Lesson 2, July 3-9
Sabbath Afternoon
Read for This Week’s Study: Numbers 11:1-33, 12:1-13, 13:27-33, 14:1-23, 1 Corinthians 10:1-11, Numbers 14:39-45.
Memory Text: “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.” 1 Corinthians 10:11
Over the centuries, many people have reported strange, restless behavior in dogs and other domestic animals before major earthquakes.
Scientists have now established that animals are able to detect the first of an earthquake’s seismic waves — the pressure wave — that arrives in advance of the secondary shaking wave. This probably explains why animals have been reported acting confused, or restless, right before the ground starts to shake. Some animals, such as elephants, can perceive low-frequency sound waves and vibrations from foreshocks, which humans can’t detect at all.
A few minutes before the 5.8-magnitude quake that hit the Washington, D.C., area on August 23, 2011, some of the animals at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Zoo started behaving strangely. Among those were the lemurs, who began calling loudly for about 15 minutes before the ground started shaking.
In this week’s study, we look at some examples of strange human restlessness that was brought about, not by impending natural disasters such as earthquakes but, rather, by the basic sinfulness of fallen human beings who were not resting in what Christ offers all who come to Him in faith and obedience.
Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, July 10.
Sunday, July 4
Restless in a Wilderness
Israel must have felt restless and unhappy when they departed Sinai on their way to Canaan. More than one year had passed since they had left Egypt (Numbers 1:1). They were ready to enter the Promised Land. They had been counted and organized. They had witnessed incredible displays of divine favor and clear signs of God’s presence. Yet, the first place following their departure from Sinai finds them complaining.
Read Numbers 11:1-15. What are the Israelites complaining about?
The Israelites crave the meat, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic of Egypt. “Who shall give us flesh to eat? We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick: But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.” (Numbers 11:4-6). They must also have suffered from severe selective memory when they remembered the food and forgot the slavery and unbelievable hardship (compare with Exodus 1).
They had been fed by God’s manna for more than a year; yet, they felt restless and wanted something else. Even Moses is affected. Trying to lead a group of restless people is not easy. But Moses knows whom to turn to. “Wherefore hast thou afflicted thy servant? and wherefore have I not found favour in thy sight, that thou layest the burden of all this people upon me?” (Numbers 11:11).
How does God respond to the complaints? Read Numbers 11:16-33.
God is not deaf to our needs when we feel restless. In Israel’s case, He gave them quail to satisfy their hunger for meat. But it wasn’t really the meat Israel wanted. When we are unhappy and restless and angry, what we are angry about is often just the detonator — not the cause of the conflict. We fight because there is something deeper amiss, affecting our underlying relationships. Israel rebelled against God’s leading, something that we all have to be careful about, no matter our immediate situation and context, for it’s easier to do than we think.
Why is it so easy to remember the past as better than it really was?
