Today’s reading has one unique ritual sacrifice, one rock waterfall, and one bronze snake. The stories are also full of prophetic references to Jesus, so let’s dig in.

The Red Heifer

“The Lord said to Moses and Aaron: ‘This is a requirement of the law that the Lord has commanded: Tell the Israelites to bring you a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke.” Numbers 19:1-2

Aaron’s son Eleazar took the red heifer outside the camp and slaughtered it. He carried some of her blood on his finger and sprinkled it seven times toward the front of the tabernacle. Then the heifer’s body was burned to ashes. Eleazar oversaw the ritual burning and added some cedar wood, hyssop and wool dyed scarlet to the fire.

When the fire went out the ashes of the heifer were gathered up and stored in a clean place outside the camp..

Water for Purification

The heifer’s ashes were combined with fresh running water to be used in a purification ritual when someone came in contact with a dead person, or when a person died in a tent.

Some ashes from the heifer were put into a jar and fresh water was poured over them. Then a clean person took a branch of hyssop and sprinkled the water over whoever had touched a dead person, as well as the place where they died. They did this ritual sprinkling on the third and seventh days following the death. Then the person who was purified by the water washed his clothes and took a bath and was clean again from the stain of death.

The Red Heifer and Christ

There is an image of Christ in the red heifer. The heifer was sacrificed once, but she continued to bless people through the cleansing water her ashes provided. Unlike other sacrifices made to atone for sin the heifer’s offering continued to be part of the life of Israel.

Jesus was sacrificed once, too, but he came back from the dead and because he’s alive we can to turn to him again and again to be cleansed from our daily sins. Jesus himself illustrated what that looks like.

In John 13, Jesus took a towel and a basin of water and washed his disciples feet. Peter didn’t see the point of his master washing his feet and protested, so Jesus explained.

“He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, ‘Lord, are you going to wash my feet?’ Jesus replied, ‘You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand . . . Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.’” John 13:6-8

Peter then asked Jesus to wash his hands and head, too, but Jesus said, “A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean.” John 13:10

We who belong to Christ have been bathed in his atoning blood and saved for eternity, but while we are in this world we sin. These sins can’t take away our salvation, but they are offensive to God. Jesus said that if we don’t let him clean us up, we have no part in him. When we belong to Christ we want to get cleaned up after we sin and the way to do it is by confessing our sins to God. As 1 John 1:8-9 says,

 “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Miriam Passes Away

Miriam’s passing is mentioned in just one verse, Numbers 20:1, where she died and was buried . . . the end.

But it was Miriam who followed the infant Moses as he floated in a basket on the Nile, and suggested to Pharaoh’s daughter that a Hebrew nurse might be good for him. Because of Miriam, Moses spent his earliest years with his mother in the comfort of his birth family. Miriam led the triumphant singing and dancing when Egypt was defeated at the Red Sea. Later she became resentful of her brother Moses and God disciplined her like a father by giving her a timeout outside the camp. But at the end of her life, the Lord memorialized her in Scripture and that is enough of an epitaph for anyone.

Water from the Rock

Israel was in the desert of Zin when once again they ran out of water and got hungry for fresh fruit and grain. They complained to Moses and Aaron and, once again, those two leaders fell facedown before the Lord and waited for an answer. God appeared to them and told Moses,

“Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.” Numbers 20:8

Instead of speaking to the rock, Moses spoke to the crowd and struck the rock, twice. God let the water flow, but he also told Moses he wouldn’t live to enter the Promised Land. This was a serious consequence for a man who had given his whole life to getting his people to Canaan. Why did God care so much about a rock?

Rocks that produced life-giving water for Israel were another image of Christ. At the beginning of Israel’s journey, God told Moses to strike the rock, this time he told Moses to speak to the rock.

Christians see the first rock as a representation of Christ who was struck and died to give us life. The second rock represents the risen Christ who will never be struck or die again. We only need to speak to Jesus to receive life from him. God the Father had his Son in mind when he gave those instructions to Moses.

Aaron Passes Away

God next led Israel toward the territory of Edom, the descendants of Esau. Moses introduced the Edomites to the Israelites, their cousins, and asked for permission to travel through on the King’s Highway. He promised Israel wouldn’t bother anyone or take anything from Edom, but Edom said “no” and sent a show of force to keep them out so Israel traveled farther east and stopped at Mt. Hor.

It was time for Aaron to die. God was very matter of fact about how this happened. Moses, Aaron and Eleazar climbed Mt. Hor, where Moses took Aaron’s priestly robes from him and put them on Eleazar. I wonder if they reminisced about the day Moses first dressed Aaron in those robes and ordained him to the priesthood?

Aaron died there on top of the mountain. For Moses is might have been a preview of his own death since God had already told him to expect to die before they reached Canaan.

Israel mourned for thirty days after they lost Aaron, their first priest.

The Bronze Snake

Once more Israel grew impatient and complained about the food and lack of water. God didn’t even bother to appear to them this time. He sent venomous, biting snakes and people died. When Moses prayed, God told him to make a bronze snake and hold it up. Anyone who looked at the bronze snake after they were bitten was saved.

This was another image of the work of Christ. People who are dying from sin can look to Jesus and be saved. Here is what he said about himself:

“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life” John 3:14-15

Israel Becomes a Fighting Force

In Numbers 21 Israel turned north and hardened into an army on the march. They won their first victory over Canaanites as they were leaving the Negev. They moved steadily northward through what is now the nation of Jordan and started writing songs and poems about their victories. By the end of Numbers 21 they had taken possession of settlements and land and they were a force to be reckoned with.

Forty Years Go By

J. Vernon McGee notes that by Numbers 20, Israel had come to the end of their wilderness wandering. Forty years had already passed, Israel was finally moving into position to enter the Promised Land.

Why didn’t God tell us more about those forty years in the wilderness?

McGee says it’s because Israel didn’t do anything of note while they were in the wilderness, and in his opinion those forty years were wasted, all because they said no. When God first showed them the Promised Land they got scared and backed down.

We can learn from Israel’s experience. When God shows you the next step to take, don’t turn away just because it looks challenging or scary. Go with God — don’t waste time when The Promised Land lies ahead!