Week 56, Day 2: The Eastern Possession
Today’s Reading: Numbers 32:1-42
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
The tribes of Gad and Reuben decide that they want to have their inheritance on the east side of the Jordan since the land is good for livestock. They approach Moses, Eleazar and the leaders of the congregation to request that they have this as their possession. The problem is emphasized when they say “do not take us across the Jordan”. Moses very quickly rebukes them for acting like their fathers by discouraging their brothers from entering into the promised land. Gad and Reuben then agree they will send their armed men into the promised land to help their brothers take the land. In exchange for this they will be given the land east of the Jordan for an inheritance.
This account is interesting since Gad and Reuben have not yet seen the land that God has promised to give them. How can they know that this land is what they want without seeing the land God has promised them? I see here a warning for us today. We need to be on guard that what we see now does not keep us from inheriting what God has promised. The children of Isreal were promised and given a land flowing with milk and honey. They were to trust in God to receive this land. And yet here Gad and Reuben see something that looks good to them so they say we’ll take this. When we consider the things in this world, what could possibly compare to the dwelling that God has prepared for His children in heaven? And yet so many times in the pursuit of getting more or enjoying life we put these things before our service to God. In essence we say that we are willing to give up what we could receive for what we can get right now. Be on guard brethren. Do not forget that God has much more to offer us than what this world offers. Don’t let the world distract us and get us off of the path we are to walk in.
Question: How could our actions discourage our brethren from entering into the promised land?
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