Numbers 16:41-5041But on the morrow all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron, saying, Ye have killed the people of the Lord. 42And it came to pass, when the congregation was gathered against Moses and against Aaron, that they looked toward the tabernacle of the congregation: and, behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared. 43And Moses and Aaron came before the tabernacle of the congregation. 44And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 45Get you up from among this congregation, that I may consume them as in a moment. And they fell upon their faces. 46And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from the Lord; the plague is begun. 47And Aaron took as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the congregation; and, behold, the plague was begun among the people: and he put on incense, and made an atonement for the people. 48And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed. 49Now they that died in the plague were fourteen thousand and seven hundred, beside them that died about the matter of Korah. 50And Aaron returned unto Moses unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and the plague was stayed. (Numbers 16:41‑50)
The 250 men who had dared to test their title to the priesthood by offering incense had been consumed by fire. God would now show who was His choice and the value of the high priest whom they had despised. Eleazar the son of Aaron was instructed to take all their censers and out of them to make broad plates with which to cover the altar. This was to be a memorial or warning that no strangers, not of the seed of Aaron, were to come near to offer incense to the Lord.
In spite of the solemn judgments they had just witnessed the hearts of the people were hard and unrepentant, for on the morrow there was a fresh outbreak of murmurings. They came to Moses and Aaron saying, “Ye have killed the people of the Lord.” Defiant of God they would still maintain the right of the princes who had died to offer incense. They charged Moses with slaying righteous men, and were willingly ignorant that it was the Lord whose judgment had destroyed them. In reality they were saying God was unrighteous in what He had done. This was solemn indeed. It brought down further judgment for suddenly the glory of the Lord appeared and the plague destroyed 14,700 more of the people.
It was a climax to their wickedness but God in His wondrous mercy used the circumstances to confirm the priesthood of Aaron. How wonderful is His mercy! Truly, “where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.”
God had confirmed Aaron’s title to the priesthood by His judgment on the princes who had dared to dispute that title. Now Aaron was commanded to intervene in mercy for those dying from the plague. He was to take a censer, put fire from off the altar in it, then put on incense and go quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them. Aaron did so, “And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed.”
In Aaron standing between the dead and the living we have a lovely picture of Christ. In the coming day He will intervene on behalf of God’s earthly people. The sword of judgment will be sheathed and the little remnant will be spared, restored and become a great nation.
But He is all this and more for us His people now. The fire taken from off the altar speaks of divine judgment which Christ Himself has borne for us. The incense is the sweet savor of His Person and work which ascended up to God, the preciousness of Him who bore the judgment so that God can arrest the power of death and be righteous in doing so.
How precious to think that in Aaron’s putting the incense on the fire, we have a picture of Christ pleading before God the merits of His one atoning sacrifice and putting God in remembrance of it! Our failures deserve God’s righteous judgment but the sweet incense of Christ is ever before Him and He sees us as sprinkled with the blood.
Like Aaron standing between the dead and the living, so Christ has gone within the veil by His own blood to make intercession for us. We are on the living side of the Priest and the death angel cannot pass. Sweet it is to hear Him say: “I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.” John 10:2828And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. (John 10:28).
ML-12/02/1973