God's Guidance Is Never Late . . . and Rarely Early

July 24, 2019

God's Guidance Is Never Late . . . and Rarely Early

Numbers 27

Benson Hines

Central Truth

God wants to guide us, but He has His own timetable. So we should ask for guidance often and wait for guidance patiently.

Moses brought their case before the LORD. And the LORD said to Moses . . . .

The Daughters of Zelophehad

1 Then drew near the daughters of Zelophehad the son of Hepher, son of Gilead, son of Machir, son of Manasseh, from the clans of Manasseh the son of Joseph. The names of his daughters were: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. 2 And they stood before Moses and before Eleazar the priest and before the chiefs and all the congregation, at the entrance of the tent of meeting, saying, 3 “Our father died in the wilderness. He was not among the company of those who gathered themselves together against the LORD in the company of Korah, but died for his own sin. And he had no sons. 4 Why should the name of our father be taken away from his clan because he had no son? Give to us a possession among our father's brothers.”

5 Moses brought their case before the LORD. 6 And the LORD said to Moses, 7 “The daughters of Zelophehad are right. You shall give them possession of an inheritance among their father's brothers and transfer the inheritance of their father to them. 8 And you shall speak to the people of Israel, saying, ‘If a man dies and has no son, then you shall transfer his inheritance to his daughter. 9 And if he has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to his brothers. 10 And if he has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his father's brothers. 11 And if his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to the nearest kinsman of his clan, and he shall possess it. And it shall be for the people of Israel a statute and rule, as the LORD commanded Moses.’”

Joshua to Succeed Moses

12 The LORD said to Moses, “Go up into this mountain of Abarim and see the land that I have given to the people of Israel. 13 When you have seen it, you also shall be gathered to your people, as your brother Aaron was, 14 because you rebelled against my word in the wilderness of Zin when the congregation quarreled, failing to uphold me as holy at the waters before their eyes.” (These are the waters of Meribah of Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.) 15 Moses spoke to the LORD, saying, 16 “Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation 17 who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the LORD may not be as sheep that have no shepherd.” 18 So the LORD said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him. 19 Make him stand before Eleazar the priest and all the congregation, and you shall commission him in their sight. 20 You shall invest him with some of your authority, that all the congregation of the people of Israel may obey. 21 And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before the LORD. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the people of Israel with him, the whole congregation.” 22 And Moses did as the LORD commanded him. He took Joshua and made him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation, 23 and he laid his hands on him and commissioned him as the LORD directed through Moses.

You may have heard people say that "God isn't our personal genie." In other words, we shouldn't treat prayer like rubbing a lamp, expecting God to give us exactly what we want when we want it. But what about when it comes to God's guidance?

The two stories in Numbers 27 may not seem to have much in common, but both involve the Israelites needing some very specific wisdom. Each time, Moses "brought [the] case before the LORD" (Numbers 27:5). And each time, God gave very clear replies. As always, God told His people what they needed to know, when they needed to know it!

But here's what I notice: God could have shared this information much earlier.

For instance, the daughters of Zelophehad were noticed during the census (Numbers 26:33), and God could easily have provided a "daughters-only rule" when discussing land inheritance at that time. Likewise, God could have named Joshua "Leader-in-Waiting" years before this moment. We can even imagine that life might have been less stressful (for Zelo's daughters) or more focused (for Joshua) if God had shared His instructions earlier.

Even though we can think of "good reasons" for speedier guidance, God knew best. This chapter fits God's pattern, too. Remember, the Israelites had already spent decades with God's cloud showing them whether each new day was a "travel day" or a "stay-here day" (Numbers 9:15-23). Instead of giving Israel a roadmap or blueprint, God often gave them just enough direction for the day ahead, the battle in front, or the question of the moment.

God wants this kind of daily, personal relationship with us, too. God has good and loving reasons to require us to come back to Him, again and again, for guidance. And when He makes us wait for His guidance—even guidance that feels urgently needed—we can trust He has good reasons for the apparent delay.

God is never late with His guidance, but He's not necessarily early either. How often do we move forward without that guidance only to discover God had better plans if we had been patient?

1. Has there been a time recently when you knew you needed God's guidance? Did you ask for it? Did you wait for it?

2. If God had given His guidance earlier, how would the lives of Zelophehad's daughters, Moses, or Joshua been easier? On the other hand, what blessings and growth might have come because God gave guidance when He did?

3. How do the three commands of Proverbs 3:5-6 connect to this chapter?

4. God can show us His guidance in various ways, but the most important (and only perfect) way is God's Word, the Bible. If the Bible really does provide God's perfect guidance for our lives, how much time have you spent getting to know it? Maybe the guidance you need now has been in the Bible all along! What can you do this month to get to know the Bible's principles and directions better? What steps can you take—and whom can you talk with—to find answers when you don't know what the Bible has to say about a topic?