NUMBERS, Section 2 of 3, (Num. 9—16).
C H Mackintosh

Numbers 9.
And the Lord spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the
second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying, Let the children of
Israel also keep the Passover at his appointed season. In the fourteenth day of this
month, at even, ye shall keep it in his appointed season: according to all the rites of it,
and according to all the ceremonies thereof, shall ye keep it. And Moses spake unto
the children of Israel, that they should keep the Passover. And they kept the Passover
on the fourteenth day of the first month, at even, in the wilderness of Sinai: according
to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so did the children of Israel." Verses 1-5.

There are three distinct positions in which we find this great redemption-feast
celebrated, namely, in Egypt (Ex. 12); in the wilderness (Num. 9); in the land of
Canaan. (Joshua 5) Redemption lies at the foundation of everything connected with
the history of God's people. Are they to be delivered from the bondage, the death, and
the darkness of Egypt? It is by redemption. Are they to be borne along through all the
difficulties and dangers of the desert? It is on the ground of redemption. Are they to
walk across the ruins of the frowning walls of Jericho, and plant their feet upon the
necks of the kings of Canaan? It is in virtue of redemption.

Thus the blood of the paschal lamb met the Israel of God and the deep degradation of
the land of Egypt, and delivered them out of it. It met them in the dreary desert, and
carried them through it. It met them on their entrance into the land of Canaan, and
established them in it.

In a word, then, the blood of the lamb met the people in Egypt; it accompanied them
through the desert; and planted them in Canaan. It was the blessed basis of all the
divine actings in them, with them, and for them. Was it a question of the judgement
of God against Egypt? The blood of the lamb screened them from it. Was it a question
of the numberless and nameless wants of the wilderness? The blood of the lamb
secured a full provision for them. Was it a question of the dreaded power of the seven
nations of Canaan? The blood of the lamb was the sure and certain pledge of
complete and glorious victory. The moment we behold Jehovah coming forth to act
on behalf of His people, on the ground of the blood of the lamb, all is infallibly
secured, from first to last. The whole of that mysterious and marvellous journey, from
the brick kilns of Egypt to the vine clad hills and honeyed plains of Palestine, served
but to illustrate and set forth the varied virtues of the blood of the lamb.

However, the chapter which now lies open before us presents the Passover entirely
from a wilderness standpoint; and this will account to the reader for the introduction
of the following circumstance: "There were certain men which were defiled by the
dead body of a man, that they could not keep the Passover on that day: and they came
before Moses and before Aaron on that day."

Here was a practical difficulty—something abnormal, as we say—something not
anticipated, and therefore the question was submitted to Moses and Aaron. ''They
came before Moses"—the exponent of the claims of God; "and before Aaron"—the
exponent of the provisions of the grace of God. There seems something distinct and
emphatic in the way in which both these functionaries are referred to. The two
elements of which they are the expression would be deemed essential in the solving
of such a difficulty as that which here presented itself.

"And those men said unto him, We are defiled by the dead body of a man: wherefore
are we kept back, that we may not offer an offering of the Lord in his appointed
season among the children of Israel?" There was the plain confession as to the
defilement; and the question raised was this: were they to be deprived of the holy
privilege of coming before the Lord in His appointed way? Was there no resource, no
provision for such a case?

A deeply interesting question surely, but one for which no answer had as get been
provided. We have no such case anticipated in the original institution, in Exodus 12;
although we have there a very full statement of all the rites and all the ceremonies of
the feast. It was reserved for the wilderness to evolve this new point. It was in the
actual walk of the people—in the real practical details of desert life, that the difficulty
presented itself for which a solution had to be provided. Hence it is that the record of
this entire affair is appropriately given in Numbers, the book of the wilderness.

"And Moses said unto them, Stand still, and I will hear what the Lord will command
concerning you." Lovely attitude! Moses had no answer to give; but he knew who had,
and he waited on him. This was the very best and wisest thing for Moses to do. He did
not pretend to be able to give an answer. He was not ashamed to say, "I do not know."
With all his wisdom and knowledge, he did not hesitate to show his ignorance. This is
true knowledge—true wisdom. It might be humiliating to one in Moses' position to
appear before the congregation or any members of it, in the light of one ignorant on
any question. He who had led the people out of Egypt, he who had conducted them
through the Red Sea, he who had conversed with Jehovah, and received his
commission from the great "I am;" could it be possible that he was unable to meet a
difficulty arising out of such a simple case as that which was now before him? Was it
indeed true that such an one as Moses was ignorant as to the right course, in reference
to men defiled by a dead body?

How few there are who, though not occupying such a lofty position as Moses, would
not have attempted a reply of some sort to such a query. But Moses was the meekest
man in all the earth. He knew better than to presume to speak when he had nothing to
say. Would that we more faithfully followed his example in this matter! It would save
us from many a sad exhibition, from many a blunder, from many a false attempt.
Moreover it would tend to make us very much more real, more simple, more
unaffected. We are oft-times so silly as to be ashamed to expose our ignorance. We
foolishly imagine that our reputation for wisdom and intelligence is touched when we
give utterance to that fine sentence, so expressive of true moral greatness, "I don't
know." It is a total mistake. We always attach much more weight and importance to
the words of a man who never pretends to Knowledge which he does not possess. But
a man who is always ready to speak, in flippant self-confidence, we are never ready to
hear. Oh! to walk, at all times, in the spirit of these lovely words, "Stand still, and I
will hear what the Lord will command."

"And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If
any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body: or be
in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the Passover unto the Lord. The fourteenth day
of the second month, at even, they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and
bitter herbs."

There are two grand foundation truths set forth in the Passover, namely, redemption,
and the unity of God's people. These truths are unchangeable. Nothing can ever do
away with them. Failure there may be, and unfaithfulness, in various forms; but those
glorious truths of the eternal redemption and perfect unity of God's people remain in
all their force and value. Hence that impressive ordinance which so vividly shadowed
forth those truths was of perpetual obligation. Circumstances were not to interfere
with it. Death or distance was not to interrupt it. "If any man of you or of your
posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet
shall he keep the Passover unto the Lord." So imperative indeed was it upon every
member of the congregation to celebrate this feast, that a special provision is made in
Numbers 9 for those who were not up to the mark of keeping it according to the due
order. Such persons were to observe it "On the fourteenth day of the second month."
This was the provision of grace for all cases of unavoidable defilement or distance.

If the reader will turn to 2 Chronicles. 30 he will see that Hezekiah, and the
congregation in his day, availed themselves of this gracious provision. "And there
assembled at Jerusalem much people to keep the feast of unleavened bread in the
second month, a very great congregation..... Then they killed the Passover on the
fourteenth day of the second month." Ver. 13, 15

The grace of God can meet us in our greatest possible weakness, if only that weakness
be felt and confessed.* But let not this most precious and comfortable truth lead us to
trifle with sin or defilement. Though grace permitted the second month, instead of the
first, it did not, on that account, allow any laxity as to the rites and ceremonies of the
feast. "The unleavened bread and bitter herbs" were always to have their place; none
of the sacrifice was to remain till the morning, nor was a single bone of it to be
broken. God cannot allow any lowering of the standard of truth or holiness. Man,
through weakness, failure, or the power of circumstances, might be behind the time;
but he must not be below the mark. Grace permitted the former; holiness forbids the
latter; and if any one had presumed upon the grace to dispense with the holiness, he
would have been cut off from the congregation.
{*The reader will note with interest and profit, the contrast between the acting of
Hezekiah, in 2 Chronicles 30, and the acting of Jeroboam, in 1 Kings 12: 32. The
former availed himself of the provisions of divine grace; the latter followed his own
device. The second month was permitted of God; the eighth month was invented by
man. Divine provisions meeting man's need, and human inventions opposing God's
word, are totally different things.}

Has this no voice for us! Assuredly it has. we must ever remember, as we pass along
through the pages of this marvellous Book of Numbers, that the things which
happened unto Israel are our types, and that it is, at once, our duty and our privilege to
hang over these types and seek to understand the holy lessons which they are designed
of God to teach.

What then are we to learn from the regulations with respect to the Passover, in the
second month! Why was Israel so specially enjoined not to omit a single rite or
ceremony on that particular occasion? Why is it that, in this ninth chapter of
Numbers, the directions for the second month are much more minute than those for
the first? It is not surely that the ordinance was more important in the one case than in
the other, for its importance, in God's judgement, was ever the same. Neither is it that
there was a shade of difference in the order, in either case, for that, too, was ever the
same. Still the fact must strike the reader who ponders the chapter before us, that
where reference is made to the celebration of the Passover in the first month, we
simply read the words, "according to all the rites of it, and according to all the
ceremonies thereof, shall ye keep it." But, on the other hand, when reference is made
to the second month, we have a most minute statement of what those rites and
ceremonies were: "They shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. They shall
leave none of it unto the morning, nor break any bone of it: according to all the
ordinances of the Passover they shall keep it." Compare verse 3 with 11, 12.

What, we ask, does this plain fact teach us? We believe it teaches us, most distinctly,
that we are never to lower the standard, in the things of God, because of failure and
weakness on the part of God's people; but rather, on that very account, to take special
pains to hold the standard up, in all its divine integrity. No doubt, there should be the
deep sense of failure—the deeper the better; but God's truth is not to be surrendered.
We can always reckon, with confidence, upon the resources of divine grace, while
seeking to maintain, with unwavering decision, the standard of divine truth.

Let us seek to keep this ever in the remembrance of the thoughts of our hearts. We are
in danger, on the one hand, of forgetting the fact that failure has come in—yes, gross
failure, unfaithfulness, and sin. And, on the other hand, we are in danger of forgetting,
in view of that failure, the unfailing faithfulness of God, in spite of everything. the
professing Church has failed, and become a perfect ruin; and not only so, but we
ourselves have individually failed and helped on the ruin. We should feel all this—
feel it deeply—feel it constantly. We should ever bear upon our spirits before our God
the deep and heart-subduing consciousness of how sadly and how shamefully we have
behaved ourselves in the house of God. It would be adding immensely to our failure
were we ever to forget that we have failed. The most profound humility and the
deepest brokenness of spirit become us in the remembrance of all this; and these
inward feelings and exercises will surely express themselves in a lowly walk and
carriage in the midst of the scene in which we move.

"Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord
knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart
from iniquity." (2 Tim. 2: 19) Here is the resource of the faithful, in view of the ruins
of Christendom. God never fails, never changes, and we have simply to depart from
iniquity, and cling to Him. we are to do what is right, and follow it diligently, and
leave results to Him.

We would earnestly beg of the reader to give the foregoing line of thought his entire
attention. We want him to pause, for a few moments, and prayerfully consider the
whole subject. We are convinced that a due consideration of it, in its two sides, would
greatly help us to pick our steps amid the surrounding ruins. The remembrance of the
Church's condition, and of our own personal unfaithfulness, would keep us humble;
while, at the same time, the apprehension of God's unchanging standard, and of His
unswerving faithfulness, would detach us from the evil around, and keep us steady in
the path of separation. Both together would effectually preserve us from empty
pretension, on the one hand, and from laxity and indifference, on the other. We have
ever to keep before our souls the humbling fact that we have failed, and yet to hold
fast that grand truth that God is faithful.

These are, pre-eminently, lessons for the wilderness—lessons for this very day—
lessons for us. They are suggested, very forcibly, by the inspired record of the
Passover in the second month—a record peculiar to the Book of Numbers—the great
wilderness book. It is in the wilderness that human failure comes so fully out; and in
the wilderness the infinite resources of divine grace are displayed. But once more, let
us reiterate the statement and may it be engraved, in characters deep and broad, on
our hearts—the richest provisions of divine grace and mercy afford no warrant
whatever for lowering the standard of divine truth. If any had pleaded defilement or
distance as an excuse for not keeping the Passover, or for keeping it otherwise than as
God had enjoined, he would, most assuredly, have been cut off from the congregation.
And so with us, if we consent to surrender any truth of God, because failure has come
in—if we, in sheer unbelief of heart, give up God's standard, and abandon God's
ground—if we draw a plea from the condition of things around us to shake off the
authority of God's truth over the conscience, or its formative influence upon our
conduct and character—it is very evident that our communion is suspended.*
{*Let it be noted here once for all, that the cutting off of any one from the
congregation of Israel, answers to the suspension of a believer's communion because
of unjudged sin.}

We would gladly pursue this great practical line of truth somewhat further, but we
must forbear, and close this part of our subject by quoting for our reader the
remainder of this wilderness record concerning the Passover.

