Num.5

the whole bulk of the chapter relates to what is to be done if a man has a suspicion of unfaithfulness of his wife. The Lord provides a way by which the woman might be spared of the guilt and a means by which the Lord himself might provide judgement

Num. 5,6

[8:25 am, 29/04/2022] Sean Rodrigues: Chapter 6 describes the Nazirites. I don’t think anyone is exactly sure what the significance is, but John the Baptist may have been one. Note that they have a time of consecration (v.13) after which they can deconsecrate. But John’s vows were lifelong, so it doesn’t quite fit. Samson was a Nazirite.
[8:32 am, 29/04/2022] Sean Rodrigues: the last four verses are the beautiful priestly blessing. Those of you who are able, it is very beautiful in the Hebrew. Those of you who are not able to read Hebrew, let me know if you ant to join my Hebrew learning Messenger group:

Num. 8 the Lord commands Moses “seven lamps shall give light in from of the lampstand” (v.2) This immediately reminds of of Jesus appearing in the midst of the seven lampstands in Rev.1:12,12. The duration of service of the Levite priests at the Tent of Meeting is laid out at from 25 to 50 years after which they retire from service and my assist but not perform the service.

In 9:15 onwards the Lord’s presence in the Pillar of Cloud and Fire is described and how it guided the Israelites, “it was like this always (תָּמִיד)” V.16:

Num.11

[1:15 pm, 01/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: If I might be permitted to make an extra reflection just because it’s Sunday: This whole journey through the Pentateuch has been “Eucharistic” in a way that I could not have initially expected. By “Eucharistitic” I am referring to Jesus’s Presence in the Lord’s Supper. For Catholic/Orthodox of course this is a literal Presence, however even the non-Catholic members can reflect upon the Lord’s Real Presence when they gather to pray and Jesus’ promise “I am there in their midst” (ekei eimi in meso auton- there am I in the midst of them). This is the case constantly in the verses are are reading, starting from the theophany on Mt Sinai where the Lord appears to Moses and the 70 elders who “saw the Lord and ate and drank”, to the Bread of the Presence which is in the Tabernacle, and is “most holy” and only to be eaten by the priests, down to the Presence of the Lord constantly in the Pillar of Cloud and Pillar of Fire and the Burning Bush itself. That is the Presence of God that we must experience in all our prayers for we are the ones upon whom the fulfilment of the ages has come and we have received the Holy Spirit, how much more personally we must experience the Lord ourselves! and most greatly when we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, because it has all the symbols of the Temple which was revealed to Moses “after the pattern of the Heavenly Temple”, along with the significance of eating and drinking.
[1:15 pm, 01/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: thanks be to God
[1:22 pm, 01/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: When we receive the Eucharist, or when a non-Catholic celebrates the Lord’s Supper, the Presence of God in that room is nothing less than the Burning Bush itself, the Pillar of Cloud and the Pillar of Fire itself. For a Catholic it takes one extra dimension, because it is not “just” the Christ, but Christ’s “body broken” and Blood “poured out” for many, for you.

Num.12

[10:43 am, 02/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: in v.1, Moses marries a “Cushite” woman, this is an Ethiopian, and thus ethnically Black African lady. As I understand it, there are Black African Jews to this day, and also Churches that claim lineage from the Cushite Jews in Ethiopia.
[10:44 am, 02/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: Which would be the Ethiopian Orthodox churches which are essentially of two tribes- the Tigrina speakers and the Amharic speaking.

Num.14

Numbers 14 is a lovely chapter to read. These are the main themes: We saw from the previous chapter that the spies attempt to bring a disheartening report about the land and its conquest, though Joshua and Caleb bring a report to the contrary and are encouraging. It is obvious that they are viewing the same thing from different faith perspectives, just as we are wont to do- a person of greater faith will view opportunity for spiritual growth in difficult situations, while one of weaker faith will see “giants” everywhere, and themselves as “grasshoppers”.

