DFO11521962

"SIGHTING THE PROMISED LAND!: FIRST BATTLES! & THE DEATH OF MOSES!"

WE'RE CONTINUING THE BIBLE STUDY IN PICTURES. Remember, we came down out of the Rock City of Petra, through which the Children of Israel may have passed in their wilderness wanderings.

MOSES IS CONTINUING TO LEAD THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL THROUGH THE WILDERNESS, & for 40 years they've been confined out there—because of their sin of not trusting God. They didn't believe God could bring'm through. They kept doubting God & they didn't believe God could help them conquer the Land of Canaan. Finally God got Fed up with them & said, "Let'm die out there!" God doesn't like murmuring or complaining!

1. ISRAEL NOW MOVES ON. We're going to travel through the Land of Moab.

2. THESE ARE RUINS STILL STANDING IN ANCIENT MOAB. You remember, Moab was one of the illegitimate children of Lot, by one of his daughters. They were relatives of the Israelites. Nevertheless, though they were first cousins or half-brothers‚ they were bitter enemies & always fighting with the Jews.

NOW THEY MUST CROSS THE OUTSKIRTS OF MOAB. The Edomites, you remember, fought & didn't want them to cross at all. But the Moabites had an eye for the money, so they said, "You pay us & we'll let you go through." So, they paid for the privilege of passing unmolested through the Land of Moab.

3. A WELL IN MOAB. For the first time in years‚ now they begin to pass through tillable, fertile, cultivable land—what do we mean by that? It's good soil where they can grow crops. They've been out in the desert & now they're coming into better soil. Well, this land does not look very tillable here in this photo, but it's much better than the desert that they were in.

THE LAND HERE HAS SUFFERED MANY YEARS OF DESOLATION, BECAUSE OF THE CURSE OF GOD‚ against the sins of the people, since that time. But in the time that Moses & the Children of Israel passed through it, it was a fertile & productive land.

4. THE MAP GIVES YOU THE GENERAL OUTLINE OF WHERE THEY WANDERED ALL THAT TIME: From over there in Egypt, down around this way & then up almost into the Promised Land. They lost heart & left, & came down through the wilderness this way to I Je-abarim.

5. THE UPPER ARNON is a very beautiful, cold stream, flowing down from the mountains. It's very unusual, in that part of the country, to find so much water.

6. IT HAS LOVELY WATERFALLS along the way.

7. IT PASSES THROUGH A NARROW DEFILE,

8. AND EVENTUALLY FLOWS, OUT INTO THE DEAD SEA. That lovely stream of pure, good drinking-water eventually flows out into the old stinking Dead Sea. Now what makes the Dead Sea dead? Not salt, but no outlet!

YOU WANT TO KNOW HOW TO GET DEAD REAL QUICK?—JUST HAVE NO OUTLET SPIRITUALLY! Live selfishly, just for yourself, take everything & give nothing—have no outlet, & you'll kill your spirit & eventually even your body! The Dead Sea is so stinking dead that it can't harbour any kind of life at all!—Because it has no outlet. All this water pours into it & none pours out, it just evaporates. It smells strongly of salt & the strong chemicals of which it's composed.

IN RECENT YEARS‚ IT'S BEEN DISCOVERED THAT THESE CHEMICALS ARE VERY VALUABLE, & they're now being extracted from the waters of the Dead Sea. They estimate that the chemicals of the Dead Sea, including bromides‚ from which they make ethyl gasoline & medicines, & nitrogen for explosives & potashes, which are used for fertiliser‚ & so on, are worth $250 trillion!

THE DEAD SEA IS WORTH MORE MONEY THAN IS IN ALL THE BANKS IN THE WHOLE WORLD!: $250 trillion worth of chemicals!—A very valuable prize for any conquering nation that would like to have it! One of these days‚ according to Bible prophecy, Russia is going to march on Israel & try to capture all of this wealth. At the present time, Israel touches part of the Dead Sea. On the other side, it's surrounded by Jordan, which used to be called Trans-Jordan, because it was across the Dead Sea & across the Jordan.

