Bamidbar (Numbers)
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Meaning
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Day Four
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Haftara
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B'rit Hadashah
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1 Our Father, we receive Your Words and hide Your commandments with us; 2 we incline our ear unto wisdom, and apply our hearts to understanding; 3 We cry after knowledge and lift up our voices for understanding; 4 we seek it as silver; and search for it as for hidden treasures; 5 We declare that we shall understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. Declaration of Proverbs 2:1-5
Numbers 17:1-13 (NASB)1
1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "Speak to the sons of Israel, and get from them a rod for each father's household: twelve rods, from all their leaders according to their fathers' households. You shall write each name on his rod, 3 and write Aaron's name on the rod of Levi; for there is one rod for the head of each of their fathers' households. 4 "You shall then deposit them in the tent of meeting in front of the testimony, where I meet with you. 5 "It will come about that the rod of the man whom I choose will sprout. Thus I will lessen from upon Myself the grumblings of the sons of Israel, who are grumbling against you." 6 Moses therefore spoke to the sons of Israel, and all their leaders gave him a rod apiece, for each leader according to their fathers' households, twelve rods, with the rod of Aaron among their rods. 7 So Moses deposited the rods before the LORD in the tent of the testimony. 8 Now on the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds. 9 Moses then brought out all the rods from the presence of the LORD to all the sons of Israel; and they looked, and each man took his rod. 10 But the LORD said to Moses, "Put back the rod of Aaron before the testimony to be kept as a sign against the rebels, that you may put an end to their grumblings against Me, so that they will not die." 11 Thus Moses did; just as the LORD had commanded him, so he did. 12 Then the sons of Israel spoke to Moses, saying, "Behold, we perish, we are dying, we are all dying! 13 "Everyone who comes near, who comes near to the tabernacle of the LORD, must die. Are we to perish completely?”
8 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 9 For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness. Psalm 107:8-9.
Israel received two witnesses to the goodness and the works of Yahweh and they still moaned and complained! Instead of saying, “Let’s fear God and not sin!” they uttered,
13 Whosoever cometh any thing near unto the tabernacle of the LORD shall die: shall we be consumed with dying? Numbers 17:13.
Shall we not learn from the errors of these people? Surely when Aaron stood between the living and the dying, made atonement for them, and the plague ceased, didn’t it tell them anything? They were incapable of the realization!
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of every one of them a rod according to the house of their fathers, of all their princes according to the house of their fathers twelve rods: write thou every man's name upon his rod. 3 And thou shalt write Aaron's name upon the rod of Levi: for one rod shall be for the head of the house of their fathers. 4 And thou shalt lay them up in the tabernacle of the congregation before the testimony, where I will meet with you. 5 And it shall come to pass, that the man's rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you. Numbers 17:1-5.
It might have been a relief to ALL around, Israel, Moses, Aaron, and also, The Almighty, that overnight this issue would be finalized for-ever!
8 And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds. Numbers 17:8.
The next day, they gazed upon what amounted to be an old dead stick revived to life that offered the ultimate closure! How could a dead piece of wood suddenly show life? Fortunately for us believers, this is just the kind of thing in which our Father delights. It is so like Him to bring forth life from a dead or inanimate thing. Now this dead stick that Moses displayed to the elders and tribal leaders the very next day not only came to life and sprouted leaves and buds, but it also sprouted the fruit! I can picture Moshe plucking some of the almonds off the staff and giving them to some of the elders to have a “taste test” snack from the fruit of a “dead” stick that had rejuvenated overnight. It was clearly labeled from the day before and surely this would convince those stiff-necked thistle-heads that God was serious and that His choice ultimately was Aaron and sons for the priesthood.
So not only was the staff of Aaron to be a sign of God’s choice, but a memorial as well. Are there memorials in our own lives that point to a time when we fretted against God in some affliction? The following illustration belongs to Rebbe Sh’aul (AKA the Apostle Paul) when he had his ‘road to Damascus’ experience.
4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? 5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. Acts 9:4-5.
What Messiah was referring to was the practice of prodding balky cattle with a pointy end of a long stick called a “goad” or “prick”. The cattle naturally didn’t appreciate this stick, and often they would kick out at it as it was applied. God was saying: “Sha'ul, I'm doing a work here, and you keep fighting it!” When we struggle against God, as Israel did repeatedly here, we hinder His will in our lives. We kick against Him and treat His presence as “annoying”. We become involved in an endless loop of “stinkin thinkin”. How productive was it for the Israelites who railed out at God? I think you could say that ‘death’ is quite ‘counter-productive’! What is the healthy alternative? Commit to God’s will and flourish!
