The Meaning of the Number Three in Scripture—Part 12

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

Introduction and Review

This is the twelfth part of a series that examines the number three and how it categorizes themes in Scripture. The previous lesson studied the life of Moses and its association with this number. (Links to all articles in this series are listed at the end of this installment.)

This lesson will explore the wilderness wanderings and how the number three highlights certain elements associated with it.

Korah's Rebellion

Korah, Dathan, and Abiram

Numbers chapter 16 records a narrative about the ideas of going "up" and "down" involving three men. It also includes another revelation about the purpose of Christ's resurrection.

Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath (Kohath had four sons), the son of Levi, with Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men; and they rose up before Moses with some of the children of Israel
— Numbers 16:1-2

The fourth generation from Levi, and one of his four sons, indicates a worldly type of rising.

Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
— John 10:1

These usurpers are jealous of Moses and Aaron's positions in the priesthood and accuse Moses of what they themselves are guilty of.

And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the Lord.
— Numbers 16:3

Moses, the mediator, is a picture of Christ.

... when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face.
— Numbers 16:4

Moses next prepares a test to prove the Lord's appointment of priestly duties by the following.

And he spake unto Korah and unto all his company, saying, Even tomorrow

The Lord will shew who are his,
and who is holy;
and will cause him to come near unto him: even him whom he hath chosen will he cause to come near unto him.

This do; Take you censers, Korah, and all his company;

And put fire therein, and put incense in them before the Lord to morrow: and it shall be that the man whom the Lord doth choose, he shall be holy: ye take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi

— Numbers 16:5-7

The text continues with a bitter conversation between them. Moses suggests they should feel honored by their position and lists three honorable purposes.

Is it a small thing to you that the God of Israel has separated you from the congregation of Israel,

to bring you near to Himself,
to do the work of the Tabernacle of the Lord, and
to stand before the congregation to serve them, and that He has brought you near to Himself, you and all your brethren, the sons of Levi, with you?

And are you seeking the priesthood also?... And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab ... but they said, "We will not come up!

— Numbers 16:9-10,11

The rebels' reply included three accusations countering Moses' three purposes

Is it a small thing that

You have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey,
to kill us in the wilderness,
that you should keep acting like a prince over us?

Moreover, you have not brought us into a

land flowing with milk and honey, nor given us an inheritance of
fields and
vineyards. Will you put out the eyes of these men? We will not come up!"

— Numbers 16:14

Was this a slap in Moses' face, as seen in an earlier event when Moses considered delivering his people the wrong way, long before they ever left Egypt?

Now it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out to his brethren and looked at their burdens. And he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brethren. So he looked this way and that way, and when he saw no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. And when he went out the second day, behold, two Hebrew men were fighting, and he said to the one who did the wrong, “Why are you striking your companion?”
Then he said, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?”
— Exodus 2:11-14

Moses is angry, and so is God, and the contest begins with all bringing their censers of incense to the door of the Tabernacle. Recall the door in John chapter ten, which says all must come through.

God next instructs Moses and Aaron to step away from them all because he will destroy them, but once again, they mediate, as the priesthood is to do, on behalf of the people, revealing what Jesus Christ, our great and High Priest, does for us.

Then they fell on their faces, and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and You be angry with all the congregation.
— Numbers 16:22
... just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.
— Romans 5:12
Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.
— Romans 8:4

God is about to do a separation by calling some up, out, and away from three.

"Speak to the congregation, saying, ‘Get away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram ... Then Moses rose ... he spake unto the congregation, saying Depart now from the tents of these wicked men! Touch nothing of theirs, lest you be consumed in all their sins.”So they got up from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side ...
— Numbers 16:24-27

The occasion ends with the earth swallowing up the rebellious and sparing those who turned away from them, and the censers are made into memorial plates that will always remind them of God's directive for the priesthood. But immediately after this event, the congregation becomes disgruntled against Moses and complains that he has killed the people of the Lord. Once again, God tells Moses and Aaron to step away so that He may consume them. What happens next is nothing short of glorious, illustrating what Christ has done for us as we see Moses, the mediator, mediating again for the congregation.

And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from the Lord; the plague is begun. And Aaron took as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the congregation; and, behold, the plague was begun among the people: and he put on incense, and made an atonement for the people.

— Numbers 16:46

... if a man should sin, remember that our advocate before the Father is Jesus Christ the righteous, the one who made personal atonement for our sins (and for those of the rest of the world as well).

— I John 2:10 (JB Phillips Translation)

The following verse will fully describe what the lifting up of Christ did for us.

And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed.
— Numbers 16:48

Our plague is sin.

No one has ever been up to Heaven except the Son of Man who came down from Heaven. The Son of Man must be lifted above the heads of men—as Moses lifted up that serpent in the desert—so that any man who believes in him may have eternal life. For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him shall not be lost, but should have eternal life.
— John 3:15-16
Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.
— John 12:31-32

The children of Israel spent two years at Mount Sinai and then took a three-day journey to Taberah.

And they departed from the mount of the Lord three days' journey: and the ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them in the three days' journey, to search out a resting place for them
... And the cloud of the Lord was upon them by day, when they went out of the camp.
And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, Rise up, Lord, and let thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate thee flee before thee.
— Numbers 10:33

It is at Taberah that the people complained, as described in the following chapter.

And when the people complained, it displeased the Lord: and the Lord heard it; and his anger was kindled; and the fire of the Lord burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp. And the people cried unto Moses; and when Moses prayed unto the Lord, the fire was quenched. And he called the name of the place Taberah: because the fire of the Lord burnt among them.
— Numbers 11:3

The total number of years from their departure from Egypt to the entrance of the Promised Land was 42 (3 x 14) years.

