Content:
- The Golden Calf
- Idolatry
- Aaron's Failure
- Moses' Intersession
- Consequences of Sin
- More Intersession of Moses
- God Shows Moses his Glory
- Stoning when Breaking the Law
- A Blasphemer Put to Death
- Penalty for Breaking the Sabbath
- Fire From the Lord
- Miriam and Aaron Oppose Moses
- Twelve Spies Exploring Canaan
- Spies Sent Out
- Rebellion Against the Lord
- Moses' Intersession
- Consequences of Sin
- Obedience and Consequences
- Korah’s Rebellion
- Moses Challenges Korah and his Followers
- Death of Korah and his Followers
- The Complaint of the People
- The Budding of Aaron’s Staff
- The Bronze Snake
- Moab Seduces Israel
1. The Golden Calf
The Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai (also called Mount Horeb), where he stayed for 40 days and 40 nights. God gave him there the two tablets of stone with The Ten Commandments inscribed with "the finger of God" (Exo 24:18, 31:18, Deu 9:8–11).
Idolatry:
When the people saw that Moses was taking so long to come down from the mountain, they began to question what had happened to him. They asked Aaron
to make gods to go before them. (Exo 32:1, Acts 7:39–40).
This is the first area of faltering when Moses spent all this time on Mount Sinai. Instead of trusting God, they took matters into their own hands and
created their own solution. They did what they knew, and that was pagan idolatry. 40 days ago they had promised to obey all that the Lord had said,
see Moses; Part 10: The Mosaic Laws. Now they asked for new gods.
Aaron's Failure:
Aaron told them to take off the gold earrings that their wives, sons, and daughters were wearing and bring them to him. So they did. He then made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf and shaped it with a tool. Then they said that the calf was the god who brought them out of Egypt. When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced that tomorrow would be a feast to the Lord. So the next day the people got up early and offered burnt offerings and presented
fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to play.
(Exo 32:2–6, Acts 7:41, Psalm 106:19–22).
This "play" turned into sexual immorality for some of them (1 Cor 10:7–8).
Aaron knew better, but bowed to the will of the people. He fell to the pressure
and demands from them. This is an example of Fear of Man that can make a person make wrong decisions.
They mix and merge worship to the Lord with pagan worship to the calf, which is an example of religious mixing that is an abomination to God.
See God is jealous in God's Attributes.
Moses' Intersession:
Then the Lord told Moses to come down from Mount Sinai, because his people had become corrupt. They had been quick to turn away from what the Lord commanded them and had made for themselves an idol cast in the form of a calf. They had bowed to it and sacrificed to it and had said that it was their god who brought them out of Egypt. The Lord told Moses that they were a stiff-necked people, and that Moses would let God's anger burn against them and destroy them.
Then God would make Moses a great nation. But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. He asked God why he would let anger burn against his people, whom he had brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand. The Egyptians would then believe that it was with evil intentions that God brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the Earth. Moses told God that he would turn from his fierce anger; relent and don't bring disaster upon his people. God should remember his servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to whom he swore by himself: "I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever." Then the Lord relented and didn't bring upon his people the disaster he had threatened. (Exo 32:7–14, Deu 9:26–29, Psalm 106:23).
It would have been the height of arrogance to accept such an offer, and Moses didn't. Instead, Moses appeals to God for his reputation. He also reminds God of his promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Abrahamic covenant. God delights when people stands on his promises, God keeps them (Joshua 21:45).
Consequences of Sin:
Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back. The tablets were the work of God; the writing was God's writing, engraved on the tablets. When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. He took the calf that the people had made and burned it in the fire; then he ground it to powder, scattered it on the water, and let the Israelites drink it. He asked Aaron how he could led them into such a great sin. Aaron answered him not to be angry, and that the people had asked him to make gods to go before them. Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and become a laughing stock to their enemies. So he stood at the entrance of the camp and said that whoever was for the Lord would come to him. All the Levites gathered to him. Moses told them that the Lord had said that each would gird a sword at his side. Then they would go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, killing their brother, friend, and neighbor. The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about 3000 of the people died. Then Moses said that these Levites had been set apart for the Lord that day, because they had been against their own sons and brothers, and the Lord had blessed them this day. (Exo 32:15–29, Deu 9:15–21).
Breaking the tablets was a symbolic way of telling the people that they had broken the Law they had promised to keep. Moses called it what it was, a great sin committed by the people of Israel, despite all blessings they had experienced.
