Numbers 17, Aaron’s Rod that Budded

To conclude Num. 16, after judgment on the leaders of the rebellion, there was judgment also on the 250 men who had joined the rebellion.  Their censers had been presented before the Lord and thus were considered holy.  They were taken a melted down to make a bronze covering for the altar of sacrifice.  It became a reminder to Israel, when they came to offer sacrifice for sin, of God’s holiness and hatred for sin. At the same time, while the clans of the three leaders were judged by God, only the 250 men died.  As Peter said, the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment (2 Pt. 2:9).

The next day, amazingly, the congregation rebelled against Moses and Aaron.  This is the same congregation that, the day before, had been spared the terrible fate of the leaders of the rebellion because of the intercession of Moses and Aaron.  Again, God’s judgment is poured out.  Again, Moses and Aaron interceded for the people.  Again, God heard their prayer, but not to remove the plague but to limit the plague.  What a picture, seeing Aaron make atonement for the people (v47), standing between the dead and the living so that the plague was stopped (v48).  Christ, by the cross and empty tomb, stands between the dead and the living, to make atonement.

These frequent judgments in the wilderness, where thousands of people die by the direct work of the hand of God, are certainly less frequent than the obstinance and rebellion of these “stiff-necked” people.  There is still one more of these types of situations before they enter the lane.  I encourage you to be careful and fail to understand the nature of God.  We often remind you of God’s Name in Ex. 34:6-7, and I am reminding you again.  He does not leave the guilty unpunished.  There are always consequences for sin, though, as the Psalmist said, He does not punish us as our sins deserve (Ps. 103:8-14).  In wrath He remembers mercy (Hab. 3:2).  He reaches out His hand “all day long” to an obstinate people (Isa. 65:2).  He is perfectly just and abundantly merciful.  Remember, He is the One who would come and did come to pay the price for our sins.

To bring a conclusion to the question of “leadership” in Israel Num. 17 tells of the miracle of Aaron’s rod that, overnight, budded and actually produced almonds.  This was one of the three great “testimonies” God gave to Israel (Ex. 25:16), reminders to be put in the Ark of the Covenant: the bowl of manna (Ex. 16:33-34), the tablets with the Ten Commandments (Deut. 10:2-5), and Aaron’s rod that budded (Heb. 9:3-4). 

At the model tabernacle in Timna Park in Israel, 
the contents of the Ark of the Covenant: the tablets
the law, the bowl of manna, and Aaron's rod that
budded.

By the time of Solomon, only the tablets of the law were left in the Ark.  We are not told why, only that it was true.  When Jesus came, being presented as Christ to Israel, He fulfilled the law of Moses.  In Jesus’ day, as today in Israel by my observations, religious Jews (e.g. the Hassidim) are all about the law, the law, the law.  But Jesus was also the fulfilment of the manna, being the Bread of Life (John 6:30-33), but they rejected Him in this regard.  Further, Jesus became the Priest after the Order of Melchizedek, the One who exceeded Aaron because He provided the once-for-all sacrifice for sins.  Likewise, He was rejected for this.

Jesus is our righteousness (the Law satisfied, Rom. 8:1-4), our life (the Bread of Life, John 6:35)) and our sanctification (through His priestly work, 1 Cor. 1:30).  Let us not forget!

It appears, from Num. 17:12-13, that the people have come to be settled with respect to their situation. They will, in fact, all die in the wilderness. They seem to understand that the reason is their unwillingness to live as God’s set-apart people. Death is very real! And it is always inevitable! Surely we die, we perish, we all perish (v12). For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16).