Daily Scripture Reading Numbers 6:22 - 7:3

Daniel stopped believing that God intervenes in human affairs the day his sister died. She was twenty-eight, full of life, and had prayed more earnestly than anyone he knew. The cancer still took her in six months. After the funeral, Daniel made a quiet decision: he would live as though heaven was silent.

He became a man of systems and probabilities. As an actuary, he dealt in risk tables and statistical likelihoods. When friends spoke of “God working things out,” he would nod politely and change the subject. Prayer, in his mind, was a comforting illusion people used when they had run out of real options.

There are many people who believe God created the earth, but does not currently intervene in human affairs. The sixth chapter of Numbers teaches us that Yahweh does indeed listen to humans and respond to human requests.

Num. 6:22 ¶ Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

First, notice that Yahweh was speaking to Moses.

Num. 6:23 “Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, ‘Thus you shall bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:

Now, take note that Yahweh told Moses to issue a command to Aaron and his sons. Aaron and his sons were the priests. The command was that Aaron and his sons were to bless the sons of Israel. The following verses are the blessing which Aaron and his sons were to pronounce upon the Israelites.

Num. 6:24 ¶ Yahweh bless you, and keep you;

Num. 6:25 ¶ Yahweh make His face shine on you,

And be gracious to you;

Num. 6:26 ¶ Yahweh lift up His face on you,

And give you peace.’

Verses 24-26 are known as the Priestly Benediction.

In 1979, archaeologist Gabriel Barkay discovered two tiny silver scrolls in a burial site near Jerusalem. After several years of work, the scrolls were unrolled and read. The scrolls contain the Priestly Benediction. They are dated to the 6th century BC. These scrolls are the oldest known copies of any biblical text.

Num. 6:27 So they shall invoke My name on the sons of Israel, and I then will bless them.”

Don’t miss the promise in this verse and the ramifications for our understanding of God. Yahweh promised that if the priests invoked this blessing, then He would bless the sons of Israel. In other words, Yahweh would respond to human action. This teaches us that Yahweh is not silent. He does intervene in human affairs.

Num. 7:1 ¶ Now it happened on the day that Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, that he anointed it and set it apart as holy with all its furnishings and the altar and all its utensils; he anointed them and set them apart as holy.

Num. 7:2 Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers’ households, brought an offering near (they were the leaders of the tribes; they were the ones who were over the numbered men).

Num. 7:3 And they brought their offering before Yahweh, six covered carts and twelve oxen, a cart for every two of the leaders and an ox for each one, and they brought them near before the tabernacle.

There are many people who believe God created the earth, but does not currently intervene in human affairs. This is known as Deism. Deists believe God is like a clockmaker who builds a clock, winds it up, and then steps back and watches it run. Deists do not believe God performs miracles or answers prayers.

The sixth chapter of Numbers teaches us that Yahweh does intervene in human affairs. Yahweh promised that if the Israelite priests invoked His name to bless the sons of Israel, then He would indeed bless the Israelites. This is in line with many other passages of Scripture which teach us that prayer works. God is involved in human affairs. He listens to our prayers. Prayer works.

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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.”