Articles
The Wilderness Generations
The Wilderness Generations
“The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying,…” (Numbers 1:1).
So it begins; 1 year down, 39 years to go. In our hurried reading of such a book we often forget that this will cover 40 years of history. In the course of the history of Israel, 40 years is a short time. In the course of the life of any particular Israelite, 40 years is a big chunk of life! If you were 80, as Moses was, then you would have been 120 by the time you left this wilderness (but of course you remember, only two of THAT generation made it because of their rebellion).
But if you were born on this day, you will grow up, get married, have children, and your children would be around 20 by the time they finally leave the wilderness. By the time Moses preaches his famous sermons in Deuteronomy, we will have a whole new generation of people. Those who were 50 would have been children as they left Egypt. Those who were 40 never saw or experienced Egypt. And all these 20 year olds – what will we do with them? Their whole life has been wearing the same clothes/shoes and eating manna.
None of these things excuses the nation as a whole from their unfaithfulness to the LORD, but it does stress the compelling need of raising their children with a knowledge of who they are as a people. Numbers thus becomes the backdrop of the sermons in Deuteronomy. So much of what God did and commanded was truly for ‘their good’: “And the Lord commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as we are this day” (Deut. 6:24). We see that each generation needs to know for themselves that the LORD is God. The tabernacle, the pillar of fire, the daily, monthly, yearly worship rituals, the sacrifices to make atonement for their sins, the tassels on their garments, ALL of this was to remind them that they are the LORD’s people, they are to be HOLY ( set apart) to the LORD.
Take note of all the things that God has provided for OUR good, that we might know that Jesus is LORD, that we would be faithful unto the LORD. The teachings, the worship, the rituals – they shape our lives and prepare us for eternity. Yet we, like Israel of old, often forget the Lord and all his benefits. “Tell me the old, old story, for I forget so soon.” So goes the old hymn that is still sung among us. Are you telling it to your children? To your grandchildren? Are you daily remembering that you are the LORD’S and are to be holy unto Him?
Hugh DeLong
