Is 53:5a: “He was pierced (מְחֹלָ֣ל; chalal) for our transgressions (מִפְּשָׁעֵ֔נוּ; pesha)”— Part 2. The Book of Numbers: The pathway through the defiling plague of sin by propitiation
Reading Time: 11 minutes
In the first post on chalal we worked through the opening uses in Gen 1-11, focusing on the renewal of the Covenant “beginning” in the line of Seth then continues through Noah, Shem and finally Abraham, whose family line becomes the focal point of God’s redemptive activity after the wider cultural dissolution at Babel. At the close, we introduced the next use of chalal as defilement—the literal piercing through with sin—which was the exclusive meaning in both Exodus and Leviticus. With these foundational meanings of chalal, we now move into the final two books of the Pentateuch. And here we will see fascinating developments in the way these meanings are combined to reveal a pathway through the plague of sin into the healing presence of JHWH, in ways that bring greater illumination to what we find of Christ in Isaiah 53.
Summary Synthesis: Numbers
In the opening occurrences in Numbers, these elemental meanings of chalal as beginning and defilement are combined to reveal two distinct pathways. The first is the pathway of this Fallen Age opened up to each of us continually as we give ourselves over to the “lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye and the pride of life.” When Israel gives itself over to these lusts in the wilderness, it brings the plagues of chapters 16 and 25. In each case these two plagues have “begun” (chalal) that will, in Paul’s words, “destroy” the remnant of unbelieving Israel through their “lusts” (epithumétés) in the wilderness (I Cor 10:1-10). And yet in the midst of the destruction, we are shown a second pathway. And this latter pathway that brings God’s people through the death of this age into the life of God’s Kingdom is opened up through the propitiation of sins by the high priest, who literally “stands between the dead and the living” and thus “restrains” (atsar [וַתֵּעָצַ֖ר], Num 16:48 & 25:8) the destroying power of sin’s plague.
In the first plague occasioned by the rebellion of Korah and intensified by Israel’s “murmuring” (luwn [וַיִּלֹּ֜נוּ]) against God (cf. The murmuring of Ex 15:24, 16:2, 7, 17:3 & Num 14:2 then 26-29, which precipitated the divine judgment of the wilderness exile), propitiation brings an end to the plague’s destruction (Num 16:47-48), as Aaron, the hight priest, takes fire from off the altar and brings it “into the midst of the assembly” to make atonement for their sins (וְכַפֵּ֣ר [kaphar]). In the second plague, however, propitiation does not avert judgment and death for Israel but comes through the judgment of death.
When Israel is brought nearly to the end of their wilderness wanderings after great victories over Sihon and Og, they enter Moab and encounter the spiritual powers of the false prophet Balaam. And while his curses are turned by God into future Messianic blessings for Israel (Deut 23:3-5), we find that when the people later “through the counsel of Balaam” give into the “lust of the flesh,” joining themselves to Baal of Peor (Num 25), it brings a “curse which God cannot bless.” The atonement, then, comes in two ways: first, in the judgement of death as the “offenders” themselves are “hung before the Lord” (Heb 12:25-29); then in the violent actions of the son of the high priest while the plague is consuming Israel. Phinehas, being “zealous with the zeal” of JHWH (Ps 69:9-> Jn 2:13-17), then executes judgment and, in so doing, “made atonement for the children of Israel” and opened “to him and his descendants after him” both a “covenant of peace” and a “covenant of an everlasting priesthood” (Num 25:11-13).
In both instances our eyes are directed forward to Jesus, the “merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God” (Heb 2:17a). And Christ will make “propitiation (hilaskomai [ἱλάσκεσθαι]) for the sins of the people” (Heb 2:17b), not merely by sprinkling the sacrificial blood of another upon the mercy seat (Lev 16:13-14), but by His own bleeding body, itself hung before the Lord, actually becoming both the “curse” (Gal 3:13) and the “mercy seat” (ilastrion [ἱλαστήριον], Heb 9:5) , through which sinful, cursed man is healed and eternally united with a Holy God.
Detailed Analysis: Numbers
The beginning of a plague
In chapter 16, a plague “has begun” (הֵחֵ֥ל [chalal], Num 16:46-47) and its cause, we find, is rooted in the defilement of the priesthood—whose chief purpose, both in the Old Testament and in the New, is to “propitiate,” to “make atonement for” (כָּפַר [kaphar] in Hebrew; ἱλάσκομαι in Greek) the sins of the people of God. The defilement centers in a rebellion led by Korah of the tribe of Levi, who is operating together with Dathan, Abiram and On “of the sons of Reuben” (cf. Gen 49:4) in drawing “two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation…men of renown” to oppose the God-ordained leadership of Moses and Aaron (Num 16:1-3a). In their efforts to take down those in authority over them, they put forward an accusation that these two men had “exalted” themselves “above the assembly of the Lord”—all of whom, they contended, were “holy” (16:3b).
