20 v.1 The last year of the wilderness journey 'Kadesh' means 'holy' 38 years earlier this is the place where NUM 14 the evil report of the spies was received the 'first month' is the first month of the fortieth year.

21 v.10 - 21 This area provides us with a very detailed account of the final journeys of the children of Israel, all around the border of the land of Canaan. It is as if the final trials for these 'little ones', as Numbers 14 calls those who were to go into the land, should be recorded to show why Yahweh dealt with the surrounding nations during the history of Israel in the land.

20:11 So when Moses struck the rock twice and was barred from entry into the land of Canaan it was at the end of the wilderness journey. As Moses had not been among the rebels at the beginning of the journey he might well have expected that he would enter the land with Joshua and Caleb. If this is so then being barred from the land at this point in time must have been a very bitter blow.

The issues relating to Israel pitching by Arnon are utilised by Jeremiah when speaking of the overthrow of Moab.
21:13 Arnon Jeremiah 48:20
21:28 fire out of Heshbon Jeremiah 48:45
21:29 Chemosh Jeremiah 48:29
21:30 Dibon Jeremiah 48:18,22

This is one of the many occasions in the Old Testament where the events of the wilderness Journey are used to teach lessons.

20:12 In being reminded by God that he had failed to sanctify God he was being reminded of what he had to tell Aaron 38 years earlier (Leviticus 10:3).

21:9 Do we think that the serpent that was made was a beautiful detailed model of the serpents that were biting the Israelites? I think not. As people were dying from the bites there would have been a great concern to get the serpent onto the pole. It would have looked rough and ready - though it was of God's provision. Likewise 'he hath no form nor comeliness …' (Isaiah 53:2)

20:25-29  So Both Miriam and Aaron died in the 40th year of the wilderness journey - this part of Numbers is summarised in Num 33:38

21:21-23 We should consider the logistics of this. Israel, at this time, were a small nation. The and of the Amorites was quite a small land. Doubtless by this time Sihon had heard of the exploits of Israel - The men of Jericho had. So Sihon had to decide whether to believe the reports or the words of the men of Israel.

Incidentally, the symbol of the serpent on the pole has become the universal sign of healing for the medical profession.

Prophetically, this is a very significant chapter. The Mt Seir(Edom) area was avoided by Israel (Num 20:21) because they were refused passage. So when we look at the phophecies contained in Deut 33:1-3; Psa 68:17; Hab 3:3-6, we can start to see a future picture of what will transpire as the Holy One in glory comes in from Teman, from the south, and from the wilderness of Paran in the Sinai Peninsula. This is while on route to Jerusalem to save a remnant of Jews(1/3) that have been invaded by the Northern Host(Gog).
So what was not accomplished in the past will come to pass in the future.
So the prophets are unified in proclaming the events that will transpire as follows:
(a) Arabia Subdued-Isa 21: 11-15; Isaiah 42, Ps 72:8-11, Hab 3:7
(b) Rivers in the Desert- Isa 35: 6,7; 43: 18-19; 51:3; Hab 3: 9-10
(c) The Highway to Zion- Isa 11:16; 19:22-25; 35:8; 62:10-12; Jer 31: 8-9;  Zech 10: 9-11
(d) The Smiting and Healing of Egypt- Isa 19: 1-15; Ezek 29:1-15; Isa 51: 9-17; Ps 68: 21-22; 66:1-7; Zech 10: 9-12

20:28    So Aaron was to die and Eleazar was to take his place. Aaron was not to simply hand the priestly garments to his son. They had to be put upon Eleazar by Moses as he had put them upon Aaron. Thus we see that even thugh the priesthood was by descent it still required the intervention of the one who had already acted as the intercessor on more than one occasions.

20:12 Whilst Moses was the one who failed to sanctify God the Divine comment puts the blame on the nation – Psa 106:33

21:5    They had vowed to do the work – Num 20:20 – and now because the way is difficult the people bemoan the fact that they had not died in Egypt, and yet they are in sight of the promised land. Do we ever lament the strictures of life in Christ? Do we ever complain abut the circumstances of our lives?

Moses displayed arrogance when he declared: must we fetch you water… (20:10). This inclusion did not honor Yahweh who was solely responsible for providing the water.

Moses was told to speak to the rock (20:8). Instead, he struck the rock - not once but twice (20:11).

This impudence offended Yahweh. The rock was symbolic of Jesus, His Son, who is the provider of living water (John 7:30; 1Cor 10:4). Jesus was not to be struck either in anger or self-righteousness. Rather, He should be treated with love (Psa 2:12).

And yet, Moses is mentioned amongst the faithful (Heb 11:23). He bore his punishment by not being allowed into the Promised Land. But, by the mercy of Yahweh, he shall be in the Kingdom.

20:2 That there was no water in Kadesh is a re-run of one of the first problems when Israel left Egypt. – Exo 15:22 – by now most of those who had experienced the problem the first time were dead. Those who were in Kadesh had experienced the rock ‘that followed them’ – 1Cor 10:4 most or all of their lives. However they still manifested the thinking of their fathers. The wilderness experience had no effect on the degree of their trust in God. What about ourselves? Have we learnt anything from our wilderness journey experience?

