WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:10.000 Good morning. Can you hear me? Okay. Good morning all. My name is Kunle, and for those of you who don't know me, I'm one of the elders here at Trinity. 00:00:10.000 --> 00:00:23.079 Some of you here already know me, and know me enough to know a few things that I like, but I'm guessing only very few of you know just how much I love watching murder mysteries. 00:00:23.800 --> 00:00:36.960 There's a reason you don't really know this. This is clearly not the kind of information that one volunteers during the eldership process, so again, it's no mystery that it is a mystery to some of you, but now at least you all know. 00:00:36.960 --> 00:00:45.560 But if you have watched as many of these mysteries as I have, then you know that there is a general formula that most of them follow. 00:00:46.380 --> 00:00:57.640 Often the opening act is the hook, a single puzzling scene or short series of scenes that ultimately culminates in the murder of one of the people present. 00:00:57.640 --> 00:01:11.379 And over the course of the episode, you are slowly fed information and disinformation about several characters and their motivation that helped illuminate what happened in the opening scene that led to the crime. 00:01:11.379 --> 00:01:37.199 Often a few additional murders and a lot more mixed information later, and you end at the closing scene where for some strange reason, all the suspects gather together and the detective brings all the pieces together, usually in a way compelling enough to make the murderer confess or at least make it readily obvious who they are and what their motivation is. 00:01:37.200 --> 00:01:48.120 A particular example of this is one by one of the most famous mystery writers, her name is Agatha Christie, and it's called Why Didn't They Ask Evans? 00:01:48.120 --> 00:01:57.600 Where in the opening scene, depending on the version you've watched, a lady comes across a man on the beach who looks as if he's fallen off the nearby cliff. 00:01:58.500 --> 00:02:05.800 As she approaches, he opens his eyes, turns to her, and instead of asking for help, says in a melodramatic whisper, 00:02:06.380 --> 00:02:08.400 Why didn't they ask Evans? 00:02:08.400 --> 00:02:11.800 And then just as dramatically, he dies. 00:02:12.480 --> 00:02:18.580 And then this leaves the discoverer with the question, as well as you the viewer, who is Evans? 00:02:19.680 --> 00:02:20.500 Who are they? 00:02:21.300 --> 00:02:24.640 And what question were they asking? 00:02:25.360 --> 00:02:27.900 And why didn't they ask Evans? 00:02:28.300 --> 00:02:33.560 And of course, why is that the most important question for this dying man? 00:02:33.560 --> 00:02:44.719 Okay, I know at this point, some of you, your question is not, wait, is this a sermon or is this an ad for BritBox, which contains most of these British murder series that I like? 00:02:45.560 --> 00:02:47.659 Why are we talking about murder mysteries? 00:02:48.439 --> 00:02:54.140 Well, perhaps it's because the passage that we're about to look at, I think, shares a number of the same hallmarks. 00:02:54.780 --> 00:03:00.460 At first read, it is deeply enigmatic, and in a few areas, it is partly troubling. 00:03:00.460 --> 00:03:14.400 But my hope is that as we go through it together with the Lord's help, its message for them and thus for us will become clearer in a way that drives us to the Lord in confession, prayer, and praise. 00:03:16.040 --> 00:03:21.439 But before I get into it, I recognize we are in August in a college town. 00:03:21.960 --> 00:03:26.020 And so today, and as you all know, over the next several weeks, we'll have people visiting. 00:03:26.020 --> 00:03:31.320 So I think it may be worth recapping where we've been for context on today's passage. 00:03:31.980 --> 00:03:35.920 So for those of you who are new this summer, we've been journeying through the book of Numbers. 00:03:36.300 --> 00:03:45.260 And it's a book that traces the journey of the Israelites from the fruit of Sinai to the mouth of the promised land as they stand ready to take possession of it. 00:03:46.120 --> 00:03:53.020 Along the way, we have seen them rebel, grumble, and complain repeatedly against God and against Moses. 00:03:53.020 --> 00:03:56.840 And several times, they have been judged or punished for their rebellion. 00:03:57.620 --> 00:04:06.260 Their rebellion is recorded in, their rebellion recorded in Numbers 14 was a high watermark and resulted in God judging them, 00:04:06.900 --> 00:04:14.939 decreeing that they will wander 40 years in the wilderness, and all of them older than 20, save Joshua and Caleb, will perish and not see the land. 00:04:14.939 --> 00:04:23.379 Where we are now in the narrative is the 40 years are done, and they are once again at the mouth of the promised land. 00:04:23.959 --> 00:04:30.939 They have even already begun to experience some of what God had in store for them with victories over the Amalekites and the Amorites. 00:04:31.600 --> 00:04:35.779 These victories had already begun to inspire fear in the hearts of the enemies. 00:04:35.779 --> 00:04:41.619 And the last two weeks, we explored the interesting story of one of them, Balak, the king of the Moabites, 00:04:41.799 --> 00:04:47.559 who in his fear invited Balaam, an acclaimed prophet for hire, to curse them. 00:04:48.239 --> 00:04:51.039 And as we discovered, he was unable to. 00:04:51.859 --> 00:04:57.799 Three times, he was commanded by God to bless them instead, frustrating Balak's aims. 00:04:57.800 --> 00:05:06.560 We leave Israel now at the end of the chapter, securing the promise of God's faithfulness and desire to bless them and bring them into the land. 00:05:07.160 --> 00:05:12.740 We also leave Balak and Balaam at the end of chapter 24, parting ways as though Balaam, 00:05:13.180 --> 00:05:22.460 having fulfilled what God sent him to do in chapter 22, was content to eschew the rewards of Balak and obey the Lord instead. 00:05:22.459 --> 00:05:30.739 So with that, I'll read chapter 25 and ask the Lord for his help in unpacking it for us. 00:05:31.419 --> 00:05:35.120 Because there is some continuity with the prior passages we have looked at, 00:05:35.219 --> 00:05:41.240 I will actually begin slightly earlier at the end of chapter 24 and read up to verse 15. 00:05:42.359 --> 00:05:46.299 So let's begin from verse 25 of Numbers 24. 00:05:46.300 --> 00:05:57.000 Then Balaam rose and went back to his place, and Balak also went his way. 00:05:57.680 --> 00:06:02.759 And while Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. 00:06:03.460 --> 00:06:09.699 These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. 00:06:09.699 --> 00:06:13.839 So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. 00:06:14.599 --> 00:06:18.199 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. 00:06:18.680 --> 00:06:19.979 And the Lord said to Moses, 00:06:20.659 --> 00:06:25.039 Take all the chiefs of the people and hang them in the sun before the Lord, 00:06:25.500 --> 00:06:29.360 that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel. 00:06:30.019 --> 00:06:31.740 And Moses said to the judges of Israel, 00:06:32.319 --> 00:06:36.599 Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor. 00:06:36.600 --> 00:06:42.860 And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, 00:06:43.460 --> 00:06:47.480 in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, 00:06:48.320 --> 00:06:50.980 while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting. 00:06:51.600 --> 00:06:55.540 When Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, 00:06:55.920 --> 00:06:59.860 he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand 00:06:59.860 --> 00:07:04.460 and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced the both of them, 00:07:04.459 --> 00:07:07.680 the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. 00:07:08.579 --> 00:07:11.599 Thus the plague on the people of Israel was stopped. 00:07:12.579 --> 00:07:16.399 Nevertheless, those who died by the plague were 24,000. 00:07:17.279 --> 00:07:18.740 And the Lord said to Moses, 00:07:19.139 --> 00:07:21.819 Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, 00:07:21.939 --> 00:07:24.539 has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, 00:07:24.919 --> 00:07:27.439 in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, 00:07:27.839 --> 00:07:31.259 so I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. 