"But the man that is clean, and is not in a journey, and forbeareth to keep the
Passover, even the same soul shall be cat off from among his people: because he
brought not the offering of the Lord in his appointed season, that man shall bear his
sin. And if a stranger shall sojourn among you, and will keep the Passover unto the
Lord; according to the ordinance of the Passover, and according to the manner
thereof, so shall he do: ye shall have one ordinance, both for the stranger, and for him
that was born in the land." Verses 13, 14.

The wilful neglect of the Passover would argue, on the part of the Israelite, a total
want of appreciation of the benefits and blessings coming out of his redemption and
deliverance from the land of Egypt. The more deeply any one entered into the divine
reality of that which had been accomplished on that memorable night, in the which
the congregation of Israel found refuge and repose beneath the shelter of the blood,
the more earnestly would he long for the return of "the fourteenth day of the first
month," that he might have an opportunity of commemorating that glorious occasion;
and if there was anything preventing his enjoying the ordinance in "the first month"
the more gladly and thankfully would he avail himself of "the second." But the man
who could be satisfied to go on from year to year, without keeping the Passover, only
proved that his heart was far away from the God of Israel. It were worse than vain for
any one to speak of loving the God of his fathers, and of enjoying the blessings of
redemption, while the very ordinance which God had appointed to set forth that
redemption lay neglected from year to year.

And may we not, to a certain extent, apply all this to ourselves, in reference to the
matter of the Lord's supper? Doubtless we may, and that with very much profit. There
is this connection between the Passover and the Lord's supper, that the former was the
type, the latter the memorial, of the death of Christ.

Thus we read in 1 Corinthians 5. "Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us." This
sentence establishes the connection. The Passover was the memorial of Israel's
redemption from the bondage of Egypt; and the Lord's supper is the memorial of the
Church's redemption from the heavier and darker bondage of sin and Satan. Hence, as
every true and faithful Israelite would surely be found keeping the Passover, in the
appointed season, according to all the rites and ceremonies thereof, so will every true
and faithful Christian be found celebrating the Lord's supper, in its appointed season,
and according to all the principles laid down in the New Testament respecting it. If an
Israelite had neglected the Passover, even on one single occasion, he would have been
cut off from the congregation. Such neglect was not to be tolerated in the assembly of
old. It was instantly visited with the divine displeasure.

And, may we not ask in the face of this solemn fact, Is it nothing now—is it a matter
of no moment for Christians to neglect, from week to week, and month to month, the
supper of their Lord? Are we to suppose that the One who, in Numbers 9, declared
that the neglecter of the Passover should be cut off, takes no account of the neglecter
of the Lord's table? We cannot believe it for a moment. For, albeit it is not a question
of being cut off from the Church of God, the body of Christ, are we, on that account,
to be negligent? Far be the thought. Yea, rather should it have the blessed effect of
stirring us up to greater diligence in the celebration of that most precious feast
wherein "we do show the Lord's death till he come."

To a pious Israelite there was nothing like the Passover, because it was the memorial
of his redemption. And, to a pious Christian, there is nothing like the Lord's supper,
because it is the memorial of his redemption and of the death of his Lord. Of all the
exercises in which the Christian can engage, there is nothing more precious, nothing
more expressive, nothing that brings Christ more touchingly or solemnly before his
heart, than the Lord's supper. He may sing about the Lord's death, he may pray about
it, he may read about it, he may hear about it; but it is only in the supper that he
"shows" it forth. "And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto
them, saying, This is my body, which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.
Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood,
which is shed for you." Luke 22: 19, 20

Here we have the feast instituted; and, when we turn to the Acts of the Apostles, we
read that, "upon the first day of the week, the disciples came together to break bread."
Acts 20: 7.

Here we have the feast celebrated; and, lastly, when we turn to the Epistles, we read,
"The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ?
The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we,
being many, are one loaf, and one body; for we are all partakers of that one loaf." (1
Cor. 10: 16, 17) And again, "For I have received of the Lord that which also I
delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus, the same night in which he was betrayed,
took bread; and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat; this is my
body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner
also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in
my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye
eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till he come." 1
Corinthians 11: 23-26.

Here we have the feast expounded. And may we not say that, in the institution, the
celebration, and the exposition, we have a threefold cord, not easily broken, to bind
our souls to this most precious feast?

How is it, then, that in the face of all this holy authority, any of God's people should
be found neglecting the Lord's table? Or, looking at it in another aspect, how is it that
any of Christ's members can be satisfied to go on for weeks, and months, and some all
their days, without ever remembering their Lord in the way of His own direct and
positive appointment? We are aware that some professing Christians regard this
subject in the light of a return to Jewish ordinances, and as a coming down from the
high ground of the Church. They look upon the Lord's supper and baptism as inward
spiritual mysteries; and they consider that we are departing from true spirituality in
insisting upon the literal observance of these ordinances.

To all this we very simply reply that God is wiser than we are. If the Lord Christ
instituted the supper; if God the Holy Ghost led the early Church to celebrate it; and if
He has also expounded it unto us, who are we that we should set up Our ideas in
opposition to God? No doubt, the Lord's supper should be an inward spiritual mystery
to all who partake of it; but it is also an outward, literal, tangible thing. There is literal
bread, and literal wine—literal eating, and literal drinking. If any deny this, they may,
with equal force, deny that there are literal people gathered together. We have no
right to explain away scripture after such a fashion. It is our happy and holy duty to
submit to scripture, to bow down, absolutely and implicitly, to its divine authority.

Nor is it merely a question of subjection to the authority of scripture. It is that, most
assuredly, as we have abundantly proved by quotation after quotation from the divine
word; and that alone is simply sufficient for every pious mind. But there is more than
this. There is such a thing as the response of love in the heart of the Christian,
answering to the love of the heart of Christ. Is not this something? Ought we not to
seek, in some small degree, to meet the love of such a heart? If our blessed and
adorable Lord has, in very deed, appointed the bread and the wine, in the supper, as
memorials of His broken body and shed blood; if He has ordained that we should eat
of that bread and drink of that cup, in remembrance of Him, ought we not, in the
power of responsive affection, to meet the desire of His loving heart? Surely no
earnest Christian will question this. It ought ever to be the very joy of our hearts to
gather round the table of our loving Lord, and remember Him in the way of His
appointment—to show forth His death till He come. It is only marvellous to think that
He should seek a place in the remembrance of such hearts as ours; but so it is; and it
would be sad indeed if we, on any ground, and for any reason whatsoever, should
neglect that very feast with which He has linked His precious name.

This, of course, would not be the place to enter upon anything like an elaborate
exposition of the ordinance of the Lord's supper. We have sought to do this elsewhere.
What we specially desire here is, to urge upon the Christian reader the immense
importance and deep interest of the ordinance as viewed on the double ground of
subjection to the authority of scripture, and responsive love to Christ Himself. And,
furthermore, we are anxious to impress all who may read these lines with a sense of
the seriousness of neglecting to eat the Lord's supper, according to the scriptures. We
may depend upon it, it is dangerous ground for any to attempt to set aside this positive
institution of our Lord and Master. It argues a wrong condition of soul altogether. It
proves that the conscience is not subject to the authority of the word, and that the
heart is not in true sympathy with the affections of Christ. Let us therefore see to it
that we are honestly endeavouring to discharge our holy responsibilities to the table of
the Lord—that we forbear not to keep the feast—that we celebrate it according to the
order laid down by God the Holy Ghost.

Thus much as to the Passover in the wilderness, and the impressive lessons which it
conveys to our souls.

We shall now dwell for a few moments on the closing paragraph of our chapter,
which is as truly characteristic as any portion of the book. In it we are called to
contemplate a numerous host of men, women, and children, travelling through a
trackless wilderness, "where there was no way"—passing over a dreary waste, a vast
sandy desert, without compass or human guide.

What a thought! What a spectacle! There were those millions of people moving along
without any knowledge of the route by which they were to travel, as wholly dependent
upon God for guidance as for food and all beside; a thoroughly helpless pilgrim host.
They could form no plans for the morrow. when encamped, they knew not when they
were to march; and when on the march, they knew not when or where they were to
halt.

Theirs was a life of daily and hourly dependence. They had to look up for guidance.
Their movements were controlled by the wheels of Jehovah's chariot.

This truly was a wondrous spectacle. Let as read the record of it, and drink into our
souls its heavenly teaching.

"And on the day that the tabernacle was reared up, the cloud covered the tabernacle,
namely, the tent of the testimony: and at even there was upon the tabernacle as it were
the appearance of fire, until the morning. So it was alway: the cloud covered it by
day, and the appearance of fire by night. And when the cloud was taken up from the
tabernacle, then after that the children of Israel journeyed: and in the place where the
cloud abode, there the children of Israel pitched their tents. at the commandment of
the Lord the children of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of the Lord they
pitched: as long as the cloud abode upon the tabernacle, they rested in their tents. And
when the cloud tarried long upon the tabernacle many days, then the children of Israel
kept the charge of the Lord, and journeyed not. And so it was, when the cloud was a
few days upon the tabernacle; according to the commandment of the Lord they abode
in their tents, and according to the commandment of the Lord they journeyed. And so
it was, when the cloud abode from even unto the morning, and that the cloud was
taken up in the morning, then they journeyed; whether it was by day or by night that
the cloud was taken up, they journeyed. Or whether it were two days, or a month, or a
year, that the cloud tarried upon the tabernacle, remaining thereon, the children of
Israel abode in their tents, and journeyed not; but when it was taken up, they
journeyed. At the commandment of the Lord they rested in the tents, and at the
commandment of the Lord they journeyed: they kept the charge of the Lord, at the
commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses." Verses 15-23

A more lovely picture of absolute dependence upon, and subjection to, divine
guidance it were impossible to conceive than that presented in the foregoing
paragraph. There was not a footprint or a landmark throughout that "great and terrible
wilderness." It was therefore useless to look for any guidance from those who had
gone before. They were wholly cast upon God for every step of the way. They were in
a position of constant waiting upon Him. This, to an unsubdued mind—an unbroken
will—would be intolerable; but to a soul knowing, loving, confiding, and delighting
in God, nothing could be more deeply blessed.

Here lies the real gist of the whole matter. Is God known, loved, and trusted? If He be,
the heart will delight in the most absolute dependence upon Him. If not, such
dependence would be perfectly insufferable. The unrenewed man loves to think
Himself independent—loves to fancy himself free—loves to believe that he may do
what he likes, go where he likes, say what he likes. Alas! it is the merest delusion.
Man is not free. He is the slave of Satan. It is now well nigh six thousand years since
he sold himself into the hands of that great spiritual slave holder who has held him
ever since, and who holds him still. Yes, Satan holds the natural man—the
unconverted, unrepentant man in terrible bondage. He has him bound hand and foot
with chains and fetters which are not seen in their true character because of the
gilding wherewith he has so artfully covered them. Satan rules man by means of his
lusts, his passions, and his pleasures. He forms lusts in the heart, and then gratifies
them with the things that are in the world, and man vainly imagines himself free
because he can gratify his desires. But it is a melancholy delusion; and, sooner or
later, it will be found to be such. There is no freedom save that with which Christ
makes His people free. He it is who says, "Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall
make you free." And again, "If the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed."
John 8.

Here is true liberty. It is the liberty which the new nature finds in walking in the
Spirit, and doing those things that are pleasing in the sight of God. "The service of the
Lord is perfect freedom." But this service, in all its departments, involves the most
simple dependence upon the living God. Thus it was with the only true and perfect
Servant that ever trod this earth. He was ever dependent. Every movement, every act,
every word—all He did, and all He left undone—was the fruit of the most absolute
dependence upon, and subjection to, God. He moved when God would have Him
move, and stood still when God would have Him stand. He spoke when God would
have Him speak, and was silent when God would have Him silent.

