Numbers 5:11-31 (NKJV)
¹¹  And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
¹²  "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: 'If any man's wife goes astray and behaves unfaithfully toward him,
¹³  and a man lies with her carnally, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and it is concealed that she has defiled herself, and there was no witness against her, nor was she caught--
¹⁴  if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, who has defiled herself; or if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, although she has not defiled herself--
¹⁵  then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. He shall bring the offering required for her, one-tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall pour no oil on it and put no frankincense on it, because it is a grain offering of jealousy, an offering for remembering, for bringing iniquity to remembrance.
¹⁶  'And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the LORD.
¹⁷  The priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water.
¹⁸  Then the priest shall stand the woman before the LORD, uncover the woman's head, and put the offering for remembering in her hands, which is the grain offering of jealousy. And the priest shall have in his hand the bitter water that brings a curse.
¹⁹  And the priest shall put her under oath, and say to the woman, "If no man has lain with you, and if you have not gone astray to uncleanness while under your husband's authority, be free from this bitter water that brings a curse.
²⁰  But if you have gone astray while under your husband's authority, and if you have defiled yourself and some man other than your husband has lain with you"--
²¹  then the priest shall put the woman under the oath of the curse, and he shall say to the woman--"the LORD make you a curse and an oath among your people, when the LORD makes your thigh rot and your belly swell;
²²  and may this water that causes the curse go into your stomach, and make your belly swell and your thigh rot." Then the woman shall say, "Amen, so be it."
²³  'Then the priest shall write these curses in a book, and he shall scrape them off into the bitter water.
²⁴  And he shall make the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter her to become bitter.
²⁵  Then the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman's hand, shall wave the offering before the LORD, and bring it to the altar;
²⁶  and the priest shall take a handful of the offering, as its memorial portion, burn it on the altar, and afterward make the woman drink the water.
²⁷  When he has made her drink the water, then it shall be, if she has defiled herself and behaved unfaithfully toward her husband, that the water that brings a curse will enter her and become bitter, and her belly will swell, her thigh will rot, and the woman will become a curse among her people.
²⁸  But if the woman has not defiled herself, and is clean, then she shall be free and may conceive children.
²⁹  'This is the law of jealousy, when a wife, while under her husband's authority, goes astray and defiles herself,
³⁰  or when the spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, and he becomes jealous of his wife; then he shall stand the woman before the LORD, and the priest shall execute all this law upon her.
³¹  Then the man shall be free from iniquity, but that woman shall bear her guilt.' "

Some Comments About an Uncomfortable Passage of Scripture

Cultural disconnect

This is one of those passages with which I feel uncomfortable, like it should be here, or at least be re-written to be more culturally acceptable.  There’s another passage like that in Genesis, in which the angels visit Lot and his family and, during the night, the home is accosted by man intend on raping the guests.  Lot tries to appease them by offering his daughter, but fortunately the angels intervene, strike all of them with blindness and then start making arrangements for Lot and his family to leave the city before judgment falls.  Now I can understand Lot trying to protect his guests, but the thought of him offering his daughters appalls me.  I can’t imagine any loving father saying such a thing.  The Bible shows examples of the cultural mores of the time, and reports them without necessarily indicating God’s approval.  This may be one of those passages.  This passage, here in Numbers 5, is another one.

            Why just the wife

In this passage (Numbers 5:11-31) the Lord instructs Moses regarding cases of jealousy, in which the husband suspects his wife of infidelity but cannot prove it.  My first response to this is, “but what if it is the wife who suspects her husband?  Does this ceremony work in reverse?”  I think I once read somewhere that rabbinic commentary on the passage indicated that was indeed the case, but the fact that it only mentions the husband’s jealous bothers me.

            What about the other man?

The spirit of jealousy comes upon the husband and the only way to deal with it is to have the wife take a sacred oath before God, with the priest giving an offering and invoking a curse that will result in devastating sickness if she is guilty, but will also exonerate her if innocent.  What about the other man?  If she is guilty and stricken and made a curse among her people, what of the other party in the adultery?  The passage does not answer that question.

