Numbers 14
World English Bible
14 All the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. 2 All the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “We wish that we had died in the land of Egypt, or that we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why does Yahweh bring us to this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will be captured or killed! Wouldn’t it be better for us to return into Egypt?” 4 They said to one another, “Let’s choose a leader, and let’s return into Egypt.”
5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.
6 Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were of those who spied out the land, tore their clothes. 7 They spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, “The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. 8 If Yahweh delights in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it to us: a land which flows with milk and honey. 9 Only don’t rebel against Yahweh, neither fear the people of the land; for they are bread for us. Their defense is removed from over them, and Yahweh is with us. Don’t fear them.”
10 But all the congregation threatened to stone them with stones.
Yahweh’s glory appeared in the Tent of Meeting to all the children of Israel. 11 Yahweh said to Moses, “How long will this people despise me? How long will they not believe in me, for all the signs which I have worked among them? 12 I will strike them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.”
13 Moses said to Yahweh, “Then the Egyptians will hear it; for you brought up this people in your might from among them. 14 They will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that you Yahweh are among this people; for you Yahweh are seen face to face, and 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 killed this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of you will speak, saying, 16 ‘Because Yahweh was not able to bring this people into the land which he swore to them, therefore he has slain them in the wilderness.’ 17 Now please let the power of the Lord[a] be great, according as you have spoken, saying, 18 ‘Yahweh is slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness, forgiving iniquity and disobedience; and he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation.’ 19 Please pardon the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of your loving kindness, and just as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”
20 Yahweh said, “I have pardoned according to your word; 21 but in very deed—as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with Yahweh’s glory— 22 because all those men who have seen my glory and my signs, which I worked in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have tempted me these ten times, and have not listened to my voice; 23 surely they shall not see the land which I swore to their fathers, neither shall any of those who despised me see it. 24 But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and has followed me fully, him I will bring into the land into which he went. His offspring shall possess it. 25 Since the Amalekite and the Canaanite dwell in the valley, tomorrow turn and go into the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.” 26 Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 27 “How long shall I bear with this evil congregation that complain against me? I have heard the complaints of the children of Israel, which they complain against me. 28 Tell them, ‘As I live, says Yahweh, surely as you have spoken in my ears, so I will do to you. 29 Your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness; and all who were counted of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, who have complained against me, 30 surely you shall not come into the land concerning which I swore that I would make you dwell therein, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. 31 But I will bring in your little ones that you said should be captured or killed, and they shall know the land which you have rejected. 32 But as for you, your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness. 33 Your children shall be wanderers in the wilderness forty years, and shall bear your prostitution, until your dead bodies are consumed in the wilderness. 34 After the number of the days in which you spied out the land, even forty days, for every day a year, you will bear your iniquities, even forty years, and you will know my alienation.’ 35 I, Yahweh, have spoken. I will surely do this to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against me. In this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.”
36 The men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation to murmur against him by bringing up an evil report against the land, 37 even those men who brought up an evil report of the land, died by the plague before Yahweh. 38 But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive of those men who went to spy out the land.
39 Moses told these words to all the children of Israel, and the people mourned greatly. 40 They rose up early in the morning and went up to the top of the mountain, saying, “Behold, we are here, and will go up to the place which Yahweh has promised; for we have sinned.”
41 Moses said, “Why now do you disobey the commandment of Yahweh, since it shall not prosper? 42 Don’t go up, for Yahweh isn’t among you; that way you won’t be struck down before your enemies. 43 For there the Amalekite and the Canaanite are before you, and you will fall by the sword because you turned back from following Yahweh; therefore Yahweh will not be with you.”
44 But they presumed to go up to the top of the mountain. Nevertheless, the ark of Yahweh’s covenant and Moses didn’t depart out of the camp. 45 Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites who lived in that mountain, and struck them and beat them down even to Hormah.
Footnotes
- 14:17 The word translated “Lord” is “Adonai.”
Numbers 14
International Standard Version
The People Rebel
14 At this, the entire assembly[a] complained, started to shout, and cried through the rest of that night. 2 All the Israelis complained against Moses and Aaron. Then the entire assembly responded, “We wish that we had died in Egypt or[b] in this wilderness. 3 What’s the point in the Lord bringing us to this land? To die by the sword so our wives and children would become war victims? Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?”
4 Then they told each other, “Let’s assign a leader and go back to Egypt.”
5 Moses and Aaron fell on their faces in front of the entire assembly of the congregation of Israel. 6 Nun’s son Joshua and Jephunneh’s son Caleb, who had accompanied the others who also had explored the land, tore their clothes 7 and attempted to reason with the entire congregation of Israel. They told them, “The land that we went through and explored is very, very good. 8 If the Lord is pleased with us, he’ll bring us into this land and give it to us. It flows with milk and honey. 9 However, don’t rebel against the Lord or be afraid of the people who live in the land, because we’ll gobble them right up.[c] Their defenses will collapse, because the Lord is with us. You are not to be afraid of them.”
10 But the entire congregation was talking about stoning them to death.
God Rebukes Unbelieving Israel
Suddenly, the glory of the Lord appeared at the Tent of Meeting to all of the Israelis. 11 “How long will this people keep on spurning me and refusing to trust me, despite all the miracles[d] that I’ve done among them?” the Lord asked Moses. 12 “That’s why I’m going to attack them with pestilence and disinherit them. Instead, I’ll make you a great nation—even mightier than they are!”
