March 14 (Numbers 12–13; Psalm 68:19–35; John 9)

Summary

Podcast Summary: Through the ESV Bible in a Year with Jackie Hill Perry
Episode: March 14
Release Date: March 14, 2025
Scriptural Readings: Numbers 12–13; Psalm 68:19–35; John 9

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Introduction

In this episode of "Through the ESV Bible in a Year with Jackie Hill Perry," listeners embark on a journey through three significant scriptural passages: Numbers 12–13, Psalm 68:19–35, and John 9. Jackie Hill Perry meticulously guides the audience through each reading, highlighting the themes of leadership, faith, divine intervention, and spiritual insight. This detailed summary captures the essence of the discussions, key points, and profound insights shared during the episode.

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Old Testament Reading: Numbers 12–13

Key Themes: Leadership challenges, divine authority, faith testing, and the exploration of the Promised Land.

The episode begins with a reading from the Book of Numbers, focusing on chapters 12 and 13. The narrative centers around Miriam and Aaron, who challenge Moses' leadership. Their dissent arises from Moses' marriage to a Cushite woman, leading them to question, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?” ([00:07] Aaron).

Divine Intervention and Consequences:

• God’s Affirmation of Moses: God responds by emphasizing Moses' unique relationship with Him. As Moses is described as “more meek than all people who were on the face of the earth” ([00:21] Moses), God reiterates that He speaks directly to Moses “mouth to mouth, clearly and not in riddles” ([00:45] Moses). This establishes Moses' unparalleled role as God’s prophet.

• Punishment of Miriam: Despite Aaron’s intercession, Miriam is struck with leprosy for her opposition, illustrating the severe consequences of challenging divine authority. Aaron pleads, “do not punish us because we have done foolishly and have sinned” ([01:14] Moses), but God decrees that Miriam be isolated for seven days ([01:35] Aaron), underscoring the sanctity of Moses’ leadership.

Sending of the Spies:

• Mission to Canaan: Moving forward, God instructs Moses to send twelve spies to explore the land of Canaan, the Promised Land. Each tribe selects a chief to undertake this mission, emphasizing collective responsibility and leadership ([02:03] Aaron).

• Reporting Back: After forty days, the spies return with reports highlighting both the land's abundance and the formidable strength of its inhabitants. Caleb stands out by urging immediate occupation of the land, declaring, “let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it” ([04:38] Moses). This contrasts with the majority who spread fear, describing the land as “devours its inhabitants” and observing, “we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers” ([05:12] Aaron).

Notable Quotes:

• “More than all people who were on the face of the earth.” ([00:21] Moses)
• “Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” ([00:57] Moses)
• “let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” ([04:38] Moses)

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Psalm Reading: Psalm 68:19–35

Key Themes: God’s sovereignty, deliverance, kingship, and universal praise.

The reading transitions to Psalm 68:19–35, where figures such as Caleb and Jesus are referenced, bringing a prophetic and messianic dimension to the Psalm. This passage celebrates God's mighty acts, His role as a warrior, and His exaltation of His people.

Divine Majesty and Praise:

• God’s Deliverance: The Psalm opens with a declaration of God’s daily support, “Blessed be the Lord who daily bears us up” ([05:33] Caleb), acknowledging Him as the source of salvation.

• Procession of God: The passage vividly describes God’s majestic procession into the sanctuary, with vivid imagery of singers, musicians, and virgins playing tambourines ([06:02] Jesus). This symbolizes the organized and joyous worship directed towards God.

Universal Dominion and Victory:

• Conquest and Triumph: The Psalm speaks of God’s promise to “bring them back from Bashan” and His power to “strike the heads of his enemies” ([05:31] Caleb), illustrating His omnipotence over nations and adversaries.

• Inclusion of All Nations: Emphasizing global recognition, the Psalm calls upon kingdoms like Egypt and Kush to sing praises to God, highlighting His sovereignty over all earthly powers ([06:31] Jesus).

