Envy

Numbers 12:1, ‘Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite.’ Envy is a very dangerous and we need to be vigilant and not allow it creep into our hearts. James tell us in James 4:1,2 that our selfish desires causes us to be envious of our neighbors to the extent of coveting and killing. This is what was afflicting the brother and sister of Moses, Miriam and Aaron. They were envious of the favor and position God had given to Moses. They were lusting after that which Moses had given to Moses. As often as is the case, in order to mask that our hatred is driven or fuelled by our raw selfish desires and ambitions, we place it on something that has nothing to do with the other like tribe, race, gender, age and any other reason other than the truth that it is our envy of what this person has that is driving us towards hating them. Miriam and Aaron used Moses’ Cushite wife, a non Jew and dark skinned woman as a justification as to why he should not have what God had given him. But what they did not understand and what we do not understand is that it was God who had chosen Moses and had given him that favor and position of leading the people of Israel from Egypt. God tells us that ‘I am that I am and I will use whomever I chose to use.’ So let us resist all forms of envy by learning to be content in the position God has given us and resting in the knowledge that He has a good plan for us, to prosper us.