BEN F. VICK, JR.
“And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And the Lord showed him all the land of Gilead, unto Dan, And all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim, and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, unto the utmost sea, And the south, and the plain of the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto Zoar. And the Lord said unto him, This is the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, I will give it unto thy seed: I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither. So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of t he Lord. And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Beth-peor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day. And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated. And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days: so the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended” (Deut. 34:1-8).
Mount Nebo is located east of the northern end of the Dead Sea. It is about 18 miles south of modern-day Amman, the center and seat of the government of Jordan. It is 2,670 feet above sea level. From this height, Moses viewed the land. Keller says, “After a short climb over bare rocks, we reached a broad barren plateau.” (The Bible As History, p. 154, 2015.) From here, Moses viewed the promised land.
Before climbing to the top of Nebo to Pisgah’s height, Moses delivered four addresses found in the book of Deuteronomy:
Moses’ First Address (1:1-4:43)
Moses’ Second Address (4:44-26:19)
Moses’ Third Address (27-30)
Moses’ Fourth Address (31:34)
Deuteronomy 34:10-12 gives Inspiration’s assessment of Moses, which reads: “And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, In all the signs and the wonders, which the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land, And in all that mighty hand, and in all the great terror which Moses showed in the sight of all Israel.”
The Lord had said unto Moses, “Get thee up into this mount Abarim, and see the land which I have given unto the children of Israel. And when thou hast seen it, thou also shalt be gathered unto thy people, as Aaron thy brother was gathered. For ye rebelled against my commandment in the desert of Zin, in the strife of the congregation, to sanctify me at the water before their eyes: that is the water of Meribah in Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin” (Num. 27:12-14). Deuteronomy 34:1 pinpoints the precise location of where Moses ascended: from “the plains of Moab unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is over against Jericho.”
With his eye undimmed and physical force unabated at 120 years young, Moses went up to Pisgah’s height. We are not told what Moses thought or if he said anything as he climbed. He was alone. His life may have flashed before him each step of the way. Perhaps he thought of the years in Egypt as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter and the suffering of God’s people, Israel. In the next chapter of his life in the wilderness of Midian, he was tending his father-in-law’s sheep and then the call from the burning bush. As he opened the final chapter of his life, the plagues in Egypt and deliverance from bondage, the receiving and deliverance of the law, the wilderness wandering, and the defeat of the Moabites and Amorites in the Eastern Tableland. Dwight Moody said that Moses spent the first forty years thinking he was somebody; he spent the second forty years learning he was nobody; he spent the third forty years discovering what God could do with a nobody.
In the fall of 1972, brother Neale Pryor delivered a lesson at the College Church of Christ in Searcy, Arkansas, entitled “Moses’ Disappointment.” No doubt Moses was disappointed in not being able to enter that land described as “flowing with milk and honey.” The frustration of dealing with a constantly carping, criticizing people caused Moses to fail to sanctify God in the eyes of the people at Meribah, and he struck the rock twice instead of speaking to it (Num. 20). Because of this, neither Moses nor Aaron was allowed to enter the land of promise. Yet Moses, in the plains of Moab, pleaded with God to allow him to enter. But the Lord would not hear him and said, “Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter. Get thee up into the top of Pisgah, and lift up thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward, and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes: for thou shalt not go over this Jordan” (Deut. 3:26-27). We do not always get what we want. We do not always attain the goals for which we strive.
Though Moses sinned at Meribah, the apostle Paul said he was faithful in all his house (Heb. 3:5). There was a consequence for his disobedience. But evidently, Moses repented of having failed to sanctify God in their sight. Sin has consequences even though one can be forgiven of sin (Gal. 6:7-8; Acts 2:22-41; 1 John 1:7-10). Our goal should be faithfulness on the journey to the land of heavenly rest.
Prayers are not always answered as we wish. God knows best. Moses prayed to enter the promised land but was not allowed to do so. Paul and company desired to go into Bithynia to preach the gospel (a worthy goal), but the Holy Spirit forbade them. God had a bigger plan for Paul than he had for himself. Paul wanted to preach in a region, but God wanted him to preach on another continent – the European continent. Paul prayed that his thorn in the flesh would be removed, but it was not (2 Cor. 12:7-9). Jesus prayed that the cup of suffering might pass from him; however, it was necessary that he drink the cup of suffering for the salvation of humanity. He endured.
Moses was a type of Christ (Deut. 18:18-19; Acts 3:22-23). Moses spoke of Christ. Jesus told the Jews, “For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?” (John 5:46-47.) Moses was not allowed to enter the promised land in his lifetime; however, we read of his appearance with Elijah and Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matt. 17:1-5). John records that those who obtained a victory over the beast, over his image, over his mark, and over the number of his name have the harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb (Rev. 15:2-3).
Paul exhorted, “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it” (Heb. 4:1).