34 B'MIDBAR (in the desert); Num 1-4, John 1&2

[Bruce Bertram]

Starting right out in the book of Numbers God tells Moses to take a census of all the fighting men of Israel 20 years old and up. Moses is to have the help of the clan leaders as he does the counting. The numbers are listed below.

Reuben: 46,500
Simeon: 59,300
Gad: 45,650
Judah: 74,600
Issachar: 54,400
Zebulun: 57,400
Ephraim: 40,500
Manasseh: 32,200
Benjamin: 35,400
Dan: 62,700
Asher: 41,500
Naphtali: 53,400
TOTAL 603,550

The Levites are excluded, because their job is to handle the Tabernacle and all the furnishings, and camp around it so that no wrath would fall on the rest of the nation.

If you want to have a fun study, compare this list with the list in Revelation 7. See if you can figure out who’s missing and why. By the way, notice that there are 13 tribes total in the first list (including Levi), not 12. Also ask yourself, “Does the order make any difference?” I don’t know if it does, but it’s a fun study to do.

The Tabernacle is to be at the center of the camp, and the tribes camped around it in the following order, with the Levites in the middle between the Tabernacle and the rest of the camp.
East side – Judah, Issachar and Zebulun 186,400 men, to set out first.
South side – Reuben, Simeon and Gad 151,450 men, to set out second.
West side – Ephraim, Manasseh, Benjamin 108,100 to set out third.
North side – Dan, Asher and Naphtali 157,600, to set out last.

In chapter 3 God tells Moses that the Levites are His in place of the firstborn of Israel which belong to Him because of the Passover, from man to beast. Moses is also instructed to do a count (22,000) of the different clans of Levi, and assign them tasks connected with the tabernacle. The Levites also substitute for all the first born males of Israel a month and up (22,273), with the balance made up by the giving of a 5 shekel ransom for the 273 extra men. In chapter four Moses finishes numbering the Levites and assigning them their tasks, instituting the order for taking down the Tabernacle and breaking camp for moving out. There is a specific task for every clan, and a specific way to prepare the Tabernacle for traveling.

John starts out his version of the gospel by speaking of the person of Jesus, rather than a chronological ordering of events.

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was in the beginning with God. 3All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. 4In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. 5The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. (John 1:1-5 NASB95)

John continues his own testimony by relating the testimony of John the Baptist concerning Jesus, and John’s own denial that he is the Christ when questioned by messengers from the religious leaders. Jesus’ baptism by John is recorded, and further testimony from John is given that Jesus is the one who is the Christ or Lamb of God. John sees the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descending on Jesus, which certifies for him Jesus’ identity. The next day two of John’s disciples hear him describe Jesus as the Lamb of God and follow Jesus. One of them goes and gets his brother Simon and tells him they have found the Messiah. When Simon meets Jesus, he gets the new name of Peter. Jesus continues to collect disciples, including Philip and Nathanael, and they attend a wedding in Cana of Galilee, where Jesus does his first miracle of turning water to wine.

After the wedding they travel south to Jerusalem for Passover, where John records that Jesus chases merchants and moneychangers from the Temple with a whip of cords. In response to questions about His authority to do this, He tells the religious leaders that if they “Destroy this temple, in three days I will raise it up.” Somewhat doubtful, the leaders respond that it took 46 years to build it, so how will Jesus raise it in three days? But He was not speaking of the building; He was speaking of His body.

Shalom

[Bruce Bertram]

2Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 3seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. (2 Peter 1:2-3 NASB95)

At first this section puzzled me. I couldn’t see right away that there was any connection to other sections of the Word, nor could I really see a meaning that I could apply to my life today. I can usually see unity between sections (such as between the OT and NT parts of our regular reading cycle), and there is so much meaning in most parts that I frequently have trouble just talking about one or two. Even if I have to dig a little, there are parallels to be drawn and understanding to uncover just about everywhere. Many of the biblical messages repeat, and so one of the things I like to do is show the unity of the message by ‘connecting the dots’ and knitting together the common concepts. This section stumped me, at least for a little while.

