Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The Reubenites and Gadites, who had very large herds and flocks, saw that the lands of Jazer and Gilead were suitable for livestock. So they came to Moses and Eleazar the priest and to the leaders of the community, and said, "Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Beon - the land the Lord subdued before the people of Israel—are suitable for livestock, and your servants have livestock. If we have found favor in your eyes," they said, "let this land be given to your servants as our possession. Do not make us cross the Jordan."
Moses said to the Gadites and Reubenites, "Shall your countrymen go to war while you sit here? Why do you discourage the Israelites from going over into the land the Lord has given them? This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh Barnea to look over the land. After they went up to the Valley of Eshcol and viewed the land, they discouraged the Israelites from entering the land the Lord had given them. The Lord's anger was aroused that day and he swore this oath: 'Because they have not followed me wholeheartedly, not one of the men twenty years old or more who came up out of Egypt will see the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - not one except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua son of Nun, for they followed the Lord wholeheartedly.' The Lord's anger burned against Israel and he made them wander in the desert forty years, until the whole generation of those who had done evil in his sight was gone.
"And here you are, a brood of sinners, standing in the place of your fathers and making the Lord even more angry with Israel. If you turn away from following him, he will again leave all this people in the desert, and you will be the cause of their destruction."
Then they came up to him and said, "We would like to build pens here for our livestock and cities for our women and children. But we are ready to arm ourselves and go ahead of the Israelites until we have brought them to their place. Meanwhile our women and children will live in fortified cities, for protection from the inhabitants of the land. We will not return to our homes until every Israelite has received his inheritance. We will not receive any inheritance with them on the other side of the Jordan, because our inheritance has come to us on the east side of the Jordan."
Then Moses said to them, "If you will do this—if you will arm yourselves before the Lord for battle, and if all of you will go armed over the Jordan before the Lord until he has driven his enemies out before him - then when the land is subdued before the Lord, you may return and be free from your obligation to the Lord and to Israel. And this land will be your possession before the Lord.
"But if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the Lord; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out. Build cities for your women and children, and pens for your flocks, but do what you have promised."
The Gadites and Reubenites said to Moses, "We your servants will do as our lord commands. Our children and wives, our flocks and herds will remain here in the cities of Gilead. But your servants, every man armed for battle, will cross over to fight before the Lord, just as our lord says."
Then Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun and to the family heads of the Israelite tribes. He said to them, "If the Gadites and Reubenites, every man armed for battle, cross over the Jordan with you before the Lord, then when the land is subdued before you, give them the land of Gilead as their possession. But if they do not cross over with you armed, they must accept their possession with you in Canaan."
The Gadites and Reubenites answered, "Your servants will do what the Lord has said. We will cross over before the Lord into Canaan armed, but the property we inherit will be on this side of the Jordan."
Then Moses gave to the Gadites, the Reubenites and the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan—the whole land with its cities and the territory around them.
The Gadites built up Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, Atroth Shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, Beth Nimrah and Beth Haran as fortified cities, and built pens for their flocks. And the Reubenites rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh and Kiriathaim, as well as Nebo and Baal Meon (these names were changed) and Sibmah. They gave names to the cities they rebuilt.
The descendants of Makir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, captured it and drove out the Amorites who were there. So Moses gave Gilead to the Makirites, the descendants of Manasseh, and they settled there. Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, captured their settlements and called them Havvoth Jair. And Nobah captured Kenath and its surrounding settlements and called it Nobah after himself.” Numbers 32
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As we begin Chapter 32, we find Israel on the brink of entering the Promised Land. All of Israel, twelve tribes total, were to cross the Jordan into Canaan and possess the land God provided, even of it meant armed conflict against the present inhabitants. And there most certainly would have been conflict.
It was this potential conflict that created problems for Israel as they had been close to entering Canaan the first time. As Moses addresses the Gadites and Reubenites, he reminds them of the actions of their ancestors:
“This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh Barnea to look over the land. After they went up to the Valley of Eshcol and viewed the land, they discouraged the Israelites from entering the land the Lord had given them. The Lord's anger was aroused that day and he swore this oath: 'Because they have not followed me wholeheartedly, not one of the men twenty years old or more who came up out of Egypt will see the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - not one except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua son of Nun, for they followed the Lord wholeheartedly.' The Lord's anger burned against Israel and he made them wander in the desert forty years, until the whole generation of those who had done evil in his sight was gone.”
