“I felt so sorry for her.”
“Well, you have a good heart, Shani.”
“Do you really think so?”
“Of course I do.”
Shani looked down at the ground and began to make a small line with her bare toe. She was silent for a long moment; then she looked up and asked, “Do you think I’ll ever be pretty?”
“Why, you’re pretty now, Shani.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Nonsense. You’re getting more beautiful every day. Look how much taller you are now and how your face has filled out, and you have the prettiest eyes I’ve ever seen.”
“That’s … that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”
“Well, you’ll hear lots of nice things like that, Shani.” Grinning, he reached out and ruffled her hair. “I’ll have to get a stick to beat off all the young men who are interested in you.”
“I don’t want any of them.”
“Maybe not now, but you will.” He licked his fingers and added, “My wife and I will be very careful of the young men that come courting you.”
Shani looked up, a frown creasing her smooth forehead. “Your wife? You’re going to get a wife?”
“Why, of course I will someday. A man needs a wife.” He reached out and pinched her nose and laughed when she pulled back and slapped at his hand.
“I don’t want you to get a wife.”
“Well, you seem to have taken over my business, so I guess you’ll have to help me find a wife too. You can pick out one for me.”
He had spoken in jest, but Shani was deadly serious. “None of the young women I’ve seen around here are good enough for you.”
“That’s right.” Bezalel gave her a hug, then kissed her with a loud smack on the cheek. “There, that’s a reward. Go get me some more cakes and I’ll kiss the other cheek.”
“I’ll go get them right now!”
Shani whirled and ran away, her feet flying across the sand.
“That’s a sharp one,” Bezalel said with a grin. “I won’t have to make any decisions with her around.”
He heard his name called and turned to see Oholiab hurrying toward him. “What’s the hurry, Oholiab?”
“There’s going to be trouble.” He stopped before Bezalel, panting with the effort, and nodded as if he had said something very profound. “I knew nothing good would come of it. Didn’t I tell you so?”
“You tell me so many things I can’t keep up with them, Oholiab. What are you talking about now?”
“I’m talking about that Ethiopian woman Moses married.”
“I think that was a good thing.”
Oholiab snorted. “You’re about the only one who does! Everybody’s talking about how wrong it is.”
“How could it be wrong? All Moses wanted to do was protect her.”
“Why, she’s a foreigner—that’s what’s wrong with it. Moses has already said when we go into the land of milk and honey, we can’t take wives of the people there.”
“That’s because they’re idolaters, and besides, this woman isn’t from that land. She’s from Ethiopia.”
“Well, the people don’t like it. A lot of them are muttering about how Moses chose to favor the mixed multitude.”
“Oholiab, Moses just tells us to love the stranger because the Lord loves the stranger. Can’t you understand that?”
“I suppose you’re right.” Oholiab rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “But what makes it worse is that Miriam and Aaron are both talking against Moses.”
Bezalel’s eyes narrowed. “I can’t believe that.”
“It’s so. I myself heard Aaron say that Moses had committed a sin.”
“Aaron is wrong, and he’d better keep his mouth shut.”
****
The tribes were, for all their size, somewhat like a family. Almost everyone knew other people’s business. Gossip was the only recreation some of them had, and they often concentrated on their leaders—Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
One day a crowd of people saw Aaron and Miriam heading for Moses’ tent. A big bushy-bearded Hebrew nodded as they went by and said to those around him, “Didn’t I tell you? They’re going to straighten Moses out about this foreign woman.”
A murmur of approval went around as they all watched the two enter Moses’ tent.
****
Moses looked up from where he was sitting and rose to his feet at once. “Good morning, brother, and you, sister.”
“We’ve come to talk to you,” Miriam said. “Your brother and I are unhappy with you.”
“I suppose it’s about the woman I married.”
“Exactly that. You made one mistake marrying a woman from Midian, and now you’ve married another foreigner. The Lord cannot be pleased.”
“That’s right,” Aaron said. “Don’t you know she’s of the mixed multitude?”
“I’ve told you many times there shall be one law for both the stranger and for Israel. We must love the strangers because we were strangers in Egypt.”
Miriam shook her head. “Your brother and I feel you should cast the woman off. The people of the mixed multitude are nothing but trouble.”
“Yes, they’re trouble, but so are all of us trouble. It wasn’t the mixed multitude alone that worshiped the golden calf.” Moses fixed his eyes on Aaron, who suddenly flushed and dropped his head, unable to meet Moses’ gaze. “I know they are not the seed of Abraham,” Moses went on. “This means they haven’t inherited the bloodline that the Hebrews have, but the Lord is their God also. Don’t you know that God has even warned us against taking away the mother bird from her little ones when we find a nest in the field? He’s caused a law to forbid us to muzzle the ox when it treads out the corn. If He cares for beasts like this, how much more does He care for people? He is a merciful and compassionate God.”
Miriam was rarely angry with Moses. She had been his chief supporter and loved him ever since he was an infant, but she was deeply convinced that Moses had fallen into the snare of this woman.
