By Jill Roberts and Michael Canalé
Michael so astutely says,
“Numbers do not lie. One way to make God’s world true is to number it.”
Entering into the next Old Testament Book, we note that, though the 36 Chapters of this Book take us down many physical miles and over even more spiritual distance, God’s inspired word retains a single word to describe the entirety of this Book. — NUMBERS.
As Michael says, numbers are not vulnerable to varying opinions or conjecture. They are not subjectively arrived at or relative in interpretation. They are, as Michael stated, truth. — you can go to the bank on them.
Because of the solid facts they represent, God, the Creator of Truth, itself, chose to begin this pivotal, highly important and fascinating Book with a display of the concept of numbers. He began it with the taking of a census, a process that is all about numbers.
Some might say, with a Book of the Bible that is so rich in story and amazing narrative about the Israelites and their journey to the edge of the Promised Land, why is this blog not just cutting to the chase, i.e., the Israelites’ dilemma at the Jordan, the high drama of whether to fight for the land of milk and honey and the existential questions this raises about courage and faith and all these ideas, so relevant to our lives, today, in June of 2023? Why, in the world would Michael and I begin this week’s study with, of all things, a dry old census?
First of all, we want to say, we will be writing extensively about the dazzling adventure of the arrival of the Israelites at the Promised Land, which this Book of Numbers vividly depicts. We will describe it all, in detail.
That said, the subject of this week’s study may center around a census, but it is anything but dry. Rich in meaning then, its significance speaks down the ages to us, as it is a window into God, Himself.
Yes, we will follow this Book sequentially. God began Numbers with, well, just that, the numbers that lie at the heart of every census. And, wisely , Michael reminds us that,
“We always want to be especially aware of GOD’S order in a Book of Scripture.”
Finally, we begin at the beginning for another critical reason. You recall how last week we quoted Michael when he said,
“The best goal on Earth is to find your puzzle pieces.”
How true this is! And what are those puzzle pieces to which Michael is referring? They are the puzzle pieces of God and His attributes about which He gives us insight.
So, when we start what promises to be a riveting area of study, with a census, it is because it will clearly reveal a highly significant and intriguing puzzle piece of our God. That is, that He is a God of numbers, of truth, of that which does not ever lie, as Michael said. God does not subscribe to our modern vogue for relativism. When He says it, IT IS WRITTEN.
How is it then, that God has chosen a census to begin the Book of Numbers? What is it about a census and numbers that will advance the story of God? One thing comprises the answer: The LORD is a GOD OF ORDER, a God of carefully constructed plans. We can rest assured that He has an agenda and that it is brilliant and loving and ALWAYS in our best interest. Also, God is exciting, a word too infrequently applied to him. This will be more and more apparent as He so graciously reveals Himself to us.
Therefore, as we begin Numbers, Chapter One, the following conversation takes place:
“The LORD spoke to Moses in the tent of meeting in the Desert of Sinai on the first month of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt. He said, ‘Take a census of the whole Israelite community by their clans and families, listing every man by name, one by one. You and Aaron are to count according to their divisions all the men in Israel who are twenty years old or more and are able to serve in the army. One man from each tribe, each of them the head of his family, is to help you… (Each man’s tribe and name are listed.)… These were the men appointed from the community, the leaders of their ancestral tribes. They were the heads of the clans of Israel.”
(Numbers 1:1-5,16) NIV
Michael and I love the way the Torah translates verse 16. It refers to these men as “princes.”
Princes —. a term of royalty, so named by the King of the Universe —. God! As Michael says,
“There is no King, except THE KING, and everybody is a prince to THE KING.”
Made in the image of God, we are royalty to God. How easy it is to forget this and how sad when we do. If, as every living soul does, we have trouble and high metaphorical waters, threatening to sweep us away downstream, we don’t feel all that royal. Describing ourselves as princes and princesses is not the first thing to come to mind at these challenging moments. And yet, this is our true identity. How central it is to our joy in this life to remember our royal DNA, that we are image bearers of God, Himself!