What can we take from this?

In ancient times such cases were settled by some sort of trial by ordeal, in which the accused is placed in a life-threatening situation and if she survives, then that is an indication that God, or the gods, have intervened because she is innocent.  For example, if the accused wife does not know how to swim, throw her into the middle of a lake or large river and if she somehow makes it to shore, then maybe she is innocent after all.  Numbers offers a different approach in that the interested parties were to take the matter before the Lord, and let Him deal with it.  But in such times and settings in which women were treated as property, a jealous husband may simply take matters in to his own hands and kill her.  With this passage the husband, the person in power, does not have the right to take matters into his own hands.  Here, the Bible demands that the person in power use restraint.

            Oaths are serious business, as are curses.

Another thing we can take from this passage is that promises, oaths, and yes, curses are taken seriously in the Bible, though to my knowledge only God invokes a curse. (Note, by the way, John 3:17)  It is not something people should be doing.  There are other passages in which promises or oaths are expected to be honored, even if a great personal cost. (consider the unfortunate case of the Israeli general Jephthah and his daughter; Judges 11.  The case does not mean that the Bible tells us to kill our children).

            Compare this with the Spiritual Gift of Discernment

Another take away is to compare this ceremony as a prayer for the revelation of truth and justice, and in that regard it bears some similarity to the Spiritual Gift of Discernment in the New Testament.  With that gift the Holy Spirit has a way of revealing truth that has not been shared by other means, including matters of truth and justice.

            God has a way of exposing sin

Finally, this passage enforces the Bible assertion that God has a way of dealing with sin, even if the perpetrator avoids detection from people.  Psalms 90:8 says, “You have set our iniquities before You, our secret sins in the light of Your countenance.”  We can fool other people; we can never fool the Lord.  Ponder who you are in secret carefully, because God can bring it to light.

Even Everyday Life is Sacred
Numbers 3:3

    These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he consecrated to minister as priests.

"Consecrated" means literally "He filled their hands".

            "Anointed" means to be rubbed, or smeared.  The anointed has been marked for special use, with the gifts and powers needed to fulfill the call. (consider 1 John 2:27)  Consecration could be the corresponding life, symbolically given to them in that their hands are filled with the time, experience and work that is part of their calling.  It is similar to the idea of one's destiny being symbolized by the filling of one's cup, and idea that should be remembered when we take Holy Communion.

            Setting aside that relationship between laity and clergy and looking at this in terms of the life of a Christian being a sort of priesthood; it seems that the consecration is their duties as priests, but also the notion that everyday life, which often consists of duties, is sacred and part of what "fills our hands".  We are not part of the family or the priesthood of Aaron, but if as Christians we are, in a way, anointed and consecrated then can we not look at the prayer and work of our days as sacred, the stuff that was "placed in our hands"?  That could be a motivation to follow the command that we do everything, even the everyday work, as if we are working directly for Christ Himself  (Colossians 3:23).

1 John 2:27  But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.

Colossians 3:23  And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men.

Exodus 33:1 (NKJV)
¹  Then the LORD said to Moses, "Depart and go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt, to the land of which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, 'To your descendants I will give it.'

Some thoughts about applying the Bible, pursuing spiritual growth even in the midst of failure, based on the above verse and the two chapters prior to it. 

If you read the previous two or three chapters, you find that the children of Israel quickly prove they are prone to apostasy, not better than the Egyptians, nor the tribes listed in the next verse that God will send an angel to displace.  Are we any better?  The pursuit of the Promised Land remains the same for them, and for us, due to the faithfulness of God to promises made centuries before us, not because we are worthy.  They were to depart Mt. Sinai after receiving the Law, and they quickly disobeyed it.  There would be no “do over”, or practice for better obedience.  They were to stay on the journey.  They had a journey through space, over land.  We have a journey through time, and we are to grow and change during that journey, thus making progress even if we live our whole lives on earth in the same location.  Staying at one point of revelation, or failure, or state in our spiritual life is not acceptable.  We must journey, and for us that means we are to grow in character and in our spiritual life.  When you succeed, keep moving.  When you fail (and you will), keep moving. 

