Numbers 34:16-29 NKJV
16 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “These are the names of the men who shall divide the land among you as an inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun. 18 And you shall take one leader of every tribe to divide the land for the inheritance. 19 These are the names of the men: from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 20 from the tribe of the children of Simeon, Shemuel the son of Ammihud; 21 from the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon; 22 a leader from the tribe of the children of Dan, Bukki the son of Jogli; 23 from the sons of Joseph: a leader from the tribe of the children of Manasseh, Hanniel the son of Ephod, 24 and a leader from the tribe of the children of Ephraim, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan; 25 a leader from the tribe of the children of Zebulun, Elizaphan the son of Parnach; 26 a leader from the tribe of the children of Issachar, Paltiel the son of Azzan; 27 a leader from the tribe of the children of Asher, Ahihud the son of Shelomi; 28 and a leader from the tribe of the children of Naphtali, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.”
29 These are the ones the Lord commanded to divide the inheritance among the children of Israel in the land of Canaan.
What an honor to have been chosen by God as a leader of one of these tribes of Israel. The Lord had promised this land to their ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob centuries before. Now these men, under the leadership of Eleazar the high priest and Joshua, are called to divide the land of promise. These were the men to whom God gave this unique vocation. These men would have entered this holy calling in joy—for God was using them to serve His people and fulfill His promises.
They would have also entered this unique vocation with humility. There is, after all, a hint of warning in this table of names. Each one of these men is the son of their father. Jephunneh, Ammihud, Chislon, Jogli, Ephod, Shiphtan, Parnach, Azzan, Shelomi, and Ammihud—these leaders’ fathers—were among the generation of Israel who had rebelled against the Lord. For their stubborn refusal to believe the Lord’s promises, the Lord punished that generation of Israel. He told them, “Your sons shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years, and bear the brunt of your infidelity, until your carcasses are consumed in the wilderness” (Nu 14:33). The men whom God chose in today’s reading step into this unique calling, both warned by their father’s example and trusting God’s promise to give this land to Israel, just as He had said.
God calls all His people into unique vocations. He calls a man to be husband to a certain woman and father to certain children. He calls a woman to be wife to a certain man and mother to certain children. Others He calls to remain single and serve others in that capacity. God calls some men to be pastors of specific congregations. He calls others to be rulers with specific jurisdictions. He calls all people to labor, so that in whatever way a Christian is employed, it is an opportunity to serve the specific neighbors with whom he interacts. Do not be unbelieving, but believing, trusting that God has placed you in your callings for His glory, the service of your neighbor, and to bless you and your work. This makes every vocation an honor.
Let us pray: Grant us faith, O Lord, that we embrace our vocations in humility and trust, knowing that wherever we find ourselves, we are where You want us to be. Amen.