Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Numbers 26:64

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Another census (26:1-27:11)

About forty years previously Moses had taken a census of those available for military service (see 1:1-54). But all who at the time of that census were twenty years of age or older had since died (except Joshua and Caleb) and a new generation had grown up. A new census was now taken for the double purpose of determining the military strength for the attack on Canaan and making arrangements for the division of the land (26:1-51).
The area of land to be given to each tribe was to be in proportion to the population of the tribe, but the locality of each tribe within Canaan was to be decided by drawing lots (52-56). The Levites were numbered separately. Males were counted from one month old, not from twenty years old as in the case of the other tribes, because the Levites did not do military service and did not have a tribal area as the other tribes (57-62). The new census confirmed that all the adults whose names were listed in the first census were now dead (63-65).
Each tribal area was divided among the families of the tribe according to the male descendants. A case arose where five sisters were left with no family inheritance (i.e. portion of land), because their father had died and they had no brothers whose inheritance they could share (27:1-4). Moses brought the case to God and received the instruction that where a man had no son, his inheritance could pass to his daughters. If he had no children at all, it could pass to his nearest living relative (5-11).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

"And it came to pass after the plague, that Jehovah spake unto Moses and unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, saying, Take the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, by their fathers' houses, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel. And Moses and Eleazar the priest spake with them in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying, Take the sum of the people, from twenty years old and upward; as Jehovah commanded Moses and the children of Israel, that came forth out of the land of Egypt. "Reuben, the first-born of Israel; the sons of Reuben: of Hanoch, the family of the Hanochites; of Pallu, the family of the Palluites; of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites: of Carmi, the family of the Carmites. These are the families of the Reubenites; and they that were numbered of them were forty and three thousand and seven hundred and thirty. And the sons of Pallu: Eliab. And the sons of Eliah: Nemuel, and Dathan, and Abiram. These are that Dathan and Abiram, who were called of the congregation, who strove against Moses and against Aaron in the company of Korah, when they strove against Jehovah, and the earth opened its mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korah, when that company died; what time the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men, and they became a sign. Notwithstanding, the sons of Korah died not. "The sons of Simeon after their families: of Nemuel, the family of the Nemuelites; of Jamin, the family of the Jaminites; of Jachin, the family of the Jachinites; of Zerah, the family of the Zerahites; of Shaul, the family of the Shaulites. These are the families of the Simeonites, twenty and two thousand and two hundred. "The sons of Gad after their families: of Zephon, the family of the Zephonites; of Haggi, the family of the Haggites, of Shuni, the family of the Shunites; of Ozni, the family of the Oznites; of Eri, the family of the Erites; of Arod, the family of the Arodites; of Areli, the family of the Arelites. These are the families of the sons of Gad according to those that were numbered of them, forty thousand and five hundred. "The sons of Judah, Er and Onan; and Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. And the sons of Judah after their families were: of Shelab, the family of the Shelanites; of Perez, the family of the Perezites; of Zerah, the family of the Zerahites. And the sons of Perez were: of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites; of Hamul, the family of the Hamulites. These are the families of Judah according to those that were numbered of them, threescore and sixteen thousand and five hundred. "The sons of Issachar after their families: of Tola, the family of the Tolaites; of Puvah, the family of the Punites; of Jashub, the family of the Jashubites; of Shimron, the family of the Shimronites. These are the families of Issachar according to those that were numbered of them, threescore and four thousand and three hundred. "The sons of Zebulun after their families: of Sered, the family of the Seredites; of Elon, the family of the Elonites; of Jahleel, the family of the Jahleelites. These are the families of the Zebulunites according to those that were numbered of them, threescore thousand and five hundred. "The sons of Joseph after their families: Manasseh and Ephraim. The sons of Manasseh: of Machir, the family of the Machirites; and Machir begat Gilead: of Gilead, the family of the Gileadites. These are the sons of Gilead: of Iezer, the family of the Iezerites; of Helek, the family of the Helekites; and of Asriel, the family of the Asrielites; and of Shechem, the family of the Shechemites; and Shemida, the family of the Shemidaites; and of Hepher, the family of the Hepherites. And Zelophehad the son of Hepher had no sons, but daughters: and the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. These are the families of Manasseh; and they that were numbered of them were fifty and two thousand and seven hundred. "These are the sons of Ephraim after their families: of Shutheleah, the family of the Shuthelahites; of Becher, the family of the Becherites; of Tahan, the family of the Tahanites. And these are the sons of Shuthelah: of Eran, the family of the Eranites. These are the families of the sons of Ephraim according to those that were numbered of them, thirty and two thousand and five hundred. These are the sons of Joseph after their families. "The sons of Benjamin after their families: of Bela, the family of the Belaites; of Ashbel, the family of the Ashbelites; of Ahiram, the family of the Ahiramites; of Shephupham, the family of the Shephuphamites; of Hupham, the family of the Huphamites. And the sons of Bela were Ard and Naaman: of Ard, the family of the Ardites; of Naaman, the family of the Naamites. These are the sons of Benjamin after their families; and they that were numbered of them were forty and five thousand and six hundred. "These are the sons of Dan after their families: of Shuham, the family of the Shuhamites. These are the families of Dan after their families. All the families of the Shuhamites, according to those that were numbered of them, were threescore and four thousand and four hundred. "The sons of Asher after their families: of Imnah, the family of the Imnites; of Ishvi, the family of the Ishvites; of Beriah, the family of the Beriites. Of the sons of Beirah: of Heber, the family of the Heberites; of Malchiel, the family of the Malchielites. And the name of the daughter of Asher was Serah. These are the families of the sons of Asher according to those that were numbered of them, fifty and three thousand and four hundred. "The sons of Naphtali after their families: of Jahzeel, the family of the Jahzeelites; of Guni, the family of the Gunires; of Jezer, the family of the Jezerites; of Shillem, the family of the Shillemites. These are the sons of Naphtali according to their families; and they that were numbered of them were forty and five thousand and four hundred. "These are they that were numbered of the children of Israel, six hundred thousand and a thousand seven hundred and thirty. "And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, Unto these the land shall be divided for an inheritance according to the number of names. To the more thou shalt give the more inheritance, and to the fewer thou shalt give the less inheritance: to every one according to those that were numbered of him shall his inheritance be given. Not-withstanding, the land shall be divided by lot: according to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit. According to the lot shall their inheritance be divided between the more and the fewer. "And these are they that were numbered of the Levites after their families: of Gershon, the family of the Gershonites; of Kohath, the family of the Kohathites; of Merari, the family of the Merarites. These are the families of Levi: the family of the Libnites, the family of the Hebronites, the family of the Mahlites, the family of the Mushites, the family of the Korahites. And Kohath begat Amram. And the name of Amram's wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt: and she bare unto Amram Aaron and Moses, and Miriam their sister. And unto Aaron, were born Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. And Nadab and Abihu died, when they offered strange fire before Jehovah. And they that were numbered of them were twenty and three thousand, every male from a month old and upward: for they were not numbered among the children of Israel, because there was no inheritance given them among the children of Israel. "These are they that were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who numbered the children of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho. But among those there was not a man of them that were numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest, who numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai. For Jehovah had said to them, They shall surely die in the wilderness. And there was not left a man of them, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun."

Here is a graphic summary of this census and that of the first chapter, showing the changes during the intervening 38 years.

GRAPHIC SUMMARY

Evidently, these figures were all rounded off at the nearest one hundred, but the reason for the exception for Gad in the first census, and for Reuben in the second census is not known. In those cases, we have a stray fifty and a stray thirty.

It is foolish indeed to question the authenticity of these figures. As Noth said:

"The suggestion that these numbers are a pure invention or that they are reckoned on the basis of some numerical speculation is just as improbable in the case of Numbers 26 as it was in the case of Numbers 1."Martin Noth, Numbers, a Commentary, (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1968), p. 204.

More and more scholars are receiving such conclusions as this one; but some are still following the pattern of blatant denials so characteristic of the first half of this century. Marsh, for example, declared, "The numbers are artificial."John Marsh, Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 2, Numbers (New York: Abingdon Press, 1955), p. 265. His denial is typical in that he offered no proof and gave no intelligent reason whatever why his flat denial of God's Word should be taken seriously.

That some scholars do not believe these figures is of no consequence at all. Satan has always denied God's Word.

"From here to the end of Numbers we have preparations for entering the land of Canaan."T. Carson, New Layman's Bible Commentary, Numbers (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1979), p. 274. There were several reasons for this census.

(1)    It was a necessary prelude to a fair division of the Promised Land among the Israelites.

(2)    In the light of certain warfare upon their entering Canaan, it was most important for the leaders to know the relative strength of the tribes as well as the total strength of the nation.

(3)    It was needed to demonstrate the truth of God's promise that the Sinai rebels should not enter Canaan.

There are many similarities in the two censuses, but there are also many differences. Some of the tribes lost very heavily, and others gained, and, surprisingly, the grand totals are in a practical sense almost identical! One difference is the emphasis on families in the second census. Smick thought this came about because the census was taken with the tribes' "inheritance in view."Elmer Smick, Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Old Testament, Vol. 1 (Chicago: Moody Press, 1962), p. 146.

The final clause of Numbers 26:4 does not indicate that the people in this census came out of Egypt. It indicates that this census is to be taken in the manner of the first.

The shocking decline of the size of the tribe of Simeon is easily understood in the light of the Simeon rebellion under Zimri in Numbers 25. A major share of those slain by the plague were evidently Simeonites.

The mention of Serah "the daughter of Asher" in Numbers 26:46 is not easily explained. Of course, the critical scholars cut the Gordian knot by making the clause "dittographic."George Buchanan Gray, International Critical Commentary, Numbers (Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark, 1903), p. 394. However, in our view such allegations are not a legitimate way of explaining our ignorance! We simply do not know why the name of Asher's daughter is found here, and, although it looks out of place, it is possible that there were very good reasons for its presence here, if we only knew them. Certainly, there are excellent reasons why the daughters of Zelophehad (Numbers 26:33) are included in the family of Joseph, and, likewise, there might very well have been some excellent reason for the appearance of the name of Serah in this passage, a reason now lost, of course.

"Notwithstanding, the sons of Korah died not" (Numbers 26:11). As should have been expected, this declaration is greeted with screams of "contradiction." See Plaut and others.w. Gunther Plaut, Torah, a Modern Commentary, Vol. 4 (Philadelphia: The Union of American Hebrew Congregations, 1979), p. 261. In such instances, it is usually most helpful to read the comments of great scholars who lived prior to the current times of unbelief, and it is no surprise to find the perfect answer to such charges as follows:

"It is difficult to reconcile this place with Numbers 16:27; Numbers 16:31-33, where it seems to be intimated that not only the men, but the wives, and the sons, and the little ones of Korah, Dathan and Abiram, were swallowed up in the earthquake. See especially Numbers 26:27, collated with Num. 26:31-22, but the text here expressly says, "The children of Korah died not"; and on a close inspection of Numbers 16:27, we find that the sons and little ones of Dathan and Abiram alone are mentioned: "So they went up from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side: And Dathan and Abiram came out - and their wives and their sons, and their little ones."
Here is no mention of the children of Korah; they therefore escaped."Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Whole Bible, Vol. 1 (London: T. Mason and G. Lane, 1837), p. 702.