00:07:31.259 --> 00:07:36.259 Therefore say, behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, 00:07:36.659 --> 00:07:39.519 and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him 00:07:39.519 --> 00:07:42.120 the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, 00:07:42.500 --> 00:07:47.939 because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel. 00:07:48.759 --> 00:07:50.879 The name of the slain man of Israel, 00:07:51.259 --> 00:07:53.000 who was killed with the Midianite woman, 00:07:53.219 --> 00:07:54.719 was Zimri, the son of Salu, 00:07:55.300 --> 00:07:59.019 chief of a father's house belonging to the Simeonites. 00:07:59.019 --> 00:08:02.919 And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cosby, 00:08:03.459 --> 00:08:04.419 the daughter of Zer, 00:08:04.879 --> 00:08:08.000 who was the tribal head of a father's house in Midian. 00:08:09.899 --> 00:08:10.899 I will stop here. 00:08:11.899 --> 00:08:13.120 Bow your heads with me and let us pray. 00:08:13.120 --> 00:08:23.780 Lord, your word says, if any of you lacks wisdom, 00:08:24.280 --> 00:08:26.720 let him ask God who gives willingly without finding fault. 00:08:27.980 --> 00:08:29.319 We come to your word today. 00:08:29.939 --> 00:08:31.980 May you illuminate it before us. 00:08:33.379 --> 00:08:35.980 May we see where this passage reflects our hearts, 00:08:36.919 --> 00:08:39.039 and may it lead us to turn to you in repentance. 00:08:39.039 --> 00:08:43.379 And may we see where it reflects you, 00:08:43.759 --> 00:08:46.819 your holiness, justice, mercy, and grace. 00:08:47.779 --> 00:08:51.159 And may it lead us to prayer and praise. 00:08:51.879 --> 00:08:54.679 We ask this in Jesus' name. 00:08:55.559 --> 00:08:55.759 Amen. 00:08:55.759 --> 00:08:55.860 Amen. 00:08:59.159 --> 00:08:59.799 All right. 00:09:00.460 --> 00:09:02.279 So in keeping with the mystery motif, 00:09:02.899 --> 00:09:04.879 this passage presents not just one, 00:09:05.279 --> 00:09:06.879 but multiple mysteries. 00:09:07.480 --> 00:09:08.860 A mini-series, if you will. 00:09:09.580 --> 00:09:11.659 But thankfully, I love British mysteries, 00:09:11.779 --> 00:09:13.120 so their series are typically short, 00:09:13.200 --> 00:09:14.139 like three or four episodes. 00:09:14.240 --> 00:09:16.960 I was thinking, what if I loved Law and Order? 00:09:17.360 --> 00:09:18.460 We will be here the whole day. 00:09:18.460 --> 00:09:21.240 So for those of you taking notes, 00:09:21.700 --> 00:09:25.080 we will examine this passage in three broad mysteries. 00:09:25.800 --> 00:09:28.379 First, the mystery of Israel's apostasy. 00:09:29.320 --> 00:09:31.420 Then, the mystery of God's anger. 00:09:32.080 --> 00:09:34.080 And finally, we will look at the mystery 00:09:34.080 --> 00:09:36.300 of Phineas' intervention. 00:09:37.240 --> 00:09:39.139 So let's begin with Israel's apostasy. 00:09:39.960 --> 00:09:42.240 On the surface, it doesn't look mysterious at all. 00:09:42.840 --> 00:09:45.220 Like I mentioned in the summary I gave earlier, 00:09:45.220 --> 00:09:48.019 we've seen them rebel multiple times against the Lord. 00:09:48.460 --> 00:09:51.360 So rebelling against the Lord's commandments this time 00:09:51.360 --> 00:09:55.620 feels like yet one more dog-bites-man story. 00:09:56.660 --> 00:09:59.340 The passage also highlights that the apostasy began 00:09:59.340 --> 00:10:01.879 with their men committing sexual immorality 00:10:01.879 --> 00:10:02.900 with the Midianite women, 00:10:03.560 --> 00:10:06.840 and then progressing ultimately to bowing down to their idols. 00:10:07.340 --> 00:10:10.980 And here again, we see a story quite familiar to us as well. 00:10:11.660 --> 00:10:13.700 As a pastor once remarked, 00:10:13.700 --> 00:10:17.639 you talk to a young man who seems to be experiencing serious doubts 00:10:17.639 --> 00:10:20.199 as he all of a sudden begins to question 00:10:20.199 --> 00:10:22.139 the fundamentals of the faith. 00:10:23.000 --> 00:10:24.299 And more often than you'd want, 00:10:24.460 --> 00:10:27.799 you realize there is no grander mystery behind it 00:10:27.799 --> 00:10:30.799 than a desire to sleep with or moving with his girlfriend. 00:10:31.899 --> 00:10:34.120 There is often very little distance 00:10:34.120 --> 00:10:38.000 between persistent, willful sin and apostasy. 00:10:38.000 --> 00:10:40.539 But in this case, 00:10:40.759 --> 00:10:43.500 the mystery of the apostasy of the Israelites goes a bit deeper, 00:10:44.379 --> 00:10:47.080 especially when you realize that chapter 25, 00:10:47.679 --> 00:10:51.220 rather than starting a new act in the story of the Israelites, 00:10:51.820 --> 00:10:55.220 is instead a continuation of chapters 22 to 24 00:10:55.220 --> 00:10:57.580 of their interaction with Balaam. 00:10:58.379 --> 00:10:59.820 Like a good mystery writer 00:10:59.820 --> 00:11:02.279 who doesn't reveal all the clues at once, 00:11:02.279 --> 00:11:05.319 we only discover later in chapter 31 00:11:05.319 --> 00:11:09.179 that it was Balaam who spearheaded the seduction of the Israelites 00:11:09.179 --> 00:11:10.600 with the Moabite women. 00:11:11.659 --> 00:11:13.220 Now we get to understand 00:11:13.220 --> 00:11:17.139 why Balaam was so desired by Balak in this endeavor 00:11:17.139 --> 00:11:21.360 and why he earned the big bucks as a prophet for hire. 00:11:22.439 --> 00:11:26.939 He combined spiritual dark arts with deep, dark cunning. 00:11:26.940 --> 00:11:29.160 Rather than going away, 00:11:29.580 --> 00:11:31.560 as it seemed at the end of chapter 24, 00:11:32.140 --> 00:11:34.020 fully in awe of the God of the Israelites, 00:11:34.880 --> 00:11:36.960 he chose instead to co-opt them. 00:11:38.080 --> 00:11:39.580 Perhaps he may have told Balak, 00:11:40.220 --> 00:11:41.300 if we can't curse them, 00:11:41.980 --> 00:11:44.560 we can bring them under the power of our own God 00:11:44.560 --> 00:11:47.140 by luring them to worship him instead, 00:11:47.920 --> 00:11:49.960 thus making them subject to him. 00:11:50.740 --> 00:11:51.640 Or even worse, 00:11:52.140 --> 00:11:53.460 he may have come to understand 00:11:53.460 --> 00:11:55.780 that given the covenant they had with their God, 00:11:55.779 --> 00:11:58.339 the only way they could fail 00:11:58.339 --> 00:12:00.779 in their quest on the promised land 00:12:00.779 --> 00:12:04.120 was if they broke the covenant they had with him, 00:12:04.360 --> 00:12:04.740 their God. 00:12:06.059 --> 00:12:08.759 There is a lesson here for us as the body of Christ. 00:12:09.839 --> 00:12:11.159 Jesus said to his disciples 00:12:11.159 --> 00:12:12.740 that he will build his church 00:12:12.740 --> 00:12:15.799 and the gates of hell cannot prevail against it. 00:12:16.480 --> 00:12:18.539 In the unward march of the kingdom of God, 00:12:19.220 --> 00:12:20.899 supernatural forces are no match 00:12:20.899 --> 00:12:22.939 for the power of the resurrected Lord Jesus 00:12:22.939 --> 00:12:24.559 that goes with his church. 00:12:24.559 --> 00:12:26.519 The enemy knows this 00:12:26.519 --> 00:12:29.659 and instead aims to use insidious means 00:12:29.659 --> 00:12:30.659 to attack the body. 00:12:31.739 --> 00:12:33.359 More churches have been broken 00:12:33.359 --> 00:12:36.179 by jealousy, division, and sin 00:12:36.179 --> 00:12:39.519 than by any supernatural act of evil. 00:12:40.179 --> 00:12:43.259 And this passage is a reminder to beware. 00:12:44.599 --> 00:12:45.939 But the author is not done. 00:12:46.539 --> 00:12:48.579 He also records that this seduction 00:12:48.579 --> 00:12:50.579 happened in a place called Shittim, 00:12:50.580 --> 00:12:52.540 which is short for Abel Shittim, 00:12:53.040 --> 00:12:54.080 which was his full name, 00:12:54.259 --> 00:12:56.300 as we discover later in chapter 33. 00:12:57.379 --> 00:12:59.139 Shittim was the word for acacia, 00:12:59.680 --> 00:13:01.280 or the acacia tree, 00:13:01.940 --> 00:13:03.900 a precious wood that came to be used 00:13:03.900 --> 00:13:05.560 for much of the temple's furnishing. 00:13:06.560 --> 00:13:09.820 Abel Shittim in turn means stream of acacias, 00:13:10.460 --> 00:13:12.600 suggesting that the place they encamped 00:13:12.600 --> 00:13:16.560 was a luscious, wooded, forested place 00:13:16.560 --> 00:13:19.600 in stark contrast to the desert 00:13:19.600 --> 00:13:21.200 that they had been journeying through 00:13:21.200 --> 00:13:22.960 over the past several years. 00:13:23.600 --> 00:13:25.700 Now the outline of their seduction 00:13:25.700 --> 00:13:27.920 comes into much clearer focus. 