We see the Glory of the Lord appearing to “all the Israelites” (v.10) “…the people who have seen my glory” (v.22) and God stating “all the Earth shall be filled with the Glory of the Lord” (v.21)

The third theme is once again, one of intercessory prayer. Moses is literally quoting God’s own Scripture back to him (vv.17) and pleading that he act toward the Israelites in accordance to it, and God acceding “I do forgive” (v.20). Catholics would see Moses and the other Patriarchs continuing to intercede on our behalf in Heaven.

Finally, an important lesson here is that we do not repent on our terms to God, rather on his terms. That is to say, repentance is an exercise in humility, not pride. This is evidenced in the manner the Israelites decide to make up for their initial error in the manner that seemed fit to them rather than the manner that was specified by their appointed leader, Moses “that will not succeed” (v.41), “do not go up, for the Lord is not with you, do not let yourselves be struck down by your enemies” (v.42). These themes will be repeated in the stories of others like Saul, who attempts to act independently of the prophet Elijah (?), and the person who attempts exorcisms in Acts (?) and King Uzziah who attempts to perform the priestly function.

Catholics might read a further Marian theme into this theme of intercession “but they attempted to go up…even though the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, and Moses had not left the camp” (v.44). Catholics take Mary with them everywhere! 😊

Non-Catholics thank you for your patience with me, I have promised I would clearly indicate which parts are Catholic interpretations, so that we can share fruitful fellowship in the rest of the material.

Num.15

I think we have seen this before, the theme of “unintentional sin”. “Unintentional sin” is not even a thing in Christianity. The reason that it is decreed in Judaism is precisely because Judaism is “legalistic”. “Holiness” as it is defined in Judaism (v.40) is related to observing the laws regarding rituals- “ritual purity”. The passage ends with the man being stoned to death for not observing the Sabbath! Let us not neglect our Sunday observance.

Num.16

The story of Korah is one of the authority of the Lord’s anointed and the price of flouting it. Again, a Catholic would see a clear indication of the validity the authority that God invests in human persons. None of this might make sense to us, nor might be agree with the choice, but we do not challenge the Will of God and his Diving Plan which is being fulfilled in that person.

This is the same scenario that arises when Miriam and Aaron challenge Moses’s authority (Lev.12), when Nadab and Abihu offer up “unholy fire” to God (Lev.10), and we see the respect of King David for the evil king Saul when he spares his life. Aaron’s challenge to Moses and Aaron sounds familiar “you have gone too far. All the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them, so then why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord (קְהַ֥ל יְהוָֽה׃)?” (v.3) קָהָל- qahal – “assembly/ congregation, convocation”.

Dathan and Abiram challenge Moses “must you…lord it over us”?. Moses in his pleading says to the Lord “I have not taken one donkey from them, and I have not harmed any of them” (v.15). When I am frustrated with any of our priests, I have to always remind myself of the life of sacrifice that they themselves lead.
Moses once again intercedes with the Lord for the congregation (v.22). With “qahal” we can possibly see the root of ekklesia in the q-h-l. The other word used for “congregation” is עֵדָה- “edah” (eg.-v.16, 41), here seemingly not in association with the Divine Name. Once again, the chapter ends with Moses and Aaron “making atonement for the people” (vv.46,47), “he stood between the dead and the living and the plague was stopped” (v.48).

My take away from this is that there is no point of the story of the punishment of Korah and the 250, and all the others mentioned apart from the divine investiture of authority in human persons. Choose your leaders carefully, but I would advise against choosing yourself as leader.

Again, Catholics would see the Pope and his lawfully appointed bishops and priests as the Lord’s appointed people. Just so that I can represent both sides of the debate, some non-Catholics would push back against this interpretation, by quoting the “curtain is torn” verse from the NT.

Num.17

In CH. 17 once again it is the theme of authority. God is literally not taking any more nonsense in this regard “And the LORD said to Moses, “Put back the staff of Aaron before the covenant, to be kept as a warning to rebels, so that you may make an end of their complaints against me, or else they will die.” (v.10).

Ch. 18 is “the Priestly portion” and we are told of the priest’s right to a tithe from the offering (vv.25,26) but they are not to inherit any of the Land. Rather in magnificent fashion they are told “I am your share and your possession among the Israelites” (v.20). This is amazing to hear, just how much the Lord loves his priests who give their lives to service and how much we must respect and support them in their own difficulties.