Such was Jesus when He lived in this world; and we, as partakers of His nature—His
life, and having His Spirit dwelling in us are called to walk in His steps, and live a life
of simple dependence upon God, from day to day. Of this life of dependence, in one
special phase of it, we have a graphic and beautiful type at the close of our chapter.
The Israel of God—the camp in the desert—that pilgrim host followed the movement
of the cloud. They had to look up for guidance. This is man's proper work. He was
made to turn his countenance upward, in contrast with the brute, who is formed to
look downward.* Israel could form no plans. They could never say, "To-morrow we
shall go to such a place." They were entirely dependent upon the movement of the
cloud. Thus it was with Israel, and thus it should be with us. We are passing through a
trackless desert—a moral wilderness. There is absolutely no way. We should not
know how to walk, or where to go, were it not for that one most precious, most deep,
most comprehensive sentence which fell from the lips of our blessed Lord, "I am the
way." Here is divine infallible guidance. We are to follow Him. "I am the light of the
world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of
life." (John 8) This is living guidance. It is not acting according to the letter of certain
rules and regulations; it is following a living Christ; walking as He walked; doing as
He did; imitating His example in all things. This is Christian movement—Christian
action. It is keeping the eye fixed upon Jesus, and having the features, traits, and
lineaments of His character imprinted on our new nature, and reflected back or
reproduced in our daily life and ways.
{*The Greek word for man (anqrwpo") signifies to turn the face upwards.}

Now this will, assuredly, involve the surrender of our own will, our own plans, our
own management altogether. We must follow the cloud; we must wait ever wait only
upon God. We cannot say," We shall go here or there, do this or that, to-morrow, or
next week.'' All our movements must be placed under the regulating power of that one
commanding sentence—often alas! lightly penned and uttered by us—"If the Lord
will."

Oh! that we better understood all this! Would that we knew more perfectly the
meaning of divine guidance! How often do we vainly imagine, and confidently assert,
that the cloud is moving in that very direction which suits the bent of our inclination.
We want to do a certain thing, or make a certain movement, and we seek to persuade
ourselves that our will is the will of God. Thus, instead of being divinely guided, we
are self-deceived. Our will is unbroken, and hence we cannot be guided aright, for the
real secret of being rightly guided—guided of God—is to have our own will
thoroughly subdued. "The meek will he guide in judgement; and the meek will He
teach His way." And again," I will guide thee with mine eye." But let us ponder the
admonition, "Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding;
whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee."
(Psalm 32) If the countenance be turned upwards to catch the movement of the divine
"eye," we shall not need the "bit and bridle." But here is precisely the point in which
we so sadly fail. We do not live sufficiently near to God to discern the movement of
His eye. The will is at work. We want to have our own way, and hence we are left to
reap the bitter fruits thereof. Thus it was with Jonah. he was told to go to Nineveh but
he wanted to go to Tarshish; and circumstances seemed to favour; providence seemed
to point in the direction of his will. But alas! he had to find his place in the belly of
the whale, yea, in "the belly of hell" itself, where "the weeds were wrapped about his
head." It was there he learnt the bitterness of following his own will. He had to be
taught in the depths of the ocean the true meaning of the "bit and bridle," because he
would not follow the gentler guidance of the eye.

But our God is so gracious, so tender, so patient! He will teach and He will guide His
poor feeble erring children. He spares no pains with us. He occupies Himself
continually about us, in order that we may be kept from our own ways, which are full
of thorns and briars, and walk in His ways, which are pleasantness and peace.

There is nothing in all this world more deeply blessed than to lead a life of habitual
dependence upon God; to hang upon Him, moment by moment, to wait on Him and
cling to Him for everything. To have all our springs in Him. It is the true secret of
peace, and of holy independence of the creature. The soul that can really say, "All my
springs are in thee" is lifted above all creature confidences, human hopes, and earthly
expectations. It is not that God does not use the creature, in a thousand ways, to
minister to us. We do not at all mean this. He does use the creature; but if we lean
upon the creature instead of leaning upon Him, we shall very speedily get leanness
and barrenness into our souls. There is a vast difference between God's using the
creature to bless us, and our leaning on the creature to the exclusion of Him. In the
one case, we are blessed and He is glorified; in the other, we are disappointed and He
is dishonoured.

It is well that the soul should deeply and seriously consider this distinction. We
believe it is constantly overlooked. We imagine, oft-times, that we are leaning upon,
and looking to, God, when, in reality, if we would only look honestly at the roots of
things, and judge ourselves in the immediate presence of God, we should find an
appalling amount of the leaven of creature confidence. How often do we speak of
living by faith, and of trusting only in God, when, at the same time, if we would only
look down into the depths of our hearts, we should find there a large measure of
dependence upon circumstances, reference to second causes, and the like.

Christian reader, let us look well to this. Let as see to it that our eye is fixed upon the
living God alone, and not upon man whose breath is in his nostrils. let as wait on
Him—wait patiently—wait constantly. If we are at a loss for anything, let our direct
and simple reference be to Him. Are we at a loss to know our way, to know whither
we should turn, what step we should take? let us remember that He has said, "I am the
way;" let us follow Him. He will make all clear, bright, and certain. There can be no
darkness, no perplexity, no uncertainty, if we are following Him; for He has said, and
we are bound to believe, "He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness." Hence,
therefore, if we are in darkness, it is certain that we are not following Him. No
darkness can ever settle down upon that blessed path along which God leads those
who, with a single eye, seek to follow Jesus.

But some one, whose eye scans these lines, may say, or at least may feel disposed to
say, "Well, after all, I am in perplexity as to my path. I really do not know which way
to turn or what step to take." If this be the language of the reader, we would simply
ask him this one question, "art thou following Jesus? If so, thou canst not be in
perplexity. Art thou following the cloud? If so, thy way is as plain as God can make
it." Here lies the root of the whole matter. Perplexity or uncertainty is very often the
fruit of the working of the will. we are bent upon doing something which God does
not want us to do at all—upon going somewhere that God does not want us to go. We
pray about it, and get no answer. We pray again and again, and get no answer. How is
this? Why the simple fact is that God wants us to be quiet—to stand still—to remain
just where we are. Wherefore, instead of racking our brain and harassing our souls
about what we ought to do, let us do nothing, but simply wait on God.

This is the secret of peace and calm elevation. If an Israelite, in the desert, had taken
it into his head to make some movement, independent of Jehovah; if he took it upon
Him to move when the cloud was at rest, or to halt while the cloud was moving, we
can easily see what the result would have been. And so it will ever be with us. If we
move when we ought to rest, or rest when we ought to move, we shall not have the
divine presence with us. "At the commandment of the Lord they rested in the tents,
and at the commandment of the Lord they journeyed." they were kept in constant
waiting upon God, the most blessed position that any one can occupy; But it must be
occupied ere its blessedness can be tasted. It is a reality to be known, not a mere
theory to be talked of. May it be ours to prove it all our journey through!

Numbers 10
"And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, make thee two trumpets of silver; of a
whole piece shalt thou make them; that thou mayest use them for the calling of the
assembly, and for the journeying of the camp. And when they shall blow with them,
all the assembly shall assemble themselves to thee at the door of the tabernacle of the
congregation. And if they blow but with one trumpet, then the princes, which are
heads of the thousands of Israel, shall gather themselves unto thee. When ye blow an
alarm, then the camps that lie on the east parts shall go forward. When ye blow an
alarm the second time, then the camps that lie on the south side shall take their
journey: they shall blow an alarm for their journeys. But when the congregation is to
be gathered together, ye shall blow, but ye shall not sound an alarm. And the sons of
Aaron, the priest, shall blow with the trumpets; and they shall be to you for an
ordinance for ever throughout your generations. And if ye go to war in your land
against the enemy that oppresseth you, then ye shall blow an alarm with the trumpets;
and ye shall be remembered before the Lord your God, and ye shall be saved from
your enemies. Also in the day of your gladness, and in your solemn days, and in the
beginnings of your months, ye shall blow with the trumpets over your burnt offerings,
and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; that they may be to you for a
memorial before your God. I am the Lord your God." Verses 1-10.

We have quoted the entire of this interesting passage for the reader, in order that he
may have before him, in the veritable language of inspiration, the lovely institution of
"The silver trumpets." It comes in, with striking fitness, immediately after the
instruction respecting the movement of the cloud, and is bound up, in a very marked
nay, with the entire history of Israel, not only in the past but also in the future. The
sound of the trumpet was familiar to every circumcised ear. It was the communication
of the mind of God, in a form distinct and simple enough to be understood by every
member of the congregation, however distant he might be from the source whence the
testimony emanated. God took care that each one in that vast assembly, however far
away, should hear the silvery tones of the trumpet of testimony.

Each trumpet was to be made of one piece, and they fulfilled a double purpose. In
other words, the source of the testimony was one, however the object and practical
result might vary. Every movement in the camp was to be the result of the sound of
the trumpet. was the congregation to be gathered in festive joy and worship? It was by
a certain sound of the trumpet. Were the tribes to be gathered in hostile array? It was
by a blast of the trumpet. In a word, the solemn assembly, and the warlike host; the
instruments of music and the weapons of war—all—all was regulated by the silver
trumpet. Any movement, whether festive, religious, or hostile, that was not the result
of that familiar sound, could be but the fruit of a restless and unsubdued will, which
Jehovah could, by no means, sanction. The pilgrim host in the wilderness was as
dependent upon the sound of the trumpet as upon the movement of the cloud. the
testimony of God, communicated in that particular manner, was to govern every
movement throughout the many thousands of Israel.

Moreover, it pertained to the sons of Aaron, the priests, to blow with the trumpets, for
the mind of God can only be known and communicated in priestly nearness and
communion. It was the high and holy privilege of the priestly family to cluster round
the sanctuary of God, there to catch the first movement of the cloud, and
communicate the same to the most distant parts of the camp. they were responsible to
give a certain sound, and every member of the militant host was equally responsible
to yield a ready and an implicit obedience. It would have been at once positive
rebellion for any to attempt to move without the word of command, or to refuse to
move when once that word was given. All had to wait upon the divine testimony, and
walk in the light thereof the very moment it was given. To move without the
testimony would be to move in the dark; to refuse to move, when the testimony was
given, would be to remain in the dark.

This is most simple and deeply practical. We can have no difficulty in seeing its force
and application, in the case of the congregation in the wilderness. But let us
remember that all this was a type; and, further, that it is written for our learning. We
are solemnly bound, therefore, to look into it; we are imperatively called upon to seek
to gather up and treasure up the great practical instruction contained in the singularly
beautiful ordinance of the silver trumpet. Nothing could be more seasonable for the
present moment. It teaches a lesson to which the Christian reader should give his most
profound attention. It sets forth, in the most distinct manner possible, that God's
people are to be absolutely dependent upon, and wholly subject to, divine testimony,
in all their movements. A child may read this in the type before us. The congregation
in the wilderness dared not assemble for any festive or religious object until they
heard the sound of the trumpet; nor could the men of war buckle on their armour, till
summoned forth by the signal of alarm to meet the uncircumcised foe. They
worshipped and they fought, they journeyed and they halted, in simple obedience to
the trumpet call. It was not, by any means, a question of their likings or dislikings,
their thoughts, their opinions, or their judgement. It was simply and entirely a
question of implicit obedience. Their every movement was dependent upon the
testimony of God, as given by the priests from the sanctuary. The song of the
worshipper and the shout of the warrior were each the simple fruit of the testimony of
God.

How beautiful! How striking! How instructive! And, let us add, how deeply practical!
Why do we dwell upon it? Because we firmly believe it contains a needed lesson for
the day in which our lot is cast. If there is one feature more characteristic than another
of the present hour, it is insubjection to divine authority-positive resistance of the
truth when it demands unqualified obedience and self-surrender. It is all well enough
so long as it is truth setting forth, with divine fullness and clearness, our pardon, our
acceptance, our life, our righteousness, our eternal security in Christ. This will be
listened to, and delighted in. But the very moment it becomes a question of the claims
and authority of that blessed one who gave His life to save us from the flames of hell,
and introduce us to the everlasting joys of heaven, all manner of difficulties are
started; all sorts of reasonings and questions are raised; clouds of prejudice gather
round the soul, and darken the understanding, the sharp edge of truth is blunted or
turned aside, in a thousand ways. There is no waiting for the sound of the trumpet;
and when it sounds, with a blast as clear as God himself can give, there is no response
to the summons. We move when we ought to be still; and we halt when we ought to
be moving.