Notice once more the phenomenon that continually appears in the Bible. Mistaken and false interpretations usually result, not from ignorance of Greek or Hebrew, but from a simple failure to respect the grammar. If the critics had only paused to consider that the antecedent of the pronoun "their" in Numbers 16:27 was Dathan and Abiram and did NOT include Korah (necessarily), they would not have been betrayed into the error of alleging a contradiction in the Bible.

In Numbers 26:52-56, we have instructions for dividing the land of Canaan among the Israelites. It was to be done by "lot," that is, by casting lots; and yet it was also to be carried out in a manner proportionately to the numerical size of the various tribes, the larger ones getting more, and the smaller ones getting less. Noth declared that these divine commands were "incompatible,"Martin Noth, op. cit., p. 208. and contradictory, but the Israelites found no difficulty in carrying out God's instructions. They evidently cast lots for the general sectors of the Promised land in which the tribes would be settled, and then, the actual amount of land that went to each was apportioned on the basis of the numbers of the people.J. A. Thompson, New Bible Commentary, Revised, Numbers (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1970), p. 193.

The real wonder of the dividing of the land lies not in how it was done, but in the fact that God divided it to Israel BEFORE they ever entered it! What God promises is already AS GOOD AS DONE!

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

It appears from Deuteronomy 2:14-15 that the generation numbered at the former census had perished before the host crossed the brook Zered.

Smith's Bible Commentary

Chapter 26

Now in chapter twenty-six we again have the tribes numbered off. Now remember this is at the end of the forty years of wandering. At the beginning of the forty years of wandering they numbered the tribes and now the end of the forty years of wandering they number the tribes again. And it is interesting to compare the number of people at the beginning and at the end. And actually there's a total loss of people of about two thousand, approximately two thousand less at the end of the forty years wandering. But some of the tribes, they were really wiped out, quite really decimated; others actually grew in number through the wilderness wanderings.

Towards the end of the chapter in verse fifty-nine we get a little history of Moses' family. His father's name was Amrams; his mother's was Jochebed. She had three children; Moses, Miriam and Aaron. And it gives you a little history of Aaron's family, the two sons again that died; Nadab and Abihu who offered the strange fire before the Lord. And now that generation has passed away, there's no one left accept for Moses, of course, is still alive and Joshua and Caleb. But all of those who came out of Egypt who were twenty years old or older have now all died with the exception of these three men. Moses is soon to die before they go into the land.

"

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

II. PROSPECTS OF THE YOUNGER GENERATION IN THE LAND CHS. 26-36

The focus of Numbers now changes from the older unbelieving generation of Israelites doomed to die in the wilderness to the younger generation that would enter the Promised Land.

"The parallels and contrasts between this narrative and the book of Ruth suggest that both texts are dealing with similar ideas. In fact, the picture of Ruth provides an excellent counterexample to that of the men of Israel in this episode. Ruth the Moabitess married an Israelite man and forsook her nation’s gods to follow the Lord. For this she was given an inheritance in Israel. In this respect she is also like the daughters of Zelophehad in the next chapters of Numbers who also gained an inheritance among the men of Israel (Numbers 27:1-11)." [Note: Sailhamer, The Pentateuch . . ., p. 410.]

A. Preparations for entering the Promised Land from the east chs. 26-32

The first section of this second part of the book records God’s gracious preparation of the younger generation for their entrance into their inheritance.

1. The second census ch. 26

Before going into battle against the Midianites as God commanded (Numbers 25:18), the Lord directed Moses to take another census of the Israelites. Evidently the 24,000 who died in the recent plague (Numbers 25:9) were the last of the generation who had refused to enter the land 38 years earlier. Only Caleb, Joshua, and Moses remained from the older generation (Numbers 26:64-65). Leon Wood calculated that if 1,200,000 of the older generation died in 38 years, there would have been an average of 85 funerals per day in the wilderness. [Note: Leon Wood, Distressing Days of the Judges, p. 119.] Of course, on some occasions many more died at once due to divine judgments such as the one described in Numbers 25:9.

Moses again counted the men 20 years of age and older in all the tribes except Levi as in the census taken just before Israel departed from Sinai (chs. 1-4). The primary purpose of this census was military, namely, to organize the nation for its battles with the Canaanites as well as with the Midianites. However a second important purpose was to discover the size of each tribe so Moses could allocate territory in the Promised Land proportionately (Numbers 26:53-54). This list also had historical value for later generations enabling them to trace their genealogies. Notice that this is a list of families or clans, not individuals. The preservation of the nation is a monument to God’s faithfulness to His promises concerning Israel.

". . . His covenanted promises to the patriarchs might be delayed by human sin, but they could not be ultimately frustrated." [Note: Philip, p. 275.]

A table of the size of the 12 tribes when Moses took the two censuses follows.

Zimri was a Simeonite (Numbers 25:14). Perhaps the large number of Simeonites who died resulted from his kinsmen joining him in his apostasy in chapter 25.

Moses also counted the Levite males from one month old and older (Numbers 26:57-62).

Probably there were about 13,000 males 20 years of age or older in Levi. This would have made this tribe the smallest by far.

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

The chapter closes with a testimony to the faithfulness of God. All but Caleb and Joshua had died in the wilderness, as He had promised. God had preserved the nation and would bring her into the land as He had guaranteed the patriarchs. Nevertheless He had judged the unbelieving generation.

This chapter looks backward over the past 38 years and forward to entrance into Canaan.

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

But among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered..... About thirty eight years before this time: this, as Aben Ezra observes, respects the numbering of the Israelites, not of the Levites; for there were some of the tribe of Levi numbered then who were living, as Eleazar, and very probably Ithamar, and perhaps some few more, though it may be Eleazar, being now a numberer, was not reckoned among the numbered:

when they numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai; see Numbers 1:1 for as there were none of the tribe of Levi among the spies, there might be but few of them among the murmurers.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      63 These are they that were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who numbered the children of Israel in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho.   64 But among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered, when they numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai.   65 For the LORD had said of them, They shall surely die in the wilderness. And there was not left a man of them, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.

      That which is observable in this conclusion of the account is the execution of the sentence passed upon the murmurers (Numbers 14:29; Numbers 14:29), that not one of those who were numbered from twenty years old and upwards (and that the Levites were not, but either from a month old or from thirty years old to fifty) should enter Canaan, except Caleb and Joshua. In the muster now made particular directions, no doubt, were given to those of each tribe that were employed in taking the account, to compare these rolls with the former, and to observe whether there were any now left of those that were numbered at Mount Sinai, and it appeared that there was not one man numbered now that was numbered then except Caleb and Joshua, Numbers 26:64; Numbers 26:65. Herein appeared, 1. The righteousness of God, and his faithfulness to his threatenings, when once the decree has gone forth. He swore in his wrath, and what he had sworn he performed. Better all those carcasses, had they been ten times as many, should fall to the ground, than the word of God. Though the rising generation was mixed with the, and many of the guilty and condemned criminals long survived the sentence, even to the last year of the forty, yet they were cut off by some means or other before this muster was made. Those whom God has condemned cannot escape either by losing themselves in a crowd or by the delay of execution. 2. The goodness of God to this people, notwithstanding their provocations. Though that murmuring race was cut off, yet God raised up another generation, which was as numerous as they, that, though they perished, yet the name of Israel might not be cut off, lest the inheritance of the promise should be lost for want of heirs. And, though the number fell a little short what it was at Mount Sinai, yet those now numbered had this advantage, that they were all middle-aged men, between twenty and sixty, in the prime of their time for service; and during the thirty-eight years of their wandering and wasting in the wilderness they had an opportunity of acquainting themselves with the laws and ordinances of God, having no business, civil or military, to divert them from those sacred studies, and having Moses and Aaron to instruct them, and God's good Spirit, Nehemiah 9:20. 3. The truth of God, in performing his promise made to Caleb and Joshua. They were to be preserved from falling in this common ruin, and they were so. The arrows of death, though they fly in the dark, do not fly at random, even when they fly thickest, but are directed to the mark intended, and no other. All that are written among the living shall have their lives given them for a prey, in the most dangerous times. Thousands may fall on their right hand, and ten thousands on their left, but they shall escape.

Spurgeon's Verse Expositions of the Bible

The Census of Israel

April 5th, 1891 by C. H. SPURGEON (1834-1892)

"These are they that were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who numbered the children of Israel in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho. But among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered, when they numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai. For the Lord had said of them, They shall surely die in the wilderness. And there was not left a man of them, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun." Numbers 26:63-65 .

