The Story Through the Bible Numbers

The Name

As many of you may acutely remember. I like names and I’ll be honest that I don’t like the name we changed this book to. It’s there because the Greek translation of the Hebrew a couple hundredish years BC. Jerome decides to keep the Greek names. In Greek it’s Arithmoi which goes into Latin as Numeri and we continued it in English with Numbers. In some sense it’s understandable as the book has two giant census takings which use numbers. In every other way it doens’t make sense. The point of the book isn’t about the numbers, it’s not a central theme and not something that is established as a particular practice. The Hebrew name of the book like most of them comes from the main word of the first sentence. BeMidbar which means “in the wilderness” That at least well describes the situation of the book.

Just so we get the sense of it there is also a shift here beside the numbers thing lets read the first 3 verses.

Numbers 1:1–3 ESV

The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, “Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by clans, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head. From twenty years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go to war, you and Aaron shall list them, company by company.

So the second year means it’s been a full year since the exodus has taken place.

[Month 1, Day 14] —> [Month 3, Day 1] —-> [Year 2, Month 1, Day 1] —-> [Year 2, Month 2, Day 1]

The Exodus Arrival at Sinai Tabernacle Erected The Numbers Census

The census is specifically counting the “warriors” or the men over 20 - able - to go to war. We’re shifting from the oppressed slave population to a group ready for war. That’s certainly a big shift. It’s also an expectation for claiming a territory promised to them by God. Levites aren’t part of this first warrior census. They’re set apart for something different so notice

Numbers 1:47–50 ESV

But the Levites were not listed along with them by their ancestral tribe. For the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Only the tribe of Levi you shall not list, and you shall not take a census of them among the people of Israel. But appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the testimony, and over all its furnishings, and over all that belongs to it. They are to carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings, and they shall take care of it and shall camp around the tabernacle.

They had a different purpose in God’s plan. I just found some of the numbers interesting with the layout we get in chapter two for how they all camp. I won’t go through the numbers but others have noticed this layout if strictly followed as only directly east, south, west, north meaning no one is northeast or southwest we’d end up with rectangles branching out from the center Levite camp which is around the tent of meeting or tabernacle. When oriented east at the top as their maps would have been it does resemble a cross. Do I think this was intentionally done by God? no idea. Do I believe that coincidence is not a kosher word? absolutely. I don’t know what you do with that but I find those to be fun facts and possibilities.

Now we’re not sticking in these numbering bits so as the text moves on we see the dedication of the Levites, the tabernacle, organization and logistics and what happens on the first passover after the exodus. The passover celebration of Numbers 9 is a bit of a reminder who the people of Israel belong to and the cloud returns to our story to show them when and where to move. Much like the Exodus travels. These first 9 chapters are a little bit of a summary of things that happen between the brief time covered in Leviticus and the Passover. Chapter 10 gets us to Y2 M2 D20 where they offically break camp and start marching off into the wilderness.

The distance is an 11 day walk to the border of the promise land. I want you to keep that in your mind. Deuteronomy 1:2 “It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to Kadesh-barnea.”

It’s

Our theme is continuing to remember Lev 19.2 Be Holy for God is Holy but we’re adding “Sin has consequences”

Numbers 1:53 ESV

But the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the testimony, so that there may be no wrath on the congregation of the people of Israel. And the Levites shall keep guard over the tabernacle of the testimony.”

The encampment is even setup so that we get the picture of even visually blocking off an accidental view directly at holy spaces which is mentioned in chapter 4. But the whole wandering in the wilderness that we’ll get to is a consequence of sin.

The sins start stacking very quickly after setting off.

Numbers 10:33 ESV

So they set out from the mount of the Lord three days’ journey. And the ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them three days’ journey, to seek out a resting place for them.

Numbers 11:1–3 ESV

And the people complained in the hearing of the Lord about their misfortunes, and when the Lord heard it, his anger was kindled, and the fire of the Lord burned among them and consumed some outlying parts of the camp. Then the people cried out to Moses, and Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire died down. So the name of that place was called Taberah, because the fire of the Lord burned among them.

Taberah means burning so we contiue the fantastic naming schemes of lots of Biblical places and people.

Okay so How long did we make it from Mt. Sinai to sinning and bringing down the consequences of God’s wrath?

Yeah 3 days.

Numbers 11:4–6 ESV

Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also wept again and said, “Oh that we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”

First is “the rabble” This is actually one of those words that only shows up once in the whole Bible. From the root words it seems to be a gathering of trouble makers. Many tie this back to the mixed multitude of

Exodus 12:38 ESV

A mixed multitude also went up with them, and very much livestock, both flocks and herds.

We talked about that a little last week. Their being way out on the outskirts of camp then makes sense of these who are not descendants of Israel.

Now do you remember back when they first complained about hunger?

Exod 16 right after they had the issue with bitter water resolved they got hungry and complained about it and God heard their complaints and said he would send them quail that evening then manna in the morning. Exod 16:13-14

Exodus 16:13–14 ESV

In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground.

Now this time they’re complaining again but we’re on the other side of Sinai. We get some insights to how they were trying every recipe they could think of here and we see Moses upset at their grumbling too.

Numbers 11:7–15 ESV

Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium. The people went about and gathered it and ground it in handmills or beat it in mortars and boiled it in pots and made cakes of it. And the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil. When the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell with it. Moses heard the people weeping throughout their clans, everyone at the door of his tent. And the anger of the Lord blazed hotly, and Moses was displeased. Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you dealt ill with your servant? And why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? Did I conceive all this people? Did I give them birth, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a nursing child,’ to the land that you swore to give their fathers? Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they weep before me and say, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me. If you will treat me like this, kill me at once, if I find favor in your sight, that I may not see my wretchedness.”

In some sense both the people and moses become grumblers here. The people for meat and Moses to not have a bunch of babies around… he’s actually making that very comparison.

God answers both complaints.

Numbers 11:16–17 ESV

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. And I will come down and talk with you there. And I will take some of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them, and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you may not bear it yourself alone.

First taking some of the burden off Moses which also means lessoning the spirit upon Moses.

Numbers 11:18–25 ESV

And say to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat, for you have wept in the hearing of the Lord, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? For it was better for us in Egypt.” Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. You shall not eat just one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days, but a whole month, until it comes out at your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have rejected the Lord who is among you and have wept before him, saying, “Why did we come out of Egypt?” ’ ” But Moses said, “The people among whom I am number six hundred thousand on foot, and you have said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat a whole month!’ Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, and be enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, and be enough for them?” And the Lord said to Moses, “Is the Lord’s hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not.” So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. And he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tent. Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. And as soon as the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied. But they did not continue doing it.

Then we God gives them what they want… which we have seen often enough is not a blessing but a curse.

Numbers 11:31–35 ESV

Then a wind from the Lord sprang up, and it brought quail from the sea and let them fall beside the camp, about a day’s journey on this side and a day’s journey on the other side, around the camp, and about two cubits above the ground. And the people rose all that day and all night and all the next day, and gathered the quail. Those who gathered least gathered ten homers. And they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. While the meat was yet between their teeth, before it was consumed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord struck down the people with a very great plague. Therefore the name of that place was called Kibroth-hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had the craving. From Kibroth-hattaavah the people journeyed to Hazeroth, and they remained at Hazeroth.