Chapter 19 once again demonstrates the detailed ritual that the Israelites must perform; the “works of the Law”.

Sean Rodrigues: In Lev. 20 we see the theme of complaining again, this time at Meribah, and the second time that Moses draws water miraculously from a rock for the Israelites to drink (This incident is featured in Psalm 95).

We hear of the death of Miriam at the start and Aaron at the end.

The Lord is displeased with Moses?

I never could tell what is the specific fault of Moses. You can see here that when the people start complaining (v.5), they seemingly go away immediately to place the problem before the Lord in prayer (v.6), falling on their faces before him. Personally I feel I have to conclude that we are not told the entire story, there’s something that is not in the narrative here, that God did not think it necessary for us to know. The narrative comes back to this few other times, and in Deuteronomy, in some of Moses’ final words to the Israelites before he hands over his authority to Joshua before his death, he seems to indicate that the fault lay with the Israelites’ behavior “Even with me the Lord was angry on your account…” (Deut.1:37) and again in 4:31 “the Lord was angry with me because of you”.

However what is for us to know is the specific charge “Because you did not trust in me, to show my holiness before the eyes of the Israelites” (v.12), so that we might be able to apply it in our own lives. We must place out trust in God 100% at all times, simply because it is right to do so.

Moses was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament (see Num.12:7, for eg.) and we can be sure that any transgression that he committed in his humanity would be forgiven him by the Lord. We also see how no one is made perfect except in Christ, not even the greatest OT figure. The apostles, sanctified in Christ, would walk the way of perfection in him (I’m not here saying that every Christian is perfect, rather that it is possible for them to be, as it never was before).

Lastly we observe how it seems that no promise of Salvation and Resurrection is given to Moses, Aaron or Miriam. These themes only appear later in the Bible, with the Psalms, and into some of the prophets, though still rather veiled. Jews were not really given a clear “what comes next?”-type revelation like we have in Christianity with its definitive eschatology.

That is one of the primary ways in which it can be shown that Judaism is objectively an incomplete religion, awaiting completion in Christ.

The other thing that I like in this chapter is the use of “the congregation” (עֵדָה- edah) (vv.1,2,7 etc) and assembly of the Lord (qehal Yahweh) (vv.4,6,9,12) which show us the prefiguring of the Church of God, and the manner in which God views his people as a collective and a community “called by his Name” (eg. Deut.28:10, 2 Chron.7:14, etc.)
[4:33 pm, 08/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: If anyone would like to share their own inputs and reflections, please write to me directly. This will help to stimulate my own thought, and I will try to share the pertinent comments on here, as well as incorporate them into my blog. But in the current format, you can see how it would be problematic and inconvenient to open up to the group to member comments, hence it seems best that it remain admin-only. Once again, a big thanks for your presence here, it is hugely inspiring for me and is firing on my writing undoubtedly. Praise the Lord, have a blessed Sunday.

Ch. 21 has the famous story of the serpent on a pole (vv.4-9), with God saying “everyone who is bitten shall look to it and live” (v.8). I try not to over-interpret that passage since it is the image of a “poisonous serpent”. There are at least two peoples that are destroyed here and for the first time we see the Israelites “leaving no survivors” (v.35), the first of a few more such conquests to come

[10:05 am, 10/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: Ch. 22-24 are rather engaging account of Balaam son of Beor, so we’ll take them together.
[10:28 am, 10/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: In the end there remains a certain amount of mystery about the story, because Balaam, although he seems to be quite faithful to Yahweh, is killed by the Israelites and dies not mourned and uneulogized, and is also condemned in the NT by the author of 2Peter who states that he “loved the wages of wickedness” (2Pet.2:16).

