Most of Israel did not believe. The pattern of life for most of them was unbelief.     Take care, brethren, lest there should be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart, in falling away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. (NASB) Heb. 3:12-13   They saw God’s wonders. They “tasted” God’s grace and goodness. God was good to them, but they still did not believe.       The Warning. So God sends these Hebrew readers a warning,     For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end; while it is said, “TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME.” For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? (NASB) Heb. 3:14-17   The message is clear. Some of the readers of this letter had never believed. So the Holy Spirit reminds them of the example of the Israelites. They never did believe - forty years of unbelief. For forty years they saw miracles and they still did not believe. They died in the wilderness as unbelievers.       Faith of Moses. It is revealing that the Holy Spirit did not mention Moses’ unfaithfulness. He focused on the unbelief of the people for whom Moses was a shepherd. At the start of this chapter, God used Moses as an example of faithfulness. Later he will remind us that by faith Moses left all that Egypt could offer him to live for Christ (Hebrews 11:24-26). Moses was faithful to God in his care for Israel (Numbers 12:7).           Failure of Moses. But scripture also reveals that Moses did fail God. At one point, as a shepherd over Israel, he was unfaithful. In Numbers 20:1-13 we read that the Israelites had come to the wilderness of Zin. They were in Meribah. This was their second visit to this place (the first visit is recorded in Exodus 17:1-7). Again there was no water. So they complained. This made Moses angry (Ps. 106:32-33). Moses and Aaron went to the Lord and He told Moses to speak to the rock this time (Num. 20:8), but Moses was angry and struck the rock twice. How did God respond? God decided that neither Moses nor Aaron would enter the Promised Land for which they had waited almost 40 years. Their hopes and dreams of entering the Promised Land were over.     But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you have not believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.” (NASB) Numbers 20:12   What was Moses’ sin against God? Deuteronomy 32:48-52 says that he “broke faith” with God. The Hebrew word for “broke faith” was often used to speak of a wife being unfaithful to her husband. Moses had sinned by being unfaithful, so he was not able to enter the Promised Land. His ministry came to an end while he was still active and alive without health problems (Deuteronomy 35:5-7). God ended his ministry because he was unfaithful.       Why Ignore Moses’ Sin? Why did Hebrews not mention Moses’ unfaithfulness? Why did Hebrews say Moses was an example of faithfulness (Heb. 3:1-6)? Why did Hebrews remind us the Israelites did not believe Him even after forty years of wandering in the wilderness?         < Back    Next >
	Home | Logo | Search For God | Weekly Study | Q & A | Other Studies Copyright © Like The Master Ministries. All Rights Reserved. Book of Hebrews