Читать книгу The Grand Sweep - Large Print - J. Ellsworth Kalas - Страница 74

NUMBERS 32–34

Week 9, Day 4

If you find the data in these chapters so tedious that you wonder why they are in the Scriptures, you are not the first to have such feelings. Those long-ago persons known as the early church fathers apparently had the same concerns. They concluded that the details of the journey were intended for our instruction, as symbolic of the steps by which Christians leave sin and advance from virtue to virtue, until they come at last to their final abode in God’s eternal home. Does that help you appreciate these chapters more?

Nevertheless, there are also some practical lessons of character to be learned. I admire Moses’ wisdom and firmness in dealing with the tribes who decided to have their inheritance on the other side of the Jordan, and his adaptability, too. As a young man I thought that if I made one wrong decision, the rest of my life would be ruined; I’ve come since to learn that God works patiently with what we give him, even when the pieces do not fit easily into a coherent whole, just as accommodations were made for the tribes that wanted to alter the original plans. God’s laws are strict, but God’s character is gracious.

The warning of 33:55 seems harsh to our ears; but as the history of Israel unfolds, we will see that it was not without foundation. Our problem is still the same. If we become comfortable with an ungodly lifestyle, it will eventually corrupt and destroy us.

PRAYER: It is better, dear Lord, that I learn from the experience of the Israelites than from my own errors. Please? Amen.

The command in Numbers 33:50-56 to “drive out all the inhabitants of the land” seems severe. What justification do you see for such an order?