DAILY Q11 (02/20)

After reading the different chapters in Numbers, one can easily perceive the people’s inability to remember all that God has done for them in the past. In Num 11, people complain about the lack of better food, specifically meat, and compare this to when they used to be in Egypt; they are dissatisfied with their new living condition, which I think is ironic given the enslaved condition in which they found themselves before Moses’ rescue. As a result, God sent the meat they longed in the form of quails for a month, but this was followed by a plague. Num 13-14 also shows a scenario in which the wilderness generation pose God’s words into question when they find they aren’t the first ones to get to the promised land; and again, God hears and condemns this generation by prohibiting anyone older than twenty from being able to enter the promised land. The book of Numbers clearly outlines the people’s constant questioning of God and I think that through the punishments God sentences and condemns the corrupt ant contaminated spirit of the wilderness generation who not only doubt His intentions but also forget what he has already done for them.

I think that the fact that Moses dies when he sees the promised land emphasizes the fact that his job was done; he had to save Israel from slavery and lead this one to the promised land, and this task is fulfilled when he sees the promised land. Moses’ death of highlights the end of a journey and the beginning of a new era of worship and devotion to God. Even though I do think it is sad that Moses doesn’t get to experience living in the promised land after all of his hard work and long and hard journey through the desert, I do think that Moses belongs to a different period and when this period (the journey) is over, it does make sense that Moses has to come to an end as well.

Even though I didn’t expect this ending, Deuteronomy 34 ends with Moses’ death right after he sees the promised land. I think that this guides our reading to all that takes place in the Book of Joshua as it clearly separates all that Moses did and differentiates it to what is going to come in the future. Joshua will be the new leader, and similarly to Moses, he will guide the Israelite community with the help and the instruct of God.