Reader, what must be the result of this? Either no progress at all, or progress in a
wrong direction, which is worse than none. it is utterly impossible that we can
advance in the divine life, unless we yield ourselves, without reserve, to the word of
the Lord. Saved we may be, through the rich aboundings of divine mercy, and through
the atoning virtues of a Saviour's blood; But shall we rest satisfied with being saved
by Christ, and not seek, in some feeble measure, to walk with him, and live for Him?
Shall we accept of salvation through the work which He has wrought, not long after
deeper intimacy of communion with Himself, and more complete subjection to His
authority in all things? How would it have been with Israel in the wilderness, had they
refused attention to the sound of the trumpet? We can see it at a glance. If, for
example, they had presumed, at any time, to assemble for a festive or religious object,
without the divinely appointed summons; what would have been the result? Or,
further, had they taken it upon themselves to move forward on their journey, or go
forth to war, ere the trumpet had sounded an alarm; How would it have been? Or,
finally, had they refused to move, when called by the sound of the trumpet, either to
the solemn assembly, the onward march, or to the battle, how would they have fared?

The answer is as plain as a sunbeam. Let us ponder it. It has a lesson for us. Let us
apply our hearts to it. the silver trumpet settled and ordered every movement for Israel
of old. The testimony of God ought to settle and order everything for the Church now.
That silver trumpet was blown by the priests of old. That testimony of God is known
in priestly communion now. A Christian has no right to move or act apart from divine
testimony. He must wait upon the word of his Lord. Till he gets that, he must stand
still. When he has gotten it, he must go forward. God can and does communicate His
mind to His militant people now, just as distinctly as He did to His people of old.
True, it is not now by the sound of a trumpet, or the movement of a cloud; but by His
word and Spirit. It is not by anything that strikes the senses that our Father guides us;
But by that which acts on the heart, the conscience, and the understanding. It is not by
that which is natural, but by that which is spiritual, that He communicates His mind.

But let us be well assured of this, that our God can and does give our hearts full
certainty both as to what we should do, and what we should not do; as to where we
should go, and where we should not go. It seems strange to be obliged to insist upon
this—passing strange that any Christian should doubt, much less deny it. And yet so it
is. We are often in doubt and perplexity; and some there are who are ready to deny
that there can be any such thing as certainty as to the details of daily life and action.
This surely is wrong. Cannot an earthly father communicate his mind to his child as to
the most minute particulars of his conduct? Who will deny this? And cannot our
Father communicate His mind to us, as to all our ways, from day to day
Unquestionably He can; and let not the Christian reader be robbed of the holy
privilege of knowing his Father's mind in reference to every circumstance of his daily
life.

Are we to suppose, for a moment, that the Church of God is worse off, in the matter
of guidance, than the camp in the desert? Impossible. How is it, then, that one often
finds Christians at a loss as to their movements? It must be owing to the lack of a
circumcised ear to hear the sound of the silver trumpet, and of a subject will to yield a
response to the sound. It may, however, be said that we are not to expect to hear a
voice from heaven telling us to do this or that, or to go hither or thither; nor yet to find
a literal text of scripture to guide us in the minor matters of our every day history.
How, for example, is one to know whether he ought to visit a certain town, and
remain there a certain time? We reply, If the ear is circumcised, you will assuredly
hear the silver trumpet. Till that sounds, never stir: when it sounds, never tarry. This
will make all so clear, so simple, so safe, so certain. It is the grand cure for doubt,
hesitancy, and vacillation. It will save us from the necessity of running for advice to
this one and that one, as to how we should act, or where we should go. and,
furthermore, it will teach us that it is none of our business to attempt to control the
actions or movements of others. Let each one have his ear open, and his heart subject,
and then, assuredly, he will possess all the certainty that God can give him, as to his
every act and movement, from day to day. Our ever gracious God can give clearness
and decision as to everything. If he does not give it, no one can. If He does, no one
need.

Thus much as to the beautiful institution of the silver trumpet, which we shall not
pursue further now, though, as we have noticed above, it is not confined, in its
application to Israel in the wilderness, but is bound up with their entire history right
onward to the end. Thus we have the feast of trumpets; the trumpet of the jubilee; the
blowing of trumpets over their sacrifices, upon which we do not now dwell, as our
immediate object is to help the reader to seize the grand idea presented in the opening
paragraph of our chapter. May the Holy Spirit impress upon our hearts the needed
lesson of "the silver trumpets!''

We have now travelled, in our meditations on this precious book, the moment in the
which the camp is called to more forward. All is duly ordered, according to that grand
regulator—"The commandment of the Lord." Each man according to his pedigree,
and each tribe according to the standard thereof, is in the divinely appointed place.
The Levites are at their posts, each with his own clearly defined work to do. Full
provision is made for the cleansing of the camp from every species of defilement; and
not only so, but the lofty standard of personal holiness is unfurled, and the fruits of
active benevolence are presented. Then we have the golden candlestick and its seven
lamps, giving forth their pure and precious light. We have the pillar of fire and of
cloud; and, finally, the double testimony of the silver trumpet. In short, nothing is
lacking to the pilgrim host. A vigilant eye, a powerful hand, and a loving heart have
provided for every possible contingency, so that the whole congregation in the
wilderness, and each member in particular, might be "thoroughly furnished."

This is only what we might expect. If God undertakes to provide for any one, or for
any people, the provision, must of necessity, be perfect. It is wholly impossible that
God could omit any one thing needful. He knows all things, and can do all things.
Nothing can escape His vigilant eye; nothing is beyond His omnipotent hand. Hence,
therefore, all those who can truly say, "The Lord is my Shepherd," may add, without
hesitancy or reserve, "I shall not want.'' the soul that is, in truth and reality, leaning on
the arm of the living God can never—shall never—want any good thing. The poor
foolish heart may imagine a thousand wants; but God knows what we really want, and
He will provide for ALL.

Thus, then, the camp is ready to move; but, strange to say, there is a departure from
the order laid down in the opening of the book. The ark of the covenant, instead of
reposing in the bosom of the camp, goes in the very front. In other words, Jehovah,
instead of remaining in the centre of the congregation to be waited upon there,
actually condescends, in His marvellous, inimitable grace, to do the work of an avant-
courier, for His people.

But let us see what it is that leads to this touching display of grace. "And Moses said
unto Hobab, the son of Raguel the Midianite, Moses' father-in-law, We are journeying
unto the place of which the Lord said, I will give it you; come thou with us and we
will do thee good; for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel. And he said unto
him, I will not go; but I will depart to mine own land, and to my kindred. and he said,
Leave us not, I pray thee, forasmuch as thou knowest how we are to encamp in the
wilderness, and thou mayest be to us instead of eyes."

Now, if we did not know something of our own hearts, and the tendency thereof to
lean on the creature! rather than upon the living God, we might well marvel at the
above. We might feel disposed to enquire, What could Moses possibly want with
Hobab's eyes? Was not Jehovah sufficient? Did not He know the wilderness? Would
He suffer them to go astray? What o[ the cloud and the silver trumpet? were not they
better than Hobab's eyes? why, then, did Moses seek for human aid? Alas! alas! We
can but too well understand the reason. We all know, to our sorrow and loss, the
tendency of the heart to lean upon something that our eyes can see. We do not like to
occupy the ground of absolute dependence upon God for every step of the journey. we
find it hard to lean upon an unseen arm. A Hobab that we can see inspires as with
more confidence than the living God whom we cannot see. We move on with comfort
and satisfaction when we possess the countenance and help of some poor failing
mortal; but we hesitate, falter, and quail when called to move on in naked faith in
God.

These statements may seem strong; but the question is, are they true? Is there a
Christian who reads these lines that will not freely own that it is even so? We are all
prone to lean upon an arm of in flesh, and that, too, in the face of a thousand and one
examples of the folly of so doing. We have proved, times without number, the vanity
of All creature confidences, and yet we will confide in the creature. On the other
hand, we have, again and again, proved the reality of leaning upon the word and upon
the arm of the living God. We have found that He has never failed us, never
disappointed us, nay, that He has always done exceeding abundantly above all that we
ask or think; and yet we are ever ready to distrust Him, ever ready to lean upon any
broken reed, and betake ourselves to any broken cistern.

Thus it is with us; But, blessed be God, His grace abounds toward us, as it did toward
Israel, on the occasion to which we are now referring. If Moses will look to Hobab for
guidance, Jehovah will teach His Servant that He Himself is all-sufficient as a guide.
"and they departed from the mount of the Lord three days' journey; and the ark of the
covenant of the Lord went before them in the three days' journey, to search out a
resting place for them.

What rich, what precious grace! In place of their finding a resting-place for Him, He
would find a resting place for them. What a thought! The mighty God, the Creator of
the ends of the earth, going through the wilderness to look out for a suitable camping
ground for a people who were ready, at every turn in their path, to murmur and rebel
against Him!

Such is our God, ever "patient, gracious, powerful, holy"—ever rising, in the
magnificence of His grace above all our unbelief and failure, and proving Himself
superior, in His love, to all the barriers which our unfaithfulness would erect. He,
most assuredly, proved to Moses and to Israel, that He was far better as a guide than
ten thousand Hobabs. We are not told in this place, whether Hobab went or not. He
certainly refused the first appeal, and perhaps the second likewise. But we are told
that the Lord went with them. "The cloud of the Lord was upon them by day, when
they went out of the camp." Blessed shelter in the wilderness! Blessed, unfailing
resource, in everything! He went before His people to search them out a resting place,
and when He had found a spot suited to their need, He halted with them, and spread
His sheltering wing over them, to protect them from every foe. "He found him in a
desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, He instructed
him, He kept will as the apple of his eye. As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth
over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings;
so the Lord alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him." (Deut. 32:
10-12.) "He spread a Cloud for a covering, and fire to give light in the night." Psalm
105: 39.

Thus, then, all was provided for, according to the wisdom, power, and goodness of
God. Nothing was, or could be, lacking, inasmuch as God Himself was there. "And it
came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, Rise up, Lord, and let thine
enemies be scattered, and let them that hate thee flee before thee. And when it rested,
he said, Return, O Lord, unto the many thousands of Israel."

Numbers 11
Hitherto we have been occupied, in our study of this book, with God's mode of
ordering and providing for His people in the wilderness. We have travelled over the
first ten chapters and seen in them the illustration of the wisdom, goodness, and
forethought of Jehovah, the God of Israel.

But, now, we reach a point at which dark clouds gather round us. Up to this, God and
His actings have been before us; But, now, we are called to contemplate man and his
miserable ways. This is ever sad and humiliating. man is the same everywhere. In
Eden, in the restored earth, in the wilderness, in the land of Canaan, in the Church, in
the Millennium, man is proved to be a total failure. the very moment he moves, he
breaks down. Thus, in Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 God is seen acting as Creator;
everything is done and ordered in divine perfection, and man is placed in the scene to
enjoy the fruit of divine wisdom, goodness, and power. But in Genesis 3 all is
changed. The moment man acts, it is to disobey and bring in ruin and desolation. So
after the deluge, when the earth had passed through that deep and dreadful baptism,
and when man again takes his place therein, he exposes himself, and proves that, so
far from being able to subdue and govern the earth, he cannot even govern himself.
(Gen. 9) Hardly had Israel been brought out of Egypt, when they made the golden
calf. No sooner had the priesthood been set up, than the sons of Korah offered strange
fire. Directly Saul was made king, he proved wilful and disobedient.

So also when we turn to the pages of the New Testament, we find the same thing. No
sooner is the Church set up and adorned with Pentecostal gifts, than we hear the sad
accents of murmuring and discontent. In short, man's history, from first to Last, here,
there, and everywhere, is marked with failure. There is not so much as a single
exception from Eden down to the close of the millennial day.

It is well to consider this solemn and weighty fact, and to give it a deep place in the
heart. It is eminently calculated to correct all false notions as to man's real character
and condition. It is well to bear in mind that the awful sentence which struck terror
into the heart of the voluptuous king of Babylon has, in point of fact, been passed
upon the entire human race, and to" each individual son and daughter of fallen Adam,
namely, "Thou art weighed in the balance and found wanting." Has the reader fully
accepted this sentence against himself? This is a serious inquiry. We feel imperatively
called to press it home. Say, reader, art thou one of Wisdom's children? Dost thou
justify God and condemn thyself? Hast thou taken thy place as a self-destroyed,
guilty, hell-deserving sinner? If so, Christ is for thee. He died to put away sin, and to
bear your many sins. Only trust him and all He is and has is thine. He is thy wisdom,
thy righteousness, thy sanctification, and thy redemption. All who simply and heartily
believe in Jesus have passed clean off the old ground of guilt and condemnation, and
are seen by God on the new ground of eternal life and divine righteousness. They are
accepted in the risen and victorious Christ. As he is, so are we in this world." 1 John
4: 17.