More Intersession by Moses:
The next day Moses told the people that they had committed a great sin. But now he would go up to the Lord; perhaps he could make atonement for their sin. So Moses went back to the Lord and asked him to forgive their sin, but if not, he would blot Moses out of the book he had written. The Lord answered Moses that whoever had sinned against him would be blotted out of his book. Moses would lead the people to the place God spoke of, and an angel of God would go before them (instead of the Lord himself). But when the time came for God to punish, he would punish them for their sin. And the Lord struck the people with a plague for what they did with the calf that Aaron had made. (Exo 32:30–35).
Moses is offering himself as a sacrifice for the people. This isn't for Moses to offer.
There would come a day when Jesus Christ gives his life for mankind, see Salvation.
Then the Lord told Moses that he should leave that place and go to the land he promised an oath to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, see the Abrahamic covenant. But God didn't want to go with them anymore, because they were a stiff-necked people and God could therefore destroy them on the way. When the people heard these distressing words, they began to mourn and no one put on any ornaments. God also told them to take off their ornaments and he would decide what to do with it. So the Israelites took off their ornaments at Mount Horeb (Mount Sinai). (Exo 33:1–6).
Moses then reminded the Lord that he had told him to lead these people, but God hadn't told him whom to send with him. God had told Moses that he knew him by name and that he had found favor with God. If God was pleased with him, he should teach him his ways so that he may know him and continue to find favor with him. God should remember that this nation is his people. The Lord replied that his Presence would go with him and he would give him rest. Then Moses said to God that if his Presence didn't go with them, he wouldn't send them from there. How would anyone know that the Lord was pleased with him and his people unless he walked with them. What else would distinguish Moses and his people from all the other people on the face of the Earth. The Lord then told Moses that he would do exactly what he had asked, because he was pleased with him and knew him by name. (Exo 33:12–17).
God relents and will go with Moses and the Israelites. Moses is essential saying to God that if he won't go, Moses won't go, and that it's God that makes them special.
God Shows Moses his Glory:
Moses then asked the Lord to show him his glory. The Lord replied that he would let all his goodness pass before him and proclaim his name, the Lord, in his presence. God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and has compassion on whom he wants to have compassion, see God is sovereign in God's Attributes.
But Moses wasn't allowed to see his face, because no one can see him and live. Then the Lord said that there was a place near him where Moses can stand on a rock. When God's glory passed, he put Moses in a cleft in the rock and covered him with his hand until God had passed. Then God would remove his hand and Moses would see his back; but his face must not be seen. (Exo 33:18–23).
We can't see God in a human form (anthropomorphism). Human terms are used to help us understand this. Moses may have seen a manifestation of God in some tangible form (theophany). Covering Moses with his hand means that God would protect him until God had passed. To see his back means the trailing edge of his glory. "No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known." (John 1:18).
Then the Lord told Moses that he should chisel out two stone tablets like the first, and the Lord would write on them the words that were on the first tablets that Moses broke. Moses would be ready in the morning and then go up to Mount Sinai and present himself to him at the top of the mountain. No one was allowed to come with him or be seen anywhere on the mountain; even the flocks and herds may not graze before the mountain. Moses did so. Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name. He passed in front of Moses, saying: "The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the 3rd and
4th generation." (See the comment to the 2nd commandment in
The Ten Commandments.) Moses immediately bowed to the ground, worshipped
and asked God that if he had found favor in his eyes, that he would go with them. And though this was a stiff-necked people, forgive their wickedness and sin and
take them as his inheritance. (Exo 34:1–9, Deu 10:1–5).
When God proclaimed his name, he revealed his character, see time 5:22–27:53
in DAVID GUZIK SERMON ON EXODUS 34:1-11 I AM Goodness and Truth.
When God presents himself, he uses this threefold term, see The Trinity. Our condition before God is that we are all sinners before him, and therefore we all need Salvation. Those who have received Salvation are the ones who are forgiven, but those who haven't received it are the ones who will be punished.
When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant in his hands (The Ten Commandments), he wasn't aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses called out to them; So Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. Then all the Israelites came to him, and he gave them all the commands the Lord had given him on the mountain. When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. But whenever he came into the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he went out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord.
(Exo 34:29–35).