We have come to another census, an important halting-place in the march of a nation's history. This carries our thoughts back to the ancient Bible story connected with the chosen people of God. A census was taken of the tribes of Israel in the wilderness two years after they had left Egypt. It only numbered males who were over twenty: the men capable of active service in war. By thus taking a census of his people, the Lord showed that he valued each one of them. They were registered by their families and by their names; thus were they personally enrolled in the family book of the living God, and he thus, in effect, said to each one of them, "I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine." By the registration of each man by name, he felt that he was not lost in the crowd; but was by person and pedigree owned as one of those to whom the Lord had promised the land which flowed with milk and honey. There was good reason for taking the number of the people just as the nation was forming, so that in the wilderness they might be arranged, and marshalled, and disciplined for the conflict which lay before them. When commanded of God, because he saw that great ends would be served thereby, and when associated with redemption, a census was by no means a wrong or a dangerous national arrangement. David ordered the people to be numbered, and because his motive and his method were wrong, it brought a pestilence on the land; but, in itself, the taking of a census was a wise and useful thing. Thirty-eight years had passed away since the first numbering at Sinai, and the people had come to the borders of the Promised Land; for they were in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho. The time had come for another census. The wisdom which commanded the counting of Israel at the beginning of the wilderness journey, also determined to count them at the end of it. This would show that he did not value them less than in former years; it would afford proof that his word of judgment had been fulfilled to them; and, moreover, it would marshal them for the grand enterprise of conquering the land of Canaan. They were to go forth in their armies to fight giant races, and armies versed in war; they were to dislodge nations from their ancient strongholds, and with the sword, to destroy guilty aboriginal races which God had condemned to destruction; and for this their military strength needed numbering and ordering. Here was good reason for the census, which now, for the second or third time, was carefully carried out. Our text is from the Book of Numbers, and the book well answers to its title; for it continually deals with numbers and numberings. The numbering on this occasion was not of the women and children or the infirm; for the order ran thus, "Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, throughout their fathers house, all that are able to go to war in Israel." If the numbers of our churches were taken in this fashion, would they not sadly shrink? We have many sick among us that need to be carried about, and nursed, and doctored. Half the strength of the church goes in ambulance service towards the weak and wounded. Another diminution of power is occasioned by the vast numbers of undeveloped believers, to whom the apostle would have said, "When for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God: and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat." They should have become men, but they remain babes in grace. They are sadly slow in reaching the fullness of the stature of men in Christ Jesus. How many are quite unable to bear arms against the foe; for they need to be themselves guarded from the enemy! To revise the church rolls so as to leave none but vigorous soldiers on the muster-roll would make us break our hearts over our statistics. May the Lord send us, for this evil, health and cure! When the second census was taken, it was found that the people were nearly of the same number as at the first. Had it not been for the punishment so justly inflicted upon them, they must have largely increased; but now they had somewhat diminished. They were a rapidly increasing people when they were in Egypt: the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied. The family of Jacob increased at a marvellous rate from the time of the going down into Egypt to the time of quitting that land. This was changed during the forty years of the wilderness; for the whole of the grown men who came out of bondage were judged unfit to enter into the promised land because of unbelief; and these dying away rapidly, the people scarcely maintained their number. It is of God to multiply a nation, or a church. We may not expect any advance in our numbers if we grieve the Spirit of God, and if by our unbelief we drive him to declare that we shall not prosper. Israel's growth ceased for forty years; may it never be so with us as a church! We would say with Joab, "Now the Lord thy God add unto the people, how many soever they be, an hundredfold." May the righteous seed multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it, till their number shall be as countless as the sands of the shore, or as the stars of the sky! Concerning the second census of Israel, I would speak with you, since this is the morning of the day on which our British census is to be taken. May we gather lessons of wisdom from the theme! I. First, observe with interest, and with a design to be profited THE NOTABLE CHANGE WROUGHT AMONG THE PEOPLE BY DEATH. But among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered, when they numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai." They answered to their names, six hundred thousand and more of them, and there they stood in their ranks, full of vigorous life. About forty years had passed away, and if these same names had been read out not a man save Caleb and Joshua could have answered to the roll-call. The entire mass of the nation had been changed. The old ones were all gone; all that stood in their places by the Jordan were men who were under age at the first census, or who were not even born at that time. "Not a man of them" remained, says the text; and it repeats the statement: "There was not left a man of them." Such changes strike us as most memorable. They must not be passed over without remark. In the course of forty years, my brethren, what changes take place in every community, in every church, in every family! A friend showed me, last Thursday, a photograph of myself, in the midst of my first deacons. It was taken scarcely thirty-eight years ago, and yet of the entire group I only survive. Those associates of the youthful preacher have all gone to their reward. We have likenesses of other groups of church officers of a later date, in which I am placed in the center, and I am there still; but nearly all of those who once surrounded me have gone home. Those who were our leaders in our days of struggle, and who saw the hand of God with us in those first years, are growing few in number. We have not yet completed the forty years; but when we have done so, the words of our text will be almost literally applicable to our case as a church. The going and the coming, the adding and the taking away, have changed the texture of this fabric; and no thread will soon be left. Surely the Lord would have us notice this, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom. A costly operation, involving so many sorrows, is not to be passed over without thought. Beloved, we, too, are passing away. The pastor and his present helpers must themselves be summoned home in due course. The march of the generations is not a procession passing before our eyes, while we sit, like spectators, at the window; but we are in the procession ourselves, and we, too, are passing down the streets of time, and shall disappear in our turn. We, too, shall sleep with our fathers, unless the Lord shall come speedily. I hear a clarion-blast sounding out from the graves which lie behind us: "Be ye also ready." From the last closed sepulcher there comes the prophetic warning, "Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live." This change was universal throughout the whole camp. There was a change even in the enumerators. The Sinai census had been taken by Moses and Aaron; and now Moses just remains long enough to take his leading place; but his brother Aaron is not there; the high priest of God has gone up to mount Hor, has been stripped of his garments, has been buried and mourned by all Israel, and now Eleazar his son stands before the Lord in his father's stead. It was so among the other priests and Levites and elders of the people. There was a change everywhere: among the poorest dwellers in that canvas city and among the princes who dwelt beneath the standards of the tribes, all had changed. There was not left a man of them." Thus is it among ourselves: no offices can be permanently held by the same men: "they are not suffered to continue by reason of death." No position, however lofty or lowly, can retain its old possessor. It is not only the cedars that fall, but the fir trees feel the axe. "There is no discharge in that war." That same scythe which cuts down the towering flower among the grass, also sweeps down whole regiments of green blades. See how they lie together in long rows, to wither in a common decay! Throughout the whole body this change is gradually taking place. No man can climb the rock of immortality, and sit there amid the seething sea, and say to death, "Thy waves cannot reach me here!" Though vigorous in health, though sound in constitution, though guarded by all the armor of the science of health, you too must fall by the arrows of the insatiable archer. "It is appointed unto men once to die." The change is inevitable. Man that is born of woman must be of few days. If it had not been for the great sin of Israel at Kadesh, many of the people might have lived to the second census, and beyond it; but even then if by reason of strength their lives had been lengthened, yet would they soon have died out in the ordinary course of nature. If forty years had not been appointed as the end of that generation, yet without that appointment they would all have passed away in another twenty or thirty years. As Moses said in his wilderness psalm, "The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away." We must soon quit our tents for the last battle. When the conscript number shall be drawn we may escape this year, and next; but the lot will fall upon us in due time. There is no leaping from the net of mortality wherein, like a shoal of fish, we are all enclosed. Unless our Lord shall soon appear we shall each one find a grave; for, as the wise man says, All are of the dust, and all turn to dust again." "We must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again." Therefore we wisely bow before the stern decree, and yield ourselves to death. But let us not forget that all this change was still under the divine control. Though the people must pass away, yet still the Lord's hand would be in each death and its surroundings. If not a sparrow falleth to the ground without our Father's knowledge, we may rest assured that no man dieth without the will of God; no man is carried to his long home unless the Lord hath said, "Return, ye children of men."

What can preserve my life, or what destroy? An angel's arm can't snatch me from the grave Legions of angels can't confine me there."

