THE LORD SPOKE to Moses in the Desert of Sinai in the first month of the second year after they came out of Egypt. He said, 2“Have the Israelites celebrate the Passover at the appointed time. 3Celebrate it at the appointed time, at twilight on the fourteenth day of this month, in accordance with all its rules and regulations.”
4So Moses told the Israelites to celebrate the Passover, 5and they did so in the Desert of Sinai at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. The Israelites did everything just as the LORD commanded Moses.
6But some of them could not celebrate the Passover on that day because they were ceremonially unclean on account of a dead body. So they came to Moses and Aaron that same day 7and said to Moses, “We have become unclean because of a dead body, but why should we be kept from presenting the LORD’s offering with the other Israelites at the appointed time?”
8Moses answered them, “Wait until I find out what the LORD commands concerning you.”
9Then the LORD said to Moses, 10“Tell the Israelites: ‘When any of you or your descendants are unclean because of a dead body or are away on a journey, they may still celebrate the LORD’s Passover. 11They are to celebrate it on the fourteenth day of the second month at twilight. They are to eat the lamb, together with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12They must not leave any of it till morning or break any of its bones. When they celebrate the Passover, they must follow all the regulations. 13But if a man who is ceremonially clean and not on a journey fails to celebrate the Passover, that person must be cut off from his people because he did not present the LORD’s offering at the appointed time. That man will bear the consequences of his sin.
14“‘An alien living among you who wants to celebrate the LORD’s Passover must do so in accordance with its rules and regulations. You must have the same regulations for the alien and the native-born.’”
15On the day the tabernacle, the Tent of the Testimony, was set up, the cloud covered it. From evening till morning the cloud above the tabernacle looked like fire. 16That is how it continued to be; the cloud covered it, and at night it looked like fire. 17Whenever the cloud lifted from above the Tent, the Israelites set out; wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped. 18At the LORD’s command the Israelites set out, and at his command they encamped. As long as the cloud stayed over the tabernacle, they remained in camp. 19When the cloud remained over the tabernacle a long time, the Israelites obeyed the LORD’s order and did not set out. 20Sometimes the cloud was over the tabernacle only a few days; at the LORD’s command they would encamp, and then at his command they would set out. 21Sometimes the cloud stayed only from evening till morning, and when it lifted in the morning, they set out. Whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud lifted, they set out. 22Whether the cloud stayed over the tabernacle for two days or a month or a year, the Israelites would remain in camp and not set out; but when it lifted, they would set out. 23At the LORD’s command they encamped, and at the LORD’s command they set out. They obeyed the LORD’s order, in accordance with his command through Moses.
Original Meaning
THE DRAMA OF DELIVERANCE is continuing. The Israelites are about to exit the Mount Sinai region and resume their journey toward the Promised Land (Num. 10). Numbers 9 tells how God reminds the Israelites to celebrate Passover (9:1–5) and makes provision for those who are ritually impure to observe it later (9:9–14), and then describes how the Lord’s cloud guides the people in their journeys (9:15–23). At first glance, the topics of Passover and the divine cloud seem unrelated to each other, but we must remember their connection in the book of Exodus: The Lord commanded Passover, the Israelites left Egypt, and God in his cloud guided and protected them (Ex. 12–14).
Numbers 9:6 introduces a problem that called for new instruction: Some Israelites are not able to celebrate Passover at the proper time because they have become ritually impure from a corpse (nepeš ʾadam; lit., “the [dead] person of a human being”).1 Celebrating the Passover involves eating a holy sacrifice. But the Israelites are strictly forbidden to eat sacrificial food while in a state of ritual impurity (Lev. 7:20–21).
It is clear that the impure Israelites have not arranged to be disqualified from Passover so that they can skip it. Rather, they approach Moses and Aaron right away to express frustration that extenuating circumstances beyond their control, which we would call “a death in the family,” are preventing them from joining the rest of the people in the privilege of presenting the Lord’s offering (Num. 9:6–7). Theirs is a refreshing kind of complaint!
The Lord’s solution is to establish an ongoing second date for Passover observance, a month later on the fourteenth day of the second month, for those prevented by corpse contamination from celebrating it at the normal time (9:8–12). To this concession, he graciously adds its application to individuals who might be away on long journeys at the usual time of the festival in the first month (9:10). Presumably this will go into effect when the Israelites are settled in Canaan.