Balak entices Balaam to curse Israel for him

Balaam Beats His Donkey Three Times

Numbers chapter 22 begins with the Midianite king Balak hiring the prophet Balaam to curse Israel because he fears their expansion. The Lord warns Balaam about the following.

“If the men come to call you, rise and go with them; but only the word which I speak to you—that you shall do.” So Balaam rose in the morning, saddled his donkey, and went with the princes of Moab ... Then God’s anger was aroused because he went, and the Angel of the Lord took His stand in the way as an adversary against him. And he was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him (notice there are three people present, Balaam and his two servants).

— Numbers 22:20-22

At first glance, you may wonder why God was mad when it appears he told Balaam he could go, but if you read the text carefully, you will notice that God said, "If the men come to call you." Balaam never waited for the invitation. He just got up and went. This seemingly innocent detail reveals Balaam's evil purpose of selling out the Israelites to an enemy through a spiritual attack.

Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness.
— I Peter 2:15
Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit.
— Jude 1:11

On the way, an unseen by Balaam event occurs. Three times gives us a clue that this visit was a spiritual one.

Now the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand, and the donkey turned aside out of the way and went into the field. So

Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back onto the road. Then the Angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side. And when the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord, she pushed herself against the wall and crushed Balaam's foot against the wall; so
he struck her again. Then the Angel of the Lord went further, and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left. And when the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam; so Balaam's anger was aroused, and
he struck the donkey with his staff.

Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”
And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have abused me. I wish there were a sword in my hand, for now I would kill you!”
So the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden, ever since I became yours, to this day? Was I ever disposed to do this to you?”
And he said, “No.”
Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the Angel of the Lord standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand; and he bowed his head and fell flat on his face. And the Angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to stand against you, because your way is perverse before Me. The donkey saw Me and turned aside from Me these three times. If she had not turned aside from Me, surely I would also have killed you by now, and let her live.”
— Numbers 22:23-33

The phrase "three times" is used three times. "The donkey saw the Angel of the Lord" occurs three times.

The Lord allows Balaam to continue, but warns him to speak only what he is told. Balaam tries to curse Israel, but a blessing comes out instead, hinting at the coming Redeemer.

... from the top of the rocks I see him,
And from the hills I behold him ...

— Numbers 23

Balak thinks that moving to a different place might work, but the same thing happens, and this time, the language of resurrection pours forth.

And he took up his parable, and said, Rise up, Balak, and hear; hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor:
God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?
Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it.
He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: the Lord his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them.
God brought them out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of a unicorn (ox).
Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel: according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought!
Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.
— Numbers 23:18-24

The third time

... when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he went not, as at other times, to seek for enchantments, but he set his face toward the wilderness. And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him.
— Numbers 24:2

Balak is upset.

And Balak's anger was kindled against Balaam, and he smote his hands together: and Balak said unto Balaam, I called thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three times.
— Numbers 24:10

We see here that loyalty to God and the benefits thereof are secured in the Spirit. As we continue to remain under the jurisdiction of the Lord God Almighty, we can count on His provision and protection.

The plague came upon them when Balaam realized another way they could be cursed: through disobedience.

... the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab.
And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.
And Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor: and the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel ... those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand
— Numbers 25:1-3,9

Balaam's sellout is explained later in the Book of Numbers when the Israelites were at war with the Midianites.

... these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the Lord in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the Lord.
— Numbers 31

It is confirmed in the New Testament letter to the third church, Pergamos, in Revelation.

I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality
— Revelation 2:14

The Spiritual Component to Blessing and Cursing

I discovered a fascinating study by Mako A. Nagasawa titled "Literary Analysis of the Pentateuch" related to this topic. The author identifies the literary structures found in the first five books of the Bible, which help us more clearly see the patterns God is trying to communicate. The following information is borrowed from that study.

The author compares the narrative themes of the magicians of Pharaoh and Balaam, the Magician. These contain three elements that once again signify the spiritual component of the sin-and-salvation dilemma.

God's people looked to the brass serpent for healing.
Anthony van Dyck

The Scene of the Copper Serpent

Just before the encounter with Balaam, who attempted to curse God's children on behalf of the Midianite king Balak (Numbers 21), the children of Israel complained about their discouragement from their wilderness experiences. Then, the Lord sent fiery serpents to bite their heels. The cure was for Moses to lift up a bronze serpent on a pole for them to look at and be delivered. This scene describes how the serpent gained entrance by not being content with God and His provision. The New Testament explains how this cure works.

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

— 2 Corinthians 5:21

... as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up.

— John 3:14

These two serpent experiences recall the first serpent-on-a-pole (tree) event in the Garden of Eden. This totals three serpent events that deal with temptation, beginning with a complaint of discontent, a sin, and serpent bondage and lordship.

Second, both Pharaoh and Balak feel threatened by the expansion and growth of the people of God. This event reveals to us the enemy's motivation in the Garden.

Thirdly, Pharaoh and Balak attempt to counteract God's blessing. Pharaoh did the following.

put slave masters to oppress them (Exodus 1:11-14)
commanded the Hebrew midwives to kill the male children (Exodus 1:15-21)
commanded that every male child be thrown into the Nile River (Exodus 1:22)

The curse becomes a blessing because this event introduces the birth of God's chosen deliverer, Moses. Can we see Jesus in that?

Balak also made three attempts to curse Israel, and after the third attempt, the prophetic announcement of a savior and deliverer poured forth.

“I see Him, but not now;
I behold Him, but not near;
A Star shall come out of Jacob;
A Scepter shall rise out of Israel.

— Numbers 24:17

This shows that the transactions of our sins were very spiritual, resulting in natural consequences. It had to be a spiritual transaction that would resurrect us from it.

Sources used for all parts of this series can be found in Part 20, the final installment.