 |
|
     |
|
|
|
Numbers 13:32
Throughout the OT, the land promised to Israel is described as a “land flowing with milk and honey.E This is an image of rich abundance, of course, but it is particularly an image of the rich abundance of food. God did not choose a land where Israel would suffer famine, hunger and thirst, but a land that would satisfy them with its fatness. In giving the land, Yahweh gave food and drink to His people with an open hand.
The 10 unfaithful spies don’t see it that way. In their view, the land is a very different sort of land. Instead of being a land that provides food, it is a land that makes its inhabitants food. It is a land that eats, not a land that feeds. The land will not fill Israel, but will be filled with Israel.
But this, we know, is simply a matter of their fearful unbelief. They had already admitted that the land does flow with milk and honey, and they brought back a cluster of grapes that had to be carried by two men (vv. 23, 27). When they shrank back in unbelief, however, their perception of the land changed; they ignored the evidence of their own senses and argued instead that the land would kill Israel.
In Christ, we have been brought into an even better land; Christ Himself is our promised land, the one “in whomEwe live and move and the “groundEthat provides us with abundant food. Each week, we are reminded that Christ is our land flowing with milk and honey, a land of bread and wine, who gives Himself as our food and drink. But unbelief can make this land too appear barren and unfruitful, threatening and dangerous. So, come to this table in faith, believing that the promised land has already been given. Come to this bread in faith, trusting that Christ will feed You. Receive the wine with thanksgiving, believing that Jesus is the source of all life and health. Because He is.
posted by Peter J. Leithart on Sunday, June 20, 2004 at 08:31 AM
Permission is given to use material on this site, provided the source is cited, blog entries are republished in full, and the author is notified in advance.
1 & 2 Kings
Brazos Theological Commentary
The Promise Of His Appearing: An Exposition Of Second Peter
A Great Mystery: Fourteen Wedding Sermons
Deep Comedy: Trinity, Tragedy, And Hope In Western Literature
Miniatures & Morals: The Christian Novels of Jane Austen
The Priesthood of the Plebs: A Theology of Baptism
A Son To Me: An Exposition of 1 & 2 Samuel
From Silence to Song: The Davidic Liturgical Revolution
Ascent to Love: A Guide to Dante's Divine Comedy
Blessed Are the Hungry: Meditations on the Lord's Supper
A House For My Name: A Survey of the Old Testament
Heroes of the City of Man: A Christian Guide to Select Ancient Literature
Brightest Heaven of Invention: A Christian Guide To Six Shakespeare Plays
Wise Words: Family Stories That Bring the Proverbs to Life
The Kingdom and the Power: Rediscovering the Centrality of the Church
