Numbers 12:1–2: “Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman. So they said, ‘Has the LORD indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?’ And the LORD heard it.”

January 22nd, 2023 by Pastor Ed in devotional

It seems Miriam and Aaron, Moses’ brother and sister, didn’t get along with Moses’ wife, which is still a pretty common occurrence in our world 3400 years later. You don’t have to look very hard to find in-laws that don’t get along. This seemed to be a family matter, but this was a family in the God-given position of leading God’s children out of Egypt and into the Promised Land, and, regrettably, Moses’ brother and sister went public with their family dispute. Moses was married to a non-Israelite, and they felt that gave them enough ammunition to launch an attack against their brother. They were envious and jealous of his position. The seriousness of their sin is underscored by the short close of the verse: “And the LORD heard it.” How we need to remember that fact when we are tempted to speak out against someone. Simply put, God hears.

We all need to be very careful when criticizing any other believer, but especially one attempting to honestly serve the Lord by leading some ministry. Miriam seems to have been leading the attack as God directs His judgment mainly toward her, striking her with leprosy. Exodus 15:20 tells us that Miriam was a prophetess among the people of God, and it was probably because of that position and the public nature of the attack that she experienced such an obvious, public reaping of the seeds of rebellion she had sowed among the people. But grace and justice are both present here. We see grace in that God heard Moses’ cry on Miriam’s behalf and promised to heal her from the leprosy. And we see justice as the 7 days of waiting outside the camp, as prescribed in Leviticus 13, were fulfilled. And after the 7 days were up, Miriam was restored and brought back into the camp, and they moved on.

“LORD, please be a filter over our mouths and lips this day. Too often we are tempted to be quick to criticize and slow to encourage. Put Your words of life on our tongues for others.”