Intercession and Restoration | Numbers part 19
This week begins the season of Lent on the Christian calendar. It is a season mostly ignored by many Protestants, but perhaps we shouldn’t. Our passage today in Numbers includes the theme of testing—putting things through a fiery test to see what is quality. Lent reminds us that not everything we spend our time on is actually worth it. Traditionally, Christians fast during Lent, either some food or by giving up some vice or habit. The point is to spend the time you would normally on such things focusing on the Lord and your relationship with Him. This 46 day period (minus the feast breaks) leads up to Easter in which we celebrate the Risen Lord and the very reason for our faith.
It wouldn’t hurt for us to reflect on our time and habits as we prepare our hearts for Easter. Well, it might hurt a bit, but discipline usually does.
Before we begin reading in verse 36, let’s take a quick review of the story of Korah so far. Korah, a Levite from Kohath (so not a priest, but one who serves in the tabernacle), incites a rebellion against Moses claiming that all of Israel is holy, and Moses should not exalt himself over the congregation. Moses responds by telling Korah and all those who gathered against Moses to offer incense to the Lord at the tabernacle.
Now, one point that I didn’t cover last week is the fact that this test is based on the responsibilities of the priesthood. The priests, specifically Aaron first then later other priests, were the ones given the task of maintaining the incense burners in the tabernacle. Moses is essentially saying, “If you believe you are fit to do this job, then try it.” The Lord will decide who is set apart for the task of the priesthood.
Korah, along with Dathan and Abiram and their families, are swallowed up by the earth in judgement. The 250 chiefs who offered the incense met the same fate as Nadab and Abihu of chapter 3 who offered unauthorized fire. They were burned up by fire from the Lord.
And now, we will begin reading the aftermath of this great day of judgement.
What Remains is Holy | Numbers 16:36-40
Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Tell Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest to take up the censers out of the blaze. Then scatter the fire far and wide, for they have become holy. As for the censers of these men who have sinned at the cost of their lives, let them be made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar, for they offered them before the Lord, and they became holy. Thus they shall be a sign to the people of Israel.” So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers, which those who were burned had offered, and they were hammered out as a covering for the altar, to be a reminder to the people of Israel, so that no outsider, who is not of the descendants of Aaron, should draw near to burn incense before the Lord, lest he become like Korah and his company—as the Lord said to him through Moses.
Numbers 16:36-40
Moses is instructed to pick up the remains of the 250 men which is essentially just the censers. Though the men have died, their offerings to the Lord have become holy because they were offered to the Lord.
The censers of Korah’s rebellion become part of the altar for the tabernacle as a reminder to the people of God’s righteous judgement and their need to sacrifice such sins on the altar.
This phenomenon illustrates two related principles.
First, just because a person is sinful doesn't mean the Lord can’t use what they do. The act itself is not holy, nor is the person vindicated in any sort of way, but because the Lord so chooses, their acts become useful to the kingdom of God. We see this in how God uses nations to establish His will for the earth (such as with Nebuchadnezzar, Cyrus, Ninevah, and Rome in the New Testament period). We also see this at a smaller level with the number of characters (especially in Judges) where God uses sinful people to fulfill righteousness.
The Lord will routinely use sinful people and actions to fulfill His plans.
Second, (and connected to the first) though a sinful person may do some good, it does not mean they will survive the test of righteousness. Consider Paul’s description in 1 Corinthians,
Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward.
1 Corinthians 3:12-14
Fire is symbolic of the Lord’s testing. Not everything can withstand fire, but the things that do are stronger on the other side. A piece of pottery begins as moldable clay known as greenware. Once the clay dries, it becomes brittle and easily destroyed. But, if it is put in the fiery kiln, it will transform into bisqueware—ready to be glazed. And once glazed, it is placed in the kiln once again, even hotter, and this time it comes out almost indestructible. It is far stronger and far more useful.
