Day 65 – Numbers 26-27

Talking Points

• Another census is commanded by God. During the 38 years since the last one was taken, an estimated 1.2 million people had died. However, the total number of men 20 years or older had only decreased by 1,820. God had raised up a new generation and provided a full army.
• The only men alive from the original census are Moses, Joshua, and Caleb. Over the course of those years, they would have witnessed an average of 87 deaths per day. Can you picture each funeral, each loss, as it served as a reminder of the nation’s lack of faith?
• Joshua is commissioned by God to lead after Moses. I can’t help but hurt for Moses. After so many years of witnessing God do miraculous things, of helplessly watching as the sons of Israel rebel, of interceding on their behalf, of seeing so many of his people die, and now, being so close to entering the Promised Land, he is told he will die after just looking into it.
• Can you imagine how tired of sin (his own included) and its consequences Moses must have been?
• Moses prepares to die, still caring for the sheep God has placed in his care, careful to do exactly as the Lord has commanded him. He prays for his successor, showing his great concern for the people.

Thoughts

What do we do when caught in a great dilemma? Most likely, we scramble around, looking for the answer we like best. Maybe we Google the issue or seek out the advice of experts. Or, perhaps we talk the question to death with our family or friends, seeking their perspective. We are likely to try to lean on our own logic, “following our hearts.”

In this account, faced with a perplexing dilemma, the Bible says Moses “brought the case before the Lord” (27:5). He doesn’t assemble the elders of the nation. He doesn’t consider what he would do. Simply, he goes to God. What a great response! After all, He is infinitely wise. He is the Originator and Sustainer of all things. And, isn’t it His will we seek anyway? When faced with a problem or decision — great or small — take it to God.

“But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”
James 1:5

“O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer.”