9. THIS IS COUNTRY NORTH OF THE ARNON, BELONGING TO THE AMORITES. It had been taken from them by the Moabites. The Amorites were inhabitants of Canaan, the Promised Land of Israel.

10. HERE THE WATERS OF HESHBON reach the Jordan, where Israel is to cross to Canaan.

11. AT HESHBON, THEY APPLIED TO KING SIHON TO PASS THROUGH THE TERRITORY OF THE AMORITES, who were very warlike Canaanites. He flatly refused‚ & so they had a big war.

12. ISRAEL WAS CAMPED HERE IN THE WILDERNESS OF KEDEMOTH. They were not related to the Amorites, who were Canaanites, as they were to the Moabites, so they decided to use force this time to pass through.

GOD HAD COMMANDED THEM TO DRIVE OUT ALL THESE VARIOUS TRIBES OF CANAANITES, to get rid of them completely, or they would fall heir to their sins! They were given permission to fight with the Amorites, which they did.

13. THIS IS THE PROBABLE SITE OF JAHAZ, where they had their first battle. The Amorites were overwhelmingly defeated.

14. IN THE BATTLE OF HESHBON they captured Heshbon & exterminated its entire population, which was according to the commandment of God, because of the wickedness of the people.

15. THIS IS AR OF MOAB. Israel also "consumed Ar of Moab, & the Lords of the High Places of Arnon." (Num.21:28.) So‚ they did take part of the Moabitish territory.

16. HERE YOU SEE THE TERRITORY WHERE THIS WAS TAKING PLACE. The Israelites are now passing northward on the far side or eastern side of the Dead Sea, from Ar on up here to Zared. Here's the Land of Arnon & here's the Land of Heshbon. They're working their way up into this territory.

THEY'RE GOING TO CONQUER ALL OF THIS SIDE OF JORDAN FIRST, & 2 1/2 Tribes are going to settle down here on this side. Then they're going to cross the River Jordan over into the Promised Land. The conquest of the Amorites gave Israel possession of all the territory beyond Arnon & the Brook Jabbok.

17. EAST TO THE PLAIN OF JORDAN from Mount Nebo, they pitched in the Plains of Moab.

18. SCENES IN TRANSJORDANIA, on the east side of Jordan‚ the Arabian side.

19. HERE WAS EDREI, CAPITAL OF BASHAN, THE HOME OF THE GIANT KING OG. He was a big guy, one of the last of the giants, & he had a big long bedstead. They conquered him too. Sihon had been king over this territory south of Jabbok, which belonged to Moab.

BASHAN LAY BETWEEN THIS RIVER & MOUNT HERMON, source of the Jordan‚ & was ruled by giant King Og. His capital was here at Edrei. This is the northern part of that eastern side of Jordan near Mount Hermon, later on, the Mount of Transfiguration.

20. HERE WE HAVE ISRAEL CONQUERING SIHON & OG IN BASHAN. They conquered him with little effort, with the help of God. Deut.3. Today there is not a walled city east of Jordan. They broke down the walls of all the cities thereof & conquered them.

21. THEY ALSO CAPTURED GIANT KING OG OF BASHAN. I don't know whether they captured him in his bed or not. But they captured him & they got his bedstead—13-1/2 feet long! With the death of Og, all the giants were said to have been destroyed, "for only Og remained of the remnant of giants." (Deut.3:11.) However, you'll recall there were still some who were pretty big, like Goliath‚ who was nearly 10 feet tall!

22. HERE YOU SEE ALL THE TERRITORY from Mount Hermon, the source of the Jordan River, all the way down south, & all this territory on the east side of Jordan & the Dead Sea had been captured.

