Numbers 32-33

Numbers 32-33

Israel keeps getting closer and closer to being able to inherit the Promised Land. In Numbers 32, it appears as if the only member of the older generation who has not yet died is Moses. He is still aiding Joshua and Eleazar in learning how to lead Israel. The Israelites are now just east of the Jordan River, ready to enter the Promised Land. However, both Reuben and Gad decided that they would rather not enter into the land but stay just east of it. Moses immediately questions their intentions, comparing their actions to that of their father’s who would not enter the land because of how big the people were. He compared them to the older generation that was wiped out by God, a generation who chose not to trust that God would aid them in battle. Reuben and Gad, however, prove that their intentions were pure. They wanted the land because it would be good for their livestock, but they did not want to abandon Israel. They promised that they would enter the Promised Land with Israel and help their fellow brothers conquer the land. Then, once every tribe had their own inheritance, Reuben and Gad would return to the other side of the Jordan River for theirs.

Moses allowed these two tribes, along with half of Manasseh, to inhabit the land, going ahead and building their cities. But they were held to their promise, and both Joshua and Eleazar knew that they were to take all the men on these two and a half tribes to battle when they entered the Promised Land. It appears as if the motives of these men were pure. It was not that they did not want the Promised Land, they had just found nice land right outside. The land in which they settled was the land that they had just won in the battles in the previous chapters. Unlike the generation before them, these men trusted that God would indeed give their brothers the land, and they were willing to help. They were willing to stand by their brothers’ side in battle, willing to fight with them to help them. It is a great picture of how we are to look out for our brothers and sisters in Christ. We must realize that we all have different callings in life, but none of us can accomplish God’s plans on our own. We need the help of others, and we should always be willing to help our fellow Christians whenever they are in need. For one day, we might be the ones in need of their help. God knew that we could not live this life alone, which is why He gave us the Holy Spirit, but it is also why He gave us each other. Look to the opening chapters Acts for a great picture of what the Church should look like. We were meant to live life together.

At this point Israel has gone about as far as they can go with Moses. There is still in the entire book of Deuteronomy to go, but Israel is now right outside the Promised Land, ready to enter into Jericho. The rest of this book will set up some of the boundaries of the new land, and Deuteronomy will be Moses’ farewell speech to Israel as he hands over his leadership role to Joshua. Numbers 33 begins this transition by recounting Israel’s journey up to this point. Going all the way back to Egypt, their route is revisited, showing every city that they stopped in along the way. Reading this chapter by itself would be confusing. But if you pay attention to each city’s name, you might remember some of the previous stories from Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. It was important for the Israelites then to realize how far they had come. None of them had personally witnessed God’s power at the Red Sea, and many of them had probably not seen the water from the rock or the manna from Heaven. This was a way for the new generation to begin to understand what God had done for their parents, to help them know that God would do the same for them. It is always good to reflect on God’s provisions in our lives. We need to be reminded of what He has done for us in our past. These moments can give us comfort and confidence, that He will continue to look out for us in our future, even if the future looks uncertain. Israel did not know what their future held exactly, but they knew that the same God who had brought them this far would be faithful to carry them through.

Matt