BUDS, BLOSSOMS, AND ALMONDS. Numbers 17 Sometimes, people's minds are opened to accept what they previously ignored or rejected. When such moments occur, they are often called "teaching moments." For some reason, a ray of understanding shines into a dark mind. When this happens to an individual, it is a crucial time to learn a lesson that will not easily be forgotten. The children of Israel, as a congregation, were reeling from the events that had just taken place. The light of the Lord's presence had appeared, and they had not feared Him.
They had become accustomed to the idea that God was among them. Their complaints and fears had led to deaths at the hands of the Amalekites. Rebellion against authority had claimed the lives of 250 leaders during a trial by fire. God addressed jealousy and rebellion when the earth opened up, causing three family units to vanish. The complaints of the entire congregation resulted in a plague that killed thousands, and only the actions of Moses and Aaron saved some of their lives.
The Israelites knew that God’s judgments were against their sins of rebellion and discontentment with a just God who desired righteous people in a covenant relationship with Him. They became overwhelmed with despair and gripped by fear because they recognized their guilt of rebellion. They understood enough about God that He would punish the guilty.
When the light of lasting peace leaves our lives and the joy of genuine fellowship with God disappears, we must pause immediately and examine ourselves in the light of God’s word, guided by the Holy Spirit. “There is a way back to God from the dark paths of sin. There is an open door that we may go in. At Calvary’s cross is where we begin, when we come as a sinner to Jesus.” Returning to the starting point of our journey with God will give us a clear perspective of who we are and why God has saved us.
True repentance for sins involves openly confessing our sins to God and forsaking them once and for all. When this happens, “He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Peace with God is available to us, and the peace of God will soon fill our hearts and minds through the advocacy of our Lord Jesus Christ. Then, the sunshine of peace and fellowship becomes real in our hearts and lives.
Now, there was a command from God for each tribe to bring a rod, a symbol of authority, to establish once and for all who God had chosen as high priest and the priesthood. Probably each tribe selected what they believed was the most symbolic of authority and carefully inscribed the name of a tribal leader on their chosen rod. As they watched Moses carry those twelve rods into the Tabernacle, they might have thought, "This is more serious than we thought." It wasn't just about which stick looked the most attractive or what name was carved in the wood.
The issue was what God had to say about His people's spiritual leadership. We do not have the authority to pick and choose what God wants us to believe or how we are to carry out His will and word. That is reserved for God Himself. No congress of men can decide what is right and wrong or what is moral or immoral. God alone has the authority to set the standards of righteousness and justice. If we could get that into our minds, we would be spared the terrible consequences of acting on our own choices and wishes.
God was establishing a visible testimony, unmistakably confirming Aaron's position as the high priest chosen by the Lord. He had made this clear before, but the independent attitude of the people wanted to choose for themselves. To settle the matter, only God can determine who is a priest or not; the rods were placed before the Lord overnight. The budding rod was a unique way for God to speak to His people. The previous signs to Israel were meant to address their rebellion and to crush their desire to take divine matters into their own hands.
By bringing a rod from each tribe with the name of the tribe on it and placing it in the Tabernacle near the altar of incense, God revealed His heart of love, mercy, and compassion toward them. This act showed that God wanted to prevent them from sinning and facing its consequences. He was pledging His personal commitment to them through this test. Only God could make a dead rod bud.
Humans do not have the right to establish a priesthood to stand before God. God does that personally Himself. He has given our Lord Jesus Christ the spiritual authority of our Great High Priest. In His sovereign electing grace, He has made those who believe in Him into a kingdom of priests. He intended for Israel to be that, but they chose to do things their own way by making a gold calf to represent God. The result was that the Levites, who stood out for God, became the priestly tribe. Once again, this needed to be clarified.
By this means, the children of Israel would then realize it was God whom they were sinning against—the God who was dealing with them, the God who was revealing to them who was leading them. The tribe of Levi was under the name of Aaron, and when it was brought out from where it had been for twelve hours or less, the test results were obvious. Each tribal name was clearly visible on the rods. When Moses brought the rods out in the morning, eleven were the same dry sticks as before. One had buds on it, beautiful white flowers blossomed, and almonds formed on it. That happened overnight in the dark. In a time period of twelve hours or less, the whole process of producing almonds and developing fruitfulness took place on a dead stick.
The Great Creator was their God, who wanted to maintain His covenant with them. God had exceeded the requirements of the test so there would be no doubt that He had chosen His high priest. This was clear evidence of His care for them, and the covenant remained in effect. This rod was to be kept in front of the ark as a witness to those inclined to rebel. It would also serve as a reminder to the high priest, who entered there once a year, of who he was and whom he represented.
