" The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying"
Numbers 1:1
A passage in Paul's first epistle to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 10:1ff) crystallises the story of Numbers for us. The Old Testament story, the Apostle tells us, is designed in the prov- idence of God to be an example for us in the Christian life, and the things we read here are so apposite to that life that they can be taken as direct and certain parallels (cf also Romans 15:4). The fact, however, that these things are written for our instruction, does not mean that the book of Numbers is not true or accurate history. Its historicity is not in question; but its purpose is something greater and more important than the recording of the historical process: it is divine revelation, the unfolding of redemptive history in the context of God's dealings with His Old Testament people. As Paul makes plain, Christians may find encouragement and instruction for spiritual life through the reading of the Old Testament and, discovering the principles by which God dealt with His people, apply them in practical ways to their lives. Looked at in this light, the study of the Old Testament ceases to be merely an exercise in historical research having little relevance to daily living, and becomes the living word of God to men in practical situations. It is certain that in our study we shall find all kinds of situations in these far-off days showing forth principles of action, conduct and thought which are highly relevant for our time. There would be no point in studying it otherwise; it is not the cloister but the battleground that is the proper environment for the reading of the Old Testament.