“Wilderness” is a term used many times throughout Scripture. It is neither a singular location nor a consistent terrain, but a reference to a wild and uninhabitable territory marked by desolation. Job refers to it as the place “where no man is” and in the Psalms is described as the home to owls, jackals and vultures. The Bible does not, however, use the term exclusively as an environmental description. The concept of wilderness is used metaphorically as the inverse of the garden, where not only was the vegetation vibrant and healthy, but the relationship between God and man was as well. No, the wilderness is where Hagar and her infant went expecting to die. It’s where the Israelites wandered for forty years due to sin and where David fled for his life from King Saul.
The wilderness setting is frequently associated with deprivation and testing. The prophet Elijah and John the Baptist, both known for their austerity, were frequently in the wilderness. And it’s in the wilderness where Jesus subjected Himself to extreme physical conditions and submitted to the testing of the Adversary.
To put it succinctly, the wilderness is unpleasant! Ancient Israel didn’t choose it. King David didn’t want it, and it was the Spirit that drove Jesus into it. But these accounts make it clear that time in the wilderness is not always a result of sin. Israel was led there (initially) by God after being saved from slavery. It’s where David was successful in avoiding Saul’s contract on his life and it’s where Jesus completed a significant part of His mission.
Being in the wilderness is not banishment, but a tool. Specifically, it is a tool God uses to grow His people through testing. Consider the Israelites who were tried and fared poorly. They started out singing songs of praise to God in the wilderness, yet most died in it due to a lack of faith. David isn’t even the same character if his demonstrations of faith do not take place in the harsh conditions of the wilderness. In fact, his greatest recorded sin takes place when he was at ease at home instead of enduring difficulties with his men. As to Jesus, the author of Hebrews describes His wilderness experience as a badge of honor, noting that our High Priest “in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”
Consider that the wilderness was no less unpleasant for Joshua and Caleb as it was to the rest of the Israelites. All of them experienced the same deprivation and testing, but only two chose to believe in the faithfulness of God while they were still living in it. As a result, they were the only ones to leave the wilderness and enter the promised land.
There it is. Regardless of the reason, the wilderness is unpleasant. It involves deprivation and testing and yet has a fundamentally God-honoring purpose that simultaneously conforms His people to the likeness of His Son. I am not equipped to comprehensively answer the why relating to your time in the wilderness. However, if you are experiencing a period of deprivation and testing, know that it has a purpose. You have been granted an opportunity to trust your Heavenly Father and to grow in holiness. Don’t grumble your way through the wilderness. Do the same things you are commanded to do when you’re living the garden life. Pray your way through it. Read, study and meditate on the Bible your way through it. Worship God on the Lord’s Day and fellowship with other believers your way through it. Take your eyes off yourself and find strength by looking to the One who gave everything for you.
Hebrews 12:3–4
Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. (ESV)