Numbers 20.1-13 c.f. Ex 17.2-7?; Num.
27.14; Psa. 106.32-33; Psa. 114.8
Context:
Third of three
travel narratives in The Law: 1. Ex.
13:17-19:25; 35
2.
Num. 10:11-12:13
3.
Num. 20:1-22:1
I. Setting v.1
· Wilderness of Zin
· First month 40th
year of the wondering,
(c.f. Num. 20 20:22-29; 33:38 dates Aaron’s death which follows in this
chapter.)
· Kadesh Normally
an oasis or this might have been part of the area that was not watered
Numbers
13 first generation rejected the promised land
· Miriam died This is representive of
the death of the older generation. She
was one of the last to die who rejected God in Numbers 13-14
· No water Considering the
number of people and livestock, this was an impossible problem.
II. The Rebels
A. The Complaints v.2-5
· They gathered
together against M & A
o
If only we had died… This is the new
generation, who has now followed the old in giving up in unbelief. ( A reminder
for the young generation to no repeat the sins of their parents,etc.)
o
Why have you brought us…to die Disbelieved God’s good
intentions
o
Why have you made us come…to this evil place Doubting God’s goodness. There is a difference between coming to God
honestly with a desperate need and with an attitude of disbelieve and
rebellion.
B.
Lord’s directions v.6-8
· Moses and Aaron
fell on their faces That
was a good place to be.
· The glory of the
Lord appeared…
· The Lord said:
o
Take the rod (17:9-10) What did the rod
remind them of?
o
your
brother Aaron The two were
acting together here.
o
Gather the
congregation
o
Speak to the
rock before their eyes
1. the
rock. (1 Cor. 10.4) What did the
rock represent? and all drank the same
spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and
that Rock was Christ.
2. before the people…
God wanted to demonstrate a lesson to the people.
· So Moses…
III. The Rock v.9-11
· Took the rod
· Gathered the assembly together before the rock
· He said…You
rebels! … Must we?
· Lifted his hand and
struck the rock twice
· Water came out abundantly God’s benevolence
in spite of them.
· Congregation and their animals drank “Animals drank” indicates the
abundance of water.
IV. “Qadash” v. 12; 27.14
· Why did Moses not enter the Promised Land?
The typical answer is something like because he struck the rock when God told him to speak or he disobeyed God.
The typical answer is something like because he struck the rock when God told him to speak or he disobeyed God.
· Both of those
answers are factually correct, but miss the deeper issues.
· Because…
o
Did not believe (trust in niv84,
hcsb, nlt) Me 20.12
H539 - 'aman: (Hiphil) to stand firm, to trust, to be certain, to believe in
o
rebelled against His Word ;
What did Moses accuse Israel of being?
4784 - marah : to be contentious,
be rebellious, be refractory, be disobedient towards, be rebellious against
Num. 27.14
For in the Wilderness of Zin, during the strife of the congregation, you rebelled against My command to hallow Me at the waters before their eyes." (These are the waters of Meribah, at Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin.)
For in the Wilderness of Zin, during the strife of the congregation, you rebelled against My command to hallow Me at the waters before their eyes." (These are the waters of Meribah, at Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin.)
Psalm 106
32 They angered Him also at the waters of strife,
So that it went ill with Moses on account of them;
33 Because they rebelled against His Spirit,
So that he spoke rashly with his lips.
32 They angered Him also at the waters of strife,
So that it went ill with Moses on account of them;
33 Because they rebelled against His Spirit,
So that he spoke rashly with his lips.
o De 32.51 because you trespassed against Me among the
children of Israel at the waters of Meribah Kadesh, in the Wilderness of Zin…
· ·
It was more than an just rejecting
what they were told to do or not accurately following instructions.
o
To
qadash
me in the eyes of the people
6942 - qadash (Hithpael) to keep oneself apart or separate. 2 to cause Himself to be hallowed (of God). 3 to be observed as holy. 4 to consecrate oneself.[1]You shall not…
In what sense can we hallow or sanctify God? We can’t make Him any more sinless and morally pure.
Exodus 3.
3 Then Moses said, "I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn." 4 So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am." 5 Then He said, "Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground."
V. Conclusion v.13 / Applications
· Water of Meribah
· Children of Israel contended
with the Lord Who did the text say that lodged their
complaint with?
· God was hollowed The question is not whether God will be
hallowed. Will it be by us?
Application:
· God will
hallow Himself. Will you?
When we become self focused, we set ourselves up to not
hallow God.The disrespect to treat God’s Word as a common thing to be
ignored or changed on a whim or in a fit of frustration.
Application:
· If we spent as much
time praying as complaining…
Application:
•
Have
faith in God’s commands.
•
Hallow God with respect for His Word.
Do I hallow God when I ignore His Word?
Do I hallow God when I treat his will like the Luby’s
buffet where I take what interests me and leave the stuff that is hard or doesn’t
suit me.
Your “horizontal” disrespect for your parents or your
boss is an indicator of your vertical relationship with God.