We would earnestly entreat the reader not to rest until this most momentous question
is clearly and thoroughly settled in the light of God's own word and presence. we pray
that God the Holy Ghost may deeply exercise the heart and conscience of the
unconverted and undecided reader, and lead such to the Saviour's feet.

We shall now proceed with our chapter.
"And when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; and the Lord heard it; and
his anger was kindled; and the fire of the Lord burnt among them, and consumed
them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp. And the people cried unto Moses;
and when Moses prayed unto the Lord, the fire was quenched. And he called the name
of the place Taberah: because the fire of the Lord burnt among them. And the mixed
multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept
again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat? we remember the fish which we did
eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and
the garlic. But now our soul is dried away; there is nothing at all, beside this manna,
before our eyes."

Here the poor human heart lets itself thoroughly out. Its tastes and its tendencies are
made manifest. The people sigh after the land of Egypt, and cast back wistful looks-
after its fruits and its fleshpots. They do not say anything about the lash of the
taskmaster, and the toil of the brick-kilns. There is total silence as to these things.
Nothing is remembered now, save those resources by which Egypt had ministered to
the lusts of nature.How often is this the case with us! When once the heart loses its
freshness in the divine life—when heavenly things begin to lose their savour—when
first love declines—when Christ ceases to be a satisfying and altogether precious
portion for the soul—when the word of God and prayer lose their charm and become
heavy, dull, and mechanical; then the eye wanders back toward the world, the heart
follows the eye, and the feet follow the heart. We forget, at such moments, what the
world was to us when we were in it and of it. We forget what toil and slavery, what
misery and degradation, we found in the service of sin and of Satan, and think only of
the gratification and ease, the freedom from those painful exercises, conflicts, and
anxieties which attend upon the wilderness path of God's people.

All this is most sad, and should lead the soul into the most profound self-judgement.
It is terrible when those who have set out to follow the Lord begin to grow weary of
the way and of God's provision. How dreadful must those words have sounded in the
ear of Jehovah, "But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this
manna, before our eyes." Ah! Israel, what more didst thou need? Was not that
heavenly food enough for thee! Couldst thou not live upon that which the hand of thy
God had provided for thee?

Do we count ourselves free to ask such questions? Do we always find our heavenly
manna sufficient for us? What means the enquiry inquiry raised by professing
Christians as to the right or wrong of such and such worldly pursuits and pleasures?
Have we not even heard from the lips of persons making the very highest profession
such words as these," How are we to fill up the day! We cannot be always thinking
about Christ and heavenly things. We must have some little recreation." Is not this
somewhat akin to Israel's language in Numbers 11? Yes truly; and as is the language,
so is the acting. We prove, alas! that Christ is not enough for the heart, by the
palpable fact of our betaking ourselves to other things. How often, for example, does
the Bible lie neglected for hours, while the light and worthless literature of the world
is greedily devoured. What mean the well-thumbed newspaper and the almost dust-
covered Bible? Do not these things tell a tale? Is not this despising the manna, and
sighing after, nay, devouring, the leeks and onions?

We specially call the attention of young Christians to that which is now before us. We
are deeply impressed with a sense of their danger of falling into the very sin of Israel
as recorded in our chapter. No doubt we are all in danger; but the young amongst us
are peculiarly so. Those of us who are advanced in life are not so likely to be drawn
away by the frivolous pursuits of the world—by its concerts, its flower shows, its
pleasure parties, its vain songs and light literature. But the young will have a dash of
the world. They long to taste it for themselves. They do not find Christ an all
sufficient portion for the heart. They want recreation.

Alas! alas! what a thought! How sad to hear a Christian say, "I want. some recreation.
How can I fill up the day? I cannot be always thinking of Jesus." we should like to ask
all who speak thus, How will you fill up eternity? Shall not Christ be sufficient to fill
up its countless ages? Shall you want recreation there? Will you sigh for light
literature, vain songs, and frivolous pursuits there?

It will, perhaps, be said, "we shall be different then." in what respect? We have the
divine nature—we have the Holy Ghost—we have Christ for our portion—we belong
to Heaven we are brought to God. "But we have an evil nature in us." Well, are we to
cater for that? Is it for that we crave recreation? must we try to help our wretched
flesh—our corrupt nature—to fill up the day? Nay, we are called to deny it, to mortify
it, to reckon it dead. This is Christian recreation. This is the mode in which the saint
is called to fill up His day. How is it possible for us to grow in the divine life if we are
only making provision for the flesh? Egypt's food cannot nourish the new nature; and
the great question for us is this, which do we really mean to nourish and cherish—the
new or the old? It must be obvious that the divine nature cannot possibly feed upon
newspapers, vain songs, and light literature; and Hence, if we give ourselves, in any
measure, to these" latter, our souls must wither and droop.

May we have grace to think of these things—to think seriously. May we so walk in
the Spirit that Christ may ever be a satisfying portion for our hearts. Had Israel, in the
wilderness, walked with God, they never could have said, "Our soul is dried away:
there is nothing at all beside this manna before our eyes."

That manna would have been quite enough for them. And so with us. If we really
walk with God, in this wilderness world, our souls shall be satisfied with the portion
which He gives, and that portion is heavenly Christ. Can He ever fail to satisfy? Does
He not satisfy the heart of God? Does He not fill all heaven with His glory? Is He not
the theme of angels' song, and the object of their adoring homage and wondering
worship? Is He not the one grand subject of everlasting counsels and purposes? Doth
not the history of His ways overlap, eternity?

What answer have we to give to all these queries? what but a hearty, unreserved,
unhesitating, YES? Well, then, is not this blessed One, in the deep mystery of His
Person, in the moral glory of His ways, in the brightness and blessedness of His
character, is not He enough for our hearts! Do we want anything beside? Must we get
the newspaper or some light magazine to fill up the vacuum in our souls? Must we
turn from Christ to a flower show or a concert?

Alas! that we should have to write thus. It is most sad but it is most needful; and we
here put this question most pointedly to the leader, Dost thou really find Christ
insufficient to satisfy thy heart? Hast thou cravings which He does not fully meet? If
so, thou art in a very alarming condition of soul, and it behoves thee to look at once,
and to look closely, into this solemn matter. Get down on thy face before God, in
honest self-judgment. Pour out thy heart to Him. Tell Him all. Own to Him how thou
hast fallen and wandered—as surely thou must have done when God's Christ is not
enough fur thee. Have it all out in secret with thy God, and take no rest until thou art
fully and blessedly restored to communion with Himself—to heart fellowship with
Him about the Son of His love.

But we must return to our chapter, and in so doing we call the readers attention to an
expression full of weighty admonition for us: "And the mixed multitude that was
among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again." There is
nothing more damaging to the cause of Christ or to the souls of His people than
association with men of mixed principles. It is very much more dangerous than having
to do with open and avowed enemies. Satan knows this well, and hence his constant
effort to lead the Lord's people to link themselves with those who are only half and
half; or, on the other hand, to introduce spurious materials-false professors, into the
midst of those who are seeking, in any measure, to pursue a path of separation from
the world. We have repeated allusions to this special character of evil, in the New
Testament. We have it both prophetically in the Gospels, and historically in the: Acts
and in the Epistles. Thus we have the tares and the leaven in Matthew 13. Then in the
Acts we find persons attaching themselves to the assembly who were like the "mixed
multitude'' of Numbers 11. And, finally, we have apostolic reference to spurious
materials introduced by the enemy for the purpose of corrupting the testimony and
subverting the souls of God's people. Thus the apostle Paul speaks of "false brethren
unawares brought in." (Gal. 2: 4) Jude also speaks of "certain men crept in unawares."
Verse 4.

From all this we learn the urgent need of vigilance on the part of God's people; and
not only of vigilance, but also of absolute dependence upon the Lord, who alone can
preserve them from the entrance in of false materials, and keep them free from all
contact with men of mixed principles and doubtful character. "the mixed multitude" is
sure to "fall a lusting," and the people of God are in imminent danger of being drawn
away from their proper simplicity, and of growing weary of the heavenly manna—
their proper food. What is needed is, plain decision for Christ; thorough devotedness
to Him and to His cause. Where a company Of believers are enabled to go on in
whole-heartedness for Christ and in marked separation from this present world, there
is not so much danger of persons of equivocal character seeking a place among them;
though doubtless Satan will always seek to mar the testimony by the introduction of
hypocrites. Such persons do obtain an entrance, and then by their evil ways bring
reproach on the Lord's name. Satan knew full well what he was doing, when he led
the mixed multitude to attach themselves to the congregation of Israel. It was not all
at once that the effect of this admixture was made manifest. The people had come
forth with a high hand; they had passed through the Red Sea, and raised the song of
victory on its banks. All looked bright and promising; but "the mixed multitude" were
there, notwithstanding, and the effect of their presence was very speedily made
apparent.

Thus it is ever, in the history of God's people. We may notice, in those great spiritual
movements which have taken place from age to age, certain elements of decay which,
at the first, were hidden from view by the flowing tide of grace and energy; but when
that tide began to ebb, then those elements made their appearance.

This is very serious, and calls for much holy watchfulness. It applies to individuals
just as forcibly as to the people of God collectively. In our early moments, our young
days, when zeal and freshness characterised us, the spring tide of grace rose so
blessedly that many things were allowed to escape unjudged, which were, in reality,
seeds flung into the ground by the enemy's hand, and which, in due season, are sure to
germinate and fructify. Hence it follows that both assemblies of Christians and
individual Christians should ever be on the watch tower—ever keeping jealous guard
lest the enemy gain an advantage in this matter. Where the heart is true to Christ, all
is sure to come right in the end. Our God is so gracious, He takes care of us and
preserves us from a thousand snares. May we learn to trust him and to praise Him!

But we have further lessons to draw from the weighty section which lies open before
us. Not only have we to contemplate failure on the part of the congregation of Israel;
but even Moses himself is seen faltering and almost sinking beneath the weight of his
responsibility. "And Moses said unto the Lord, Wherefore hast thou afflicted thy
servant? and wherefore have I not found favour in thy sight, that thou layest the
burden of all this people upon me? Have I conceived all this people? have I begotten
them, that thou shouldest say unto me, carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father
beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers?
Whence should I have flesh to give unto, all this people? for they weep unto me,
saying, Give as flesh, that we may eat; I am not able to bear all this people alone,
because it is too heavy for me. And if thou deal thus with me, kill me, I pray thee, out
of hand, if I have found favour in thy sight; and let me not see my wretchedness."
Verses 11-15.

This is truly wonderful language. It is not that we would think for a moment of
dwelling upon the failures and infirmities of so dear and so devoted a servant as
Moses. Far be the thought. It would ill become us to comment upon the actings or the
sayings of one of whom the Holy Ghost has declared that "he was faithful in all his
house." (Heb. 3: 2) Moses, like all the Old Testament saints, has taken his place
amongst the "Spirits Of just men made perfect," and every inspired Allusion to him
throughout the pages of the New Testament tends only to put honour upon him, and to
set him forth as a most precious vessel.

But still we are bound to ponder the inspired history now before us—history penned
by Moses himself. True it is—blessedly true—that the defects and failures of God's
people, in Old Testament times, are not commented upon in the New Testament; yet
are they recorded, with faithful accuracy, in the Old; and wherefore? Is it not for our
learning? Unquestionably. "Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written
for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have
hope." Romans 15: 4.

What then are we to learn from the remarkable outburst of feeling recorded in
Numbers 11: 11-15? We learn this at least, that it is the wilderness that really brings
out what is in the very best of us. It is there we prove what is in our hearts. and,
inasmuch as the Book of Numbers is, emphatically, the book of the wilderness, it is
just there we might expect to find all sorts of failure and infirmity fully unfolded. the
Spirit of God faithfully chronicles everything. He gives us men as they are; and even
though it be a Moses that "speaks unadvisedly with his lips," that very unadvised
speaking is recorded for our admonition and instruction. Moses "was a man subject to
like passions as we are;" and it is very evident that, in the portion of his history now
before us, his heart sinks under the tremendous weight of his responsibilities.

It will, perhaps, be said, "No wonder his heart should sink." No wonder, surely, for his
burden was far too heavy for human shoulders. But the question is, was it too heavy
for divine shoulders? Was it really the case that Moses was called to bear the burden
alone? Was not the living God with him? And was not He sufficient What did it
matter whether God were pleased to act by one man or by ten thousand? All the
power, all the wisdom, all the grace, was in Him. He is the fountain of all blessedness,
and, in the judgement of which, it makes not one whit of difference as to the channel,
or whether there is one channel, or a thousand and one.