To create and to destroy are sole prerogatives of the King of kings. Till he speaks the word, we live not; or living, we die not. Walking in the midst of ten thousand stricken with the plague, we are safe till God appoints our removal. Concerning those that are asleep, we know that they have not died without the will of our Father: concerning our time also, we know that we shall not be the toys of chance, or the victims of fate. A wise and loving God fixes the date and place of our decease; for "precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." Stern though the work may be, his great and tender heart rules the ravages of death. Let us therefore be comforted concerning the great changes which death is working. Here is no cause for tears, as though we were left in a monster's power, and bereft of a Father's care. The Lord is still ruling, and nothing happens save as he appoints. Moreover, the change was beneficial. It was well that the first generation should die in the wilderness. The people who had been accustomed to servitude in Egypt had acquired the vices of slaves; and when they came out of the house of bondage they were fearful, fickle, the creatures of appetite, and the victims of panic, selfishness, and discontent. They had all the vices of subject races, and were alike destitute of manliness and self-control. They were soon cowed by fear and baffled by difficulty. They were easily persuaded, and as easily dissuaded. They were a people of whom nothing could be made. Even the divine tuition in which Moses and Aaron were engaged, and in which miracles, and types, and laws were employed, could not teach them anything so that they really knew it. To make a nation which could preserve the worship of the one God in the world, the generation which came out of Egypt must die out. The taint of slavery and idolatry must be lessened if it could not be quite removed. It was desirable that there should be a people trained in a better school, with a nobler spirit, fit to take possession of the promised land. The change was working rightly: the divine purpose was being fulfilled. May be, we do not think thus of the changes which are taking place in the communities to which we belong. We scarcely think that better men are coming on; we even fear that the coming race is weaker than the present: but then, we are not fair judges; for we are prejudiced in favor of our own generation. I do not doubt that God meaneth well to his own church, and that the accomplishment of his eternal purposes requires that men should come and go, and that thus the face of society should be changed. It is well that the age of man is not so protracted as in the days of Methuselah. A teacher influential for error dies and is forgotten; a sinner pestilential for vice passes away, and the air grows pure. Imagine a gambler with five hundred years of craft to guide him, or a libertine reeking with six hundred years of debauchery! Surely the present narrowed limits of human life are all too wide for the depraved! We need not wish for giants of iniquity such as centuries of life would produce. The incoming of new blood into the social frame is good in a thousand ways: it is well that we should make room for others who may serve our Master better. God grant they may! Our prayer is, "Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children." We are content to take the work if our sons may behold the glory: we are glad to move off that they may rise on stepping stones of our ended lives to nobler things. One other remark I cannot help making, and that is, that these changes are most instructive. If we are now serving God, let us do so with intense earnestness, since only for a little while shall we have the opportunity to do so among men. "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest." Live while you live. At the same time, lay plans for influencing the rising generation. Lay yourself out to work while it is called to-day. If anything should be done, it were well that it were done quickly. If we wish truth to conquer, and the gospel to prevail, let us fight the Lord's battles now; and if we would see truth prevail after we are gone, let us seek out faithful young men, who will teach others also, that the testimony for the Lord God of Israel die not out of the land. We must soon quit the field. Let each man set his house in order, for he must soon leave it to be gazed upon by strangers' eyes. Let us see that our life-work is rounded off and well-finished, so that in the survey of it by our successors they may say of us, "He being dead yet speaketh." As we must soon be gone from among the living, let us bless them while we may. Arise, ye saints, and bestir yourselves; for the day is far spent, and the shadows of evening are falling. I pray that we may learn well this first lesson of our text. O Spirit of life, teach us life even by the doings of death! II. Secondly, we have here before us THE PERPETUITY OF THE PEOPLE OF GOD. There was a change in the constituent elements of the Israelitish nation, but the nation was still there. Not one man was there who was counted thirty-eight years before, save Caleb and Joshua, and yet the nation was the same. Do you ask for Israel? There it is. Balaam can see the people from the top of the hill, and they are the same people whom Pharaoh pursued to the Red Sea. The nation is living, though a nation has died. It is the same chosen seed of Abraham with whom Jehovah is in covenant. God has a church in the world, and he will have a church in the world till time shall be no more. The gates of hell and the jaws of death shall not prevail against the church, though each one of its members must depart out of this world in his turn. Mark well, that " the church in the wilderness" lives on. There are the same twelve tribes, the same standards heading the tribes, the same tabernacle in the midst of the host, and the same priesthood celebrating sacred service with solemn pomp. Everything has changed and yet nothing has altered. God has built his holy habitation upon foundations which can never be removed. Although the men who bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord wear other names, yet they fulfill the same office. The music of the sanctuary rises and falls, but the strain goes on. The hallelujah never ceases, nor is there a pause in the perpetual chorus, "His mercy endureth for ever." The gaps were filled up by appointed successors. As one warrior died another man stepped into his place, even as one wave dying on the shore is pursued by another. The men were not all swept away at once, but by perceptible degrees. Now and then there came an awful and sudden destruction, as when Korah, Dathan, and Abiram went down alive into the pit; but, as a rule, the people dropped off gradually, as ripe fruit falls from the trees, and they were succeeded by others as the fading leaves of autumn have the buds of spring just beneath them. In the church of God one dieth in the order of nature, but another is born into the kingdom by the power of grace. We miss some useful Christian woman, and we lament her; but before many days another sister is prepared of the Lord to serve in her stead. Baptism for the dead never ceases among us. An honored brother falls asleep, and we carry him to the grave; and possibly we fear no other can do his work, and fill the vacancy he leaves. Perhaps no one can do the same work; but yet, in some other way or form, the work is done; and still the vines are trimmed, the sheep are fed, and the lambs are cherished. No one dead man lies in the way to stop the march of the army, as did the corpse of Amasa, which lay gory in the road in David's day. The chosen host still marches on. Even as the stars in their courses, we still move on. God buries his workmen, but his work lives. In Israel's case the gaps were filled by their own sons. As these men passed away their children took their places. I commend to you, my brethren, this fact as your encouragement in prayer for your children. Oh, that the Lord would pour his spirit upon our seed, and his blessing upon our offspring! Oh, that every saint here may be succeeded by his own descendants! This is the Lord's frequent way of keeping alive the gracious succession. Abraham is gone, but Isaac still kindles the altar-fire. In a blind old age Isaac is gathered to his fathers, but Jacob worships "the fear of his father Isaac." Jacob gathers up his feet in the bed, but Judah and Joseph, and the rest of them, continue as a salt in the earth. Oh, that it may be so in all our families! May we never lack a man to stand before the Lord God of Israel to testify for him! Among all the honors that God can put upon our households I think this is the greatest, that we should have in our families a succession of saints. It is no small privilege to look back and to remember our ancestors who feared the Lord: may we also look forward with hope that, if this dispensation lasts, there may still be some of our name, bearing our blood in their veins, who shall be called by sovereign grace into the service we have loved so well. Search beyond the congregation for new converts, but do not forget to look within your own doors for the largest accessions to the church. Hope that your sons and daughters after the flesh may be born into the one family in heaven and earth," which bears the name of Jesus. Pray that your children may be God's children, and may your prayer come up with acceptance into the ears of the Lord our God, whose mercy is on children's children of them that fear him, and keep his covenant! All the offices of "the church in the wilderness" were filled with fitting men. Behold Aaron, in his robes of glory and beauty! What a man is he to be the High Priest! With what grace and dignity he presides! He dies: will not the priesthood fail? No, my brethren. Yonder is Eleazar, who occupies his father's place most worthily. Moses also passes away. There is none like Moses. He is king in Jeshurun, without peer or rival. The Jews have a tradition that when he was called to go up to the top of Nebo to die, the people followed him up the hill, the women beating on their breasts, and uttering bitter wailings, while the strong men bowed themselves with grief, and cried, "The father of the nation is to be taken away! Alas, what shall we do?" He was bidden to leave the people on the mountain side, and he went up alone to the place where Jehovah kissed away his soul, and so he passed into his rest. Truly it was a great loss, but the Lord found a man to follow Moses. Joshua was not equal to Moses in many things; and yet for the work he had to do he was a much more fit man than Moses. The times were red with war, and Joshua was more able than Moses to fight the Canaanites and conquer the land. Joshua was the man for the sword, as Moses had been the man of the book. And God will fill every office in his church, not as you and I might wish, but as his infinite wisdom determines. Wherefore let us be of good courage, and fear no lack. At this second numbering, the people stood ready for greater work than they had ever done before. The first numbering found them fit for the wilderness: the second numbering found them ready for the capture of the goodly land and Lebanon. God had been preparing them, by forty years of marching, for their new enterprise, and for development into a nation. May it please the Lord to make his church ready for the coming of her Lord, and for the salvation of nations! If brighter days are dawning, the church will be prepared as a bride for her husband; and if tribulation is to come to try all the earth, she shall be strengthened as a martyr for the burning. The Lord doth keep her: lest any hurt her he will keep her night and day. It was Israel's joy that God's love was not withdrawn from the nation. The Lord still owned the tribes as his people. His glory was still above the mercy-seat, and his fiery, cloudy pillar still guided their marchings or fixed their haltings. Still the manna dropped from heaven, and still they drank of the water from the smitten rock. Thus the Lord has a church still, and it is ever the same church, loved of her lord, indwelt by his Spirit, and dedicated to his praise. Let us take courage: the church is not destroyed. Many changes take place, and many sorrows are involved therein, but the church of God is as ever-living as her immortal Head, who has declared, "Because I live, ye shall live also." Still, her stars are the hope of the world's night, and her angels are the heralds of the eternal morning. She follows the bleeding lamb, who is the doctrine of her teaching, the model of her acting, the glory of her hope. III. Thirdly, let me bring before your minds THE UNCHANGEABLENESS OF THE WORD OF GOD. This we perceive in the last verse. "For the Lord had said of them, They shall surely die in the wilderness. And there was not left a man of them, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun." Note how unchangeable are the threatenings of the Lord. Among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered. For the Lord had said of them, They shall surely die in the wilderness." Take note of this, you that think God's word can fail: ye know not what ye dream. His words of righteous wrath are not lost: they kill as with a two-edged sword. The verse says, There was not left a man of them." Whom the Lord had condemned to die, nothing could keep alive. Therefore, do not imagine, O you that obey not the Lord, that you shall go unpunished! The unbelievers were many, yet not one escaped. "Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished." The rebels were a terribly large majority, but the crowds in the broad way make it none the safer. God has no respect for multitudes; "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God." Here they outnumbered the faithful more than ten thousand times; and yet the justice of God did not spare one of them. "There was not left a man of them." How can any of you hope to escape? "Thine hand shall find out all thine enemies." The proudest sinner shall be laid low: the thunders of Jehovah shall smite down each individual transgressor, and no one shall go away free in the day of God's wrath. It was a long time before all the sinners died; but the long-suffering of God had its limit, and in the end every rebel died in the wilderness. They lived on, some of them, for all the forty years; but they could not pass the bound. Perhaps they said, "Ah! this ban from God will never take effect on us." Yet, ere the years were up, the survivors of the doomed race had to share the common fate. Not a man of those whom Moses and Aaron numbered at Sinai could pass the line of fire which closed in the forty years. God waits, waits in infinite mercy; but the punishment of the wicked is none the less sure. "Their foot shall slide in due time." The Lord hath bent his bow, and made it ready", and when their hour is come, they shall find that he is not slack concerning his word. Do not, I pray you, doubt the terrible certainty of divine threatenings because they are long in taking effect. Say not, "Where is the promise of his coming?" He will come; and when he comes it shall be "in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." Some of the unbelieving generation were, no doubt, full of vigor, and they said, "We are as strong as old Caleb, and quite as likely as he to cross the Jordan. Our eyes are as clear as those of Moses, and we shall outlive the forty years appointed us." But death chilled the coals of juniper, and quenched their vehement flame. The stalwart man of war laid down his weapons, vanquished by the unconquerable foe of men. "There was not left a man of them." How like a knell those words sound in my ears! The mighty in the day of battle were no longer mighty when their hour had come. "They could not enter in because of unbelief"; but "their carcases fell in the wilderness." All their days were passed away in the wrath of God. Beware, ye that forget God, lest he tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver. It is vain for you to indulge a hope, "larger" or smaller, if you die in your sin. The justice of the Most High is not to be escaped. In that last great day, when the throne shall be set, and every man shall give an account for the things done in his body, whether they be good or whether they be evil, the strict Judge will by no means clear the guilty, but they shall be driven away in his wrath to the place where their worm dieth not, and their fire is not quenched. Oh that you would flee to Christ for refuge! Look to his cross, I pray you, that you may be saved! As the Lord fulfilled his threatenings, so did he cause his promises to come to pass. Caleb lived on, and so did Joshua. They were often in danger. Did not the rebels take up stones to stone them? They were of often near to death: Joshua was commander-in-chief of the army, and Caleb was a man of war from his youth up. They endured the common risks of soldiers; but nothing could kill them, for God had promised that they should enter the land. They believed God and honored him by their conduct, and therefore he kept them until the hour came to go in unto the land to possess it. There were only two of them; but God did not therefore overlook them. He keeps covenant with individuals as well as with nations. They were not men who kept themselves out of harm's way, neither were they timorous, and therefore afraid to advance their opinions. No doubt they came in for a special share of envy and malice, but their reward with God was sure. If you believe in Jesus, though you should be the only one of your family, yet you shall be saved. Though you know none of your kith and kin that fear the Lord, yet the God of Israel will not forget the lone one who is separated from his brethren. Though the faithful should become so few that all the saints together should only make a handful, yet it is written, "Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." God's word standeth. "The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: but the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you." Jehovah's threatenings and promises are of equal force. "Hath he said, and shall he not do it?" There shall be no change even to a jot or tittle in this wondrous book. God forbid that we should begin to doubt it; for if we once begin, where shall we end? With this striking confirmation before us, we believe that the word of the Lord must stand. Let us be as the man whom the Lord blesses, because, saith he, "he trembleth at my word." IV. Our last point is this: learn from my text THE ABIDING NECESSITY OF FAITH. Those people came out of Egypt with Moses, and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea when they came forth into the wilderness. One would have hoped that they all would march to Canaan, but it was not so. The first census is taken, their names are on the roll; but, sad to say, at the next numbering all those names have vanished. What a difference between the church-roll at Sinai and the book of life by Jordan! If you profess to be the people of God, we count you among his children: you are written among the living in Zion; but what an awful thing it would be if your name should not be written in the Lamb's Book of Life at the last! What if you should lie on the threshing-floor in the great heap before the winnowing, but should be gone with the chaff as soon as the Lord has come, "whose fan is in his hand"! Oh, that none of us may provoke the Lord to swear in his wrath that we shall not enter into his rest! Learn, first, that no man is, was, or ever shall be saved without faith. "He that believeth not shall be damned" is our Lord's solemn declaration. It is written, "He that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." This is as true to-day as when it was first spoken. Learn, next, that no privilege can supply the lack of faith. We read that they heard, as you do; but some, when they had heard, did provoke." Their provocation lay mainly in their unbelief. No hearing, nay, not hearing the apostles themselves, could save you without faith. "The word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." Hearing may minister to condemnation if the truth is not believed. These people went a certain way with Moses towards the Lord's promised rest. They did come out of Egypt, they were numbered with Jehovah's people, in the numbering at Sinai, they were separated from all the world in the quietude of the wilderness; but we read there was in them "an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God." In heart they went back into Egypt. It is not enough to begin well: "he that endureth to the end shall be saved," and no other. They had ceremonies in abundance, but they were not saved by them. They had the morning and the evening lambs; they were circumcised; they ate the Passover; they kept the Day of Atonement; but all these things together did not save them from dying in the desert, shut out of Canaan by unbelief. "They could not enter in because of unbelief." Nothing can make up for the absence of faith. They had nothing to do all the day long in the wilderness, but to learn the lessons of God. They had time for thought, and they had the best of teachers to instruct them, and the best of school-books in the ceremonial law, and yet their knowledge did not preserve them from leaving their carcases in the desert. They had plenty of time for meditation and contemplation; they had no care about temporals, for their bread was given them, and their waters were sure; and yet because of want of faith they did not learn that elementary truth which would have ministered to them an entrance into rest. But none perished who had faith; no, not one. All those who believed God, and held fast to him, were made inheritors of the land. Caleb and Joshua these two saw the land, and took their places in it. If thou believest, whatever thy name may be, thou shalt be saved; for "he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." It is written, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." Caleb and Joshua by faith entered into the land promised to the fathers, and thou, my hearer, canst only enter in by faith. Have faith in God, and thou hast all things; but without faith it is impossible to please God. Mark this: while it was faith alone which saved them, faith gave these men notable characters. We read of "my servant Caleb." He that believes God becomes a servant of God, and counts it all joy to obey his Lord. Faith is the mother of obedience. The Lord said that Caleb "had another spirit with him": faith puts quite another spirit into a man: it is not a murmuring or a mutinous spirit; it is not an ungrateful or distrustful Spirit; neither is it a haughty, wilful, rebellious spirit; but it is a spirit of love, of hope, of confidence in God. The faithful man is of another spirit from that of the world; for the Holy Spirit abides in him. Such a man chooses the way of God, so that the Lord says, "He hath followed me fully." This was well: it is wise not to run before God, nor to run away from God, but to follow him step by step. It is wise not to follow man but wholly to follow the Lord. It is commendable to follow him fully with undivided, unwavering, unquestioning, untiring step. The Lord will see that his servant Caleb enters into his rest: there is rest for good servants. As Caleb followed the Lord fully, it was meet that he should enter in where his Lord abides. Men of faith are not idle men, but servants: they are not wicked men, but they follow the Lord; they are not halfhearted men, they follow him fully. It is not their holiness that saves them; but their faith saves them: nevertheless, where there is no holiness, there is no fruit of faith, and no evidence of salvation. As for Joshua, he was like to Caleb. He was a brave and truthful man, a true servant of God; and though we have his life given somewhat at length, yet we discover no flaw in his character. It is almost a rare thing in the Word of God to find a life written at any length without a record of infirmity and sin; for the biographies of Scripture are truthful, and they mention men's faults as well as their virtues. As there is no recorded fault in Joshua's career, we gather that he was of a noble character. "The Lord said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him." So that the faith which took these two men into Canaan was in them the creator of a noble character. Now, what say you, beloved friends? Do you believe God? Do you believe his Word? Or are you of a captious and dubious spirit? Do you believe like children? Is God your Father, and therefore is his Word your Father's Word, which you cannot think of questioning? Will you follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth, against giants or Canaanites? Will you believe God, whatever may give him the lie? If so, you shall dwell in the land that floweth with milk and honey, and you shall have your portion when the Lord appeareth. But if you do not truly believe, whatever profession you may make, your carcases must fall in the wilderness. Woe is me that I have to deliver such a prophecy! Greater woe to you if it should be fulfilled in you. Believe the Lord, and you shall prosper. This day as you are preparing for the census of the nation, bethink you of the time when God shall make up his last account of natives in his holy city. Will you be numbered with his people, or will your names be left out at the reading of the muster-roll? God give us a place among his redeemed, and to his name shall be glory for ever and ever! Amen.