00:13:28.620 --> 00:13:29.820 After a long trek, 00:13:30.200 --> 00:13:31.639 40 years in the wilderness, 00:13:32.639 --> 00:13:34.840 they come to this luscious oasis 00:13:34.840 --> 00:13:36.800 where they are met with people 00:13:36.800 --> 00:13:39.680 who look beautiful, well, and prosperous, 00:13:40.480 --> 00:13:43.800 enjoying pleasures they had been forbidden 00:13:43.800 --> 00:13:45.379 by the laws of their God. 00:13:46.259 --> 00:13:47.759 Slowly they are enticed. 00:13:48.660 --> 00:13:49.920 Perhaps the people tell them, 00:13:50.740 --> 00:13:52.759 your God was only a God of the desert. 00:13:53.700 --> 00:13:55.660 His power does not extend here. 00:13:56.580 --> 00:13:58.800 Perhaps that's why you spent so long in the desert. 00:13:59.580 --> 00:14:02.080 He couldn't actually bring you into this land. 00:14:03.220 --> 00:14:04.680 You are not in Kansas anymore. 00:14:05.700 --> 00:14:07.120 To prosper in this land, 00:14:07.560 --> 00:14:09.519 you need to ditch those desert ways 00:14:09.519 --> 00:14:12.259 and be like us, the sophisticated ones. 00:14:13.560 --> 00:14:16.120 Do we not see ourselves reflected in this, 00:14:16.360 --> 00:14:17.100 brothers and sisters? 00:14:17.960 --> 00:14:19.060 As I mentioned earlier, 00:14:19.139 --> 00:14:21.139 I suspect many of you new folks 00:14:21.139 --> 00:14:23.580 are settling into New Haven from near and far 00:14:23.580 --> 00:14:26.639 as you begin a new chapter of your education 00:14:26.639 --> 00:14:27.480 or your career. 00:14:28.139 --> 00:14:29.700 Some of you have come from backgrounds 00:14:29.700 --> 00:14:31.600 steeply rooted in faith in Jesus. 00:14:32.320 --> 00:14:33.460 And this is your first time 00:14:33.460 --> 00:14:35.280 in a culture quite alien to that. 00:14:36.240 --> 00:14:37.519 You thought you believed in God 00:14:37.519 --> 00:14:38.940 as the only path to life, 00:14:39.040 --> 00:14:40.360 to the life you aspire to live, 00:14:40.800 --> 00:14:43.139 and had seen this belief reinforced 00:14:43.139 --> 00:14:45.800 by the community and family you grew up in, 00:14:46.240 --> 00:14:48.100 only to come to the city 00:14:48.100 --> 00:14:51.879 and find many who do not similarly believe 00:14:51.879 --> 00:14:54.659 and yet sin to be living that same life. 00:14:54.659 --> 00:14:58.040 And this begins to plunge you into crisis. 00:14:59.159 --> 00:15:02.500 This, by the way, is not just a test for the newly arrived 00:15:02.500 --> 00:15:03.759 or the newly believing. 00:15:03.759 --> 00:15:09.399 The psalmist in Psalm 73 also found himself seduced 00:15:09.399 --> 00:15:11.039 by the prosperity of the wicked. 00:15:12.080 --> 00:15:14.139 It was only when he returned to the house of the Lord 00:15:14.139 --> 00:15:15.720 that his perspective got reset 00:15:15.720 --> 00:15:19.919 and was able to acknowledge the blessedness of faith in God. 00:15:21.100 --> 00:15:22.419 Dear brother and sister, 00:15:23.240 --> 00:15:25.139 therein lies the antidote. 00:15:26.299 --> 00:15:29.240 Should the culture around you tempt you to forsake the way? 00:15:30.139 --> 00:15:32.100 Don't attempt to journey alone. 00:15:32.960 --> 00:15:34.620 Find a community of faith 00:15:34.620 --> 00:15:36.279 where, like the psalmist, 00:15:36.620 --> 00:15:38.460 you can again discover perspective 00:15:38.460 --> 00:15:40.460 in the presence of the Lord. 00:15:42.960 --> 00:15:44.879 The story now quickly moves on 00:15:44.879 --> 00:15:46.259 to the second act and mystery, 00:15:46.960 --> 00:15:49.139 which is that of God's anger. 00:15:50.620 --> 00:15:51.240 Again, like the... 00:15:51.240 --> 00:15:57.680 ...people, 00:15:58.340 --> 00:16:00.100 more than any of the plagues before 00:16:00.100 --> 00:16:02.320 where the number of those who died was recorded. 00:16:03.820 --> 00:16:04.639 And for emphasis, 00:16:04.860 --> 00:16:07.360 and this we discover in the 1 Corinthians 10 passage 00:16:07.360 --> 00:16:08.259 that was read earlier, 00:16:08.940 --> 00:16:12.320 essentially all these people died in a single day. 00:16:14.060 --> 00:16:17.480 This was a little over 1% of the population. 00:16:17.480 --> 00:16:21.000 To put this proportionally in our context today, 00:16:21.700 --> 00:16:25.379 it's as though a virus was announced in the U.S. one morning 00:16:25.379 --> 00:16:26.800 and the next day, 00:16:26.940 --> 00:16:29.879 the entire population of Connecticut was dead. 00:16:32.360 --> 00:16:32.879 Secondly, 00:16:33.120 --> 00:16:35.480 the atonement God demanded was equally severe. 00:16:36.120 --> 00:16:37.820 That was that all the leaders of the people 00:16:37.820 --> 00:16:40.460 be hung and impaled for all to see. 00:16:41.399 --> 00:16:42.600 As far as I can recall, 00:16:42.680 --> 00:16:45.220 this punishment was never issued again in Israel. 00:16:45.220 --> 00:16:47.940 Most people were put to death by stoning. 00:16:48.800 --> 00:16:50.220 This is especially significant 00:16:50.220 --> 00:16:52.580 as we recognize that in this culture, 00:16:53.379 --> 00:16:55.040 being impaled or hung on a tree 00:16:55.040 --> 00:16:57.399 was a visible sign of God's curse, 00:16:58.000 --> 00:16:59.860 as it says in Deuteronomy 21. 00:17:00.879 --> 00:17:02.279 And that God commanded people 00:17:02.279 --> 00:17:03.980 who died to be buried quickly 00:17:03.980 --> 00:17:06.799 that they may not defile the land. 00:17:08.299 --> 00:17:11.299 So why this level of anger from the Lord? 00:17:11.299 --> 00:17:14.299 Well, we see it more clearly later 00:17:14.299 --> 00:17:15.359 in the narrative 00:17:15.359 --> 00:17:18.359 when God commends Phineas for his actions. 00:17:19.019 --> 00:17:21.139 This is a point we will return to in a little bit. 00:17:21.720 --> 00:17:23.200 But God commends Phineas 00:17:23.200 --> 00:17:25.240 for being jealous with his jealousy 00:17:25.240 --> 00:17:28.000 so that the Israelites were not consumed 00:17:28.000 --> 00:17:29.220 by God's rage. 00:17:30.619 --> 00:17:33.399 We see now the anger was thus qualitatively different 00:17:33.399 --> 00:17:34.779 from the other incidents 00:17:34.779 --> 00:17:38.539 because it was not just a response to rebellion, 00:17:39.119 --> 00:17:41.819 but an anger provoked by jealousy. 00:17:43.019 --> 00:17:44.180 But why jealousy? 00:17:44.899 --> 00:17:46.139 What's going on? 00:17:47.059 --> 00:17:48.180 As we read scripture, 00:17:48.799 --> 00:17:51.079 we come to see that of the many typologies 00:17:51.079 --> 00:17:53.180 that characterize God's relationship 00:17:53.180 --> 00:17:54.299 with his chosen people, 00:17:54.839 --> 00:17:56.879 one of the most dominant ones 00:17:56.879 --> 00:17:58.019 was that of marriage, 00:17:58.700 --> 00:18:00.220 with his people being the bride 00:18:00.220 --> 00:18:01.559 and he their husband. 00:18:01.559 --> 00:18:04.259 Several passages allude to this. 00:18:04.399 --> 00:18:05.859 For example, Isaiah 54, 00:18:06.200 --> 00:18:08.220 where God calls himself their maker and husband. 00:18:08.779 --> 00:18:10.279 In Ezekiel 16 and 23, 00:18:10.460 --> 00:18:12.000 where God describes their relationship 00:18:12.000 --> 00:18:13.319 as one in which he found 00:18:13.319 --> 00:18:15.179 and nurtured Israel and married her 00:18:15.179 --> 00:18:16.399 when she came of age. 00:18:16.919 --> 00:18:18.419 In Jeremiah 3 and 31, 00:18:19.179 --> 00:18:20.819 where he describes, like here, 00:18:21.279 --> 00:18:22.679 the violation of their covenant 00:18:22.679 --> 00:18:24.139 in marriage terms. 00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:27.480 This event, then, in Numbers 25, 00:18:27.879 --> 00:18:28.679 is in many ways 00:18:28.680 --> 00:18:30.100 the archetypal example 00:18:30.100 --> 00:18:31.360 of unfaithfulness. 00:18:32.779 --> 00:18:35.039 It is also the first time 00:18:35.039 --> 00:18:36.860 we meet the Canaanite deity, Baal, 00:18:37.279 --> 00:18:38.539 that will become the one 00:18:38.539 --> 00:18:41.080 with which they will repeatedly 00:18:41.080 --> 00:18:42.360 become unfaithful 00:18:42.360 --> 00:18:44.180 to their maker and husband, 00:18:44.400 --> 00:18:45.160 the Lord their God, 00:18:45.740 --> 00:18:46.640 throughout their time 00:18:46.640 --> 00:18:47.480 in the Promised Land. 00:18:48.519 --> 00:18:49.240 This unfaithfulness 00:18:49.240 --> 00:18:50.539 is actually further highlighted 00:18:50.539 --> 00:18:51.900 in an interesting pun 00:18:51.900 --> 00:18:53.840 on the name of the deity itself. 00:18:54.580 --> 00:18:55.060 In Hebrew, 00:18:55.200 --> 00:18:56.900 the verb form of the word for Baal 00:18:56.900 --> 00:18:58.480 is also the root 00:18:58.480 --> 00:19:00.019 for the word to marry, 00:19:00.880 --> 00:19:02.500 with the word in other contexts 00:19:02.500 --> 00:19:03.920 actually meaning husband. 