Reflections on Humility
This last summer I was reading the book of Numbers, and was struck, maybe for the first time, by the twelfth chapter. The Hebrew name for the book of Numbers, Bemidbar, translates to ‘in the wilderness’, which actually provides a decent summary. In the book of Exodus, we see God use Moses to free the Israelites from years of slavery and oppression in Egypt. In the following book, Leviticus, we are told of the nuts and bolts of God’s covenant with his chosen people. And then, after this magnificent display of God’s power and after reading twenty-seven chapters worth of instruction on the practical means of how to live a life with God, we come to the Book of Numbers. Numbers, the time ‘in the wilderness’. The book in which we see a constant stream of failures by Israel to live up to the standard set by God in the two previous books.
One of these failures takes place in the twelfth chapter. Rather than concerning the people of Israel as a whole, this story takes place within Moses’ own family. Moses’ siblings, Mirian and Aaron, seeing the special relationship Moses has with God, and the massive amount of authority he possesses, are driven to jealousy and resentment against their brother. They speak out against him, using the fact that Moses had married a foreigner as an excuse to complain. The real heart of their anger, however, is expressed in these words, “has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?”
This complaint is immediately followed by the comment that “the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.” And we, as readers, are left to assume that this ‘meek’ man does little to defend himself in the face of criticism. Instead, we are told “The Lord heard it”. And, having heard, God himself appears to Miriam and Aaron in front of the tabernacle. He speaks to them in person. And, having come in person, God of the universe personally tells Miriam and Aaron that, though they are prophet and high priest, Moses is a man who God speaks to “mouth to mouth”. Moses is a man who “beholds the form of the Lord”.
There is more to the story. God strikes Miriam with leprosy to show his anger. Her and Aaron repent before God, and, at the prayer of Moses, are healed. Afterwards, the Israelites strike camp, move on, and come to another region of the wilderness. But none of this is what struck me when I last read this chapter. This pattern: rebellion against God’s plan, God punishing his people, God’s people repenting and continuing onward to wander in the wilderness; is the basic pattern of the whole of the book of Numbers. What drew my attention was that one line, seemingly out of place and irrelevant to the larger story: “Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.”
What exactly is the point of this statement? Why emphasize Moses’ meekness in the middle of Miriam and Aaron’s rebellion? I don’t believe there is a clear-cut, definitive answer. However, there seems to be two key things that this sentence does in light of the larger passage. The first is to tell us, indirectly, of Moses' reaction to these complaints. He doesn’t flare up and defend himself. He doesn’t scorn or shun his siblings or isolate himself. We don’t know exactly how he reacted, except that it was “meek”: humble, non-assuming, lacking pride. And, this lack of a defense makes God’s appearance all the more potent. Moses does nothing to build up others' opinion of himself or assert his authority. Rather, God himself, in a pillar of cloud and an audible voice, appears and defends his servant Moses. From the perspective of literary affectiveness, the one-off line emphasizes Moses’ meekness, which then is powerfully contrasted with God being the one to build him up, defend him, and continue to be the one giving him authority.
While we could certainly build a tight moral lesson about responding to animosity from this passage and call it a day, I also want to point out the second thing that I believe this sentence about Moses does. If the first effect of this sentence is to emphasize Moses’ position as God’s servant in the context of the chapter, the second is to emphasize Moses’ position as God’s servant in the context of the entire book, or maybe even more accurately, in the context of all history.
Moses’ relationship to God and the authority given to him is unparalleled in the Bible. Moses saw God in a way no human did until Jesus’ ‘Transfiguration’ (Matthew 17, Mark 9, Luke 9). He spoke to God “mouth to mouth”, “face to face, as a man speaks to his friend” (Exodus 33:11). Insofar as authority goes, Moses was given complete leadership over the people of Israel, both in spiritual and political matters. Unlike any other leader in scripture, Moses is never called out or checked in his authority by another human being. Only God had that role in Moses' life. Neither King David, nor the Prophets, nor the Apostles demonstrate the manner and level of authority. And, I would argue that nowhere in the Pentateuch is Moses' authority so strongly emphasized as here, when God himself comes to defend it against both a prophet and the high priest, both figures who, in and of themselves, ought to have been the closest contenders for Moses’ role.
And yet, with the inclusion of that one sentence, the reason for God’s defense of Moses, and with it the reason for Moses’ authority, becomes clear. “Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.” Moses’ relationship to God, and the responsibilities given to him, were dependent on this fact. The word for ‘meek’ here is anaw (עָנָו). It means humble, or afflicted. It is primarily used in the Psalms and in the Prophets, and always, without exception, is used to speak to how God hears, will provide for, give hope to, make justice for and, ultimately, will give salvation to, the humble and defenseless of this world.
Moving into the New Testament, we find that Jesus tells us “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5), using the word praus (πραΰς) for ‘meek’, the same term he uses to describe himself (Matthew 11:29, Matthew 21:5). Jesus himself, as the second Adam and the ultimate expression of what it means to properly be a human, provides us with the ultimate example of humility and meekness. He descended from heaven and "emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. Being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross" (Phillipians 2:7-8). Even Jesus, God himself, somehow finds his exaltation, glory and authority dependant on (or as a result of) his humility: “Therefore [because of this humility] God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phillipians 2:9-11).
Maybe this shouldn’t be surprising to me. After all, to be a Christian is to be humble. It is to admit our weakness and come to God with nothing, trusting in his love that he might help us. We are to ask God for our “daily bread” (Matthew 6:11) and for deliverance from evil (Matthew 6:13). We are called to count all we have and are without God as “rubbish” so that he might justify us, sanctify our hearts, and ultimately glorify us as his servants (Philippians 3). But, this command, to count ourselves as nothing and rely on God for everything, is one of the most counter-cultural and hard to accept elements of the Christian Faith. The world would expect Moses to stand up for his authority. Natural wisdom encourages us to glory and find pride in our own strength and skills, in our own intelligence, beauty, and wit.
And, if you are like me, you often do. In my pride, I have never considered myself an overly prideful person. Nevertheless, I found the reminder from one small story from the book of Numbers one of the most convicting things I read last year. I was reminded that the importance of humility in God’s eyes is so much greater than anything that I can imagine. I was reminded that the one time that Moses showed a lack of humility, God took the promised land from him (Numbers 20:10-13).
Pride, after all, is at the heart of all sin, in a desire “to be like God” (Genesis 3:5). This is why the medieval theologians called pride the root of sin and humility the root of virtue (Summa Theologia q162, a1, r3). After all, if I focus on my lack of self sufficiency, my desire for and delight in God, how can I help but rely on God and walk in the Spirit?
I don’t have any profound answers to end this reflection on. Mostly, I have questions. I want to know the beauty and true nature of humility more so that I might know the beauty and true nature of God more. I want to know where I am lacking in humility, and want to know where pride is festering in my soul, keeping me from knowing God as a father and a friend. They aren’t answers, but I think they are beneficial questions to ask, and I would encourage anyone with a desire for God to ask them with me. As an encouragement to us while we seek, let me end on a quote from C.S Lewis’ Mere Christianity:
“ As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people: and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.”
~ Mere Christianity, Ch. 8
Silas Link is a fourth year undergraduate at Columbia College pursuing a degree in English. When not studying, he enjoys reading, hiking, and exploring New York City.