Audio Download

Numbers 17:1-13  The Budding of Aaron’s Rod

[Study Aired August 28, 2023]

Num 17:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 17:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of every one of them a rod according to the house of their fathers, of all their princes according to the house of their fathers twelve rods: write thou every man’s name upon his rod. 
Num 17:3  And thou shalt write Aaron’s name upon the rod of Levi: for one rod shall be for the head of the house of their fathers. 
Num 17:4  And thou shalt lay them up in the tabernacle of the congregation before the testimony, where I will meet with you. 
Num 17:5  And it shall come to pass, that the man’s rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you. 
Num 17:6  And Moses spake unto the children of Israel, and every one of their princes gave him a rod apiece, for each prince one, according to their fathers’ houses, even twelve rods: and the rod of Aaron was among their rods. 
Num 17:7  And Moses laid up the rods before the LORD in the tabernacle of witness. 
Num 17:8  And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds. 
Num 17:9  And Moses brought out all the rods from before the LORD unto all the children of Israel: and they looked, and took every man his rod. 
Num 17:10  And the LORD said unto Moses, Bring Aaron’s rod again before the testimony, to be kept for a token against the rebels; and thou shalt quite take away their murmurings from me, that they die not. 
Num 17:11  And Moses did so: as the LORD commanded him, so did he.
Num 17:12  And the children of Israel spake unto Moses, saying, Behold, we die, we perish, we all perish. 
Num 17:13  Whosoever cometh anything near unto the tabernacle of the LORD shall die: shall we be consumed with dying? 

Introduction

Chapter 17 deals with who has the right to rule with Christ. Our brothers and sisters in Babylon think they represent the Lord’s elect and therefore have the right to rule with Christ. Their eyes have been blinded to understand spiritually the difference between a Levite and a priest in the Old Testament. As we shall see in chapter 18, the Lord emphasized the role of a Levite and that of a priest to make us know who is to inherit the kingdoms of this world.  As we saw in chapter 16, Korah, Dathan and Abiram, who represent Babylon, thought they had the right to rule the Lord’s people and therefore rose up against Moses and Aaron. Chapter 17 is there to make clear whom the Lord has chosen to rule with Him. 

Throughout the Bible, the right to rule has been contested by many. For example, when David was about to die, his son Adonijah felt that he had the legitimate right as a son to the throne, but in the final analysis, he was not chosen.

1Ki 1:5  Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will be king: and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.
1Ki 1:6  And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why hast thou done so? and he also was a very goodly man; and his mother bare him after Absalom. 
1Ki 1:7  And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped him.
1Ki 1:8  But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men which belonged to David, were not with Adonijah.
1Ki 1:9  And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the stone of Zoheleth, which is by Enrogel, and called all his brethren the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah the king’s servants: 
1Ki 1:10  But Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not. 

1Ki 1:28  Then king David answered and said, Call me Bathsheba. And she came into the king’s presence, and stood before the king. 
1Ki 1:29  And the king sware, and said, As the LORD liveth, that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress, 
1Ki 1:30  Even as I sware unto thee by the LORD God of Israel, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead; even so will I certainly do this day.

What we need to know is that it is not our desire or decision to rule that counts. It is all about the Lord’s mercy, as He has already chosen us, His elect in Him, before the foundation of the world to rule with Him. It was therefore not about the number of sheep or oxen slaughtered on the altar by Adonijah that was important, it was the fact that David had made a promise to Bathsheba many years before the issue came up that her son Solomon would become king. It was therefore not what Solomon had done that mattered.

Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. 
Rom 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. 
Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. 

Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 
Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 
Eph 1:6  To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. 
Eph 1:7  In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; 
Eph 1:8  Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence; 
Eph 1:9  Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: 
Eph 1:10  That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

Adonijah represents Babylon whose sacrifice of love to the Lord is obvious for everyone to see in this world as shown by the number of sheep and oxen that he slaughtered as sacrifice to the Lord. In 1 Kings 1:6 it was stated that he was very handsome and that his father David had not displeased him at any time. Outwardly, Babylon looks very beautiful, and because she is not being judged in this life (the father had not displeased her), she thinks she is called and chosen and therefore has the claim to rulership. This brings to mind the story of the prodigal son’s brother who thought that because his father had not rebuked him, he was destined to inherit his father’s possessions. He was therefore displeased to see the other son being rewarded by the father. 

Luk 15:25  “Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 
Luk 15:26  And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 
Luk 15:27  And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’
Luk 15:28  But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 
Luk 15:29  but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 
Luk 15:30  But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 
Luk 15:31  And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 

The older brother being in the field means that he was of the world and that is where Babylon is. The man telling his older son that “all that is mine is yours” does not mean that Babylon will also inherit the promise. What it means is that everything the Lord has created will be enjoyed by all humanity in the fullness of time. It has nothing to do with rulership.