What about persons with impurities other than corpse contamination, who would also be barred from eating sacrificial food (Lev. 7:20–21)? The text does not say. The rabbis, however, understand corpse contamination in Numbers 9:10 to represent all kinds of ritual impurities (cf. 2 Chron. 30:3, 17–20).2
Numbers 9:15–23 continues the transition to resumption of the desert journey (see above) by reiterating the behavior of the divine cloud (cf. Ex. 40:34–38). Its movements prompt the Israelites to set out or to camp.
Numbers 9 appears to be out of chronological sequence. Verse 1 puts God’s reminder regarding Passover “in the first month of the second year after they came out of Egypt” (emphasis supplied). This must be early in the first month, before the Israelites are to celebrate the festival on the fourteenth day of this month (9:3). So the Lord gives this reminder before his command in chapter 1 to carry out a military census, which he issues “on the first day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt” (1:1; emphasis supplied). Why this reversal?
The problem vanishes when we take into account the content of the new legislation in chapter 9: The second Passover on the fourteenth day of the second month is to be observed after the census has begun and just before the Israelites leave Mount Sinai on the twentieth day of the second month (10:11).3
STORIES AND LAWS. Leviticus and Numbers record four occasions when Moses does not know what to do with people and the Lord answers his questions.4 The first instance concerned the problem of what to do with a blasphemer, that is, whether God would punish him directly or whether the Israelites would do the job (Lev. 24:10–16, 23). The second is the one here in Numbers 9:6–13. The third is the matter of how to punish a man caught gathering wood on Sabbath (15:32–36). The final one is the question of whether women can inherit property in the absence of male heirs (27:1–11).
In each case, God’s oracular decision sets a precedent for future application. In three of these instances (not including the wood-gatherer), the Lord places the narrative case within the context of new legislation that transcends the scope of the issue at hand. In other words, like many a human teacher, he uses a question as an opportunity to provide a larger answer.5
New law also comes after narrative in Leviticus 10:1–11, where the tragedy of Nadab and Abihu is followed by the rule that priests must not drink alcoholic beverages when they enter the sacred tent.6 However, unlike the four passages mentioned above, the Lord addresses this prohibition to Aaron, not to Moses, and the law is not tightly connected to the narrative event by resolving uncertainty regarding what to do with the individuals featured in the story.
Although only a few portions of Numbers contain narrative and law dealing with the same event, this book is notable for its alternation between the two genres,7 which emphasizes that law “is inextricably bound to narrative—that is, the set of circumstances that engender it.”8 Laws are also linked to narratives in the sense that they (the former) are intended to guide responses to future circumstances. Furthermore, in addition to providing law with context and purpose, story is like law in that it can have a moral.9 So the two kinds of literary vehicles can effectively cooperate within a rhetorical strategy directed toward a common goal.10
Divine cloud. The Lord’s cloud first appears in Exodus 13:21, where he went ahead of the Israelites “in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night” (cf. 13:22). In addition to providing guidance and illumination, God in his cloud protected them from the Egyptians at the Red Sea (14:19, 20, 24).
Later the Lord regularly came in the pillar of cloud to speak with Moses at a “tent of meeting” outside the Israelite camp, before the tabernacle was constructed (33:7–10). When the sanctuary was built and in operation, God appeared in the cloud above the ark cover in the Most Holy Place. Not even the high priest could enter behind the veil, except in a special ritual on the Day of Atonement, and then only with a protective smokescreen of incense (Lev. 16:2, 12–13).11
The divine cloud could be intimidating to those outside the tabernacle. When the Lord heard the Israelites grumbling, he showed some of his glory from the cloud to vividly remind them of his awesome Presence (Ex. 16:9–12). Manifestations of God’s glory coincided with his lethal anger when the Israelites talked about stoning Joshua and Caleb (Num. 14:10) and when Korah gathered his followers in opposition to Moses and Aaron at the entrance to the sanctuary (16:19; cf. 16:42).
In the pillar of cloud that enshrouded the divine majesty, thereby protecting the Israelites from his glory, the Lord expressed his will and his attitudes toward his people. As long as they were in harmony with him, “No fear!” But if they rebelled, “Watch out!”
Just as God’s lamps illuminated the tabernacle from the inside (Num. 8:1–4), the divine cloud atop the Most Holy Place glowed like fire from evening until morning (9:15). With that kind of “night light,” there was no reason to be afraid of the dark! Anyone could look up in the cool night air and be assured by the same kind of incandescent radiance that Moses was privileged to encounter at the burning bush (Ex. 3).