Kelly Commentary on Books of the Bible

The successes given to the children of Israel alarmed some of their neighbours, more particularly Moab; and this gives occasion for a striking episode in the history which brought to issue as solemn a question as any raised in the book of Numbers. The sending for Balaam on the part of Balak was an altogether new element. We have had the grace of God and His provisions for the people; we have had the unbelief of the people, with chastenings and judgments, not without the renewed declarations on God's part of His surely bringing even such a people into the goodly land. Grace alone could, but grace would do it.

But there was an enemy not yet fairly brought before our eyes the power of Satan. It did not appear at first, but ere long it plays a most important part in the great transaction which now begins to open out in this chapter. Satan can take the place of an angel of light and righteousness: not invariably indeed, for he has other phases, but more especially with the people of God. On the other hand there was material for Satan to use, for the people had been notoriously faithless had dishonoured God often and grievously. The question then was, Would God maintain a people guilty of the infraction of His own law? If so, would it not be a dishonour to Himself? What could He say? or how consistently could He meet Satan? Impossible that Satan should be in reality more careful of righteousness than God Himself. Nevertheless there was no small difficulty in appearances, and such a difficulty as human wit never can solve. How sorely it must have distressed one who loved the people!

But there is one simple and sure means of solving every difficulty. We know it in all its fulness; but even before it was fully explained, known, and brought out, the principle of it was always before faith. While unbelief invariably forgets and even shuts out God, faith invariably brings Him in; and whatever may be the difficulty of unbelief, it is evident there is none whatever to God. Thus then, although the heart may not understand how God is to reconcile His own character and express word and most solemn judgment of sin with the bringing of such a people into the land of promise, where His eye rests continually, it should not wait to understand but believe. In due season it surely will understand: only it has the comfort of the understanding being spiritual, not natural, the apprehension flowing from God, and not the pretension of man to think for God, and settle how things are to be done beforehand. It is infinitely more blessed to be as it were behind Him; to follow in His wake; to have Himself showing us every step of the way; to have Him allowing a difficulty to come out in its strength, that we may see how gloriously He settles all.

This is precisely what came out in the new trial which is to be brought before us. Balak sent not merely for Midian's help, nor was it a question of the force of the world. He himself had the consciousness that there must be a power brought in superior to man; but he thought only of what he knew a power that for an adequate consideration would gratify man's lust, and allow of man's will. However the true God enters on the ground unexpectedly; for we must carefully remember that Balak had no real knowledge of God. He no more thought of Jehovah, whatever use he might make of the name of God, than king Saul honoured Him when he consulted the witch of Endor. Besides the witch herself had no thought of the real spirit of Samuel; for I need not tell you, as no doubt you are all well aware that neither man nor devil has the smallest power over the spirits of those who are either righteous or unrighteous. As for the unrighteous, they are kept in prison till the day of judgment; as for the righteous, it need not be said they are with the Lord. I say then that neither man nor devil has power to produce them. But then we must remember there is a world of spiritual powers, and man is apt to confound with God beings with powers superior to his own. These are that hidden energy which has managed to usurp the place of God with bad consciences so much the more polluting above all other evils, for it calls itself religion, and has come between the true God and the soul. Such is the source and character of all idolatry. This is its real nature before God. The outward forms are but the blind. The real power is demoniacal; it deceives and destroys.

Now these demons constantly personate whom they please. They may pretend to be the spirit of this person or that, but they are nothing of the sort; being not more than demons and nothing less. They deceive men by gratifying their distrust, lusts, and passions, and among the rest their fancy about friends and relatives, or all the while, it may be, assuming also to be God, angels, and so forth. This is what was from time to time going on then, as it had since the flood. It is no new thing, though becoming more familiar no doubt to men in these days of Christendom's decrepitude alas! days that are preparing the way for a still more awful power of Satan here below at the end of this age.

But God did not leave it to be a question of demons and deceits; for when Balak presumed to bring in that power above man to blight the prospects of His people, this at once called forth the true God. Balaam in his hypocritical way talks about consulting Jehovah. This too has always been. Those who have least to do with God often talk most flippantly about Him; and so it was of old as it is now. "God," it is written, "came unto Balaam, and said, What men are these with thee?" He was not alarmed, being accustomed to an evil spirit. He did not know but that the power which came to him was the old familiar spirit. God caught the crafty in his own net. This is just where the mighty power of God shows what He is in the face of every adversary that dared to oppose His people. So when He asked the prophet what men these were, Balaam answers, "Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, hath sent unto me, saying, Behold, there is a people come out of Egypt, which covereth the face of the earth: come now, curse me them; peradventure I shall be able to overcome them, and drive them out. And God said unto Balaam, Thou shalt not go with them; thou shalt not curse the people: for they are blessed."

We shall see in the sequel how wondrous was the way of God to turn thus the very effort of Satan against himself, and to make this most wicked wretch Balaam to be unintentionally opposed to all his interests, but held in the mighty hand of God, the instrument for sealing" as far as it could be done by man, the blessing of God upon His people! "And Balaam rose up in the morning, and said unto the princes of Balak, Get you into your land; for Jehovah refuseth to give me leave to go with you." So the princes returned, and told Balak that Balaam refused to come. Balak, judging according to what man so well knows, according to his own heart and experience, sends princes more honourable than the others who came to Balaam, and they said to him, "Thus saith Balak the son of Zippor, Let nothing, I pray thee, hinder thee from coming unto me; for 1 will promote thee unto very great honour, and I will do whatsoever thou sayest unto me: come therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people." Balaam then, partly with the cunning which seeks to make the best terms, partly also held contrary to his own thoughts by God's hand, says, "If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of Jehovah my God, to do less or more. Now therefore, I pray you, tarry ye also here this night, that I may know what Jehovah will say unto me more." But even here Balaam proves that all his talk about God was a mere pretence, and that there could be no reality of faith, or he would never have consulted again. Faith knows that God does not charge. He is not a man that he should lie, neither the son of man that he should repent.

Ignorant of God, Balaam thus detains the messengers; for his heart dearly loved the proffered honour and emolument. He bids them wait that he might consult Jehovah again. Here again he falls into the trap of his own covetousness; for "God came to Balaam at night, and said unto him, If the men come to call thee, rise up and go with them." Not that this was the course of His holy will; it was God dealing with the froward according to his frowardness. This He does if there is not faith in his mind, and along with it a single eye; He permits that a man shall follow his own blind devices. This is righteous; and God accordingly so deals with Balaam. Where He sees integrity, He graciously . meets the trembling heart and the hesitating mind. But it was no question of hesitation with Balaam. There was self-will, and this too in the face of the glorious expression of God's will. At bottom he makes nothing of God or His word. He had been distinctly told that he was not to curse the people, but to bless them; yet he waits with no other object than, if it were possible, to curse those whom God bade him bless. There was not a particle of faith, nor of the fear of God. Accordingly God now gives him up to his own devices. If he will join an idol, let him alone, as he would not be warned. That this is the true moral is made most plain; because it is said that, when Balaam rises in the morning, and saddles his ass, and goes with the princes of Moab, "God's anger was kindled." Clearly therefore, though God had told the man that was ignorant to be ignorant, and the man that was self-willed to go and do his own will, there was an expressed and solemn warning to the prophet that he was flying in the face of God. (Compare verses 12 and 22)

Then follows that incident of which the New Testament takes notice in 2 Peter 2:1-22, which I trust no one here will ever allow the smallest breath of suspicion to sully. In truth the means employed were, as always, exactly suited in divine wisdom to the case. I grant you it is not a usual thing for God to make a dumb ass speak; but were these circumstances usual? Was there not something awfully humiliating in such a brute being the rebuker of the guilty prophet? But this very fact was most significant that it was an ass which rebuked a man not wanting in natural intelligence, and soon the vessel of the most beautiful declarations on God's part, but not before the brute that he rode warned him of his folly and sin. On this I need not dilate.

The prophet then was permitted to know in the fullest possible manner, from the angel of Jehovah himself, wherefore it was that all these obstructions were put in his way. How gracious of God thus to make a man who was hurrying on to destruction pause and think, if anything could rouse him! But no, he was committed to wicked ways. Lawlessness must pursue its miserable course to an end no less miserable.

However he goes and he meets with Balak, who takes him to Kirjath-Huzoth. "And Balak offered oxen and sheep, and sent to Balaam, and to the princes that were with him. And it came to pass on the morrow, that Balak took Balaam, and brought him up into the high places of Baal, that thence he might see the utmost part of the people." (Numbers 22:40-41) "And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven oxen and seven rams. And Balak did as Balaam had spoken; and Balak and Balaam offered on every altar a bullock and a ram. And Balaam said unto Balak, Stand by thy burnt-offering, and I will go: peradventure Jehovah will come to meet me: and whatsoever He showeth me I will tell thee. And he went to an high place." And there again Elohim* meets Balaam, when he says, "I have prepared seven altars, and I have offered upon every altar a bullock and a ram. And Jehovah put a word in Balaam's mouth, and said, Return unto Balak, and thus thou shalt speak." (Numbers 23:1-5)

*The use of Elohim and Jehovah here is very notable, as absurd on the document hypothesis as instructive to the believer in the unity of the book and in the divine inspiration of its writer. This is immensely confirmed by Balaam's use of Elion (Most High) and Shaddai (Almighty) in his last two prophecies (Numbers 24:1-25) when he did not seek enchantments. Are we to fall back on the clumsy device of one, two, or more writers to account for these divine titles, instead of seeking their motive in internal considerations?

