Tag Archives: Numbers 33

Daily Bible Study

February 25, 2024 Bible Study — Listening to Each Other

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Numbers 32-33.

Some times when I read this, I think that there is miscommunication between Moses and the tribes which wanted to stay east of the Jordan River.  Today, I read this as the tribes of Reuben and Gad not fully understanding the implications of what they were asking.  The two tribes just saw that the land the Israelites had conquered east of the Jordan was perfect for their lifestyle and wanted to settle there.  Moses pointed out that  unwillingness to enter the Promised Land led the Israelites to wander in the wilderness for forty years.  If these two tribes were unwilling to enter the Promised Land alongside the other tribes, they would be guilty of the same sin.  So, as I read it today, the tribes of Reuben and Gad did not want to cross over the Jordan and fight because the land they wanted was already conquered.  However, when Moses put it this way, they realized that the other tribes had helped conquer this land, so they needed to help the other tribes conquer their land.  They had not asked to be excused from joining the others in crossing the Jordan because they did not want to fight beside them.  Instead, they had asked to be excused from crossing the Jordan because they thought if they did so they would have to choose land to settle on the other side, when the land they wanted to settle was here.  When Moses pointed out to them what their request looked like to others, they quickly amended it to reflect what they truly wanted.  They did not get defensive like so many of us do and argue that they shouldn’t have to risk themselves to help the other tribes.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

February 25, 2023 Bible Study — The Importance Of Spelling Out Expectations Clearly

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Numbers 32-33.

When I started to read today’s passage my first thought was about how Moses thought that the Reubenites and Gadites were trying to get out of fighting for land west of the Jordan when they asked that the land of the Amorites be made their inheritance.  In the past I thought that Moses had completely misunderstood their intentions.  As I have thought about it longer, I think that the Reubenites and Gadites did think that they might be excused from fighting across the Jordan if they took the land already conquered on its eastern bank.  However, I also think that Moses was mistaken in thinking that they asked for it in order to avoid the fighting.  So, when Moses put the idea of not joining the battles west of the Jordan in the context of failing to follow God’s commands and shirking their responsibility to the rest of the Israelites, they quickly clarified their request.  So, this passage illustrates the importance of making expectations clear.

Having written all of the above, I want to point out something we tend to gloss over about this passage.  The Reubenites and Gadites were the people who requested land east of the Jordan.  Yet, Moses also gave some of that land to the tribe of Manasseh.  No explanation is given for why some of the tribe of Manasseh settled east of the Jordan River, while the rest of that tribe crossed over the Jordan and settled there.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

February 25, 2022 Bible Study — Making Clear What Is Being Requested And Then Agreed Upon

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Numbers 32-33.

After the Israelites destroyed the Midianites who had been involved in seducing Israelites into worshiping Baal of Pear, the tribes of Reuben and Gad requested the land which Israel had taken from the kings Sihon and Og as their inheritance.  I cannot tell from the language used whether or not Moses was correct in surmising that they desired to refrain from fighting with the rest of Israel west of the Jordan.    However, even if they had thought to remain out of the fighting which was coming, it was not the reason for their request.  When Moses accused them of discouraging the rest of the Israelites from crossing over in the same way that the ten scouts had done, they quickly clarified their request.  So, perhaps the tribes of Reuben and Gad had intended to not send their warriors with the rest of Israel when Israel invaded the land of Canaan, but that was not what they were asking for when they requested that the land east of the Jordan be made their inheritance.  This whole exchange illustrates the importance of continuing dialog when conflict arises.  When the two tribes made their request, Moses became angry because of what he thought they really wanted, but he did not just react in his anger.  He told them that he thought they were trying to avoid crossing the Jordan to fight and why that made him angry.  The two tribes quickly agreed that they would send their warriors across the Jordan to fight with the rest of Israel.  Everybody spelled out what was being agreed to when Moses granted the request of the two tribes.  As a result when they agreed that the two tribes would settle east of the Jordan, but send their warriors to support the rest of Israel in their conquest of Canaan.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

February 25, 2021 Bible Study The Importance Of Making Expectations Clear

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Numbers 32-33.