Contemporary Significance
TEACHING STYLE. IN Numbers 9:1–14 we see several aspects of God’s character at work. (1) He takes the trouble to remind the Israelites that Passover is coming up again. (2) He is flexible in his requirement to observe the festival, bending the religious calendar for those who are stuck in a dilemma. (3) He is generous and farsighted, going beyond the immediate need by also providing for people on long trips to celebrate Passover at the later date. (4) He is economical, setting up ongoing rules as answers to similar questions in the future. (5) He is not susceptible to manipulation, but emphasizes that exceptions apply only to those who actually need them. (6) He allows guests to participate, as long as they follow the same rules as everyone else.
In short, the Lord sounds like a wise and well-balanced teacher! He is caring, recognizing the weaknesses (including forgetfulness) and challenging circumstances of his “students.” He is reasonable and fair, yet firm about extending deadlines listed in his “syllabus.” He foresees potential problems and systematically preempts them in advance. Finally, he lets “auditors” experience the “class” if they are serious about it and do not disrupt things by irregular behavior. We already know from Exodus, Leviticus, and the earlier chapters of Numbers that the Lord’s “syllabus” and “classroom” are well organized. But here in Numbers 9 we learn more about his effective “teaching style,” which will encourage his “students” to remain committed to his “class.”
Rather than simply congratulating God and assuring him that we will vote for him to receive “tenure,” we have the challenge and opportunity to emulate him within our respective spheres of influence. Whether we are raising our own children, teaching, ministering, administrating, interacting with others at work, or socializing, we would do well to follow God’s model. Are we considerate, flexible, reasonable, fair, patient, far-sighted, generous, organized, economical, and firm as he is? Do we give second chances, as he granted a second Passover to those impure or travelling, and as he extends another opportunity for the redemption that the Passover symbolized to those whose life journeys have taken them far away from home (cf. the prodigal son in Luke 15:11–24)?12 Or are we the opposite in some of these areas, perhaps trying to play “god” in a more demanding and arbitrary way than “God” himself? How can learning to follow God’s example in specific situations improve our lives and the lives of those around us?
Letting the Shekinah lead. For the Israelites to be with God’s resident Presence, called “Shekinah” in rabbinic Hebrew, they must move with him. It is no use lingering to venerate the spot where he has been. Nor is it worthwhile trying to guess where he may go next and running ahead to get there first. Often he gives no reason for what he does. The important thing is to know where his cloud is and to follow it.
God’s leadership calls for readiness to move at any time, and also patience to stay put until he directs otherwise. For an individual who wants to set his or her own agenda, this arrangement can be intensely irritating and unsettling. But it is fine for someone who wants to be with God more than anything else. Such a person can feel content, like a baby carried by a parent, unworried about the specifics of the route as long as Mama or Papa is there.
It is not that divine leading is a shortcut to do away with decisions and risks. “Indeed, God wants us to develop good judgment, and there is no way to develop it apart from a process that involves choices and risks.”13 But his guidance serves as a Global Positioning System, a dynamic reference point and framework for navigating the challenges of the way.
The Lord doesn’t merely give his people a detailed map of their “journey” that shows when they will reach “rest stops,” “filling stations,” and their final destination. He himself is their map. Henry Blackaby illustrates this concept:
For 12 years I pastored in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. One day a farmer said to me, “Henry, come out and visit with me at my farm.” His directions went something like this: “Go a quarter mile past the edge of the city and you will see a big red barn on your left. Go to the next road and turn to your left. Take that road for three-quarters of a mile. You’ll see a tree. Go right for about four miles, and then you will see a big rock. . . .” I wrote all of this down, and one day I got there!
The next time I went to the farmer’s house, the farmer was with me. Since there was more than one way to get to his house, he could have taken me any way he wanted to. This time I didn’t need the instructions I had written down. You see, he was my “map.” What did I have to do? I simply had to listen to him. Every time he said, “Turn,” I did just what he said. He took me a way I had never been. I probably couldn’t retrace that route on my own. The farmer was my “map.” He knew the way.14
To avoid getting lost, we can find out where God is leading and follow him. Although we have no visible divine cloud to follow, we can discern his will through a combination of avenues, such as his Spirit, our consciences, the Bible, Providence, and balanced counsel from mature believers. “Even when His will doesn’t make sense from your human perspective, your obedience will reveal that His will was right.”15