A note about application:  I find it reasonable to accept that these events are not fictional but really happened, including the miraculous and supernatural.  If the resurrection of Jesus Christ actually took place, then anything is possible, and if He did not rise from the dead, then all this is pointless.  I do believe, however, that there is a point of “over spiritualizing” everything in an effort to learn and make applications to our lives today from ancient events.  Yet God is eternal, and is the same today as He once was.  What was valuable then still holds today, even if the focus is a little different.  The Promised Land, for example, for us is not geography, it is heaven, but then, according to Hebrews (11:9-10), that was the real Promised Land all along.  Furthermore, they were prone to failure from the beginning, and, if we are truly honest, so are we.  So their journey speaks to our journey, and there is more in common than what first meets the eye.

Exodus 21:1-36 (New King James Version of the Bible)
¹  "Now these are the judgments which you shall set before them:
²  If you buy a Hebrew servant, he shall serve six years; and in the seventh he shall go out free and pay nothing.

            Cf. Jacob, Rachel and Leah.  Genesis 29:30 
³  If he comes in by himself, he shall go out by himself; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him.
⁴  If his master has given him a wife, and she has borne him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself.
⁵  But if the servant plainly says, 'I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,'
⁶  then his master shall bring him to the judges. He shall also bring him to the door, or to the doorpost, and his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him forever.

Note:  This is the practice of a bondslave.  Paul referred to himself as a bondslave of Christ. (Romans 1:1)   How strange it is that the greatest freedom is gained by willingly becoming a slave.  It is all a matter of whose slave.

⁷  "And if a man sells his daughter to be a female slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do.
⁸  If she does not please her master, who has betrothed her to himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has dealt deceitfully with her.
⁹  And if he has betrothed her to his son, he shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters.

Note:  Here betrothal and marriage is seen as a form of slavery. 

¹⁰  If he takes another wife, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, and her marriage rights.

Note:  These are uncomfortable applications of the Law, because there is nothing that I read in them that condemns slavery.  Take a look at verse 4, in which the slave is allowed freedom but his wife and children must stay.  What loving husband and father would accept such terms?  But some choose to stay with family, and with their master, and become bondslaves-slaves for life.  (See note about Romans 1:1 above)

Note:  The Law, I suspect, improves the lot of the slave because slaves seem to have no rights in other situations.  I'd like to think this is an example of the Bible reporting the existence of slavery as culturally accepted as opposed to God approving the institution of slavery.  Numerous passages in the prophets and other places speak of God's will involving "breaking the yoke" and "letting the captive go free".  Even part of Jesus' mission statement (Luke 4:18-19) is "to set at liberty those who are oppressed".  Or look, for example, at Isaiah 58:6 "Is this not the fast that I have chosen:  to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?"  Then there is the Year of Jubilee, the like of which is not found in our culture:  Leviticus 25:10 "And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants.  It shall be a Jubilee for you; and each of you shall return to his possession, and each of you shall return to his family."

The subject of slavery is, unfortunately, very relevant today, for human trafficking remains a serious problem.  I would also add economic slavery, in which businesses seek to keep people in debt all of their lives.  Such slaves have no time limit, nor any rights whatsoever.  We should pray for vision to see the need and wisdom to know what to do about it.  Look for specific situations where you live.  You might be surprised to find how people are suffering near where you live.    

Exodus 18:1-27 (NKJV)
¹  And Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses' father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people--that the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.

A few thoughts, as I began reading this chapter, about the word translated "priest" in this verse and what it means for us.