Why did Moses need to remind them of what happened? Because the Gadites and Reubenites had brought the following proposal to Moses, Eleazar and the leaders of the community:
"Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Beon - the land the Lord subdued before the people of Israel—are suitable for livestock, and your servants have livestock. If we have found favor in your eyes…let this land be given to your servants as our possession. Do not make us cross the Jordan."
In other words, the Gadites and Reubenites were willing to settle down right where they were at, sending the other ten tribes ahead into battle. This was what was at the root of Moses’ consternation as he told the Gadites and Reubenites, “"Shall your countrymen go to war while you sit here? Why do you discourage the Israelites from going over into the land the Lord has given them?…here you are, a brood of sinners, standing in the place of your fathers and making the Lord even more angry with Israel. If you turn away from following him, he will again leave all this people in the desert, and you will be the cause of their destruction."
God had passed judgment on Israel before, making them wander an additional 40 years in the desert. And He would do it again. Moses made it clear that the proposal made by the Gadites and Reubenites was not acceptable and that they were repeating the past mistakes of their forefathers.
Question: How often do you repeat the past mistakes of those who have gone before you? Have you found yourself repeating the mistakes that your parents or grandparents made?
Well, Moses’ words resonated with the Gadites and Reubenites. For they once again made a proposal but this time restructured it so it supported a concerted team effort by all twelve tribes to march into Canaan and take over the land God promised. Here was the new proposal:
"We would like to build pens here for our livestock and cities for our women and children. But we are ready to arm ourselves and go ahead of the Israelites until we have brought them to their place. Meanwhile our women and children will live in fortified cities, for protection from the inhabitants of the land. We will not return to our homes until every Israelite has received his inheritance. We will not receive any inheritance with them on the other side of the Jordan, because our inheritance has come to us on the east side of the Jordan."
So the Gadites and Reubenites were still interested in the land east of the Jordan. But they would send their men into battle with the other tribes while their women and children would be protected in fortified cities they would construct. This overture was far more to Moses’ satisfaction as he addresses the Gadites and Reubenites:
"If you will do this—if you will arm yourselves before the Lord for battle, and if all of you will go armed over the Jordan before the Lord until he has driven his enemies out before him - then when the land is subdued before the Lord, you may return and be free from your obligation to the Lord and to Israel. And this land will be your possession before the Lord. But if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the Lord; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out. Build cities for your women and children, and pens for your flocks, but do what you have promised."
In other words, woe be it for the Gadites and Reubenites if they go back on their promise.
So after the Gadites and Reubenites accept what Moses proclaimed, Moses informed Eleazar of the arrangement and then “gave to the Gadites, the Reubenites and the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan—the whole land with its cities and the territory around them”. In turn, the Gadites, the Reubenites and the half-tribe of Manasseh built their fortified cities to protect their women and children as the men went into battle.
Our scripture shows us the importance of not repeating the mistakes of the past. Had Moses not spoken up and sparked the change of plans, Israel was destined for further consequences from God and possibly even more desert wanderings. But that didn’t happen because the Gadites and Reubenites were willing to listen and then make the needed corrections to ensure they could move forward and end up on better terms with God than their relatives.
This same principle can be applied to our lives as well. We should step back and evaluate the lives of our parents and other relatives, paying particular attention to how they have failed to sin through the course of their lives. Then we should take whatever steps necessary to make sure we don’t repeat their errors all over again, carrying on a vicious sinful cycle that will most probably end up passed onto the next generation…and the next…and the next…unless it is broken. That’s where you and I can come in and create change.
As we do this, we can only succeed when we turn to the Lord and ask Him for the strength to overcome making those past mistakes again. One thing is certain…God wants us to live lives centered on righteousness…that is, He wants us to live right. Through Him and only through Him, can we find the success He desires. Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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