This is a fine moral principle for all the servants of Christ. It is most needful for all
such to remember that whenever the Lord places a man in a position of responsibility,
He will both fit him for it and maintain him in it. It is, of course, another thing
altogether if a man will rush unsent into any field of work, or any post of difficulty of
danger. In such a case, we may assuredly look for a thorough break down, sooner or
later. But when God calls a man to a certain position, be will endow him with the
needed grace to occupy it. He never sends any one a warfare at his own charges; and
therefore all we have to do is to draw upon Him for all we need. This holds good in
every case. We can never fail if we only cling to the living God. We can never run
dry, if we are drawing from the fountain. Our tiny springs will soon dry up; but our
Lord Jesus Christ declares that, "He that believeth in me, as the scripture hath said,
out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."

This is a grand lesson for the wilderness. We cannot get on without it. Had Moses
fully understood it, he never would have given utterance to such words as these:
"'Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people" He would have fixed his eye
only upon God. He would have known that he was but on instrument in the hands of
God, whose resources were illimitable. assuredly, Moses could not supply that vast
assembly with food even far a single day; but Jehovah could supply the need of every
living thing, and supply it for ever.

Do we really believe this? Does it not sometimes appear as though we doubted it? Do
we not sometimes feel as though we were to supply instead of God? And then is it any
marvel if we quail, and falter, and sink? Well indeed might Moses say, "I am not able
to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me." There was only one heart
that could bear with such a company, namely, the heart of that blessed One, who,
when they were toiling amid the brick-kilns of Egypt, had come down to deliver
them, and who, having redeemed them out of the hand of the enemy, had taken up His
abode in their midst. He was able to bear them, and He alone. His loving heart and
mighty hand were alone adequate to the task; and if Moses had been in the full power
of this great truth, He would not and could not have said, "If thou deal thus with me,
kill me, I play thee, out of hand, if I have found favour in thy sight and let we not see
my wretchedness."

This surely was a dark moment in the history of this illustrious servant of God. It
reminds us somewhat of the prophet Elijah, when he flung himself at the base of the
juniper tree and entreated the Lord to take away his life. How wonderful to see those
two men together on the mount of transfiguration! It proves, in a very marked way,
that God's thoughts are not as ours, nor His ways as ours. He had something better in
store for Moses and Elijah than anything that they contemplated. Blessed be His
name, He rebukes our fears by the riches of His grace, and when our poor hearts
would anticipate death and wretchedness, He gives life, victory, and glory.

However, we cannot but see, that, in shrinking from a position of weighty
responsibility, Moses was really giving up a place of high dignity and holy privilege.
This seems most evident from the following passage. "And the Lord said unto Moses,
Gather unto Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the
elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the
congregation, that they may stand there with thee. And I will come down and talk
with thee there; and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee and will put it upon
them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not
thyself alone." Verses 16, 17.

Was there any additional power gained by the introduction of seventy men? Not
spiritual power certainly, inasmuch as it was only the spirit that was upon Moses,
after all. True, there were seventy men instead of one; but the multiplication of men
was no increase of spiritual power. It saved Moses trouble, but it lost him dignity. He
was henceforth to be a joint instrument instead of the sole one. It may be said that
Moses—blessed servant as he was!—did not want dignity for himself, but rather
sought a shady, retired, humble path. No doubt; but this does not touch the question
before us. Moses, as we shall see presently, was the meekest man upon the face of the
earth; nor do we mean even to hint that any mere man would have done better under
the circumstances. But then we must seek to bear away with us the great practical
lesson which our chapter so impressively teaches. the very best of men fail; and it
seems exceedingly plain that Moses, in the eleventh chapter of Numbers, was not in
the calm elevation of faith. He appears, for the moment, to have lost that even balance
of soul which is the sure result of finding one's centre in the living God. We gather
this, not merely from the fact of his tottering beneath the weight of his responsibility;
but let us ponder the following paragraph.

"And say thou unto the people, Sanctify yourselves against to-morrow, and ye shall
eat flesh: for ye have wept in the ears of the Lord, saying, Who shall give us flesh to
eat? for it was well with us in Egypt: therefore the Lord will give you flesh, and ye
shall eat. Ye shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor
twenty days; but even a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it be
loathsome unto you: because that ye have despised the Lord which is among you, and
have wept before him, Saying, Why came we forth out of Egypt? And Moses said,
The people, among whom I am, are six hundred thousand footmen; and thou hast
said, I will give them flesh, that they may eat a whole month. Shall the flocks and the
herds be slain for them to suffice them? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered
together for them, to suffice them? And the Lord said unto Moses, Is the Lord's hand
waxed short? thou shalt see now whether my word will come to pass unto thee or
not." Verses 18-23.

In all this we see the working of that spirit of unbelief which ever tends to limit the
Holy One of Israel. Could not the Almighty God, the Possessor of heaven and earth,
the Creator of the ends of the earth—could not fail provide flesh for six hundred
thousand footmen? Alas! it is just here we all so sadly fail. We do not enter, as we
ought, into the reality of having to do with the living God. Faith brings God into the
scene, and therefore it knows absolutely nothing of difficulties; yea, it laughs at
impossibilities. In the judgement of faith, God is the grand answer to every
question—the grand solution of every difficulty. It refers all to Him; and hence, it
matters not in the least to faith, whether it be six hundred thousand or six hundred
millions; it knows that God is all-sufficient. It finds all its resources in Him. Unbelief
says, "How can such and such things be?" It is full of" Hows; but faith has one great
answer to ten thousand "hows," and that answer is—God.

"And Moses went out, and told the people the words of the Lord, and gathered the
seventy men of the elders of the people, and set them round about the tabernacle. And
the Lord came down in a cloud, and spake unto him, and took of the spirit that was
upon him, and gave it unto the seventh elders; and it came to pass, that when the spirit
rested upon them, they prophesied, And did not cease."

The true secret of all ministry is spiritual power. It is not man's genius, or man's
intellect, or man's energy; but simply the power of the Spirit of God. This was true in
the days of Moses, and it is true now. "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit,
saith the Lord of hosts." (Zech. 4: 6) It is well for all ministers to bear this ever in
mind. It will sustain the heart and give constant freshness to their ministry. A ministry
which flows from abiding dependence upon the Holy Ghost can never become barren.
If a man is drawing upon his own resources, he will soon run dry. It matters not what
his powers may be, or how extensive his reading, or how vast his stores of
information; if the Holy Ghost be not the spring and power of his ministry, it must,
sooner or later, lose its freshness and its effectiveness.

How important therefore that all who minister, whether in the gospel or in the Church
of God, should lean continually and exclusively on the power of the Holy Ghost! He
knows what souls need, and He can supply it. But He must be trusted and used. It will
not do to lean partly on self and partly on the Spirit of God. If there be anything of
self-confidence, it will soon be made apparent. We must really get at the bottom of all
that belongs to self, if we are to be the vessels of the Holy Ghost.

It is not—need we say it?—that there should not be holy diligence and earnestness in
the study of God's word, and in the study too, of exercises, the trials, the conflicts, and
the varied difficulties of souls. Quite the reverse. We feel persuaded that the more
absolutely we lean, in self-emptiness, upon the mighty power of the Holy Ghost, the
more diligently and earnestly we shall study both the Book and the soul. It would be a
fatal mistake for a man to use professed dependence upon the Spirit as a plea for
neglecting prayerful study and meditation. "Meditate upon these things; give thyself
wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all." 1 Timothy 4: 15.

But, after all, let it ever be remembered that the holy Ghost is the ever living, never
failing spring of ministry. It is He alone that can bring forth in divine freshness and
fullness, the treasures of God's word, and apply them, in heavenly power, to the soul's
present need. It is not a question of bringing forth new truth, but simply of unfolding
the word itself, and bringing it to bear upon the moral and spiritual condition of the
people of God. This is true ministry. A man may speak a hundred times on the same
portion of scripture, to the same people, and, on each occasion, he may minister
Christ, in spiritual freshness, to their souls. And, on the other hand, a man may rack
his brain to find out new subjects, and new modes of handling old themes, and, all the
while, there may not be one atom of Christ or of spiritual power in his ministry.

All this holds good in reference to the evangelist, as well as to the teacher or pastor. A
man may be called to preach the gospel in the same place for years, and he may, at
times, feel burdened by the thought of having to address the same audience, on the
same theme, week after week, month after month, year after year. He may feel at a
loss for something new, something fresh, some variety. He may wish to get away into
some new sphere, where the subjects which are familiar to him will be new to the
people. It will greatly help such to remember that the one grand theme of the
evangelist is Christ. The power to handle that theme is the Holy Ghost; and the one to
whom that theme is to be unfolded is the poor lost sinner. Now, Christ is ever new;
the power of the Spirit is ever fresh; the soul's condition and destiny ever intensely
interesting. Furthermore, it is well for the evangelist to bear in mind, on every fresh
occasion of rising to preach, that those to whom he preaches are really ignorant of the
gospel, and hence he should preach as though it were the very first time his audience
had ever heard the message, and the first time he had ever delivered it. For, be it
remembered, the preaching of the gospel, in the divine acceptation of the phrase, is
not a barren statement of mere evangelical doctrine—a certain form of words
enunciated over and over again in wearisome routine. Far from it. To preach the
gospel is really to unfold the heart of God, the person and work of Christ; and all this
by the present energy of the holy Ghost, from the exhaustless treasury of holy
scripture.

May all preachers keep these things before the mind, and then it will not matter
whether it be one preacher or seventy, one man in the same place for fifty years, or
the same man in fifty different places in one year. the question is not at all as to new
men or new places, but simply and entirely as to the power of the Holy Ghost
unfolding Christ to the soul. Thus in the case of Moses, as recorded in our chapter,
there was no increase of power. It was the spirit that was upon him given to the
seventy elders. God can act by one man just as well as by seventy; and if He does not
act, seventy are no more than one. It is of the very utmost importance to keep God
ever before the soul. This is the true secret of power and freshness whether for the
evangelist, the teacher, or any one else. When a man can say, "all my springs are in
God," he need not be troubled as to a sphere of work, or competency to fill it. But
when this is not so, we can well understand why a man should sigh for a division of
labour and responsibility. We may remember, at the opening of the book of Exodus,
how unwilling Moses was to go into Egypt, in simple dependence upon God, and how
readily he went in company with Aaron. Thus it is ever. We like something tangible,
something that the eye can see, and the hand can handle. We find it hard to endure as
seeing Him who is invisible. And yet the very props we lean upon often prove to be
broken reeds that pierce the hand. Aaron proved to be a fruitful source of sorrow to
Moses; and those whom we, in our folly, imagine to be indispensable coadjutors,
frequently turn out the very reverse. O that we may All learn to lean, with an
undivided heart, and unshaken confidence, upon the living God.

But we must draw this section to a close, and ere doing so, we shall just glance for a
moment at the truly excellent spirit in which Moses meets the new circumstances in
which he had placed himself. It is one thing to shrink from the weight of
responsibility and care, and it is quite another thing to carry oneself with grace and
genuine humility toward those who are called to share that weight with us. The two
things are totally different, and we may often see the differences strikingly illustrated.
In the scene now before us, Moses manifests that exquisite meekness which so
specially characterised him. "But there remained two of the (seventy) men in the
camp, the name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad: and the spirit
rested upon them; and they were of them that were written, but went not out unto the
tabernacle: and they prophesied in the camp. And there ran a young man, and told
Moses, and said, Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp. And Joshua the son of
Nun, the servant of Moses, one of his young men, answered and said, My lord Moses,
forbid them. and Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? Would God that all
the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his Spirit upon them!"

This is perfectly beautiful. Moses was far removed from that wretched spirit of envy
which would let no one speak but himself. He was prepared, by grace, to rejoice in
any and every manifestation of true spiritual power, no matter where or through
whom. He knew full well that there could be no right prophesying save by the power
of the Spirit of God; and wherever that power was exhibited, who was he that he
should seek to quench or hinder?