00:19:04.920 --> 00:19:05.980 The word for yoke, 00:19:06.580 --> 00:19:08.120 used earlier when it says, 00:19:09.019 --> 00:19:10.100 Israel yoked itself 00:19:10.100 --> 00:19:11.259 with Baal, Peor, 00:19:12.320 --> 00:19:13.660 is also a word 00:19:13.660 --> 00:19:16.360 with sexual undertones behind it. 00:19:17.360 --> 00:19:18.780 The mystery of God's anger 00:19:18.780 --> 00:19:20.040 at the event at Peor 00:19:20.040 --> 00:19:21.780 now becomes fully evident. 00:19:22.840 --> 00:19:24.680 Their sin of sexual immorality 00:19:24.680 --> 00:19:25.480 and idolatry 00:19:25.480 --> 00:19:26.940 is an exact picture 00:19:26.940 --> 00:19:28.259 of their spiritual state. 00:19:28.940 --> 00:19:30.259 Adultery against the Lord, 00:19:30.340 --> 00:19:30.799 their husband, 00:19:31.440 --> 00:19:32.060 with another 00:19:32.060 --> 00:19:33.799 who wants to take his place. 00:19:34.360 --> 00:19:35.580 And the rage of God 00:19:35.580 --> 00:19:36.440 is the response 00:19:36.440 --> 00:19:37.420 of a jilted lover 00:19:37.420 --> 00:19:39.019 who finds the wife 00:19:39.019 --> 00:19:39.640 of his youth 00:19:39.640 --> 00:19:41.700 in bed with another. 00:19:43.299 --> 00:19:44.500 Hearing again lies 00:19:44.500 --> 00:19:45.660 another lesson for us, 00:19:45.840 --> 00:19:46.620 brothers and sisters. 00:19:47.340 --> 00:19:48.539 What often feels like 00:19:48.539 --> 00:19:49.980 trivial sin in our eyes 00:19:49.980 --> 00:19:52.500 is nothing less 00:19:52.500 --> 00:19:53.319 than idolatry 00:19:53.319 --> 00:19:54.940 and spiritual adultery 00:19:54.940 --> 00:19:56.839 in the eyes of the Lord 00:19:56.839 --> 00:19:58.319 deserving his wrath. 00:19:59.039 --> 00:20:00.579 No wonder he beseeches 00:20:00.579 --> 00:20:01.360 like he did 00:20:01.360 --> 00:20:02.640 in Ezekiel 33 00:20:02.640 --> 00:20:04.640 to turn back, 00:20:05.059 --> 00:20:05.759 to turn back 00:20:05.759 --> 00:20:06.839 from your evil ways 00:20:06.839 --> 00:20:08.740 for why will you die, 00:20:09.140 --> 00:20:10.240 O house of Israel? 00:20:11.620 --> 00:20:12.559 Do you sense 00:20:12.559 --> 00:20:13.319 the Lord's call 00:20:13.319 --> 00:20:14.460 to repent today? 00:20:15.680 --> 00:20:16.519 Turn, brother. 00:20:17.460 --> 00:20:18.319 Turn, sister. 00:20:18.319 --> 00:20:20.099 before it's too late. 00:20:21.799 --> 00:20:23.179 The series now pivots 00:20:23.179 --> 00:20:24.279 to the final episode, 00:20:25.240 --> 00:20:26.079 which is a mystery 00:20:26.079 --> 00:20:27.779 of Phineas' intervention 00:20:27.779 --> 00:20:28.619 and atonement, 00:20:29.159 --> 00:20:29.519 which, 00:20:30.039 --> 00:20:30.659 to adapt 00:20:30.659 --> 00:20:31.359 the famous 00:20:31.359 --> 00:20:32.519 Churchillian phrase, 00:20:32.819 --> 00:20:33.799 feels like a riddle 00:20:33.799 --> 00:20:35.319 wrapped around an enigma. 00:20:36.319 --> 00:20:37.079 But this time, 00:20:37.179 --> 00:20:37.839 hopefully the author 00:20:37.839 --> 00:20:38.559 has convinced you 00:20:38.559 --> 00:20:39.419 that there is often 00:20:39.419 --> 00:20:40.439 an underlying clarity 00:20:40.439 --> 00:20:41.279 to the story, 00:20:41.439 --> 00:20:42.379 which we will soon see. 00:20:43.359 --> 00:20:44.039 Let's start 00:20:44.039 --> 00:20:44.619 with the enigma. 00:20:45.439 --> 00:20:46.319 After God gives 00:20:46.319 --> 00:20:46.819 the command, 00:20:47.059 --> 00:20:48.119 we find the congregation 00:20:48.119 --> 00:20:49.179 lamenting before 00:20:49.179 --> 00:20:49.959 the tabernacle, 00:20:50.779 --> 00:20:52.019 presumably in sorrow 00:20:52.019 --> 00:20:53.059 over the command 00:20:53.059 --> 00:20:53.779 God had given. 00:20:54.859 --> 00:20:55.479 The couple 00:20:55.479 --> 00:20:56.819 find out their names 00:20:56.819 --> 00:20:58.279 as Zimri and Cosby. 00:20:58.759 --> 00:20:59.559 They then walk 00:20:59.559 --> 00:21:00.679 in full view 00:21:00.679 --> 00:21:01.619 of everyone 00:21:01.619 --> 00:21:02.699 into a tent 00:21:02.699 --> 00:21:03.539 to commit 00:21:03.539 --> 00:21:04.559 their immoral act. 00:21:05.559 --> 00:21:06.219 This, again, 00:21:06.279 --> 00:21:07.819 is really quite puzzling. 00:21:08.579 --> 00:21:09.259 Wouldn't they, 00:21:09.599 --> 00:21:10.699 or at least Zimri, 00:21:10.799 --> 00:21:11.659 if not Cosby, 00:21:12.079 --> 00:21:12.839 have been aware 00:21:12.839 --> 00:21:13.519 of the command 00:21:13.519 --> 00:21:14.359 issued by God 00:21:14.359 --> 00:21:15.339 for the execution 00:21:15.339 --> 00:21:16.619 of all those 00:21:16.619 --> 00:21:17.279 who were involved 00:21:17.279 --> 00:21:18.019 in immorality 00:21:18.019 --> 00:21:18.799 with the Midianites? 00:21:19.379 --> 00:21:19.720 Otherwise, 00:21:19.919 --> 00:21:20.539 why did they think 00:21:20.539 --> 00:21:21.419 people were weeping 00:21:21.419 --> 00:21:22.779 in front of the tabernacle? 00:21:23.579 --> 00:21:24.899 And if they were aware, 00:21:25.519 --> 00:21:26.579 why did they choose 00:21:26.579 --> 00:21:27.599 to be so brazen? 00:21:29.079 --> 00:21:30.000 One possibility 00:21:30.000 --> 00:21:30.799 was that Zimri 00:21:30.799 --> 00:21:31.619 was so confident 00:21:31.619 --> 00:21:32.359 in his position 00:21:32.359 --> 00:21:33.119 and his authority 00:21:33.119 --> 00:21:34.079 that he thought 00:21:34.079 --> 00:21:35.079 no one would dare 00:21:35.079 --> 00:21:35.859 execute him 00:21:35.859 --> 00:21:36.500 for his sin. 00:21:37.199 --> 00:21:37.579 Remember, 00:21:37.679 --> 00:21:38.379 he was the son 00:21:38.379 --> 00:21:39.359 of one of the chiefs 00:21:39.359 --> 00:21:40.139 of the Simeonites. 00:21:40.839 --> 00:21:41.359 So perhaps, 00:21:41.459 --> 00:21:42.299 like those in authority, 00:21:44.099 --> 00:21:44.500 they think 00:21:44.500 --> 00:21:45.359 they are above the law. 00:21:46.619 --> 00:21:46.959 However, 00:21:47.119 --> 00:21:48.139 this doesn't seem 00:21:48.139 --> 00:21:48.919 satisfactory, 00:21:49.639 --> 00:21:51.099 especially as we know 00:21:51.099 --> 00:21:51.919 Moses enjoyed 00:21:51.919 --> 00:21:53.139 such unrivaled authority 00:21:53.139 --> 00:21:53.939 among the people 00:21:53.939 --> 00:21:55.179 since the events 00:21:55.179 --> 00:21:55.979 of the rebellion 00:21:55.979 --> 00:21:57.079 of Korah. 00:21:58.559 --> 00:21:59.439 Unless, of course, 00:21:59.599 --> 00:22:00.559 this was no mere 00:22:00.559 --> 00:22:01.479 immoral act 00:22:01.479 --> 00:22:02.599 and there was more 00:22:02.599 --> 00:22:03.919 to it 00:22:03.919 --> 00:22:05.019 than meets the eye. 00:22:06.479 --> 00:22:07.399 To see this, 00:22:07.500 --> 00:22:07.679 again, 00:22:07.740 --> 00:22:08.139 it is helpful 00:22:08.139 --> 00:22:08.500 to know 00:22:08.500 --> 00:22:09.019 that the worship 00:22:09.019 --> 00:22:09.539 of Baal 00:22:09.539 --> 00:22:10.740 as a fertility god 00:22:10.740 --> 00:22:11.799 often involved 00:22:11.799 --> 00:22:12.880 sex with priestesses 00:22:12.880 --> 00:22:13.779 or prostitutes. 00:22:14.420 --> 00:22:14.920 Hence, again, 00:22:14.980 --> 00:22:16.000 we see the intertwining 00:22:16.000 --> 00:22:16.779 of immorality 00:22:16.779 --> 00:22:17.539 and idolatry 00:22:17.539 --> 00:22:18.180 in the opening 00:22:18.180 --> 00:22:19.140 verses of the chapter. 00:22:20.079 --> 00:22:20.539 These acts 00:22:20.539 --> 00:22:21.380 occurred in the place 00:22:21.380 --> 00:22:21.839 of worship, 00:22:22.380 --> 00:22:23.559 often in a sacred tent 00:22:23.559 --> 00:22:24.579 where the priestesses 00:22:24.579 --> 00:22:25.160 dwelt. 00:22:26.079 --> 00:22:26.759 In that light, 00:22:27.400 --> 00:22:27.960 it may be easier 00:22:27.960 --> 00:22:29.519 to see the public nature 00:22:29.519 --> 00:22:30.359 of the act 00:22:30.359 --> 00:22:31.500 of Zimri and Cosby 00:22:31.500 --> 00:22:32.920 as representing 00:22:32.920 --> 00:22:34.519 the formal consummation 00:22:34.519 --> 00:22:35.660 of the yoking 00:22:35.660 --> 00:22:36.339 of Israel 00:22:36.339 --> 00:22:37.339 with Baal of Peor 00:22:37.339 --> 00:22:39.599 through a fertility rite 00:22:39.599 --> 00:22:41.299 performed in a tent 00:22:41.299 --> 00:22:42.559 for Baal's worship 00:22:42.559 --> 00:22:44.059 by a representative 00:22:44.059 --> 00:22:45.399 of the Israelites, 00:22:46.259 --> 00:22:47.159 which was the son 00:22:47.159 --> 00:22:47.959 of the leading house, 00:22:48.299 --> 00:22:49.240 and a representative 00:22:49.240 --> 00:22:50.439 of the Midianites, 00:22:50.799 --> 00:22:51.519 which was Cosby, 00:22:52.000 --> 00:22:52.619 who we learn, 00:22:52.980 --> 00:22:53.279 again, 00:22:53.379 --> 00:22:54.079 from the passage, 00:22:54.799 --> 00:22:55.559 was the daughter 00:22:55.559 --> 00:22:56.619 of one of the kings 00:22:56.619 --> 00:22:57.179 of Midian. 