That rod was a great witness because it had the three stages of growth on it all at the same time! When did we ever see a tree or a berry bush with all those three stages of growth upon it? Doesn’t it make one cry out, “Oh why can’t men praise the Lord for His goodness!?” When they exhibit the degree of unbelief as verse thirteen one has to realize that there is none to help them! If THE God of heaven turns His face from us then ALL avenues of aid are exhausted. The only thing remaining is to repent and repair the breach because Yah IS the only one who CAN help us!
We move along now to a word study while still keeping that rod of Aaron in mind. The Hebrew word almond is שָׁקֵד : shaqed shaw-kade' from 8245; the almond (tree or nut; as being the earliest in bloom). The root 8245 is שָׁקַד :shaqad shaw-kad' to be alert, i.e. sleepless; hence to be on the lookout (whether for good or ill):—hasten, remain, wake, watch (for).
I was blessed to be at the City of David Messianic Synagogue in Toronto Ontario Canada one feast day (which one I don’t remember now), and Reuvon Doron was speaking. His message that day was about the difference between ‘shaw-kade’ and ‘shaqad'. There is a very minor difference in the pronunciation of those two words. The first refers to an almond, the fruit of a tree that brings forth this food. The original root from which ‘almond’ is derived means to ‘be awake’ or ‘to be watchful’. Now how richer could their lives have been if instead of being so negative about Yah’s command, they took the deeper lesson from that marvelous dead stick that turned into all three stages of the almond? In Israel, the almond tree blossoms in late winter and signals that spring is right around the corner! Do you think that Yah was trying to get another message through to the people of Israel through this rod of Aaron? The priests and the Levites were declared by God, and were His choice to be the spiritual watchmen over Israel—always awake and alert to the dangers of the enemy who would lead them into negativity and unbelief.
In a message given on June 10, 1900, Charles Spurgeon stated that the almond is a 'wakeful' tree. And “so says the Lord, “I will be wakeful concerning My word to perform it.” So we see that the almond tree is associated with that ‘wakeful and alert’ connotation in the calling of Jeremiah to prophesy to Judah in her apostasy to ‘wake up’. Charles Spurgeon was careful to remind his listeners that God is faithful to hasten His good work and at the same time He is faithful to hasten to His threats.
“…An unbelieving hearing of the Gospel is a multiplication of curses to your soul—another sermon for which you have to give account, another rejected exhortation recorded against you, another earnest invitation which you have refused—and for which you will be held responsible. You are heaping up to yourselves wrath against the Day of Wrath even while you hear the Word of the Lord. I am not now talking about what will happen to you when you die, or when you rise for the final judgment—I am speaking about what is happening NOW! The same sun which melts wax hardens clay. And the same Gospel which melts some persons to repentance hardens others in their sins. Take heed that you do not soon see the almond tree blossom in this terrible sense.”
Those words uttered in the year 1900 are still valid one hundred and twenty-five years later! If the words of a man can be so enduring; then how much more is the Word of The Living God?
13 Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. 14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder. 15 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 16 For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder. Psalm 107:13-16.
Hallelu-Yah!!
Well now—once and for all The Almighty established His choice for the priesthood! What a miracle for these folks whose lives revolved around the agricultural cycle! Even now to consider this is amazing. Nowhere in the world will one find any living plant species that can have all three stages of growth at the same time. These rods, including that of Aaron, were old, dead, beat up, and worn away STICKS. But they had meaning. They represented a man’s leadership. The man who used it was the head of his family, the big macher—Yiddish for “boss”.
Did you ever have such a frustrating time with something, and you were so tired of the same thing happening that you wanted to do something or say something “once and for all?” Any reader who has been a parent can identify with that feeling I am certain. If you’re a Star Trek fan, you will remember the Star Trek movie where Captain Kirk was fighting the Klingon and the planet was decaying by the minute. They fought and rolled around in a landscape that was quickly turning into a maelstrom of destruction. At one point, the Klingon was hanging by his fingernails to the edge of a deep and fiery chasm. By this time, the hero of the story is so tired. This alien plagued his every move all through the movie and was responsible for the death of his newly found son. This Klingon had proved to be such a frustrating force that finally, Kirk dispatches him to the depths below with three hard kicks, with the last of his physical strength ebbing while uttering, “I HAVE HAD—ENOUGH—OF YOU!” The first time I saw that particular movie in the theater, the audience cheered. We are all able to relate to having frustration to the ultimate at one time or another.