Israel came out of Egypt as greenware, dry and brittle. It is going through the wilderness as a kiln, and though it will come out better, it will still be some time before the Messiah comes to refine Israel once more. When Jesus came, He put Israel to the test once more, and those who could withstand the test, those who recognized the Savior and trusted in Him, became ceramic Christians carrying the Gospel to all people.
What Paul is saying in 1 Corinthians 3 is that when Jesus returns again, there will be another fiery test. Anything that is not of Christ, anything that is done out of selfishness and sin, will be burned up and destroyed. That foundation is Christ and anything that is built on the foundation of Christ, those eternal works, that will withstand the fire. Everything else will be destroyed.
This is the day of conflagration written by Peter in 2 Peter 3:10.
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
2 Peter 3:10
At the end of this age when the Lord Jesus returns, He will inaugurate a new age through fire that will dissolve heaven and earth transforming it into the new creation that will last for eternity. Sin and all those who cause sin (Satan, the demons, and those not in Christ) will be burned up from the earth.
Sin, and those that promote sin, can not and will not withstand the refining fire of God.
This same theme of a fiery test is found throughout Scripture, but when the test is applied to God’s people, those who trust in the Lord, they withstand the fire. Just like the three friends of Daniel in the fiery furnace, God’s people are able to withstand the refining fire because the Lord is there with them. Thus, Peter can also say in 1 Peter 1,
In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 1:6-7
Whether it is the temporary fire of trials in this life, or the holy conflagration at the end of this age, our faith is made stronger through flames.
Standing Between the Living and the Dead | Numbers 16:41-50
But on the next day all the congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and against Aaron, saying, “You have killed the people of the Lord.” And when the congregation had assembled against Moses and against Aaron, they turned toward the tent of meeting. And behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared. And Moses and Aaron came to the front of the tent of meeting, and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Get away from the midst of this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.” And they fell on their faces. And Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer, and put fire on it from off the altar and lay incense on it and carry it quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them, for wrath has gone out from the Lord; the plague has begun.” So Aaron took it as Moses said and ran into the midst of the assembly. And behold, the plague had already begun among the people. And he put on the incense and made atonement for the people. And he stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped. Now those who died in the plague were 14,700, besides those who died in the affair of Korah. And Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance of the tent of meeting, when the plague was stopped.
Numbers 16:41-50
The people grumble…again. This time, their resentment is against Moses and Aaron for killing the group aligned with Korah. Apparently, it only took a day for the people to forget what actually happened. Once again, Moses and Aaron step in to intercede on behalf of the rebellious people.
This particular section does include a Hebrew literary device called a chiasm. It’s easier to see the structure rather than explain it, so check out this diagram.
A Gathering at the Tent of Meeting (v. 42a)
B Glory of the Lord Appears (vv. 42b-43)
C Move Away Instructions (v 45)
D Censer Preparation Instructions (v 46a)
E Aaron to Hurry into the Assembly (v 46b)
F Make Atonement for the Plague (v 46c)
E’ Aaron Ran into the Assembly (v 47)
D’ Incense Offered for Atonement (v 47b)
C’ Stood between Living and Dead (v 48a)
B’ Plague Stopped with 14,700 Dead (vv 48b-49)
A’ Aaron Returned to the Tent of Meeting (v 50)
In a chiasm, the emphasis is placed on the central item. In this case, the section is emphasizing how Aaron is able to make atonement for the congregation, and not only that, but he must go quickly. The plague is already under way. Aaron must run, not walk, into the assembly of people with his censer lit with the incense in order to cleanse the people and land. In verse 48, Aaron stands between the dead and the living—a picture of true intercession.
In this picture we see what it means to intercede on behalf of those dying in their sin. First and most importantly, it is the picture of Christ standing between us and death. Jesus offers himself as the means by which we can avoid death—not because we earned it, but because he loves us. “While we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).