00:22:58.179 --> 00:22:58.619 So now, 00:22:58.819 --> 00:22:59.859 what had begun 00:22:59.859 --> 00:23:01.379 as individual sins 00:23:01.380 --> 00:23:02.840 is now about 00:23:02.840 --> 00:23:05.020 to be formally ratified 00:23:05.020 --> 00:23:06.200 by representatives 00:23:06.200 --> 00:23:06.920 of the people? 00:23:07.920 --> 00:23:09.200 While there is some debate 00:23:09.200 --> 00:23:09.700 as to whether 00:23:09.700 --> 00:23:10.120 the tent 00:23:10.120 --> 00:23:11.220 where this act happened 00:23:11.220 --> 00:23:12.540 was actually 00:23:12.540 --> 00:23:13.400 the tent of meeting 00:23:13.400 --> 00:23:15.580 in front of which 00:23:15.580 --> 00:23:15.900 the people 00:23:15.900 --> 00:23:17.380 were lamenting, 00:23:17.900 --> 00:23:19.060 it's more likely 00:23:19.060 --> 00:23:19.740 that it happened 00:23:19.740 --> 00:23:20.780 in another tent, 00:23:21.220 --> 00:23:21.920 but another tent, 00:23:22.020 --> 00:23:22.440 no doubt, 00:23:22.600 --> 00:23:23.820 that was close to it, 00:23:24.340 --> 00:23:26.140 occupying a central position 00:23:26.140 --> 00:23:26.860 in the camp 00:23:26.860 --> 00:23:29.020 similar to the tabernacle. 00:23:29.019 --> 00:23:31.400 You can imagine, 00:23:31.559 --> 00:23:31.879 perhaps, 00:23:32.019 --> 00:23:33.259 in Zimri and Cosby's 00:23:33.259 --> 00:23:33.619 telling, 00:23:34.720 --> 00:23:35.339 the plague, 00:23:36.119 --> 00:23:36.839 rather than being 00:23:36.839 --> 00:23:38.160 a punishment from God, 00:23:38.680 --> 00:23:39.839 maybe it was a result 00:23:39.839 --> 00:23:41.079 of them not officially 00:23:41.079 --> 00:23:42.000 rejecting God 00:23:42.000 --> 00:23:42.599 for bail. 00:23:43.039 --> 00:23:43.740 Maybe the plague 00:23:43.740 --> 00:23:44.500 came from bail, 00:23:45.079 --> 00:23:45.980 and then they needed 00:23:45.980 --> 00:23:46.980 to do this act 00:23:46.980 --> 00:23:48.200 of public consummation 00:23:48.200 --> 00:23:49.039 to declare their 00:23:49.039 --> 00:23:49.940 allegiance to him, 00:23:50.400 --> 00:23:51.000 and thus, 00:23:51.559 --> 00:23:52.700 in their twisted view, 00:23:53.240 --> 00:23:54.240 attempt to stop 00:23:54.240 --> 00:23:54.839 the plague. 00:23:56.900 --> 00:23:58.180 I think it is 00:23:58.180 --> 00:23:59.000 the recognition 00:23:59.000 --> 00:24:00.420 of this supreme act 00:24:00.420 --> 00:24:03.420 of public defiance 00:24:03.420 --> 00:24:05.539 that causes Phineas 00:24:05.539 --> 00:24:06.740 to rise and walk 00:24:06.740 --> 00:24:07.519 into the tent 00:24:07.519 --> 00:24:09.440 and spear them both, 00:24:10.460 --> 00:24:11.160 most likely 00:24:11.160 --> 00:24:12.000 in the course 00:24:12.000 --> 00:24:13.180 of the act 00:24:13.180 --> 00:24:14.480 of consummation itself, 00:24:15.079 --> 00:24:15.759 given the way 00:24:15.759 --> 00:24:17.000 the author coyly 00:24:17.000 --> 00:24:18.039 describes the event. 00:24:19.619 --> 00:24:20.579 But anger alone 00:24:20.579 --> 00:24:21.539 does not justify 00:24:21.539 --> 00:24:22.140 an action. 00:24:23.019 --> 00:24:24.019 Remember the apostle 00:24:24.019 --> 00:24:25.019 who caught up the ear 00:24:25.019 --> 00:24:26.079 of those who came 00:24:26.079 --> 00:24:26.839 to arrest Jesus, 00:24:26.839 --> 00:24:29.259 presumably in his defense, 00:24:29.379 --> 00:24:30.519 and was still rebuked 00:24:30.519 --> 00:24:31.039 by Jesus. 00:24:32.159 --> 00:24:33.439 So here comes the riddle 00:24:33.439 --> 00:24:34.839 in our puzzle trifecta. 00:24:35.619 --> 00:24:37.099 Was Phineas justified 00:24:37.099 --> 00:24:38.359 in executing them, 00:24:38.720 --> 00:24:40.720 or was it a vigilante action 00:24:40.720 --> 00:24:41.740 that just happened 00:24:41.740 --> 00:24:43.539 to be ex-post justified 00:24:43.539 --> 00:24:44.299 by God? 00:24:45.259 --> 00:24:46.299 A few things 00:24:46.299 --> 00:24:46.740 in the passage 00:24:46.740 --> 00:24:47.359 say otherwise. 00:24:47.699 --> 00:24:47.980 First, 00:24:48.179 --> 00:24:48.679 the decree 00:24:48.679 --> 00:24:49.699 had already been given 00:24:49.699 --> 00:24:50.259 by God 00:24:50.259 --> 00:24:51.240 that the leaders 00:24:51.240 --> 00:24:51.720 of the people 00:24:51.720 --> 00:24:52.759 involved in immorality 00:24:52.759 --> 00:24:53.519 with the Midianites 00:24:53.519 --> 00:24:55.059 should be executed. 00:24:55.980 --> 00:24:56.480 With God 00:24:56.480 --> 00:24:57.720 as the Supreme Court 00:24:57.720 --> 00:24:58.599 and the lawgiver, 00:24:59.119 --> 00:24:59.740 there was already 00:24:59.740 --> 00:25:00.680 a legal basis 00:25:00.680 --> 00:25:01.500 for his action. 00:25:02.339 --> 00:25:02.740 Second, 00:25:02.940 --> 00:25:03.920 the leaders of Israel 00:25:03.920 --> 00:25:04.379 were meant 00:25:04.379 --> 00:25:05.460 to do the execution. 00:25:06.400 --> 00:25:07.259 And as high priest 00:25:07.259 --> 00:25:07.799 in waiting, 00:25:08.460 --> 00:25:09.259 Phineas surely 00:25:09.259 --> 00:25:10.639 was also a leader 00:25:10.639 --> 00:25:11.940 and thus had 00:25:11.940 --> 00:25:12.740 the authority 00:25:12.740 --> 00:25:14.180 to carry out 00:25:14.180 --> 00:25:15.000 this act. 00:25:15.960 --> 00:25:17.440 Even more specifically, 00:25:17.740 --> 00:25:18.519 the act occurred 00:25:18.519 --> 00:25:19.720 like I described earlier 00:25:19.720 --> 00:25:21.019 in the vicinity 00:25:21.019 --> 00:25:21.940 of the temple 00:25:21.940 --> 00:25:23.460 which the priests 00:25:23.460 --> 00:25:24.080 and Levites 00:25:24.080 --> 00:25:24.980 were meant to guard 00:25:24.980 --> 00:25:25.740 and prevent 00:25:25.740 --> 00:25:26.600 the Israelites 00:25:26.600 --> 00:25:27.660 from defiling them 00:25:27.660 --> 00:25:29.120 as God commands 00:25:29.120 --> 00:25:30.779 and as Pastor Matt 00:25:30.779 --> 00:25:31.900 taught us 00:25:31.900 --> 00:25:32.799 in Numbers 18 00:25:32.799 --> 00:25:33.820 several weeks ago. 00:25:34.759 --> 00:25:35.100 Thus, 00:25:35.460 --> 00:25:36.980 Phineas in this act 00:25:36.980 --> 00:25:38.140 was also doing 00:25:38.140 --> 00:25:38.660 his duty 00:25:38.660 --> 00:25:39.779 of keeping 00:25:39.779 --> 00:25:41.559 the temple 00:25:41.559 --> 00:25:42.559 from being defiled 00:25:42.559 --> 00:25:43.559 or the tabernacle 00:25:43.559 --> 00:25:44.539 from being defiled. 00:25:45.600 --> 00:25:46.220 And finally, 00:25:46.460 --> 00:25:47.620 as I noted earlier, 00:25:48.220 --> 00:25:48.920 after God 00:25:48.920 --> 00:25:49.779 commands Moses 00:25:49.779 --> 00:25:50.539 to execute 00:25:50.539 --> 00:25:51.100 the leaders 00:25:51.099 --> 00:25:51.740 of the people, 00:25:52.619 --> 00:25:53.740 presumably the leaders 00:25:53.740 --> 00:25:54.279 of the people 00:25:54.279 --> 00:25:55.399 caught in the sin, 00:25:56.279 --> 00:25:57.179 we find the people 00:25:57.179 --> 00:25:58.319 lamenting the judgment 00:25:58.319 --> 00:25:59.539 that God had issued 00:25:59.539 --> 00:26:02.579 instead of carrying it out. 00:26:03.199 --> 00:26:04.000 But while they are 00:26:04.000 --> 00:26:05.119 lamenting this command, 00:26:05.740 --> 00:26:06.619 what do you think 00:26:06.619 --> 00:26:07.299 is happening 00:26:07.299 --> 00:26:08.159 in the meantime? 00:26:09.119 --> 00:26:10.379 People are dying 00:26:10.379 --> 00:26:11.319 in the camp. 00:26:11.939 --> 00:26:12.299 Remember, 00:26:12.500 --> 00:26:13.740 the plague had broken out 00:26:13.740 --> 00:26:15.299 and only stopped 00:26:15.299 --> 00:26:16.980 after the intervention 00:26:16.980 --> 00:26:17.759 of Phineas. 00:26:18.279 --> 00:26:18.539 Thus, 00:26:18.599 --> 00:26:19.119 in the period 00:26:19.119 --> 00:26:20.219 while they were lamenting, 00:26:20.220 --> 00:26:21.740 people kept dying. 00:26:22.539 --> 00:26:24.579 Contrast Moses' response 00:26:24.579 --> 00:26:24.960 here 00:26:24.960 --> 00:26:26.779 with the reaction 00:26:26.779 --> 00:26:27.860 in Numbers 16 00:26:27.860 --> 00:26:29.059 when the plague 00:26:29.059 --> 00:26:29.600 broke out 00:26:29.600 --> 00:26:30.880 after the people's rebellion 00:26:30.880 --> 00:26:31.819 from the incident 00:26:31.819 --> 00:26:32.460 of Korah, 00:26:32.759 --> 00:26:33.000 Dathan, 00:26:33.200 --> 00:26:33.660 and Abiram. 00:26:34.299 --> 00:26:35.200 Moses and Aaron 00:26:35.200 --> 00:26:36.940 responded instantly. 