Two Against One
Numbers 12
Wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses? [Numbers 12:8]
In the affections of the people and the honor of Heaven she [Miriam] stood second only to Moses and Aaron. But the same evil that first brought discord in heaven sprang up in the heart of this woman of Israel, and she did not fail to find a sympathizer in her dissatisfaction…
Had Aaron stood up firmly for the right, he might have checked the evil; but instead of showing Miriam the sinfulness of her conduct, he sympathized with her, listened to her words of complaint, and thus came to share her jealousy.
In the appointment of the seventy elders Miriam and Aaron had not been consulted, and their jealousy was excited against Moses… Miriam and Aaron had never known the weight of care and responsibility which had rested upon Moses; yet because they had been chosen to aid him they regarded themselves as sharing equally with him the burden of leadership, and they regarded the appointment of further assistants as uncalled for…
“And they said, Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us?” Regarding themselves as equally favored by God, they felt that they were entitled to the same position and authority…
God had chosen Moses, and had put His Spirit upon him; and Miriam and Aaron, by their murmurings, were guilty of disloyalty, not only to their appointed leader, but to God Himself…
He who has placed upon men the heavy responsibility of leaders and teachers of His people will hold the people accountable for the manner in which they treat His servants. We are to honor those whom God has honored. The judgment visited upon Miriam should be a rebuke to all who yield to jealousy, and murmur against those upon whom God lays the burden of His work.