The Old Covenant was great, but it came with fading glory. The reason Moses put a veil over his face was to prevent the Israelites from seeing the glory fade away. How much greater is the New Covenant which is without any fading through Jesus Christ. The Old Covenant was used for a period. The New Covenant is where the fulfillment of the Old Covenant took place and has an unfading glory. For people living under the Old Covenant, having rejected Christ as their Messiah, it's like having a vail when they read the Mosaic Laws. They can't see beyond that, they don't see the New Covenant, see Jesus and the Law. Whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is removed, (2 Cor 3:13–18).
2. Stoning when Breaking the Law
2.1. A Blasphemer Put to Death
The son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite. The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse (Lev 24:11a, Exo 3:14); so they brought him to Moses. They put him in custody until the Lord's will would be made clear to them. Then the Lord told Moses to take the blasphemer outside the camp. All who heard him were to lay their hands on his head, and the whole
assembly would stone him. They should say to the Israelites the following:
- He who cursed his God would be held accountable; anyone who blasphemed the Lord's name was to be put to death.
The whole assembly must stone them. Whether they were foreigners or natives, when they blasphemed the Name they were to be killed. - Whoever took the life of a human was to be put to death.
- Whoever took the life of someone’s animal must make restitution,
life for life. - Whoever injured his neighbor would be injured in the same manner: fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. The one who inflicted the injury must suffer the same injury. (This was to limit the punishment for the wrongdoer. The revenge could otherwise be much worse. Forgiveness was always an option).
- Whoever killed an animal must make restitution, but whoever killed a human being was to be put to death. They should have the same law for the foreigner and the native born.
Then Moses spoke to the Israelites, and they took the blasphemer outside the camp and stoned him. The Israelites did as the Lord commanded Moses. (Lev 24:10–23).
Jesus was accused of this kind of blasphemy when he claimed to be God by saying that he and God the Father are one (John 10:30–33), see this explained in
Jesus is God. See also The Unforgivable Sin.
2.2. Penalty for Breaking the Sabbath
One day when the people of Israel were in the wilderness, they discovered a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day. The people who found him doing this brought
him before Moses, Aaron, and the rest of the community. They kept him in custody because they didn't know what to do with him. Then the Lord told Moses that the man must be killed, the whole community must stone him outside the camp. So all the people took the man outside the camp and stoned him to death, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. (Num 15:32–36).
This is giving as an example of defiant violation. God had clearly outlined the Sabbath regulation, the man knew exactly what he was doing. God had spoken directly to the people when he gave them The Ten Commandments. The Sabbath is a picture of resting in Christ, see the 4th commandment in The Ten Commandments.
3. Fire From the Lord
The people complained of their hardships in the Lord's hearing, and when he heard them his anger was aroused. Then fire from the Lord burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp. When the people cried out to Moses, he prayed to the Lord and the fire went out. That place was called Taberah, because fire from the Lord had burned among them. (Num 11:1–3).
God always hears ours complaints. Even if we don't say the words, God sees our hearts. God always listens. As believers, we have invited Jesus to be our Lord, which means he is our director, governor, guide, partner, and companion. We have invited him for that role. When we complain, we complain about him, not making his part well enough. To complain is to give voice to unbelief, that we don't believe he has our best interests at heart. We don't like what's happening. It expresses doubt and criticism.
We should endure all hardship as discipline, see the first part of The Book of James.
4. Miriam and Aaron Oppose Moses
Miriam and Aaron began to speak against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite. They asked if the Lord had only spoken through Moses, or if he had also spoken through them. And the Lord heard this. (Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone on the face of the Earth.) Immediately the Lord told Moses, Aaron and Miriam to come out to the Tent of Meeting, all three. So they did. Then the Lord descended in a pillar of cloud; he stood at the entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam to him. When the two stepped forward, he said: "When there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, reveal myself to them in visions, I speak to them in dreams. But this is not true of my servant Moses; he is faithful in all my house. With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?" (Num 12:1–8).
Moses was very humble and didn't fight back when he was accused, but God did,
see 3) Blessed are the meek in The Sermon on the Mount.
The anger of the Lord burned against them, and he left them. When the cloud lifted from above the tent, Miriam’s skin was leprous, it became white as snow.
Aaron turned to her and saw that she had a defilement of the skin, and he asked Moses not to hold against them the sin which they had so foolishly committed. And let her not be like a stillborn infant that comes from its mother's womb with its flesh half eaten. Moses cried out to the Lord to heal her. The Lord answered Moses that he would keep her outside the camp for seven days; after that she can be retrieved. So Miriam was confined outside the camp for seven days, and the people didn't move on until she was brought back. (Num 12:9–15).