00:26:37.860 --> 00:26:38.660 Aaron took incense 00:26:38.660 --> 00:26:39.259 from the altar 00:26:39.259 --> 00:26:40.200 and stood between 00:26:40.200 --> 00:26:40.640 the people 00:26:40.640 --> 00:26:41.299 and the plague, 00:26:41.700 --> 00:26:42.360 which stopped 00:26:42.360 --> 00:26:43.140 when he did so. 00:26:43.920 --> 00:26:45.039 The Bible recorded 00:26:45.039 --> 00:26:46.039 that at that time, 00:26:46.400 --> 00:26:48.700 14,700 people died. 00:26:48.700 --> 00:26:50.319 No doubt, 00:26:50.600 --> 00:26:51.500 the quick response 00:26:51.500 --> 00:26:53.539 of Moses and Aaron 00:26:53.539 --> 00:26:55.700 saved more lives. 00:26:56.880 --> 00:26:58.080 Phineas' response 00:26:58.080 --> 00:27:00.080 is thus further commendable 00:27:00.080 --> 00:27:01.559 as he stayed 00:27:01.559 --> 00:27:02.620 for the deaths. 00:27:04.059 --> 00:27:05.960 One lesson for us here 00:27:05.960 --> 00:27:07.340 is that sorrow, 00:27:07.759 --> 00:27:08.140 weeping, 00:27:08.380 --> 00:27:08.840 and wailing 00:27:08.840 --> 00:27:10.600 is no substitute 00:27:10.600 --> 00:27:11.279 for atonement 00:27:11.279 --> 00:27:11.920 or action 00:27:11.920 --> 00:27:13.620 when God's justice 00:27:13.620 --> 00:27:14.200 or commands 00:27:14.200 --> 00:27:14.819 are at stake. 00:27:14.819 --> 00:27:17.359 This was true then 00:27:17.359 --> 00:27:18.859 and is true 00:27:18.859 --> 00:27:20.179 for us even today. 00:27:21.359 --> 00:27:22.559 There is a further lesson 00:27:22.559 --> 00:27:23.639 for those called 00:27:23.639 --> 00:27:24.919 to be leaders, 00:27:25.099 --> 00:27:25.919 especially leaders 00:27:25.919 --> 00:27:26.799 of God's people. 00:27:29.079 --> 00:27:30.079 When we fail 00:27:30.079 --> 00:27:31.059 to act in judgment 00:27:31.059 --> 00:27:32.319 in the face of sin 00:27:32.319 --> 00:27:33.319 and wrongdoing, 00:27:33.980 --> 00:27:35.019 there is danger 00:27:35.019 --> 00:27:35.740 for the people 00:27:35.740 --> 00:27:36.259 we lead. 00:27:37.679 --> 00:27:38.500 And we know this 00:27:38.500 --> 00:27:39.799 from the recent scandals 00:27:39.799 --> 00:27:40.299 and crisis 00:27:40.299 --> 00:27:40.919 in the church 00:27:40.919 --> 00:27:42.439 that we have experienced 00:27:42.439 --> 00:27:42.960 or seen 00:27:42.960 --> 00:27:44.259 in our world today. 00:27:44.819 --> 00:27:46.599 Thus, 00:27:46.700 --> 00:27:47.919 the series concludes 00:27:47.919 --> 00:27:48.639 with the mysteries 00:27:48.639 --> 00:27:50.379 of the chapters resolved. 00:27:50.879 --> 00:27:51.559 So it seems. 00:27:52.439 --> 00:27:53.539 Israel is seduced 00:27:53.539 --> 00:27:54.200 to idolatry 00:27:54.200 --> 00:27:55.240 with bail 00:27:55.240 --> 00:27:56.460 through sexual immorality. 00:27:57.480 --> 00:27:57.819 God, 00:27:57.960 --> 00:27:58.659 in his jealousy 00:27:58.659 --> 00:27:59.639 for his people, 00:28:00.019 --> 00:28:00.579 judges them 00:28:00.579 --> 00:28:01.179 with a plague. 00:28:01.839 --> 00:28:02.500 And Phineas, 00:28:02.619 --> 00:28:03.240 in his role 00:28:03.240 --> 00:28:04.659 as priest and judge, 00:28:05.179 --> 00:28:06.399 atones for God's people 00:28:06.399 --> 00:28:07.460 by executing 00:28:07.460 --> 00:28:09.480 their representative sinners. 00:28:10.159 --> 00:28:10.859 Plague is stopped. 00:28:11.500 --> 00:28:12.039 The end. 00:28:13.500 --> 00:28:14.139 Or is it? 00:28:14.819 --> 00:28:16.119 As you know, 00:28:16.379 --> 00:28:17.000 a hallmark 00:28:17.000 --> 00:28:17.700 of the best 00:28:17.700 --> 00:28:19.139 murder mysteries 00:28:19.139 --> 00:28:20.639 is where you get 00:28:20.639 --> 00:28:21.399 to the conclusion 00:28:21.399 --> 00:28:22.639 and realize 00:28:22.639 --> 00:28:23.359 that the puzzles 00:28:23.359 --> 00:28:24.119 you have been working 00:28:24.119 --> 00:28:25.559 through themselves 00:28:25.559 --> 00:28:27.200 mask a deeper mystery 00:28:27.200 --> 00:28:29.019 that brings them together. 00:28:30.139 --> 00:28:31.419 This is not a murder mystery, 00:28:31.559 --> 00:28:32.939 but as many of you know, 00:28:33.079 --> 00:28:34.439 I love the Lego movie. 00:28:34.960 --> 00:28:36.519 And near the end 00:28:36.519 --> 00:28:38.000 of the original Lego movie, 00:28:38.480 --> 00:28:39.500 you realize 00:28:39.500 --> 00:28:41.619 that all you have been watching 00:28:41.619 --> 00:28:46.240 points to a more fundamental story. 00:28:46.319 --> 00:28:47.240 I don't want to give it away. 00:28:47.319 --> 00:28:48.119 It's such a great movie. 00:28:48.200 --> 00:28:48.740 You should watch it 00:28:48.740 --> 00:28:49.519 if you haven't watched it. 00:28:50.079 --> 00:28:51.180 But such is it 00:28:51.180 --> 00:28:51.980 with this chapter. 00:28:52.420 --> 00:28:53.839 This individual mysteries 00:28:53.839 --> 00:28:55.400 together form the outline 00:28:55.400 --> 00:28:56.559 of a grander mystery, 00:28:57.019 --> 00:28:58.400 the threads of which we find 00:28:58.400 --> 00:29:00.339 the author has been pulling on 00:29:00.339 --> 00:29:02.640 as the Israelites journey 00:29:02.640 --> 00:29:03.480 through the wilderness. 00:29:03.480 --> 00:29:05.680 This grander mystery 00:29:05.680 --> 00:29:07.420 is that of God's grace 00:29:07.420 --> 00:29:08.720 in his relationship 00:29:08.720 --> 00:29:10.259 to his chosen people. 00:29:11.120 --> 00:29:12.759 For here at the foothills 00:29:12.759 --> 00:29:13.799 of the promised land, 00:29:14.240 --> 00:29:14.759 in the depth 00:29:14.759 --> 00:29:15.799 of their apostasy, 00:29:16.700 --> 00:29:18.039 the generation of Israelites 00:29:18.039 --> 00:29:19.200 about to take possession 00:29:19.200 --> 00:29:19.779 of the land 00:29:19.779 --> 00:29:20.980 are confronted 00:29:20.980 --> 00:29:21.900 with the reality 00:29:21.900 --> 00:29:23.220 that this possession 00:29:23.220 --> 00:29:24.940 was not due to their worth. 00:29:25.960 --> 00:29:27.019 Anyone who thought 00:29:27.019 --> 00:29:28.220 the earlier rebellions 00:29:28.220 --> 00:29:28.880 in the desert 00:29:28.880 --> 00:29:29.599 to be due 00:29:29.599 --> 00:29:31.339 to the particular wickedness 00:29:31.339 --> 00:29:32.339 of the hearts 00:29:32.339 --> 00:29:33.500 of those who left Egypt 00:29:33.500 --> 00:29:35.199 was quickly disabused 00:29:35.199 --> 00:29:36.000 of that notion 00:29:36.000 --> 00:29:37.799 by the events at Peor. 00:29:38.519 --> 00:29:39.740 As several commentators 00:29:39.740 --> 00:29:40.259 I read 00:29:40.259 --> 00:29:41.419 spent time highlighting 00:29:41.419 --> 00:29:42.399 how the apostasy 00:29:42.399 --> 00:29:43.599 of the second generation 00:29:43.599 --> 00:29:44.539 at the foot 00:29:44.539 --> 00:29:45.339 of the promised land 00:29:45.339 --> 00:29:46.480 mirrored that 00:29:46.480 --> 00:29:48.319 of their parents' generation 00:29:48.319 --> 00:29:49.879 at the foot of Sinai. 00:29:50.859 --> 00:29:51.679 It's no wonder 00:29:51.679 --> 00:29:53.240 then in his farewell speech 00:29:53.240 --> 00:29:54.519 in the book of Deuteronomy, 00:29:55.139 --> 00:29:56.099 Moses reminds them 00:29:56.099 --> 00:29:56.639 that the Lord 00:29:56.639 --> 00:29:57.579 did not choose them 00:29:57.579 --> 00:29:58.639 because they were special, 00:29:59.259 --> 00:30:00.399 but because he loved them 00:30:00.400 --> 00:30:01.380 and kept the oath 00:30:01.380 --> 00:30:02.920 he swore to their forefathers 00:30:02.920 --> 00:30:04.040 that he brought them 00:30:04.040 --> 00:30:05.200 out of slavery in Egypt. 00:30:06.040 --> 00:30:06.660 Their choice 00:30:06.660 --> 00:30:08.140 as his chosen people 00:30:08.140 --> 00:30:10.160 was a choice of grace 00:30:10.160 --> 00:30:11.240 and not one 00:30:11.240 --> 00:30:12.300 based on their works. 00:30:13.720 --> 00:30:14.580 Connected to this 00:30:14.580 --> 00:30:15.420 is the second aspect 00:30:15.420 --> 00:30:16.560 of this mystery 00:30:16.560 --> 00:30:17.360 of God's grace. 00:30:18.220 --> 00:30:19.460 How does a righteous 00:30:19.460 --> 00:30:20.680 and holy God 00:30:20.680 --> 00:30:23.400 dwell among sinful people 00:30:23.400 --> 00:30:25.180 without destroying them 00:30:25.180 --> 00:30:26.680 because of their sin 00:30:26.680 --> 00:30:27.420 and rebellion? 