Today, however, as I started the next section (Numbers 4:20-7:89 – see the commentary on ‘Naso’ to find out a related concept and how it triggered this comparison) it suddenly occurred to me that there was an interesting parallel between the ordering of the troops and camping arrangements of the 12 tribes and the choosing of the disciples by Jesus. In Numbers God has chosen a large group of people (over 2 million by my estimate) and arranges them in a certain tribal order around the tabernacle. In John 1 and 2, Jesus begins His latest project quite differently, using only about 12 guys to start. One of the things that occurred to me was that large or small God will get the job done. It doesn’t matter how many people are involved or not, what matters is the power of God. It isn’t the size of the army; it’s the Commander in Chief that is the difference in the undertakings sanctioned by God. This reminds me of verses such as this.

6Then he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel saying, ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the LORD of hosts. (Zechariah 4:6 NASB95)

Israel looked powerful, perhaps, although not the largest of armies ever assembled, when they were camped in the desert around the tabernacle. But they were not strong without the Lord. Jesus, on the other hand, with His 12 disciples (although this number grew pretty quickly) didn’t look powerful at all. Yet there was more power in the few around Jesus than there was in all of Israel at the time of the Exodus for one reason: faith. That is, trusting obedience.

John chapters one and two seem to be just jam packed with powerful meaning. There are many plain statements in there that have caused a lot of arguments, with some claiming that meaning is obscure or mistranslated. But I don’t really think meanings are obscure as much as the meanings are not accepted. Humans just don’t like the implications of the plain statements. There’s a big difference between not understanding and being unwilling. For instance, John 1:1 is a plain statement that Jesus was the Word and Jesus was God.

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1 NASB95)

Many, many people have tried to say that this is just not true, but the power in Jesus shown by His ministry while incarnated says the opposite, and proves the truth of this statement. Other plain statements in this chapter also give naysayers pause.

17For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. (John 1:17 NASB95)

This one is used to try and explain away the power and applicability of the Word, including what some call the Law, in a believer’s life. Again, over and over Jesus reinforces this truth by His actions and teachings. It is not that Law came through Moses then was terminated by ‘grace and truth’ from Jesus, first because Law IS grace (law is positively shot through and through with grace), and second because of the next verse.

18No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him. (John 1:18 NASB95)

If no one has seen God at any time, then who did people in the OT see when they ‘saw God?’ Obviously it was Jesus they were seeing, because Jesus reveals God. This means that the Law was given by, you guessed it, Jesus at Mt. Sinai, speaking with Moses ‘face to face.’

The power in Israel’s 12 armies came not from numbers or from tactics and strategy. It was ‘God in the midst’ of them that provided the power, through doing what God said (the Law). The power of the 12 disciples (turning the known world on its head with the gospel of ‘God with us’) was in the person of Jesus in their midst, and God in their midst as they went forth in obedience spreading the good news. Our power is not in what is seen, but what is unseen, and is unlocked by faith or trusting obedience to His presence in our midst.

9“He keeps the feet of His godly ones, But the wicked ones are silenced in darkness; For not by might shall a man prevail. 10“Those who contend with the LORD will be shattered; Against them He will thunder in the heavens, The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; And He will give strength to His king, And will exalt the horn of His anointed.” (1 Samuel 2:9-10 NASB95)

Shalom

[Bruce Bertram]

Numbers 1:1 - 4:20; Hosea 2:1-22; John 1 and 2; Luke 2:1-7; 1 Corinthians 12:12-31

Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man. (John 2:23–25, ESV)

The gospel of John is probably not written in strict chronological order. It seems to me to be a collection of memories by the apostle to relate certain events that show qualities or qualifications of Jesus as the Messiah. If you try to read it thinking it is strictly chronological you might blow a gasket trying to compare it with the other gospels. But even the other gospels might just be a loose collection of memories rather than a recording of sequential events.

Why do I make this point? Because I know man.

Man is a deceitful and wicked creature, in general. Deceitful meaning he’s not up front about what he will or won’t do (he’s kind of slippery), and wicked meaning doing his own thing without regard for God’s will. Men look at the gospel of John and try to downgrade its importance because, for instance, verse 1:1 clearly states that the Word (Jesus) was God. Or they dismiss it because they assume it is chronological yet it seems out of whack with other accounts. Any excuse will do to ignore the plain truth.

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9, ESV)

The context of our lead verses above is that “many believed in His name when they saw the signs that He was doing.” Yet Jesus wouldn’t entrust Himself to them because He knew “what as in man.” The question is, why not trust in people who believed in His name? Isn’t that just the group you want when you are building a kingdom? No, it isn’t, and here’s why.

