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But the moment you start to think that you would never behave like these Israelites, the stories have worked their magic. “Surely, I would never act like this,” we say to ourselves as we read. What?! Every single story ramps up the intensity and you finish this section of the book feeling really disheartened.
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They convince the people that certain death awaits if they enter Canaan, and they decide to appoint a leader to go back to Egypt. The twelve tribes of Israel each pick a representative to spy out the land of Canaan, and ten of the twelve come back and start a rebellion among the people.
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13-14) about the people wishing they could reverse the exodus and go back to Egypt. In both instances, the unique calling of Moses and Aaron are reaffirmed in a very public and memorable way.Īt the very center of this entire collection (D) is a two-chapter story (ch. In each case, the coup is launched from the inside, as Moses’ own siblings betray him, and later as Aaron’s extended family betrays him. 12 and 16-17 are each a rebellion against Israel’s leaders, specifically their prophet Moses (ch. The following inner pair of narratives (C), ch. In both stories the people long for the food and “security” they once had in Egypt (notice how 11:5-6 is similar to 20:4-5). Their demand for water in ch.21 ends up provoking Moses to act and speak in a way that dishonors God and ultimately disqualifies him from entering the promised land. The complaint for meat in ch.11 is answered as God sends a superabundance of quail to the people, that ends up poisoning them due to gluttony.
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The next inner pair of stories (B), 11:4-35 and 20:1-13 are connected by their focus on the people’s angry demand for food and water. Both crises are resolved by Moses engaging in intercessory prayer (11:2 and 21:7). Both lead to “fire” of some kind, whether it’s actual fire (most likely lightning strikes, see 11:1-2), or the “fiery” feel of a snake bite (in 21:6 the word “poisonous” or “venomous” in our English translations render the Hebrew word for “fire”). The outer pair of stories (A), 11:1-3 and 21:4-9 are fairly short and describe a general complaint among the people. They are designed together as a symmetry, with each story corresponding to its concentric pair.ī 11:4-35: Manna and Moses’ complaint against Godĭ 13-14: Rebellion against the Exodus (remember, we are in Numbers, this is a reference to earlier events, despite the book title.)ī 20:1-13: Water and Moses’ rebellion against GodĪ 21:4-9: Rebellion and fiery snakes in the camp If you pay attention, you’ll see how these seven stories are a work of literary brilliance. It’s worth whipping out a colored pencil or highlighter and taking note of all the repeated words that connect ch. Each story highlights a different type of rebellion that starts for different kinds of reasons. “And the people spoke against God and Moses.” (21:5) “And the people quarreled with Moses.” (20:3) “And the entire community grumbled against Moses and Aaron.” (16:41) “And Korah… with Nathan and Abiram… with two hundred and fifty leaders of the community… rose up against Moses.” (16:1-3) “And all the community raised their voice… and grumbled against Moses and Aaron.” (14:1-2) “And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses.” (12:1) “And the people complained about their hardships.” (11:1) “And the rabble among them had greedy desires… and said ‘Who will give us meat?!’” (11:4) Every story to follow begins with a moment of Israelite insurrection: the people complain or rebel or grumble. Sinai in Numbers 10, things go terribly wrong.