In this study therefore, we shall look at the assurance and the signs the Lord has given in His words that we are chosen instead of our brothers and sisters in Babylon, to reign with Him.

Num 17:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 17:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of every one of them a rod according to the house of their fathers, of all their princes according to the house of their fathers twelve rods: write thou every man’s name upon his rod. 
Num 17:3  And thou shalt write Aaron’s name upon the rod of Levi: for one rod shall be for the head of the house of their fathers. 
Num 17:4  And thou shalt lay them up in the tabernacle of the congregation before the testimony, where I will meet with you. 
Num 17:5  And it shall come to pass, that the man’s rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you. 

We need to understand that it was the leaders of the various tribes who were requested to bring a rod. So, this whole controversy is about who has the right to rulership. That is, who will lead the people of the world represented in this case by the people of Israel. As we are aware, the whole world is groaning for the right kind of leaders to lead them. As the end of this age is approaching, countries all over the world are crying out about the bad leadership they are having which has brought untold hardships to the people. It is therefore the manifestation of the sons of God for which the world is waiting, but they are not aware of it. 

Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. 
Rom 8:20  For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, 
Rom 8:21  Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

The sons of God here in these verses refer to the Lord’s elect, but our brothers and sisters in Babylon think it is referring to them. The manifestation of the sons of God will come when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

To write one’s name on the rod as shown in verse 3 is the same as identifying with the rod or being represented by the rod just as those who are called and chosen have Christ’s name written on their forehead which means that we are representing Christ. This means that we are the rod.

Rev 22:4  And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.

In verse 4, the rods of the leaders are required to lie before the Lord in the tabernacle of the congregation. We represent the tabernacle of the congregation. What we are being told is that we are all manifested before the presence of the Lord and therefore all things are naked and opened before Him of whom we must give an account. 

Heb 4:13  Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. 

It is instructive to note that the Lord chose a rod to show to His elect and our Babylonian brothers and sisters who are chosen to rule with Him. In the Bible, a rod is used to signify a chastening rod for correction, a scepter for ruling or a walking stick, that is, a support for our walk with Christ. Here are the verses that show the different usage of a rod in the scriptures:

As a Chastening Rod for Correction

Psa 89:32  Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.

Pro 22:15  Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.

Lam 3:1  I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

As a Scepter for Ruling

Psa 110:2  The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.

Rev 2:27  And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

Rev 12:5  And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

As a Support for our Walk with Christ

Exo 4:17  And thou shalt take this rod in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt do signs.

Exo 4:20  And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand.

Exo 17:9  And Moses said unto Joshua, Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in mine hand.

What all of this means is that the one chosen and destined to rule is the one who is under the rod of correction (being judged) in this life and is being dragged to the finish line by Christ as his/her support. As stated in verse 5, the end result of being corrected with a rod and being supported by Christ is a life that blossoms to produce the fruit of righteousness. It is through the fruit of righteousness that we produce fruits, which will let people know that we are indeed chosen to rule with Christ. A dead wood (rod) cannot germinate and therefore cannot produce fruit. It is those who are spiritually alive who can produce the fruit of righteousness. 

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

Num 17:6  And Moses spake unto the children of Israel, and every one of their princes gave him a rod apiece, for each prince one, according to their fathers’ houses, even twelve rods: and the rod of Aaron was among their rods. 
Num 17:7  And Moses laid up the rods before the LORD in the tabernacle of witness. 
Num 17:8  And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds.

As indicated in previous studies, this age is regarded as one long night. The twelve rods lying before the tabernacle of witness spiritually signify our walk before the Lord in this vessel of clay, which is the temple of God or the tabernacle of witness. If we are called and chosen, then we shall not be dead wood (rod) before the Lord in this life, but will be a branch (rod) to the vine tree and therefore will surely bear the fruit of righteousness.

Joh 15:4  Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
Joh 15:5  I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
Joh 15:6  If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
Joh 15:7  If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. 
Joh 15:8  Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

The fruit that we are to bear is almonds which represent the fruit of the spirit, which is born out of a life of walking in the spirit and not fulfilling the desires of the flesh.

Gal 5:16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

Gal 5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 
Gal 5:23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Gal 5:24  And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. 
Gal 5:25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Gen 43:11  And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:

As stated above, one of the best fruits is almonds. In the tabernacle of the congregation, within the veil, symbols of almonds were engrafted on the branches and the stem of the candlestick before the Lord. 