Moses Intercedes for Israel
13 But Moses responded to the Lord, “When Egypt hears that you’ve brought this people out from among them with a mighty demonstration of power,[e] 14 they’ll also proclaim to the inhabitants of this land that they’ve heard you’re among this people, Lord, whom they’ve seen face to face,[f] since your cloud stands guard over them. You’ve guided them with a pillar of cloud by day and with a pillar of fire by night. 15 But if you slaughter this people all at the same time,[g] then the nations who heard about your fame[h] will say, 16 ‘The Lord slaughtered this people in the wilderness because he wasn’t able to bring them to the land that he promised them.’
17 “Now, let the power of the Lord be magnified, just as you promised when you said, 18 ‘The Lord is slow to anger and abundant in faithful love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he won’t acquit the guilty. He recalls the iniquity of fathers to the third and fourth generation.’[i]
19 “Forgive, please, the iniquity of this people, according to your great, faithful love, in the same way that you’ve carried this people from Egypt to this place.”
God Responds to Moses
20 The Lord responded, “I’ve forgiven them based on what you’ve said. 21 But just as I live, and just as the whole earth will be filled with the Lord’s glory, 22 none of those men who saw my glory and watched my miracles that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness—even though they’ve tested me these ten times and never listened to my voice— 23 will ever see the land that I promised to their ancestors. Those who spurned me won’t see it. 24 Now as to my servant Caleb, because a different spirit is within him and he has remained true to me, I’m going to bring him into the land that he explored,[j] and his descendants are to inherit it. 25 Now the Amalekite and the Canaanite live in the valley. Tomorrow, turn and then travel to the wilderness in the direction of the Reed[k] Sea.”
26 Then the Lord told Moses and Aaron, 27 “How long will this wicked assembly keep complaining about me? I’ve heard the complaints of the Israelis that they’ve been murmuring against me. 28 So tell them that as long as I live—consider this to be an oracle from the Lord—as certainly as you’ve spoken right into my ears, that’s how I’m going to treat you. 29 Your corpses will fall in this wilderness—every single one of you who has been counted among you, according to your number from 20 years and above, who complained against me. 30 You will certainly never enter the land about which I made an oath with my uplifted hand to settle you in it, except for Jephunneh’s son Caleb and Nun’s son Joshua. 31 However, I’ll bring your little ones—the ones whom you claimed would become war victims—into the land so that they’ll know by experience the land that you’ve rejected.
32 “Now as for you, your corpses will fall in this wilderness 33 and your children will wander throughout the wilderness for 40 years. They’ll bear the consequences of your idolatries[l] until your bodies are entirely consumed in the wilderness. 34 Just as you explored the land for 40 days, you’ll bear the consequences of your iniquities for 40 years—one year for each day—as you experience my hostility. 35 I, the Lord, have spoken. I will indeed do this to this evil congregation, who gathered together against me. They’ll be eliminated in this wilderness and will surely die.”
God Kills the Unbelieving Explorers
36 After this, the men whom Moses sent out to explore the land, who returned and made the whole congregation complain against him by bringing an evil report concerning the land, 37 and who produced an evil report about the land, died of pestilence in the Lord’s presence. 38 However, Nun’s son Joshua and Jephunneh’s son Caleb, who had explored the land, remained alive.
Rebellion against God’s Punishment
39 After Moses had told all of this to the Israelis, the people deeply mourned. 40 So they got up early the next morning and traveled to the top of the mountain, telling themselves, “Look, we’re here and we’re going to go up to the place that the Lord had spoken about, even though we’ve sinned.”
41 But Moses asked them, “Why do you continue to sin against what the Lord said? Don’t you know that you can never succeed? 42 Don’t go up, since you know that the Lord is no longer with you.[m] You’ll be attacked right in front of your own enemies. 43 The Amalekites and Canaanites are there waiting for you. You’ll die[n] violently,[o] since you’ve turned your back and have stopped following the Lord. The Lord won’t be with you.”
44 But they presumed to go up to the top of the mountain, even though the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord and Moses didn’t leave the camp. 45 The Amalekites came down, accompanied by some Canaanites who lived in the mountains. They attacked and defeated them even while the Israelis were retreating[p] to Hormah.
Footnotes
- Numbers 14:1 Or congregation
- Numbers 14:2 Lit. that we have died
- Numbers 14:9 Lit. because they are bread for us
- Numbers 14:11 Or signs
- Numbers 14:13 The Heb. lacks demonstration of
- Numbers 14:14 Lit. seen eye to eye
- Numbers 14:15 Lit. as a man
- Numbers 14:15 Lit. report
- Numbers 14:18 The Heb. lacks generation
- Numbers 14:24 Lit. entered
- Numbers 14:25 So MT; LXX reads Red
- Numbers 14:33 Lit. fornications
- Numbers 14:42 Lit. longer in your midst
- Numbers 14:43 Or fall
- Numbers 14:43 Lit. die by the sword
- Numbers 14:45 The Heb. lacks even while the Israelis were retreating
by Public Domain. The name "World English Bible" is trademarked.
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.
