This is the Bible Book Club.

And we're in the book of numbers.

Welcome to the club.

Well, in episode nine, we were in chapter 17 and 18, and we had one final sign from God that Aaron's family was God's choice for the priesthood.

And that was the test of the budding staff. Every tribe

got a shot and Aaron's one. Not only did Aaron's staff bud, but it also produced flowers, fruit,

and almonds. With God's choice for the priesthood, Secura God outlined the priest's duties and how

Israel was to provide for the priest in ties and offerings.

And guess what?

Spoiler alert, we are still supposed to do the same thing today.

Exactly.

Chapter 19 follows the focus on the priest with ritual instruction for cleansing from the impurity of death.

Now, why all of a sudden are we kind of feeling back like we're

getting more ritual? Why such an emphasis on death right now? Well, here's what the commentaries think.

It's probably because so many people had just died in chapter 16, the 250, Kora, the other two guys can't even remember their names.

And because death made anyone in contact with it unclean, it was a massive problem.

Plus, remember, this whole generation has to die.

So there's going to be a lot of people dying,

which could then contaminate the tabernacle. Remember from Leviticus that holiness is characterized

by life. And if you'll remember even further back in Genesis, there were two trees in the

Garden of Eden. The tree of life was the one

they could eat from. It brought life. The other tree brought death, and they ate from it. As long as

...