Lesson 9

In the Wilderness (Numbers 11: 1-36: 13)

The march to the Promised Land takes 40 years.  But the Israelites do not wander aimlessly in the wilderness during that time.  (Recall the old explanation that Moses, like most men, was too stubborn to stop and ask for directions!)  Refused passage through Edom on the King’s Highway, Moses diverts northwest to Kadesh Barnea, a large oasis, where the Israelites spend nearly 37 of the 40 years, finally entering the Promised Land through Moab, by a remote and very dangerous desert route.

And Moses Said . . . (Deuteronomy 1: 1-34: 12)

During the 40 years in the wilderness, all the Israelites who had left Egypt die:  603,548 of the 603, 550 men—all except Joshua and Caleb.  On the Plains of Jericho Moses tells the new generation their story.  This is not a simple recounting of Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers; it is a retelling of the story to a new generation on the back end of 40 years experience.  Deuteronomy is Moses’ farewell address.  At the end of the book he dies.

Enrichment Material

Numbers 10:11-15:36 Numbers 15:37-20:13 Numbers 20:14-21:35 Numbers 22:1-25:18 Numbers 26:1-27:23 Numbers 28:1-36:13 Deuteronomy 1:1-1:32 Deuteronomy 1:26-4:38 Deuteronomy 4:41-6:25 Deuteronomy 7:1-11:14 Deuteronomy 12:1-15:11 Deuteronomy 16:1-17:17 Deuteronomy 18:1-20:9 Deuteronomy 21:1-24:20 Deuteronomy 25:1-27:26 Deuteronomy 28:1-34:12	“Manna in the Wilderness,” video iReport “The Brazen Serpent,” video Bible Blast “Desperation and Despair at Rephadim,” video iReport “Balaam’s Blunder,” video Bible Blast	“Deuteronomy:  Introduction, Outline & Bibliography”