The Sin of Moses

1.When the Israelites came to Kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin, what took place? .
2.From what did the people suffer? .
3.What did they do and say? .
4.What did they charge Moses with doing? .
5.What did they say of the place where they then were? .
6.Whom did they blame for bringing them out of Egypt? .
7.Who had really brought them from Egypt? .
8.Then to what was their murmuring equivalent? Ans. To a denial that God had anything to do with their wonderful deliverance.
9.What does the psalmist say of them? .
10.While the sin of the Israelites was exceedingly great, is it an uncommon one?
11.What did Moses and Aaron do in this extremity? .
12.What directions did the Lord give them? .
13.When the people were gathered before the rock, what did Moses say? .
14.What does the psalmist say of this occurrence? .
15.How did it go ill with Moses? .
16.In what particular did Moses and Aaron trespass against the Lord? .
17.When Moses allowed the Israelites by their rebellious words to provoke his spirit, what position toward God did he also assume? .
18.Do we have any intimation that the Lord in any degree excused his sin because he labored under great provocation?
19.In this giving way to anger, of what grace did Moses show a lack? .
20.What evidence have we that, although Moses was prohibited from entering the promised land, he repented of his sin and was fully forgiven? ; ; .
21.Then what must even the best of men say to the Lord? .

Notes

We are often prone to excuse some sin in ourselves, on the ground that it is the only time we ever committed it; or that we but seldom fall into it, and only under the greatest provocation. Many seem to think that if a person has great provocation he can commit a sin with impunity. But that reasoning would have made it right for the Saviour to yield to Satan's temptations in the wilderness; for no man ever suffered so fierce temptation. The truth is, there is no excuse for sin, and anger is not admissible under any circumstances. When the translators of our common version of the Bible, wrote that charity "is not easily provoked," they were evidently moved by some consideration for the weakness of the flesh. They seem to have the idea that a man might have charity and still be provoked to anger, providing he was not very easily provoked. But they did great injustice to the truth, for the words as Paul wrote them are simply, "is not provoked." True charity does not get provoked under any circumstances.

The sin of Moses was a great one, even greater than that of the people; for he had all the light that they had, and more. It is true that the people were the cause of his fall, yet that did not in the least relieve him from responsibility. The real cause, after all, was in his own heart, otherwise nothing that the people could have done would have moved him. The Lord cannot tolerate sin, no matter in whom it appears, yet he is "the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin." . That Moses repented, and was abundantly pardoned, is shown by the fact that after his death he was raised and taken to Heaven, and was commissioned to come on a message of love to Christ. From this we are warranted in concluding that if it had not been for this one sin he would not only have been permitted to enter the land of Canaan, but would, like Elijah, have been translated without seeing death.

Bible texts in this lesson

Numbers 20:1 · Numbers 20:2 · Numbers 20:3 · Numbers 20:4 · Numbers 20:5 · Numbers 20:3-5 · Exodus 20:1 · Exodus 20:2 · Psalms 106:21 · Psalms 106:22 · Numbers 20:6 · Numbers 20:7 · Numbers 20:8 · Numbers 20:10 · Psalms 106:32 · Psalms 106:33 · Numbers 20:12 · Deuteronomy 32:51 · Numbers 20:24 · Numbers 27:14 · 1 Corinthians 13:4 · 1 Corinthians 13:5 · Deuteronomy 34:5 · Deuteronomy 34:6 · Jude 1:9 · Matthew 17:1-3 · Psalms 130:3 · Psalms 130:4 · Exodus 34:6 · Exodus 34:7

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