A Study Through the Book of Numbers

[Syreth]

Hey guys! This is a study through the book of Numbers that is intended to inspire a greater appreciation for the Old Testament. Please feel free to post any helpful comments, testimonies or examples that will bless the readers. This is not a place to argue, it is a place for growth.

Scripture is taken from the KJV, simply because that's what I had in my notes. It may go back and forth between the KJV and ESV, cause I accidentally forgot to change the version back to keep in consistent when I was taking the notes.

Introduction to Numbers

Numbers is about direction.

A Key Verse:

Num 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

There is a group, which we will call the "mixed multitude," that like to take advantage of the people of God. They are on the fringes of the camp, dwelling on the outside of true fellowship, where we often find ourselves straying to. We must be those who draw others to the inside to enjoy the fellowship that God has extended to us rather than the ones who bring wrath on God's people.

We are all capable of evaluating or complaining about God’s plan for our lives. Numbers is an account partially of how the mixed multitude complained against God. However, this complaining against God always results in confusion. You can see the confusion from the route the children of Israel took in the map of the wilderness wandering. There might be times when we want to hear something from God so badly that we actually listen to the wrong thing. This can be avoided by approaching God with an open and honest heart.

The dissatisfaction that can inspire complaining often leads to shame, embarrassment and frustration, ending often in rage (like when Moses struck the rock). We are wretched and in need of God's help (Romans 7:24). However, we are able to serve in spite of this because God has made us holy. God imputes His righteousness to us for us to serve and honor Him. When we realize our TRUE position in His grace, our dissatisfaction and inability becomes swallowed up by His all-sufficiency and omnipotence. We can experience victory when we experience the power and Holiness of God.

Being holy means we are distinct. There is a distinction given (Nehemiah 8:10 - read around the text to understand the context). There is discernment between good and evil.

It is ours to read the examples in the Old Testament so that we can learn how to do good rather than evil. Godly anger is completely different from rage. It stems from holiness rather than dissatisfaction.

Leviticus was a book that covers 30 days, but Numbers covers a long period of time.

What was Moses called to do? He was called in Exodus 3-4 to be instrumental in the delivery of Israel to the promised land. He was being obedient.

Moses was probably responsible for feeding about 3 million people. Moses would have had to find 1,500 tons of food every day. It would take two freight trains, each at least a mile long to provide this much. They need firewood: 4,000 tons of wood -- add on another 2 mile-long freight trains! If they only had enough water to drink and wash some dishes, then it would take 11 million gallons of water. It would take freight trains and tank cars 1,800 miles long. They had to get across the Red Sea. If they went on a narrow path, double-file, the line would be 800 miles long and would require several days and nights to get across. The gap in the Red sea would have to be three miles wide so that they could walk 5,000 across. Moses probably didn’t think about all of this before they left Egypt. God can provide for an entire nation travelling through the wilderness for years and years. Can God provide for my needs? Of course! The beauty of looking back on the Old Testament is that we can see the works of God and His faithfulness to His people and recognize that He is completely able to be our provider, protector and deliverer. Hopefully we can all come to know Him more through this study.

[Sakura15]

This sounds really Awesome Sy-chan I havent read numbers before, but im gunna start now.

[Arnobius]

If you don't mind my asking, where did you get the figure of 3 million?

[Syreth]

I don't mind. Honestly, that figure is just a very rough estimate at best, which is why I said "probably" in that sentence.

44 These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each one representing his father’s house. 45 So all who were numbered of the children of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war in Israel— 46 all who were numbered were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.
Numbers 1:44-46

about 600,000 men 20 and over (excluding the tribe of Levi -- see next verses) + their wives + their children would be somewhere around there. Perhaps I was a bit generous with the estimate, but I figured that the exact population wasn't crucial to pulling application from the text. The point is that feeding 600,000 men and all of their families in the wilderness is an amazing thing that God did. Looking back on it, we can rest assured that God is more than able take care of us, His children.

Yay, Sakura-chan! I hope you're blessed by your study!

[Syreth]

Okay, here we go into chapter 1:

Numbers 1

We start the book of Numbers at the end of Leviticus. The Lord wanted each individual to be numbered the same way the animals were numbered by passing under the rod. When an animal passed under the rod, the animal was probed for diseases and such. This is similar to what the Lord does in our lives when we pass under the His rod. He wants to purify us for service to Him. Infections can happen when we are stubbornly holding on to things that He wants us to give up or when we refuse to let the Lord examine us and work change in our lives.

