When I was a kid, growing up in the country, my parents would take me mushroom hunting every spring. I know this activity is foreign to many, so let me explain…
You go out into the woods during the early spring, you look down at the ground, and you start walking hoping to spot mushrooms. Not much to it. But it’s not that easy. The ground is covered with leaves and limbs, making it very difficult to see the mushrooms. The mushrooms blend in with the leaves and are often covered up by them, so it takes a lot of looking and a lot of patience to spot the mushrooms.
I have to approach chapters like Numbers chapter 26 in the same way. The long list of names and numbers in this chapter tend to cover up things that might be there. If I’m not careful, I’ll skim over the whole thing and miss some very important things.
Still, I found a couple of things amid the names and numbers of Numbers chapter 26 that stood out to me…
First…I saw a reminder that God is true to His word. He never promises something and then fails to keep His word. He keeps every promise. Numbers 26:64-65 makes that clear.
Second…I saw a reminder that even in His justice, God is unwavering in His grace and mercy. You see this in a couple of ways.
- Despite the great sin of Korah that brought about the deaths of 250 men, God sustained the line of Korah so it didn’t die out.
- God replaced, almost to the man, the number of people that died off in the wilderness wandering. (Compare Numbers 26:51 with Numbers 1:46.)
These are the two great constants in the universe: the promises of God and the grace of God. They are always there. So make it a practice to look for them; even amid the leaves and limbs of life.