So, while the Israelites were still camped at the base of Mount Sinai, God wanted to know a count of the Israelites falling into this specific category. Wait a minute. Doesn’t God already know, down to the last person present, exactly how many people are there at Sinai? Doesn’t the LORD, who knows the NUMBER of hairs on our heads and the NUMBER of our days, also know this about the Israelites? The answer, of course, is, “Yes.”
Why then, the census? God is a God of community and family. As each person was counted and called BY NAME, tribe members who may have been estranged all of their lives, as they struggled just to survive during slavery in Egypt and then trekked through the desert, began to draw together, to introduce themselves, possibly for the first time.
All of a sudden, the randomness of two million Israelites was changed as clans were brought into fellowship with each other, family resemblances were recognized and celebrated and isolation from each other was ended with an apostrophe at the end!
God then ordered the assembly of each tribe at certain fixed positions around the centerpiece of all. — the Tabernacle, where God’s Presence lived. Picture the order that God called for. Eleven tribes, some east, some west, some north, some south, assigned to be together by tribe.
But, aren’t there twelve tribes? Yes, and that other tribe was set apart in every way. The priestly tribe, the Levites, descendants of Jacob’s son Levi, were in a category of their own:
“The ancestral tribe of the Levites, however, was not counted along with the others. The LORD said to Moses: ‘You must not count the tribe of Levi or include them in the census of the other Israelites. Instead, appoint the Levites to be in charge of the Tabernacle of the covenant law and all its furnishings…”
(Numbers1:47-50) NIV
There were just a few exceptions to this.
To further bond each tribe to itself, they were to remain camped together,
“…each of them under their standard and holding the banners of their family…Each company is to camp under its distinctive tribal flag.”
(Numbers 2:1-2) NIV
Historically, this individual tribal identity of the Twelve Tribes will be important for many reasons, as we will explore in future blogs.
But now, with God’s timing always being so perfect, soon all of the Israelites, with Moses, would be leaving Sinai as they would begin their journey to the most important destination possible. — the Promised Land. They would be led by God, Himself, in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.
On this journey, the Israelites would march in the same formation as that in which they camped — by tribe. It was a march, led by God. The order of it, prescribed by our LORD, assured familial association and familiarity. Like everything God does, it was beautiful and was designed for the benefit of His princes and princesses. It made certain that no Israelite would wander away from their tribe and into the treacherous wilderness. It assured that no Israelite would be lost.
And WHERE was God leading them? Was it through a wilderness? Yes, it was. But, as stated, the destination was the Promised Land.
God is still leading today. We, too, have been placed in order. — in tribes of all kinds. We are in families, churches, friendships, fellowships of endless types and descriptions. These tribes are close by in the march of life. They help us so that we will not wander off into the world’s wilderness.
Yes, God still allows us to march through some
difficult life real estate. Two things should be remembered when we find ourselves navigating such challenging territory.
First, it is God who is leading and He knows the way. Second, the destination is always the same. God only leads to one place. He knows only one final stop worth the trip, the arduous journey. It is the Promised Land. It flows with milk and honey. It is the Paradise beyond the wilderness, beyond, as Scripture states, what eye has seen or ear has heard. Glory! May we march with faith and courage, never losing sight of Him Who leads.
Isolation was ended “with an apostrophe at the end?”
Billy, wordsmith of our time, I wish I had a clever explanation. Simply meant to say, “exclamation point.”
That is an explanation, and one which demonstrates with simple eloquence the character I’ve admired since you were first introduced to me as the new homicide prosecutor.
You’re getting great response. Wonderful!
Good post.
One of the most powerful Blogs to date for me! The significance of Numbers and its description of the census brings into focus the importance God places on our “Tribe”. In His wisdom, God knows and makes it clear, that fellowship will provide the support and encouragement we need to travel through the wilderness of this life to His promised Paradise.
Fellowship, I have a few tribes. But God gave me them and they support me.