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Numbers 12

Miriam and Aaron Are Jealous of Moses

   " I, the LORD, speak to prophets

   in visions and dreams.

    ⁷But my servant Moses

   is the leader of my people.

    ⁸He sees me face to face,

   and everything I say to him

   is perfectly clear.

   You have no right to criticize

   my servant Moses."

    ⁹The LORD became angry at Aaron and Miriam. And after the LORD left ¹⁰and the cloud disappeared from over the sacred tent, Miriam's skin turned white with leprosy. ^[b] When Aaron saw what had happened to her, ¹¹he said to Moses, " Sir, please don't punish us for doing such a foolish thing. ¹²Don't let Miriam's flesh rot away like a child born dead!" ¹³Moses prayed, " LORD God, please heal her."

    ¹⁴But the LORD replied, " Miriam would be disgraced for seven days if her father had punished her by spitting in her face. So make her stay outside the camp for seven days, before coming back."

    ¹⁵The people of Israel did not move their camp until Miriam returned seven days later. ¹⁶Then they left Hazeroth and set up camp in the Paran Desert.

Numbers 13

Twelve Men Are Sent into Canaan

(Deuteronomy 1.19-33)

    ³So Moses sent twelve tribal leaders from Israel's camp in the Paran Desert ^4-16with orders to explore the land of Canaan. And here are their names:

   Shammua son of Zaccur

   from Reuben,

   Shaphat son of Hori

   from Simeon,

   Caleb son of Jephunneh

   from Judah,

   Igal son of Joseph

   from Issachar,

   Joshua son of Nun

   from Ephraim, ^[c] Palti son of Raphu

   from Benjamin,

   Gaddiel son of Sodi

   from Zebulun,

   Gaddi son of Susi

   from Manasseh,

   Ammiel son of Gemalli

   from Dan,

   Sethur son of Michael

   from Asher,

   Nahbi son of Vophsi

   from Naphtali,

   and Geuel son of Machi

   from Gad.

    ¹⁷Before Moses sent them into Canaan, he said:

   After you go through the Southern Desert of Canaan, continue north into the hill country ¹⁸and find out what those regions are like. Be sure to remember how many people live there, how strong they are, ^19-20and if they live in open towns or walled cities. See if the land is good for growing crops and find out what kinds of trees grow there. It's time for grapes to ripen, so try to bring back some of the fruit that grows there.

    ²¹The twelve men left to explore Canaan from the Zin Desert in the south all the way to the town of Rehob near Lebo-Hamath in the north. ²²As they went through the Southern Desert, they came to the town of Hebron, which was seven years older than the Egyptian town of Zoan. In Hebron, they saw the three Anakim ^[d] clans of Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai. ^23-24When they got to Bunch Valley, ^[e] they cut off a branch with such a huge bunch of grapes, that it took two men to carry it on a pole. That's why the place was called Bunch Valley. Along with the grapes, they also took back pomegranates ^[f] and figs.

The Men Report Back to the People

   Look at this fruit! The land we explored is rich with milk and honey. ²⁸But the people who live there are strong, and their cities are large and walled. We even saw the three Anakim ^[g] clans. ²⁹Besides that, the Amalekites live in the Southern Desert; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites are in the hill country; and the Canaanites ^[h] live along the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. ³⁰Caleb calmed down the crowd and said, " Let's go and take the land. I know we can do it!"

    ³¹But the other men replied, " Those people are much too strong for us." ³²Then they started spreading rumors and saying, " We won't be able to grow anything in that soil. And the people are like giants. ³³In fact, we saw the Nephilim who are the ancestors of the Anakim. They were so big that we felt as small as grasshoppers."

Numbers 14

The Israelites Rebel against Moses

    ⁵Moses and Aaron bowed down to pray in front of the crowd. ⁶Joshua and Caleb tore their clothes in sorrow ⁷and said:

   We saw the land ourselves, and it's very good. ⁸If we obey the LORD, he will surely give us that land rich with milk and honey. ⁹So don't rebel. We have no reason to be afraid of the people who live there. The LORD is on our side, and they won't stand a chance against us!

    ¹⁰The crowd threatened to stone Moses and Aaron to death. But just then, the LORD appeared in a cloud at the sacred tent.

Moses Prays for the People

    ^13-16Moses replied:

   With your mighty power you rescued your people from Egypt, so please don't destroy us here in the desert. If you do, the Egyptians will hear about it and tell the people of Canaan. Those Canaanites already know that we are your people, and that we see you face to face. And they have heard how you lead us with a thick cloud during the day and flaming fire at night. But if you kill us, they will claim it was because you weren't powerful enough to lead us into Canaan as you promised.

    ¹⁷Show us your great power, LORD. You promised ¹⁸that you love to show mercy and kindness. And you said that you are very patient, but that you will punish everyone guilty of doing wrong--not only them but their children and grandchildren as well.

    ¹⁹You are merciful, and you treat people better than they deserve. So please forgive these people, just as you have forgiven them ever since they left Egypt.

    ²⁰Then the LORD said to Moses:

   In answer to your prayer, I do forgive them. ²¹But as surely as I live and my power has no limit, ^22-23I swear that not one of these Israelites will enter the land I promised to give their ancestors. These people have seen my power in Egypt and in the desert, but they will never see Canaan. They have disobeyed and tested me too many times.

    ²⁴But my servant Caleb isn't like the others. So because he has faith in me, I will allow him to cross into Canaan, and his descendants will settle there.

    ²⁵Now listen, Moses! The Amalekites and the Canaanites live in the valleys of Canaan. ^[i] And tomorrow morning, you'll need to turn around and head back into the desert toward the Red Sea. ^[j]

The Israelites Are Punished for Complaining

   You sinful people have complained against me too many times! Now I swear by my own life that I will give you exactly what you wanted. ^{[k] 29}You will die right here in the desert, and your dead bodies will cover the ground. You have insulted me, and none of you men who are over twenty years old ³⁰will enter the land that I solemnly promised to give you as your own--only Caleb and Joshua ^[l] will go in. ³¹You were worried that your own children would be captured. But I, the LORD, will let them enter the land you have rejected. ³²You will die here in the desert! ³³Your children will wander around in this desert forty years, suffering because of your sins, until all of you are dead. ³⁴I will cruelly punish you every day for the next forty years--one year for each day that the land was explored. ³⁵You sinful people who ganged up against me will die here in the desert.

    ³⁶Ten of the men sent to explore the land had brought back bad news and had made the people complain against the LORD. ³⁷So he sent a deadly disease that killed those men, ³⁸but he let Joshua and Caleb live.

The Israelites Fail To Enter Canaan

(Deuteronomy 1.41-45)

    ⁴¹But Moses replied, " You're disobeying the LORD! Your plan won't work, ^42-43so don't even try it. The LORD refuses to help you, because you turned your backs on him. The Amalekites and the Canaanites are your enemies, and they will attack and defeat you."

    ⁴⁴But the Israelites ignored Moses ^[m] and marched toward the hill country, even though the sacred chest and Moses did not go with them. ⁴⁵The Amalekites and the Canaanites came down from the hill country, defeated the Israelites, and chased them as far as the town of Hormah.

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A Dying Girl and a Sick Woman

(Matthew 9.18-26; Luke 8.40-56)

    ²⁵In the crowd was a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years. ²⁶She had gone to many doctors, and they had not done anything except cause her a lot of pain. She had paid them all the money she had. But instead of getting better, she only got worse.

    ²⁷The woman had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him in the crowd and barely touched his clothes. ²⁸She had said to herself, "If I can just touch his clothes, I will get well." ²⁹As soon as she touched them, her bleeding stopped, and she knew she was well.

    ³⁰At that moment Jesus felt power go out from him. He turned to the crowd and asked, "Who touched my clothes?"

    ³¹His disciples said to him, "Look at all these people crowding around you! How can you ask who touched you?" ³²But Jesus turned to see who had touched him.

    ³³The woman knew what had happened to her. She came shaking with fear and knelt down in front of Jesus. Then she told him the whole story.

    ³⁴Jesus said to the woman, "You are now well because of your faith. May God give you peace! You are healed, and you will no longer be in pain."

    ³⁵While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from Jairus' home and said, "Your daughter has died! Why bother the teacher anymore?"

    ³⁶Jesus heard ^[b] what they said, and he said to Jairus, "Don't worry. Just have faith!"

    ³⁷Jesus did not let anyone go with him except Peter and the two brothers, James and John. ³⁸They went home with Jairus and saw the people crying and making a lot of noise. ^{[c] 39}Then Jesus went inside and said to them, "Why are you crying and carrying on like this? The child isn't dead. She is just asleep." ⁴⁰But the people laughed at him.

   After Jesus had sent them all out of the house, he took the girl's father and mother and his three disciples and went to where she was. ^41-42He took the twelve-year-old girl by the hand and said, "Talitha, koum!" ^[d] which means, "Little girl, get up!" The girl got right up and started walking around.

   Everyone was greatly surprised. ⁴³But Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened. Then he said, "Give her something to eat."