And wonderful is the word that was spoken. "Come, curse me Jacob." When he takes up his parable he says, "Come, curse me Jacob, and come, defy Israel." This was the word of Balak to him. He replied, "How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? or how shall I defy, whom Jehovah hath not defied? For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations. Who can count the dust of Jacob, and the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!" That is, he states in the most explicit manner the great and certainly fundamental privilege of Israel that they were a nation called out to be alone with and for Jehovah. This is the basis of all their blessing. They were unlike all the rest of the world in this, that they were set apart to be with Jehovah, the true Elohim.

Afterwards comes another message; for this is comparatively abstract, and the further demand of Balak brings out successively with ever-increasing clearness the special blessedness of the people, as far as God was pleased to make it known.* He does not say whom he is to meet; and it seems to me that the true force of the verse is best reached by leaving it in the vague mystery which such an elliptical phrase conveys. Balaam knew well whom he was used to meet. At the least he could not but have suspicions, for there never is a person who honours a demon as the true God that has peaceful confidence of heart. Is it possible to confide in a demon? There may be perhaps a hazy dim idea which people do not like thoroughly to grasp or understand. That is in substance what natural religion or superstition amounts to. They leave souls always at a distance from God, with a sort of striving and searching after God, but in fact under some delusion of the adversary. In Balaam's case there was even more than this, because he was tampering continually with secret power in order to gain influence over others, but as deliberately against God's people as for himself.

*We must carefully remember that the word "Jehovah," printed in italics, has no right to a place in verse 16. "And he said unto Balak, Stand here by thy burnt-offering while I meet yonder."

Where was anything of God? anything that could satisfy an upright conscience? However Jehovah does meet Balaam. Doubtless that was the reason why our translators put in "Jehovah" They judged that because Jehovah met him, he must have gone to meet Jehovah; whereas he only used the words "to meet," perhaps unwilling to tell out his wonted source of help. But Jehovah gives him a new word, and a word that goes far beyond the first. "Rise up, Balak, and hear; hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor: Elohim is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?" The language is in the finest style of Hebrew poetry.

Now we have the people of God the object of distinct communications from God. It is not only that they have Elohim as the One to whom they belong, and to whom they are severed apart from all other nations; but now He speaks to them, He communicates, He opens His mind and heart to them; and what is its purport? "Behold," says he, "I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it. He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: Jehovah his Elohim is with him, and the shout of a King is among them. Elohim brought them out of Egypt." The bold figures that are used and the allusions are all in the strictest connection with the fresh blessing. It is not merely separative grace, but distinct justification set forth.

It is only on the ground of the grace which justifies that God could call them according to that which was not, seeing them even now what He would make them to be through the Saviour. This is what is before His mind. It is plain that justification is altogether impossible for sinners, unless there be the blotting out of what they are, and the bringing in what they are not. How can these things be? It is through another alone that there can be justification. Thus only God "hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob." It is not that He denies it; nor that there was no iniquity on their part, for indeed there was. "Neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel." It is a question of what He looks at. "Jehovah his Elohim is with him, and the shout of a King is among them."

Of course the time was not yet come to develop how this could be. Not till long after was the mighty work done by which alone it is possible; but we have the bold announcement, as far as it would have been proper to have expressed it by the lips of one that was an utter stranger to all in race as in heart; and we have it so much the more gloriously expressed, because it is simply given in its great principle by one who could see the ineffable blessedness of it without knowing in the least the experience of its comfort for his own soul. In God's wisdom he was just the man to declare even to the enemy that it is entirely a question of what He has wrought, not in any way of Israel's doings or deserts. "Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel; according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought! Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion; he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain." (Compare Numbers 24:9)

Balak was incensed; nevertheless he resolves to try another time. "And when Balaam saw that it pleased Jehovah," we are told in the beginning ofNumbers 24:1-25; Numbers 24:1-25, "he went not, as at other times, to seek for enchantments." This again entirely confirms the remark that was made in the previous chapter as to what he went to meet. "He went not, as at other times, to seek for enchantments, but he set his face toward the wilderness. And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him." Thus when we have any object completely cleared before God from all question of sin, it is not His way to rest there. As we know, for the Christian there follows freedom, entirely apart from what he was, to enter into positive enjoyment both of the place of blessing in which he stands, and of God Himself now truly known in Christ. Justification is always a taking account of what we were, though a bringing us out of it; but when that is seen in its completeness, then we can go out into all the ways of God's grace. And so it is here. The new word of Jehovah has another character, and is introduced therefore in a manner such as to mark its entire distinctness from the previous words given to the prophet.

"And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are opened hath said: he hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel!" It is the manifest preciousness of the place of Israel which drew out from his mouth at any rate (I do not say from his heart) the expression of the beauteous and goodly estate of the people. "As the valleys are they spread forth, as gardens by the river's side, as the trees of lign-aloes which Jehovah hath planted, and as cedar trees beside the waters. He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted. God brought him forth out of Egypt." In both cases, you will observe, whether it is the comparatively negative side of justification, or the positive side of rich and joyous blessing with which the people are endowed of God, we have their bringing out of Egypt.

Another thought is striking. Balaam does not refer to what they were to be made in Canaan, but what God saw them to be nay, what he himself was permitted to see them to be while they were in the wilderness. It is a wonderfully lovely picture therefore of what grace does for the Christian and the church now. For in virtue of redemption and Christ's entrance into heavenly glory, and of the Holy Ghost sent down, in spite of all that is in this world, in spite of what has been justly designated the ruined state of the church here below, we are entitled always to take delight in the real beauty of God's children and assembly even now. No doubt it is a vision only for faith; but it is a vision not for eyes shut, but for eyes open, as it is said here. Certainly, it is no illusion, no heated human imagination of what they are going to be. It is what God sees, and delights to give us to see by faith, in His people here below. Of course it was Israel, but the same principle is just as true; I need not say, and really with yet greater force, in the case of the Christian.

The still stronger terms, in the earlier vision of Numbers 24:1-25, which Balaam uses in speaking of the power with which God would invest them, bring Balak's anger to a head; and he smites his hands together, and says, "I called thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three times." We must remember that in all this Balaam was no more able to resist the power of God which wrought on and by him than Balaam's ass could hold its peace before. We must not suppose that there was the smallest measure of real sympathy with what God was doing. The whole transaction was one of God's power, in spite of all that could be done against His people, and this because God would confound the enemy which resorted to Satan's power in order to bring a. curse on Israel. This it was to which God in sovereign grace responded in so grand an expression of their blessedness, and from a quarter so unlooked for.

But one supreme effort remains as far as cursing is concerned. Accordingly Balak tells Balaam now to begone, taunting him with the honour and wealth he had meant to give, from which Jehovah, he adds, had kept him back. But the prophet seems neither won by desire for his bribes, nor afraid of the king's power. "If Balak," says he, ''would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of Jehovah, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what Jehovah saith, that will I speak. And now, behold, I go unto my people: come therefore, and I will advertise thee what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days." It really embraces the end of this age.

Thus in the face of the king's threats, of what might have seemed to be his own interests, Balaam after all was compelled to give another and a conclusive word from Jehovah, and this without going to meet . . . or Jehovah's meeting him. It is what He said and commanded. Here there is not only the title of Shaddai (Almighty), as in the former prophecy, but of Elion (the Most High), who would dispose of the world as He pleased in view of His purposed judgment of the earth of and for His people; and here the prophet speaks unasked of the king. It is Jehovah all through, though care is taken to show that He is Elohim, and in suited connection Shaddai and Elion. "And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open hath said: he hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the most High, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh." Solemn words these which pronounce the man's own condemnation of his own soul. How little it was a question of will or heart! "I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession for his enemies; and Israel shall do valiantly. Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of the city."

Even when he looks at Amalek too, he goes farther and pronounces the sure doom of those that had assailed the people in the wilderness. "Amalek was the first of the nations, but his latter end shall be that he perish for ever." Then, looking on the Kenites, he says, "Strong is thy dwelling-place, and thou puttest thy nest in a rock. Nevertheless the Kenite shall be wasted, until Asshur shall carry thee away captive." But what about victorious Asshur? '` And he took up his parable, and said, Alas, who shall live when God doeth this! And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim, and shall afflict Asshur." Thus it does not matter whether it be western powers or eastern, whether the adversaries be many or few, with what resources nor from what quarter. Amalek may be the first of nations, and Asshur bid fair to be last; yet affliction comes to Asshur and Eber; "and he also shall perish for ever." It is the day of Immanuel, not of David or the Maccabees. Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.

Thus the intended curse of Balaam was turned into the most magnificent utterance of blessing ever pronounced on the people of God, stretching down to the latter days when Israel shall be exalted under the Most High God, the possessor of heaven and earth.

Who would not trust such a God, and such revelations of His mind and will? Who would not have confidence in the One who turns the bitterest and most subtle of enemies only the more powerfully to prove what God's people are to Himself, and how vain the efforts of their worst foes?

In Numbers 25:1-18 we see a very different state of things among men, but the same God over all. Snares are set by Moab under Balaam's counsel, yet all their subtlety could not turn God from Israel. Balaam (as we know, although it be not explained here but elsewhere) gives the enemy his cunning advice, and all at first goes on successfully. If he could not turn God from Israel, could he not turn Israel from God? Midianitish women become the instrument of seduction. This sorrowful occasion brings out now, not God causing an enemy to manifest what He is for His people, but Phinehas the priest roused with holy indignation, and executing judgment on the guilty pair in the face of a plague which fell on the people in these very circumstances. Phinehas accordingly has the covenant of an everlasting priesthood secured to him and to his seed because he was zealous for his God, and made an atonement for the children of Israel.

There is after this (Numbers 26:1-65) a fresh numbering of the men of Israel in view of going to war. They were now on the borders of the holy land; and the same grace of God which took account of every one of His people when they entered the wilderness gives evidence that His love was unabated, and His personal interest the same to the end. There was all that could have turned Him aside, had it been possible. Without this there would have been merely the taking in the people as a whole; but here He gives this witness of what they were, every one of them, to Himself; for He loves to convince His people of His unwavering love, spite of failure on their part.

