“Their voices rose in a great chorus of protest against Moses and Aaron. ‘If only we had died in Egypt, or even here in the wilderness!’ they complained. ‘Why is the Lord taking us to this country only to have us dies in battle? Our wives and our little ones will be carried off as plunder! Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?’”
Numbers 14:2-3
Even at the very door of their Promised Land, the Israelites once again veered off on the old if only, why, and wouldn’t it be better paths. God was ready to do miracles beyond what they had seen in Egypt. All they had to do was believe and obey…a win-win relationship! But sadly, God’s people rejected the terms of the relationship and thereby rejected God Himself.
These are the words GOD used to describe the grievous actions of people He called His treasures… they tested Me by refusing to listen, treated Me with contempt, complained about Me, despised My promises, conspired against Me, rejected Me, abandoned Me. Such strong and tragic words, and they all describe a breach in relationship.
No relationship can survive without trust. When the Israelites chose to believe the report of the ten spies instead of the promises of GOD, when they decided Egypt would be better than GOD’s Promised Land, they not only broke the relationship, they broke God’s heart. Listen to His cry, “How long will these people treat me with contempt? Will they never believe me, even after all the miraculous signs I have done among them?” (v 11)
Likewise, the Word is full of God’s promises to me…
May I never grieve His heart by my unbelief!
