Thursday Night Bible Study

Numbers 12 (Click scripture reference to access audio)

"Hey Jealousy"  •  4.19.12  •  Thursday Night Bible Study, Calvary Christian Fellowship

Intro.

- Israel has begun her move toward the land of Canaan, the land that God promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob's descendants.

- The movement thus far has revealed a heart in the people that was quick to complain against the Lord and to give into the lusts of their flesh.

- In both cases, God severely dealt with their disobedience, burning the complainers and allowing those whose greed consumed them, to languish in plague.

- In all of this, one wonders what it must have been like for Moses to wake up every day.

- Aside from looking up to see if the cloud had moved, he must have looked around to see what lunacy awaited him. This week, we'll find that he didn't need to look far.

Text

• Numbers 12:1 : "Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman."  :  The word "then" continues the narrative which follows the death of those who had given into their cravings. Sometime near, but after that event, this scenario came to pass.

- Both Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses. They agreed and criticized Moses together. Why did they do this? Was it a moral or ethical failure that they witnessed?

- They criticized Moses on account of his wife who was an Ethiopian woman.

- Scripturally, we know that Moses had been married to Zipporah, who was a Midianite woman.

- Here, in the NKJV, this woman was an Ethiopian, or Cushite woman. If this were Zipporah, Midian and Cush were close together and may explain the dilemna.

- Moses had met Zipporah when he was in exile in the Midianite desert. He had been taking care of Jethro's flocks and began a life there that lasted 40 years.

- He had married Zipporah, and according to Exodus 2:22, he also had a son named Gershom. Exodus 18:4 records a second son, whose name was Eliezer.

- Moses married a woman whose family loved the Lord, but were not themselves part of the Hebrew commonwealth.

- Some believe that Zipporah had died at this point and that Moses remarrried. If this was another woman, we are not told her name in scripture.

- I've gone back and forth on this and will say that anyone's guess is as good as anyone else, though if one were going to complain about Zipporah, I imagine they would have long before this.

- With that, I'm thinking that this is likely a new, unnamed wife which might help explain Miriam and Aaron's ire. I'd like to also suggest a few recent developments as well.

- First, remember that this comes after the annointing of the 70 elders, who prophecied and were given some of the same spirit as Moses.

- Prior to that, Moses offered Hobab a share in the blessing of God, an offer he accepted.

- Perhaps Miriam and Aaron felt marginalized and unappreciated when the 70 elders were picked. Maybe they saw Hobab as a threat to their position with Moses.

- At the same time, when a person is jealous of another person, something that will bear itself out in a moment, any reason is a good enough reason to act out.

- Moses' connection to his wife might have simply been red herring, the precursor to their real issue that grew silently in their hearts and found expression through their mouths.

- The fact is that they grabbed a hold of a decision that Moses had made, that did not set well with them. Sadly, that was all that they had!

- Often times, that is the case with those who are chronically jealous. They grasp at any straws that they might hold onto!

- Instead of checking the attitude of their hearts, they vented their feelings and allowed the poison to spread!

- I would also draw your attention to the order of the words. Miriam AND Aaron spoke.

- In the original, there is also an indication of that, as the original rendering might be something like, "And she spoke and Aaron." Who were these people?

- From our studies in the book of Exodus, we will remember that Miriam and Aaron were Moses' older siblings. Miriam had been instrumental in saving Moses' life and keeping Mom with him.

- Additionally, Miriam, according to Exodus 15:20 was a Prophetess within the community, expressed at least in the moments following the Red Sea crossing, in song leading.

- Her song, really more of a refrain, was the second song recorded in the BIble. From the wording and from what happens, it seems fair to say that she was the lead voice against Moses.

- While she did not have an official position designated by God, Aaron was indeed God's High Priest! He was consecrated and anointed for that position.

- His history is one of accomodation and giving into the demands of those around him. Who can forget Exodus 32 and the golden calf episode!?

- Aaron was God's concession to Moses' initial hesitation. While he was given the position of a leader, his weakness of crowd pleasing made him more of a follower.

- There is very little that is more dangerous than this kind of petty talking amongst the leadership of God's people. This is very dangerous ground.

- On a final note of observation, consider these words: Miriam and Aaron spoke about. Imagine if we could change just one word.

- What if they had spoken "with" Moses? They have concerns and they went right to the source. This story would have been different.

- What if they had spoken "for" Moses? They believed the best about Moses and spoke for him, defending him against their own perspectives. Again, what a difference.

- Sadly, they spoke against him, which will not turn out well for them at all.

•  Numbers 12:2-3 : "So they said, 'Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?' And the Lord heard it. (Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.)" : This was the content of their criticism against Moses, in addition to their beef with his wife. Was he the only vessel that God worked through? Has God spoken through Moses ONLY?