There is only one remark that I need make now on the persons that are enumerated here, but it is one of great interest, as it appears to me. The most solemn judgment recorded in the book of Numbers was that of Korah with his company in the awful scene where Jehovah created a new thing, and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up alive. The children of Dathan, Abiram, and the rest, were all swallowed up; but, wonderful to say, there was an exemption. Where was it? some particularly faithful person, who had the unhappiness to be nearly associated with them? Not at all. The exception of grace was in the household of the very worst of them. The people who deserved least of all, as man would have thought, to be exempted from destruction were precisely those for whom God did reserve this special grace the sons of Korah! of Korah the leader and organiser of the apostasy, from his position as well as in his conduct, above all others most guilty! The sons of Korah were the objects of a most singular deliverance. Is not this the true grace of God? It is the same God whom we now know, the same God from first to last. Grace is no new thing with Him; but where can you find a finer sample of its power and superiority to all circumstances than in the distinguishing grace that saved from destruction the children of gainsaying Korah, the most infamous of those who had conspired against the types of Christ's royalty and priesthood; namely, Moses and Aaron? Nothing can be more explicit than the information here: "The earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korah, when that company died, what time the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men: and they became a sign. Notwithstanding the children of Korah died not."

Further, this is, I think, an important key to the book of Psalms. Every attentive reader will have noticed that the second of the five divisions of the Psalms gives us at its beginning psalms entitled, "For the sons of Korah." (Psalms 42:1-11; Psalms 43:1-5; Psalms 44:1-26; Psalms 45:1-17; Psalms 46:1-11; Psalms 47:1-9; Psalms 48:1-14; Psalms 49:1-20)* These mean the descendants of the men in question. And who were so fit to have such psalms and songs as the sons of Korah? What state does the second book of Psalms suppose? Assuredly as a whole days of future apostasy and the sorest trouble that the Jews will ever pass through. It is the last and greatest tribulation. It is the time when the mass of the nation will have completely cast off the true God and rejected His grace will have abandoned His truth, and lost themselves in losing it. To this fiery trial it is that these psalms apply. And no doubt what was at the beginning of their history will be re-enacted, and more, at the end. In the midst of a condition guilty indeed, and in the nearest connection with those most guilty, God will reserve a remnant not more surely the children of Korah in the wilderness than a band not unworthy of the name, and witnesses of no less grace from God in the last crisis. These psalms will be suited for those morally in similar circumstances, and delivered by the very same grace of God. Thus, we see, whether it be law or psalms or prophets, whether it be the gospel or the kingdom then, it is with the God of all grace that we have to do.

*Some few follow in book 3 (Psalms 84:1-12; Psalms 85:1-13; Psalms 86:1-17; Psalms 87:1-7; Psalms 88:1-18)

To the end of this chapter the account is given of the numbering.

In the next chapter (Numbers 27:1-23) there is an incident of considerable interest which illustrates the tender thoughtfulness of God. "Then came the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph: and these are the names of his daughters; Mahlah, Noah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah. And they stood before Moses, and before Eleazar the priest, and before the princes and all the congregation, by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying, Our father died in the wilderness, and he was not in the company of them that gathered themselves together against Jehovah in the company of Korah; but died in his own sin, and had no sons. Why should the name of our father be done away from among his family, because he hath no son?" There was no son left. This was a case which had not yet arisen; but as we see the daughters of Zelophehad counted on God, and not in vain. It is impossible for God to be like poor man, who says, "You expect more good than I am prepared to bestow." God could not make such an answer. He always gives more. Whatever may be the petition of faith, the answer of grace never fails to go beyond it. And so the daughters of Zelophehad have their place secured to them in the goodness of God, though outside the usual routine of law.

Further, Jehovah after this intimates to Moses to ascend Mount Abarim and see the land, and he is to be gathered to his people. This leads also to the appointment of another. There is this to be noticed in the appointment of Joshua, that he no less than Moses is a type of Christ, but with a distinct difference between the two. Joshua sets forth the Captain of Salvation, and this answers to Christ; but it is no longer Christ after the flesh: He is not viewed as a Jewish Messiah, blessed as this may be. For Christ is a great deal more than Messiah. After His rejection on the earth, when it was no longer a question of presentation to Israel as their King, Christ then acts in the power of the Holy Ghost, being no more present in a bodily manner. Joshua represents this. It is Christ, no doubt, but Christ acting in the power of the Spirit, not Christ in flesh connected with the promises and the hopes of Israel. This type is what we see here; it is developed in detail elsewhere. But even one feature should not be passed by. When Moses was leading the people, he acted alone; but when Joshua leads them, it is said, "He shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall ask counsel for him after the judgment of Urim before Jehovah." How does this apply to Christ? It might seem a difficulty, but in reality it confirms the application which has just been made; because we know that, while the people are led to take possession of the holy land, their privilege now is to cross the Jordan, and enter into those blessings with which they are blessed in heavenly places. Observe then here is the connection of Christ acting thus by the Spirit with His position as Priest. At the very same time that we are entering into our heavenly blessings by the power of the Spirit, we also have Christ as Priest in the presence of God. With Moses we find no such state of things. He was never told to stand before the priest. Aaron might speak rather than Moses, for he could speak well. Other duties he discharged, but nothing at all answering to this: so admirably does God watch over and shape and fashion all these types to impress the full truth on our souls. In Christ's case, of course He was Himself head of the church, to work by the Spirit of God in us; but besides He is the great High Priest. He unites the two functions. They must necessarily be two different individuals in the type, but the great Antitype combines them.

In Numbers 28:1-31; Numbers 29:1-40 we have a somewhat difficult and certainly a very different exposé of the feasts and sacrifices from that which we found elsewhere. But all is easy to those who bear in mind the distinctive theme of the book. It is not merely, as was noticed, pilgrimage through the wilderness. This it is, but it comprises the earth also. In short the earth is the scene; and to us the wilderness. But the earth will not be always the wilderness. This is an important remark to make in order to understand Numbers. For there is a time coming when that which is now a wilderness will no doubt still be the earth for the people of God on it, but it will be no longer the chequered place of trial and sorrow which it is now. If we hold fast this fact, the application of these two chapters will be rendered more easy.

First of all we have the general offering. There is the sweet savour of Christ arising continually, in which God regards his people on the earth. It is the Lamb of God who invests all that are His with His own acceptance before God. This is what was meant by the daily lambs, but there is much more than this. It is said, "And on the sabbath-day two lambs of the first year without spot, and two-tenth deals of dour for a meat-offering." This clearly goes on to the rest of God of which the sabbath is always the well-known figure. When it comes, the only difference will be that the testimony to the value of Christ will be more widely spread and fuller. God will never fail in causing the testimony to Christ's sweet savour to rise before Him. Christianity has brought it out in its very depths; but then it is a thing only known to the believer on the one hand, and to God on the other. But when the sabbath dawns on the earth, the true sabbath of Jehovah in all its meaning, there will be a public witness of it all over the world that cannot be mistaken. This seems referred to in the doubling of the lamb. It is the idea of the rest of God contrasted with the time of working which precedes the rest (as, e.g., in the present time). "There remaineth therefore a rest (or a sabbath-keeping) for the people of God." The time of the true rest is not yet come. Observe, it does not mean the rest we have got for our souls by faith. We must always guard against that common misapprehension. It is quite true that we have rest now in Christ for the conscience and the heart; but this is not the meaning of Heb. iv. It is rather the rest of glory for the people of God and for the world, when there will be this diffused testimony.

Then comes "the beginnings of your months." This is peculiar to Numbers, being found in no other book of the Pentateuch. The reason seems to be that it is essentially bound up with the wilderness types of Israel their experiences and changes as a people on earth "In the beginnings of your months," that is, at the new moon, when there was the shining forth again of that which had waned away. Such a type in no way suits the church which is called during Israel's darkness after the light waned and before it shines again. "And in the beginnings of your months ye shall offer a burnt-offering unto Jehovah; two young bullocks, and one ram, seven lambs of the first year without spot," with their appropriate meat-offerings and drink-offerings. There is represented here the largest form of setting forth Christ offered to God in the bullock, with the idea of energy of devotedness to God, and this too in that adequacy of testimony which "two" represents. The sheep or the lower forms indicate, I suppose, Christ appreciated after a less measure. The bullock is the fullest appreciation of Christ. Those that had so long despised Him will now acknowledge Him with so much the greater fervour because of their former slight. The Lord graciously takes notice of this. The ram is a type of Christ as an offering of consecration to God; here it is but a feeble testimony "one ram." The "seven lambs" mean the completeness of Christ's sweet savour before God. There is also, as we know, the necessary sin-offering.

But now we come to the feasts. On the fourteenth day of the first month the passover is noticed, where we have, as it is said, two young bullocks, just the same provision as was laid down for the beginning of months, the new moons. Further, in the case of the feast of weeks, "in the day of the first-fruits, when ye bring a new meat-offering unto Jehovah" (the Pentecostal offering), there is a similar type. "After your weeks be out, ye shall have a holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: but ye shall offer the burnt-offering for a sweet savour unto Jehovah; two young bullocks, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year."

What brings out the truth more distinctly is the change we find in coming down to the seventh month. This is the acknowledged type of what distinctively concerns Israel Israel summoned and brought into the blessing of God. Here we see the difference very marked; for there is claimed but "one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year without blemish" It lacks the fulness of testimony to grace which went out to the Gentile as well as the Jew. It is but a single witness to the grace that God is about to display to His people Israel. It may include the largest form of appreciation, but still it is only a partial witness of grace. There is but one young bullock not the two found in the previous case. So again the atonement-day has just the same figure: "Ye shall have on the tenth day of this seventh month an holy convocation; and ye shall afflict your souls: ye shall not do any work therein: but ye shall offer a burnt-offering unto the Lord for a sweet savour; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year."

But after a few days there is a very different type brought before us. "On the fifteenth day of the seventh month ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work, and ye shall keep a feast unto the Lord seven days: and ye shall offer a burnt-offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto Jehovah; thirteen young bullocks." Now surely this is very noticeable. Why such a change? There is nothing like it before. It is only when we come to the feast of tabernacles that this sudden change appears. Before this we hear in certain circumstances of two bullocks or one bullock: here there are thirteen. Why thirteen? Was this not intended to exercise our spiritual thought as to the truth of God? Are we not to infer that it is the all but fullest expression of Christ known on the earth? It is no longer the preparatory dealings. The first and the tenth days of the month mean the preparatory ways of God to bring the Jewish people back to their position of witnessing to the glory of Christ in the millennium. But now they are in that position not in the preliminary processes, so to speak, with God gradually leading them on. Hence now we read, "Ye shall offer a burnt-offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto Jehovah; thirteen young bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year." The thirteen seems to signify that it is all but complete, and the fullest form of expressing this; for clearly two sevens would be the fullest expression of it. Thirteen is only short of this; the figure approaches completeness to the utmost. Such is the type of the millennium among the feasts. The millennium may not be perfection, but it will be indefinitely near it.

This feast gives us a true notion of that great day. It is false that there will be no sin in the coming age. At the same time sin will be quite exceptional. There will be a large effect produced in honour of the work of the Lord Jesus. The reconciliation of all things according to Christ and by His cross will be displayed in a manner only not complete. This is what is represented by the feast here.