“Because of you, all Israel will be troubled! Do you not know that other men will take strange women as their wives? Moses, you must declare at once that you have done a wrong thing, something which is forbidden of God!”
Moses stood there, his head slightly bowed, staring at the ground as Miriam and Aaron spoke at great length concerning his marriage. Aaron finally concluded by saying, “You must send her away, Moses. There’s no other way.”
Moses was quiet. He was the meekest of men, and it hurt him dreadfully that his brother and sister were angry with him and felt he had fallen into error. Still, he had heard the voice of God, and now he said, “The Lord has not prohibited Israel from taking wives among the mixed multitude, and He has told me not to exclude the stranger who acknowledges Him. This woman loves the Lord. I cannot turn away from the will of God.”
Miriam’s anger boiled over. “It is not God who says this! It is your own will. It is you who have made this decision—not the Lord!”
Aaron spoke up at once. “Has the Lord spoken only by Moses? Has He not also spoken by us?”
“You know He has,” Miriam said, “and we will stand against you.” She stood before him, her back straight and her eyes flashing.
Moses neither moved nor spoke. He was praying in his spirit, asking the Lord to give him wisdom, and even as he stood there, a presence seemed to fill the tent. Then they all stood transfixed as they heard the voice of God. “Come out to the Tent of Meeting, all three of you.”
At once Moses left his tent and they followed him to the tabernacle. As soon as they reached it, a pillar of cloud came down and stood at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and the voice of God summoned Aaron and Miriam. When they had stepped forward, God said: “Listen to my words: When a prophet of the Lord is among you, I reveal myself to him in visions, I speak to him in dreams. But this is not true of my servant Moses; he is faithful in all my house. With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he
sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”
The cloud lifted, and when Moses turned, he was horrified to see that Miriam had been stricken with leprosy. Great running sores covered her face, and her hands were curled together like the claws of a crippled bird. The sores filled her throat and even her eyes!
Aaron cried out and fell at Moses’ feet. “Please, my lord, do not hold against us the sin we have so foolishly committed. Do not let her be like a stillborn infant coming from its mother’s womb with its flesh half eaten away.”
At once Moses began to cry out, “O God, please heal her!”
Again the Lord spoke audibly. “If her father had spit in her face, would she not have been in disgrace for seven days? Confine her outside the camp for seven days; after that she can be brought back.”
Outside the people had gathered to see what would be the outcome of the conflict between Moses, his brother, and his sister. As they came out, they were shocked to hear Miriam’s voice cry out in anguish, “Unclean … unclean … I am a leper!”
“She is a leper! It’s because she has slandered Moses,” one of the elders whispered. “God has punished her.”
One of the mixed multitude said with satisfaction, “She has always hated us and called us less than lepers. Now she herself is a leper.”
So Miriam was confined outside the camp for seven days, and Israel walked carefully before the man Moses. God had spoken, and it was evident that to criticize the Lord’s servant was not safe!
Chapter 25
The sun beat down on Moses’ bare head as he stood gazing away into the distance. Three months had passed since the Hebrews had left Sinai. It had not been an easy journey, for they had suffered hunger and thirst, but they had arrived at Paran, beyond which lay the wilderness of Zin.
Moses glanced to his right hand and thought of the tribes of Edom that occupied this territory. They were not a sophisticated people, mostly living in caves. They had some good land, however, and there were good roads through which Israel could pass. But the Lord had forbidden any invasion of Edom’s territory.
The sound of laughter came to Moses, and he glanced back toward the camp. The people were content for the moment, but he himself was less so. He had thought much and prayed more on the journey from Sinai, and most of his thinking concerned the nation and what it would be like. It was like no other nation that had ever been, and now Moses had almost finished writing down the laws as they had been given by God. They would be a people of the law, a people of the Book. Other people had laws, but none handed to them by God himself!
Quickly Moses reviewed what had been accomplished up to this point. The elders now had been reorganized with various levels of overseers. It was like a military force, broken down into smaller units, each with its own officer.
But now at the very door of the Promised Land, Moses was apprehensive. He had prayed all night, and God had spoken to him plainly, saying: “Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each ancestral tribe send one of its leaders.”
Moses knew little about the land into which he was to lead the people. He knew he would encounter resistance, but how much or in what form he was not sure.
“Moses, we are here.”
Moses turned and saw Joshua and Caleb approaching. His heart warmed, for these were the two men out of all of Israel he knew he could trust implicitly.
“I am glad you have come so quickly. I have much to say to you.” Moses moved under the shade of a tree, where the two men joined him. They were both seasoned and mature men by this time, Caleb tall and lean with hawklike features and Joshua shorter but more muscular. He had hazel eyes that would blaze in battle, and though he was mild mannered during times of peace, he was a fierce warrior in combat.
“God has given me a commandment to scout out the land,” Moses said. “I will choose one man from each of the twelve tribes, and you two will represent Ephraim and Judah.” He named off the other scouts he had decided upon and then said, “I know little about this land, except that it is filled with Canaanites, Philistines, and Hittites. They are strong men and good warriors. Their hard work has toughened them, and they will not be easy to defeat.”