The Lord had given life, moving through the entire cycle of a normal year, and demonstrated His life-giving power with a rod that wasn't even rooted in the ground. This was not Moses' rod, which symbolized power, authority, and justice. Instead, it was Aaron's rod, a symbol of grace and mercy. Eleven other rods, which people chose, remained lifeless. Only the rod that brought forth life, Moses' rod of authority, could take away the sinful, murmuring, complaining people themselves. Aaron's rod was meant to address the problem—the murmuring—as he interceded for the people as their high priest appointed by God.
The question of who the rightful priest is was taken out of man's control. The Lord made His choice clear in the dark of night and silenced any critics. Those who do not believe will try to find a human reason for this act. Using their limited experience, they will claim it was impossible for this to happen and refuse to accept that God orchestrated it miraculously. Such disbelief causes people to doubt everything, believe nothing, and raise questions like "if," "how," or "but" about everything, even though evidence of God surrounds us.
Infidelity requires some rationale to be simplified to human understanding before it will repent and believe. Faith trusts that God is a "rewarder of them who diligently seek Him." Faith believes that God communicates with us in ways of His choosing. Faith thinks like God and trusts the solutions God provides when difficulties arise. "It is written" are words of faith one lives by. Who knows, God does what He wants, and it will be righteous, no matter what human experience might say.
Unbelievers believe they are the ones who define who God is and what He does. To them, God is who they say He is. We must remember that a fact is very different from a scientific conclusion. Conclusions made in the past as dogmatic statements have since been proven wrong. When it comes to understanding the Lord and who He is, we learn from what is written and the evidence He chooses to give us in creation, conscience, and good and perfect gifts—that the Lord is in control of everything. "In Him, we live and move, and have our being." He equips us to do the work He intends for us to accomplish.
Our calling as a "kingdom of priests" is to represent Him to the world and to worship and serve the Lord as citizens of His kingdom. We do this by faith in the Lord. Then there isn't the fear that the people of Israel had when the Lord displayed His authority and grace in Aaron's rod before their astonished eyes. The whole history of seasons was displayed on what was a dry stick the day before. Now, it had evidence of new life in the buds, the promise of future blessings in the white and showy blossoms, and also in the almonds that were ready to pick. How great is the fullness of God and His sovereign grace!
Spectacular miracles in Egypt and along the way testified to the Lord’s people that God was with them, but were they satisfied? No! They had seen the plagues, crossed the Red Sea, eaten miracle food and water, and experienced many other signs of God’s power and presence, yet they still complained against Him.
Korah and his followers had recently died for their rebellion and deliberate defiance of God’s appointed leadership, but the people had not learned their lesson. They continued to murmur against God. Fourteen thousand seven hundred had just perished, and more would have died if Aaron had not stood with a censer between the living and the dead. Yet, they still murmured against God.
How could they be so blind and ignorant after experiencing God with them so often and in many ways? Remember the mountain and the law. Remember the golden calf and the results of that bad choice. Now, look at these twelve rods with names on them. Aaron’s name is on Levi's rod. They took all twelve last night and laid them in the tabernacle. Now, this morning, there are buds on Aaron’s rod, along with blossoms and almonds—all at the same time. This defies all normal patterns of nature—buds, beautiful almond blossoms, and ripe almonds. It could only happen if the Original Creator adjusted the usual course of life—which He did, and they murmured against Him.
When each leader took back his rod, and everyone saw Aaron’s rod before them in its unique glory, they thought they would die on the spot. The One who holds the key of life also holds the key of death. But He didn’t use it despite their murmuring.
Finally, the people of Israel recognized who they were dealing with, whom they had made a covenant with, and the significance of the high priest's role on their behalf. They saw their presumption and rebellion for what they truly were before the holy God and learned that His standard of holiness is different from what they considered normal. God has holier eyes than to let sin go unpunished.
Their arrogance in challenging Aaron’s role as their high priest finally caught up with them, and they were afraid of what might happen next. They thought they would all die. It seemed to them that if they approached the Tabernacle, they would perish in their sins, so the next two chapters of Numbers address how they were able to come near the Lord.
I have centuries of evidence that God is truly the only true God. The Bible, in many translations, archaeological evidence, and historical studies, proves that God remains consistent. However, there is often a tendency to do things my own way. It is easy to become more concerned about physical conditions than spiritual ones. It is also easy to focus on the wrong things.
Have we seen evidence of God’s presence? Yes! Has God answered prayers? Yes! Have I experienced remarkable blessings? Yes! Has God answered and healed the sick? Yes! Have there been stories shared about how God has worked with others in amazing ways? Yes! When I think of what God has done, doubting and rebellion become unthinkable!