Disobedience

Numbers 20 is a sad chapter. We were introduced to Miriam back in the book of Exodus, at the time of the birth of Moses. We have seen several incidents in her life, and now at the beginning of the chapter, she dies. Then, at the end of the chapter, we have the death of Aaron. We have just seen God defending him in his priesthood. But because of the judgment pronounced on both Moses and Aaron, neither one will enter the promised land.

Miriam’s death was a reminder of God’s judgment upon the people—that no one of that generation was going to enter the promised land. And it’s a reminder of our own death as well. Death is an inescapable realty. God declares that man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment (see Heb. 9:27). So at the very start of the chapter we are reminded of the importance of preparing for death.

From yesterday’s study, we saw that the first thing Moses failed to do was to follow God’s instructions exactly.

The second thing Moses did is the most obvious failure. He didn’t fully glorify God. Instead of attributing the miracle to God entirely, he took some of the credit for himself. He said, “Must we do it?”—implying that he and Aaron must bring water out of the rock.

The Old Testament book of Obadiah, one of the Minor Prophets, is a prophecy entirely against Edom. It condemns Edom for its pride. The people of Edom sat up in their strongholds, thinking that nobody would ever bring them down. But they were eventually destroyed. Today the land is utterly uninhabited, a barren area where jackals roam. Obadiah criticized the Edomites for not treating their Hebrew brothers in a brotherly way. Such relationships were to be established and kept holy, but the Edomites didn’t do that.