Joshua nodded. “I have been talking with old Manon. He says there are walled cities in the land.”
“I am sure he is right.”
“It will not be easy,” Caleb said, “but God will be with us.”
“You will leave immediately. Over there is Edom, the descendants of Esau,” Moses said, pointing. “They should rejoice to hear that we are free, but we cannot know until we ask. Moab lies over there—the descendants of Abraham through his nephew Lot. They also should welcome us.”
“I doubt if any of these people will welcome us,” Caleb said wryly, “but it doesn’t matter. The Lord is with us, and we will win the victory.”
“Yes indeed,” Joshua said with a grin. “We’ve been waiting for this for a long time, and now our men are ready.”
“I want you to go across the wilderness of Zin,” Moses instructed them. “Take forty days and go to the borders of the countries all the way to the sea. I want to know all that you can find out before we cross over.”
“We will bring you a good report,” Joshua said, nodding. “God has brought us this far, and He will take us in. He has brought us out of Egypt, and now He will take us into the land of milk and honey as He has promised.”
Moses was pleased. “If the other ten men were as good as you, I would have no fears. But come—you must set the example.”
The three men hurried back to the camp, where Moses called the people together and gave them a preview of what would happen.
“These twelve men will search out the land. When they bring back the information, we will be ready to move at the command of God,” he said. He held up his hands and cried, “The Lord is with us!”
A great cry of joy went up and Moses prayed, “Lord, let them keep their courage, for they will need it.”
****
Bezalel had washed himself at the small stream and had anointed his body with oil and his hair with another ointment.
“I take it you’re going to the feast tonight,” Miriam said.
“Of course. It’s about time we had a little recreation. It seems like those scouts have been gone forever.”
“Moses told us it would be forty days. It’s only been two weeks.”
“Then I will go and enjoy myself. Come along, Shani.”
Shani was instantly at his side, wearing the green dress she had worn when the tabernacle was dedicated. She had washed herself, and her auburn hair caught the glints of the lamp. She waited for Bezalel to comment on her appearance, but he was talking with Miriam, loading up some food to take to the feast. She was disappointed, as she always was when he failed to notice her.
The two of them walked along toward the center of the camp, where the food had been put out. There was already the sound of music, and Shani said, “Look, they’re dancing.”
“I expect they are.”
“I don’t know how to dance.”
“Well, I’ll teach you. I happen to be an excellent dancer.”
“That sounds like bragging, Bezalel.”
“No. Bragging is when you say you can do something, and you can’t. If you can do it, it’s not bragging.”
Shani laughed. “You’re funny, Bezalel!”
“You look out now for some of these young fellows. They take advantage of young girls.”
“What do you mean?” Shani said, looking at him.
Bezalel was somewhat embarrassed. “You know what I mean. They will try to ask you to do improper things.”
“What’s an improper thing?” Shani knew very well what an improper thing was, but she saw that such talk made Bezalel uncomfortable, and it delighted her. He teased her constantly, and she was glad to give a little of her own back. “Now tell me about it. I need to know.”
“Miriam will tell you.”
“Miriam’s not here.”
“Well, I’m not going to give you a lecture right now. Just be nice, and if they ask you to do anything that sounds wrong, you come and tell me.”
“What will you do?”
“I’ll rattle their ribs with a staff.”
“Are you going to ask any girl to do an improper thing?”
Bezalel turned and stared at her with astonishment. “What a question!”
“Well, it applies to you as much as to me, these improper things, whatever they are. Is it kissing?”
“Yes. Don’t be kissing anybody except your aunt Miriam and me.”
“Just you two?”
“We’re your family. You can kiss us.”
“All right,” Shani said, then added with a glint of humor in her eyes, “and you can kiss me and Miriam but nobody else.”
The sound of the music grew louder. There were pipes and timbrels and harps of various kinds, and already people were spinning around doing the dances that went back centuries.
“Teach me how to dance.”
“Later. We’ve got to put this food with the rest of it.”
They went over to where the food and drink was being collected, and as he put it down, a young woman turned and said, “Why, hello, Bezalel.”
“Oh, Yona, it’s you!”
“I thought you were too serious to come to frivolous things like celebrations and feasts.”
Yona was the daughter of Elhanan, of the tribe of Dan. Her father had served as a slave in the home of a wealthy Egyptian, and she was richly arrayed in some of the silks and jewelry they had carried out of Egypt. She was not a tall woman but was well shaped and knew how to make the best of her appearance. Her mouth was broad and rather sensuous, and her eyes were large and lustrous.
“Why, I’m as frivolous as the next fellow.”
“Are you frivolous enough to dance with me?”
“I should think so,” Bezalel said with a grin. He put the food down and took Yona’s hands, and the two of them went out to join the dancers. Shani stood there and watched them, her face clouded with disappointment.
By Way of the Wilderness Page 21
