Devotions from Numbers

Passage Read: Leviticus 27 - Numbers 3 Meditation Verse: Numbers 3:38 Anyone who approached the sanctuary was to be put to death, only the sons of Aaron were allowed to come near to the Lord. This is what changed at the death of Jesus and…

Passage Read: Numbers 4-7 Meditation Verse: 7:89 This seems so matter-of-fact, that Moses heard the voice of the Lord from between the cherubim above the atonement cover. Moses spoke with the Lord face-to-face, almost. He spoke with the Lord as surely as I speak to…

Passage Read: Numbers 8-11 Meditation Verses: 9:22-23 Though the people lived in tents, I'm sure it was not so simple a matter to pack up and leave at a moment's notice. Today with our modern technology and only one or two nights' plan to camp,…

Passage Read: Numbers 12-15 Meditation Verses: 15:38-39 Tassels on the corner of garments was to be a reminder of all the commands of the Lord, that the people should obey them and not prostitute themselves by going after the lusts of their own hearts and…

Passage Read: Numbers 16-19 Meditation Verse: 17:13 It would be terrifying to see the Lord deal like this with His people today, to call them out for their sin and rebellion in so dramatic a fashion that men die in front of others. And the…

Passage Read: Numbers 20-23 Meditation Verses: 23:20-24 It is amazing to me that the Lord could be so frustrated by His people and yet say such things about them. He speaks to and through Balaam about His delight in and blessing on Israel, yet they…

Passage Read: Numbers 24-27 Meditation Verses: 25:1-2 These unbelieving women care nothing for their integrity or purity! They freely sleep with the Israelite men, with no apparent hesitation. Unbelievers have no sense of shame or self-respect. They are sent to invite the Israelite men to…

Passage Read: Numbers 28-31 Meditation Verse: 31:16 So Balaam departed and headed home, but apparently either didn't make it home or returned afterwards. He knew the Lord wanted to bless the Israelites, and he said he couldn't go beyond the commands of the Lord. But…

Passage Read: Numbers 32-35 Meditation Verse: 35:15 Death is a punishment, the ultimate human punishment for anyone who intentionally commits certain sins, especially murder. But the Lord makes provision for someone who accidentally kills his neighbor, without premeditation or hatred beforehand. Such a man is…

Passage Read: Numbers 4-7 Meditation Verse: 6:11 Being in the presence of someone who dies suddenly is counted as a sin to the one who makes the vow of the Nazarite, even though it is completely out of his control who dies and when. If…

Passage Read: Numbers 8-11 Meditation Verses: 11:21-24 Even Moses didn't fully understand the Lord yet. He had doubts about God's ability to provide so much meat for so many people, and said so to God. So God replied, "You will see whether My Word will…

Passage Read: Numbers 12-15 Meditation Verse: 12:2 It is amazing to me how easily we dismiss the Lord and exalt ourselves. There are those who truly know the Lord, because He can be known, yet those who don't know Him well are still willing to…

Passage Read: Numbers 16-19 Meditation Verses: 16:3-5 This is such an easy trap to fall into, even and especially today. Today we value equality, we demand equality. We allow for no distinction between people, especially when it comes to the things of God. But we…

Passage Read: Numbers 20-23 Meditation Verses: 22:32-35 Balaam received permission from the Lord to go to Balak, and he knew he could only say or do what the Lord commanded him. But the Lord knew the temptation would be so great that Balaam could easily…

Passage Read: Numbers 24-27 Meditation Verses: 24:1-4 Balaam, the man whose eyes are opened, who sees the Lord and hears from him, upon whom the Spirit of God rested, this man advised the Moabites and Midianites how to turn the Lord against Israel so as…

Passage Read: Numbers 28-31 Meditation Verses: 28:9-11 There were daily sacrifices, weekly sacrifices, monthly sacrifices and periodic annual sacrifices, all needing to be offered at their proscribed times. It was not a simple thing for the Lord to dwell on earth among men. Indeed, the…

Passage Read: Numbers 32-35 Meditation Verse: 35:33 The blood of murder pollutes the land, and there is no other way to cleanse the land than by the death of the murderer. No ransom shall be offered or taken for the life of a murderer or…

Passage Read: Leviticus 27 - Numbers 3 Meditation Verse: Numbers 3:9 All the firstborn males in Israel belonged to the Lord, that meant they were supposed to be dedicated to His service. That was to be their vocation, though since it wasn't all-consuming work and…

Passage Read: Numbers 4-7 Meditation Verse: 7:88 This would make for a great celebration, and that's what it should have been. Dedicating the tabernacle, celebrating the completion of the house of God, His dwelling place in the midst of the congregation, His presence among them!…

Passage Read: Numbers 8-11 Meditation Verse: 11:29 Moses got his wish: This is the promise of the New Covenant, that God would put His Spirit in His people and write His Law on our hearts, so that we would know the Lord, ideally even as…

Passage Read: Numbers 12-15 Meditation Verse: 14:31 The adults used their children as an excused not to trust and obey Him and follow Him into taking the land. They were afraid of the Anakim more than they trusted in the Lord. So they were more…

Passage Read: Numbers 16-19 Meditation Verse: 16:3 Korah accused Moses and Aaron of appointing themselves as leaders over all Israel, but it should have been obvious to all by now that Moses and Aaron were chosen, sent and acting on the Lord's instruction! It is…

Passage Read: Numbers 20-23 Meditation Verses: 21:4-7 It is not good to complain against the Lord, but Israel has done so many times. They are finally starting to get it, it seems. The Lord sends venomous snakes among them and they recognize that it is…

Passage Read: Numbers 24-27 Meditation Verses: 27:16-17 Here Moses is concerned for the Israelites, that there be an orderly transfer of authority, rather than an apparently random transition. Before he departs, Moses asks the Lord to publicly appoint the next leader, and God agrees. But…

Passage Read: Numbers 28-31 Meditation Verse: 30:2 Any vow a man makes is binding on him. There is no distinction between those young men still living at home and those who have married and moved into their own home. Young and old, married and single,…

Passage Read: Numbers 32-35 Meditation Verses: 35:33-34 We have become so "noble" so as to seldom put anyone to death for murder. We're so afraid of miscarriages of justice, of putting an innocent man to death, that we fight to abolish the death penalty. The…