Notable Quotes:

• “Blessed be the Lord who daily bears us up.” ([05:33] Caleb)
• “The procession of my God, my king, into the sanctuary.” ([06:02] Jesus)
• “Sing praises to the Lord, Selah, to him who rides in the heavens” ([06:31] Jesus)

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Gospel Reading: John 9

Key Themes: Spiritual blindness vs. sight, faith, and the revelation of Jesus as the Messiah.

The final segment delves into John 9, recounting the miraculous healing of a man born blind by Jesus. This passage explores themes of spiritual insight, faith, and the ensuing conflict with the Pharisees.

Miracle of Healing:

• Healing the Blind Man: Jesus encounters a man blind from birth and heals him by making mud with His saliva, applying it to the man's eyes, and instructing him to wash in the pool of Siloam ([07:39] Jesus). This act serves as a physical manifestation of spiritual truth.

Conflict with the Pharisees:

• Questioning and Division: The healing leads to a heated debate among the Pharisees about Jesus' authority and the validity of His miracles. Some Pharisees accuse Jesus of violating the Sabbath, while others doubt the man's testimony about Jesus ([08:39] Pharisee).

• Revelation of Jesus' Identity: After being cast out, the healed man affirms his belief in Jesus as the Son of Man, leading to a profound confession of faith ([10:25] Pharisee). Jesus declares His mission to bring sight to the spiritually blind and judgment to those who claim to see but are spiritually blind ([10:51] Jesus).

Spiritual Insight:

• True Sight vs. Blindness: The discourse culminates in Jesus highlighting the spiritual blindness of the Pharisees, who, despite their claims to see, fail to recognize the true light of Christ ([11:20] Jesus).

Notable Quotes:

• “He was born blind? Jesus answered, it was not that this man sinned or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.” ([07:29] Jesus)
• “Whether he is a sinner, I do not know. One thing I do know that though I was blind, now I see.” ([09:45] Jesus)
• “For judgment, I came into this world that those who do not see may see. And those who see may become blind.” ([10:51] Jesus)
• “But now that you say we see, your guilt remains.” ([11:27] Jesus)

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Conclusion

This episode of "Through the ESV Bible in a Year with Jackie Hill Perry" offers a profound exploration of leadership, divine authority, and faith through the readings of Numbers 12–13, Psalm 68:19–35, and John 9. The narratives and teachings encapsulated within these passages encourage listeners to reflect on their own spiritual journeys, the importance of unwavering faith, and the recognition of divine intervention in their lives. By interweaving Old Testament teachings with New Testament revelations, Jackie Hill Perry provides a comprehensive and enriching scriptural experience aimed at deepening the listener’s understanding and relationship with God.

Transcript

[Moses]

A reading from the Book of Numbers. Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because.

[Aaron]

Of the cushite woman whom he had.

[Moses]

Married, for he had married a cushite woman. And they said, has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also? And the Lord heard it. Now, the man Moses was very meek.

[Aaron]

More than all people who were on.

[Moses]

The face of the earth. And suddenly the the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron and Miriam, come out, you three to the tent of meeting. And the three of them came out.

[Aaron]

And the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the.

[Moses]

Entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam.

[Aaron]

And they both came forward.

[Moses]

And he said, hear my words. If there is a prophet among you.

[Aaron]

I the Lord, make myself known to him.

[Moses]

In a vision I speak with him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house.

[Aaron]

With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly and not in riddles. And he beholds the form of the Lord.

[Moses]

Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?

[Aaron]

And the anger of the Lord was.

[Moses]

Kindled against them, and he departed. When the cloud removed from over the tent, behold, Miriam was leprous like snow.

[Aaron]

And Aaron turned toward Miriam, and behold, she was leprous.

[Moses]

And Aaron said to Moses, o my Lord, do not punish us because we have done foolishly and have sinned. Let her not be as one dead whose flesh is half eaten away when he comes out of his mother's womb. And Moses cried to the Lord, o God, please heal her.

[Caleb]

Please.

[Moses]

But the Lord said to Moses, if.

[Aaron]

Her father had but spit in her.

[Moses]

Face, should she not be shamed? Seven days.

[Aaron]

Let her be shut outside the camp seven days.

[Moses]

And after that she may be brought in again. So Miriam was shut outside the camp seven days.

[Aaron]

And the people did not set out.

