Moses on Mount Nebo

Our first stop in Jordan was at Mount Nebo.

Moses led the People of Israel out of slavery in Egypt to Mount Sinai where God made a covenant with them and gave them the Law (Torah) summarized in the Ten Commandments. Then, because Israel did not trust God to give them the victory when they first came to the borders of Canaan, the Promised Land, Moses had to lead them through the wilderness for 40 years until finally they approached the Jordan River and the Promised Land from the east. 

God took called Moses up Mount Nebo to view the Promised Land but he himself was not to enter it. (See Deuteronomy 32:48-52 and 34:1-8)

This is one of the puzzles of the Old Testament. It seems as if Moses is punished for not obeying God faithfully when God provided water from the rock at Meribah. God told Moses to tell the Rock to bring forth water. Instead, Moses, angry with the people, hit the rock twice. Water flowed yet God judged Moses and it cost him his own entry into the Promised Land, which seems a harsh punishment.

It does show that even the best people and the best leaders have flaws that can be very costly, for them and for their people. It reminds us how important it is to pray for those who lead us and have authority over us. It also shows how important it is to be very conscious of our responsibility when we have some influence and authority.

I think, too, that Moses had a particular calling – to gather the motley assembly of slaves and form them into the People of God and then to lead them for a generation as they grew into their new identity. It was for another man, Joshua, to lead them into battle for their new home. We always inherit the work others have done and we work for the sake of those who come after us. We don’t always get the fullest reward for what we do but then we have received so much that others have worked for.

In the end, Moses was blessed far more than he could have hoped. From later Jewish tradition confirmed by the New Testament accounts of the Transfiguration, we know that although Moses did not enter the earthly Promised Land at his death, he did enter directly into the true promise of God’s glory. From there he, representing the Law, appeared with Elijah, representing the Prophets, to talk with Jesus about the new Exodus – this one to bring all people from the slavery of sin to the Promised Land of God’s kingdom. 

The view from Mount Nebo is spectacular. You really can see al the way to the Dead See, up the Jordan Valley to the Sea of Galilee and beyond. Moses died with a vision of what his people would inherit, knowing that under God he had helped to make it possible.