Daily Scripture Reading Numbers 1:1-29

When I was in middle school, I had a teacher who advocated that women should participate in combat. His reasoning was that it only takes 10 pounds of pressure to pull a trigger, and any woman has the ability to do that; therefore, in his mind, there was no reason women cannot serve in combat.

It is true that women can pull triggers. However, it is very naive and clueless to think that the only thing required to fight a war is to pull a trigger. Soldiers march long distances, and carry dozens of pounds of gear, in order to get themselves into a position where pulling a trigger can accomplish something that has military value. Fighting a war requires much more strength and endurance than simply exerting ten pounds of pressure to pull a trigger.

Besides the physiological issues of warfare, there is also a moral issue. The Bible commands husbands to love their wives as Jesus loved the church and gave Himself up for the church. The Bible also commands us to take care of widows. The Bible consistently commands men to protect and provide for women. Letting women serve in combat is the opposite of defending them.

Today we start reading through the book of Numbers. The opening chapter is an example of the consistent theme throughout the Bible that men fight wars in order to protect women and children.

Num. 1:1 ¶ Then Yahweh spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying,

Notice the phrase “Yahweh spoke to Moses”. That phrase appears 47 times throughout the book of Numbers and is a way to divide the book into smaller chunks. The book of Numbers is essentially a series of statements Yahweh made to Moses.

The words “wilderness of Sinai” tell us the Israelites were still at Mount Sinai, which is where the Israelites were at the end of the book of Exodus.

Look at the words “second month” and “second year”. Exodus 19 tells us the Israelites arrived in the wilderness of Sinai in the third month after they left Egypt. Then Exodus 40 tells us the tabernacle was erected in the first month of the second year. The book of Leviticus contains instructions given to Moses regarding how to use the tabernacle. The words “second month” and “second year” in the first verse of the book of Numbers tell us the actions in the book of Numbers start about one year after the Israelites left Egypt.

Num. 1:2 “Take a census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, every male, head by head

The first action in the book of Numbers was to take a census.

Notice the word “male”. Only the males were to be numbered.

Num. 1:3 from twenty years old and upward, whoever is able to go out to war in Israel, you and Aaron shall number them by their armies.

Take note in this verse that only the males twenty years old and older were to be numbered.

The phrase “whoever is able to go out to war” tells us the purpose of the census. The intent of the census was to determine how many soldiers they had. Since the census only counted the males, that means only males were to serve in war.

In recent decades, feminism has insisted that women should be able to serve in combat. They have been so effective in changing the mindset about this that many people today do not grasp the extent to which the modern mindset about women serving in combat is at odds with thousands of years of human history. Throughout history, only men went to fight wars.

There is a physiological reason for this. Male bodies are faster and stronger than female bodies, so females are at a huge disadvantage in warfare. That is why males need to protect females.

Some people point to the U.S. military, which has women in combat positions, and argue that females are able to hold their own in combat. What they are ignoring is the extent to which the U.S. has a massive military advantage due to technology. If the modern U.S. army went up against another country with equivalent technology and equipment, the female vulnerability in combat would be exposed very quickly.

Num. 1:4 With you, moreover, there shall be a man of each tribe, each one head of his father’s household.

Num. 1:5 These then are the names of the men who shall stand with you:

of Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur;

Num. 1:6 of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai;

Num. 1:7 of Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab;

Num. 1:8 of Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar;

Num. 1:9 of Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon;

Num. 1:10 of the sons of Joseph:

of Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud;

of Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur;

Num. 1:11 of Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni;

Num. 1:12 of Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai;

Num. 1:13 of Asher, Pagiel the son of Ochran;

Num. 1:14 of Gad, Eliasaph the son of Deuel;

Num. 1:15 of Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.

Num. 1:16 These are they who were called upon by the congregation, the leaders of their fathers’ tribes; they were the heads of divisions of Israel.”

Take note also that all the leaders were men.

Num. 1:17 ¶ So Moses and Aaron took these men who had been designated by name,

Num. 1:18 and they assembled all the congregation together on the first of the second month. Then they registered by genealogy in their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, head by head,

Num. 1:19 just as Yahweh had commanded Moses. So he numbered them in the wilderness of Sinai.

Num. 1:20 ¶ Now the sons of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

Num. 1:21 their numbered men of the tribe of Reuben were 46,500.

Num. 1:22 ¶ Of the sons of Simeon, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers’ households, their numbered men, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

Num. 1:23 their numbered men of the tribe of Simeon were 59,300.

Num. 1:24 ¶ Of the sons of Gad, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

Num. 1:25 their numbered men of the tribe of Gad were 45,650.

Num. 1:26 ¶ Of the sons of Judah, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

Num. 1:27 their numbered men of the tribe of Judah were 74,600.

Num. 1:28 ¶ Of the sons of Issachar, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

Num. 1:29 their numbered men of the tribe of Issachar were 54,400.

Many people in modern society believe women should serve in combat. However, just as God instructed Moses to count the males who were able to go out to war, so too the New Testament teaches that males are to provide for and protect females. James 1:27 talks about visiting widows in their distress. Ephesians 5:25 tells husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for the church. 1 Peter 3:7 reminds husbands that their wife is a weaker vessel. War is an activity for males, not females.

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“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”