כֹּהֵן

"kohen" is the Hebrew word for ""priest".  Strong's Concordance notes that it is not, formally, a noun but rather an "active participle" of a verb that means "to mediate" or "to put on regalia".  So, in a way, I'm a priest only in action.  The purpose of priesthood is to actively speak to the people the words of God (prophecy & instruction) and to speak to God on behalf of the people (intercession).  It is hard to be a true priest and be passive.  The form of the very word implies activity.  The definition of the underlying verb, (כָּהַן "kahan"), "to put on regalia" also gives me a different perspective of the Armor of God in Ephesians 6:10-20.

      The passage speaks of the garments of warfare (armor) but prayer and intercession is justly described as a form of "warfare", spiritual warfare.  The work of a priest could be considered in a military sense as being actively involved in the work of God against the works of the devil.  This is relevant for any spiritual leader, including pastor, but also for all for we are all called as part of the priesthood of all believers.

     Practically speaking, this shines light on the sacred nature of prayer, especially prayer for others, and prayers of praise to God.  The simplest Sunday School class or Bible study is shown to be sacred as it is the work of a priest.  How we prepare ourselves to face the day (praying through the armor of God) gets us ready to act as those who speak God's words in the Name of Jesus the Christ, and as those who bring the trials of broken people to the Mercy Seat.  It is ordinary, it is action and it is sacred.

^{Hi, everyone.  I'm in Exodus, Chapter 18.  Moses and the people of Israel have left centuries of slavery in Egypt and are now discovering that freedom has its own set of challenges.  At this point, Moses reunites with his wise father-in-law, Jethro, who has some advice to Moses about the importance of delegation, and the characteristics of a good leader.  We pick the narrative at verse thirteen:}   

¹³  And so it was, on the next day, that Moses sat to judge the people; and the people stood before Moses from morning until evening.
¹⁴  So when Moses' father-in-law saw all that he did for the people, he said, "What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit, and all the people stand before you from morning until evening?"
¹⁵  And Moses said to his father-in-law, "Because the people come to me to inquire of God.
¹⁶  When they have a difficulty, they come to me, and I judge between one and another; and I make known the statutes of God and His laws."
¹⁷  So Moses' father-in-law said to him, "The thing that you do is not good.
¹⁸  Both you and these people who are with you will surely wear yourselves out. For this thing is too much for you; you are not able to perform it by yourself.
¹⁹  Listen now to my voice; I will give you counsel, and God will be with you: Stand before God for the people, so that you may bring the difficulties to God.
²⁰  And you shall teach them the statutes and the laws, and show them the way in which they must walk and the work they must do.
²¹  Moreover you shall select from all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.

Note:  Characteristics of leaders:  competent (able), reverent, honest, despising anything that would tarnish integrity.  The same characteristics are required for leaders of small or great authority.  The Lord Jesus would later speak of those who are faithful in small things will be given greater responsibilities.

Luke 16:10 (New King James Version of the Bible)
¹⁰  He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.

I suspect this is true in employment or volunteer matters as well as in spiritual or religious matters.  If you are ambitious, be a servant.  If you want to be promoted, prove to be trustworthy.  But there is a caveat to this principle in matters of business and employment.  In those arenas some people prosper through deceit and self-promotion, and gain advancement when others were more deserving.  The Lord sees through such things, and is never beguiled or fooled.  Better to be the faithful employee who is overlooked than the one who is promoted but does not deserve the promotion. 

Back to what the Lord wants.  Take a look at your life and your circumstances.  What do you like about your life?  What do you dislike?  What are your opportunities?  Do you think that you are where you are by chance, or do you think there is a purpose for you living where you are, with the people that you know, with the challenges and hopes that you have.  Are you making the most of your opportunities or are you too busy wishing things would change to actually do anything? What does being faithful to the Lord in all things, small or great, look like with the unique characteristics of your life right now?  Everyone has leadership responsibilities, to make the most of their own lives, and most have more beyond that.  How are you doing?

Exodus 14:1-31 (NKJV)
¹  Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying:
²  "Speak to the children of Israel, that they turn and camp before Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, opposite Baal Zephon; you shall camp before it by the sea.
³  For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, 'They are bewildered by the land; the wilderness has closed them in.'
⁴  Then I will harden Pharaoh's heart, so that he will pursue them; and I will gain honor over Pharaoh and over all his army, that the Egyptians may know that I am the LORD." And they did so.

