When King David’s throne was usurped, David fled from Jerusalem, crossed over the Kidron Brook (“Kidron” being Hebrew for “darkness”), and headed up to the Mount of Olives.
King Solomon commanded the traitor Shimei not to leave Jerusalem nor cross over the Kidron Brook, lest he be executed for treason.
Kings Asa, Josiah, and Hezekiah disposed of the pagan idols allowed in the temple by their fathers by having them taken to the Kidron Brook and destroyed.
Jeremiah the prophet, seeing the destruction and death as Jerusalem was conquered by Babylon, prophesied that one day God would redeem His people and give them a new covenant, and that all the bodies within Jerusalem as far as the Kidron Brook would be holy to the LORD.
So if you had grown up learning these stories about the Kidron Brook, what would come to mind when you thought of Kidron?
– The king of the Jews once appeared to lose his kingdom by going from Jerusalem to Kidron to Olivet, but soon after his kingdom was restored.
– The Kidron Brook is where idols are destroyed to restore holiness to the temple.
– One day God will restore His covenant inside the bounds of the Kidron Valley.
“When Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples over the Brook Kidron, where there was a garden, which He and His disciples entered.” (John 18:1)
That night, the night Jesus was betrayed, He seemed to have lost. He was about to be destroyed. Darkness seemed to prevail.
But in reality, the temple was being cleansed. God’s covenant was being renewed. His people were being made holy. And the King would soon return.
Korah’s rebellion is an interesting story buried away in a single chapter in the middle of Numbers. If you don’t recall, a man named Korah questions Moses’ leadership, declaring that since the entire “congregation is holy” and “the LORD is among [all of us],” Moses shouldn’t be exalted above the rest of Israel (Numbers 16:3). Instead, others—like, say, maybe Korah—should be lifted up as holy leaders of the people. God told Moses that He would reveal who was right, and the next day the earth opened up and swallowed Korah and his followers whole.
This may seem like an obscure story, but it has much to teach us about the nature of God and, more specifically, how God ultimately gives us what we ask for. To make sense of this story, we first need to understand who Korah was and what God had commanded him to do.
Korah was the cousin of Moses and Aaron. Thus, he was a Levite, but not a priest (kohen). To be specific, he was a Kohathite, and the Kohathites had very specific duties regarding the service of the tabernacle. As explained in Numbers 4, the Kohathites were tasked with carrying the holy things of the tabernacle from one location to another. There were a number of regulations regarding how this was to be done:
First, the priests/kohen would cover all the holy things (qodesh) of the tabernacle (mishkan). Six times the Hebrew word kasa is used to describe this act of covering (vv. 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 15), but the word used once everything has been covered is bala, which is generally translated as “swallowed” (v. 20).
Once the priests had completed (kala) the covering process, the Kohathites would lift up (nasa) and carry the holy things to the next location (v. 15).
The Kohathites had to make sure not to directly touch (naga) any of the holy things, lest they die.
Now with this in mind, we can consider the events of Korah’s rebellion in context.
We know that Korah and his supporters rebelled because they were angry that the Israelites had to wander in the wilderness for forty years (Numbers 16:13, 14)—which ironically was the result of the rebellion they had waged a few weeks earlier (Numbers 13, 14)—but that’s not the reason that Korah gives to Moses.
Instead, Korah declares that everyone in the congregation is holy (qadesh) and should be treated as such. What’s more, he accuses Moses of lifting himself up (nasa), effectively usurping the work of the Kohathites. Since Moses thinks himself so holyand lifts himself up in the midst of our tabernacle, thinks Korah, we who are equally holy should be lifted up as well.
So what does God do? He gives Korah exactly what he asked for.
Korah declared that he was holy and wanted to be lifted up. And as we just read in Numbers 4, what happens to the holy things before they can be lifted up? They need to be covered. And that’s exactly what God does during the course of this chapter.
God declares that Korah and his fellow rebels had essentially formed a new tabernacle (mishkan, Numbers 16:24, 27). And just as God had warned the Kohathites not to touch anything before the priest’s work was completed, so too God warns the Israelites not to touch (naga, Numbers 16:26) anything belonging to these supposedly holy people of the new tabernacle until God completes (kala, Numbers 16:21) His work.
