There is probably no surer way of wounding a person’s ego, so putting his humility to the test, than to subject him to unjust criticism and misrepresentation. Such an experience came to Moses. His reaction vindicates a quite remarkable tribute: “Now the man Moses was very humble, more so than anyone else on the face of the earth” (Num. 12:3 NRSV).
The context of this statement is in itself illuminating for the tribute is recorded in connection with what must have been a particularly painful incident for Moses. He was openly attacked by his sister, Miriam, and his brother, Aaron, who sought to challenge his authority, using as a pretext the fact he had married an Ethiopian (Cushite RV, NRSV) woman.
Moses owed much to Miriam
The instigator of this challenge, as what follows makes abundantly clear, was Miriam. Unquestionably Moses owed much to her. Although her name is not given in Exodus 2, she must have been the sister whose vigilance and timely intervention were to have such extraordinary consequences. When the life of the infant Moses was in jeopardy as the result of Pharaoh’s heartless decree, his mother placed him in a floating cradle among reeds by the river’s edge (Ex. 2:3). Miriam, probably seven or eight at the time, was given by her mother the responsibility of keeping a watchful eye upon the babe and tending to his needs.
It was a situation fraught with danger but the outcome had an almost romantic character. We remember how the Egyptian princess saw the child and realized at once why it had been so hidden: “This is one of the Hebrew children” (v.6), and her compassion was roused. The vigilant Miriam, with quick intelligence, inquired whether she could find a mother among the Hebrew women to nurse the child. So it was that Moses was entrusted to his natural mother, Jochebed, who was suitably remunerated for her services, and generously, we can be sure (v.9).
If ever a benevolent providence was at work, it was in this series of episodes. While our subject is not now concerned with the upbringing of Moses, we can a least take note that, during those early formative years, the mother saw to it that her son was fully informed about the people to whom he belonged, and what God had promised to his forebears, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Miriam prominent in Israel
We now pass rapidly over the next 40 years until Moses, intervening in a quarrel between two of his kinsmen, found himself exiled in Midian. Another forty years were to go by until, at the end of them, the Lord God revealed Himself to Moses at the burning bush. He was now 80 years old (for this information we are indebted to Stephen, Acts 7:23,30).
Miriam was to have a distinguished role in the exciting events following the delivery of the Israelites from their Egyptian bondage. In Exodus 15, we have the record of the great song of deliverance in which Moses led the people Miriam played her part she is described as a prophetess, leading the women in song and in dance, intoning “Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously, the horse and the rider hath he thrown into the sea” (v 21)
These were unquestionably exciting times, days of euphoria In the great events of the Exodus, the family of Amram and Jochebed (Ex 620) was used by Yahweh as His agents, leaders of the people, and this is recognized by the prophet Micah “For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of bondage, and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron and Miriam” (Mic 6:4 RV)
While we must acknowledge that the Lord God knowingly chose Aaron and Miriam, Moses was the central character in the process of deliverance As we have seen m a previous study (Tidings, 11/97, p 415), Aaron was designated by God to be High Priest, but before he assumed his office, he disgraced himself by weakly yielding to the people m setting up of the golden calf We saw, too, m that same study that Aaron merited death but Moses graciously intervened on his behalf (Deut 9 20)
Miriam became jealous of Moses
We now come to Numbers 12 where we are m the second year after the departure from Egypt (Num 11) and the memory of those exciting events is beginning to fade We have certainly heard about Aaron in Leviticus and Numbers, both good and bad, but what of Miriam? Not a word It does not take a great deal of imagination to read her mind She may well have said to herself, and to others “It is all very well for Moses, but what abut us? God also chose us, and Moses occupies all the limelight ” She may also, m one of those moods of self-congratulation, to which we are all prone, have said “But for what I did, there would be no Moses now” In such moments, we exalt ourselves and forget the God to whom we owe everything If indeed Miriam had acted as a savior to the baby Moses and prophetess in Israel (Ex 15 21), she is now forgetting that, but for God’s mighty acts of deliverance, there would have been no song to sing.
Her pride is hurt and when that occurs, men and women, you and me, tend to act petulantly Miriam seeks to discredit Moses to advance her own cause. She is fully aware of the position her brother holds m the eyes of the people, accordingly she seeks to undermine his authority by trying to destroy his reputation.
Aaron’s support solicited
Her first approach may have been to her brother, Aaron If so, it would not be too difficult to mislead him, as she herself knew from the golden calf incident She may have pointed out that God had used both of them, Miriam and Aaron, as well as Moses.
As Moses’ behavior had been above reproach, Miriam exploited the fact Moses had married a Cushite woman This may have been Zipporah, who was a Midianite She certainly had not acted as a true Israelites, for she had objected to the circumcision of her son (Ex 424-26) Moses, it must also be said, had been at fault m this matter If Zipporah was the Cushite woman, that implies identity between Midian and Cushan, or Ethiopia. There is, apparently, some evidence for such an identification. Others think Moses had contracted a second marriage about which we know nothing.
What is of importance is that Miriam thought she had found legitimate ground for her criticism of Moses. But we cannot deceive the Almighty, and He knew this was a trumped up charge of no real consequence.
God’s anger with Miriam
Miriam’s criticism was unworthy, prompted by pique and jealousy. The Lord accordingly instructed Moses, Aaron and Miriam to report at the tabernacle. There it was plain that Moses was in a different category from the other two: the great faithfulness of Moses is recognized (Num. 12:7), as is the unique way in which God communicates with him: “With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles, he sees the form of the LORD” (v. 8 NIV). These last words appear to be an allusion to the unique theophany of Exodus 34.
God did not intervene merely by vindicating Moses; He showed His extreme displeasure with Miriam and Aaron. They were soundly rebuked for speaking against God’s servant (Num. 12:8-9). Miriam, as chief conspirator and rebel, was smitten with leprosy, her skin becoming white as snow (v. 10). She must have been a sorry sight.
It appears Aaron had had misgivings about the whole operation, for on seeing his sister’s state, he calls Moses his lord, and contritely pleads for forgiveness. He is distressed for his sister. How easily could Moses have shrugged his shoulders and said: “Surely you don’t expect me to do anything for you in these circumstances?” Here again we see a remarkable example of forgiveness and nobility on the part of Moses. He calls aloud on God to heal her.
Miriam is indeed healed, but only conditionally; she is excluded from the camp for seven days.
Humility not automatic with age
There is a great deal to be learned from Miriam’s case. Let us remember that this is no inexperienced young woman. She must have been nearly 90 when she engineered the challenge to Moses – age and experience clearly do not preserve us from folly. Throughout our lives, there is the danger of seeking to promote our ego. The antidote lies in a recognition of the need for a continuing and growing humility. Even that noble character Moses, so marvelously humble, was to fail toward the end of his life (Num. 20:7-13).
Yet, while we recognize Moses’ fallibility, how many lessons can we learn from the truly great servant of Yahweh. His readiness to intercede, even for those unjustly critical of him, sets a standard for each of us.
Miriam reenters the camp and then disappears from the record until, finally, we read about her death (Num. 20:1) when, perhaps significantly, there is no record of national mourning. The tragedy of her abortive rebellion, prompted by envy and ambition, is mentioned by Moses as a warning to the children of Israel (Deut. 24:9), and to all succeeding generations. Prompted by envy and ambition, Miriam’s conduct warns us, no matter our age, to beware the sins of pride and to emulate the humility of Moses.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One