‘As Yahweh commanded Moses, so he numbered (assessed) them in the wilderness of Sinai.'
Thus did Moses fulfil Yahweh's command and mobilise the fighting men of Yahweh ready for moving forward. The numbering of Israel was an act of faith and obedience to Yahweh. It was a declaration that Yahweh had a purpose to fulfil through them in possessing the land, which could be to them the hoped for ‘Kingdom of priests' (Exodus 19:6), the equivalent of the Kingdom of God, if only they would be faithful to Him. The army of Yahweh would move forward with Yahweh Himself among them on His earthly throne, the Ark of the covenant of Yahweh (Numbers 10:33-36), accompanied by the cloud which would move under His direction and veil His presence (Numbers 9:15-23; Numbers 10:11-12; Numbers 10:34). And if they continued faithful He would be among them as the great Deliverer, the One Whose will nothing could thwart.
The same can be true for us although in our case the goal is a heavenly Kingdom. We too are called on to ‘march forward' and to look to the invisible One on His throne. But the question we must ask ourselves as we read these words is, are we mobilised as true and obedient ‘fighting men of Yahweh', or are we only simply excess baggage?