Today's Reading is Numbers 31...
My thoughts on today's reading...
As we move into Chapter 31, we begin to see a part of the Old Testament accounts that are sometimes troubling for us... the idea that Israel was to go into the Promised Land and completely destroy their enemies.
The Midianites were a people group (remember that Moses wife was a Midianite) that was also connected to the Moabites, and previously in Numbers 22 we hear how the Moabites and Balak their king, joined with the Midianites to try and battle against Israel. In a reading from Chapter 25 a couple days ago we hear how an Israelite man brought a Midianite wife to the entrance of the tent of meeting, and how the leaders were getting into worship of Baal at Peor (where Balaam was from) and involving themselves in their cultic practices including cultic prostitution. While we might assume that Balaam for example had promised to only proclaim what the Lord wanted, evidently he advised Balak to lead the Israelites into sin (Numbers 31:16) and he too dies. Joshua 13:22 indicates that Balaam was also involved in divination, a practice condemned by the Lord.
God's concern that the Israelites would be led into sin as they encountered these other people groups was what led him to demand their destruction. Bear in mind, these were people who deserved God's wrath and judgement as they slaughtered their own children to their gods and were not only involved in idolatry but other heathen practices. God wanted His people the Israelites to be set apart to be a light to the nations. Until they were established as a nation into the Holy Land, He knew these other nations would tempt them into becoming like them, and they wouldn't be able to be that light to others, and lead them to worship the Lord.
Truthfully, we all deserve God's wrath and judgement, and could all be destroyed. God doesn't overlook sin and evil. He had to deal with it. In the Old Testament, He sought to have Israel overcome the evil of their day by choosing them to be His people and showing them mercy and steadfast love. Ultimately, that wasn't enough for them, and so in Christ Jesus, God finally overcomes evil at the Cross and gives us life and salvation.
Are we much better than the Israelites in overcoming the evil of this world? Probably not. Like them, looking forward to the coming Messiah who would redeem God's people, we too look to the Messiah, but not looking forward, but back to Calvary.