Num 1:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tabernacle of the congregation, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying,
Num 1:2 Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, after their families, by the house of their fathers, with the number of their names, every male by their polls;

God numbers us according to identity, not according to our "barcode." He counts us according to our person, not our stereotype. God is both interested in the group and the individual. Christ died for the whole world, Christ died for you.

1Co 12:27 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

We are all individually given gifts from God to use in our lives. These aren’t limited to the various skills that we can learn; no, these are spiritual gifts that anyone can have regardless of the skills we may or may not have. They are the gifts that we can use (by His grace) to help and encourage the body of Christ and encourage others to come to know Him. These are gifts to be wanted, to be asked for and to be used by faith. They are an important part of our identity in Christ.

1Th 4:4 That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour;

We have to learn how to possess the gifts that God has given us. To do so, it is important to be in a place where we are being used. If we have the desire to be used and grown, God will be faithful to open up a door for them. This doesn’t mean we can be a couch potato, though. We must be looking for the opportunity of the open door and be ready to step out in faith for His glory.

Eph 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
Eph 4:12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

Why would they number every male individual? The whole hierarchy that God lined up is that the male would identify the family. This isn’t to say that the women and children are less in the sight of God -- it is a difference in role, not in value.

Num 1:3 From twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel: thou and Aaron shall number them by their armies.

The purpose of this was for God to prepare His army.

Num 1:4 And with you there shall be a man of every tribe; every one head of the house of his fathers.
Num 1:5 And these are the names of the men that shall stand with you: of the tribe of Reuben; Elizur the son of Shedeur.

Reuben is the oldest of the sons of Jacob.

Gen 49:3 Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
Gen 49:4 Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.

Elizur means, "God is a rock." Sheduer means, "God is a fire." What awesome names, huh? Names are extremely important in the Bible. To many, they are still important. There’s an important lesson we can learn from this concept. What is your "name?" What do people know you by? If they were to look at your life, would they find Christ? Would they even know you were a Christian?

Lately, a 19 year-old guy at my church suddenly died. I’m sure he didn’t know it was his time to go. Like it or not, he left his "name" is left behind for us to remember as is. He was a good kid, but he didn’t have a chance to do a lot of things that we sometimes procrastinate on. Sometimes people say, "I’m going to wait until I’m older to get serious about following Jesus." Well, the time is now. Tomorrow is not guaranteed for any of us. Let’s leave a good "name" behind that will point others to Christ.

Our Spiritual mandate is to raise children to follow after God. It is not defined by genes. It must be translated from our lives, and cannot be translated by inheritance. We can model our leadership by opening our Bible, admitting our insufficiency and confessing that God is sufficient.

Num 1:6 Of Simeon; Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.
Num 1:7 Of Judah; Nahshon the son of Amminadab.
Num 1:8 Of Issachar; Nethaneel the son of Zuar.
Num 1:9 Of Zebulun; Eliab the son of Helon.
Num 1:10 Of the children of Joseph: of Ephraim; Elishama the son of Ammihud: of Manasseh; Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.
Num 1:11 Of Benjamin; Abidan the son of Gideoni.
Num 1:12 Of Dan; Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.
Num 1:13 Of Asher; Pagiel the son of Ocran.
Num 1:14 Of Gad; Eliasaph the son of Deuel.
Num 1:15 Of Naphtali; Ahira the son of Enan.
Num 1:16 These were the renowned of the congregation, princes of the tribes of their fathers, heads of thousands in Israel.
Num 1:17 And Moses and Aaron took these men which are expressed by their names:
Num 1:18 And they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month, and they declared their pedigrees after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, by their polls.

Family was very important to the children of Israel. It was so important both to them and to God that they were told not to mix with the wicked people that inhabited the Promised Land at the time. In a similar way, we have to stay in the family like the Israelites did. We shouldn’t ever be caught on the outside, or we’ll be overwhelmed. Don’t misunderstand me, please. I’m not saying that we shouldn’t hang out with sinners -- Jesus did this and He loves the lost and wants us to reach out to them. Of course, there’s a difference between trying to reach out and becoming "a part of things," if you catch my drift. Although it’s not in the Bible, it’s fairly often said that we should "hate the sin and love the sinner." We should "hate the sin," in a way that we would never do it. We should "love the sinner," in a way that shows that we love them, care for them and want them to come to Jesus.

"Hating sin" deals with our heart’s view of the sin. I know too many people who are just content in looking good on Sunday morning and don’t want a heart change. Let this genealogy be a reminder that God cares and pays attention to each individual. God sees every square inch, every nook and cranny, every molecule of our being. God looks at our thoughts and not just our outside appearance.

Pedigree -- Lineage, being identified by family.

