God had chosen Israel. He had delivered them from the hand of Pharaoh. Now Israel was on the doorstep of the Promised Land. But the challenges for Israel were deep and sordid. Numbers 25 begins: “Now Israel remained in Acacia Grove, and the people began to commit harlotry with the women of Moab. They invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. So Israel was joined to Baal of Peor, and the anger of the LORD was aroused against Israel” (NUMBERS 25:1-3). Baal was a Moabite god who would become the primary competitor with Yahweh for the devotion of the people of Israel. The detestable worship of Baal commanded illicit sexual relations sometimes mixed with offering their children as a sacrifice to the demonic deity. This violation was so evil that it was used as an example of sin and divine judgment. As a result of this incident, there were 24,000 people including their leaders who died in a plague (V. 9 ) .
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Up Next in February 2025
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The Struggle; Numbers 28-31
There is a struggle on the earth. God is the Creator, the owner, the provider and, still, many of the people He created and provides for do not believe in Him. Some have concocted a notion in which they believe the earth and universe were created through billions of years by chance. In other word...
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Cities of Refuge; Numbers 35-36
Cities of refuge were needed in order to maintain purity and order in the community. They were designated cities of protection so that a person who killed someone unintentionally could flee there to avoid the avenger of blood, a blood-relative or kinsman of the deceased, until he could stand tria...
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God & Moses; Deuteronomy 1-3
Much of the book of Deuteronomy contains repetitions of the laws found in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. We learn much about the forty years of Israel wandering in the desert. Moses discovered that the people of Israel were selfish and stubborn, often thinking only about themselves. Deuteronomy ...
