Numbers 14:10-19

English Standard Version

^10 (A)Then all the congregation said to stone them with stones. But ^(B)the glory of the Lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel.

¹¹ And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people ^(C)despise me? And how long will they not ^(D)believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them? ¹² I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I ^(E)will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.”

Moses Intercedes for the People

¹³ But ^(F)Moses said to the Lord, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for you brought up this people in your might from among them, ¹⁴ and they will tell the inhabitants of this land. ^(G)They have heard that you, O Lord, are in the midst of this people. For you, O Lord, are seen face to face, and ^(H)your cloud stands over them and you go before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. ¹⁵ Now if you kill this people as one man, then the nations who have heard your fame will say, ¹⁶ ‘It is because the Lord ^(I)was not able to bring this people into the land that he swore to give to them that he has killed them in the wilderness.’ ¹⁷ And now, please let the power of the Lord be great as you have promised, saying, ^18 (J)‘The Lord is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, ^(K)visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generation.’ ¹⁹ Please ^(L)pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just ^(M)as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt until now.”