I’d say, in line with NRSVCBSB, that the following might be the bottom lines in the story of Balaam son of Beor:

First, “(22:18) there is no reason to think that Balaam…served Yahweh exclusively. The familiar language may indicate that he is aware of Israel’s God at least by reputation (…) or that he refers to any god in this personal manner to demonstrate his prophetic authority”

“(22:21-35) The three times (vv.22-23, 24-25, 26-27) Balaams’ female donkey observes the angel of the Lord in a manner more perceptive than that of the renowned seer of the gods (…) (222:28) (…) the scene is replete with irony in that the donkey is more perceptive of God and is able to speak God’s word in a manner superior to the internationally renowned expert” This is in line with what the author of 2 Peter “(Pet.2:16) “But he was rebuked for his transgression by a donkey, otherwise without speech, that spoke with a man’s voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

[10:28 am, 10/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: And finally, “(23.23)God would use such pagan diviner to communicate divine revelation for the purpose of blessing those whom Balaam had been expected to condemn.

The NRSVCBSB helpfully notes, listing all the regions in which archaeology has uncovered prophetic inscriptions: “Prophecy in the Ancient Near Eastern style was well developed by the time Israel appears on the scene…prophets spoke of victory, healing or death, and wise counsel, and they gave consultation. Kings could be warned, though rarely about their actions or words (p.269)
[10:32 am, 10/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: Finally, the Deir Alla inscription which is fragmentary pieces of plaster and is dated to 840-760 BC bears the name of Balaam son of Beor and he is said in that inscription to be a “seer of the gods”, and has a frightening night vision that he shares with his colleagues in the midst of his fasting and grief. He foretells a period of draught and darkness, of mourning and death, in which the natural order is upended. (p.269 NRSVCBSB)

[0:14 pm, 10/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: Dialling back slightly, just like to add: In Ch. 21, the God sends “poisonous serpents” (הַנְּחָשִׁ֣ים הַשְּׂרָפִ֔ים- hanechashim ha-seraphim) to punish the Israelites in their complaining (v.6). The word translated as “poisonous” is more literally “fiery” (שָׂרָף- seraph). You can see that this is the same word that is used for the angels that worship God in his Temple in Isaiah (6:2,6 etc.). Indeed when God gives the remedy for the snake-bite, he says “make unto you a seraph שָׂרָף” (v.8), not repeating the word for “serpent” in this case. Then Moses makes a serpent of bronze (נְחַ֣שׁ נְחֹ֔שֶׁת nechash nechosheth) (v.9)
[0:14 pm, 10/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/8314.htm
[0:41 pm, 10/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: In Ch. 21, the God sends “poisonous serpents” (הַנְּחָשִׁ֣ים הַשְּׂרָפִ֔ים- hanechashim ha-seraphim) to punish the Israelites in their complaining (v.6). The word translated as “poisonous” is more literally “fiery” (שָׂרָף- seraph).

You can see that this is the same word that is used for the angels that worship God in his Temple in Isaiah (6:2,6 etc.). Indeed when God gives the remedy for the snake-bite, he says “make unto you a seraph שָׂרָף” (v.8), not repeating the word for “serpent” in this case. Then Moses makes a serpent of bronze (נְחַ֣שׁ נְחֹ֔שֶׁת nechash nechosheth) (v.v9)
[1:51 pm, 10/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: Hebrew is an extremely old religion and it can often be difficult to ascertain the precise derivation of words in it.

I would think that every language would have a primary word for fire rather than a derived one, and in Hebrew that word is “esh”. There is also an different word for snake, and that is “nechesh”, which we have seen above. So which came first really? I can’t say, for sure at this point. Perhaps necesh and esh are related? The English “serpent” on the other hand has the same s-r-p root as seraph.

We know that some of the neighbouring cultures of the Israelites had celestial beings that had serpentine bodies, like winged dragons, with a similar word to seraph, as is observed in Strong’s Concordance (see link above).

That is not how the seraphim (plural of seraph)are described in the Bible in Isaiah. The other celestial creature is the “cherubim” which are upon the Ark, which guard the entrance to the Garden of Eden and which are ostensibly also the “living creatures” described in the first chapter of Ezekiel. Their appearance is described in detail there. There is no definite consensus about the derivation of this word either, from what I can see.
[4:33 pm, 10/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: so that’s the shortest possible synopsis of celestial beings in the Bible 🙂 Praise the Lord. If anyone has anything to add, I’d be grateful.