HERE THE TRIBES OF REUBEN, GAD & HALF OF THE TRIBE OF MANASSEH DECIDED THEY WANTED TO SETTLE DOWN‚ & it remained for the rest of the Tribes to cross the Jordan & conquer the Promised Land of Canaan. The only conditions on which Joshua allowed these 2 1/2 Tribes to settle down on the east side were: Provided they went across the Jordan with the rest of the Tribes—they could leave their wives & children behind, but they were to cross the Jordan & help them conquer the rest of the territory.

23. THIS IS BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY SCENES HERE IN BASHAN. Look at the beautiful Bridal Veil Falls. This is Baal–meon.

24. HERE ARE SOME RUINS OF AN ANCIENT ROMAN AQUEDUCT IN MOAB. The Romans covered this country at one time.

25. BALAK, THE KIND OF MOAB, NOW BEGINS TO WORRY ABOUT ISRAEL TAKING OVER THE WHOLE COUNTRY. So‚ he decides to hire Balaam. Balaam was a prophet, & he could prophesy the future & tell you what was going to happen to people & different things. Also he could curse, & it came to pass.

THE ONLY THING BALAK & BALAAM SEEMED TO FORGET WAS THAT BALAAM COULDN'T DO A THING WITHOUT GOD! He couldn't curse anybody, unless it was the curse of God & therefore‚ would come to pass. This prophet was not very good at heart, because he actually considered the idea of getting paid by King Balak to curse Israel, which certainly was not the Will of God, at this particular time!

BALAAM HAD BEEN TWICE ASSURED THAT HE COULD NOT CURSE ISRAEL; & when he went the 3rd time, he was met by an angel that would have slain him, if it hadn't been for his donkey. His donkey stopped just in time, to keep Balaam from getting killed!

26. BALAAM SAYS HE CAN'T CURSE THEM BECAUSE GOD'S BLESSED THEM! Balak, on the right, the typical king with big sword on his side, gets mad. He feels like cursing Balaam—because he's paid him lots of money to curse the Children of Israel, & he doesn't do anything but bless them instead! That beautiful blessing is in Numbers 22 & 25. He blesses them abundantly & gives some very wonderful prophecies regarding the future of Israel.

27. THIS IS BAAL-PEOR‚ WHERE HE TRIED TO CURSE THEM, but instead he blessed them. Israel, at this time, did not attack Moab directly; but Moab attacked Israel in a very subtle fashion—through her women! Many were induced to worship the false god of Baal, by these foolish women of Moab. And they were put to death by Joshua here at Baal-peor.

28. THIS IS ABELSHITTIM. Israel is now encamped on the Plains of Moab at Abelshittim, & Moses divides the Land, at this time, amongst them & commissions Joshua to be the leader in the conquest of Canaan. He gives the rules for their future conduct.

29. THE WATERFALLS HERE EAST OF JORDAN. Now they are in the midst of the fruitfulness of the land in abundance, & they begin to see what the Land of Promise is going to be like.

30. HERE'S ANOTHER SHOT OF SOME OF THE WONDERFUL WATER OF THAT AREA. This one is still called, to this day, the Spring of Moses. Aaron died on Mount Hor near here, & Moses' own end now is nigh. Remember, he got mad at the waters of Meribah, & the Lord became angry at him & says, "You shall die in the Mount, because you trespassed against me amongst the Children of Israel, at the waters of Meribah!"

31. HERE GOD COMMANDED MOSES TO GO UP ON TO MOUNT NEBO, which is later called Mount Pisgah. Israel's still encamped at Abel–shittim, & just beyond Jordan is Jericho. They're getting ready now to cross over the Jordan.

32. HERE IS MOUNT NEBO. where dear old Moses went, at his feet is the Dead Sea. Just beyond the mountains of Judea, he can see out here across the Dead Sea to the Land of Promise, that he was never allowed to reach in person in this life.

33. MOSES STOOD UP HERE VIEWING THE LAND FROM PISGAH'S LOFTY HEIGHT. Nevertheless, despite all of his meekness, patience & long-suffering, because of that sin & his disobedience to the Lord, he was not allowed to go in the Promised Land.