Is it unreasonable to consider that in His great love for His creations that God does not reach the ultimate frustration level when His creatures repeatedly and stubbornly continue to rebel through unbelief?
5 And it shall come to pass, that the man's rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you. Numbers 17:5.
The great Creator Yahweh advocated for Moses and Aaron! Do we know that if our lives please Him He will not do the same for us? If we doubt that He would, it is time that we cried out to “know Him better”! I’ve done it. I’ve made that cry at times in my life and I’m freely admitting that when I’ve cried out thus, He comes forth. He is more eager to do so than we think.
Israel received two witnesses to the goodness and the works of Yahweh and they still moaned and complained! Instead of saying, “Let’s fear God and not sin!” they uttered,
13 Whosoever cometh any thing near unto the tabernacle of the LORD shall die: shall we be consumed with dying? Numbers 17:13.
Shall we not learn from the errors of these people? Surely when Aaron stood between the living and the dying, made atonement for them, and the plague ceased, didn’t it tell them anything? They were incapable of the realization!
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of every one of them a rod according to the house of their fathers, of all their princes according to the house of their fathers twelve rods: write thou every man's name upon his rod. 3 And thou shalt write Aaron's name upon the rod of Levi: for one rod shall be for the head of the house of their fathers. 4 And thou shalt lay them up in the tabernacle of the congregation before the testimony, where I will meet with you. 5 And it shall come to pass, that the man's rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you. Numbers 17:1-5.
It might have been a relief to ALL around, Israel, Moses, Aaron, and also, The Almighty, that overnight this issue would be finalized for-ever!
8 And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds. Numbers 17:8.
The next day, they gazed upon what amounted to be an old dead stick revived to life that offered the ultimate closure! How could a dead piece of wood suddenly show life? Fortunately for us believers, this is just the kind of thing in which our Father delights. It is so like Him to bring forth life from a dead or inanimate thing. Now this dead stick that Moses displayed to the elders and tribal leaders the very next day not only came to life and sprouted leaves and buds, but it also sprouted the fruit! I can picture Moshe plucking some of the almonds off the staff and giving them to some of the elders to have a “taste test” snack from the fruit of a “dead” stick that had rejuvenated overnight. It was clearly labeled from the day before and surely this would convince those stiff-necked thistle-heads that God was serious and that His choice ultimately was Aaron and sons for the priesthood.
So not only was the staff of Aaron to be a sign of God’s choice, but a memorial as well. Are there memorials in our own lives that point to a time when we fretted against God in some affliction? The following illustration belongs to Rebbe Sh’aul (AKA the Apostle Paul) when he had his ‘road to Damascus’ experience.
4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? 5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. Acts 9:4-5.
What Messiah was referring to was the practice of prodding balky cattle with a pointy end of a long stick called a “goad” or “prick”. The cattle naturally didn’t appreciate this stick, and often they would kick out at it as it was applied. God was saying: “Sha'ul, I'm doing a work here, and you keep fighting it!” When we struggle against God, as Israel did repeatedly here, we hinder His will in our lives. We kick against Him and treat His presence as “annoying”. We become involved in an endless loop of “stinkin thinkin”. How productive was it for the Israelites who railed out at God? I think you could say that ‘death’ is quite ‘counter-productive’! What is the healthy alternative? Commit to God’s will and flourish!
That rod was a great witness because it had the three stages of growth on it all at the same time! When did we ever see a tree or a berry bush with all those three stages of growth upon it? Doesn’t it make one cry out, “Oh why can’t men praise the Lord for His goodness!?” When they exhibit the degree of unbelief as verse thirteen one has to realize that there is none to help them! If THE God of heaven turns His face from us then ALL avenues of aid are exhausted. The only thing remaining is to repent and repair the breach because Yah IS the only one who CAN help us!
We move along now to a word study while still keeping that rod of Aaron in mind. The Hebrew word almond is שָׁקֵד : shaqed shaw-kade' from 8245; the almond (tree or nut; as being the earliest in bloom). The root 8245 is שָׁקַד :shaqad shaw-kad' to be alert, i.e. sleepless; hence to be on the lookout (whether for good or ill):—hasten, remain, wake, watch (for).
