Day 44, Numbers 5-7

Into week six now, and it is quite tedious. Today was incredibly confusing with a test for adultery and the Nazirite Vow. I like this journey much better when I can read my Bible, understand mostly what’s going on, and move onto the next one. Days like today had me rereading in multiple versions and really relying on my Study Bible to try to explain.

It started out initially discussing unclean people…AGAIN. I do not know why things are so repetitive. The Lord had commanded Moses to put all the people of Israel who had a skin disease or discharges out of the camp. Both males and females were put out so they would not defile their camp where they lived. This paragraph focused on visible, and clearly evident skin disorders as the ultimate and tangible sign of uncleanness you could outwardly see.

Then it went into confession and restitution with the Lord saying to Moses,

“When a man or woman commits any of the sins that people commit by breaking faith with the Lord, and that person realizes his guilt, he shall confess his sin that he has committed. And he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to it and giving it to him to whom he did wrong.”

-Numbers 5:6-7

The connection of these verses (on personal wrongs) with the first paragraph (on ritual uncleanness) may be that of moving from the outward, visible defects to the inward, more secret faults that mar the purity of the community. Those with evident marks of uncleanness are to be expelled for the duration of their malady. But more insidious are those people who have overtly sinned against others in the community, and who think that they may continue to function as though they had done nothing wrong.

Again the connection between the preceding two paragraphs seems to be a movement from the more open, obvious sins to the more personal, hidden ones. Issues of purity begin with physical marks, are expanded to interpersonal relationships, and then intrude into the most intimate of relationships-the purity of a man and woman in their marriage bed.

A test for marital fidelity is far more difficult to prove than a test for a skin disorder; hence, the larger part of the chapter is given to this most sensitive of issues.

“Then the Lord said to Moses. “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘If a man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him by sleeping with another man, and this is hidden from her husband and her impurity is undetected (since there is no witness against her and she has not been caught in the act), and if feelings of jealousy come over her husband and he suspects his wife and she is impure–or if he is jealous and suspects her even though she is not impure–then he is to take her to the priest.”

-Numbers 5:11-15

The feelings of jealousy could be for good cause, and the issue must be faced. The concern is not just for the bruised feelings of the husband, but ultimately based on the reality of God’s dwelling among his people. This chapter was designed to prevent unfounded charges of unfaithfulness, and was not to be used in a petty way for a malevolent husband to badger an innocent woman.

The ceremony to test for adultery seemed to be quite intense and was very detailed in the processes that were done. They may have seemed harsh and severe, but the consequences would have been worse for a woman charged with adultery by an angry husband if there was no provision for her guilt or innocence demonstrated. Her being taken to the priest was an act of mercy.

The gravity of the ritual for a suspected unfaithful wife shows that the law regards marital infidelity most seriously. This was not just a concern of a jealous husband. The entire community was affected by this breach in faith; hence, the judgement was in the context of the community.

One part of the ritual was a grain offering. The other part consisted of the priest taking some holy water in a clay jar and putting some dust from the floor of the tabernacle in it. The priest would have the woman stand before the Lord, loosen her hair (a sign of openness), and hold in her hand the grain offering. Then the priest, holding the bitter water that brings a curse, put the woman under oath.

It was not just that the water was bitter in tasting, but that the water had the potential of bringing with it a bitter curse. The Lord’s role in the proceedings is emphasized repeatedly to show that this potion was neither simply a tool of magic nor merely a psychological device to determine stress. The verdict with respect to the woman was precipitated by her physiological and psychological responses to the bitter water, but the judgement was from the Lord.

He said that if she had not slept with another man and she had not gone astray, then the bitter water would not curse or harm her. If she defiled herself and been impure, then the woman would be placed under the curse of the oath making the people curse and denounce her; and cause her thigh to waste away and her abdomen to swell.

The figurative language here speaks of the loss of the capacity for childbearing (and if pregnant, the miscarriage of the child). This is demonstrated by the determination of the fate of a woman wrongly charged. Since it was in bearing of children that a woman’s worth was realized in the ancient world, this was a grievous punishment indeed.

“This, then, is the law of jealousy when a woman goes astray and defiled herself while married to her husband, or when feelings of jealousy come over a man because he suspects his wife. The priest is to have her stand before the Lord and is to apply this entire law to her. The husband will be innocent of any wrongdoing, but the woman will bear the consequences of her sin.”

-Numbers 5:29-30

Let’s repeat that one more time…”The husband will be innocent of any wrongdoing.” Really? Not too far back, men were taking multiple wives, having however many bastard children, and now putting their wife who may or may not be guilty through the embarrassment of this ritual for possibly just petty and jealous reasons; but they are innocent of any wrong doing. Wow!

Obviously adultery is a bad thing, but marriage is a two way street; and even back in those times if a spouse was going to stray there had to be more going on then someone just out wanting to being a little slutty; especially knowing the consequences.

And who’s to say that the men didn’t cheat. I’m sure they did. But why is the woman the only one having to be put through this test?

Anyway, moving on to the Nazirite Vow. Basically, this was a vow one would make to the Lord to separate or consecrate himself to the Lord for a specific period of special devotion to God–on occasion, even for life. In order to do this a person would have to stay away from anything that came from the grapevine. No wine or strong drink was allowed. Not only the fermented beverage was forbidden, but the seeds and skin of the grapes was not permitted. They also could not cut their hair at this time of separation, or go near a dead body, even if it were a close family member.

There were three areas of his life that were governed,
1.) diet
2.) appearance
3.) associations

Then it moved onto Aaron’s blessing. The Lord spoke to Moses, telling him to speak to Aaron and his sons telling them this is how they are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:

Today ended with the offerings at the tabernacles’ consecration. When Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle and had anointed and consecrated it with all it furnishings; the chiefs of Israel, heads of their fathers’ houses, approached and brought their offerings before the Lord.

There were six wagons and twelve oxen. A wagon for every two chiefs, and an ox for each of the twelve. These were to be used in the tent of meeting and given to the Levites according to their services.

-Two wagons and four oxen he gave to sons of Gershom.
-Four wagons and eight oxen he have to sons of Merari
-None were given to sons of Kohath because they were in charge of the holy things that had to be carried on their shoulders.

The chiefs offered their offerings for the dedication of the altar, one chief each day for twelve days. This section went into detail about each chief, the day offered, and the offering. This was incredibly repetitive because each chief offered the same things.

The dedication offering for the altar on the day when it was anointed from the chiefs of Israel were:
-twelve silver plates (each plate weighing 130 shekels)
-twelve silver basins (each basin weaighing 70 shekels)
*TOTAL SILVER: 2,400 Shekels

-twelve golden dishes filled with incense (each weighed 10 shekels)
*TOTAL GOLD: 120 shekels

-twelve bulls (24 total)
-twelve rams (60 total)
-twelve male lambs a year old (60 total)
-twelve male goats (60 total)

“And when Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with the Lord, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim; and it spoke to him.”

-Numbers 7:89