Secondly, we see how we can make intercession for the lost around us. No, we cannot make them believe, but we can stand in their midst bringing the Good News of freedom and life to them. Moses tells Aaron to run to those who are dying. Who around you is dying without hope, and Jesus is calling you to run to them?
Moses and Aaron is a picture of our own call to evangelism.
No, not everyone will come to Christ. But if we do not go and tell them about Jesus, how will anyone?
Last, Korah’s rebellion story ends with chapter 17 in which Aaron is reinstated as the High Priest.
Aaron’s Next Chapter | Numbers 17
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel, and get from them staffs, one for each fathers' house, from all their chiefs according to their fathers' houses, twelve staffs. Write each man's name on his staff, and write Aaron's name on the staff of Levi. For there shall be one staff for the head of each fathers' house. Then you shall deposit them in the tent of meeting before the testimony, where I meet with you. And the staff of the man whom I choose shall sprout. Thus I will make to cease from me the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against you.” Moses spoke to the people of Israel. And all their chiefs gave him staffs, one for each chief, according to their fathers' houses, twelve staffs. And the staff of Aaron was among their staffs. And Moses deposited the staffs before the Lord in the tent of the testimony.
On the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony, and behold, the staff of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds. Then Moses brought out all the staffs from before the Lord to all the people of Israel. And they looked, and each man took his staff. And the Lord said to Moses, “Put back the staff of Aaron before the testimony, to be kept as a sign for the rebels, that you may make an end of their grumblings against me, lest they die.” Thus did Moses; as the Lord commanded him, so he did.
And the people of Israel said to Moses, “Behold, we perish, we are undone, we are all undone. Everyone who comes near, who comes near to the tabernacle of the Lord, shall die. Are we all to perish?”
Numbers 17:1-12
In this last section we see God miraculously reinstate Aaron as the High Priest for the people. Now, of course, Aaron was never not the High Priest, but for the sake of reminding the people Who is truly in charge, the Lord gives them this testimony of a budding staff.
The staffs are labeled with each tribal name, but “Aaron” is written for the Levites. The miracle happens in verse 8. Notice the development of verbs. The staff sprouts new shoots, puts forth buds, produces blossoms, and bears ripe almonds. In one night, this dead almond staff goes through the process of bearing fruit. It is a natural process given supernatural timing. This dead staff bearing almonds is another example of our Creator God playing with the rules of Creation He set forth. Miracles in the Bible do not break the laws of nature. They bend them in either time or space.
On a similar note, many wonder whether such miracles as the budding staff actually happened. If we accept the God of Creation and Salvation described by His Word, there is no reason to wonder. The Creator may affect His Creation just like the potter. The Potter may shape his vessel as he sees fit. It is also true miracles tend to happen at the important times of spiritual history. Lewis in Miracles notes most of us will not be present at peace treaties or other major moments in history. That doesn’t change whether or not the major event happened. Likewise, unless we find ourselves in a moment in history or at the front lines of some great missionary effort, we not see such a miracle. He writes, “Unless you live near a railway, you will not see trains go past your windows.”
With that said, may I offer another thought. If you wish to see more trains, it would be best to move near a railway. If you wish to see more dolphins, live near the ocean. Whatever you wish to see, you must draw near to where you would naturally find such things. If we wish to see more miracles, then perhaps we should draw closer to the Lord who performs such miracles.
The budding staff reminds the people (and us) of the life and miraculous restoration offered by the Lord.
There is life offered in the Holy Place of the tabernacle. Today, we can have life, not through an earthly tabernacle, but through Jesus Christ who entered the Holy Place of Heaven and offered His life for us. We do not have to lament as the Israelites did believing they would perish approaching the tabernacle. In the next chapter, the Lord will make provisions for the people to draw closer—just as He has done since the Fall. But for today, let us look at this budding staff as a reminder the Lord of Heaven and Earth has made provision for our eternal life and provision for restoring what was lost. That provision is His Son, Jesus Christ.