When the Lord Steps Into Your Case

Numbers 12:4-5

New Living Translation 

So immediately the Lord called to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam and said, “Go out to the Tabernacle all three of you!” So the three of them went to the Tabernacle. Then the Lord descended in the pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the Tabernacle. “Aaron and Miriam!” he called, and they stepped forward.

For Encouragement

They were older and should have known better, but they allowed jealousy to consume them, so they spoke against their leader, Moses, their kid brother.

“And the Lord heard this.”

God had tolerated the constant attack on Moses by the congregation of Israel, but He would not allow Aaron and Miriam to join the chorus.

So immediately, the Lord called to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam and said, “Go out to the Tabernacle, all three of you!” (Nu. 12:4).

The scene takes me back to my elementary school days. The headteacher would come upon some troublesome students bullying an innocent one. He would call the ring leaders by name and order them to his office. The bullies knew they were in trouble.

Aaron and Miriam knew they were in trouble when the Lord called them to meet Him at the Tent of Meeting. They received it very well from Him.

His reprimand emphasized the uniqueness of Moses among them and their folly in fearlessly attacking him. That set the difference between the two and Moses, and the bar was very high.

Whereas God revealed Himself to other prophets through visions and dreams, He spoke to Moses without any intermediary. They spoke face to face, so Moses saw the likeness of God, though not His full glory (Exod. 33:18-23). Because Moses was trustworthy above everybody, God entrusted the full responsibility of His house to him. 

So why were you not afraid to criticize my servant, Moses? In anger, the Lord departed from them (Nu, 12:8-9).

I don’t know about you, but if I were in the situation of Aaron and Miriam, my heart would have been in my mouth. What is the Lord going to do now?

I see Aaron turn to Miriam and scold her. “You see what you have done? Did I not tell you not to criticize the man?”

Right then, the Lord struck Miriam with leprosy (10). Why God did not afflict Aaron is not stated, but it could be because he was the high priest, and his defilement would have affected the tabernacle worship. Aaron pleaded with Moses not to let God punish them for their foolishness (11). Talk about humility and faithfulness to God, Moses affirmed God’s testimony about him (3). With the heart of Christ, he interceded for Miriam, but the Lord insisted she remain afflicted by the disease and confined for seven days outside the camp (14-15). 

Two quick takeaways.

As a faithful child of God, He sets you above your accusers when He steps in to deal with them. The key is your faithfulness in everything.

God deals with us at different levels and in various ways. So, we should know how God relates to us and be content with our station while respecting that of others.

This episode puts flesh on the word of God in Romans 12:19.

Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord.