Why Christians in a Post-Modern Era Should Study the Book of Numbers

23 April 2003

Growing up as a child in an evangelical Christian home, I have tried to recall all of the times that I heard a sermon or teaching concerning the fourth book in the Torah, the book of Numbers. Except for the occasional Vacation Bible School lesson about Balaam and his donkey, I cannot remember a single sermon or lesson from that book. As R. Dennis Cole cleverly points out in his commentary, “The Book of Numbers has been neglected in evangelical circles . . . Preaching from this text is relegated to the Balaam stories and oracles, the rebellious spy account, and an occasional reference to the Nazirite material to support a sermon on alcoholism.”[1] The problem with this neglect is shown by Ronald Allen’s intricate discussion against “critical ideas of source criticism” when he states in defense of the authority of the book that:

For those who take the concepts of Scripture and canon seriously, the book of Numbers may take on an increasing significance. Evangelical Christian theologians have long paraded their conviction that the Scriptures are the result of the outbreathing of God, or “inspiration.” Indeed we stand or fall on this conviction.[2]

He goes on to note that while most evangelicals would agree with the concept of the inspiration of the book of Numbers in principle, far too often they neglect it in the practical application that should be implied by it’s divine origin. To evangelicals then, contemporary application of the book of Numbers is not merely important; it is a central matter of faith.

I have faced this ignorance of the value book of Numbers in the evangelical world many times in my path towards becoming a pastor of an inner-city post-modern church-plant. In seminary besides the most general of discussions in Old Testament Survey classes, I only remember the book being significantly mentioned once.[3] During college I was involved in InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, and unfortunately, in their LifeGuides Bible study books, they do not offer a volume on the book of Numbers. Even in the world of the arts, only contemporary Christian song I heard that included a theme from the book of Numbers was the one in which Rich Mullins discusses the Balaam incident.[4] In all fairness to the evangelical world, I don’t know whether any other religious movement gives fair emphasis to this particular book of the Bible, with the possible exception of Orthodox Judaism through their intense emphasis on the entire Torah.

So, why is the book ignored by evangelicals? Allen argues that it is the plethora of critical issues that face the scholar.[5] This theory is supported by the classic introduction to the commentary put together by Driver, Plummer, and Briggs which deals exclusively with these critical issues.[6] Indeed, it is easy to get lost in the scholarly and critical issues, and miss entirely the authoritative practical applications that God desires to communicate through that part of the canon.

Along similar lines, Cole argues that the lack of application emanates a non-existent “comprehension of the composition and framework” of the book.[7] In other words, Cole thinks that Christians avoid applying the book because they have a difficult time sorting through its opaque structure. Problems in comprehending the basic elements and structure of any work can make applying it quite a bit more challenging. Perhaps, however, these problems were more severe in a modernist setting where structure and understanding of detail were held in very high esteem. Indeed, it may be easier for post-modern deconstructionists to deal with the complicated text and outline of this narrative book in the canon.

Gordon Wenham argues in the preface to his commentary that there are significant problems even with the book’s title. He states that, “in ancient times numbers were seen as mysterious and symbolic . . . . Today they are associated with computers and the depersonalization that threatens our society.”[8] Thus, the preconceived notions of what numbers mean in contemporary society and the sizable census lists in the book make studying the book a daunting challenge for some contemporary Christian exegetes.

So, for a variety of reasons, the Book of Numbers is often ignored in our churches, ministries, and Christian religious institutions. This unfortunate situation means that we are missing out on the spiritual blessings that God wants to bestow on us when we study his Scriptures.

Because of the general disregard for this book, nearly every commentary and every preacher or teacher who decides to study this book finds it necessary to discuss the merits of knowing more about this piece of “salvation history.”[9] Indeed, after a careful examination of this material, I have found that this book not only is valuable for all Christians to study but it has a special value to followers of Jesus in a post-modern society. Interestingly, B. Maarsingh does not give an argument for why the book of Numbers should be studied in the introduction to his commentary. Indeed, his sub-title and later content perhaps adequately observes the book’s importance: Numbers: a Practical Commentary.[10]

The sheer value of this work to Christians in any situation is nearly obvious once the book is studied with appropriate hermeneutics. Allen advances the idea that “the theme of the Book of Numbers is worship.”[11] While there are many different themes in this book, he has suggested one that is of importance to contemporary Christians. Indeed, with all the discussion and debate about worship in evangelical churches in the last quarter of a century, a more Scriptural study on the topic with less sheer dogma would help to put the debate in a more useful light.

Cole argues that “the cyclical structure of the contents evidence [sic.] the contrasting themes of God’s revelation and humanity’s response.”[12] Again, this significant theme in the book could be utilized in the frequent contemporary theological debates about God’s sovereignty and human responsibility. So, the value of the book to all Christians cannot only be seen in the liturgical sense that Allen mentions but also on an intentionally theological level. Indeed, this question has haunted Christian theologians for centuries, and if the book of Numbers can help find a compromise or at least a better understanding of the issue, then studying the book is clearly valuable.