00:30:28.240 --> 00:30:29.000 And here again, 00:30:29.220 --> 00:30:30.019 the answer resounds 00:30:30.019 --> 00:30:30.799 as it has been 00:30:30.799 --> 00:30:31.599 across the book 00:30:31.599 --> 00:30:33.420 by providing for them 00:30:33.420 --> 00:30:34.279 a mediator 00:30:34.279 --> 00:30:35.920 who is able to stand 00:30:35.920 --> 00:30:36.599 between them 00:30:36.599 --> 00:30:37.259 and his wrath 00:30:37.259 --> 00:30:38.559 and make atonement 00:30:38.559 --> 00:30:39.019 for them. 00:30:40.000 --> 00:30:40.940 We thus see that 00:30:40.940 --> 00:30:42.119 Phineas' action 00:30:42.119 --> 00:30:42.879 does not stand 00:30:42.879 --> 00:30:45.099 as an isolated incident, 00:30:45.599 --> 00:30:46.359 but continues 00:30:46.359 --> 00:30:47.359 the long line 00:30:47.359 --> 00:30:48.000 of atonement 00:30:48.000 --> 00:30:48.920 that has repeatedly 00:30:48.920 --> 00:30:49.960 saved the Israelites 00:30:49.960 --> 00:30:51.099 from destruction 00:30:51.099 --> 00:30:52.480 throughout their journey 00:30:52.480 --> 00:30:53.099 in the wilderness. 00:30:53.859 --> 00:30:54.759 A line that runs 00:30:54.759 --> 00:30:55.940 from Moses at Sinai 00:30:55.940 --> 00:30:57.519 and at Kadesh Paneah 00:30:57.519 --> 00:30:58.779 to Aaron 00:30:58.779 --> 00:30:59.559 at the rebellion 00:30:59.559 --> 00:31:00.200 of Korah 00:31:00.200 --> 00:31:01.940 and now to the atonement 00:31:01.940 --> 00:31:02.539 of Shittim. 00:31:03.660 --> 00:31:05.080 It is particularly poignant 00:31:05.080 --> 00:31:06.740 because with Aaron dead 00:31:06.740 --> 00:31:08.580 and Moses about to die, 00:31:09.279 --> 00:31:09.720 the Israelites 00:31:09.720 --> 00:31:10.480 may have begun 00:31:10.480 --> 00:31:11.039 to wonder 00:31:11.039 --> 00:31:12.600 who indeed 00:31:12.600 --> 00:31:13.200 will be there 00:31:13.200 --> 00:31:14.259 to stand in the gap 00:31:14.259 --> 00:31:15.080 for them 00:31:15.080 --> 00:31:16.240 as the Lord showed. 00:31:16.700 --> 00:31:17.580 And the Lord showed, 00:31:17.640 --> 00:31:18.120 I should say, 00:31:18.279 --> 00:31:19.140 both in the action 00:31:19.140 --> 00:31:19.799 of Phineas 00:31:19.799 --> 00:31:21.080 and the promise 00:31:21.080 --> 00:31:23.100 of an everlasting priesthood 00:31:23.099 --> 00:31:24.179 that he gave to Phineas 00:31:24.179 --> 00:31:25.059 after this action, 00:31:25.559 --> 00:31:26.619 that he would always 00:31:26.619 --> 00:31:28.639 provide that mediator. 00:31:30.819 --> 00:31:31.699 Alas, however, 00:31:32.939 --> 00:31:33.699 this provision, 00:31:34.240 --> 00:31:34.959 as we all know, 00:31:35.039 --> 00:31:35.740 will fall short. 00:31:36.639 --> 00:31:37.939 And it is this recognition, 00:31:38.299 --> 00:31:39.219 is in this recognition 00:31:39.219 --> 00:31:40.480 that the deep resonance 00:31:40.480 --> 00:31:42.039 we have seen repeatedly 00:31:42.039 --> 00:31:44.319 with the book of Hebrews 00:31:44.319 --> 00:31:45.299 as we have journeyed 00:31:45.299 --> 00:31:45.959 through the numbers, 00:31:46.179 --> 00:31:46.819 the book of numbers 00:31:46.819 --> 00:31:47.459 comes to light. 00:31:48.219 --> 00:31:49.259 For all its grace, 00:31:49.459 --> 00:31:50.179 the old covenant 00:31:50.179 --> 00:31:51.740 and its associated priesthood 00:31:51.740 --> 00:31:52.839 was limited 00:31:52.839 --> 00:31:54.000 in its ability 00:31:54.000 --> 00:31:55.319 to fully mediate 00:31:55.319 --> 00:31:56.359 the relationship 00:31:56.359 --> 00:31:57.680 between a sinful people 00:31:57.680 --> 00:31:59.039 and a holy God. 00:32:00.140 --> 00:32:00.620 First, 00:32:00.799 --> 00:32:02.019 because the problem, 00:32:02.599 --> 00:32:03.480 as we now see 00:32:03.480 --> 00:32:04.359 with the Israelites, 00:32:05.160 --> 00:32:06.120 was not the law 00:32:06.120 --> 00:32:07.160 or not with 00:32:07.160 --> 00:32:08.339 a particular generation, 00:32:08.980 --> 00:32:10.200 but with their hearts. 00:32:11.259 --> 00:32:12.680 As Hebrews 8 reminds us, 00:32:12.779 --> 00:32:13.900 quoting Jeremiah 31, 00:32:14.720 --> 00:32:15.940 for if there had been nothing 00:32:15.940 --> 00:32:17.140 with that first covenant, 00:32:17.680 --> 00:32:18.740 no place would have been 00:32:18.740 --> 00:32:19.740 sought for another. 00:32:20.519 --> 00:32:21.680 But God found fault 00:32:21.680 --> 00:32:23.160 not with the covenant, 00:32:23.799 --> 00:32:24.620 but with the people. 00:32:24.940 --> 00:32:25.440 And he said, 00:32:25.920 --> 00:32:26.759 the days are coming, 00:32:26.900 --> 00:32:27.600 declares the Lord, 00:32:28.000 --> 00:32:28.759 when I will make 00:32:28.759 --> 00:32:29.539 a new covenant 00:32:29.539 --> 00:32:30.779 with the people of Israel 00:32:30.779 --> 00:32:32.140 and with the people of Judah. 00:32:33.100 --> 00:32:34.360 It will not be like 00:32:34.360 --> 00:32:35.360 the covenant I made 00:32:35.360 --> 00:32:36.200 with their ancestors 00:32:36.200 --> 00:32:37.420 when I took them 00:32:37.420 --> 00:32:38.039 by the hand 00:32:38.039 --> 00:32:39.820 to lead them out of Egypt 00:32:39.820 --> 00:32:41.560 because they did not 00:32:41.560 --> 00:32:42.519 remain faithful 00:32:42.519 --> 00:32:43.279 to my covenant 00:32:43.279 --> 00:32:44.400 and I turned away 00:32:44.400 --> 00:32:44.960 from them, 00:32:45.299 --> 00:32:46.000 declares the Lord. 00:32:47.720 --> 00:32:48.820 Even when they had 00:32:48.820 --> 00:32:49.720 good mediators 00:32:49.720 --> 00:32:50.720 like Phineas, 00:32:51.079 --> 00:32:51.700 like Moses, 00:32:52.160 --> 00:32:52.720 like Aaron, 00:32:53.779 --> 00:32:54.600 those mediators 00:32:54.600 --> 00:32:55.220 were limited 00:32:55.220 --> 00:32:56.960 by their finiteness. 00:32:57.980 --> 00:32:59.839 As you come to see here 00:32:59.839 --> 00:33:01.380 and the rest of the story 00:33:01.380 --> 00:33:02.500 of the Israelites 00:33:02.500 --> 00:33:03.400 in the Old Testament, 00:33:04.079 --> 00:33:05.200 especially in the book 00:33:05.200 --> 00:33:05.839 of Judges, 00:33:06.519 --> 00:33:07.220 their relationship 00:33:07.220 --> 00:33:07.700 with God 00:33:07.700 --> 00:33:09.160 was repeatedly characterized 00:33:09.160 --> 00:33:10.579 by a cycle of sin 00:33:10.579 --> 00:33:11.759 and apostasy 00:33:11.759 --> 00:33:13.140 met with God's judgment. 00:33:13.759 --> 00:33:14.019 God, 00:33:14.100 --> 00:33:14.660 in His kindness, 00:33:14.940 --> 00:33:15.880 raises a mediator 00:33:15.880 --> 00:33:16.440 or judge 00:33:16.440 --> 00:33:17.519 to intercede for them 00:33:17.519 --> 00:33:18.259 and deliver them. 00:33:18.799 --> 00:33:19.860 They keep to His ways 00:33:19.860 --> 00:33:20.500 while the judge 00:33:20.500 --> 00:33:21.120 is still alive 00:33:21.120 --> 00:33:22.039 and they return 00:33:22.039 --> 00:33:22.880 to apostasy 00:33:22.880 --> 00:33:24.220 after the judge 00:33:24.220 --> 00:33:25.180 or mediator dies, 00:33:25.700 --> 00:33:26.640 beginning the cycle 00:33:26.640 --> 00:33:28.100 all over again. 00:33:30.299 --> 00:33:31.000 This is like 00:33:31.000 --> 00:33:31.440 another movie 00:33:31.440 --> 00:33:32.019 I really like, 00:33:32.120 --> 00:33:32.720 Edge of Tomorrow, 00:33:33.279 --> 00:33:34.279 where the cycle 00:33:34.279 --> 00:33:35.140 repeats over 00:33:35.140 --> 00:33:36.160 and over and over. 00:33:37.559 --> 00:33:38.360 So how does 00:33:38.360 --> 00:33:39.059 a holy God 00:33:39.059 --> 00:33:40.120 who loves His people 00:33:40.120 --> 00:33:40.740 fix this? 00:33:41.259 --> 00:33:42.019 He does this 00:33:42.019 --> 00:33:42.879 by establishing 00:33:42.879 --> 00:33:44.279 a new covenant 00:33:44.279 --> 00:33:45.940 that does not just 00:33:45.940 --> 00:33:48.119 address the rebellious behavior 00:33:48.119 --> 00:33:49.960 but changes the heart. 00:33:50.940 --> 00:33:52.599 And this new covenant 00:33:52.599 --> 00:33:53.599 is mediated 00:33:53.599 --> 00:33:55.460 by a superior priesthood 00:33:55.460 --> 00:33:56.180 or mediator 00:33:56.180 --> 00:33:57.259 that will be 00:33:57.259 --> 00:33:58.819 truly everlasting. 00:33:59.579 --> 00:34:00.180 For the passage 00:34:00.180 --> 00:34:01.319 I just read in Hebrews 00:34:01.319 --> 00:34:02.079 is sandwiched 00:34:02.079 --> 00:34:03.879 between two other passages 00:34:03.879 --> 00:34:05.619 that highlights the solution. 00:34:06.519 --> 00:34:07.279 In Hebrews 8, 00:34:07.339 --> 00:34:07.759 verse 6, 00:34:07.900 --> 00:34:08.519 we are told, 00:34:09.280 --> 00:34:11.019 as it is, 00:34:11.019 --> 00:34:12.239 Christ has obtained 00:34:12.239 --> 00:34:12.900 a ministry 00:34:12.900 --> 00:34:14.019 that is as much 00:34:14.019 --> 00:34:14.920 more excellent 00:34:14.920 --> 00:34:15.719 than the old 00:34:15.719 --> 00:34:16.940 as the covenant 00:34:16.940 --> 00:34:17.759 he mediates 00:34:17.759 --> 00:34:18.599 is better 00:34:18.599 --> 00:34:20.440 since it is enacted 00:34:20.440 --> 00:34:21.880 on better promises. 