Sour Grapes? Sweet Wine? 酸的葡萄？甜的美酒？(民數記Numbers 12) 11-25-07

SCRIPTURAL INTRODUCTION

The book of Numbers is a tragic story in the history of Israel. God brought the Israelites out from the land of oppression in Egypt and was about to lead them into the promised land of Canaan. However, because of their sin the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years and only a few people of that generation were allowed to enter into Canaan. When we read their stories we may comment that they are really a bunch of messed-up rascals. They disobeyed God and did not have faith in Him. They were fearful and lacked a sense of unity. But aren’t we nowadays Christians like them in one way or another? Now as we come to Numbers chapter 12, two years after they left Egypt, there comes another crisis. This time the problem arises from the leadership level. Let us read from the Scripture.

SERMON INTRODUCTION

Let’s face it. Chinese is a race that likes to play the comparison game. When I was in grade school we compared about pencil cases. In junior high we compared about sports shoes. In college we compared GPA. After we graduated we compared about work and salary. Then when our own kids get to college age we compare which schools they go to. We compare what kind of cars we drive, how big our house is or where we spend our vacation. And the list goes on and on. Sure enough, when we compare ourselves with others there would be two extreme results. On the one extreme we feel that we are better than others. That leads to pride. On the other extreme we feel that others are better than us. And that causes jealousy.

Jealousy was probably the first sin in the human history. The book of Genesis tells us that the serpent lures Eve to desire after God’s ability to discern good from evil like God. She and her husband Adam ate the forbidden fruit. That brought about original sin in the whole human race.

SCRIPTURAL ANALYSIS

Jealousy seems to be the problem at hand in this passage. Verse 1 begins the story when we see that Miriam and Aaron begin to criticize their younger brother Moses about the Cushite wife he married. Cush is around today’s Ethiopia. The Bible does not give us any further information about the identity of this woman. We are told in Exodus 2:21 that “Moses agreed to stay with the man, who gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses in marriage.” Zipporah was the daughter of Jethro the Midianite priest. Commentators suggest a few possibilities to explain it. That Cushite wife might be Zipporah or a second wife Moses married when Zipporah was still alive or had passed away. Regardless of her identity one may wonder why they wait so long before bringing the issue up. The next verse informs us that is not the real issue. Verse 2 tells us that the core problem is with jealousy. It is like someone comes up to you and comments about your clothes. Then he quickly adds, “Oh, by the way, I was really bothered by what you shared the other day at the coworker meeting.” Then you know what he is really up to. Interesting enough at the end of verse 2 it says: “And the Lord heard this.” Is that redundant to clarify that the all-knowing God heard the criticism from Miriam and Aaron? To me those few words carry a warning and a comfort. Whenever I have some judgmental comments about someone I have to restrain myself and seek the Lord’s forgiveness because God hears it too. But on the other hand when I am wrongfully slandered God will stand on my side and vindicate me. That is exactly what He does in Moses behalf.

Verse 3 adds another interesting remark about Moses. It seems to imply that since Moses is the most humble person on earth he would be willing to let the criticism passes away. But God sees a deeper problem.

In verses 4 and 5 God summoned the three siblings to the Tent of Meeting. Then He asked Aaron and Miriam to step forward so that He can talk to them. Picture this: it is like when three people at work are having an argument. The boss summons all three of them to the office. He says to them, “Okay, Peter and Susie come to my office. Johnny, you wait outside.” He knows exactly in his mind that Johnny is the victim in the whole incidence. Here in verse 5 says that God appears in the form of a pillar of cloud. That is a common form God manifested to the Israelites when He led them out of Egypt and throughout their wilderness wandering. Then in verse 6 God says to Aaron and Miriam, “Listen to my words.” God is indeed full of humor. Moments ago Aaron and Miriam were complaining that God only spoke to Moses. Now God appears to them and says to them: you want me to talk to you, alright, let’s talk. Notice the second part of verse 6 to verse 8 is written in the form of a poem. In particular, the verses are written in a chiastic structure:

A prophet of the Lord (v. 6a)

I reveal myself to him in visions (v. 6b)

I speak to him in dreams (v. 6c)

He is faithful in all my house (v. 7)

With him I speak face to face (v. 8a)

He sees the form of the Lord (v. 8b)

My servant Moses (v. 8c)

God is comparing the way He conveys His message to a prophet and to His servant Moses. In a chiastic structure the first line is in parallel to the last line, the second line to the second last line, and so forth. The emphasis of the poem is in the middle verse where it stands out by itself. In this case God points out that what makes Moses so special is because he is faithful in all His house. Twice the verses 7 and 8 God calls him “my servant Moses.” This title occurs 36 times in the Old Testament. Because of such a special relationship God speaks to Moses face to face. The literal translation for that phrase should be “mouth to mouth.” The same expression is also found in Exodus 33:11: “The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend.” God also gives Moses the privilege to see His form. In summary God defends against His servant Moses based on His particular choosing of him to be the leader of Israel, and hence the special way He communicates with him. That is why verse 8 ends with a rhetorical question: “Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” If you mess with Moses you mess with God Himself. Ultimately you are only looking for your own trouble.

