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Scripture Reading: Num. 33:50-56; 34:1-29
In this message on the prearrangement of the distribution of the good land, we will consider the statutes for inheriting the good land (33:50-56) and the boundaries of the good land and its distributors (34:1-29).
These statutes were given to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho (33:50), a land that has been the scene of much trouble. Even today, the land east of the Jordan is a land of troubles.
Jehovah commanded Moses to say to the people, "When you pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their figured stones, and destroy all their molten images, and demolish all their high places; and you shall take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given the land to you to possess it" (vv. 51-53). These verses reveal that, after driving out the devilish inhabitants of the land, they were to destroy all the idols and high places, the places where the idols were worshipped. Only then would they be qualified to take possession of the land and enjoy it.
The principle is the same concerning our enjoyment of Christ today. Christ has been given to us as our portion for our enjoyment, yet there is a condition which we must fulfill in order to have this enjoyment. This condition is that we cooperate with God's ordination to drive out everything in us which is other than God and Christ. This means that we must destroy all the idols within us. An idol is anything other than God that occupies us. A degree, a good job, a nice house, a position or rank, a good name — all these can become idols occupying us. We must destroy any idols that may be in us and not leave any ground within us for the worship of idols. Without dealing with the idols in us, we cannot have the genuine enjoyment of Christ.
Some may talk about the enjoyment of Christ, but for them this is merely a slogan. Whether or not we can have the real enjoyment of Christ depends upon the extent to which there is a clearance of our inner being. Today Christ as the good land is in us, but the enjoyment of this good land requires an absolute clearance of anything other than God that occupies us. To give even a little ground to the worship of something other than God will annul our enjoyment of Christ. May we all have a thorough clearing away of every kind of idol so that we can enjoy Christ as the good land.
"You shall inherit the land by lot according to your families; for a large one you shall enlarge his inheritance, and for a small one you shall decrease his inheritance; wherever the lot falls to any man, that shall be his; according to the tribes of your fathers you shall inherit" (v. 54). Here we see that the children of Israel were to inherit the land according to two things: according to their tribes and according to the lot. The size of the tribes was a matter of the increase in life, and the lot was a matter of God's sovereignty. This indicates that the enjoyment of Christ today mainly depends on our increase in life and on God's sovereignty.
In verses 55 and 56 we see the consequences of not driving out the inhabitants of the land from before them. If God's people had not driven out the inhabitants, those whom they had allowed to remain would have been as pricks in their eyes and as thorns in their sides. Moreover, these inhabitants would have troubled them in the land where they dwelt, and God would have done to them as He thought to do to those inhabitants. This means that the portion of the Gentiles under God's curse would have become the portion of Israel.
Numbers 34:1-15 speaks of the boundaries of the good land. The boundaries of the land of Canaan signify Christ in His resurrection and ascension.
The southern boundary (vv. 3-5) was from the wilderness of Zin along the side of Edom; from the end of the Salt Sea (the Dead Sea) on the east, turning south to the ascent of Akrabbim, crossing to Zin, ending south of Kadesh-barnea; then extending to Hazar-addar, crossing over to Azmon, turning from Azmon to the Brook of Egypt, and ending at the Great Sea (the Mediterranean Sea).
The western boundary (v. 6) was along the Great Sea and its coast, from the south to the north. The Great Sea signifies the all-inclusive death of Christ.
The northern boundary (vv. 7-9) was from the Great Sea to Mount Hor, from Mount Hor to the entrance of Hamath, the end being at Zedad, extending to Ziphron, and ending at Hazar-enan.
The eastern boundary (vv. 10-12) was from Hazar-enan to Shepham, going down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain, reaching to the slope of the Sea of Chinnereth (the Sea of Galilee) on the east, going down to the Jordan (signifying the death of Christ), and ending at the Salt Sea.
The best part of the good land is surrounded by two seas — the Mediterranean Sea and the Dead Sea — and a river — the Jordan. These two seas and this river all signify the death of Christ. This indicates that the enjoyment of Christ is closely related to His death. Our enjoyment of Christ, therefore, must be in the sphere, the territory, of His death.
