Numbers 14:11-23

Now it is clear from reading this passage that God’s longsuffering—patience—is not without bounds. He will reach a breaking point at some time. We can wear His patience very thin. We can wear it out completely, if we take it that far.

However, this story is actually an example of just how extensive His patience and longsuffering is. I mean, think about what Israel was doing here. Like He said, they had tested Him 10 times, even though they had seen all those things that He had done for them—starting way back with the first plague all the way through until this point, over two years of God’s constant work on their behalf. Plague after plague in Egypt, and then He brings them out after destroying that land. He saves them in the Red Sea. They see their enemy dead on the coast. Then they go trudging through the wilderness, hardly any food or water in the whole place, and He provides it for them—water for millions of people—gallons and gallons and gallons, a lake full of water for them every day. And then, He also rained manna from heaven for them, and they were given quail.

God went out of His way to give them the things that they needed. He defeated their enemies. All Moses had to do was hold his arms up, and their enemies fell. He showed them the way across the wilderness, not only by day in a Pillar of Cloud, but He also lit it up in the evening and so they had a fiery presence of God at night. They knew He was there. They did not think that He was way off in heaven. He was right there with them all the time—two years so far in this story, but it eventually ended up being 40 years. And if we go into Deuteronomy, He tells us that their shoes did not wear out, their clothes did not wear out, that everything just remained constantly good and usable for all that time.

And yet, they were rejecting Him, because these silly people across the border were taller than they were! It is incredible.

They were rejecting His plan, and His promises that He made to them, as well as to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and then to all of them back on Mount Sinai. They were rejecting His law, they were rejecting His servants, they were rejecting His providence, and they were rejecting everything about God. Though He was tempted to start over, and voiced that to Moses, yet He pardons them, and puts up with them for another 38 years until they died. That is just incredible patience—incredible longsuffering. His nose is very long, as it were.

Just think—put yourself in God’s place—of all the complaining that He heard in those 40 years. All the reluctance to do anything that He, through Moses, told them to do. And of course, there was all the disobedience starting with idolatry, and fornication, and who knows all the things they did there in the wilderness. They gave Him grief, after grief, after grief for all that time. It must, to Him, seemed like an interminable journey across the wilderness. Yet, He patiently endured them and all their unbelief. It sounds a lot like that story I gave you as I began, that God endured this man for 80 years, “can’t you endure him for one night?” He endured the children of Israel for 40 years. And that is enough to turn anyone’s hair absolutely white. It would us.

I am surprised that Moses ended up like he was. It says his natural vigor had not abated, even when he was 120 years old, and his eye was not dim. He took it. He was in many ways similarly patient with the people of Israel, because he understood God’s patience. And, that is what we are supposed to be doing—learning God’s will in all this—to be patient and start doing this thing ourselves, showing this same patience toward one another.

Did you know that it says in Deuteronomy 7 that God did all this to Israel those 40 years because He loved them! All of His longsuffering He did because He loved them, His people Israel. And then, despite all that they had done, He would keep His oath, He would bless them, and multiply them in the land.

That … . . .

Numbers 14:10-11

A cry went up. Gather your stones! Find your bricks! Find your boulders! Let's stone them! And God said, "This has to stop here."

Do you think He said (softly), "how long will these people reject me?" Do you think He said it like that? He said, "How long will these people reject Me?!" God was angry at their rebellion! He had made it very plain in the promises He had made that He would bring them into the land. His word backed this up. "I will bring you into the Promised Land." There's no need for anything more than that. God said it. He's going to do it. His word doesn't return to Him empty. If He says He's going to perform it, it's going to be performed.

How many times had He demonstrated His power to these 2½ to 3 million people? There were ten plagues in Egypt. He killed all the firstborn, both of men and beast. He had parted the Red Sea and the army of Pharaoh was drowned there. He had taken water out of a rock. He performed all those miracles on Sinai. Moses had come down with a shining face. They had seen the tables that had been written with the hand of God.

How many other things did He do? Every day manna fell from the sky. They ate the proof every day that God would do as He said and still, they refused. They rejected Him out of hand. And then, of course, you had the eyewitness testimony of men like Moses and Aaron and Joshua and Caleb and the other elders. Remember, there were seventy elders that went up on the mount and saw Him and ate with Him. What more proof do you need that God will do what He says? But the people rejected Him.

Numbers 14:1-11

It would seem as though Israel had every evidence that God was with them, and that He was clearly powerful enough for them to trust Him. But that evidence—what He did to the Egyptians; the dividing of the Red Sea; His providing two million people plus with manna every day, with water as was needed, and even quails for them, clothing that did not wear out; and He even provided them with shade during the heat of the day—was not enough.

And their faith evaporated when fears (for their own safety, for the preservation of their flesh, and the satisfying of their appetites) overrode the trust of almost everyone. Their fear overcame whatever level of faith they had, and it motivated rebellion. It led directly to the death of everyone over twenty, except for Joshua and Caleb. Do you get the point?

Fear kills! That is its ultimate fruit.

This illustration here in Numbers 13 and 14 is clear evidence that these people were walking by sight. What they saw were giants, and it intimidated them—as if God was not bigger, greater, more powerful, smarter than giants. So God has to ask, "How long is it going to be before they believe Me?" It is like He says, "What can I do that might give them more faith?"

Numbers 14:11-12

And this was God's presence among them in anger! Let's read what He says here:

This is God spitting nails! He was about as angry as He gets. He was threatening to kill them all. Just send some pestilence through the camp. Just strike down all 2.5 million of them and start over with Moses, and do it better this time.

So, here is an example of God's presence giving stern correction and judgment from His visible presence. And He did. We will find out a little later in the chapter, that He pronounces a death sentence on all of them except Moses (well actually Moses ended up dying too because of something he did later); but basically He said that Joshua and Caleb would live. And everybody else would not enter the Promised Land.

Numbers 14:11:

Because God has created these wonderful things, He has also given us the ability to learn from them and come up with real-life solutions to life’s quandaries. God’s attributes are clearly seen in Creation, as we well know. Yet the very scientists and inventors who use God’s design don’t credit Him, but pay homage to “nature,” their environmental god.

Creation is full of signs of God’s wisdom and power, but man is just so blind because of his enmity.