Explore the Bible: September 28

Rebellion and Judgment • Numbers 14:11-24

By Rick Henson

God led Israel to just south of the promised land of Canaan. After the twelve spies scouted out the land, Israel rejected God’s leadership. When ten of the spies focused on the size of the adversaries rather than the power of God, the Israelites begin to weep and cry out to Moses. As they had longed for the food that they had as slaves in Egypt, at this point, they began to long for the safety they had as slaves. 

The children of Israel were about to stone Moses, Aaron, Caleb, and Joshua when the Lord intervened. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel (Numbers 14:10 KJV).

Much of Numbers 14 is a conversation between God and Moses. God told Moses that He was going to destroy all of the Israelites. The lord was testing Moses. Then Moses told the Lord that by killing the Israelites, He would be going against His own word. Moses remembered the Lord’s own words that he had heard in Exodus 34 as well as the following: … for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments (Exodus 20:5b-6 KJV). 

Note that the Lord promised that sin would have its consequences even to the third and fourth generations. We often hear this and remember that sin has severe consequences. However, the second part of that promise in Exodus 20 reminds us that his mercy continues even to 1000 generations for those who love him and keep his commandments. 

God told Moses that everyone 20 years and older will not enter into the promised land. As we saw last week, that did not include Caleb or Joshua. As this was spoken, I wonder if Moses and Aaron noticed and wondered why the Lord did not include them in this exception. Neither would enter the promised land. This could’ve been foreshadowing for them. Yet as the consequences are only for a few generations at most, for those who love him, it continues for up to 1000 generations. We suffer for our sins now, but will be forever with Him in heaven.  

Exodus 34:7 teaches that the Lord God is, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, (KJV). God pardons and forgives, but often we as sinners suffer the consequences of our ungodly choices. 

Proverbs 6:16-19 tells the reader about six, no seven things that God hates. The Hebrew word translated hate here, means to feel intense passionate dislike: to loathe, detest, despise, or abhor; or to be repelled by something. Listening to the way the Lord talked about the wayward Israelites, I realize that is the way the Lord feels about our sins. Knowing how God feels about sin makes his mercy and pardon even greater. Oh Lord, may we come to hate sin as you do. 

Henson is pastor of Hopewell Church, Lake.