By the Numbers

What a contrast--from the book of John with its rich metaphors of light and life, with endless variations--to Numbers, a book of, well, numbers.

I'm sad I didn't get to blog on John. First, the paper and getting ready to leave for New York consumed me, and then while I was in New York, with tons of time, I had no internet. Still, I'm grateful I kept up with the reading. I love looking at the life of Christ, especially at Easter.

And now we are in Numbers, which in terms of literary genre, is basically the antithesis of John. Whereas John is story, and metaphor, and allegory, Numbers is categorization and organization. John is narrative; Numbers is science.

I naturally prefer narrative, but it is important to recognize that God use both narrative and science to communicate His story to us.

And so now we look at Numbers.

A few months ago, when I started reading the Bible from beginning to end on my own, I read Numbers, expecting a dry account of the people of Israel, their time in the desert, and lots of counting. I was not expecting to find deep truths the nature of God, communicated through the endless lists and genealogies. I am excited to revisit the book, and am trusting God to reveal himself to me through this book again.