A true priesthood and a counterfeit priesthood
‘All the congregation is holy,” these “men of renown” had declared. And though it may initially sound like an appropriation of the “priesthood of all believers,” we come to find that it actually signals the formation of a counterfeit priesthood, which is ultimately rooted in self-autonomy (à la Jeroboam’s counterfeit priesthood of II Chron 11:14-15 and I Kings 13:33). As such, it stands in continual opposition to the true priesthood of the Messianic King which is centered in and only in the will of JHWH.
In Moses’ own words later in this narrative, “By this you shall know that the Lord has sent me to do all these works, for I have not done them of my own will” (16:28)…which declaration sounds strikingly similar to Christ’s own words when He is confronted by accusations from the pharisaical order:
“As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.” (Jn 5:30).
And so how does Moses respond to this accusation? Does he, using their own words, act as a person of pride who exalts himself above the congregation?
Falling down upon his face, rather, Moses proclaims to them, “Tomorrow morning the Lord will show who is His and who is holy, and will cause him to come near to Him” (16:5). That is to say, it is JWHW Himself Who will determine the true from the counterfeit.
Judgement and the actions of a true priest
When the “glory of the Lord” then appears and JHWH immediately puts forward a word of judgment upon the congregation (16:19-21), Moses responds not with vindicated self-satisfaction, but with desperate intercession (16:22). The Lord, then sparing the congregation, brings the force of His judgment upon Korah such that the earth opens up from beneath, swallowing up Korah with the entirety of his household (16:32-33). And from above, a “fire came out from the Lord and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering incense” (16:35) with their bronze censers, at the Lord’s command, later being “made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar” to serve as a continual “memorial” (זִכָּר֞וֹן [zikkaron] 16:39-40).
It does not, however, end here.
The congregation, still refusing to learn from what they had just witnessed, again “gathered against Moses and Aaron” this time accusing them of “killing the people of the Lord” (16:41). First they accuse them of pride; next of murder.
What, then, is the verdict? Are they guilty of both?
Atonement through a mediator
Returning once again to the tabernacle, the “glory of the Lord appears” (16:42-43), issuing forth yet further words of judgement, not upon Moses and Aaron, but upon the children of Israel (16:44-45). And as the true priests, they respond once again by falling on their faces in intercession, this time joining their prayers with actions of expiation (piaculum, comm. v. 46).
As the high priest of Israel, Aaron (cf. Heb 5:1-10) then takes the censer, “put fire in it from the altar, put incense on it,” and takes it “quickly to the congregation” in order to “make atonement for them.” For, as we find out, “wrath has gone out from the Lord” and “the plague begun (הֵחֵ֥ל [chalal] 16:46).
“Then Aaron took it as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the assembly; and already the plague had begun (הֵחֵ֥ל [chalal]) among the people.
So he put in the incense and made atonement for (וַיְכַפֵּ֖ר [kaphar]) the people.
And he stood between the dead and the living;
So the plague was stopped (Num 16:47-48).
The Mediator, The Mercy Seat, The Propitiation
Amidst the piercing defilement of sin and rebellion that will claim the lives of “fourteen thousand and seven hundred” Israelites (16:49), the plague is “stayed” through the mediation of the true priest. Yet, as Calvin writes, “while Aaron stands forth” for the “expiation of so great a sin,” his mediatorial actions look far beyond himself to the final propitiation to be revealed in the “the true, and only, and perpetual Mediator.”
That is to say, the Mediator, who would not merely take the incense off the altar. but His body would become the actual altar; Who would not simply sprinkle sacrificial blood upon the mercy seat (Lev 16:13-14), but Whose Body itself would be the “mercy seat” (ilastrion [ἱλαστήριον], Heb 9:5). In short, this Mediator “God would set forth to be a propitiation (ἱλαστήριον) though faith in His blood” (Rom 3:25), with the piercing of His body opening the pathway for the “propitiation (ilasmos [ἱλασμός]) of our sins—and not for ours only but also for the whole world” (I Jn 2:2). And “in” all of “this” we would find the revelation of vital “love” (agape [ἀγάπη]), not because “we loved God, but because He Himself loved us and sent His Son” as the great high priest, “to be the propitiation (ἱλασμός) for our sins” (I Jn 4:10).
