Thought for the Week:

Though the wilderness is a dry and waterless place, it is also a place of miraculous provision. The absolute deprivation caused by wilderness requires people to rely utterly on God. In the wilderness God provides for His people.

Commentary:

The book of Numbers opens with the words, "The LORD spoke to Moses bamidbar (in the wilderness) ..." The word bamidbar (במדבר) means "in the wilderness." The Hebrew name of the book is Bamidbar. "In the wilderness" is a good description of the stories in the book of Numbers because this fourth book of the Torah records events that occurred over the thirty-nine years of the wilderness wanderings.

Wilderness is a place of refuge, provision and revelation. It is not necessarily a bad thing. Since wilderness requires us to rely on God, it can nurture spiritual…