First, just because people believe in Jesus doesn’t mean they really want to live like He says. In our own time man admires movie stars, and even votes for them as governors and presidents. But that doesn’t mean that they really do everything he says. He’s fine as long as he stays in line and does what the voters tell him to do. Kind of like idolatry. We invent gods that pretty much do what we want. As soon as a god stops cooperating it loses followers. Or voters.

The concern at that time was that a mob would grab Jesus, demand He crown Himself king, and then take down the Roman Empire. If Jesus entrusted Himself to them, they would insist He follow their program. It’s not as if the people were consulting God, or ever really had consulted God before. God’s will didn’t enter in to their calculations. If His will entered into their calculations, they would have to admit that making Jesus grab a throne on earth was not the point of His life to that point. It will be later, but under quite different circumstances.

And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God. (Luke 16:15, ESV)

So this brings us to the second point. Many who might believe in His name because of the signs would not believe in His name because of the teachings. In other words they would try to fit Jesus into their own narrow view of what they wanted or thought was best. Signs=power=good for overthrowing Romans. Teachings on humility and obedience to God’s every Word=bad=Romans will be sticking around for a while longer.

Funny thing, though. If Jesus had been accepted for both signs and teachings (the Word, the Law, whatever you want to call it), maybe there would’ve been a different outcome at the time. Part of the outcome might’ve even fit into the narrow goal of overthrowing the Roman government and instituting a government by God. But God’s government had been tried before, and people didn’t want to stick with it. They drifted after other gods, and pretty much ignored the living oracles of love from God that men now call the Mosaic Law. Overthrowing a bad government is a nice idea, but it is not the only issue. If all you are going to do is replace that government with another one by man, then who cares? They are all corrupt, and none of them follow God’s commands. This is because the government is not the problem. The heart of man is the problem.

The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:9–13, ESV)

What is needed is the overthrow of the heart of stone in every one of us, and replacement by a heart of flesh written with God’s Law. That is what will change godless governments into godly ones. Not to mention changing the whole world. The point of Jesus’ work at the time was entirely different than simply getting rid of a tyrannical government, no matter how much it deserved to get stomped. If the people were really getting the point of the teaching, they would’ve been asking for God’s will and submitting to whatever He wanted.

Whoever keeps a command will know no evil thing, and the wise heart will know the proper time and the just way. For there is a time and a way for everything, although man’s trouble lies heavy on him. (Ecclesiastes 8:5–6, ESV)

I’ve asked the Father (starting in the ‘80’s) for the same ability to see what is “in man” that Jesus has. I want to be able to give a person what they need from His Word (and everything we need is in it), just like He does. Jesus looks at a person and knows what is really in their heart. If they are asking questions, He gives them a counter-question that brings out the real issue for them to deal with. Or He offers an answer to a question or an insight unlooked-for that helps them get closer to God. In every case He gives us what we perfectly need.

Be careful if you ask for same thing, because the picture is not pretty. Know this: it takes a balanced, wise, clear sight to see what is in man without going too far into either condemnation or whitewash. It takes a dedication to the truth (God’s Word), living it and sharing it. The sight can only come from removing the log in your own eye through the application of the Word of God first to yourself. I’m still working on that one. In order to see correctly you have to see yourself as you really are, then apply His Words to living in the same way others should. Seeing truthfully what is really in a man, both the bad and the good, is sad and encouraging.

Sad because man’s groping after health, long life, blessings and peace are right in front of him, but arrogant pride keeps them away. Sad because you can’t force anyone to receive the truth of the Word. They have to reach out and take it. The answer to all of man’s troubles is within his grasp, but he refuses to consider submitting to God, for no other reason than he will not relinquish the crown. Never mind that his own efforts at kingdom building fall miserably short. Never mind that just across the border a short distance away lies life everlasting with blessings pressed down and over flowing. That other kingdom might as well be on another planet, because no matter how short the trip a heart unwilling will not take even the smallest step.

Encouraging because God can change people, if they take a step towards His light. Even the hardest heart can be softened with generous doses of the softening agent of the Holy Spirit using the Word. This is the heart of the new covenant. We abide in His love as we follow all His commands. He will entrust Himself to men, when we love Him as He first loved us. He will come into us and make His abode with us, if we respond to His knock on the door, open up, let Him in, and give Him the crown rightfully His.

And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. (Ezekiel 11:19–20, ESV)

Shalom
Bruce