Miriam is mentioned before Aaron, and is the only one who received punishment for their criticism of Moses. She was covered with leprosy. Perhaps she was behind the criticism. The root of their criticism wasn't Moses' Cushite wife, it was jealousy
and pride. They questioned whether there was anything special about the relationship between God and Moses. Moses was an incredible humble man, he didn't end up in self-defense, he didn't respond to criticism. It's pride that makes us
"shoot back". But God hears everything. God explained that he had a special relationship with Moses, he spoke "face to face" with him. However, this doesn't mean that Moses saw the face of God, see above God Shows Moses his Glory. After Miriam was covered with leprosy, Moses immediately cried out for her, and God answered his prayer. She was healed but had to be outside the camp for seven days.
It reminds us of the danger we do with our mouths (Mark 7:20–23,
Mat 15:18–20a). We can use it to praise God, but also to speak badly of brothers and sisters in Christ. What we sometimes call constructive criticism is often just a way to diminish a person and is in reality destructive criticism. Reasons for doing it can be because I think this person has something I want, or he has something he doesn't deserve. Criticizing such a person is a way of elevating myself at his expense. We aren't to speak evil of one another (James 4:11, Ecc 5:2 (1 in some translations)), see Unity.
5. Twelve Spies Exploring Canaan
When the Israelites had come to the hill country of the Amorites, which the Lord had giving them, they were to go up and possess it, as the Lord had told them. They shouldn't be afraid and not be discouraged. (Deu 1:19–21).
Spies Sent Out:
Then the people came to Moses and asked him to send men ahead to spy out the land for them and bring back a report of the route they would take and the cities they would come to. The idea seemed good to Moses. The Lord then told Moses that he would send men out to explore the land of Canaan, the land he gave to the Israelites. He would send a leader from each of the twelve tribes. Moses did so. He sent out twelve men, all the tribal leaders of Israel. Moses instructed the men to see what the land looked like and find out whether the people who lived there were strong or weak, few or many. To see what kind of land they lived in. Whether it was good or bad. Whether their towns had walls or were unprotected like open camps. Whether the soil was fertile or poor. So they went up and explored the land. They left there and went up into the land and explored it.
(Deu 1:22–24, Num 13:1–24 (2–25 in some translations)).
Rebellion Against the Lord:
After exploring the land for 40 days, the men returned. They took some of the fruit of the land with them and told them that it was a good land that the Lord was giving them. It was a rich land, a land "flowing with milk and honey". But the people who lived there were powerful, and their cities were large and fortified. All the people they saw were huge. They even saw giants there, the Anakites, descendants of Anak. Next to them they felt like grasshoppers. But Caleb tried to silence the people, saying that they should go at once to take the land. He thought they could conquer it. But the other men who had explored the land with him disagreed. They thought they couldn't go up against them. That the people there were stronger and taller than they were. They spread it among the Israelites that the land would devour all who went to live there. The people became unwilling to go up
against them. They rebelled against the Lord's command. They grumbled in their tents and said that the Lord hated them; that he brought them out of Egypt to deliver them into the hand of the Amorites to destroy them. They planned among themselves to choose a new leader and go back to Egypt. Then Moses and Aaron fell face down on the ground before the whole community of Israel. Two of the men who had explored the land, Joshua and Caleb, tore their clothes and told them that the land they had explored was a wonderful land. And if the Lord pleased them,
he would bring them safely into that land and give it to them. It was a rich land that
"flowed with milk and honey". They shouldn't rebel against the Lord, and don’t fear the people of the land, the Lord was with them. The whole community started talking about stoning Joshua and Caleb. (Deu 1:25–33, Num 13:25–14:10a (Num 13:26–14:10a in some translations)).
The phrase "flowing with milk and honey" is an example of an idiom that in this case presents a figurative, non-literal meaning that the land is very fertile.
Then the Lord's glorious presence appeared to all the Israelites at the Tabernacle. The Lord asked Moses how long those people would treat him with contempt, would they never believe him, even after all the miraculous signs he had done among them. The Lord said that he would deny them and destroy them with a plague.
Then he would make Moses into a nation greater and more powerful than they were. (Num 14:10b–12).
God had to appear at the Tabernacle to rescue Joshua and Caleb from being stoned to death. God then offers Moses to create a new nation from him and his offspring.