Num 20:8-11 - the rock was struck and gave water just as Christ did (1Cor 10:4;Isa 53:5;John 7:37-39;John 4:7-15).

This is because all he does is a show. He offers the sacrifice but his heart is far from God. Hence everything he does is abominable to God. We must be careful that we don't just do things so that men can see whilst having hearts far from God.

V.8  The most acceptable use of our tongues in God's sight is in humble prayer to Him.

V.9  Today we must show our faith, (expressed in prayer) by our works. (acts of sacrifice) Only then can it be said that we pursue rightousness.

Four times in this chapter we read the refrain: "the wise receives rebuke, but the fool despises it". We see it repeated in verses 5,10,12,31-32. Why does Solomon repeat it so many times? We are left in no doubt that wisdom is only gained through rebuke and chastening. It is gained by listening to the words of the wise, which will often not be the words we want to hear. The one who does not listen, however, is a fool (12:1).

The problem with the foolish man is this: he doesn't actually know good council when he finds it! A fool is too foolish to see wisdom. This is obvious, I guess, but it's spelled out in this chapter. In v21the fool is seen to have joy in folly. He enjoys it because he thinks it's good! This means that when he seeks out wisdom, he'll go to the wrong place (v12). He is naturally drawn to those with flattering lips. Wise council is too harsh for him, because it means that some of his own foolish thoughts will be challenged. It means he may be rebuked, and he doesn't want that!

We have a choice to make in our every day lives. Verse 10 tells us that those who hate discipline will die. Verses 24 and 31 tell us that wisdom gained by rebuke will save us. Who do we go to for advice? Those who tell us what we want to hear, or those who will tell us the truth? How do we pray to God? Do we ask Him to teach us His way, or do we avoid saying so, and go our own way? God is the only one who can teach us real wisdom. The proceeds of wisdom are not only eternal life, but joy and peace in this life. With wisdom we can live the life God has designed us to live. The rewards of wisdom are extremely great (8:10-22, 16:16 ), but there's a catch. Only those who want wisdom enough will actually submit to the trouble, chastening, rebuke, and humbling required to receive it. God has cleverly designed life so that we will not naturally choose this path, but rather foolishness because it's easier! The world around us is surely a testimony to this fact.

"there is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death" (16:25).

Let's not listen to our natural instincts too much. We are born of the flesh. Jesus says that those who think from their own devices are children of the devil. Our natural heart is deceitful, just like the serpent which convinced Eve. God calls us to stop being of the flesh; the natural; and to be born again as sons of Him. God is wisdom. If we are His offspring then we will have it too. Jesus demonstrated very clearly how this could be achieved, by applying the wisdom in the word of God so perfectly that he was even called "the word made flesh" (John 1:14). The struggle that Jesus had was the same as ours, for he "learned obedience by the things he suffered". If we want to be sons of God too, we will have to walk the same path. (Prov 3:11-12, Heb 12:7). By our attitude to the rebuke of the word of God, and His chastening in our lives, we declare our sonship; whether we are still sons of our earthly father; or sons of our heavenly one.

15:1  A clear example of a soft answer turning away wrath is to be seen in David’s reaction to Abigail when she came to meet him as he was going to kill Nabal – the fool – 11Sam 15:23-31

15:10 Whenever we are involved in contention we do well to asses whether we are being proud. – Phil 2:3

15:7 In saying that the wise ‘disperse knowledge’ we learn that those of us who understand the things of God should speak to others of the things we now. This not only include preaching to others but speaking with our fellow brethren and sisters about the delights that we have seen in His word . There is a benefit that flows from this Mal 3:16

WEEDS

"The way of the sluggard is blocked with thorns, but the path of the upright is a highway." (Prov 15:19)

I will always remember the picturesque lesson my father-in-law gave one Sunday morning as he encouraged the people in our church. He spoke about gardening, and in particular, weeds. He told us that weeds are like sins. As you take out the weeds from your garden, it is a comparitively easy job to remove them when they are small. But if we put the job off a few weeks or months, their roots grow deeper and deeper, the plants produce seeds and berries and the small plant that would have been so easy to pull out takes so much more time and effort to remove now that it is firmly established.  It is the same with sin. It is so much easier to weed out sin from our lives before those sins become firmly establshed habits and are ingrained into our nature.

Yes, in a very literal way, the way of the sluggard will become blocked with thorns because he has put off his weeding while the weeds were small. But because the path of the upright is constantly maintained, it is a highway. The spiritual lesson is even more powerful. Little sins not removed will grow to choke the fruit of the Spirit and block the road to life. But a spiritual life constantly examined and maintained will make the road to eternal life wider and easier.

Pull out the weeds today.

15:2 Notice the contrast. The wise ‘useth’ the fool ‘poureth’. The wise is circumspect with his words. The fool just rants on and on. Who do we imitate?

