Numbers 20

1 The children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month. The people stayed in Kadesh. Miriam died there, and was buried there.

In the first month all the children of Israel came into the waste land of Zin, and put up their tents in Kadesh; there death came to Miriam, and they put her body to rest in the earth.

2 There was no water for the congregation; and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.

And there was no water for the people: and they came together against Moses and against Aaron.

3 The people quarreled with Moses, and spoke, saying, “We wish that we had died when our brothers died before the LORD!

And the people were angry with Moses and said, If only death had overtaken us when our brothers came to their death before the Lord!

4 Why have you brought the LORD’s assembly into this wilderness, that we should die there, we and our animals?

Why have you taken the Lord's people into this waste, for death to come to us and to our cattle there?

5 Why have you made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in to this evil place? It is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink.”

Why have you made us come out of Egypt into this evil place? This is no place of seed or figs or vines or other fruits, and there is no water for drinking.

6 Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the Tent of Meeting, and fell on their faces. The LORD’s glory appeared to them.

Then Moses and Aaron went away from the people to the door of the Tent of meeting; and, falling on their faces there, they saw the glory of the Lord.

7 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

And the Lord said to Moses,

8 “Take the rod, and assemble the congregation, you, and Aaron your brother, and speak to the rock before their eyes, that it pour out its water. You shall bring water to them out of the rock; so you shall give the congregation and their livestock drink.”

Take the rod, you and Aaron, your brother, and make all the people come together, and before their eyes give orders to the rock to give out its water; and so make water come out of the rock for them, and give the people and their cattle drink.

9 Moses took the rod from before the LORD, as he commanded him.

And Moses took the rod from before the Lord as he gave him orders.

10 Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels! Shall we bring water out of this rock for you?”

Then Moses and Aaron made the people come together in front of the rock, and he said to them, Give ear now, you people whose hearts are turned from the Lord; are we to get water for you out of the rock?

11 Moses lifted up his hand, and struck the rock with his rod twice, and water came out abundantly. The congregation and their livestock drank.

And lifting up his hand, Moses gave the rock two blows with his rod: and water came streaming out, and the people and their cattle had drink enough.

12 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe in me, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.”

Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, Because you had not enough faith in me to keep my name holy before the children of Israel, you will not take this people into the land which I have given them.

13 These are the waters of Meribah; because the children of Israel strove with the LORD, and he was sanctified in them.

These are the waters of Meribah; because the children of Israel went against the Lord, and they saw that he was holy among them.

14 Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, saying: “Your brother Israel says: You know all the travail that has happened to us;

Then Moses sent men from Kadesh to the king of Edom to say to him, Your brother Israel says, You have knowledge of all the things we have been through;

15 how our fathers went down into Egypt, and we lived in Egypt a long time. The Egyptians mistreated us and our fathers.

How our fathers went down into Egypt, and we were living in Egypt for a long time; and the Egyptians were cruel to us and to our fathers:

16 When we cried to the LORD, he heard our voice, sent an angel, and brought us out of Egypt. Behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the edge of your border.

And the Lord gave ear to the voice of our cry, and sent an angel and took us out of Egypt: and now we are in Kadesh, a town on the edge of your land;

17 “Please let us pass through your land. We will not pass through field or through vineyard, neither will we drink from the water of the wells. We will go along the king’s highway. We will not turn away to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed your border.”

Let us now go through your land: we will not go into field or vine-garden, or take the water of the springs; we will go by the highway, not turning to the right or to the left, till we have gone past the limits of your land.

18 Edom said to him, “You shall not pass through me, lest I come out with the sword against you.”

And Edom said, You are not to go through my land, for if you do I will come out against you with the sword.

19 The children of Israel said to him, “We will go up by the highway; and if we drink your water, I and my livestock, then I will give its price. Only let me, without doing anything else, pass through on my feet.”

And the children of Israel said to him, We will go up by the highway: and if we or our cattle take of your water, we will give you a price for it: only let us go through on our feet, nothing more.

20 He said, “You shall not pass through.” Edom came out against him with many people, and with a strong hand.

But he said, You are not to go through. And Edom came out against them in his strength, with a great army.

21 Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his border, so Israel turned away from him.

So Edom would not let Israel go through his land; and Israel went in another direction.

22 They traveled from Kadesh, and the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came to Mount Hor.

And they went on from Kadesh, and came, with all their people, to Mount Hor.

23 The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor, by the border of the land of Edom, saying,

And at Mount Hor, at the edge of the land of Edom, the Lord said to Moses and Aaron,

24 “Aaron shall be gathered to his people; for he shall not enter into the land which I have given to the children of Israel, because you rebelled against my word at the waters of Meribah.

Aaron will be put to rest with his people; he will not go into the land which I have given to the children of Israel, because you went against my word at the waters of Meribah.

25 Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up to Mount Hor;

So take Aaron and Eleazar, his son, up into Mount Hor;

26 and strip Aaron of his garments, and put them on Eleazar his son. Aaron shall be gathered, and shall die there.”

And take Aaron's robes off him and put them on Eleazar, his son: and death will come to Aaron there, and he will be put to rest with his people.

27 Moses did as the LORD commanded. They went up onto Mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation.

So Moses did as the Lord had said, and before the eyes of all the people they went up Mount Hor.

28 Moses stripped Aaron of his garments, and put them on Eleazar his son. Aaron died there on the top of the mountain, and Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain.

And Moses took off Aaron's robes, and put them on Eleazar, his son; and there on the top of the mountain death came to Aaron: then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain.

29 When all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead, they wept for Aaron thirty days, even all the house of Israel.

And when the people saw that Aaron was dead, all the children of Israel gave themselves up to weeping for him for thirty days.