Numbers 20 is a tragedy from beginning to end. Not only is it the one that shows why Moses won’t be allowed to enter the Promised Land, but it also contains the death of Aaron. That’s how the chapter ends.
But it also opens with the death of Miriam, Aaron and Moses’ sister. You could be excused for missing it though—it’s only eight verses long (in the NASB).
I’m not sure how to feel about the brevity of this mention. On one hand, Miriam hasn’t really been a central player in the Narrative outside of her quasi-rebellion against Moses (Numbers 12) and the fact that she was a prophetess (Exodus 15:20).
Put together though, those two incidents make her a controversial figure. Was she supportive of Moses? Was she obedient to God? What else did she do?
If we relegate her life to just a few moments, we forget the human element of Miriam. After all, she was the one who watched over Moses in the Nile River and ensured he would grow up in the care of their mother (Exodus 2). For that reason, she deserves a place of honor in the Text.
But still…just eight verses about her funeral?
Far be it from me to accuse the Bible of not giving more information to any one subject. It tells us what we need to know and that’s that.
I have to ask though: If it’ll only be a brief mention, what’s the point of including it at all?
Everything I read on the matter suggested that Miriam’s death is mainly highlighted here to show a timestamp on the journey so far. The info in Numbers 20:1 says that she died in the first month near the wilderness of Zin.
The year itself is not given. Fortunately, Numbers 33 gives us a roadmap of the entire journey and talks about Kadesh and the death of Aaron as being during that time (Numbers 33:37-39).
Assuming that’s the same Kadesh and there’s not information missing in the sequence, then that places us literally right before Canaan. That makes Moses striking the rock even more tragic since it’s that incident that keeps him from the Promised Land.
Moreover, some Jewish commentaries establish a causal link between the death of Miriam and Moses striking the rock. They argue that it was Miriam’s death that left Moses with such a short fuse that he couldn’t help but hit the rock instead of speaking to it. That’s conjecture obviously, but it’s interesting conjecture.
One way or the other, we are now told that Miriam has died and is no longer in the picture. Aaron won’t be far behind, which leaves Moses as the last of the leadership trio. He’ll soon have a heady task to handle all by himself.