Chapter Summary

Defilement of the camp.

Discussion Questions for Numbers, Chapter 5

1. What were the implications of being “out of the camp” (v. 2, ESV) where the Lord manifested His presence and dwelt? What would the unclean person need to do to reenter the camp? Is there a parallel today for being outside of the camp? How does one enter the camp and have a relationship with God? How is the present-day believer’s situation different in regard to our intimacy with God? As a believer, have you ever felt outside of the Lord’s camp? What are some truths from scripture to remind us that the Lord will not cast us out?
2. In the command given in verses 1-3, is there any mention of sinful behavior by the person that should be put out of the camp? Why do you think that people who were “leprous or has a discharge” (v.2, ESV) or were in close contact with the dead would be separated from the camp for a time? What kind of situations in life today are there that wisdom dictates that a person should not participate in some ministry for a time? What role do you think that the medical field ought to be involved in a believer’s life?
3. Why did the Lord specify “both male and female” (v. 3, ESV) for unclean status & “man or woman” (v. 6, ESV) concerning sin? While there are different roles for men and women described in this chapter and other parts of scripture, is there any differentiation given between men and women when it concerns a relationship with God? How can believers best communicate the equity of the gospel to unbelievers who may think scripture or Christianity is misogynistic?
4. Why is sin characterized as “breaking faith with the Lord” (v. 6, ESV)? Describe a time in your life when a you sinned out of distrust of the Lord. How have you learned from that “breaking of faith” (v. 6, ESV)?
5. What does it mean to make “full restitution” (v.7, ESV) for a wrong done? Whether as a believer or someone turning from sin to Jesus for the first time, how should the standard the Lord establishes in this passage inform our repentance? Describe a time in your life when you have sinned against someone, or someone has sinned against you, and “full restitution” (v.7, ESV) was made. Describe a situation when restitution was not made. What did you learn?
6. As established here in vv. 6-8 and by Jesus in Matthew 5:23-24, why is it commanded to confess your sin & reconcile with the one you have wronged before you confess your sin & reconcile with God? What are the advantages of this order of operations?
7. What does atonement for sin mean? What is the “ram of atonement with which atonement is made” (v. 8, ESV)? How is Jesus the atonement for sin for believers? How can these two pictures of atonement for sin through sacrifice be best communicated to a lost person who you know personally?
8. Why is the Lord so concerned over sexual sin to the point of commanding a test be given in a very specific situation regarding suspected sexual sin? What kind of damage can sexual sin bring about in a person’s life? How can sexual sin hurt others who were not involved in the sin itself? What are some ways we can guard our mind, body, and heart from sexual sin and the damage it can bring?
9. What cultural conditions during the times of Numbers made this test for a jealous husband necessary for God’s people? How might hidden infidelity, specifically by a wife, affect a family in that time? How may this be a way of special grace to each and every woman in the camp who would have a potentially jealous husband? What are some ways families in the church today can avoid potential sexual infidelity and help in reconciliation when it occurs?
10. Does verse 31 provide a double standard that frees men of the consequences of sexual sin? Does this passage contradict the sexual sin laws in Leviticus 20:10-21 that punishes man, woman, & beast? What are some practices believers can apply to rightly understand the context of a scriptural passage?

Key Words/Phrase

Defilement, v. 2.

Characters

God, Moses.

Strong Verse(s)

3