Would there were more of this excellent spirit! May we each cultivate it! May we
have grace to rejoice unfeignedly in the testimony and service of all the Lord's people,
even though we may not see eye to eye with them, and though our mode and our
measure may vary. Nothing can be more contemptible than that petty spirit of envy
and jealousy which will not permit a man to take an interest in any work but his own.
We may rest assured that where the spirit of Christ is in action in the heart, there will
be the ability to go out and embrace the wide field of our blessed Master's work and
all His beloved workmen: there will be the hearty rejoicing in having the work done,
no matter who is the doer of it. A man whose heart is full of Christ will be able to
say—and to say it without affectation, "Provided the work is done—provided Christ is
glorified—provided souls are saved—provided the Lord's flock is cared for and fed, it
matters nothing to me who does the work."

This is the right spirit to cultivate, and it stands out in bright contrast with the
narrowness and self occupation which can only rejoice in work in which "I, myself
have a prominent place. may the Lord deliver us from all this, and enable us to
cherish that temper of soul expressed by Moses when he said, "Enviest thou for my
sake? Would God that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would
put his spirit upon them?"

The closing paragraph of our chapter shows us the people in the miserable and fatal
enjoyment of that for which their hearts had lusted. "He gave them their request, but
sent leanness into their soul." They got what they longed for and found it death. They
would have flesh; and with the flesh came the judgement of God. This is most
solemn. May we heed the warning! The poor heart is full of vain desires and hateful
lusts. the heavenly manna fails to satisfy. There must be Something else. God allows
us to have it. But what then? Leanness—barrenness—judgement! O Lord, keep our
hearts fixed on thyself alone and at all times! Be thou the ever satisfying portion of
our souls, while we tread this desert, and till we see thy face in glory!

Numbers 12
The brief section of our book to which we now approach may be viewed in two
distinct aspects; in the first place, it is typical or dispensational; and, in the second,
moral or practical.

In the union of Moses with "the Ethiopian woman," we have a type of that great and
marvellous mystery, the union of the Church with Christ her Head. This subject has
come before us in our study of the Book of Exodus; but we see it here, in a peculiar
light, as that which evokes the enmity of Aaron and Miriam. the sovereign actings of
grace draw forth the opposition of those who stand upon the ground of natural
relationship and fleshly privilege. We know, from the teaching of the New Testament,
that the extension of grace to the Gentiles was that which ever elicited the fiercest and
most terrible hatred of the Jews. They would not have it; they would not believe in it;
nay, they would not even hear of it. There is a very remarkable allusion to this in the
eleventh chapter of Romans, where the apostle, referring to the gentiles, says," For as
ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their
unbelief: even so have these [Jews] also now not believed in your mercy [or in mercy
to you] that they also may obtain mercy." Verses 30, 31; see Greek.

This is precisely what we have typically presented in the history of Moses. He, first of
all, presented himself to Israel, his brethren according to the flesh; but they, in
unbelief, rejected him. They thrust him from them, and would not have him. This
became, in the sovereignty of God, the occasion of mercy to the stranger, for it was
during the period of Moses' rejection by Israel that he formed the mystic and typical
union with a Gentile bride. Against this union Miriam and Aaron speak, in the chapter
before us; and their opposition brings down the judgement of God. Miriam becomes
leprous—a poor defiled thing—a proper subject of mercy, which flows out to her
through the intercession of the very one against whom she had spoken.

The type is complete and most striking. The Jews have not believed in the glorious
truth of mercy to the Gentiles, and therefore wrath has come upon them to the
uttermost. But they will be brought in, by and by, on the ground of simple mercy, just
as the Gentiles have come in. This is very humiliating to those who sought to stand on
the ground of promise and national privilege; but thus it is in the dispensational
wisdom of God, the very thought of which draws forth from the inspired apostle that
magnificent doxology, "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge
of God! how unsearchable are his judgements, and his ways past finding out! For who
hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counselor? or who hath first
given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through
him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen."

Thus much as to the typical bearing of our chapter; Let as now look at it in its moral
and practical bearing. "And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the
Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman. and
they said, Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us?
And the Lord heard it. (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which
were upon the face of the earth.) And the Lord spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto
Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation.
And they three came out. And the Lord: came down in the pillar of the cloud, and
stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came
forth. And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord.
will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.
My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house. With him will I speak
mouth to month, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the
Lord shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant
Moses? And the anger of the Lord was kindled against them; and he departed. And
the cloud departed-from off the tabernacle; and, behold, Miriam became leprous,
white as snow: and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous. Verses
1-10.

It is a most serious thing for any one to speak against the Lord's servant. We may rest
assured that God will deal with it, sooner or later. In the case of Miriam, the divine
judgement came down suddenly and solemnly. It was a grievous wrong, yea, it was
positive rebellion, to speak against the one whom God had so markedly raised up and
clothed with a divine commission; and who, moreover, in the very matter of which
they complained, had acted in full consonance with the counsels of God, and
furnished a type of that glorious mystery which was hidden in His eternal mind, even
the union of Christ and the Church.

But, in any case, it is a fatal mistake to speak against the very feeblest and humblest
of God's servants. If the servant does wrong—if he is in error, if he has failed in
anything—the Lord Himself will deal with him; but let the fellow servants beware
how they attempt to take the matter into their hands, lest they be found like Miriam,
meddling to their own hurt.

It is very awful to hear, at times, the way in which people allow themselves to speak
and write about Christ's servants. True, these latter may give occasion; they may have
made mistakes, and manifested a wrong spirit and temper; but we must confess we
feel it to be a very dreadful sin against Christ to speak evil of His dear servants.
Surely we ought to feel the weight and solemnity of these words, "Wherefore then
were ye not afraid to speak. against my servant?"

May God give as grace to watch against this sore evil Let us see to it that we be not
found doing that which is so offensive to Him, even speaking against those who are
dear to His heart. There is not a single one of God's people in whom we cannot find
some good thing, provided only we look for it in the right way. Let us be occupied
only with the good; let us dwell upon that, and seek to strengthen and develop it, in
every possible way. And, on the other hand, if we have not been able to discover the
good thing in our brother and fellow-servant; if our eye has only detected the crooked
thing; if we have not succeeded in finding the vital spark amid the ashes—the
precious gem among the surrounding rubbish; if we have only seen what was of mere
nature, why then let us, with a loving and delicate hand, draw the curtain of silence
around our brother, or speak of him only at the throne of grace.

So also when we happen to be in company with those who indulge in the wicked
practice of speaking against the Lord's people, if we cannot succeed in changing the
current of the conversation, let us rise and leave the place, thus bearing testimony
against that which is so hateful to Christ. Let us never sit by and listen to a backbiter.
We may rest assured he is doing the work of the devil, and inflicting positive injury
upon three distinct parties, namely, Himself, his hearer, and the subject of his
censorious remarks.

There is something perfectly beautiful in the way. in which Moses carries himself, in
the scene before us. Truly he proved himself a meek man, not only in the matter of
Eldad and Medad, But also in the more trying matter of Miriam and Aaron. As to the
former, instead of being jealous of those who were called to share his dignity and
responsibility, he rejoiced in their work, and prayed that all the Lord's people might
taste the same holy privilege. and, as to the latter, instead of cherishing any feeling of
resentment against his brother and sister, he was ready, al once, to take the place of
intercession. "And Aaron said unto Moses, Alas, my lord, I beseech thee, lay not the
sin upon us, wherein we have done foolishly, and wherein we have sinned. Let her not
be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed when he cometh out of his
mother's womb. And Moses cried unto The Lord, saying, Heal her now, O God, I
beseech thee." Verses 11-13.

Here Moses breathes the spirit of His Master, and prays for those who had spoken so
bitterly against him. 'This was victory—the victory of a meek man—the victory of
grace. a man who knows his right place in the presence of God is able to rise above
all evil speaking. He is not troubled by it, save for those who practice it. He can afford
to forgive it. He is not touchy, tenacious, or self-occupied. He knows that no one can
put him lower than He deserves to be; and, hence, if any speak against him, he can
meekly bow his head and pass on, leaving himself and his cause in the hands of Him
who judgeth righteously, and who will assuredly reward every man according to his
works.

This is true dignity. May we understand it somewhat better, and then we shall not be
so ready to take fire if any one thinks proper to speak disparagingly of us or of our
work; nay, more, we shall be able to lift up our hearts in earnest prayer for them, and
thus draw down blessing on them and on our own souls.

The few closing lines of our chapter confirm the typical or dispensational view which
we have ventured to suggest. "And the Lord said unto Moses, If her father had but spit
in her face, should she not be ashamed seven days? Let her be shut out from the camp
seven days, and after that let her be received in again. And Miriam was shut out from
the camp seven days: and the people journeyed not till Miriam was brought in again.
And afterward the people removed from Hazeroth and pitched in the wilderness of
Paran." (Ver. 14-16.) We may regard Miriam, thus shut out of the camp, as a figure of
the present condition of the nation of Israel, who, in consequence of their implacable
opposition to the divine thought of mercy to the gentile, are set aside. But when the
"seven days" have run their course, Israel shall be restored, on the ground of sovereign
grace exercised toward them through the intercession of Christ.

Numbers 13
"And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Send thou men that they may search the
land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers
shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them. And Moses by the commandment
of the Lord sent them from the wilderness of Paran." Verses 1-3.

In order fully to understand the foregoing commandment, we must look at it in
connection with a passage in the Book of Deuteronomy, where Moses, in going over
the facts of Israel's marvellous history in the wilderness, reminds them of the
following important and interesting circumstance: "And when we departed from
Horeb, we went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which ye saw by the
way of the mountain of the Amorites, as the Lord our God commanded us; and we
came to Kadesh-Barnea. and I said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the
Amorites, which the Lord our God doth give unto us. Behold, the Lord thy God hath
set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said
unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged. And ye came near unto me every one of
you, and said, we will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land, and
bring us word again by what way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come."
Deut. 1: 19-22.

Now here we have the moral root of the fact stated in Numbers 13: 2. It is evident that
the Lord gave the commandment concerning the spies because of the moral condition
of the people. Had they been governed by simple faith, they would have acted on
those soul-stirring words of Moses, "Behold, the Lord thy God hath set the land before
thee: go up and possess it, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not,
neither be discouraged." There is not a single syllable about spies, in this splendid
passage. What does faith want of spies, when it has the word and the presence of the
living God? If Jehovah had given them a land, it must be worth having. And had He
not? Yes, truly; and not only so, but He had borne testimony to the nature and
character of that land in the following glowing words," For the Lord thy God bringeth
thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring
out of valleys and hills; a land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and
pomegranates, a land of oil olive and honey; a land wherein thou shalt eat bread
without scarceness, thou shalt not lack anything in it; a land whose stones are iron,
and out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass." Deut 8: 7-9.

Should not all this have sufficed for Israel? Ought they not to have been satisfied with
the testimony of God? had not He spied out the land for them, and told them all about
it? And was not this enough? What need of sending men to spy the land? Did not God
know all about it! Was there a spot "from Dan to Beersheba" with which he was not
perfectly acquainted? Had He not selected this land and allotted it, in His own eternal
counsels, for the seed of Abraham His friend? Did He not know all about the
difficulties? and was He not able to surmount them? Why, then, did they "come near
every one of them, and say, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out
the land, and bring us word again!"

Ah! reader, these questions come right home to our hearts. they find us out, and make
thoroughly manifest where we are. It is not for us to sit down and coolly animadvert
upon the ways of Israel in the wilderness; to point out error here, and failure there?
We must take all these things as types set before us for our admonition. They are
beacons, erected by a friendly and faithful hand, to warn us off from the dangerous
shoals, quicksands, and rocks which lie along our course, and threaten our safety.
This, we may be sure, is the true way to read every page of Israel's history, if we
would reap the profit which our God has designed for us in penning such a record.

But, it may be the reader is disposed to ask a question here. "Did not the Lord
expressly command Moses to send spies. And if so, how was it wrong for Israel to
send them? True, the Lord did command Moses to send the spies, in Numbers 13; but
this was in consequence of the moral condition of the people, as set forth in
Deuteronomy 1. We shall not understand the former unless we read it in the light of
the latter. we learn, most distinctly, From Deuteronomy 1: 22, that the idea of sending
the spies had its origin in the heart of Israel. God saw their moral condition, and He
issued a command in full keeping therewith.

