Numbers 25:17-18 Inner Battle Against Illusions

Neville's Inner Vision

Read as a state of consciousness, Numbers 25:17-18 speaks not of tribes in the outer land but of inner factions. The command to 'vex' the Midianites is a counsel to vex the dream of separation that arises in moments of weakness, the wiles that led Israel to Peor and Cozbi—the old stories you tell yourself when you forget your oneness. The Midianites represent beliefs, memories, and attractions that would estrange you from the I AM. Your real foe is not people but the picture you persist in as reality; your weapon is awareness and the surety of covenant loyalty. When you refuse their lure and return to the truth—'I am one with God; there is no other'—you 'smite' the illusion by reversing attention, revising the scene, and stepping into felt certainty. The plague becomes a signal that old habit dies when the living present I AM is claimed. In Neville’s practice, the outer appearance follows your inner state; thus the directive becomes an invitation to revision, rest, and unwavering faith in your true self.