Moses' Intersession:
Moses objected and asked God what the Egyptians would be thinking when they heard that about that. They were aware of the power God showed when he rescued his people from Egypt. If God slaughtered all these people, the nations would say that the Lord couldn't bring them into the land that he swore to give them. Moses reminded the Lord that he had said that he is slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and forgives all kinds of sins and rebellions. But he doesn't excuse the guilty. He lays the sins of the parents upon their children; the whole
family is affected, even children in the 3rd and 4th generation. In accordance with God's love, Moses asked God to forgive the sins of this people, just as he had forgiven them ever since they left Egypt. Then the Lord said that he would forgive them as Moses had requested. (Num 14:13–20).
See the commentary on the 2nd commandment in The Ten Commandments.
Moses turned down the opportunity to have a nation built on his own family. Instead, he pleaded with God about how it would affect his reputation. When we make our decisions as Christians, we should understand that we are ambassadors for God, and it affects what people think of Christianity and God, it affects God's reputation. Moses also holds God to his word to be a forgiving God for all kinds of sin and rebellion. When we pray, we should pray according to God's love and mercy, and not because we deserve that because no one does.
Consequences of Sin:
But the Lord also said that none of these people would ever come in and occupy the land he swore to give them. They would never even see the land he swore to give their ancestors. None of those who had treated him with contempt would ever see it. The people should turn around and not move on to the land there Amalekites
and Canaanites lived. The next day they must head out into the wilderness in the direction of the Red Sea. They would all fall dead in this wilderness because they complained against him, every one of them who was 20 years old or older would all die. They would wander in the wilderness for 40 years. Thus they would pay for their faithlessness. As their men explored the land for 40 days, they must wander in the wilderness for 40 years, one year for each day, suffering the consequences of their sins. They had all seen God's glorious presence and the miraculous signs he performed both in Egypt and in the wilderness, but time and again they tested him by refusing to listen to his voice. The only exceptions would be Caleb and Joshua (Num 26:65). His servant Caleb had a different attitude than the others. He had remained loyal to God, so God would bring him into the land he explored. His descendants would own their full share of that land. Because of the people, the Lord also became angry with Moses and said that he wouldn't come into it either. Moses should encourage Joshua, because he would lead Israel to inherit it. God would bring their children safely into the land. The ten men whom Moses had sent to explore the land, those who incited rebellion against the Lord with their bad report, were slain with a plague before the Lord. Of the twelve who had explored the land, it was only Joshua and Caleb who remained alive.
(Deu 1:34–40, Num 14:21–38, Psalm 106:24–27).
Obedience and Consequences:
When Moses reported the word of the Lord to all the Israelites, the people were filled with grief. They realized that they had sinned and now wanted to enter the land that the Lord had promised them. But Moses told them to obey the Lord’s commands to return to the wilderness. They shouldn't be going up into the land now. They would only be crushed by their enemies because the Lord wasn't with them. When they faced the Amalekites and Canaanites in battle, they would be slaughtered. The Lord would abandon them because they had abandoned the Lord. But the people pushed forward defiantly towards hill country, although neither Moses nor the
Ark of the Covenant left the camp. The people rebelled against the Lord’s command and in their arrogance marched up into the hill country. Then the Amalekites and Canaanites who lived on those hills came down and attacked them and chased them back. (Deu 1:41–46, Num 14:39–45).
Sometimes it's too late, but the people weren't willing to accept it.
The people came to the border of the Promised Land two years after the exodus
from Egypt and foolishly cast it aside because of fear and disobedience. They had to wander in the wilderness for another 38 years because of that. Instead, they should have trusted God to take care of them when God called them to enter the land.
6. Korah’s Rebellion
One day Korah, who belonged to the tribe of Levi, conspired with Dathan and Abiram. They incited a rebellion against Moses, along with 250 other community leaders, all prominent members of the assembly. They united against Moses and Aaron, saying that they had gone too far. They said that the whole community of Israel had been set apart by the Lord, and that God was with them all. They asked Moses and Aaron by what right they acted as if they were greater than the rest of the Lord's people. When Moses heard what they said, he fell face down on the ground. (Num 16:1–4).