- Technically, God had spoken through Miriam. She was a Prophetess, meaning that she received words from the Lord. Miriam had some sense of God's gifting personally.

- Aaron on the other hand had not been directly given any authoritative piece of God's word, but had been Moses' mouthpiece and did stand as the High Priest before the Lord.

- There is a thinly veiled accusation against Moses of pride. It seems that they perceived or considered Moses to have had some pride in his position as Israel's leader.

- When they said these things, the Lord heard it. He was listening in. This stands out as a direct warning to consider regarding undue criticism. Even if nobody else hears it, the Lord hears it!

- Any person willing to open their mouths in gossip, in talebearing or in slander can know that they are subjecting the Lord's Spirit to the festivities!

- If we only had more of an understanding of God's presence with us! How much less would we speak or act? The consciousness of His presence is a mighty corrective!

 - Moses might have heard their criticism as well, but had not done anything about it.

- This would make sense of the comment that we find in verse 3. Moses was very humble or meek, more so than all men on the Earth, if he doesn't say so himself!

- God wanted this information placed here, despite Moses' natural inclination. Moses, like all BIble writers, wrote under the inspiration and direction of the Holy Spirit.

- Moses was very humble, the ESV translates the same word as "meek." That word "meek" refers to power that is completely controlled.

- When we examined this word in the New Testament, we understood it to refer to a an elephant, whose powers were completely under the control of his trainer.

- The same could be said of Moses, who had the power and authority to dominate, but chose to allow the Lord to argue his case.

- Moses allowed them to talk as they wished, not being personally offended by their statements. Had he been proud, he might have rose up to defend himself against their accusations.

- The fact that he did not respond, proves his humility. God's response was much more direct.

- Incidently, when you are spoken about, this is a good reminder to us, who must also trust the Lord to defend us.

• Numbers 12:4,5  : "Suddenly the Lord said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, 'Come out, you three, to the tabernacle of meeting!' So the three came out. Then the Lord came down in the pillar of cloud and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam. And they both went forward." :  If there has ever been an "oh oh" moment, this was it!

- God singles out all three suddenly. However long things had carried on, God brought a sudden end to it. All three stood before God, before the tabernacle of meeting.

- Please notice: God took this seriously enough to actually come down! This is a chilling concept and a dire warning of what God thinks about leadership that He sets up!

- When they had come together, the Lord separated Aaron and Miriam who now stood before the Lord. Just think about that moment.

- They had been critical of their brother, God's man, and now God Himself requires them to stand before Him! What must have gone through their minds?

• Numbers 12:6-8 : "Then He said, 'Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream. Not so with My servant Moses; He is faithful in all My house. I speak with him face to face, Even plainly, and not in dark sayings; And he sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?'" : This is really good. Then God said, "Hear my words."

- God had heard their words, Moses had uttered no words. Now, it was time for God to speak His words." They assumed that this was all about words, so God gives them words to listen to!

- God made a distinction, not based on how Moses spoke, but on the weight of what Moses had received! They had compared themselves to Moses in speech, but not in revelation!

- God sets up the comparison. A prophet would be considered great in the eyes of the people. Miriam herself was considered a prophetess.

- The prophet was subject to knowing God from dreams and visions that would then be interepreted and useful to the community of God at a certain level.

- This was not the case with Moses. How does God designate Moses? First, Moses was God's servant. There is no greater designation in the Kingdom of God than that of being His servant!

- In the end, this was the secret to Moses' meekness in how he went about his role and how he went about responding to criticism. In the end, he knew that he was God's servant!

- If you realize that you are God's servant, you will serve men well. If you look at yourself as men's servants, you will not serve God well! Moses had it right!

- Moses was God's servant and was faithful in all of His house. Notice what he does not say about Moses. He is most talented. Most popular. Most wise. God looks for and desires faithfulness!

- When you stand before the Lord, it is said that He will say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant!"  This is a ringing endorsement that we would do well to pray to live up to.

- Lord make me a reliable person in your house, serving only you and your interests!

- God was intimate in His friendship toward Moses. It is one thing for a man to be intimate toward God. It's quite another for God to be intimate toward man!

- Moses was the recipient of this receiving first hand knowledge, plainly spoken and face to face relationship. God completes the thought by saying that Moses saw the form of the Lord.

- The NLT translates verse 8 this way: "He sees the Lord as He is!" There was an advanced relationship that the two had. Moses was God's friend.

- How was it then that they did not fear to speak against Him? In other words, given Moses' close relationship to the Lord, how did they not think that things would end poorly!?

- Ultimately, MIriam and Aaron's willingness to speak this way was a profound act of fearlessness or reverance for God's choice!