The borders of the good land also indicate that it is an elevated, uplifted land. This signifies the ascended Christ, the heavenly Christ. The Christ whom we enjoy in His riches is a resurrected and ascended Christ. The Christ who was crucified and buried has come into us in resurrection, and now we are in His ascension, enjoying Him as the uplifted land with all its riches.
"Moses commanded the sons of Israel, saying, This is the land which you shall inherit by lot, which Jehovah has commanded to give to the nine tribes and to the half-tribe; for the tribe of the sons of Reuben by their fathers' houses and the tribe of the sons of Gad by their fathers' houses and the half-tribe of Manasseh have received their inheritance; the two tribes and the half-tribe have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan at Jericho eastward, toward the sunrise" (vv. 13-15). Verses 1 through 12 describe the boundaries of the land to be given to the nine and a half tribes. The land given to the two and a half tribes, the land which was according to their choice, could be reached without crossing the Jordan. This indicates that it was outside the death of Christ and thus was not actually a part of the good land. Our self-choice is likewise outside the death of Christ and therefore has nothing to do with the real enjoyment of the rich Christ. If we do not pass through the death of Christ, we cannot enter into His resurrection and ascension. This shows us that we should not have our own choice. Whenever we have our choice, we are outside the death of Christ and, as a result, are not in the realm of His resurrection and ascension to enjoy Him as the heavenly, elevated One.
As indicated by the type of the good land, the Christ assigned to us through God's ordination is a great Christ, a vast Christ. However, the size of the Christ whom we actually experience depends on us. In Himself, Christ is universally vast and does not vary in size, but our experience of this Christ may vary greatly and be different in size. For some, Christ may be only a narrow strip of land; for others, He may be a very large territory. Just as our experience of Christ as the offerings may be in different sizes — a ram, a lamb, or a pigeon — so our experience of Christ as the good land may also vary in size.
In verses 16 through 29 we have the distributors of the good land. The leaders of the two and a half tribes are not included in the list of distributors. The two and a half tribes possessed something, but what they possessed was not part of the good land. In principle, this may also be our situation in the church life. We may have our choice and gain something. What we gain may seem to be according to God's promise, but actually it is merely something according to our own choice and cannot be reckoned as a part of God's promise.
"These are the names of the men who shall divide the land to you for an inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun" (v. 17). Eleazar and Joshua both typify Christ. On the one hand, Christ is our Priest; on the other hand, He is our Leader.
Verse 18 says, "You shall take one leader of every tribe, to divide the land for an inheritance." In verses 19 through 28 we have a list of these leaders: Caleb, of the tribe of Judah, being the first; Shemuel, of the tribe of Simeon; Elidad, of the tribe of Benjamin; Bukki, of the tribe of Dan; Hanniel, of the tribe of Manasseh; Kemuel, of the tribe of Ephraim; Elizaphan, of the tribe of Zebulun; Paltiel, of the tribe of Issachar; Ahihud, of the tribe of Asher; and Pedahel, of the tribe of Naphtali. "These are the men whom Jehovah commanded to divide the inheritance for the sons of Israel in the land of Canaan" (v. 29).
There should be some significance in the fact that this list does not include the names of the leaders of the two and a half tribes. I believe that their names do not appear because these tribes made their own choice. Today, if we have our self-choice, our names may not be included on God's "list." Concerning this, we should not care about man's opinion, appraisal, appreciation, criticism, and condemnation. Today is "man's day" (1 Cor. 4:3), the present age in which man judges. Let us wait for the day of the Lord when He will judge (1 Cor. 4:4-5). Only the Lord is qualified to give the final word. Therefore, let us learn not to have our self-choice, which keeps us outside the death of Christ. We should care for the Lord's choice, not for our choice, and let our names be on His list, not on our list.
Finally, we need to see that there is a difference between the leaders in Numbers 1 and in Numbers 34. The leaders in chapter one were for the numbering; the leaders in chapter thirty-four were for the distribution of the good land. Both the boundaries of the good land and the distributors of the good land are significant.