[Moses]

On the march till Miriam was brought in again. After that, the people set out from Hazeroth and camped in the wilderness of Paran. The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel.

[Aaron]

From each tribe of their fathers, you.

[Moses]

Shall send a man, every one, a chief among them. So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran according to the command of the Lord.

[Aaron]

All of them men who were heads.

[Moses]

Of the people of Israel. And these were their from the tribe of Reuben.

[Aaron]

Shamua the son of Zaccur. From the tribe of Simeon.

[Moses]

Shapheth the son of Hori. From the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh.

[Aaron]

From the tribe of Issachar.

[Moses]

Igol, the son of Joseph, from the tribe of Ephraim. Hoshea, the son of Nun, from the tribe of Benjamin. Palti, the son of Rephu, from the tribe of Zebulun. Gadiel, the son of Sodai, from the tribe of Joseph, that is, from the tribe of Manasseh. Gadai, the son of Susai, from the tribe of Dan. Ammiel, the son of Gamalai, from the tribe of Asher. Sether, the son of Michael, from the tribe of Naphtali. Nabi, the son of Vophseh, from the tribe of Gad. Gil, the son of Makai.

[Aaron]

These were the names of the men.

[Moses]

Whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea, the son of Nun, Joshua. Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan. And said to them, Go up into the Negeb. And go up into the hill country. And see what the land is.

[Aaron]

And whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak.

[Moses]

Whether they are few or many.

[Aaron]

And whether the land that they dwell.

[Moses]

In is good or bad.

[Aaron]

And whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds. And whether the land is rich or poor.

[Moses]

And whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some.

[Aaron]

Of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the season of.

[Moses]

The first ripe grapes. So they went up and spied out.

[Aaron]

The land from the wilderness of Zin.

[Moses]

To Rehob, near Lebo Hameth. They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.

[Aaron]

And they came to the valley of Eshcol. And cut down from there a branch.

[Moses]

With a single cluster of grapes.

[Aaron]

And they carried it on a pole.

[Moses]

Between two of them. They also brought some pomegranates and figs. That place was called the Valley of Eshcol.

[Aaron]

Because of the cluster that the people.

[Moses]

Of Israel cut down from there. At the end of 40 days, they returned from spying out the land.

[Aaron]

And they came to Moses and Aaron. And to all the congregation of the people of Israel.

[Moses]

In the wilderness of Paran at Kadesh.

[Aaron]

They brought back word to them and.

[Moses]

To all the congregation.

[Aaron]

And showed them the fruit of the land.

[Moses]

And they told them, we came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit.

[Aaron]

However, the people who dwell in the land are strong. And the cities are fortified and very large.

[Moses]

And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak There the Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country, and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the Jordan. But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it. Then the men who had gone up with him said, we are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are. So they brought to the people of.

[Aaron]

Israel a bad report of the land.

[Moses]

That they had spied out, saying, the.

[Aaron]

Land through which we have gone to.

[Moses]

Spy it out is a land that devours its inhabitants. And all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim, the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim. And we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers. And so we seemed to them a.

[Aaron]

Reading from the book of Psalms.

[Caleb]

Blessed be the Lord who daily bears us up.

[Jesus]

God is our salvation, Selah.

[Caleb]

Our God is a God of salvation. And to God the Lord belong deliverances from death. But God will strike the heads of his enemies, the hairy crown of him who walks in his guilty ways. The Lord said, I will bring them back from Bashan. I will bring them back from the depths of the sea, that you may strike your feet in their blood, that the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from the foe. Your procession is seen, O God.

[Jesus]

The procession of my God, my king, into the sanctuary.

[Caleb]

The singers in front, the musicians last. Between them, virgins playing tambourines. Bless God. In the great congregation, the Lord, O you who are of Israel's fountain, there is Benjamin, the least of them in the lead. The princes of Judah in their throng. The princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali. Summon your power, O God. The power, O God, by which you have worked for us. Because of your temple at Jerusalem, kings.

[Jesus]

Shall bear gifts to you.

