“…where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years. Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart; they have not known my ways.”

When we first read verse eight, it may appear that God was testing the people. These two verses clear that up. It isn’t God testing them in the wilderness; it’s the other way around. The people are testing God. The sad thing about this passage is that even though they put God to the test, they failed to see the demonstration of His faithfulness. God proved over and over that He was their salvation, but they chose to believe mere humans instead of God.

From Egypt to the Jordan River, they were in constant rebellion. They murmured and complained and were outright disobedient. Then, on the edge of their promised destination, they refused to obey God, believing men instead of Him. Trusting their own knowledge above His. Their actions suggesting that they were smarter than God and knew things He didn’t.

They showed by their behavior that they lacked knowledge of who God was and what He was about. Their hearts were never given to God only their hands and feet. This is a recipe for disaster.

Task for Today: Don’t think for a moment that you will get by serving God with your hands and feet but not your heart. It has never worked and it won’t now. Today, do some counting up of what God has done to prove He has your best interest at heart. Take cognizance of His faithfulness in your life, beginning with the gift of His Son. If you know His ways, you will not go astray in your heart.