A spectacular fall from grace
Once upon a time, as fairy tales go, there was a ravishing princess – the fairy-tale darling of the world – who shortly thereafter became the pariah – a truly spectacular fall from grace. Perhaps, you can relate, perhaps it describes your life or that of a friend or family member who needs love and compassion after going through something traumatic.
It may make you wonder how the line was crossed – being someone respected and loved one day to a virtual outcast the next. We will look at a fictitious character in illustration and then move onto biblical perspective thereafter.
Mesmerising Marianne
Marianne was mesmerising – one could not fail to notice. Perplexingly and paradoxically perfect. Hers was the peachiest, most sun-kissed of complexions, surely cultivated in a Tuscan orchard where she was so at home, despite protestations that she just could not live without sunscreen and a sun hat. Easy on the eye, delicate even, yet her piercing eyes revealed a steely determination.
She exuded glamour and sophistication yet was still able to pull off boho, flowing styles with effortless ease, while her edgy outfits were a hit in #fashion capitals around the world.
Her enigmatic, ready smile, yet aloof demeanour somehow added to the allure. She could not be pegged down or pigeon-holed in any way; she just seemed so #confident in her world, so comfortable in her skin – especially in front of the camera. Intriguingly, her glacial façade of icy coolness could easily transform into the warmest burst of sunshine, ensnaring and disarming the most critical of critics.
Whether Marianne’s honey-hued, glossy tresses were impeccably styled in an up-do or whether her locks cascaded around her shoulders in waves, she stopped the traffic. Her signature scent with notes of orange blossom wafted around her as intoxicating as a summer breeze, while her dulcet, raspy voice beckoned one a bit closer – a show stopper. Soon she became the darling of the fashion world and undisputed queen of the runway.
She hogged the attention at the most exclusive parties and red carpets at award shows – the preserve of the elite, talented and moneyed mortals – and was generally constantly in the press. She managed to avoid throwing too much spotlight on her past; articles seem to capture the fluff – her being a muse, musings about her love life, designer clothes to match the jet-set lifestyle and hanging out with the world’s movers and shakers. If the world was anyone’s oyster, it was hers.
An icon in the making, Marianne greeted adoring fans wherever she went amid flashing cameras. And she savoured every single minute. For a while, she could not put a foot wrong. Though her arrival on the fashion scene was somewhat obscure and undramatic; her rise to the top was nothing short of meteoric. Strangely, nobody dared ask too many questions about her past because despite coming across as erudite and having worked with the best in the business, her eyes were less warm and her curt responses discouraged prying of any sort.
Ominous clouds on her horizon
But one day, ominous clouds appeared on her horizon. A highly respected designer she had worked with made no bones about her character and damning accusations about her swirled in the media. Despite efforts to quash the story once it broke, the dam walls seemed to breach and instead of dying down, the story that is; it gathered momentum, became a raging torrent of media speculation and spiralled out of control. Somehow, it emboldened individuals to open up and come forward uttering similar experiences.
Unsuspecting, die-hard fans just could not believe it, it just did not fit, did not seem plausible and she herself expressed that she felt like she was the target of a witch-hunt and that she had been betrayed. Her desultory, laconic declarations to the contrary did little to promote her cause. Social media frenzy added fuel to the firestorm and nothing she could do seemed to distract from the allegations and stem the tide. There was scant evidence that the scandal was abating.
All kinds of things from her past started to emerge. Long-lost friends or were they “frenemies” came forward with episodic stories of how they had experienced being trodden upon. It seemed she had left a number of victims in her wake – and they came out from the woodwork in what seemed like droves. All said the same thing; nothing was as important to her as her making it. No matter the cost. She was no respecter of persons and would often offend people’s cultural and religious beliefs as well. She had zero tolerance for rules and processes and always sought her own way, while romantic suitors always swayed and toed the line.
She had been utterly and completely spoiled and indulged – rotten to the core. Her usual, cucumber-cool façade was eerily gone and it was clear that she had most certainly descended into infamy. The questions dominating headlines soon became how she had been able to operate behind that facade so convincingly at such a high level for so long. Her true character now well and truly exposed, painted a vastly different picture and what soon became glaringly obvious was that she had spectacularly fallen from grace. Her star had truly fizzled.
Pride before a fall
What drove her though? What was in her heart to convince her that she deserved only the best, so much so that she would walk over others in her pursuit of it with scant regard for their well-being? As long as she was able to maintain her image, be seen in all the right places and snapped in the right circles, she could not care less. What drove her to such lengths, why was she so conniving? Hard and unflinching? Did it mask a huge sense of insecurity?What drove her to such lengths, why was she so conniving? Hard and unflinching? Did it mask a huge sense of insecurity?
