Numbers 16:30 But if the Lord make a new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the pit; then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the Lord.
Moses is convincing the people that the Lord sent him to do these works; he did not make it up out of his own mind. “If these men die a common death, then God has not sent me. But if the Lord does a new thing, opens the earth, and it swallows them alive, then ye shall understand that God did send me and they provoked the Lord.” Sin is a serious matter. It causes death. Judgment is certain.
Catastrophe, Disaster, and Tragedy happen all the time. But we don’t and we can’t make the connection between sin and judgment. However, the Word of God connects our own sin to tragic events, and the Word makes us understand. The Word convicts us of our sin, whether we see terrible things happen or not. The Word and the Spirit brings understanding (conviction) of Sin and Grace, which leads to repentance, faith, and salvation.
Jesus referred to this truth in regard to tragedies like Pilate’s murdering and the tower falling when He said: “Repent, or you will likewise perish.” Let the Word help you make sense of Bad Things: I, too, am a sinner deserving judgment, but Jesus died for me, deserving for me grace and salvation!