The Kindness and Severity of God
By word count with 32,902 words the book of Numbers is the largest book in the Pentateuch and the fifth largest in the Old Testament. It's name comes from the Latin (Numeri) which in turn is based on the Greek (Arithmoi).
The name, however, only fits chapters 1 and 26 where a census is taken of the Israelites after leaving Sinai and before entering the Promised Land. In reality, Numbers is about Israel's years of wilderness wandering. Its emphasis is upon how God interacts with His people. The book illustrates Romans 11:22, "Behold the kindness and severity of God." That theme, "the kindness and severity of God" can be summarized in five statements which are as relevant today as they were in ancient Israel.