But in the details of this feast there is evidence given of another striking fact. It would appear that there is not preserved adequately the sense of the Lord's grace throughout the millennium. Alas! that age will exhibit symptoms of decline, as we know from elsewhere that at the end of it there will be a vast outburst of rebellion when Satan is let loose for a space. There has been but one faithful witness. Even in the millennium, when Satan no longer tempts, the solemn fact will be found that there is no sustainment of the power of testimony with which they began. Hence, as we find, this feast represents the whole scene of the millennial day. It is said that on the next day, the second day, "Ye shall offer twelve young bullocks;" and again on the third day eleven bullocks; and again on the fourth day ten bullocks; and on the fifth day nine bullocks, and so decreasing. Surely all this not only has meaning, but the meaning points to the fact that there will not be the sustainment of the same devotedness as at the first. Nevertheless the purpose of God never fails. Hence therefore we find that on the eighth day "Ye shall offer a burnt-offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto Jehovah, one bullock, one ram, and seven lambs." The eighth day brings us here no more than a single witness, indicating what was outside the earth. It might seem extraordinary at first sight that the eighth day should be less than the seven days. During the seven days the number never came down so low as to one bullock. But the reason seems to be this, that in Numbers we have the testimony and service of Christ on earth, and consequently no more than a witness to what is outside and above the earth. It points to another and heavenly scene, which was not properly the subject of the book. It is therefore but a solitary witness to heavenly things, not their introduction in power.

In Numbers 30:1-16 there is another and a very different exhibition of the truth of God. It is a question of divers relationships. Here we meet with a very blessed principle. The order of relationship depends on the one to whom we are related. It is He that governs, It is not God's arrangement in these matters to rest the weight on the weaker one, who is in the place of responsibility, but on the higher, who is expected to have strength and wisdom.

The first case of which we read in the chapter is, "If a man vow a vow unto Jehovah, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.'' Do we not know who this is? We know the One who never needs to recall a word: indeed, there is none other. His word stands; we can trust it without fear.

But it is not so with the woman, the weaker vessel. "If a woman also vow a vow unto Jehovah, and bind herself by a bond, being in her father's house in her youth; and her father hear her vow, and her bond wherewith she hath bound her soul, and her father shall hold his peace at her: then all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she hath bound her soul shall stand." This is our position, as it was that of Israel. They held the place of the woman according to the type of this chapter, as the man was Jehovah-Messiah, no doubt, in its full import. But it was Jehovah that spoke, and His words stood; Jehovah-Messiah was the unfailing One of Israel. Many a rash word they said; many a foolish vow they made. How did He treat all? In two ways. He acted in the power of His own grace, and therefore disallowed what was wrong, not binding the foolish vow on her who spoke so unadvisedly with her lips. He allowed her words to pass away, to be broken, to have no binding efficacy. How gracious is the Lord! On the other hand, dealing in His governmental wisdom, He might allow the foolish to prove her own folly; and so He did. This too has been true of Israel. He has permitted that His people should feel the consequences of what they said in their pride. But assuredly the day is coming when He will act in the fulness of His grace, and all that is foolish will be as unheard, unregistered, and blotted out for ever.

The same thing is true, viewed in another relationship. Supposing it was not a father with a child, but a husband (verses 6-8): in this case all depended on the husband. How perfectly this applies, whether you look at Israel or the church, need not be enlarged on. All our blessedness depends upon Him to whom we belong. At the same time in His government He may allow us to feel our own want of wisdom and of waiting upon Him.

On the other hand, where we hear of a widow or one divorced, plainly either is a person out of relationship, and there all stands (verse 9). But this is not the relation of the Christian or of the church, if we believe the scriptures. Israel may be a widow, and may be viewed as divorced too, but never the church, the bride of Christ. For us we know the marriage is yet future; and such is the way in which scripture views it. Thus you see the power of full grace remains in the hands of our Bridegroom. We have the position of children, and our Father therefore acts in the fulness of His love. We have the place of being the bride, but not yet married. It rests in His hands to use in perfect grace. It is not so with Israel. Therefore, we find another case of twofold dealing on Jehovah's part a severity on the one hand which does not forget their folly, but judges it; and on the other hand full mercy in remitting according to His own love. Jehovah, as He has executed the one, will assuredly display the other.

In Numbers 31:1-54, on which I may say but very few words, we have a blessed principle already alluded to briefly, but now acted on. We saw that Balaam could not separate God from Israel. We saw that he did in fact separate to a certain extent Israel from God. God could not allow His servant to pass away before he saw this disgrace completely blotted out. How was this done? "Avenge," says Jehovah, "the children of Israel of the Midianites, afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people." It would not have suited the grace of God towards His servant to leave a painful thought on his heart now that he was about to be gathered to his fathers or fall asleep. "And Moses spake unto the people, saying, Arm some of yourselves unto the war, and let them go against the Midianites and avenge Jehovah of Midian." Is not this perfection? When Jehovah spoke, He told His servant to avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites; but when Moses spoke, he told them to avenge Jehovah of the Midianites. How exactly Jehovah secures His own glory, and in grace to His people! Jehovah thought of the children of Israel, and the children of Israel would think of Jehovah. It was one common interest Jehovah and Israel had at heart one and the same thing. This indeed was the true and mighty grace of God, altogether reversing what the sin of man was seen to have accomplished. As they fell under the power of the snare, it might have seemed that they must be separated from Jehovah. But no; the link must be riveted, never to be broken.

Accordingly the expedition did not require any great force: it was no question of having all Israel marshalled now. A small body would suffice. It must be a select company, not the bravest chosen as such, but some of every tribe must have part in it. It is a question of avenging Jehovah of the Midianites, and the tribes would share it between them equally. Anything that would tend to bring in Israel as a whole would defeat this identification with His name by giving prominence to them, even if it did not wear the look of national feeling or personal vengeance. Neither must be now; all must be done holily in His name. It must be Jehovah's vengeance. Accordingly therefore it is ordered after a sacred fashion, as well as with a select band from each tribe. "So there were delivered out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand of every tribe, twelve thousand armed for war" a small body comparatively to deal with a formidable people. "And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand of every tribe, them and" whom? A captain? some chosen captain? Joshua? No; "Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the holy instruments, and the trumpets to blow in his hand." The leader must be holy, and with no lack of holy instruments. The trumpets must be there for Jehovah's ears as well as Israel's. The result could not be doubted; and at once the issue of the fight is brought before us.

Further, we see that Jehovah lays down most wholesome principles as to the division of the spoil. A certain reserve is made. The principle is this, that nothing could be used by Israel which did not go through the fire. All for them must pass through the scrutinizing judgment of God. Besides, the people who had not fought were to have their share as well as those who had. It was reserved for David to decide that they must all share alike. This ordinance awaited another day. But here it was not according to the full grace of that day. It was a season of goodness, and nothing more.

From the next chapter (Numbers 32:1-42) it would seem that this very victory suggested a hasty thought to the heads of some tribes of Israel. They liked uncommonly the land that was conquered, and desired to remain on the wrong side of the Jordan. Moses was grieved at this. Nevertheless, after consulting, he yields to them; only he insists that they must help their brethren. Meanwhile whatever may be the allotment that they had chosen for themselves (and certainly they must prove how unwise it is to choose thus, instead of accepting Jehovah's choice), they must none the less share the conflicts of the people in Canaan.

Numbers 33:1-56 testifies to another and beautiful truth, Jehovah's remembrance of all the past, of all our journeyings, of all the scenes of difficulty through our weakness, and even worse occasionally too, of solemn judgments. And here we have it rehearsed. It was good to think of His ways with them, good for those who were about to enter on a new scene to look back on every step of the journey. It is thus far from being an unimportant chapter, or, as it might seem to the superficia1, a mere dry list of names. There is no part of scripture which has not a divine as well as moral purpose in it.

The next chapter (Numbers 34:1-29) presents the persons that were to divide the inheritance. This introduces inNumbers 35:1-34; Numbers 35:1-34 the singular institution of Levitical cities, some of which were reserved for such as might have been guilty of shedding blood. If done with malice prepense, there could be no shelter for the perpetrator in such an asylum. They could serve only as a prison whence he must be taken and judged in due time. But there were many cases in which death might ensue where there was no malice. On the one hand God would not make light of the bloodshed; on the other He would not merge the guiltless in the class of murderers.

The chapter then sets forth in a vivid manner what was ever before God's own eyes the coming act of blood-guiltiness, and the divine dealings with Israel in respect of it. I need not say many words as to this. Israel have stained themselves with blood, and stand charged before God with the slaying of their own Messiah. The grace of God acts, and the judgment of God also. Both are true, and both true of Israel. As there were those that have slain Him willingly, so they have borne their judgment and will yet more. But there were those for whom grace pleaded, and assuredly not without an answer; for the very One whose blood was shed cried to God from the cross in intercession for them: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." How mighty and how wondrous the reckoning of grace! To this the Spirit of God answered when He led Peter to say, "I know that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers." And thus there were those who found not only shelter, but having found it are there kept of God. Nay, more: in a certain providential sense it applies even to those not brought out of the place of the Jew into that of the Christian, which last does not appear here; for He would not have the membership of Christ's body thus anticipated.

But we have an important type of the Jew's place on earth. The man who was sheltered in the city of refuge, because of the stain of blood, who instead of being put to death for it found a temporary sojourn there, looked forward to the time when he might return. This limitation to his stay is given here. It only occurs in the book of Numbers. The slayer (it is said) "shall abide in it unto the death of the high priest, which was anointed with the holy oil. But if the slayer shall at any time come without the border of the city of his refuge, whither he was fled; and the revenger of blood find him without the borders of the city of his refuge, and the revenger of blood kill the slayer; he shall not be guilty of blood: because he should have remained in the city of his refuge until the death of the high priest; but after the death of the high priest the slayer shall return into the land of his possession "

This remains for Israel. That people is the slayer of blood now in the city of refuge. As long as Christ is exercising His priesthood according to the type here spoken of, as long as He is the anointed Priest who "ever liveth to make intercession" in the presence of God, so long the slayer must remain out of the land of his possession. The Jew will never return as accredited of God while Christ carries on His priesthood as now within the rent veil on high. But we know well that our Lord Jesus is coming back again. We know therefore that He is going to terminate the form* in which He now exercises His priesthood, which is typically represented by the death of the high priest that was anointed with oil. The death of the actual high priest of that day typifies the close of that character of priesthood in which our Lord now acts.

*Hebrews 7:24 might seem to clash with this; but it is not so really for as no one questions that Christ continues for ever, so the apostle asserts that His priesthood cannot be transferred, like the Aaronical one, from father to son. He has the priesthood intransmissible ( ἀπαράβατον ). It is a denial of successional transfer, not of change of form according to His grace and wisdom in the age to come.

Thus it is that, when the Lord will no longer be fulfilling the type of Aaron within the veil, when He will come forth as the great Melchisedek, there will be not a new ground but a new form and character of His priesthood, no longer as now intercession founded on blood only, but what corresponds with the bringing forth of bread and wine, as the priest of the Most High God, possessor of heaven and earth (the millennial name of God). When that day comes, the slayer will then no longer require to be protected in the city of refuge, but return to the land of his inheritance.

In Numbers 36:1-13 we have a further point which winds up the account of the daughters of Zelophehad. As the former notice honoured their faith, so this acts as a guard, and stamps order on the matter, securing the glory of God but avoiding confusion among men; for the tribes of Israel must be duly kept. On the one hand it was according to God's goodness that the daughters should inherit if there were no son; on the other hand it could not be permitted that the inheritance should pass out of the tribe of their fathers. This was provided against here as the other was before. Thus the whole book abounds from first to last with the reiterated, continual, and perfect proof of God's loving care for His people on the earth.