[Caleb]

Rebuke the beasts that dwell among the reeds. The herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples trample underfoot. Those who lust after tribute, scatter the peoples who delight in war. Nobles shall come from Egypt. Kush shall hasten to stretch out her hands to God. O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God. Sing praises to the Lord, Selah, to him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens. Behold, he sends out his voice. His mighty voice ascribe power to God who. Whose majesty is over Israel and whose power is in the skies. Awesome Is God from his sanctuary, the God of Israel. He is the one who gives power and strength to his people. Blessed be God.

[Moses]

A reading from the Gospel according to John.

[Jesus]

As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, rabbi, who.

[Pharisee]

Sinned this man or his parents that.

[Jesus]

He was born blind? Jesus answered, it was not that this man sinned or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.

[Pharisee]

We must work the works of him who sent me.

[Jesus]

While it is day, night is coming when no one can work.

[Pharisee]

As long as I am in the.

[Jesus]

World, I am the light of the world. Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva.

[Pharisee]

Then he anointed the man's eyes with.

[Jesus]

The mud and said to him, go.

[Pharisee]

Wash in the pool of Siloam, which means sent. So he went and washed and came.

[Jesus]

Back, seeing the neighbors.

[Pharisee]

And those who had seen him before.

[Jesus]

As a beggar were saying, is this.

[Pharisee]

Not the man who used to sit and beg?

[Jesus]

Some said, it is he. Others said, no, but he is like him. He kept saying, I am the man. So they said to him, then how were your eyes opened? He answered, the man called Jesus made.

[Pharisee]

Mud and anointed my eyes and said.

[Jesus]

To me, go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed and received my sight. They said to him, where is he? He said, I do not know. They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.

[Pharisee]

Now it was a Sabbath day when.

[Jesus]

Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.

[Pharisee]

So the Pharisees again asked him how.

[Jesus]

He had received his sight. And he said to them, he put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see. Some of the Pharisees said, this man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath. But others said, how can a man who is a sinner do such signs? And there was a division among them.

[Pharisee]

So they said again to the blind.

[Jesus]

Man, what do you say about him since he has opened your eyes? He said, he is a prophet.

[Pharisee]

The Jews did not believe that he.

[Jesus]

Had been blind and had received his sight.

[Pharisee]

Until they called the parents of the.

[Jesus]

Man who had received his sight and asked them, is this your son who you say was born blind? How then does he now see? His parents answered, we know that this is our son and that he was born blind. But how he now sees, we do not know. Nor do we know who opened his eyes.

[Pharisee]

Ask him.

[Jesus]

He is of age. He will speak for himself. His parents said these things because they feared the Jews for The Jews had.

[Pharisee]

Already agreed that if anyone should confess.

[Jesus]

Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue. Therefore his parents said, he is of age. Ask him. So for the second time.

[Pharisee]

They called the man who had been.

[Jesus]

Blind and said to him, give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner. He answered, whether he is a sinner, I do not know. One thing I do know that though I was blind, now I see. They said to him, what did he do to you? How did he open your eyes? He answered them, I have told you already and you would not listen.

[Pharisee]

Why do you want to hear it again?

[Jesus]

Do you also want to become his disciples? And they reviled him, saying, you are his disciple. But we are disciples of Moses. We know that God has spoken to Moses. But as for this man, we do not know where he comes from. The man answered, why, this is an amazing thing.

[Pharisee]

You do not know where he comes from. And yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners.

[Jesus]

But if anyone is a worshiper of.

[Pharisee]

God and does his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God.

[Jesus]

He could do nothing. They answered him, you were born in.

[Pharisee]

Utter sin, and would you teach us? And they cast him out.

[Jesus]

Jesus heard that they had cast him out. And having found him, he said, do you believe in the Son of Man? He answered, and who is he, sir, that I may believe in him? Jesus said to him, you have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you. He said, lord, I believe. And he worshiped him. Jesus said, for judgment, I came into this world that those who do not see may see. And those who see may become blind.

[Pharisee]

Some of the Pharisees near him heard.

[Jesus]

These things and said to him, are we also blind? Jesus said to them, if you were.

[Pharisee]

Blind, you would have no guilt.

[Jesus]

But now that you say we see, your guilt remains.