“But among these there was not a man of those who were numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest, who numbered the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai.” Numbers 26:64
The Book of Numbers is called this for a reason. In both the Opening Chapter, as well as Today’s, Moses is directed to “Take a census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel from twenty years old and upward, by their fathers’ households, whoever is able to go to war in Israel.” Though this only included the men that were 20 and older (not children, not women, and not those elderly, incapable of “going to war”), on both occasions you have numbers that exceed 600,000. That’s a significant number! But when you consider that “Every One” of these men numbered in Chapter 1 have died off in Wilderness (with the exception of Moses, Joshua, and Caleb), it is Absolutely Staggering!
Now granted, there were many that would have died off naturally; from Old Age, from Sickness and Disease, or from some sort of an Accident. But “Most” of these fell under God’s Hand of Judgement! From the beginning where we’re told that Fire broke out at the outskirts of the Camp when the People were complaining, to the “Sin of Peor” where 24,000 died. And this all took place in just 38 some years, not several generations.
So what can we learn from this? First and Foremost, SIN is SERIOUS!!! These were the People of God; their Prayers for Deliverance were Heard and Answered; they were Miraculously Delivered from their Enemies; they were Cared and Provided for in the middle of a Desert; were heading to a Land God would help them conquer and become their New Home; and when they Sinned…God brought down the Hammer of His Judgement. If we DO NOT see this, then we DO NOT see God’s Hatred for Sin! That Hammer of Judgement is what Jesus took upon the Cross in order to forgive “us” of “our” Sin! May this help give us a Sobering View of SIN!