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  • Jon: The book of Numbers gets overlooked, partly because it has a really boring name...

  • Tim: which is a shame, in Hebrew tradition the book’s name isbamidbar” ( במדבר)

  • which means, “in the wilderness”. Numbers is an epic travel log of Israel’s journey

  • through the desert on their way to the land promised to Abraham.

  • Jon: Now, this pilgrimage should only have taken about 2 weeks on foot.

  • Tim: But instead it takes them forty years.

  • Jon: That’s crazy. practically half of someone’s lifetime.

  • Tim: Yeah, it’s a very long camping trip with lots of interesting stories, BUT, lets remember,

  • it’s most helpful to start with how the book is designed.

  • Jon: Right.

  • Tim: So, the book is broken up into five sections. There are three different wilderness locations,

  • broken up by two road trips that link it all together.

  • Jon: OK, so the story starts in the wilderness at Mt Sinai, right here on the map.

  • Tim: Then in the second section they travel towards a region called Paran.

  • Jon: and then a whole bunch of things happen there, in the wilderness of Paran.

  • Tim: Then, in this fourth section, Israel’s road trip to Moab.

  • Jon: The book ends with a large section in the wilderness of Moab, right across the Jordan

  • river from the promised land.

  • Tim Now, through all these sections, the storyline flows like gripping, dramatic movie:

  • everything starts great, then the trip goes horribly wrong. But it ends with a final redemptive

  • moment, a surprising act of God’s grace.

  • Jon: So lets begin with the first act, Israel is at the wilderness at Mt. Sinai. Weve

  • become really familiar with this Mt.

  • Tim: Yeah, if you remember Israel came here after Egypt, they formed a Covenant with God

  • here, got the 10 commandments here, built the tabernacle here,

  • theyve been here for one full year.

  • Jon: and now they take a census to number the people as they prepare to leave.

  • Tim: right, and then theyre are given instructions for how organize themselves in the camp: God’s

  • presence in the tabernacle, then the tribe of Levi and the priests around it, then the

  • rest of the tribes around them. This pattern is a visual symbol of how God’s holiness

  • is at the center of their existence as a people.

  • Jon: And they are told that when the cloud of God’s presence moves on they are to pack

  • up and travel with it.

  • Tim: The ark of the covenant carried by the Levites is in front, then the tribe of Judah

  • and on and on. This order also a symbol how God’s holy presence is their leader and

  • guide.

  • Jon: So we begin the second section of this book with enthusiasm as they leave the Sinai

  • wilderness and travel up to Paran- God’s with them, everything is organized, everything

  • is going to be great!...

  • Tim: ...but it’s not great. After just three days on the road they start to complaining

  • about their hunger and thirst, and even Mosesbrother and sister start badmouthing him in

  • front of everyone...

  • Jon: Not a great start. But now were in the 3rd section - the wilderness of Paran

  • - this is where they send 12 spies to scout out the promised land, two of the spies come

  • back really optimistic..

  • Tim: but the other ten are freaked out, they don’t trust God and saywere gonna

  • get annihilatedSo they start a mutiny, and they try to appoint a new leader who will

  • take them back to Egypt. Basically, they are refusing to go into the promised land and

  • so God honors their choice and says that this generation of people will wander for 40 years

  • and die in the wilderness, and only their kids will get to enter the promised land.

  • Jon: You know, this story gets brought many times in the Bible

  • by different authors...

  • Tim: and always a reminder that while God remains faithful to his people, he will honor their

  • choices and let them waste their whole lives if they choose to live in rebellion.

  • Jon: OK, so this trip’s been a disaster so far.

  • Tim: it gets worse in this fourth section as they travel to Moab - even Moses has a

  • moment of rebellion, and is disqualified from entering the promised land. There’s another

  • rebellion among the people, the results in a snake attack

  • And what makes all these rebellions even worse, is that every step of the way,

  • God’s been providing, he offers forgiveness, he provides them food, water,

  • and this crazy stuff calledmanna’...

  • Jon: What is that stuff?

  • Tim: No idea! But in spite of this they they complain and say they wish they had died

  • in Egypt.

  • Jon: If I was God I would give up on these guys

  • Tim: You would think, and that is what makes this story in the final section so surprising.

  • Israel just arrived in Moab. The King of Moab is freaked out that this huge of people traveling

  • through his land, so he hires this pagan sorcerer named Balaam to pronounce curses on them.

  • Jon: This dude means business.

  • Tim: yah, and Balaam says, “I’ll pray to the Hebrew God and well see what happens”.

  • And three different times he attempts to curse them, but each time he finds he can only utter

  • blessing. Most surprising is the last blessing in which

  • he prophesies that out of Israel will arise a victorious king, and this King is somehow

  • connected to God’s promise to Abraham to bless all nations thru this family.

  • So, here is Israel rebelling down in the camp,

  • totally unaware that up in the hills God is protecting and blessing them.

  • Jon: So, the book ends here in Moab. They are ready to go into the promised land.

  • They count everyone up, again like at the beginning, as they leave behind the

  • old generation including Moses

  • Tim: But before they leave Moses, he leaves them his last words of warning and wisdom

  • and that speech is what the next book, Deuteronomy is all about.

  • the next book, Deuteronomy, is all about.

Jon: The book of Numbers gets overlooked, partly because it has a really boring name...

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B1 中級

民數記 (The Book of Numbers)

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    雖 發佈於 2021 年 01 月 14 日
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