Today, I reintroduce you to Miriam, the sister of Moses. Her life is the stuff of legends. And one day, she also had a spectacular # fall from grace. It is not every day that the Bible specifically says that one has angered God and he afflicts said individual with a skin disease. Her story, though, is defined by clemency and she is able to take her place among the greats but first she had to learn a thing or two.
The thing is that every one of us is prone to #pride. We must search our hearts to find evidence of it and eradicate it so as not to affect our reactions to and about others. It is a devilishly bad trait and leads only to destruction and downfall.
Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
Proverbs 16:18 New International Version
But back to Miriam and her arrival on the scene in the Bible. She was first introduced in Exodus 2. This little girl stole the show. Her baby brother Moses had been thrown into the River Nile directly as a result of an edict of the Pharaoh at the time. He promulgated that Hebrew boys under two years of age be thrown into the Nile River. Despite Moses’ parents doing everything they could to conceal his birth and first months of life, the day came when they put him in a basket coated with pitch and set him upon the waters of the Nile.
Boldness, a baby and a basket
This dutiful, loving sister stood watching from a distance at the river’s edge. She was desperate to see what would come of this and whether little brother would be okay. It wasn’t long before Moses was spotted, ironically, by Pharaoh’s daughter – pulled out and he was to be named Moses, which means drawn from the water.
Pharaoh’s daughter then faced a slight predicament, someone needed to look after this tot. Miriam fearlessly trotted to the water’s edge and with all the guts afforded her provided a solution to the royal’s problem and arranged to find a woman who could nurse the child. She then went off and fetched her mother who got paid to nurse her own son. That is it in a nutshell, and glossing over a miracle of that magnitude is almost criminal, but as it is not crucial to our narrative today, we have to move past swiftly.
I brought you up out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery.
Micah 6:4
I sent Moses to lead you, also Aaron and Miriam.
Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing.
Exodus 15:20
She led the women in worship after the massive miracle of walking through a body of water, the River Jordan, on dry land. She exhibited what we all knew was there the entire time; she was the true leader who inspired others to follow her. Furthermore, Miriam is credited as the first woman to be called a prophetess in the Bible. An outstanding woman to be sure.
I am certain that you would agree that Miriam was a woman to be revered and her great qualities remain hard to imitate. However, Numbers 12, unfortunately, tells a tale of the time when this leader was no longer so humble. And then of her dramatic fall from #grace. I believe that her life story bears witness to what happens when deadly, despicable pride enters your heart. When you seem naturally gifted with much, it can literally go to your head.
Fall from grace
But let’s allow the Bible to do the talking and then I will give you my woefully inadequate thoughts on the matter in explanation. The first verse of Numbers 12 is as follows:
Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite.
Numbers 12:1
My cursory reading of the text immediately calls me to question the words “talk against”. Please note it is both Aaron and Miriam sowing discord. Are they doing this based on prayer? Have they consulted God on the matter? Have they spoken to Moses and have they considered how Moses’ wife may feel? Then let’s proceed to read verse 2:
“Has the Lord spoken only through Moses?” they asked. “Hasn’t he also spoken through us?” And the Lord heard this.
Numbers 12:2
What could their motive be for telling people that God had also spoken through them, although biblical record clearly places Moses at the forefront and that he had spent considerable time on Mount Sinai hearing from God about the Ten Commandments and more? A man God himself described as having a special relationship with him.
They were fully cognisant of this. Why then would they so casually speak against the servant of the living God? I certainly would hazard a guess and I think you would too. Here comes the kicker, verse three describes against whom they are talking and when the Bible makes a statement about your character, you had better believe it, I quote:
(Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.)
Numbers 12:3
I have already made mention of the theme running throughout the Bible – the theme of #humility. The Bible calls Moses humble. I think only Jesus was described as such in the New Testament – Matthew 11:28-30. But then God acts immediately. I read verses 4-8 to you:
4 At once the Lord said to Moses, Aaron and Miriam, “Come out to the tent of meeting, all three of you.”
Numbers 12:4-8
So the three of them went out. 5 Then the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud; he stood at the entrance
to the tent and summoned Aaron and Miriam. When the two of them stepped forward, 6 he said, “Listen to my words:
“When there is a prophet among you,
I, the Lord, reveal myself to them in visions,
I speak to them in dreams.
7 But this is not true of my servant Moses;
he is faithful in all my house.
8 With him I speak face to face,
clearly and not in riddles;
he sees the form of the Lord.
Why then were you not afraid
to speak against my servant Moses?”
