Posts
I guess "Thou shalt not kill." doesn't apply when God tells you to do the killing and raping of a country.
The Israelites kill thousands of Midianite men but Moses isn't happy until they go back and kill thousands more women and children. God tells them how to divide up the remaining women for slaves.
The Israelites don't lose one soldier in the battle so they donate their gold, silver and jewels to God.
God also gets 32 people as a tribute. What does that mean? Were they sacrificed? Slaves to the tabernacle?
I was disappointed that Balaam was killed. I thought he would survive after siding with the LORD. That would also help explain how the writers of Numbers would have known what was going on in Canaan.
The cattle barons decide that the land they just conquered is good enough for them and they successfully bargain for it.
Chapter 33 gives us a great guide of the long journey from Egypt.
Here is one of the better maps showing a possible path. If anyone has a better visual aid please post.
How could the Israelites possibly have wandered for forty years in such a small space?
Could it just be a mis-translation for them being nomadic before settling?
We then get the nitty gritty on the boundaries of the promised land and how it will be divided up.
Map of territories
Chapter 35 gives us the Cities of Refuge and with them, some rules of law.
We end Numbers with the daughters of Zelophehad being forced to marry within their own tribe so the land of their father won't be inherited away from them.
Once again, as in Exodus, I was expecting a little more WOW when the book wrapped up. How about you?
Deuteronomy is next. I don't want to rush the last book of the Pentateuch so we'll take it over a period of 11-12 days.