It was my first job fresh out of graduate school, and I almost blew it. I was working in a research lab and my job was to manage the lab and made sure that everything was running smoothly. There was a PhD student named Cecilia whom everyone regarded as hard working but self-centered. But my boss, who happened to be a lady, liked Cecilia because she was very productive. And since Cecilia got all the approval from our boss she thought the rest of us in the lab should show favor to her as well. She began to make unreasonable demands on me and expecting me to put the things I was working at hand aside and met her requests first. Being self-righteous at that time I thought the proper way to deal with this colleague was to ignore her. When she felt that I did not fully cooperate with her naturally she approached our boss to seek her approval to settle our dispute. Soon I was called into my boss’ office to discuss the matter. I thought that was my golden opportunity to approach my boss and vindicate myself. But to my surprise my boss had already made up her mind to approve Cecilia. She said that if I did not like to work around here I could simply quit and find another job elsewhere. I learned an important lesson then – it was always a wrong thing to take matters into my own hands and seek approval from people rather than from God.

The fact is very simple: behind every faithful servant there has to be a boss who stands by him. If you touch him you have to deal with his boss also. In our story God acts on behalf of His servant Moses and defends him. All of a sudden the issue is not only jealousy toward a more gifted brother. It is a direct challenge to God’s sovereignty. For those who are in a leadership position to serve the Lord, whether you are a Bible study leader or the chairman of a committee, it is easy to receive criticism from other people. We can learn from Moses in how to deal with situation like that. Moses displays the Christ-like character of humility. Instead of quickly finds ways to vindicate himself Moses humbly waits for the Lord to take care of the offense. God cares about the attack on the servants He appointed and He will come to our defense. He will reveal the secret motives of the attacker and He will protect His beloved servants.

After God speaks for Moses we are told in verse 9 that He leaves Aaron and Miriam while “burning with anger.” In the next verse Miriam contracts leprosy as a result of her sin of contempt. In the Bible when leprosy is mentioned it can be referred to all kinds of sin diseases. In Miriam’s case her skin turns white as snow. Seemingly God is playing His humor here again. Remember in verse 1 she speaks against Moses’ Cushite wife who may have a dark color skin. And now Miriam’s skin turns white as a punishment. Compared to Miriam Aaron the accomplice does receive any punishment. Why is that so? From the passage there are at least 2 hints to explain it. The more obvious reason is in verses 11 and 12. Aaron confesses that he and Miriam were being foolish in committing the sin. He also pleads for Miriam’s recovery. It is like when you were a little kid you and your older brother did something wrong together after your mom spanked your brother you knew you would be next. A smart thing to do is to admit your wrongdoing so that you can be spared of the punishment. But an even smarter thing to do is to play the sympathy card and say to your mom: “Please don’t spank Bobbie again. You have caused much pain to him already.” This might be exactly what Aaron is doing here. Another less obvious hint why Aaron is not punished is in verse 1. Here the verb “talk against” carries a feminine pronoun. It is rendered “she talked against” instead of “they talked against.” The emphasis here points out that Miriam is the primary sinner in the whole ordeal and Aaron probably is just following along.

Interesting enough early on Aaron and Miriam were jealous about Moses’ intimate relationship with the Lord but now Aaron has to beg Moses to exercise such privilege to intercede for their sister. After Moses pleads on behalf of his sister God responds in verses 14 and 15. He uses a hypothetical situation of Miriam’s father spitting on her face to represent the shame Miriam brought to herself because of her sin. Because of her leprosy Miriam has to be expelled from the community for 7 days. Such treatment is in line with the detail prescription in Leviticus chapters 13 and 14 on how to deal with a leprosy patient. But this isolation also serves as a time of reflection for all the Israelites and for the 3 of them in particular on God’s character.

In God’s punishment of Miriam we can also see His grace. After Miriam is isolated outside the camp for 7 days she is allowed to be readmitted to the community. Verse 15 specifies that the people of the Lord wait there for Miriam’s return. When we think of God’s discipline sometimes we focus only on the punishment part. But God’s discipline is not only meant for punishment but also for correction as well. For it was said in Hebrews 12:10-11 that “Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” God disciplines us not because He hates us but because He loves us and wants us to come back to Him. Today God also gives His local church the authority to discipline believers who commit deliberate sins, in particular those sins that affect the purity and unity of His church. According to the Bible discipline should be the last resort when repeated admonition cannot resolve the situation. In our church we do not exercise such authority on a regularly. But even if we have to our purpose is not to single out particular “sinners” but to reveal the seriousness of the offense with the hope of bringing repentance and reconciliation.

God’s punishment on Miriam is very light compared to the sin she committed. Only one chapter before we read that the Israelites complained to Moses that they did not have meat to eat. God sent quail to satisfy their desire but before they could fully enjoy the meat it says in Numbers 11:33 that “But while the meat was still between their teeth and before it could be consumed, the anger of the LORD burned against the people, and he struck them with a severe plague.” This time Miriam’s life is spared. We may not fully understand why in one case God took the life of someone as a means of punishment and why in another incidence He did not. Suffice to say, in Miriam’s case God shows her His grace by preserving her life. But notice that after this event Miriam’s name is not mentioned again in the book of Numbers until we read in 20:1 that she died and was buried.

What did each of the character learn from this incidence? A commentator suggests that Moses learned to wait on the Lord and let God come to his defense, Aaron learned the importance of intercessory prayer, Miriam learned the meaning of grace and the rest of the Israelites learned the seriousness of sin.

Why is jealousy such a serious sin? From this passage we can see that in a faith community jealously can easily lead to quarrel and division if it is stopped at the source. People can spend all the time and energy in defending why this person is better than that person and whether this person or that person should be the leader. The Israelites were about to enter into the Promised Land the last thing they need is disunity. Similarly God put us here in this local church to win souls and to extend His Kingdom we cannot and should not let jealously affect our unity. Yes very often we may say to ourselves that the grapes we do not have the chance to eat must be sour. We are jealous of what others have and we do not. But are we willing to humble before God and let God be God; allowing Him to turn those sour grapes into sweet wine?