(Mal. 2:15)

There were three reasons as to why they had to recite who they were:
1. They were interested in where their ancestry identified them. This is the issue of origin.
2. It was to preserve the genealogy of Jesus Christ.
3. There was to be no intermarriage. There was to be purity of bloodline.

[Syreth]

Reading through the rest of Numbers chapter 1 shows us further that God was preparing an army for His people. The reality of warfare applies to us as well. Since we are Christians, we will have tribulation in the world. That is guaranteed for every follower of Christ, whether we like to admit it or not.

We should be prepared for this battle, taking up the armor that we have, as written of in Ephesians chapter 6. It’s not a physical battle, but a spiritual one, and much of it is fought within our minds and hearts. It brings to mind the scripture:

Psa 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
Psa 139:24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

The prefrontal cortex, hippocampus and amygdala are all parts of the brain that a related to the emotions that we feel. These are all connected by nerves and they are referred to as the "super-neural highway." They are very small areas, but the impact that they have on the person is huge. The connections between these three parts are greater than any single connection anywhere else in the brain. This network is referred to as the "emotional brain."

Emotional memory is controlled by the amygdala. Our behavior is very influenced by emotional memory, but rather than relying on this, we should be led by the Spirit.

1Co 9:27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

Too often, we have this ongoing battle between our identity and our personal life. We are afraid to let people know who we really are because of our pride. We often have a self-image that we strive for in order to look good in front of others. We end up caring too much about what other people think of us rather than what God thinks of us. However, both our identity and our person are found in Jesus Christ. This of course, does not mean that we lose all sense of uniqueness when we become a Christian. Don’t even kid yourself; you’re different from everybody else just like I am -- but our differences don’t prevent us from relating to one another. We can help one another through struggles by the grace of God. Also, if you think that no one can relate to you, think again, because Jesus can. He can relate to each and every one of us perfectly.

Heb 4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

Jesus can understand. He became man just like you and I - but He is also God. He knows everything! He has proven His ability to sympathize with us practically by His incarnation. So both in knowledge and in practicality, He has already related to you. Read Isaiah 53 to understand the depth of this truth.

In our battles we should guard both our weaknesses and our strengths. Where we are strong, then enemy will take advantage of our confidence. He will also exploit our weaknesses. He ought to actively depend on the Lord for our protection against the specific and general attitudes and desires that plague humanity: lust, unbelief, pride and many others. This is why we study books like Numbers. We have a strong admonition from 1 Corinthians 10:

1Co 10:1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
1Co 10:2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
1Co 10:3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
1Co 10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
1Co 10:5 But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.
1Co 10:6 Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
1Co 10:7 Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
1Co 10:8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.
1Co 10:9 Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
1Co 10:10 Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
1Co 10:12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.

These things should be our warning. Let us not fail in the same way they did. Let us be rooted in Jesus instead of ourselves. God promises to bring us through.

1Co 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Having said these things, warfare is not the end of the story! Jesus brings us peace and victory on every side. We are actually victorious, even now! We are just waiting for that truth to be realized. Jesus has already overcome the world:

Joh 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

I’m not going to post the rest of Numbers 1, but as you read through it, let it remind you of the warfare that we face and the warfare that the children of Israel were about to face. Remember your identity and your position: victorious in Christ! Even as they were getting ready for battle, the children of Israel had the promise of victory before them. The only thing they needed was faith.

[Sakura15]

Wow, awesome posts. I didnt get as much out of it as you did. I suppose I need to look deeper than I am.

Thank you very much ^^

[Syreth]

I'm actually pulling about 90% of it from my Numbers notes, so a lot of these ideas are from my teacher! The brain part especially. The actual part in class was a lot deeper, but I didn't understand all of that crazy microbiology stuff. He's a really smart guy.

Yeah, a good thing about scripture is that the application is so broad. That way, we can all relate to it in different ways. Of course, interpretation is a different story! ^^

[Syreth]

Sorry for the long break for those of you who are following this! I'm a horrible procrastinator.

Numbers 2

This post is a sort of continued introduction and general overview of some concepts in Numbers. At the end are some thoughts about chapter 2. Before you read the post, it would probably be best to read through chapter 2. In doing so, you will be able to get fresh insight and you won’t be as apt to read presumptuously. Please share anything that would contribute, be it a personal application or testimony.

Genesis is about the beginnings, particularly that of Israel
Exodus is about Israel becoming a nation
There are a lot of similarities between Exodus and Numbers
There are a lot of overlaps between Leviticus and Numbers

The book that we call Numbers has received several different titles over time. One of the titles comes from the first word in the Hebrew text: “Wayyedabber,â€