The remaining uses in Numbers: Defilement, Balaam and the final plague
Each of the next three instances of chalal are used in three different ways, encompassing all of the developments in the Pentateuch up to this point. The first instance returns to the Levitical use, occurring in the context of Israel’s tithe of the “heave offering” (Num 18:26-31) with the warning that the people not “defile (תְחַלְּל֖וּ [chalal]) the holy things of the children of Israel” lest they “bear sin by reason of it” and “die” (Num 18:32). This warning both looks back to the defilement that brought the plague in Numbers 16 (The rebellion of Korah) and 21 (The bronze serpent) as well as forward to the even greater plague to come in Numbers 25.
And this plague comes upon Israel at the climax of their decades-long rebellion when God finally “gave them over to a reprobate mind/heart/soul—nous” (Rom 1:28).
The questions we will seek to address in this final plague are Why does it come and How is it executed, both of which we will attempt to answer after providing a brief background.
The Background: From military victory to spiritual attack
Immediately before the judgment of the plague, Israel had been on the path of victory, defeating the great kingdoms of Sihon of the Amorites (Num 21:21-31) and Og of Bashan (21:33-35), such that they at last came out of the wilderness to the banks of the Jordan River, overlooking the Promised Land. And when they entered the territory of Moab, the inhabitants, having heard of their exploits, were “exceedingly afraid” and “sick with dread” (Num 22:3). Balak, the king of Moab, knew that his people would have to fight not against mere flesh and blood but against spiritual powers beyond their capacity (for how could an enslaved nation have otherwise destroyed the kingdom of Egypt followed by the waring tribes of Amalek, Amon, Bashan, etc., etc.?)
He rightly understands that Moab must then devise a different strategy, centered not on military might but in spiritual power. He thus uses all the wealth of his kingdom—all the mamon—to hire the prophet Balaam to place a curse upon Israel. For as he himself declares, “he whom” Balaam blesses “is blessed”, and “he whom” he curses “is cursed” (Num 22:6). That is to say, Balaam had access to a spiritual power far exceeding Balak and Moab and this was the power they had to access so as to overcome the children of Israel.
His plan, his technique, to ensure such a victory, however, completely fails. Not only is Balaam unable to curse Israel (Num 23:7-10 & 18-24), but “God turns his curse into a blessing” (Deut 23:5). The spiritual powers he calls forth in the ritual sacrifices of the seven bulls and seven rams offered on the seven altars (23:1) avail Moab nothing in their resistance against the people of God. Israel continues to yet another victory and not even the demonic powers are able to withstand their advance (Mt 16:18)…at least not for the moment.
For the narrative does not end here.
Rather, it ends in bitter defeat and judgment as the Israelites give themselves over to a different power. The pathway for how all of this occurs may be instructive for us in our current era; for the demonic powers, we might say, change their method of attack—If they cannot prevail through the power of the spirit, they move to entice us through the stronghold of fallen flesh.
Baal Peor: A Background—The Why?
Balak, filled with the wisdom from below, knows he still has one further option. He thus directs Balaam to "another place”, believing that “God” (Elohim) will enable him to curse them “from there” (23:27).
And where is this place?
“So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, that overlooks the wasteland” (23:28), where they again build seven altars on which they sacrifice seven bulls and seven rams (23:29-30).
The question we then ask is, Is it significant that Balak chose to take Balaam “to the top of Peor”?
And if so, why?
“The top of”
It is said that ancient deities were worshiped at the highest point in a given landscape, being the place where heaven, as it were, touches earth. So Olympus, being the highest mountain in Greece, was believed to be home to the Dodekatheon, the principal gods in the Greek pantheon. Upon mountaintops and “high places” (בָּמָה [bamah]) throughout the Ancient Near East, the chief deity, Baal, was worshipped, being known as Chemosh to the Moabites, Molech to the Ammonites, Kronos to the Phoenicians, Dagon to the Philistines, and Baal to the Canaanites. Such high places, being epicenters of spiritual activity, or more accurately demonic activity (II Chron 11:13-15, Deut 32:17, Lev 17:7), Israel is specifically called to “demolish” when they enter the Promised Land (Num 33:51-52).
And there are given the further reason why they must not allow such activity to operate in their midst; it will become a “root” in their very heart, bearing “poison” and “wormwood” in the distortions and deceptions it brings (Deut 29:18-19).
How? In what way?
This leads us into the next word, peor.