- They should have been very respectful of the position that Moses held, understanding that it was God Himself who had put Him in it!

- A much more positive example that we see in scripture is David, who when given the opportunity to slay Saul, would not, because he feared to touch the Lord's annointed!

- David did it right, when he said, and I paraphrase, "If God wants Saul out of the way, the Saul will fall by God's hand, not mine!"

•  Numbers 12:9-13  :  "So the anger of the Lord was aroused against them, and He departed. And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, suddenly Miriam became leprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper. So Aaron said to Moses, 'Oh, my lord! Please do not lay this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned. Please do not let her be as one dead, whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb!' So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, 'Please heal her, O God, I pray!'" : God's response to them came about as a result of their jealousy. God was angry with them and Miriam received the greater portion of this judgment.

- This further corroborates the thought that it was Miriam who had led the way in regards to the content of that which was said.

- Without warning, Miriam became leprous, to the full extent, in the worst condition. This was late stage leprosy, an advanced condition, which alarmed Aaron immediately.

- It's a very interesting picture. What God elected to do to Miriam was expose her outwardly with the disease that she was carrying inwardly.

- To them, leprosy was almost worse than, if not often considered synonymous with death. She did not notice it or could not speak.

- Aaron, as a priest, had seen the wretched effects of leprosy and this case was horrifying.

- What about Aaron's apparent health? He was not judged in the same way. I don't wish to speculate too deeply.

- He may have gone along with Miriam's sin and not been too active in it, or his judgment would be severe enough in having to diagnose his own sister.

- A third consideration might have been the necessity for the High Priest to remain capable of ministering before the Lord. In the end, we can safely say that this was God's soveriegn choice!

- Aaron immediately plead before Moses, who in turn, cried out to the Lord for her healing.

- Moses had not been too hurt by the things said of him, that he could not pray. There was no hesitation, nor was there an ill will toward Miriam. He immediately prayed for her healing.

- This is key in diagnosing your own heart toward those who speak out against you. Are you able to pray for them? Are you able to desire their best?

- Jesus was rejected by Israel, shamed by the leaders and crucified in broad daylight. It was from the cross that He said, "Father forgive them, for the know not what they do!

- Everywhere Paul went, the Jews harrassed and persecuted him. They went out of their way to destroy him and to come against his doctrine.

- In Romans 11, Paul would trade his salvation for theirs, wishing to be accursed!

- When people speak evil of you, unduly criticize you, remember that it does not have to change you!

•  Numbers 12:14-16 : "Then the Lord said to Moses, 'If her father had but spit in her face, would she not be shamed seven days? Let her be shut out of the camp seven days, and afterward she may be received again.' So Miriam was shut out of the camp seven days, and the people did not journey till Miriam was brought in again. And afterward the people moved from Hazeroth and camped in the Wilderness of Paran." :  The law demanded that Miriam be removed from the camp, if she had been shamed by her earthly Father. Here, God had publically disciplined her.

- Her leprous condition was likely healed in the moment that Moses asked, but it would take seven days of her life, ostracized from fellowship and humbled before the Lord.

- Look at this: It began with Miriam proudly speaking. It ended with her publically shamed! In the beginning, she was loud, at the end silent!

- If she had hoped for change, her only change was her location! If she had hoped for prominence, she received infamy!

- If you keep track of all the times that God allows human criticism to bring change in a community in the Bible, you will find that in each instance, change came but not like they wanted!

- Miriam was kept outside of the camp. She had been on the inside looking out. Now, she was on the outside looking in! This sin on her part robbed her personally of fruitful service to the Lord.

- It's sad when the Lord allows that to happen to someone who refuses to contribute positively. She had a week of deep thought as she sat there watching those in fellowship.

- However, don't think that this did not affect the congregation. This kept the people of God on hold there at Hazeroth. Her sin, far from being isolated to herself, affected more than 3 million people!

- The congregation could not move without her and that is the truth regarding any one who's gift is removed from a congregation. The body suffers when God disciplines even one member.

Conclusion

- As we close tonight, please do not get the idea that Moses was or that I as a Pastor am above being confronted or even removed.

- If I were to fail morally, ethically or spiritually, the Lord will use our board of directors to remove me. This section does not insulate leaders from discipline or accountability.

- This passage does teach us about the power of words and the power of God in responding when words are used to undermine His leaders.

- Speak TO those who have offended you. Make sure you are bringing Biblical offense to the table, otherwise, bring your attitude against them to the Lord and ask Him to change your heart!

- If you're spoken against, stay silent and let God do the work. Consistently pray God's best for those who are seeking your harm. Above all, don't give their words truth!

- To all of us, let's remember that speaking is a gift when our speech is seasoned with salt and motivated by God's love for each other!