I was blessed to be at the City of David Messianic Synagogue in Toronto Ontario Canada one feast day (which one I don’t remember now), and Reuvon Doron was speaking. His message that day was about the difference between ‘shaw-kade’ and ‘shaqad'. There is a very minor difference in the pronunciation of those two words. The first refers to an almond, the fruit of a tree that brings forth this food. The original root from which ‘almond’ is derived means to ‘be awake’ or ‘to be watchful’. Now how richer could their lives have been if instead of being so negative about Yah’s command, they took the deeper lesson from that marvelous dead stick that turned into all three stages of the almond? In Israel, the almond tree blossoms in late winter and signals that spring is right around the corner! Do you think that Yah was trying to get another message through to the people of Israel through this rod of Aaron? The priests and the Levites were declared by God, and were His choice to be the spiritual watchmen over Israel—always awake and alert to the dangers of the enemy who would lead them into negativity and unbelief.
In a message given on June 10, 1900, Charles Spurgeon stated that the almond is a 'wakeful' tree. And “so says the Lord, “I will be wakeful concerning My word to perform it.” So we see that the almond tree is associated with that ‘wakeful and alert’ connotation in the calling of Jeremiah to prophesy to Judah in her apostasy to ‘wake up’. Charles Spurgeon was careful to remind his listeners that God is faithful to hasten His good work and at the same time He is faithful to hasten to His threats.
“…An unbelieving hearing of the Gospel is a multiplication of curses to your soul—another sermon for which you have to give account, another rejected exhortation recorded against you, another earnest invitation which you have refused—and for which you will be held responsible. You are heaping up to yourselves wrath against the Day of Wrath even while you hear the Word of the Lord. I am not now talking about what will happen to you when you die, or when you rise for the final judgment—I am speaking about what is happening NOW! The same sun which melts wax hardens clay. And the same Gospel which melts some persons to repentance hardens others in their sins. Take heed that you do not soon see the almond tree blossom in this terrible sense.”
Those words uttered in the year 1900 are still valid one hundred and twenty-five years later! If the words of a man can be so enduring; then how much more is the Word of The Living God?
13 Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. 14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder. 15 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 16 For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder. Psalm 107:13-16.
Hallelu-Yah!!
Well now—once and for all The Almighty established His choice for the priesthood! What a miracle for these folks whose lives revolved around the agricultural cycle! Even now to consider this is amazing. Nowhere in the world will one find any living plant species that can have all three stages of growth at the same time. These rods, including that of Aaron, were old, dead, beat up, and worn away STICKS. But they had meaning. They represented a man’s leadership. The man who used it was the head of his family, the big macher—Yiddish for “boss”.
Did you ever have such a frustrating time with something, and you were so tired of the same thing happening that you wanted to do something or say something “once and for all?” Any reader who has been a parent can identify with that feeling I am certain. If you’re a Star Trek fan, you will remember the Star Trek movie where Captain Kirk was fighting the Klingon and the planet was decaying by the minute. They fought and rolled around in a landscape that was quickly turning into a maelstrom of destruction. At one point, the Klingon was hanging by his fingernails to the edge of a deep and fiery chasm. By this time, the hero of the story is so tired. This alien plagued his every move all through the movie and was responsible for the death of his newly found son. This Klingon had proved to be such a frustrating force that finally, Kirk dispatches him to the depths below with three hard kicks, with the last of his physical strength ebbing while uttering, “I HAVE HAD—ENOUGH—OF YOU!” The first time I saw that particular movie in the theater, the audience cheered. We are all able to relate to having frustration to the ultimate at one time or another.
Is it unreasonable to consider that in His great love for His creations that God does not reach the ultimate frustration level when His creatures repeatedly and stubbornly continue to rebel through unbelief?
5 And it shall come to pass, that the man's rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you. Numbers 17:5.
The great Creator Yahweh advocated for Moses and Aaron! Do we know that if our lives please Him He will not do the same for us? If we doubt that He would, it is time that we cried out to “know Him better”! I’ve done it. I’ve made that cry at times in my life and I’m freely admitting that when I’ve cried out thus, He comes forth. He is more eager to do so than we think.
1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. 3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. Psalms 1:1-3.
1 NASB www.lockman.org for daily reading and KJV in commentary unless otherwise specified
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