Moses Challenges Korah and his Followers:
Moses said to Korah and his followers that the next day the Lord would show them who belonged to him and who was holy. The Lord allowed only those whom he chose to enter his own presence. Korah and all his followers must prepare their incense burners. They would light fire in them the next day, and burn incense before the Lord. Then they would see who the Lord chose as his holy one. Moses said that they as Levites had gone too far. God had chosen the Levites to be close to him so they could serve in the Lord’s Tabernacle and stand before the people to serve them. Moses then asked Korah if they now also demanded the priesthood. Korah and his followers rebelled against the Lord. Who was Aaron of whom they complained? Then Moses called Dathan and Abiram to him but they refused to come. They asked Moses if it wasn't enough to bring them out of Egypt, a land "flowing with milk and honey", to kill them in the wilderness, but also to treat them as his subjects. They said that Moses hadn’t brought them to another land "flowing with milk and honey". They hadn’t given them a new homeland of fields and vineyards. Then Moses became very angry and told the Lord that he wouldn't accept their Grain Offerings.
Moses said that he hadn't taken so much as a donkey from them, and he had never harmed a single one of them. (Num 16:5–15).
Moses told Korah that he and his followers must come the next day and stand before the Lord. Aaron would be there too. Korah and each of his 250 followers must prepare an incense burner and put incense on it, so that they can present them before the Lord. Aaron would also bring his incense burner. So each of these men prepared an incense burner, lit the fire, and put incense on it. Then they all stood at the entrance of the Tabernacle with Moses and Aaron. In the meantime, Korah had incited the whole community against Moses and Aaron, and they all gathered at the entrance of the Tabernacle. Then the glorious presence of the Lord appeared to the whole community, and the Lord told Moses and Aaron to go away from all these people so that God could immediately destroy them. But Moses and Aaron fell face down on the ground and asked God if he must be angry with all men when only one man sinned. And the Lord said to Moses that he would tell all the people to go away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Then Moses arose and hurried to the tents of Dathan and Abiram, followed by the elders of Israel, and told them to go away from the tents of these wicked men and not touch anything that belonged to them. If they did, they would be destroyed for their sins. (Num 16:16–26).
Moses challenged them to do what only Aaron and his sons were allowed to do, to see if God was also allowing them to do what they claimed that they were allowed to do. Moses believed that Korah was behind this rebellious attitude, hence his intercession for the people.
The meaning of holy is set apart. Moses and Aaron were set apart from the rest of the nation of Israel for a special use by God in the community. Not to rise above everyone but to function in the role they were given. Those who complained were also set apart, but for other duties. When Moses said that the Lord would show who was holy, he meant who were chosen doing what he and Aaron did, the task of leading. Moses and Aaron hadn't chosen their positions themselves. They were called by God to do it, see Moses; Part 4: God Calling Moses.
It wasn't Moses' fault that they hadn't reached the Promised Land yet, see above
5) Twelve Spies Exploring Canaan. It was due to lack of faith, fear, and disobedience of the people of Israel. Shifting blame is a very common trick of those who are jealous and critical. When Moses got angry and told the Lord that he wouldn't accept their sacrifice, it was like telling the Lord not to forgive them. Moses thought they were evil.
Death of Korah and his Followers:
All the people stood back from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Then
Dathan, and Abiram went out and stood at the entrance of their tents, with their wives, children, and little ones. And Moses said that this was how they would know that the Lord had sent him to do all these things that he had done, for he hadn't done them on his own. If these men died a natural death, or if nothing unusual happened, then the Lord hadn't sent him. But if the Lord did something completely new and the ground opened its mouth and swallowed them and all their belongings, and they went down alive into the grave, then they would know that these men had shown contempt for the Lord. Moses had hardly finished speaking the words when the ground suddenly split open beneath them. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed the men together with their households and all their followers who stood with them, and everything they owned. They went down alive into the grave, along with all their belongings (Deu 11:6). The earth closed over them, and they all vanished from the people of Israel. All the people around them fled when they heard their screams. They were afraid that the earth would swallow them too. Then fire blazed forth from the Lord and burned up the 250 men who offered incense. (Num 16:27–35, Psalm 106:16–18). See also Where is Heaven.
Note that Korah's sons didn't die (Num 26:9–11). Korah's children did not suffer from their father's transgressions.
And the Lord told Moses that he should tell Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, to pull out all the incense burners from the fire, because they were holy, and to scatter the burning coals. Taking the incense burners from the men who had sinned at the cost of their lives and hammering the metal into a thin sheet to cover the altar. Because these burners were used in the Lord’s presence, they had become holy. They should let them serve as a warning to the people of Israel. Eleazar gathered the 250 bronze incense burners that had been used by the men who died in the fire, and hammered them into a thin sheet to cover the altar. This would warn the Israelites that no unauthorized person, no one who wasn't a descendant of Aaron, would ever enter the Lord’s presence to burn incense. If anyone did, the same thing would happen to him that happened to Korah and his followers. So the Lord’s instructions to Moses were carried out. (Num 16:36–40).