[8:26 am, 11/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: In chapter 24, Balaam makes a messianic prophecy: “15 So he uttered his oracle, saying,

“The oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eye is clear,[d]
16 the oracle of one who hears the words of God
and knows the knowledge of the Most High,[e]
who sees the vision of the Almighty,[f]
who falls down but with eyes uncovered:
17 I see him but not now;
I behold him but not near—
a star shall come out of Jacob,
and a scepter shall rise out of Israel”
[8:28 am, 11/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: In the preceding verse his prophecy is authenticated by the Holy Spirit: “Balaam looked up and saw Israel camping tribe by tribe. Then the spirit of God came upon him, 3 and he uttered his oracle…”

Chapter 25, God’s inflicts terrible punishment upon the Israelites for their worship of Baal of Peor

Ch.26 is a census. Ch. 27 we see Moses passing on the reigns to Joshua and once again he is told of his offence “you rebelled against my word…you did not show my holiness before their eyes” (v.14). Let us learn to never rebel against God’s will and always glorify God in our witness to others.
This handing on is through the laying on of hands, in the same way the our bishops ordain our priests today.
Also God now institutes a split between the leader of the people and the priest. It is the priest who will “inquire of the Lord by the decision of the Urim” (v.21)

Ch, 28, 29 is related to daily offerings as well as sin offerings at Passover.
Ch, 30 is related to vows.

Ch. 31 is covered in my article. Thanks be to God, we pray that we never be so lacking as to allow ourselves to be led by the godless into the idolization of those things that they set their own worth at.

[11:27 am, 13/05/2022] Sean Rodrigues: These are related to the conquest of Canaan and the displacement of the Canaanites and the land being divided.

That’s the overall gist, I only want to draw your attention to a couple of the passages here. These are the directions that Moses receives with regards to the manner of the conquest:

“In the plains of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho, the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the Israelites, and say to them: When you cross over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, destroy all their figured stones, destroy all their cast images, and demolish all their high places. You shall take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given you the land to possess. You shall apportion the land by lot according to your clans; to a large one you shall give a large inheritance, and to a small one you shall give a small inheritance; the inheritance shall belong to the person on whom the lot falls; according to your ancestral tribes you shall apportion it. But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then those whom you let remain shall be as barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides; they shall trouble you in the land where you are settling. And I will do to you as I thought to do to them.” (Num.33:50-56)

It is clear that no trace of the previous inhabitants is to be left in the land. There is no “kill ‘em all directive”, but we see this in individual situations as we’re detailed elsewhere. The point here is that there is a complete re-creation here in the land of Canaan, as there was at the time of the Flood globally, a “new Creation” of a People of God with nothing to taint it in its inception. It is God’s manner of teaching us that the worship that he has instituted for us, for the Church of God is to be completely unstained as it was intended, as it was instituted at its inception, and the manner in which it was and is always meant to be- “orthodoxy”- “right worship” (that’s not meant to be a inter-denominational statement).

In Ch. 35 begins with the edicts to do with murder and accidental killing. In the case of the latter, “cities of refuge” are to be set up. The concept of the “avenger of blood” is seen here, and it would be a male relative of the deceased who would carry out the execution. This sort of “blood feud” is the norm in the ancient world, and even today in some cultures. A clan does not rest upon its honor until it’s blood has been avenged and it is the sort of code of honor that can consume lives and lifetimes, because it basically precipitates an unending cycle of killing. Here God is proposing a resolution for such situations. The passage ends with God saying that blood can only be expiated by blood (v.33). Also the necessity of two witnesses is mentioned here (v.30):

““These things shall be a statute and ordinance for you throughout your generations wherever you live. “If anyone kills another, the murderer shall be put to death on the evidence of witnesses, but no one shall be put to death on the testimony of a single witness. Moreover you shall accept no ransom for the life of a murderer who is subject to the death penalty; a murderer must be put to death. Nor shall you accept ransom for one who has fled to a city of refuge, enabling the fugitive to return to live in the land before the death of the high priest. You shall not pollute the land in which you live, for blood pollutes the land, and no expiation can be made for the land for the blood that is shed in it, except by the blood of the one who shed it. You shall not defile the land in which you live, in which I also dwell, for I the LORD dwell among the Israelites.”
(Num.35:29-34)

the reason that God demands absolute purity is because he is here, he wants us to be with him.