Stiff-Necked People

“Yahweh spoke further to me, saying, ‘I have seen this people, and indeed, they are a stiff-necked           people .” (Deut. 9:13)

In the book of Numbers, Moses writes about seven rebellions of the Israelites against God.

1. Rebellion: Complaining about no meat. “And the rabble who were among them had greedy desires; and also the sons of Israel wept again and said, “Who will give us meat to eat? “  (Nu.11:4)

Judgment: God was angry because the complaint showed a lack of trust and gratitude. When the quail came in abundance, the people greedily gathered it. (Nu.11:31–32)

Punishment: While they were still eating the meat, God struck them with a severe plague. The place was named Kibroth Hattaavah, which means “graves of craving.”(Nu.11:33).

2. Rebellion: Moses’ siblings oppose Moses’ authority. “Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had taken as a wife (for he had taken a Cushite woman)”;  Nu. 12:1

Provision: God affirmed Moses’ authority- “With him I speak mouth to mouth, Indeed clearly, and not in          riddles, and he beholds the form of Yahweh. Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant, against Moses?”   Nu. 12:8

Judgment: “So the anger of Yahweh burned against them, and He went away. 10 But the cloud withdrew from over the tent, and behold, Miriam was leprous,  as white as snow.”  Nu. 12:9-10

3. Rebellion: Ten Spies bad report. “Then all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that night. And all the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron; and the whole    congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! “  Nu. 14:1-2

God’s response: “I will strike them with  pestilence and dispossess them, and I will make  you into a nation greater and mightier than they.”  Nu.14:12

Judgment: That generation (everyone 20 years and older, except Joshua and Caleb) would not enter the Promised Land. Instead, they would wander in the wilderness for     40 years—one year for each day the spies were in the     land. Nu. 14:26-38

4. Rebellion: Korah’s rebellion (Numbers 16) was one of decisive judgment because it was a direct challenge to the leadership of Moses and Aaron—and   ultimately a rebellion against God’s authority.

Judgment: Numbers 16:28-35. Moses told the people to separate from Korah and the rebels. Then he said that if these men died a normal death, the Lord had not sent him. But if the earth opened up and swallowed them alive, it would be proof they had despised the Lord. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, along with their households and all their possessions. Fire also came from the Lord and consumed the 250 men offering  unauthorized incense.

5. Rebellion: Despite Korah’s dramatic judgment (earth swallowing rebels, fire from heaven), the people still complained—this time blaming Moses and Aaron for the deaths that God Himself caused.

Judgment: A Plague Breaks Out (v. 46–49): Moses tells  Aaron to take incense and make atonement as the plague spreads. Aaron runs into the crowd, stands “between the living and the dead,” and the plague stops. But not before 14,700 people die in the plague (not counting those killed in Korah’s rebellion).

6. Rebellion: Not trusting God for water. Nu. 20:1-5

Judgment: God graciously chooses to provide water

7. Rebellion: In Numbers 21:5, the Israelites again complain against God and Moses. They are rejecting God’s provision (the manna) and accusing Him of bringing them out to die—a recurring theme in their       wilderness journey.

Judgment: The fiery (venomous) serpents are a direct response.

Wow! How can people who have been given so much by God be so rebellious? That’s a great question. So, ask    yourself the same question. How can I, who have been given such a great salvation, keep on sinning against a holy God? I, for one, am thankful for God’s mercy on this side of the cross.

Your shepherd,

Pastor Mark