4 And the Lord spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three came out. 5 And the Lord came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth. 6 And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. 7 My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house. 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?
In the first few verses of Numbers 12, we learn that Aaron and Miriam, Moses’ siblings, brought an accusation against him. Why? "For he had married an Ethiopian woman" (Num. 12:1). They also expressed that they had the same privilege to talk to God as Moses did. God quickly disciplined Aaron and Miriam, resulting in Miriam being struck with leprosy (for she was thought to be the instigator).
God did not speak to Moses in visions and dreams, but rather, "mouth to mouth" (v. 8). This meant there was no intermediary between God and Moses. “Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth” (Num 12:3). He had the arduous task of leading God’s people. Because of this, God valued Moses above all else.
There are a few lessons we can learn from this passage:
- Those that are closest to you can be those that hurt you the most.
- God places special value on those that lead His people.
- God speaks in various ways to accomplish what He wills.
Has God ever spoken to you?
God is speaking to us. But are we listening to Him?
When our conscience begins to nudge us for whatever reason,
we might have this low-level misery or uneasiness about whatever
it is we've done or we're about to do. At times like this,
it's wise to prayerfully consider whether we're offending God with our actions.
—Joyce Meyer
May we be like Samuel, “Speak, for Your servant is listening” (1 Sam. 3:10).
Prayer: Dear God, thank you for always speaking. Forgive me for not listening. Speak to my heart. Help me to know your voice. Make yourself known unto me. Show me your ways, oh God. Amen!