00:34:22.900 --> 00:34:23.599 And afterwards, 00:34:23.860 --> 00:34:24.139 again, 00:34:24.199 --> 00:34:25.440 he says from verse 10, 00:34:26.739 --> 00:34:27.780 for this is the covenant 00:34:27.780 --> 00:34:28.519 that I will make 00:34:28.519 --> 00:34:29.420 with the house of Israel 00:34:29.420 --> 00:34:30.300 after those days, 00:34:30.380 --> 00:34:31.079 declares the Lord. 00:34:31.699 --> 00:34:33.400 I will put my laws 00:34:33.400 --> 00:34:34.639 into their minds 00:34:34.639 --> 00:34:35.579 and write them 00:34:35.579 --> 00:34:36.800 on their hearts 00:34:36.800 --> 00:34:38.579 and I will be their God 00:34:38.579 --> 00:34:39.539 and they shall be 00:34:39.539 --> 00:34:40.199 my people. 00:34:41.019 --> 00:34:42.259 And they shall not teach 00:34:42.259 --> 00:34:43.780 each one his neighbor 00:34:43.780 --> 00:34:45.199 and each one his brother 00:34:45.199 --> 00:34:45.599 saying, 00:34:45.900 --> 00:34:46.539 know the Lord 00:34:46.539 --> 00:34:48.940 for they shall all know me 00:34:48.940 --> 00:34:50.679 from the least of them 00:34:50.679 --> 00:34:51.579 to the greatest. 00:34:52.480 --> 00:34:53.480 For I will be merciful 00:34:53.480 --> 00:34:54.860 toward their iniquities 00:34:54.860 --> 00:34:56.380 and I will remember 00:34:56.380 --> 00:34:57.739 their sins no more. 00:34:59.000 --> 00:34:59.440 Thus, 00:34:59.759 --> 00:35:01.159 there is a new covenant 00:35:01.159 --> 00:35:04.619 and a new everlasting mediator. 00:35:04.619 --> 00:35:07.319 But there is one catch 00:35:07.319 --> 00:35:09.400 as the writer of Hebrews 00:35:09.400 --> 00:35:10.420 also points out. 00:35:11.480 --> 00:35:14.500 Mediation requires atonement, 00:35:15.079 --> 00:35:16.980 which implies sacrifice. 00:35:18.019 --> 00:35:19.819 And while chapter 9 and 10 00:35:19.819 --> 00:35:20.900 of the book of Hebrews 00:35:20.900 --> 00:35:22.500 details this sacrifice, 00:35:23.500 --> 00:35:24.920 it may perhaps be better 00:35:24.920 --> 00:35:26.119 for us to return 00:35:26.119 --> 00:35:27.519 to Numbers 25 00:35:27.519 --> 00:35:29.199 and hear the gospel 00:35:29.199 --> 00:35:30.259 preached from there. 00:35:30.260 --> 00:35:32.160 Because from there, 00:35:32.380 --> 00:35:33.080 as we saw, 00:35:33.700 --> 00:35:34.920 God had decreed 00:35:34.920 --> 00:35:36.220 that the atonement 00:35:36.220 --> 00:35:37.180 for the apostasy 00:35:37.180 --> 00:35:39.360 was to be the execution 00:35:39.360 --> 00:35:40.420 of the heads 00:35:40.420 --> 00:35:41.040 of the people 00:35:41.040 --> 00:35:43.260 with their bodies impaled 00:35:43.260 --> 00:35:44.480 or in other words, 00:35:45.080 --> 00:35:46.420 hung on a tree 00:35:46.420 --> 00:35:47.720 for his wrath 00:35:47.720 --> 00:35:48.800 to be taken away. 00:35:50.280 --> 00:35:51.620 Phineas fulfilled this 00:35:51.620 --> 00:35:52.040 in part 00:35:52.040 --> 00:35:53.260 by spearing 00:35:53.260 --> 00:35:54.360 the people caught 00:35:54.360 --> 00:35:55.180 in sin. 00:35:55.179 --> 00:35:57.279 But Christ, 00:35:57.859 --> 00:35:58.839 the greater mediator, 00:35:59.659 --> 00:36:00.399 fulfilled this 00:36:00.399 --> 00:36:01.359 by himself 00:36:01.359 --> 00:36:03.019 hanging on the tree 00:36:03.019 --> 00:36:05.059 and having a spear 00:36:05.059 --> 00:36:07.139 run through himself 00:36:07.139 --> 00:36:07.879 instead. 00:36:09.099 --> 00:36:10.239 For he was wounded 00:36:10.239 --> 00:36:11.639 for our transgressions, 00:36:11.799 --> 00:36:12.619 he was bruised 00:36:12.619 --> 00:36:13.460 for our iniquities. 00:36:14.339 --> 00:36:15.219 The chastisement 00:36:15.219 --> 00:36:16.199 that brought us peace 00:36:16.199 --> 00:36:17.039 was upon him 00:36:17.039 --> 00:36:18.279 and by his stripes 00:36:18.279 --> 00:36:18.819 we were healed. 00:36:20.019 --> 00:36:20.559 Christ, 00:36:20.960 --> 00:36:21.659 like Phineas, 00:36:22.379 --> 00:36:23.299 entered the tent 00:36:23.300 --> 00:36:24.700 where we were caught 00:36:24.700 --> 00:36:25.519 in sin 00:36:25.519 --> 00:36:27.120 and instead of 00:36:27.120 --> 00:36:28.400 impaling us 00:36:28.400 --> 00:36:29.140 on the spear 00:36:29.140 --> 00:36:30.100 of God's wrath, 00:36:30.900 --> 00:36:31.860 ran the spear 00:36:31.860 --> 00:36:32.840 through himself 00:36:32.840 --> 00:36:34.120 that the covenant 00:36:34.120 --> 00:36:34.760 of peace 00:36:34.760 --> 00:36:35.840 that would have been his 00:36:35.840 --> 00:36:37.740 as it was for Phineas 00:36:37.740 --> 00:36:38.980 would come 00:36:38.980 --> 00:36:40.019 to us instead. 00:36:44.660 --> 00:36:45.400 T.S. Eliot 00:36:45.400 --> 00:36:46.680 once said, 00:36:47.519 --> 00:36:49.100 we must not cease 00:36:49.100 --> 00:36:50.000 from exploring 00:36:50.000 --> 00:36:51.500 and the end 00:36:51.500 --> 00:36:52.519 of all exploring 00:36:52.519 --> 00:36:53.719 is to arrive 00:36:53.719 --> 00:36:54.320 at the place 00:36:54.320 --> 00:36:55.000 where we started 00:36:55.000 --> 00:36:56.219 and know it 00:36:56.219 --> 00:36:57.900 for the first time. 00:36:58.840 --> 00:36:59.900 When we started, 00:37:00.840 --> 00:37:01.840 Balaam seemed 00:37:01.840 --> 00:37:02.719 to be the connection 00:37:02.719 --> 00:37:03.920 between this chapter 00:37:03.920 --> 00:37:05.239 and the preceding ones 00:37:05.239 --> 00:37:06.539 as his failure 00:37:06.539 --> 00:37:07.940 to curse the Israelites 00:37:07.940 --> 00:37:08.920 morphed into 00:37:08.920 --> 00:37:09.960 his near success 00:37:09.960 --> 00:37:11.579 in destroying them 00:37:11.579 --> 00:37:12.860 through seduction 00:37:12.860 --> 00:37:14.019 to apostasy. 00:37:15.159 --> 00:37:16.320 The high point 00:37:16.320 --> 00:37:17.380 seemed to be 00:37:17.380 --> 00:37:18.360 Phineas' zeal 00:37:18.360 --> 00:37:19.739 mediating 00:37:19.739 --> 00:37:20.380 and averting 00:37:20.380 --> 00:37:21.059 God's wrath 00:37:21.059 --> 00:37:22.579 against his sinful people. 00:37:23.940 --> 00:37:25.320 When we return to it, 00:37:25.400 --> 00:37:25.719 however, 00:37:26.239 --> 00:37:27.239 in light of the gospel, 00:37:28.239 --> 00:37:29.019 a deeper unity 00:37:29.019 --> 00:37:30.199 seems to emerge. 00:37:31.460 --> 00:37:32.539 It's not found 00:37:32.539 --> 00:37:33.539 in Balaam's approach 00:37:33.539 --> 00:37:34.679 to harming the Israelites, 00:37:35.079 --> 00:37:35.900 nor is it 00:37:35.900 --> 00:37:38.380 in Phineas' intervention. 00:37:39.500 --> 00:37:40.099 Rather, 00:37:40.659 --> 00:37:42.099 it is in Balaam's 00:37:42.099 --> 00:37:43.279 final prophecy 00:37:43.279 --> 00:37:45.659 of the star of Jacob 00:37:45.659 --> 00:37:47.159 and the scepter 00:37:47.159 --> 00:37:47.839 of Israel 00:37:47.839 --> 00:37:50.179 who was to come. 00:37:51.179 --> 00:37:52.039 And it was not 00:37:52.039 --> 00:37:52.719 in the zeal, 00:37:53.039 --> 00:37:54.500 but in the atonement 00:37:54.500 --> 00:37:55.940 of Phineas. 00:37:56.699 --> 00:37:57.819 For both the scepter 00:37:57.819 --> 00:37:58.980 and the atonement 00:37:58.980 --> 00:37:59.599 together 00:37:59.599 --> 00:38:01.920 point to the same picture, 00:38:02.759 --> 00:38:03.519 the very picture 00:38:03.519 --> 00:38:05.719 to whom all Scripture points, 00:38:06.299 --> 00:38:07.279 which is Christ the Lamb, 00:38:07.799 --> 00:38:08.420 who is also 00:38:08.420 --> 00:38:10.179 Christ the King. 00:38:11.279 --> 00:38:12.159 Let us pray. 00:38:12.159 --> 00:38:21.879 Lord Jesus, 00:38:22.759 --> 00:38:24.179 we can never thank you enough 00:38:24.179 --> 00:38:25.379 for your sacrifice 00:38:25.379 --> 00:38:26.319 on our behalf. 00:38:27.480 --> 00:38:28.099 May the truth 00:38:28.099 --> 00:38:28.799 of your love 00:38:28.799 --> 00:38:29.699 for those of us 00:38:29.699 --> 00:38:30.339 who know you 00:38:30.339 --> 00:38:31.599 warm our hearts 00:38:31.599 --> 00:38:32.940 and spur us on 00:38:32.940 --> 00:38:33.679 to love 00:38:33.679 --> 00:38:34.500 and good deeds, 00:38:35.379 --> 00:38:36.500 rejecting the sins 00:38:36.500 --> 00:38:37.039 and pleasures 00:38:37.039 --> 00:38:37.739 of this world 00:38:37.739 --> 00:38:39.399 for the greater joy 00:38:39.399 --> 00:38:40.219 and pleasure 00:38:40.219 --> 00:38:41.319 of knowing you. 00:38:42.379 --> 00:38:43.259 And may it melt 00:38:43.259 --> 00:38:43.839 the hearts 00:38:43.839 --> 00:38:44.899 of those who don't 00:38:44.899 --> 00:38:45.379 know you 00:38:45.379 --> 00:38:46.639 as they see 00:38:46.639 --> 00:38:47.739 your mercy and grace 00:38:47.739 --> 00:38:48.879 towards them 00:38:48.879 --> 00:38:50.879 reflected in the sacrifice 00:38:50.879 --> 00:38:51.480 you took 00:38:51.480 --> 00:38:52.879 for all our sin. 00:38:53.719 --> 00:38:54.679 We ask this 00:38:54.679 --> 00:38:55.279 in your name. 00:38:56.359 --> 00:38:56.639 Amen.