Back to Egypt! Wait- what?!

And they said to each other, “We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” –Numbers 14:4 (NIV)

This statement has to rival some of the stupidest words ever conceived inside a human brain. It had been a year and change since the children of Israel left Egypt. Under God’s direction and Moses’ leadership, they had received the law, set up the tabernacle, counted and organized the tribes, established the priesthood, celebrated their first Passover, begun training an army, and left their basecamp at Sinai.

They had also complained about the food, the accommodations, and their leadership. They had fabricated and worshiped a golden calf. They had shown a consistent lack of gratitude or mental toughness. It’s no wonder God had spoken, openly and on multiple occasions, about obliterating them and starting over. Nevertheless, He remained faithful in the face of their faithlessness, meeting their every need.

“Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.” –George Carlin

The words recorded in Numbers 14 came after the twelve spies gave their reports on a 40-day reconnaissance mission into the land God had promised them. On the advice of ten of the spies (whose names are now barely a footnote in the history of Israel), the people decided that the same God they had repeatedly seen perform mighty works of deliverance and provision on their behalf would be unable to make good on His promises to give them the land of Canaan.

Their solution? “Let’s just go back to Egypt!” They found the life of slavery they had left behind somehow preferable to the one they were embarking on as a free people living under the rule and protection of YHWH. Did they think the Egyptians would be glad to see them? Did they expect that the still-decimated, post-plague Egyptian economy could even support them? Truth be told, they had likely given zero thought to outcomes or consequences or “what happens next?”.

There is a way which seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death. –Proverbs 14:12 (WEB)

Surely, we wouldn’t fall prey to that kind of stupidity. Would we? Personally, and as a society, we have short memories and poor impulse control. We tend to forget the goodness of God – where we began and how far He has brought us. We experience events, even seasons, that fail to meet our expectations of what God was supposed to be doing in our life, in the church, in the world. We begin to romanticize the idea of going back to Egypt. Never mind that Egypt wasn’t that good to start with and it’s only gone downhill since we left.

Let’s remember who God is and remember who we are in Him. He is sovereign, He is holy, He is strong and He is good. And the things He wants for us go way beyond how things may look to our limited line of sight at a particular point in time. Like Israel, we aren’t home yet, but we’ll never get there dreaming of Egypt.

You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. –Psalm 16:11 (NIV)