I am not sure about you, but I would never want to be in that position. EVER. God does not mince his words. He makes it very clear that he is displeased. He immediately calls a meeting to resolve this issue, once and for all. He speaks directly to the offending parties. And because he is God, he knows exactly what is in their hearts. God, I think is so kind in that he spells out exactly what a prophet is, as well as their roles in the community. Very esteemed roles at that. So few men and especially women were regarded as true prophets of God. These two were part of that revered group. Nonetheless, God goes on to explain how Moses, because of his close relationship with Him, far outshone the usual characteristics and life of a prophet. After God had pointed this out, he then asked that million-dollar question:
Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?
Numbers 12:8
Why do you think that they were so brazen and unafraid? Did they not anticipate ramifications? Did they not think that far? Did they think that their own roles in this redemptive story were under threat? The Bible is not 100 per cent clear and, once again, it is conjecture on my part. However, my heart hurts when I read the next verse:
9 The anger of the Lord burned against them, and he left them.
Numbers 12:9
I do not want to offend God in such a manner that he is angry and leaves me even for a moment. Though I must add that I have undoubtedly given him reason. Considering that they regarded themselves as prophets, quite frankly they did not see this coming. Why were they so blind to what was in their hearts and that it was offensive to God? Did the sin of self-importance blindside them or was it fear that they would be supplanted in the annals of history and time, was that even a concern? But then verses10-12 reveal:
10 When the cloud lifted from above the tent, Miriam’s skin was leprous]—it became as white as snow. Aaron turned towards her and saw that she had a defiling skin disease, 11 and he said to Moses, “Please, my lord, I ask you not to hold against us the sin we have so foolishly committed. 12 Do not let her be like a stillborn infant coming from its mother’s womb with its flesh half eaten away.”
Numbers 12:10-12
I remain gobsmacked and flabbergasted by this. Miriam has a disease that is regarded as unclean in Israel. Aaron sees her and calls out to Moses. Questions are swirling around in my head: was Aaron not afflicted? Apparently not. Why not? He immediately sees his sister and cries out to the other man of God to whom they need to turn to in times like these: Moses. In effect, underscoring his importance if you will. Read Leviticus 13 and 14 for a deeper explanation of this situation. Aaron admits that the sin was foolish. Can it be that Aaron instantly saw his own heart, could acknowledge it and ask for forgiveness as soon as they had come before God? Who was the instigator by the way? For someone who had been doing a lot of talking against Moses, Miriam was strangely quiet. It could be that she was absolutely stunned by the turn of events. Aaron begs Moses. What was his response? Let’s read verse 13:
13 So Moses cried out to the Lord, “Please, God, heal her!”
Numbers 12:13
At no point did Moses gloat, laugh or tell them, “I told you so.” And to be frank, I would expect nothing less from a true man of God who had met with God in the manner described above. His exemplary character in full display here as he cries out to God for her to be healed. But then God says something that I am going to study out further because it certainly does not make sense right now. I quote verses 14-15:
14 The Lord replied to Moses, “If her father had spit in her face, would she not have been in disgrace for seven days? Confine her outside the camp for seven days; after that she can be brought back.” 15 So Miriam was confined outside the camp for seven days, and the people did not move on till she was brought back.
Numbers 12:14-15
It refers to ritual uncleanness. But since they left after seven days, it is clear from the text that Miriam was healed but had to be confined for seven days. I am sure that she had time to ponder about her ways in isolation. The pandemic certainly helped us understand the fruits of isolation and time for reflection.
Humility restored
Considering that her legacy is as a prophetess in Micah along with her brothers, I am sure that she repented. One day, when she again faces her Maker, she can stand before him confident that assiduous pride that may have taken root in her heart had been uprooted and destroyed. In addition, I am fairly sure that she felt extraordinarily humbled and embarrassed when the other Israelites wanted to know why she was in isolation.
Yes, God dealt decisively with discord in his camp. There are ways we need to deal with issues we may have with #leadership, talking against them without addressing the situation with said leaders is not one of them.
I believe that because Aaron and Miriam occupied such prominent roles, God acted so swiftly and decisively, immediately quashing any community-wide spread of this malaise and sickening virus. I praise God that sometimes he needs to deal with us decisively when what is in our hearts is able to wreak havoc in our community, church or family. It is because he loves us that he is able to confront us.
May the life of Miriam, the highs and the lows serve as an inspiration for godly living. Next week, we continue this theme of overstepping the mark as we saw that these prophets were seeking to gain a name for themselves at the expense of Moses – not happy with the role God had already given them, they spoke against Moses in order to gain more respect and usurp some of his while painting a bad picture of him and maligning his wife. I wonder how well the family got along after that.
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