Then, as the tabernacle of Korah’s “holy” rebels gathers together, God opens up the ground beneath them and swallows them up (bala, Numbers 16:30, 32, 34). Finally, once the “holy” rebels had been swallowed up, God closed up the earth to cover up (kasa, Numbers 16:33) their new tabernacle.
Hebrew Word
English meaning
Duties of Kohathites
Korah’s Rebellion
Mishkan
Tabernacle
Numbers 4:16
Numbers 16:24, 27
Qodesh/Qadosh
Holy
Numbers 4:4, 12, 15, 19, 20
Numbers 16:3, 5, 7
Kasa
Cover
Numbers 4:5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 15
Numbers 16:33
Bala
Swallow
Numbers 4:20
Numbers 16:30, 32, 34
Kala
Complete/consume
Numbers 4:15
Numbers 16:21
Naga
Touch
Numbers 4:15
Numbers 16:26
Nasa
Lift up
Numbers 4:15
Numbers 16:3
When you consider the events of Korah’s rebellion in light of who Korah was and what Korah had requested, everything that happened is exactly what we would expect. Korah declared that he was inherently holy and wanted to be lifted up. And he got exactly what he asked for, even if it wasn’t what he was expecting.
These events echo the story of the faithless spies, which occurred only a few weeks before. Ten of the spies (and the entire congregation of Israel) had declared that there was absolutely no way they could take the Promised Land, and that they’d be doomed to wander the desert until they died. Two spies (Caleb the Judahite and Joshua the Ephraimite) disagreed, stating that—with God on their side—they were well equipped to take what had been promised. In response to both declarations, God said,
“Just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you.” (Numbers 14:28)
And every person in that story got exactly what they said. All of Israel but two died in the wilderness. And Caleb and Joshua—though well into their eighties—had God on their side, and received their inheritance.
That same promise—you will have whatsoever you speak—continues throughout the biblical narrative, from Korah to Ahaz to Hezekiah to the disciples of Jesus. And it continues for us today.
So what are you believing for? What are you declaring? Your words have power, and your faith will bring it to pass. God will honor the choices we make, even if they are the wrong choices. Will you rebel like Korah and his tabernacle, like the ten spies and the rest of the nation? Or will you submit to the promises of God, and receive the blessings He has for you?
Be careful what you say. Because one way or another, you’ll get what you want.
You’re probably familiar with the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. These three Hebrew men are brought before the king of Babylon and commanded to worship a giant, golden idol. “Bow down and worship,” they are told, “or you will be thrown into the fiery furnace.” The men courageously respond, “Even if God does not deliver us, we still won’t bow down to the idol.”
It’s a great example of someone not knowing whether God would deliver them, and still fearlessly accepting the possibility of death. Except… that’s not actually what happened. Let’s take another look at the text.
The scripture in question is from Daniel 3. The king orders the three men to worship the golden image or be thrown in the fire. And in verse 16, we read that, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.’”
So the question is, what does “if not” refer to?
Well, grammatically, it would be the “if” statement the men made in the previous sentence. They’re saying, “If that is the case, God will deliver us; but if that is NOT the case, we will not bow down.” So, what is “the case”?
We have to go back another verse, to Nebuchadnezzar’s threat. It turns out, the king had made an if/if-not statement of his own. In verse 15, he told them, “If you fall down and worship the golden image, we’re good. But if not, you’ll be cast into the fire.” Then the three men respond by saying, “If that is the case—if you throw us in the fire—God is able and willing to deliver us. But if not—if you don’t throw us in—we still won’t worship.”
These men weren’t expressing uncertainty to God’s willingness to deliver them. No, they were expressing indifference to the king’s threat. If he threw them in, God would deliver. If he didn’t throw them in, they still wouldn’t worship the idol. The king didn’t have any power over them—which is exactly what we read in verse 27: “The king’s counselors saw these men on whose bodies the fire had no power.” There was nothing that the king could do to turn these men, because they were under the protection of God. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that God would deliver them from danger.
And if you think about it, it doesn’t even make sense to read this as uncertainty about God’s willingness to save. For one, the three Hebrew men had just declared that God was both willing and able to save them in the previous verse: “Our God is able to deliver us… and He will deliver us from your hand.” They literally just said that God WOULD deliver them. It doesn’t make sense for them to immediately backtrack and say, “But actually, maybe He won’t.” No, they knew He would deliver, which is why they “had no need to answer you in this matter.” It was a done deal for them. God was both able and willing to save.
