HEBREW WORD STUDY – AGAINST MOSES – BEMOSHEH במשׁה
Numbers 12:8: “With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”
Today we will continue with this strange story concerning Aaron and Miriam’s challenge to Moses. Moses was separated from his wife Zipporah for the sake of being able to hear from God. Aaron and Miriam thought this was very unwise using themselves as an example as they too hear from God and they did not need to separate from their spouses. God suddenly appeared speaking to all three and told them to go to the Tent of Meetings. We left off where God appeared outside the tent and called Aaron and Miriam to come out leaving Moses inside the tent. God explained that he speaks to Moses more directly than He does to the prophets (who also separate from their wives or remain unmarried to avoid any distractions).
Then God says something that is grammatically incorrect, or at least most Christian translators just ignore this incorrect grammatical use as just an anomaly. All our English translations say something like: “…wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” Grammatically, against my servant Moses should have been written as be’avedi mosheh. However, it is written in the inspired text as be’avedi bemoseheh. Translators assume ‘avedi (servant) is just an adjective and in such cases, a preposition (against) is attached to both the adjective and the modified noun. The Midrash Tanchuma Tzav 13, however, disagrees that the Classical Hebrew would repeat the preposition and hence both servant and Moses are nouns which need their own prepositions. What happens if the text wanted to say against my servant from Moses or like Moses? Unlike English, many grammatical points are often called into question. I used to joke to my Hebrew students that in the first semester of Hebrew they will learn the rules of grammar and in the second semester, they will learn all the exceptions to the rules of grammar. Although English has exceptions to its rules of grammar, these exceptions are universally accepted, not so with Classical Hebrew.
All that is to say the Midrash takes the text at its face value and renders it as against my servant against Moses. I believe there is more than one message being conveyed here. For instance, my study partner suggested that God is saying: “You are speaking against me if you speak against Moses.” I did find that the Jewish commentator Rashi takes this position. The Midrash explains that God is saying that you should fear to speak against any of my servants. They also indicate that God is also saying you should fear to speak against Moses even if He were not my servant. That last one I wonder about. But I believe definitely God is saying that you should fear speaking not only against Moses but against any of my servants because ultimately you are speaking against me.
What did Aaron and Miriam do that was so wrong? They assumed that they knew what was God’s desire without going to God Himself to find out. God would have revealed to them that He requested that Moses and Zipporah separate for a while so God could accomplish an important work. But Aaron and Miriam just followed the party line of tradition, their own behavior and since Moses’ action did not align with tradition and their own behavior and opinion as to what was right they questioned him. They did not realize they were questioning God and God let them know in no uncertain terms that that is exactly what they were doing.
Have you ever had the church or Christian friends question you for doing something you knew was God’s desire or request of you and these people condemned you, like Aaron and Miriam? I recall in the 60’s and 70’s during the Hippie movement where many Christians identified with this movement by wearing long hair, beards, and dressing like the subculture. They felt called by God to do this to reach these people and the church condemned them, ostracized them, refused to fellowship with them. Yet, from that culture, many were saved and started the Jesus Movement. History has shown that this was a great revival where the church is still experiencing its effects.
Perhaps you need to think and pray (which Aaron and Miriam failed to do) before you condemn someone for the way they dress or their tattoos and consider maybe God called them to this to reach people that those with the clean haircut, suit and tie could never reach. Perhaps God called someone to be homeless to reach the homeless, to be unemployed to reach the unemployed. To be an Aspie to reach those that a normal person could not reach.
Today, preachers and self-righteous people in the church would throw salt in the air if someone said he was separating from his wife for a time to hear from God. Before you pick up stones stop and pray for God’s guidance. God knows their heart, you don’t. Maybe God called them to this to reach the heart of one’s mate, to prevent the marriage from being destroyed or any number of reasons. Your job is to pray for and pray with them for God’s will. Not condemn like Aaron and Miriam. Because if don’t you might be speaking against God and tomorrow we will find out what happens when you do that.
HEBREW WORD STUDY PART 5 – HE DEPARTED
Amen! Chaim, and I am saying that with the understanding of Amen that you wrote about. My life has been so atypical. In prayer, I had been asking questions. And in this last series, the Holy Spirit has had you answer my questions exactly and directly. When I was young, I had wanted to take the “Christian path” that everyone else took, but the Lord had another purpose for my life and circumstance after circumstance caused me to take a lonely narrow path. Because I was not on the typical “Christian path”, throughout my life I have not been accepted by “Miriam and her friends” and at times I saw myself as a failure. But Jesus did not see me as a failure and he came to me in dreams to tell me that I was carrying out His purpose. AND He had you write the words that I needed to hear for continued reassurance. I wish sometimes that I could explain to you how exactly you conveyed what the Lord wanted to tell me and at the exact time that I needed to hear it. I am one of those people that God designed you to reach. I thank God that He made you the way that He did and that I was able to find your word studies. Shalom, shalom, Annie
Great lessons. I am learning so much about God.
In Numbers 12:1, Miryam and Aharon are not referring to Zipporah, for Zipporah was a Midyanite (descendant of Abraham), not a Kushite (descendant of Ham {KJV-Ethiopian}). YHWH commanded the Isrealites not to marry the descendants of Ham, but Moses was for a time married to a Kushite, though the marriage was never consummated; she was more or less an inherited wife, not one he chose (according to Jasher). Miryam and Aharon were pointing out where they “believed” Moses had broken the Torah of YHWH. Which, would have been true if he had “known” the Kushite woman.