CANDLEGLOW LESSON B’MIDBAR
“The Lesson of the Voice in the Wilderness”
Parashah B’MIDBAR (Numbers 1:1-4:20) Week 34
The beginning verses of B’midbar set the stage for all who read now, thousands of years later, from our own vantage point in history. We understand Adonai commanded a Military Census to be taken by Moses, Aaron and the twelve tribal leaders, of all the males twenty to sixty years old. Just as a King at his coronation would review the parade of his Military Forces, so Adonai would count His men who were of age for war, to serve in the Israeli army to conquer the Promised Land. A half-shekel coin was proof of each count, and documents as proof of each man’s Tribal ancestry had to be submitted.
This is where the legal aspects of the Military Census faded from my vision as I ran and prayed for revelation in the lessons for us today, in B’midbar. The meaning of the word B’midbar in Hebrew translates into; in the wilderness. There are underlying illuminations from B’midbar which allude to an even deeper Hebrew meaning; a VOICE in the wilderness.
There is more to the phrase in the wilderness than a mere physical place. There is something deeper to understand. In kind, we must take a deeper look at the command from Adonai to take a census or count. The root word of count in Hebrew translates to, ‘lift a chin’. The first time I learned this from Torah, it took me back to my years of Private School Ownership. I trained my staff to count the children in their classes for safety, coming in and going out, from inside to outside and back again; on field trips and even for fire drills. I trained teachers to lift every chin, to say the name of the student, and only then to check the box beside their name on their roster.
Each student was unique and might be misidentified by counting the back of their head. Each student was precious. A mistake could be fatal. I had never read or understood the deep messages from B’midbar at this time in my life, but dwelling in me was the Spirit of the living God, who breathed through me, as I led and trained my teams to lead the children safely. Every chin of every child of God is precious!
We have now traveled from Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, and into Numbers on our journey with Adonai and His new Nation of Israel. We have entered into the wilderness around Mount Sinai, and have seen the glory of the Lord displayed atop the mountain, His Shekinah filling the new Tabernacle, and His commands and instructions given to the people through His representative, Moses. We have seen His power displayed; His mercy spreading over the Nation in a cloud by day and a column of fire by night!
His presence was continual. His provisions were faithful. His instruction to the people through Moses brought order, virtue, and holiness into the lives of the former Hebrew slaves.
This is the Lesson of the Voice in the Wilderness. Consider the lessons in God’s beloved Torah, still relevant for us today. He says His word is alive; like a fountain that never runs dry. Can we see ourselves in this wilderness journey, even now? The lessons are there for us, just like the seeds in the desert sand; ripe and waiting for rain in order to explode with life!
When Adonai takes us out of our bondage to sin and a life lived by the world’s standards, to meet with Him in the wilderness, we will be counted in that moment. He lifts our chin with His mighty right hand and calls us by name. He aligns us by tribe. He assigns the banner under which we will live in allegiance, according to His good plans for us.
We are not only added to the ranks of the Army of the King of Kings, we are commissioned onto the blueprint of history, where our lives will puncture His heavenly tapestry and advance, carrying HIS banner into our eternal destiny. May it be so!
Like the new Nation of Israel, there will be a crossing-over into Kingdom freedom, and a wilderness journey of training and coming to know our King, before we can advance.
There will be rivers to cross and wars to fight!
This is the Lesson of the Voice in the Wilderness. The attributes Adonai described of Himself in Torah are on holy fire throughout the wilderness journey with Israel. In His sovereignty, He sets us apart in our own wilderness wanderings in just the same way. This is our time alone with Him in the desert, where we hear His voice. He sets us on a path to refine our hearts, bringing order out of chaos, birthing faith from fear, and etching new truth where lies once lived.
This is the Lesson of the Voice in the Wilderness. His historical account recorded for all time is for us today. It is in humility that we will hear Him call out our name. We will know it is He, who lifts our chin.
We will hear the Voice in the Wilderness, just as the Nation of Israel heard His voice. The wilderness lessons are for us!
They are for our families and our children, and their children, for all their tomorrows, and for our destinies in eternity with Him!
Do not fear the wilderness, dear seeker! From an earthly perspective, we abhor this kind of difficult training ground; but from a heavenly perspective, this is not random, this is not punishing, this is the only way to GLORY in the intimacy of the ONE whose voice we hear in the wilderness winds!
Shabbat Shalom!
PS: This postscript is testimony of my third “Wilderness Journey” which I am on at this time in my life. It may feel brutal, with all the elements of Mount Sinai…”The Mountain of the Sword” and the windswept desert floor! There are times when the wind blows over us so hard we may not hear from the Lord. This does not mean He is not present. He is always present! He sends ministering angels, and instruction, and loving leadership, if we keep putting one foot in front of the other on the path He has set before us…right into His footprints…which always lead the way into our eternal destiny! (June 2023)
Amen!
“I thank you dear Father, for my present “Lesson in the Wilderness”! I pray for endurance and faith to walk, not stand in terror, on this high place, for You are with me wherever I go!”
Sydney