And that’s what we’re talking about, right? God’s ability to save vs. God’s willingness to save. I’d imagine that every Christian watching this video knows that God is able to save. The question is, Is He willing? That was Nebuchadnezzar’s question, too. He tells them, “If you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who WILL deliver you from my hands?” The king is asking the same question: Is God willing?
So with that in mind, it doesn’t make any sense for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego to then say, “Well… our God is able to save us, but who knows if He’s willing?” No, they confidently declare, “Who is the God who WILL deliver? The God we serve is the God who WILL deliver.”
This is the God who promised in Psalm 50, “Call upon Me in the day of trouble, and I WILL deliver you,” the God who declared in Psalm 91, “I will be with him in trouble, and I WILL deliver him and honor him,” the God who delivered David from Goliath, the God who delivered Hezekiah from Sennacherib, the God who would very soon deliver Daniel from King Darius.
Deliverance is what He does, victory is in His DNA, Salvation is His name. Literally. Jesus in Hebrew is the word Yeshua, which literally means “salvation.” Of course God is willing to save those who call upon His name. Of course He showed up in the fiery furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. Of course the fire and the smoke and the heat and the threats had no power over them. They knew who their God was, and they put their faith entirely in Him.
And that’s exactly what we read in the only New Testament recounting of this story. Hebrews 11 is sometimes called “The Hall of Faith.” It’s all about people who received from God because they placed their faith in Him, because they had unwavering confidence in Him. We read that Noah was saved from the flood by faith, that Moses and the Israelites were saved from Egypt by faith, that Joshua took the Promised Land by faith. We’re told that Gideon and Samson and David were all delivered by faith. The list of men and women who were supernaturally delivered by faith goes on and on and on. Then the list ends with those who “stopped the mouths of lions and quenched the violence of fire.”
Who’s that talking about? Daniel, and his three friends—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. They were supernaturally delivered from lions and furnaces and kings and death. Why? Because of their faith. Because they were confident in the things not seen. Because they knew who their God was, and knew without a doubt that He was both able and willing to deliver them from whatever threat would come their way.
And we, too, serve that same God, so we should have the same confidence in His ability and willingness to save. Those same promises of deliverance belong to you. So don’t question His willingness to deliver. Don’t doubt it, even for a second. Stand firm in your faith, just as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego did. The devil has no power over you.
Have a great week, and remember, you’re greater than you realize.
I recently reread the book of Genesis with several teenagers from the church. While discussing it, the most common thing the students brought up was all the weird and terrible things the main characters kept doing:
Abraham lies about his wife being his sister, and she is almost swept into Pharaoh’s harem
Lot, while inebriated, impregnates both of his daughters
Judah sleeps with (who he assumes is) a prostitute, then tries to have her executed
Jacob deceives his father to steal from his brother, then spends twenty years running from God
Isaac, like his father, practically sells his wife into an enemy king’s harem to save his own skin
And that’s not the half of it! From cowardice and theft to sexual deviance and murder, they were guilty of it all.
But here’s the beautiful thing… God still blesses them!
Despite their sin, despite their selfishness, despite it all, they are still God’s people.
Why?
Because God made a promise. God promised some idol worshipper named Abram that if he forsook his previous life and followed after the one true God, that God would bless Abram and all his descendants after him (Genesis 12:1-3). And Abram, while certainly not perfect, followed God (Genesis 12:4). Abram, though he occasionally faltered, believed what God had said (Genesis 15:6). And God kept His promise.
And an entire family, an entire people, an entire nation was blessed because of it.
And the Lord said, “I will be with you and bless you. And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven. And in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because Abraham obeyed My voice.” (Genesis 26:2-5)
There are two lessons to learn from this:
You are blessed because God made a promise.
If you’re anything like me, you’re probably not perfect. You make mistakes. You slip up. But guess what? In spite of all that, God will still bless you. Why? Because of someone else’s faithfulness.
If you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. (Galatians 3:29)
The choices you make will bless your family for generations to come.
Over four thousand years ago, some guy in the desert listened to God, and God blessed him. His wife didn’t always listen to God, but God blessed her because anyway. His kids didn’t usually listen to God, but God blessed them anyway. His nephew didn’t listen to God, but God blessed them anyway. His grandkids and great-grandkids ran from God and disobeyed Him, but God blessed them anyway. And four thousand years later, a world that largely ignores God is still being blessed by Him. All because of a promise God made:
In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. (Genesis 12:3)
Your obedience affects those around you. Your faithfulness will transcend your short time on earth. So don’t just live for yourself. Live for your family. Live for your community. Live for the generations that are yet to come. They are counting on you.
