Numbers 10:35-36

“And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, “Rise up, LORD and let thine enemies be scattered, and let them that hate Thee flee before Thee.”

“And when it rested, he said, “Return, O LORD, unto the many thousands of Israel.”

Unfortunately I don’t hear many pastors or spiritual leaders praying a blessing over their congregations anymore except in the liturgical churches. It seems to be the “Lost Blessing” of the church age. It was the privilege of the father in the Jewish home to bless his children and this usually happened every Sabbath and generally on his death bed, watch ‘Fiddler on The Roof’ or read the book of Genesis. II Corinthians 13:14 was a popular blessing; you will hear it in movies and in liturgical churches or Numbers 6:24-27; Oh, that one was just for the Jewish people in Aaron’s day, really? How about Romans 15:13, my wife just shared that verse with me recently and it blessed my heart. I think we should re-discover this lost art so our wives, children and congregations can benefit from the rich blessings they are missing out on. Pick up a book on the subject, I think you will find it very enlightening and enriching. ( Now back to my blog…)

Well, it’s the second year, the second month, and they have built the Tabernacle, celebrated Passover and ‘Little Passover’ and mover out from ‘Camp Sinai’ and “the ark of the covenant went before them,” v.33 to find a resting place. The cloud was before them by day to give them guidance and protection from the sun in the hot desert and the pillar of fire by night to guide them and to give them warmth from the cold desert nights. You could not see a pillar of fire against a hot sun in the desert by day, hence the need for the cloud nor could you see the cloud in the night desert sky, hence the need for the pillar of fire. So, the cloud was upon them by day and the fire went before the by night.

“And it came to pass,” v.35, when the ark (aron) the chest, coffin, ark of the covenant, carrying the stone tablets with the law carved on them with the (kapporah) the mercy seat covered in blood and never cleaned with the two Cherubim where God, the (YHVH) would meet with His people and talk or commune with them; When the cloud or pillar of fire rose up they broke camp and when it stopped they made camp for as long as it stayed stationary. So, it came to pass, v.35 when the ark set forward, (nasa) to pull up, to spring up, to pluck up or to go up. Interesting, “NASA” is the acrostic for our ‘National Aeronautics Space Association’ and it is the Hebrew word for ‘lifting up,’ I wonder if there was any connection? Probably not!

Moses said, “Rise up, LORD, (kum) arise, stand up, become powerful, show Thy strength. WOW! What an invitation or declaration! He is not commanding God, you don’t command God, he is just saying, “Stand up, LORD, show them who You are, let them see Your power!” “Let Your enemies be scattered (puts) dashed to pieces, not just dispersed, but destroyed! Total Annihilation! He goes even further, “Let them that hate Thee (sana) are hateful toward Thee, flee (nus) disappear, hide, fly away on horse back, from before Thy (paneem) face!” Where can you flee from the presence of God? Psalm 1397 ff. He is omnipresent, so you can run, you can fly, you can sail, but you can’t hide from His presence!

When it rested (nu-akhh) settled down, set or laid down again, to take a breath, he said, “Return, O LORD (shuv) restore, refresh, return; this is the same word we use for repent but not for God, He doesn’t repent. His is more of a ‘Returning, Restoring & Refreshing’, unto the many thousands of Israel. How many? Why do you bother with the Hebrew words Roger? Unto the many (rev-a-va) multitude, myriad, tens of thousands, thousands is (eh-lef) thousand, ten thousand or 10,000 x 10,000 which equals millions. This verse verifys the fact that they had 2.5 to 3 million people as they set out from Sinai not 50,000 – 250,000 as some liberal scholars believe. This is why it’s important to look at the meaning of the Hebrew words, they give meaning to the context and authenticate God’s word and promises. God said it, that settles it, so I believe it!

“Rise up, O LORD, and let your enemies be scattered, and let them that hate You or Your word flee before You!” Till next time, we’ll see you “…Between The Lines…”

“The Lost Prayer Blessing” 11/18/15