Sunday, July 31, 2022

Seder 110: Num 10-11---Moses' Anticipation, Israel's Lusts

 After almost a year at Mt. Sinai, the Israelites broke camp and resumed their journey to the Promised Land on the twentieth day of the second month of the second year of the Exodus.  

Moses was looking forward to the journey with eager anticipation.  We catch a glimpse of his excitement when he invites one of his in-laws, Hobab, to accompany them (Num 10:29-32).  He emphasizes the good things that lie ahead:  "Come with us, and we will do good to you, for the Lord has promised good to Israel" (v 29).  

Hobab initially declines, but he may have finally agreed.  We do know that the Kenites, the branch of the Midianite family to which Hobab belonged, did settle in the Promised Land (Judges 1:16; 4:11).  

Incidentally, there are two main views on Hobab's identity.  If we take Reuel (Exod 2:28) to be another name for Jethro (Exod 3:1), then Hobab was Moses' brother-in-law.  On the other hand, if Reuel was Jethro's father, then Hobab is another name for Jethro.  

Sadly, not all of the Israelites had caught Moses' optimistic vision.  This quickly became apparent when people started complaining (Num 11;1-3).  

A year earlier, at the beginning of the Exodus, there had also been lots of complaining, and God had dealt with it patiently (Ex 15-17). The Israelites had just been uprooted from their homes and routines and were disoriented and afraid.  But in the time at Sinai, God had provided plenty of structure and order to help the people feel secure.  This new round of complaining had a different motivation, and God acted decisively to correct it, sending a message with fire (Num 11:1).  

Some of the complaints reflected boredom with Israel's menu, which was based on the manna that God provided daily (vv 4-6).  If the Food Network had existed in those days, there might have been one main program, with it a title like "Make It With Manna."  But there would have been many, many episodes, given how versatile manna was (vv 7-9).  Since manna was "the bread of the angels" (Ps 78:25), the program could have had special guest appearances from angels who could demonstrate advanced manna preparation.  

We do not have much sympathy with this round of complaints.  The complainers had lost sight of the big picture and were being driven by lusts.  

We do understand, though, that lust is a problem to which none of us is immune.  Paul admonished early Christ-followers at Corinth to learn the lessons contained in these accounts (1 Cor 10:11-12). "Therefore let anyone that thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall," he concluded. 

Moses apparently was blindsided by the attitudes that Israelites were displaying.  These developments were very discouraging to him.  He felt that he had failed as a leader, and he poured out his heart to God, airing his frustrations (Num 11:11-15).    

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