3:16 am. The family is finally asleep. But of course, that’s not gonna last long.
3:19 am. Jack’s cries fill our bedroom.
Maybe he’s hungry. We try feeding, but he doesn’t bite. Jack continues to cry.
Maybe he’s in dire need of a diaper change. We check, but the diaper is clean. Jack continues to cry.
Maybe he’s cold. We give him a blanket. Jack continues to cry.
Maybe he’s warm. We strip off the onesie. Jack continues to cry.
I know. He just needs some bro time. I take him downstairs, and walk through our darkened kitchen with him gently cradled in my arms.
Jack calms down.
For about seventeen seconds.
Then he continues to cry.
And as I continue to pace back and forth with our crying infant in my arms, I think to myself, “If only he knew how to articulate what he needed, then I could give it to him.”
And right as that thought came to mind, God said to me, “That’s why most prayers don’t get answered.”
Christians are really good at crying. Experts, in fact. “Why does this always happen to me?” “Why do things never work out in my life?” “Why doesn’t God answer my prayers?”
We are very good at vocalizing how terrible things are. We are also fairly decent at (erroneously) attributing all of our woes and troubles to God. But I’d venture to guess that 9 times out of 10, we never actually ask for a solution. We just whine about whatever is going on, then blame God when things don’t get better.
For example, if you feel a fever coming on, complaining about how you always get sick isn’t praying. Accepting the sickness because “God works in mysterious ways” also isn’t praying. Even silently hoping that you miraculously get better isn’t praying. To make it a prayer, you need to verbally ask God to heal you. Confessing a scripture or two that promises to give you what you need is an absolute plus (in the case of sickness, Isaiah 53:5, Exodus 15:26, Luke 9:11, 1 Peter 2:24, and James 5:15 are just a few). Then you need to sincerely believe that God will deliver. And to finish it off, promptly praise God for His goodness and mercy and love.
That’s the prayer of faith.
My son Jack couldn’t tell me what was wrong because he doesn’t speak the English language. He’s just a baby. And most Christians are unsuccessful in prayer because they don’t speak the language of faith. They are spiritual babies. Now Jack will naturally grow up as time progresses. But Christian growth isn’t automatic. It takes deliberate and intentional action. And unfortunately, most people are unwilling to put in the time.
The language of faith is simple:
Ask God for what you need (Matthew 7:7, Romans 10:9)
Continually confess a scripture that promises you what you need (Joshua 1:8)
Believe that you receive (Mark 11:23, Romans 10:9)
Thank God for always meeting your needs (Philippians 4:6, Acts 16:25)
So stop complaining, stand on the Word, and have faith in God.
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7)
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Jesus was unable to do “mighty works” for the people of Galilee due to their unbelief. The people had hardened their hearts toward the notion of a miracle-working God, and they received exactly what they believed they would.
Nothing.
But here’s the silver lining most of us miss when considering this passage.
“Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them.” (Mark 6:5)
Even in the midst of their marvelous unbelief, Jesus was still able to heal a few of ‘em. I don’t know how much a few is. I’d say at least three, but we’d all agree that the bare minimum would be two. I also don’t know what sorts of ailments he cured that morning. Decide for yourselves if it was a common cold, a broken wrist, or a sprained ankle. It hardly matters what He healed. The point is that He did it. Even when faced with mockery and detestation, God’s goodness still was present!
I also like that healing only three or so people of mild illnesses isn’t considered that big of a deal. For most churches, that’d be a great year, but for Jesus, it was kind of a letdown.
There are two lessons we can glean from this story.
1. Even in churches with obscene amounts of unbelief, God can still show up. If you’re willing to trust God, you can bring God’s kingdom wherever you go, and you can at least lay hands on a few sick people and heal them.
2. Don’t settle for less than what’s available. The bible says that when only a handful of people are healed, it’s hardly worth mentioning. God has so much more in store for those who have the audacity to trust in Him.
Don’t allow the unbelief of a few to slow you down. Go out into the world and do the greater works Jesus has called you to do!
Garrett Milovich 