Exo 37:19  Three bowls made after the fashion of almonds in one branch, a knop and a flower; and three bowls made like almonds in another branch, a knop and a flower: so throughout the six branches going out of the candlestick.
Exo 37:20  And in the candlestick were four bowls made like almonds, his knops, and his flowers:

As the word of God says, the candlestick represents the assembly or the church of the elect. The bowls fashioned like almonds on the branch of the candlestick seem to suggest that it is in the assembly of the elect that we are able to bear fruit of the Spirit through what every joint supplies. The fact that there are three bowls on a branch means that it is through the process of judgment (suffering) that we become spiritually mature as we produce the fruit of the Spirit (almonds). On the candlestick itself, there were four bowls made like almonds, which means that the whole of the elect of every generation is required to bear fruit of the spirit, signified by almonds. 

Rev 1:20  The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

The fact that the candlestick is within the veil of the temple means that it is only the priests who see the almonds on the candlesticks. What this suggests is that in this age, it is only the elect (priests) who see the fruit of the spirit (almonds) that we are bearing. It is when tomorrow or the morning came that the whole of the people of Israel saw that it was only Aaron’s rod that budded and bore the fruit of almonds. In a similar pattern, it is in the dawn of a new Age characterized by the kingdoms of this world becoming the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ that the whole world, signified by the people of Israel, will see the Lord’s elect who will rule with Christ as our rods have budded and produced the fruit of the Spirit.

2Pe 1:19  We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: 

Num 17:9  And Moses brought out all the rods from before the LORD unto all the children of Israel: and they looked, and took every man his rod. 
Num 17:10  And the LORD said unto Moses, Bring Aaron’s rod again before the testimony, to be kept for a token against the rebels; and thou shalt quite take away their murmurings from me, that they die not.

Every man taking his rod in the morning signifies that at the dawn of a new age, our brothers and sisters in Babylon, together with the whole world, will come to know who are the elect and therefore accept their fate that they are not the elect. That is the same as the five foolish virgins who came to the five wise virgins to ask for oil as their lamps had gone out, but the wise responded that they should go and buy oil for themselves. Their lamp going out means their rods never budded and therefore could not subsequently produce almonds (the fruit of the Spirit). The five virgins telling them to go and buy oil for themselves is the same as the leaders of Israel taking their rods which never budded.

Mat 25:6  And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. 
Mat 25:7  Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
Mat 25:8  And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
Mat 25:9  But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.

That will be the time when our brothers and sisters in Babylon will know that the Lord loves us, and they will come and worship before our feet.

Rev 3:9  Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.

Aaron’s budded rod was brought back before the Testimony to be kept as a token against all those who rebel against the leadership of the Lord’s elect. Later, Aaron’s budded rod became one of the items embedded in the ark which represent Christ.

Heb 9:4  having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron’s staff that budded, and the tablets of the covenant.

As indicated earlier, each of the staff or the rod has a name on it which means that the rod represents the one whose name is on it. Aaron’s rod represents the elect. The rod being part of the ark means being part of Christ as we are His body. This means that when Christ comes in His glory, when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, we shall be with Him to rule the earth as the whole world will see who is called and chosen to rule the world.

Rev 2:26  And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: 
Rev 2:27  And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

Psa 37:11  But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. 
Psa 37:12  The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth. 
Psa 37:13  The Lord shall laugh at him: for he seeth that his day is coming.

Num 17:11  And Moses did so: as the LORD commanded him, so did he.
Num 17:12  And the children of Israel spake unto Moses, saying, Behold, we die, we perish, we all perish.
Num 17:13  Whosoever cometh anything near unto the tabernacle of the LORD shall die: shall we be consumed with dying?

It is when our brothers and sisters realize they are not destined to rule with Christ when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ that they will know they are spiritually dead and are perished, as shown in verse 12 and 13 when the people of Israel spoke to Moses that they shall die and perish. This is all because of the false doctrines they have imbibed which say that God will burn forever all those who are not part of the elect. They forget that our Lord is merciful and His mercy endures forever. In addition, the Lord’s elect will show mercy to all humanity as a result of the mercy that they have received from the Lord.

Psa 136:1  O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth forever.

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: 
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Rom 11:32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

What the people of Israel went through when they realized they were not chosen is what took place during the time that Joseph was made king in Egypt. His brothers, representing Babylon, also thought that Joseph would seek revenge on them, and that they would perish or die just like the people of Israel said to Moses. They were not comfortable with Joseph until the father’s death. This mental suffering is all part of what our brothers and sisters in Babylon will go through to learn righteousness during the lake-of-fire age. As we can see, both Moses and Joseph were merciful to their brethren. Both Moses and Joseph represent the elect who will show mercy to our brothers and sisters in Babylon during the lake of fire age.

Gen 50:15  And when Joseph’s brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him.
Gen 50:16  And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, 
Gen 50:17  So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him.
Gen 50:18  And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.
Gen 50:19  And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?
Gen 50:20  But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
Gen 50:21  Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.

May the Lord continue to drag us to Himself so we do not lose our crown to rule. Amen!!