Note: Oddly enough, the Lord directed Moses and Israel to back themselves into a corner.  They had numerous routes into the Sinai Peninsula without having the cross the Red Sea.  The Lord wanted them to be vulnerable, apparently to draw out Pharaoh, whose heart was hardened yet again.  We know that this ultimately led to one of the greatest miracles of the Bible and the ruin of Pharaoh's army, but there's something about glorifying the Lord that required Israel to be vulnerable, maybe not so secure. 

I've learned that "spiritualizing" everything that happens in the Old Testament in order to make personal application can be overdone, but perhaps there is a connection to this strange maneuver and the words of St. Paul: 

2 Corinthians 12:7-10 (NKJV)
⁷  And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.
⁸  Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me.
⁹  And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
¹⁰  Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

The purpose of our lives is to glorify the Lord, but that could mean a lack of comfort and security, two conditions of which I am very fond.  In response to these words, however, maybe I need to pray that the Lord be glorified in my life and to know the power of Christ, even though it is a risky prayer.  It also makes me look at my life with a different perspective.  I have nothing that compares to the vulnerable position of Israel at this point in the episode, or the trials of St. Paul for that matter, but I still have parts of my life that are uncomfortable, that I wish were safer and more secure.  Maybe I need to re-think about the importance of comfort and security in life.  Maybe I need to ask myself if those uncomfortable parts are opportunities for the Lord to be glorified, and if so, how?

Hello, everyone.
My apologies for the length of time between posts.  I've finished Genesis and am now into Exodus, particularly at the point when God passes judgment upon the nation of Egypt.  I found reflecting on the episode with commentary from the Apostle Peter very thought-provoking and a little sobering.  Trying to put into words my thoughts on what it means to "fear" the Lord was difficult, so please forgive me if they seem awkward.  Hopefully this post, like the others, will encourage you to prayerfully study and consider the Scriptures.
-Dan Vellinga 

Exodus 12:1-51 (New King James Version of the Bible) 
¹  Now the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying,
²  "This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.
³  Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: 'On the tenth day of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household.

⁴  And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man's need you shall make your count for the lamb.
⁵  Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats.

Compare this with the Apostle Peter's commentary on the event: (1 Peter 1:18-19)  “And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”

Note:  According to the International Critical Commentary, the "aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers" is not necessarily the sacrificial system of the Old Testament, but any number of lifestyles and philosophies, pagan or nonreligious, that served as a substitute for Christ.  An argument against the traditions being the Old Testament sacrificial system is that it was not aimless or vain, but covered the sins of the people and pointed to and was fulfilled by Christ Jesus.  The point is, perhaps, that how we lived our lives before we submitted ourselves to the Lord Jesus was aimless and vain.  There is no point to life, if life is lived without Christ.

One common feature of my (and other's) "tradition" is that I didn't really need redemption.  I was fine, was good enough, was not trapped in sin, was not in danger of judgment.  All lies.  I was not fine, not good enough, was trapped in sin, and was in danger of judgment and separation from a just and holy God.  It may not be as dramatic is it was for those slaves, whose forebears had been slaves for centuries, but I was redeemed from slavery just the same. 

Now, knowing that the Father impartially judges according to my work, I need to conduct my stay on this earth in fear, a reverence for God to whom I am accountable.  The world is like Egypt of old, that entices and enslaves and is at enmity against all who would seek freedom.  Perhaps living in this kind of fear is living with the realization that I no longer fit in this world, am at odds with it and it with me; and that I cannot follow Christ and fit into this world.  I should expect to be controversial sometimes, and that some people will not like me, and that they don't understand when I don't pursue what they deem worthy of avid pursuit.  It is a dying world, and dying world system and it is in denial about its condition.  Living in fear and reverence for the Father does not fit the mentality of this world system.  I need to be more concerned about what the Father thinks than what the world thinks.