’s had enough of their rebellion. “How long will this people despise me? How long will they not believe in me in spirte of all the signs that I have done among them?” Moses, wisely, does not interject at this point. YHWH’s conclusion is that He wants to start over, that these people will be struck with a plague, disinherited of all His promises, and that He will start over with a new nation from Moses’ line. This isn’t the first time that God has determined that His purposes shan’t be thwarted by a rebellious group and that it was better to start over with the line of a faithful fella. There are obvious flood story overtones here.

Moses, as he has done multiple times now, intercedes for the people. In fact, this is pretty much the same conversation he and YHWH had after the golden calf episode in Exodus 32. Moses makes the case that this people is supposed to be an example to the nations, and by wiping them out that foreign peoples may believe that God wasn’t capable of delivering His people. Further, Moses reminds YHWH of His description of His own character, that He is “…slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love…”, which was also an outcome of that same calf situation (Exodus 34). Moses’ plea for the people works, Like in Exodus, it’s probably not right to see this as God being “talked out of” what He intended to do. It’s basically the means for which God points out what the just consequences are so that the extent of His mercy can be rightly understood.

Still, there will be consequences. When it says, “…visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and fourth generation”, it’s kind of an idiom that means that God will not allow iniquity to go unpunished. It doesn’t mean that the punishment of the first generation will get extended beyond that generation as a curse or something, it just means that God will continue to follow through with the punishment for as many generations as are guilty of it. I know it reads oddly to us, we want to hold it to a literal count, but that’s not the intent.

So YHWH tells Moses the consequences. Ultimately, He’s not going to wipe them out. However, they didn’t want to go into the land, so they won’t be allowed to. They wanted to head back to Egypt, and He’s going to grant that, too. They wanted to go back to the wilderness? Done. And they will die there, a whole generation of them. The same set of fellas that were counted as the “army” at the start of the book (age 20 and up) will be turned away from this promised land and wander 40 years (a year for each day they were spies in the land). Of the spies themselves, only Joshua and Caleb will survive and get to enter the land. The rest of the spies who riled up the people with their false report from the land, will die immediately via plague. The only thing YHWH doesn’t grant them is their complaint that He has brought their children into risk. Instead, the opposite occurs, their kids will be allowed to enter the land YWHH promised once the whole nation has done enough wandering to outlast the most hearty of the rebellious adults.

So YHWH tells them to head out the next day for the wilderness by way of the Red Sea. In a remarkable turn of extended foolishness, they refuse this instruction and instead head up to the heights of the hill country (basically into the promised land). They’ve decided that they will demonstrate their repentance by disobeying YHWH’s command to go to the wilderness and instead follow through with trying to conquer Canaan. This is a classic move, well known to every pre-teen who, upon being grounded for not picking up their room, contends that all is well and should be forgiven now that they are cleaning their room. But obviously their heart is still not reacting in faithfulness to God, it’s an attempt to re-secure the earthly blessing they so foolishly rejected the day before. Moses attempts to convince them that this isn’t going to work and they are going to eat their hats at the hands of the land’s inhabitants if they go in there without God. “Do not go up, for YHWH is not among you, lest you be struck down before your enemies.”

They ignored Moses and went into the land without the cloud (presence of YHWH) leading them there. As a result, they were defeated and chased out of the land by the Canaanites and the Amalekites.

Tags numbers, old testament, chapter 14, torah

Bible Study Genesis

Genesis | Chapter 14

Post author By Ben Fust
Post date April 29, 2020

In chapter 14, the narrative shifts from the peace that comes from the parting of ways between Abram and Lot and zooms out to a conflict between 4 Mesopotamian kings, ring-led by Chedorlaomer, king of Elam (henceforth known as Cheddar and the Gang) and the 5 king alliance (henceforth known as the Dead Sea Alliance) that make up the various city-states that surround the Dead Sea. Fed up with these foreign rulers, the Dead Sea Alliance (kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Zoar) decide to rebel. This works for a year until Cheddar and the Gang come rolling in from the east to put things back in order (always ominous action from the east.)

