Marcus had always been the steady one in their small men’s group at church. He was quiet, reliable, and never one to cause drama. He stood up during prayer request time one Wednesday night and said, “I need you guys to pray for me. I’m thinking about quitting my job.” The room went silent.
Ethan, sitting two chairs over, felt his stomach tighten. Ethan had been laid off two years earlier and had struggled for months to find work. The fear of instability still haunted him. In his mind, quitting a good job without having another one lined up was reckless—almost irresponsible.
After the meeting, Ethan pulled Marcus aside in the parking lot. “Hey, man, can I be honest?” Ethan asked, arms crossed. “I’m a little concerned. Quitting your job right now, with the economy the way it is, seems pretty unwise. You’ve got a wife and kids to think about.”
Marcus blinked, surprised. “I didn’t say I was quitting tomorrow. I just—”
“You don’t have to explain,” Ethan cut in, trying to sound gentle but failing. “I’ve been there. I know how easy it is to make an emotional decision. Just… pray about it more, okay? Don’t throw away stability.”
Marcus nodded slowly, thanked him, and walked to his car. But Ethan could tell he’d hurt his friend.
What Ethan didn’t know—what no one in the group knew—was that Marcus’s boss had been verbally abusing him for months. The man mocked Marcus’s faith in front of the team, pressured him to lie to clients, and once screamed at him so loudly that other employees complained to HR. Marcus had endured it quietly, not wanting to gossip or seem weak. He was exhausted, anxious, and starting to question whether staying was even honoring to God.
He hadn’t shared any of that because he didn’t want to bad-mouth his boss or sound like he was complaining. He simply asked for prayer as he wrestled with what to do.
Ethan made wrong assumptions about Marcus because he didn’t understand why Marcus said what he said. Today’s story from Numbers 32 contains something similar. Moses made some wrong assumptions about the Reubenites and Gadites. Fortunately, the Reubenites and Gadites explained themselves. This illustrates the importance of understanding why someone asks what they ask.
The context of Numbers 32 is that Israel was camping in a plain located on the east side of the Jordan River, across from the city of Jericho.
Num. 32:1 ¶ Now the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad had an exceedingly large number of livestock. And they saw the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead, that it was indeed a place suitable for livestock,
The 21st chapter of Numbers tells us the Israelites conquered a large swath of land on the east side of the Jordan River. The Reubenites and Gadites had large herds and recognized that the land on the east side of the Jordan was great for livestock. The problem was the Promised Land, their destination, was on the west side of the Jordan.
Num. 32:2 so the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben came and spoke to Moses and to Eleazar the priest and to the leaders of the congregation, saying,
Num. 32:3 “Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon,
Num. 32:4 the land, which Yahweh struck before the congregation of Israel, is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock.”
Num. 32:5 And they said, “If we have found favor in your sight, let this land be given to your servants as a possession; do not take us across the Jordan.”
The tribes of Reuben and Gad were asking to stay on the east side of the Jordan and not enter the Promised Land.
Num. 32:6 ¶ But Moses said to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuben, “Shall your brothers go to war while you yourselves sit here?
The Israelites possessed the land on the east side because all the Israelites participated in conquering that area. They still had to cross the Jordan River and conquer the Promised Land. Moses assumed Reuben and Gad were trying to take the easy route and settle in the land already conquered rather than join the other tribes in conquering the Promised Land.
Num. 32:7 Now why are you discouraging the sons of Israel from crossing over into the land which Yahweh has given them?
Look at the word “discouraging”. Moses accused Reuben and Gad of discouraging the Israelites.
Num. 32:8 This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land.
Num. 32:9 Indeed they went up to the valley of Eshcol and saw the land, and they discouraged the sons of Israel so that they did not go into the land which Yahweh had given them.
This refers to the twelve spies who spied out the land of Canaan (see Numbers 13).
Num. 32:10 So Yahweh’s anger burned in that day, and He swore an oath, saying,
Num. 32:11 ‘None of the men who came up from Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; for they did not follow Me fully,
Num. 32:12 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua the son of Nun, for they have followed Yahweh fully.’
Num. 32:13 So Yahweh’s anger burned against Israel, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until the entire generation of those who had done evil in the sight of Yahweh was brought to an end.
Num. 32:14 Now behold, you have risen up in your fathers’ place, a brood of sinful men, to add still more to the burning anger of Yahweh against Israel.
Notice the phrase “brood of sinful men”. That was a strong accusation.
Num. 32:15 For if you turn away from following Him, He will once more abandon them in the wilderness, and you will destroy all these people.”
Num. 32:16 ¶ Then they came near to him and said, “We will build here sheepfolds for our livestock and cities for our little ones;
Num. 32:17 but we ourselves will be armed ready to go before the sons of Israel, until we have brought them to their place, and our little ones live in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land.
The Reubenites and Gadites were not motivated by a desire to get out of the coming battle. They simply recognized that the land east of the Jordan was a great place for animals. Thus, they offered to help the other tribes conquer the Promised Land just as the other tribes had participated in conquering the land east of the Jordan.
Num. 32:18 We will not return to our homes until every one of the sons of Israel has possessed his inheritance.
Num. 32:19 For we will not have an inheritance with them on the other side of the Jordan and beyond because our inheritance has fallen to us on this side of the Jordan east.”
Num. 32:20 ¶ So Moses said to them, “If you will do this, if you will arm yourselves before Yahweh for the war,
Num. 32:21 and all of you armed men cross over the Jordan before Yahweh until He has dispossessed His enemies from before Him,
Num. 32:22 and the land is subdued before Yahweh, then afterward you shall return and be free of obligation toward Yahweh and toward Israel, and this land shall be yours for a possession before Yahweh.
Moses agreed to the request of the Reubenites and Gadites once he understood and was assured of the pure intentions of the Reubenites and Gadites.
Num. 32:23 But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against Yahweh, and be sure your sin will find you out.
Num. 32:24 Build yourselves cities for your little ones and sheepfolds for your sheep, and do what you have promised.”
Sometimes communication is hard. People will say things based on what is going on in their head, but we misunderstand them because we don’t know what they are thinking. We interpret their words based on what is in our head. This illustrates the importance of understanding why people say what they say. When people ask a question or make a statement, it is often wise to ask, “Why do you ask?” or “Why do you say that?” or “Why do you believe that?”
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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.”