If the reader will turn to the opening pages of the first book of Samuel, he will find
something similar in the matter of the appointment of a king. The Lord commanded
Samuel to hearken to the voice of the people, and make them a king. (1 Sam. 8: 22)
Was it that He approved of the plan? Most surely not; on the contrary, He declares
plainly that it was a positive rejection of Himself. Why then command Samuel to
appoint a king! The command was given in consequence of Israel’s condition. They
were growing weary of the position of entire dependence upon an unseen arm; and
they longed for an arm of flesh. They desired to be like the nations around them, and
to have a king who should go out before them, and fight their battles for them. Well,
God gave them their request, and they were very speedily called to prove the
worthlessness of their plan. Their king proved a most complete failure, and they had
to learn that it was an evil and a bitter thing to forsake the living God and lean on a
broken reed of their own selection.

Now, we see the same thing in the matter of the spies. There can be no question, in
the mind of any spiritual person who studies the entire subject, as to the fact that the
scheme of sending the spies was the fruit of unbelief. A simple heart that trusted God
would never have thought of such a thing. What! are we to send poor mortals to spy
out a land which God has graciously given to us, and which He has so fully and
faithfully described? Far be the thought; nay, rather let us say, "It is enough; the land
is the gift of God, and as such it must be good. His word is enough for our hearts; we
want no spies; we seek for no mortal testimony to confirm the word of the living God.
He has given; He has spoken; this is enough."

But alas! Israel was not in a condition to adopt such language. They would send spies.
They wanted them, their hearts craved them: the desire for them lay in the very depths
of the soul; Jehovah knew this, and hence He issued a commandment in direct
reference to the moral state of the people.

The reader would do well to ponder this subject, in the light of scripture. He will need
to compare Deuteronomy 1 with Numbers 13. It is possible he may find difficulty in
judging of the true nature and moral roots of the act of sending the spies, from the fact
that the thing was ultimately done in pursuance of "the commandment of the Lord."
But we must ever remember that the fact of the Lord's commanding the thing to be
done does not, by any means, prove that the people were right in seeking it. The
giving of the law at Mount Sinai; the sending of the spies; and the appointment of a
king, are all proofs of this. No doubt God overruled all these things for His own glory
and for man's ultimate blessing; but still the law could not be viewed as the
expression of the heart of God; the setting up of a king was a positive rejection of
Himself; and we may say that the sending of men to spy out the land of promise
proved, very distinctly, that the heart of Israel was not fully satisfied with Jehovah.
The whole affair was the fruit of their weakness and unbelief, though acquiesced in
by God because of their condition, and overruled by Him, in His infinite goodness and
unerring wisdom, for the unfolding of His ways and the display of His glory. All this
comes fully out as we pursue the history.

"And Moses sent them (the spies) to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them,
Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain: and see the land what it
is; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they be strong or weak, few or many;
and what the land is that they dwell in, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they
be that they dwell in, whether in tents, or in strong holds; and what the land is,
whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein or not. And be ye of good
courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the first ripe
grapes. So they went up, and searched the land from the wilderness of Zin unto
Rehob, as men come to Hamath..... And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut
down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two
upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs. the place was
called the brook Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel
cut down from thence. And they returned from searching of the land after forty days.
And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the
children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word
unto them, and unto all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the Land. And
they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it
floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it." Numbers 13: 17-27.

Here, then, was the fullest confirmation of all that the Lord had said concerning the
land—the testimony of twelve men as to the fact that the land flowed with milk and
honey—the testimony of their own senses as to the character of the fruit of the land.
Furthermore, there was the telling fact that twelve men had actually been in the land,
had spent forty days in travelling up and down therein, had drunk of its springs and
eaten of its fruits. And what, according to the judgement of faith, would have been the
plain inference to be drawn from such a fact? Why, simply, that the same hand which
had conducted twelve men into the land could conduct the whole congregation.

But alas! the people were not governed by faith, but by dark and depressing unbelief;
and even the spies themselves—the very men who had been sent for the purpose of
assuring and confirming the congregation-even they, with two brilliant exceptions,
were under the power of the same God-dishonouring spirit. In short, the whole
scheme proved a failure. The issue only made manifest the true condition of the
hearts of the people. Unbelief was dominant. The testimony was plain enough: "We
came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and
honey; and this is the fruit of it." There was nothing whatever lacking on God's side of
the question. The land was all that He had said, the spies themselves being witnesses;
but let us hearken to what follows. "Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in
the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children
of Anak there." Verse 28.

There is always sure to be a "nevertheless" where man is concerned, and when
unbelief is at work. The unbelieving spies saw the difficulties—great cities, high
walls, tall giants. All these things they saw; but they did not see Jehovah at all. They
looked at the things that were seen, rather than at the things that were unseen. Their
eye was not fixed upon Him who is invisible. Doubtless, the cities were great; but
God was greater. The walls were high; but God was higher. The giants were strong
but God was stronger.

Thus it Is that faith ever reasons. Faith reasons from God to the difficulties: it begins
with Him. Unbelief, on the contrary, reasons from the difficulties to God: it begins
with them. This makes all the difference. It is not that we are to be insensible to the
difficulties; neither are we to be reckless. Neither insensibility nor yet recklessness is
faith. There are some easy-going people who seem to get along through life! on the
principle of taking things by the smooth handle. This is not faith. Faith looks the
difficulties straight in the face; it is fully alive to the roughness of the handle. It is not
ignorant, not indifferent—not reckless; but what? IT BRINGS IN THE LIVING GOD.
It looks to Him; it leans on Him; it draws from Him. Here lies the grand secret of its
power. It cherishes the calm and deep conviction that there never was a wall too high
for the Almighty God—never a city too great—never a giant too strong. In short, faith
is the only thing that gives God His proper place; and, as a consequence, is the only
thing that lifts the soul completely above the influences of surrounding circumstances,
be they what they may. Of this precious faith, Caleb was the exponent, when he said,
"Let us go up at once and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it." These are
the pure accents of that lively faith that glorifies God and makes nothing of
circumstances.

But alas! the great majority of the spies were no more governed by this lively faith
than the man who sent them; and hence, the one believer was talked down by the ten
infidels. "The men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the
people." The language of infidelity was flatly opposed to the language of faith. The
latter, looking at God, said," We are well able." The former, looking at the difficulties,
said, "We are not able." Thus it was and thus it is. The eyes of faith are ever covered
by the living God, and therefore difficulties are not seen. The eyes of unbelief are
covered with the circumstances, and therefore God is not seen. Faith brings in God,
and therefore all is bright and easy. Unbelief always shuts God out, and therefore all
is dark and difficult.

"And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the
children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land
that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a
great stature. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the
giants; and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight."
Not a word about God. He is entirely shut out. Had they thought of Him—had they
brought the giants into comparison with Him, then it would have made not one whit
of difference as to whether they themselves were grasshoppers, or whether they were
men. But, in point of fact they, by their shameful unbelief, reduced the God of Israel
to the level of a grasshopper.

It is very remarkable, that whenever infidelity is at work, it will always be found
characterised by this one fact, namely, it shuts out God. This will be found true in all
ages, in all places, and under all circumstances. There is no exception. Infidelity can
take account of human affairs,, it can reason upon them, and draw conclusions from
them; but all its reasonings and all its conclusions are based upon the exclusion of
God. The force of its arguments depends upon shutting Him out, and keeping Him
out. Only introduce God, and all the reasonings of infidelity crumble into dust
beneath your feet. Thus, in the scene before us, What is faith's reply to all the
objections advanced by those ten unbelievers? Its one simple, all-satisfying reply, to
which there can be no rejoinder, is—GOD!

Reader, do you know anything of the force and value of this most blessed answer! Do
you know God? Does He fill the entire range of your soul's vision? Is He the answer to
your every question? the solution of your every difficulty? Do you know the reality of
walking, day by day, with the living God? Do you know the tranquillising power of
leaning upon Him," through all the changes and chances of this mortal life?" If not, let
me entreat of you not to go on for one hour in your present state. The way is open.
God has revealed Himself in the face of Jesus Christ, as the relief, the resource, and
the refuge of every needy soul. Look to Him now—even now," while he may be
found; call upon him while he is near." "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the
Lord shall be saved;" and "He that believeth shall never be confounded."

But if, on the other hand, you do, through grace, know God as your Saviour—your
Father, then seek to glorify Him in all your ways, by a childlike unquestioning
confidence in all things. Let Him be a perfect covering for your eyes, under all
circumstances, and thus, in spite of all difficulties, your soul shall be kept in perfect
peace.

Numbers 14.
"And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that
night." Need we wonder? What else could be expected from a people who had
nothing before their eyes but mighty giants, lofty walls, and great cities? What but
tears and sighs could emanate from a congregation who saw themselves as
grasshoppers in the presence of such insuperable difficulties, and having no sense of
the divine power that could carry them victoriously through all? The whole assembly
was abandoned to the absolute dominion of infidelity. They were surrounded by the
dark and chilling clouds of unbelief. God was shut out. There was not so much as a
single ray of light to illumine the darkness with which they had surrounded
themselves. They were occupied with themselves and their difficulties instead of with
God and His resources. What else therefore could they do but lift up the voice of
weeping and lamentation?

What a contrast between this and the opening of Exodus 15! In the latter their eyes
were only upon Jehovah, and therefore they could sing the song of victory. "Thou in
thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed; thou hast guided them
in thy strength unto thy holy habitation. The people shall hear and be afraid: sorrow
shall take hold on the inhabitants of Palestina." Instead of this it was Israel that was
afraid, and sorrow took hold upon them. "Then the dukes of Edom shall be amazed;
the mighty men of Moab, trembling shall take hold upon them: all the inhabitants of
Canaan shall melt away. Fear and dread shall fall upon them. In short, it is the most
complete reversing of the picture. The sorrow, the trembling, and the fear take hold
upon Israel instead of their enemies. and why? Because the One who filled their
vision in Exodus 15 is completely shut out in Numbers 14. This makes all the
difference. In the one case, faith is in the ascendant; in the other, infidelity. "By the
greatness of thine arm they shall be as still as a stone; till thy people pass over, O
Lord, till the people pass over which thou hast purchased. thou shalt bring them in,
and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, in the place, O Lord, which thou
hast made for thee to dwell in; in the sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have
established. The Lord shall reign for ever and ever."

Oh! how do these triumphal accents contrast with the infidel cries and lamentations of
Numbers 14! Not a syllable about sons of Anak, lofty walls, and grasshoppers, in
Exodus 15. No, no; it is all Jehovah. It is His right hand, His mighty arm, His power,
His inheritance, His habitation, His actings on behalf of His ransomed people. And
then if the inhabitants of Canaan are referred to, they are only thought of as
sorrowing, terror-stricken, trembling, and melting away.

But, on the other hand, when we come to Numbers 14 all is most sadly reversed. The
sons of Anak rise into prominence. The towering walls, the giant cities with frowning
bulwarks, fill the vision of the people, and we hear not a word about the Almighty
Deliverer. There are the difficulties on the one side, and grasshoppers on the other;
and one is constrained to cry out, "Can it be possible that the triumphal singers by the
Red Sea have become the infidel weepers at Kadesh?

Alas! it is so; and here we learn a deep and holy lesson. We must continually recur, as
we pass along through these wilderness scenes, to those words which tell us that, "All
these things happened unto Israel for ensamples: and they are written for our
admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are met." (1 Cor. 10: 11; see Greek.) Are
not we, too, like Israel, prone to look at the difficulties which surround us, rather than
at that blessed One who has undertaken to carry us right through them all, and bring
us safely into His own everlasting kingdom? Why is it we are sometimes cast down?
Why go we mourning? Wherefore are the accents of discontent and impatience heard
in our midst, rather than the songs of praise and thanksgiving Simply because we
allow circumstances to shut out God, instead of having God as a perfect covering for
our eyes and a perfect object for our hearts.

And, further, let us enquire, wherefore is it that we so sadly fail to make good our
position as heavenly men?—to take possession of that which belongs to us as
Christians!—to plant the foot upon that spiritual and heavenly inheritance which
Christ has purchased for us, and on which He has entered as our forerunner? What
answer must be given to these inquiries? Just one word—Unbelief.

It is declared, concerning Israel, by the voice of inspiration, that, "they could not enter
in [to Canaan because of unbelief." (Heb. 3) So is it with us. We fail to enter upon our
heavenly inheritance—fail to take possession, practically, of our true and proper
portion—fail to walk, day by day, as a heavenly people, having no place, no name, no
portion in the earth—having nothing to do with this world save to pass through it as
pilgrims and strangers, treading in the footsteps of Him who has gone before, and
taken His place in the heavens. And why do we fail?