A massive battle takes place in the Valley of Siddim, located just south of the Dead Sea. In what certainly is an embarrassing turn of events, this battle ensues and the Dead Sea Alliance breaks apart, the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah bail and their men follow. They stink even at retreat and a good number of them fall into tar pits. In reaction, Cheddar and the Gang easily haul off with the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Now, generally speaking, we don’t care about any of this. These types of alliances of kings are pretty common and it’s a bit of the way of the world where strong kings from foreign lands dominate those who are weaker. None of this has anything to do with God’s selected line of focus, Abram, as the land that belongs to the kings of the Dead Sea Alliance are not part of Abram’s promised land, this fight isn’t his business. However, Cheddar and the Gang take more than just the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, they take Abram’s nephew Lot. And this brings the trouble. (It’s certainly intentional that this story follows directly after Lot’s choice of land where he and Abram part ways.)

Abram is told the news that Cheddar and the Gang have stolen Lot. Although we see that Abram has some buddies in the area (Mamre, Eshcol and Aner), he seems to be able to supply his own men for the mission of retrieving Lot, 318 of them to be exact. And these aren’t run of the mill herdsmen or general laborers who Abram has convinced to join, we’re told they’re trained men. Gotta appreciate Abram’s style here.

So Abram and his continental army head out and chase Cheddar and the Gang north all the way up to the city of Dan (about 175 miles, give or take a mile.) Then he splits his forces, they attack at night, and Cheddar and the Gang are defeated and are chased even further out of the area, all the way north of Damascus (another 30 miles.) This is no small feat. Although we don’t have a sense of how many men were involved in the Dead Sea Alliance, it certainly is crazy to see Abram’s boys haul up north and over the course of a single night evict Cheddar and the Gang not only out of the Dead Sea area but completely out of the land promised to his heirs. (There’s no indication in the story that that was a motivation, but it’s interesting.)

Not only that, but Abram returns with Lot and all of his possessions as well as the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah (which includes other folks besides Lot.) This wasn’t just chasing a raccoon away with a broomstick, Abram cleaned house, took names, and road home with heavier carts than when he arrived.

Upon Abram’s return, he encounters one of the most enigmatic folk in Scripture, Melchizedek, king of Salem. He also runs into the king of Sodom, who seems to have made his way back home after literally heading for the hills when he was supposed to be defending his own land. We’re likely supposed to contrast these two fellas and their reaction to Abram.

Up until now, we don’t know anything of this Melchizedek. He is not part of the Dead Sea Alliance and his land (Salem, possibly Jerusalem, possibly not) is not part of the disputed territory. His name means “My king is righteous” and he is described as a “priest of God Most High” as well as a king. This is one interesting dude, especially to show up out of the blue as having an office of sorts in service to YAHWEH. He greets Abram bearing gifts, bread and wine to be exact. He also becomes the first human in Scripture to recognize the blessing upon Abram, crediting God’s influence with Abram’s victory over Cheddar and the Gang.

In reaction, Abram gives Melchizedek 10% of everything he got from Cheddar. This probably shouldn’t be seen as a voluntary gift, it’s more of a matter of honor, acknowledging the station and superiority of Melchizedek in relation to Abram.

In contrast, the cowardly king of Sodom bears no gifts or form of hospitality and opens the conversation with a curt direction to Abram to give back the persons and keep the goods for himself. Obviously, the king’s reputation isn’t good as it is conceivable to Abram that to accept this offer had the potential to lead to false boasting and perhaps an ill-advised association with him. Abram wants nothing to do with that and rejects the king’s offer, returning all the spoils of war he gained in the process of re-acquiring Lot except what the soldiers have eaten and whatever belongs to his buddies in the area.

A couple notes. The point of this is likely to demonstrate that God’s blessing is with Abram, certainly in contrast with Lot (who finds himself kidnapped) but also with the inept Dead Sea Alliance as well as the seemingly super-powerful Cheddar and the Gang. No odds are too great when you are faithful to the Lord.

On Melchizedek, he pops up again as a reference in Psalm 110 as well as in Hebrews as a figure that seems to help us understand both David and Jesus. In fact, it’s been suggested that Melchizedek might be a Christophany, an appearance of Jesus on earth in human form prior to being born to Mary (there will be another example in Genesis.) However, I think the reference is most likely to point to the unique position (line) of being both priest and king. This is a different type of office than just being the king or just being the priest. David seems to have some duties that would allude to this and, of course, Jesus is the ultimate Priest and King combo.