Introductory Note to Ephesians
We have information about the ecclesia at Ephesus over a very long time.
We learn of it's formation [Acts 19:19]
A visit to the elders of the ecclesia Acts 20:17
The letter to the Ephesians
The two letters to Timothy
Jesus final message Revelation 2:1
Information covering such a long time provides a valuable insight into the rise and fall of a first century ecclesia.

1v.6 'grace is a repeating idea in Ephesians 1:2,6,7 2:5.7.8 4:7,29 6:24 The Greek translated 'made us accepted' 5487 only occurs one other time in the New Testament Luke 1:28 where it is translated 'highly favoured' Our position is exalted, just as was Mary's.

2 v.1 Being 'quickened' - made alive - means that we have risen to a new life in Christ. The obligation is to give ourselves in service to our Father.

We should expect to see links between the Acts of the Apostles where it speaks of the work at Ephesus and this letter. Here are some of the links.

Parallels with Acts 19 & 20
1:7 his blood Acts 20:28
1:11 inheritance Acts 20:32
1:11 counsel Acts 20:27
1:14 purchased Acts 20:28
1:18 inheritance Acts 20:32
4:2 with all lowliness Acts 20:19
6:21 Tychicus Acts 20:4

2:1-7 contrast between being in Adam and in Christ is presented so that the Ephesians might appreciate the great change that has taken place in their lives.

1:10 In saying that God has gathered together in one Paul is quoting the words of the gospel (John 11:52) - Paul is saying that the work that Jesus would accomplish have been fulfilled in the call of the gentiles.

2:5 We do well to realise that Christ died for us 'when we were dead in sins' not when we were His children. The same point is made (Romans 5:10-12).

1:20  In quoting  Psa 110:1 'set him at his own right hand' and in 1:22  Psa 8:6'hath put all things under his feet' Paul, by the Holy Spirit is showing that these two Psalms are related. So Psa 8 is not just talking about man having dominion over all creation - rather it is speaking of the dominion of Jesus as God's son as High priest.

2:14  The 'middle wall of partition' was the barrier on Herod's temple mount which segregated Jews and gentiles. The gentile was unable to pass the 'middle wall of partition' to get near to the temple. The Jew was. But this segregation is done away in Christ. Both gentile and Jew have the same access to God now.

1:20 The term: heavenly places is found only in Ephesians.  It occurs five times, but is translated, in the KJV, high places in 6:12

God raised Jesus to sit at His right hand in the heavenly places (heaven) (1:20).
As a result, some believe that the faithful in Christ will also sit with Him in heaven (2:6). But, both these verses are in the present tense. 

It is true that Jesus was/is sitting at the right hand of His Father (Heb 10:12).  The same could not be said of the Ephesians to whom Paul wrote. 

What Paul is talking about in (2:6) is that Yahweh has reserved a reward in heaven to be administered on earth at a later time (Kingdom) (2:7, 1Pet 1:4-5).

1:4 In Ephesus, like many other ecclesias in the first century, had a problem with those who would have taken gentiles back to observing the law of Moses. Paul, here, highlights that it is one or the other. It is not possible to mix observing the law with accepting the grace of God in Christ.

2:3 We do well to remember that ‘by nature’ we are sinners. Being Adam’s children we are bound to sin. This is why Jesus died for us – because we cannot save ourselves. Appreciating our tendency to sin should not cause us to be despondent, rather it should cause us to rejoice in the fact that God wants to save us even though we are Adam’s children.

1:17  Notice the ‘spirit of wisdom; that is in the believers through faith contrasts markedly with the spirit in Eve and Adam – Gen 3:6 – where they thought they knew better than God.

1:5-6 Notice that whilst we have been ‘predestined’ it is not for our honour. Rather it is for God to be glorified. It is “To the praise of the glory of his grace”

1:7 It flows so easily off the lips – ‘in whom we have redemption ...’ but notice the end of the verse ‘the richness of his grace’. Whilst we can see the forgiveness available to us we should never forget that we stand justified by God’s grace. And the wonderful thing is because our Father is so gracious we can have confidence – Luke 13:32

The power that works in us

In 1:19 we are told about the "exceeding greatness of His power towards us who believe". What is that power?

The answer can be found by unravelling the context a little. Notice how 1:20-22 (speaking of Jesus) is virtually the same as 2:5-7 (speaking of the saints). So the context is about how the saints ("in the ages to come") obtain a position of authority and power like Jesus, and alongside him, because of faith (2:8). 1:19-20 tells us that the extent of this power is demonstrated in the resurection of Jesus to life and authority.

So to answer the question, the power of God in us is the same as that power which worked in Jesus by raising him from the dead (i.e. he is our pattern). The passage in 1:17-19 teaches us each to pray for the wisdom and understanding to know the extent of that power for us individually, so that it will give us the confidence to go forth and do good works (2:10).

1:14 Again twice Paul reminds the Ephesians of things that he had told them when he was with them

Inheritance          Acts 20:23

Purchased Acts  Acts 20:28