🕊️ Numbers 20

Numbers 20 is a real chapter from the Old Testament. It starts, “The children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month. The people stayed in Kadesh. Miriam died there, and was buried there.” That is not a motto invented for a poster. It is the first sentence a family hears when this page is opened at night.

Keep going a little further. The chapter also says, “how our fathers went down into Egypt, and we lived in Egypt a long time. The Egyptians mistreated us and our fathers.” Numbers 20 opens with these words: “The children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month. The people stayed in Kadesh.…” The line to keep is Numbers 20:1: “The children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month. The people stayed in Kadesh. Miriam died there, and…” Carry the word “children” from that verse into the rest of the day.

The line worth learning out loud is Numbers 20:1: “The children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month. The people stayed in Kadesh. Miriam died there, and was buried there.” If the rest of the chapter feels crowded, hold that one sentence until the room is quiet.

What happens first in Numbers 20? Then try this: Read “The children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month. The…” once more. What does it show you about God? You do not have to finish every verse. You can close the book after the memory verse and still have read the Bible together.