Num 31:22-23 | KingComments | STEP | Everything that Israel has captured must be purified. The cleansing is done by putting it in the fire and then washing it with water. What cannot stand the fire should only be cleansed with water. The cleansing is carried out under the responsibility of Eleazar, who as a high priest must ensure that the cleansing is done strictly according to the prescription of Numbers 19 ( ). Nothing can be used by Israel without first going through the fire. The spoils that come from our unfaithfulness must also be cleansed to make them suitable for our own use. Everything that has been in the hands of Midian and is therefore unclean must be cleansed. We can apply this to unbiblical practices of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. These unbiblical practices are a consequence of our unfaithfulness. When baptism and supper are brought back to the foundation of the Bible, when they are cleansed of what is contrary to it, they can again be accepted as a blessing from God’s hand and used for His glory. Fire and water must thus be applied to every truth we confess and every practice we connect to it in order to use it for God. The fire speaks of judgment, the water speaks of the Word of God. Fire consumes what cannot exist before God, water removes dirt and cleanses. Everything that has been under God’s judgment and is in accordance with God’s Word can be used to His glorification. If we get to this point, it is the result of the high priestly work of the Lord Jesus that He, as the true Eleazar, does for us. He leads us to see and to do everything so that God can accept it.

‏ Numbers 31:22-23

Requirements for Cleansing

Everything that Israel has captured must be purified. The cleansing is done by putting it in the fire and then washing it with water. What cannot stand the fire should only be cleansed with water. The cleansing is carried out under the responsibility of Eleazar, who as a high priest must ensure that the cleansing is done strictly according to the prescription of Numbers 19 (Num 19:1-22).

Nothing can be used by Israel without first going through the fire. The spoils that come from our unfaithfulness must also be cleansed to make them suitable for our own use. Everything that has been in the hands of Midian and is therefore unclean must be cleansed.

We can apply this to unbiblical practices of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. These unbiblical practices are a consequence of our unfaithfulness. When baptism and supper are brought back to the foundation of the Bible, when they are cleansed of what is contrary to it, they can again be accepted as a blessing from God’s hand and used for His glory.

Fire and water must thus be applied to every truth we confess and every practice we connect to it in order to use it for God. The fire speaks of judgment, the water speaks of the Word of God. Fire consumes what cannot exist before God, water removes dirt and cleanses. Everything that has been under God’s judgment and is in accordance with God’s Word can be used to His glorification. If we get to this point, it is the result of the high priestly work of the Lord Jesus that He, as the true Eleazar, does for us. He leads us to see and to do everything so that God can accept it.