R.K. Harrison quotes an old hymn about the value of the book of Numbers for evangelicals in illustrating “the Christian’s journey through life under the Lord’s guidance.”[13] This concept of hope and God’s persistent presence in the wilderness is a theme in which Christians of all eras can discover encouragement.

On a more epistemological level Philip J. Budd argues that:

The importance of the OT, as with other ancient literature, lies in the capacity to reflect at a deep level the persistent problems and aspirations of communities across the centuries and across cultures, and to speak constructively to them.[14]

Historical works have value in our everyday lives. History provides us with a laboratory to observe human behavior under specific sets of conditions. The book of Numbers gives us the story of an ancient people as they face the challenges and blessings of a life of faith. Thus, are lessons that all Christians can learn from this historical laboratory.

Beyond the value of the book of Numbers to all Christians, two authors demonstrate its particular value in a post-modern world. Dennis Olson, after describing Origen’s patristic defense of this book[15], goes on to discuss Gary Eberle’s post-modern explanation of the need for Numbers. He states that Eberle:

argues that many who live today in the so-called postmodern world have lost the sense of being rooted in a “spiritual geography” that helped previous generations... the image of traveling through the wilderness may become an important biblical image to recapture in our time.... the book of Numbers is a particularly helpful resource for recapturing this wilderness image and its many implications for a postmodern world.[16]

Thus, those of us wandering in a post-modern no-mans-land can discover a special kind of solidarity with and hope in the Hebrew people as they wander fitfully towards God’s promises. Indeed, this kind of hope even in the face of rebellion, difficulty, and disappointment, is something post-modern Christians need. In the wilderness God is not only aiding his followers and pointing them towards their ultimate hope but is also present with them in a special and visible way.

Perhaps the best demonstration of the value of the book of Numbers to post-modern Christians comes quite unintentionally in Gordon Wenham’s commentary. He discusses in detail the value of rituals in the Torah and his anthropological method for understanding them.[17] In the middle of his discussion he notes the following:

Though these rituals may be likened to television, the analogy is rather weak. Television may be vivid, but it does not permit spectator participation, which is the essence of Old Testament rituals. Everyone involved had to play his own role on a public stage under the eyes of man and God.[18]

Indeed, in many ways Old Testament rituals are more closely related to virtual reality video games or even reality television (where the audience votes for the winner) than they are to regular network TV. Not only do they “express religious truths visually as opposed to verbally,”[19] but they involve the ‘audience’ in the reality of what is occurring. Leonard Sweet, both in many of his published works (including Soul Tsunami) and in a lecture he presented, argues that worship in a post-modern world must include experience, participation, imagery, and community (EPIC).[20] The worship rituals described in Numbers include all of these aspects that post-moderns find vital. So as evangelical Christians are actively rethinking what their worship event should be in post-modern context, it would be wise to study the book of Numbers (and the rest of the Torah) and observe how God used these very elements in the ancient past to help his tribal people connect with him.

Therefore, the book of Numbers not only has value as an important piece of history and a book with themes that are generally encouraging to all Christians, but a couple of its central themes, participatory worship and wilderness wandering, are particularly and spiritually vital to those in the post-modern world. This should not be surprising to evangelicals, who have said all along with the Apostle Paul, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”[21] May God always bless the study of His Word with practical applications that transform our lives, no matter what context in which we find ourselves!

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[1] R. Dennis Cole, Numbers, The New American Commentary, Volume 3B, Nashville: Broadman, 2000, page 16.
[2] Ronald B. Allen, Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 2, Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1990, pages 658 – 659.
[3] Dr. Calvin Miller applied its generational theme to the tensions between “Baby Boomers” and “genXers” in the contemporary church. Dr. Calvin Miller, Church Growth Evangelism Class, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, lectures spring 1999.
[4] Rich Mullins, “Who God is Going to Use.” The World As Best as I Can Remember It, Edward Grant, 1991. He also refers to the pillar and cloud that shows up througout the Torah in "Every where I go I see you."
[5] Allen, 658.
[6] S.R. Driver, A. Plummer, C.A.Briggs, Numbers, International Critical Commentary, Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1903, 1986.
[7] Cole, 16.
[8] Gordon J. Wenham, Numbers, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, Volume 4, Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1981, page 9.
[9] Allen, 657.
[10] B.Marrsingh, Numbers: A Practical Commentary, Trans.by John Vriend, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987.
[11] Allen, 658.
[12] Cole, 52.
[13] R.K. Harrison, Numbers, Wycliffe Exegetical Commentary, Chicago: Moody Press, 1990, page 28.
[14] Philip J. Budd, Numbers, Word Biblical Commentary, Volume 5, Waco, TX: Word, 1984, page xxxi.
[15] Dennis T. Olson, Numbers, Interpretation, Louisville: John Knox, 1986, page 1.
[16] Olson, 2.
[17] Wenham, 32.
[18] Wenham, 29.
[19] Wenham, 29.
[20] Leonard Sweet, Lecture at Northwood a Church of the Communities, Texas, May 2000.
[21] 2 Timothy 3: 16 – 17, New International Version, Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1995.