“Peor”
This Hebrew word comes from the root verb, pa’ar (פָעַר), meaning to “open wide.” The opening, as it came to mean in that era was a sexually explicit term, referring to the literal anatomic opening of a female. In the words of Dr. John Currid, OT professor and Egyptologist, Baal of Peor could be simply translated, “god of the vagina” (which is borne out by Jewish sources).
(Should we ask whether Baal Peor operates in our era where global profits from the pornography industry are valued at up to $97 billion?)
Balak, knowing the timeless power of Baal Peor for fallen man thus takes Israel to “the top of Peor.” He still believes that despite their initial failures, Balaam’s spiritual power now united with Baal Peor, can overcome the Israelites. He is wrong to the extent that Balaam’s third curse is again turned into a divine, Messianic blessing over Israel (Num 24:3-9); yet he is right in regard to the poisonous root of carnal corruption that is sowed into the heart of Israel in that place.
Baal Peor—The What: A synergy of sexual immorality & spiritual dissolution
Having failed, Balaam then gives “counsel” to Balak how he might finally destroy the people of God through the operating power of lust (Num 31:6). And his counsel becomes known in the NT as the “way/path of Balaam” (ὁδος τοῦ Βαλαὰμ, II Pet 2:14-15), the “error/deception of Balaam” (πλάνη τοῦ Βαλαὰμ, Jude 1:11) and the “doctrine of Balaam” (διδαχή Βαλαάμ, Rev 2:14)—that is, the ascendant power of the “lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes” that works to blind our spiritual vision. In the words of Hosea, “the sprit of whoredom has caused them to err.” In Aquinas’ summation, (following Gregory I, Moral. xxxi.35), “blindness of mind arises from lust” (ST. SS.Q 15.).
And so it was with Israel at Baal Peor with such blindness arising out of the corruption of the flesh:
“And the people began (וַיָּ֣חֶל [chalal]) to commit harlotry with the women of Moab (25:1).
And this beginning opened a pathway to the corruption of the spirit:
They invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods (25:2).
Producing an adulterous synergy:
So Israel was joined to Baal of Peor (25:3a)
Much could be said regarding on how this synergy operates throughout the history of Israel, from the time of the Judges (Judg 2:11-12, 3:5-7, etc.) to Solomon (I Ki 3:3, bamah-> I Ki11:1-8) and the dissolute kings of Judah (I Ki 14:21-23, II Chron 21:5-11, II Ki 16:2-4, etc.), who join bamah with zanah—spiritual corruption in the “high places” with sexual immorality—thus opening the pathway to judgment and finally exile (Is 1:21-25, 57:1-10; Jer 2:20-23, 3:2-11; Ezek 16:15-16, etc.)
Judgment & Atonement
“Take all the leaders of the people and hang the offenders before the Lord, out in the sun, that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel” (Num 25:4).
There is no escaping the judgment that has come upon those who had willingly “joined” themselves “to Baal of Peor;” for their adultery had not merely defiled the flesh, but moreover, corrupted the spirit, the end of which is death (Num 25:5). As such, both physical and spiritual means were necessary to “stay the plague” when a “man of Israel” was so bold as to “present to his brethren a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel,” who saw the mayhem it had created and “were weeping at the door of the tabernacle of meeting” (Num 25:6).
The priest then comes forward with an action of violent judgment that we find is necessary to bring atonement.
“Now when Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose from among the congregation and took a javelin in his hand; and he went after the man of Israel into the tent and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her body” (Num 25:8a).
And what was the outcome of such an action?
“So the plague was stopped among the children of Israel” though “those who died in the plague were twenty-four thousand (Num 25:8b-9).
Then what was the Lord’s assessment?
“Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ‘Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned back My wrath from the children of Israel, because he was zealous with My zeal among them, so that I did not consume the children of Israel in My zeal.'
‘Therefore say, Behold, I give to him My covenant of peace; and it shall be to him and his descendants after him a covenant of an everlasting priesthood, because he was zealous for his God, and made atonement for the children of Israel.’’”
With the final occurrences of chalal in Numbers, we are now presented with the fundamental ways in which this word will be used throughout the OT. And though we could move forward with further analysis of its uses throughout the remainder of the Scripture, we will bring our study of chalal (at least temporarily) to a close. This "piercing” we have found not only opens up a way to the Kingdom of God through the faithfulness of JWHW offered in the covenantal line, it also opens up those who reject such faithfulness to the judgment of sin and death. And in this way, we who have “pierced ourselves through with sin” and placed ourselves under its curse will find the healing balm only in Christ, the Suffering Servant of JWHW, Who will Himself be “pierced for our transgressions,” thereby opening us up through His love to the eternal propitiation of our sins.
Amen. So may it be.