In today's passage we find the Israelites coming full circle to Kadesh. It was at Kadesh that the twelve spies presented their report on the land of Canaan. It was at Kadesh that ten of the spies declared that the taking of the promised land could not be accomplished, stirring the people into a rebellion. Because many wanted to go back to Egypt instead of moving forward to claim what the Lord promised them, the Lord declared that no one of that generation over the age of twenty who had seen His wonders in Egypt and in the wilderness would ever enter the promised land, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb. Because of this, Israel had to remain in the wilderness until that generation died out. So we found them at Kadesh in Numbers 13 and we found them back at Kadesh in Numbers 20, which is the campsite location Moses picks up with as we begin our study today.
"They left Ezion Geber and camped at Kadesh, in the Desert of Zin." (Numbers 33:36) Moses' sister Miriam died and was buried during this second sojourn at Kadesh in Numbers 20. It was also at Kadesh that Moses and Aaron disrespected the Lord when the Lord instructed them to take Aaron's staff and speak to a rock in the sight of the entire assembly so the rock would bring forth water. But instead Moses said to the assembly, "Must we bring you water out of this rock?" Then he struck the rock twice. The Lord was displeased with the way Moses and Aaron took credit for the miracle and the way they made a spectacle out of it and He said to the two brothers, "Because you did not trust in Me enough to honor Me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them."
As we discussed when studying Chapter 20, I think Moses and Aaron feared the people who were murmuring so hotly against them. Just a few chapters earlier the congregation plotted to stone Moses and Aaron to death and elect a new leader who would take them back to Egypt. These brothers didn't trust in the Lord enough at Kadesh to protect them as He had before. I think they wanted to look powerful themselves and wanted to lift themselves up in the estimation of the people in order to protect their position of authority and to protect their lives. If there had been any doubt before whether or not Moses and Aaron would be an exception like Joshua and Caleb and would enter the promised land, that doubt was cleared up in Chapter 20. The Lord always knew what Moses and Aaron would do at Kadesh which is why He was able to declare in Numbers 14 that no one over twenty who came out of Egypt would see the promised land other than Joshua and Caleb.
It wasn't long after this incident that Aaron died. "They left Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, on the border of Edom. At the Lord's command Aaron the priest went up Mount Hor, where he died on the first day of the fifth month of the fortieth year after the Israelites came out of Egypt. Aaron was a hundred and twenty-three years old when he died on Mount Hor." (Numbers 33:37-39)
After Aaron died and was buried, his son Eleazar succeeded him as high priest and the congregation was ready to move on from Mount Hor. As they traveled along the road to Atharim, a Canaanite king decided to attack them. "The Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev of Canaan, heard that the Israelites were coming." (Numbers 33:40) Moses doesn't mention the military attack that happened here, but verse 40 corresponds with Numbers 21:1-3 in which we were told the king's forces came against Israel and took some of the people captive. The Lord enabled the Israelites to take their people back and destroy this Canaanite settlement, after which the area was known as Hormah which means "destruction".
Next Moses names several campsites at which nothing out of the ordinary must have happened since their only mention is here in this list. "They left Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah. They left Zalmonah and camped at Punon. They left at Punon and camped at Oboth. They left Oboth and camped at Iye Ibarim, on the border of Moab. They left Iye Ibarim and camped at Dibon Gad. They left Dibon Gad and camped at Almon Diblathaim. They left Almon Diblathaim and camped in the mountains of Abarim, near Nebo." (Numbers 33:41-47) Yesterday we noted that there was sometimes a succession of peaceful stopping points following a succession of troubles. There were times when Israel needed to undergo circumstances for discipline or to help her grow in faith; there were times when Israel needed rest and recuperation.
We will stop at verse 47 today and will conclude Chapter 33 tomorrow with some very strict instructions the Lord will issue to the people through Moses regarding what they must do when entering and taking over the promised land. If these instructions are not followed to the letter, this failure to fully obey will cause trouble in the land for the Israelites later. Have you ever partially obeyed the Lord and later looked back and realized your failure to fully obey Him in the past is what's causing trouble in your life now? As we've said before, partial obedience is still disobedience, but we've all been guilty of it. We've partially obeyed our parents. We've partially obeyed teachers and employers. We've partially obeyed the Lord. It's a human tendency to want to pick and choose which rules to follow. Sometimes we fail to fully follow through because we want to hang onto a particular sin. Other times it's because it's easier and more expedient for us to only obey as many instructions as we must in order to get where we want to go. Just as it's a human weakness to follow only the instructions that suit us, it's a human weakness to be lazy from time to time and only perform the minimum amount of work. If Israel only partially obeys the instructions she's given in tomorrow's passage, any work she doesn't perform while taking over the promised land will end up being twice the work---or more---years down the road. Doing the job right the first time always saves time and trouble later. We may think we're saving ourselves a lot of work right now by only minimally or partially obeying our instructions, but it will only cost us later on.
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