Numbers 32:6 ESV
“Shall your brothers go to the war while you sit here?”
Today we return to the book of Numbers. Before 40 Forward, we had reached Numbers 31. Now we pick up with a chapter that asks a question we still need to hear: What happens when I have what I need, but the people beside me are still facing a hard road?
The tribes of Reuben and Gad had large herds, and the land east of the Jordan was good for livestock. They asked Moses if they could make their home there instead of crossing into Canaan with the rest of Israel.
Moses immediately thought about what their decision would mean for everyone else. Would their brothers have to fight while they stayed behind? Would their choice discourage the people who still needed to cross?
The land itself was not the problem. Reuben and Gad could receive it. But they could not treat their own security as the end of their responsibility to Israel.
They answered Moses with a promise. They would build places for their families and livestock, then cross the Jordan armed with the other tribes. They would not return home until the rest of Israel had received its inheritance.
That makes me think about what happens when we have lived through a difficult season. Before I experienced the loss of close family members, I did not understand the magnitude of that kind of grief. I could care about someone who had lost a loved one, but I had not felt the weight of it myself.
After walking through that loss on several occasions, I hear someone’s news differently. I know that a few kind words will not make everything better. Grief can follow a person into ordinary moments long after everyone else has returned to their routines. Those experiences have given me a deeper compassion for people who are in that place now.
I cannot take away someone else’s grief. I can listen. I can check in after the first few days, when the calls have slowed down. I can remember the difficult dates and stay near when I do not know what to say.
Numbers 32 is not specifically about grief. It is about a people refusing to leave their brothers to face the next battle alone. Reuben and Gad could not fight every battle for the other tribes, but they could cross the river with them. They could offer their presence and strength until the others had reached their place too.
That kind of faithfulness matters in the church. We may not share the same struggle at the same time, but we belong to one another. A person who has found stability can help someone who is still searching for solid ground. A person who has received encouragement can offer it again. A person who knows the pain of loss can sit with someone whose grief is still new.
Who might need you to do that today?
Perhaps God has brought you through something that has changed the way you see another person’s struggle. The answer may be less complicated than you think: a call, a visit, a meal, a prayer, or the decision to keep checking in. Moses told Reuben and Gad to do what they had promised. Compassion becomes meaningful when it moves us to act.
Jesus came near to us in our need. He did more than observe our suffering from a distance. He entered our world, bore our sin, and gave Himself for us. His love teaches us to move toward people with compassion, even when we cannot fix what they are facing.
Today, thank God for those who stayed with you in a hard season. Then ask Him to bring someone to mind who may need you to stay with them. You do not have to carry their whole burden. You can take the next step beside them.
Prayer
Lord, thank You for the people who have walked with us through difficult seasons. Use what we have experienced to make us more compassionate toward others. Help us notice those who are grieving, struggling, or still waiting for relief. Give us the wisdom to listen, the courage to reach out, and the faithfulness to keep showing up. Thank You for Jesus, who came near to us and has never left us alone. In Jesus’ name, amen.