HE'D ACCOMPLISHED HIS MISSION, HE'D DONE A GREAT JOB, one of the biggest jobs anybody has ever done in all history! The only time anyone has ever moved an entire nation of people, numbering into the millions, through a desert for 40 years, into a land to become their habitation!

34. SO, HERE ON TOP OF MOUNT NEBO‚ "MOSES THE SERVANT OF THE LORD DIED IN THE LAND OF MOAB, according to the Word of the Lord. And He buried him in a valley in the Land of Moab, over against Beth-peor: But no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day." (Deut.34:5 & 6.) God's Word says later on, that the Devil wrestled with the Angel of the Lord over the body of Moses. (Jude:9.) What was peculiar about Moses when he died?:

AT 120 YEARS OF AGE, HIS EYE WAS NOT DIM, NEITHER HIS NATURAL FORCE ABATED! He was just as strong & healthy as he'd ever been—that's amazing, wasn't it! God blessed him with good health anyhow, in spite of all his disappointments.

35. YOU SEE HERE MOSES STRETCHED OUT, in the artist's conception of how he must have died.

36. THE MOHAMMEDANS PLACE HIS TOMB ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE JORDAN, & as a monument to his memory, they've built this great Mosque. Many pilgrims from afar visit it annually. Why do the Mohammedans also worship or revere Abraham & Moses? 'Cause Arabs are also descendants of these great men.

THIS IS TYPICAL OF SOME OF THE MISTAKES OF MOHAMMEDANISM: Claiming that this is the tomb of Moses, when God's Word says, no man knows where he is buried to this very day. God's Word leaves it a mystery & we don't have to know! Moses was faithful to the Lord to his death. Even in spite of the disappointments, he kept serving God & carrying the people through & faithful cared for the Children of Israel! He faithfully fought for them, even when God was disgusted & through with'm!

MOSES WAS THE IDEAL PASTOR OF THE SHEEP OF GOD‚ & FAITHFUL TO THE END! Typical of most pastoring: The sheep seldom‚ if ever, appreciate it, & usually complain & murmur about their leadership—as they did poor Moses! But he loved them just the same, & took care of them anyhow, & tried to teach'm & bring them through.

DON'T EVER THINK THAT PASTORING ANY GROUP OF SHEEP IS GOING TO BE VERY REWARDING HERE! Don't ever look to man to get your thanks! Moses didn't get much thanks from man, die he? But God will reward him & has already rewarded him, I'm sure, & he'll have a great place in the Kingdom of God, in the future, here on Earth—because of his faithfulness to the Lord! That's a wonderful story & gives us a good example of faithfulness, to be patient as pastors!

Review Questions for Chapter 14:

1. On the border of what country is Israel camped?

2. Who are the Moabites?

3. Were they related to the Israelites?

4. Did Israel pass through Moab?

5. On what river did they camp?

6. Are they out of the desert?

7. The Arnon was the boundary of what 2 countries?

8. How had the Amorites acquired their land?

9. Who was the Amorite king?

10. Did Sihon permit passage through his country?

11. What did Israel then do?

12. Was Sihon defeated?

13. What was his capital city?

14. What territory has now been conquered by Israel?

15. Where is their next camp?

16. Where is the River Jabbok?

17. Who was king north of this river?

18. What was his country called?

19. What was the capital?

20. What was unusual about King Og?

21. What territory is now in the hands of Israel?

22. Of what country was Balak the king?

23. Why did he send for Balaam?

24. Where did Balaam live?

25. Why did Balaam meet an angel?

26. Did Israel attack Moab?

27. What happened at Baal–Peor?

28. Is Moses informed he cannot enter the Promised Land? Why?

29. Who is apt to take Moses' place?

30. How long had they been en route?

31. Who went up on Nebo?

32. Why?

33. Where is Moses buried?

34. Who buried him?

35. What was Moses' age?

Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family