There are two ways that one can read the request from the Reubenites and the Gadites regarding settling in Gilead, or perhaps three.  Perhaps, Moses interpreted their request correctly, they were asking to not need to take part in the invasion of the Promised Land.  In that case, Moses was right to be angry with them.  Or, perhaps, they only meant to ask for what they got.  They were merely asking for the territory of Gilead to be theirs while they sent their fighters to aid the rest of the Israelites in taking the Promised Land.  The final possibility is that they had not thought about what it would mean relative to fighting with the rest of Israel across the Jordan if their request was granted.

I think the last is most likely what was going on here.  Moses overreacted to their request, because they did not intend to not assist the rest of Israel.  On the other hand, if Moses had granted their request without first getting their agreement to it being conditional on aiding the rest of Israel, there would have been significant sentiment among those tribes which settled east of the Jordan River to not fight with the rest of Israel on the other side.  In any case, this passage shows us the importance of making expectations clear.  The Reubenites and Gadites had not clearly laid out their expectations and, as a result, Moses thought they were trying to back out of entering the Promised Land.  We also see how a willingness to clarify your position can end a dispute.

There is one other thing I want to note.  The land which these tribes chose as their inheritance was pretty much the land which Lot chose when his herders and Abraham’s herders were in conflict and Abraham gave him first choice which way to go.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

February 25, 2020 Bible Study — Not Being Offended When People Question Our Motives

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Numbers 32-33.

The first time the tribes which settled east of the Jordan River were misunderstood was when they requested that land as their inheritance in the Promised Land.  Moses thought the request was because they did not want to have to face the people’s living on the other side of the Jordan.  They quickly made it clear that they were perfectly happy to cross the Jordan to fight with their fellow Israelites, they just did not want to live there.  However, the tribes desiring to settle east of the Jordan did not get defensive and angry.  They understood why Moses would question their motives and quickly acted to reassure him that they were not trying to weasel out of crossing the Jordan.  We should be prepared to follow their example.  When others have acted in bad faith, and others have acted in bad faith, we should not be surprised, or offended, if people question our motives.

Daily Bible Study

February 25, 2019 Bible Study — Working Through Misunderstandings

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Numbers 32-33.

As the people of Israel prepared to cross the Jordan River into the Promised Land, the tribes of Reuben and Gad realized that the land which they had just conquered east of the Jordan was perfect for their livestock.  So, they asked Moses if they could have that land as their inheritance, rather than land on the other side of the Jordan River.  Moses was concerned that their request was based on the same fear that had led the previous generation to resist entering the Promised Land.  Rather than be offended by Moses’ assumption that they were trying to shirk their duty to their countrymen, the representatives of Reuben and Gad explained their thinking.  They made it clear that they intended to assist the other tribes in conquering the land west of the Jordan River.  They recognized that Moses’ questions were a valid conclusion from their request and addressed his concerns.  Both sides of this handled the misunderstanding correctly.  Moses explained why he was concerned with their request, then listened when they clarified.  The tribes heard Moses concern and understood why he thought that, explaining that was not what they wished.

Daily Bible Study

February 25, 2018 Bible Study — The Tribes Which Settled East of the Jordan

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Numbers 32-33.

    We often forget that when the Israelites crossed the Jordan to attack Jericho they controlled the land that is now the country of Jordan. They continued to control that land up through the time of Solomon. When the tribes of Reuben and Gad requested this land east of the Jordan as their share in the Promised Land, misunderstanding immediately ensued. We see this sort of misunderstanding repeated several times throughout the Old Testament. Moses immediately assumed that they wished this land because they feared the peoples on the other side of the Jordan, just as the previous generation had when he first tried to lead them into the Promised Land. The two tribes quickly asserted that they had no intention of not joining the other tribes in the conquest of the lands west of the Jordan. They merely wished to set up their families and flocks in defensible positions in the land east of the Jordan because it was ideally suited for them. The tribes of Reuben and Gad were not offended by Moses’ assumption. They understood that human nature is such that all too often Moses’ assumption would have been correct. By spelling out in advance what was expected they laid the groundwork for resolving future misunderstandings.