The Complaint of the People:
But the very next morning the whole community of Israel began muttering again against Moses and Aaron, accusing them of having killed the Lord’s people. When the community gathered to protest against Moses and Aaron, they turned toward the Tabernacle and saw that the cloud had covered it, and the glorious presence of the Lord appeared. Moses and Aaron came and stood before the Tabernacle, and the Lord told Moses to go away from all these people so that he could instantly destroy them. But Moses and Aaron fell face down on the ground. And Moses told Aaron to quickly take an incense burner and put burning coals on it from the altar. To put incense on it, and carry it out among the people to purify them and make them right with the Lord. The wrath of the Lord was burning against them, the plague had already begun. Aaron did as Moses told him and ran out among the people. The plague had already begun to strike down the people, but Aaron burned the incense and purified the people. He stood between the dead and the living, and the plague stopped. But 14,700 people died in that plague, besides those who had died in the affair involving Korah. Because the plague had ended, Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance of the Tabernacle. (Num 16:41–50).
The Budding of Aaron’s Staff:
Then the Lord told Moses to tell the people of Israel to take twelve wooden staffs, one from each leader of the tribes of Israel, and write each leader's name on his staff. Aaron’s name should be written on the staff of the tribe of Levi. These staffs should be placed in the Tabernacle in front of the Ark of the Covenant, where God would meet him. Buds would sprout on the staff that belonged to the man
God would choose. Then God would finally put an end to the murmuring and complaints of the people against Moses. Moses gave the people the instructions. Each of the twelve tribal leaders, including Aaron, brought a staff to Moses. Moses placed the staffs in the presence of the Lord in the Tabernacle. When he entered the Tabernacle the next day he found that Aaron’s staff, representing the
tribe of Levi, had sprouted, budded, blossomed, and produced ripe almonds. When Moses brought out all the staffs from the presence of the Lord, he showed them to the people. Each man claimed his own staff. The Lord told Moses to place Aaron’s staff permanently in front of the Ark of the Covenant to serve as a warning to rebels. This should put an end to their complaints against him and prevent any further deaths. Moses did so. Then the people of Israel told Moses, that they were doomed, that everyone died who even came near the Tabernacle of the Lord. (Num 17).
A staff is an image and symbol of authority and power, see Typology. This showed that Aaron was chosen by God as High Priest, see also The High Priest in the Bible. The reason they complained was the condition of their hearts. "Godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world." (1 Tim 6:6–7). Contentment removes the purpose of complaining. Complaints can be logical and right (although in this case it wasn't). It may raise legitimate concerns that need to be addressed. But giving in to complaining and grumbling is in most cases the wrong way to get a change in place, see Dealing With Sin in the Church.
7. The Bronze Snake
They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses. They asked Moses why he had brought them out of Egypt to die in the wilderness, and complained that there was no bread or water. Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said that they had sinned when they spoke against the Lord and against him. They asked Moses to pray that the Lord would take the snakes away from them. Moses did so. The Lord told Moses to make a bronze snake and put it on a pole; anyone bitten could look at it and live. So Moses made a bronze snake (Nehushtan) and put it on a pole. When someone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived. (Num 21:4–9).
The reason they had to go around Edom was because they were told by God to not mess with the people of Edom, and the Edomites didn't allow them to pass through their land (Deu 2:4–8, Num 20:14–21). Probably the people gave in to their frustration because of this.
Instead of removing the snakes, God healed the people who were bitten by looking at the bronze snake. This was a test of their faith. The key to their healing was that they had to believe in this, and look at the bronze snake when bitten. God prepared his people to walk by faith and to understand Salvation.
This was used by Jesus as a symbolic pointer. Jesus said: "As Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life." (John 3:14–15). Watch the short video:
The bronze snake. The bronze snake was later crushed by king Hezekiah when it began to be used for idolatry (2 Kings 18:4), see King Hezekiah of Judah.
8. Moab Seduces Israel
See Balaam and Balak (especially the last part).
For the next part, see Moses; Part 14: Sacrificial System.
For all parts, see Moses; Part 1: Introduction.
