Numbers 14

1 Then the whole congregation lifted up their voices and cried out, and that night the people wept.

All the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.

2 All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness!

All the children of Israel [God prevails] murmured against Moses [Drawn out] and against Aaron [Light-bringer]. The whole congregation said to them, “We wish that we had died in the land of Egypt [Abode of slavery], or that we had died in this wilderness!

3 Why is the LORD bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and children will become plunder. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?”

Why does Adonai 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 teshuvah ·completely return· into Egypt [Abode of slavery]?”

4 So they said to one another, “Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt.”

They said to one another, “Let us make a captain, and let us teshuvah ·completely return· into Egypt [Abode of slavery].”

5 Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown before the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel.

Then Moses [Drawn out] and Aaron [Light-bringer] fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel [God prevails].

6 Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes

Joshua [Yah Salvation] the son of Nun and Caleb [Dog] the son of Jephunneh, who were of those who spied out the land, tore their clothes.

7 and said to the whole congregation of Israel, “The land we passed through and explored is an exceedingly good land.

They spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel [God prevails], saying, “The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceeding good land.

8 If the LORD delights in us, He will bring us into this land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and He will give it to us.

If Adonai 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 do not rebel against the LORD, and do not be afraid of the people of the land, for they will be like bread for us. Their protection has been removed, and the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them!”

Only don’t rebel against Adonai, neither fear the people of the land; for they are bread for us. Their defense is removed from over them, and Adonai is with us. Don’t fear them.”

10 But the whole congregation threatened to stone Joshua and Caleb. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting.

But all the congregation threatened to stone them with stones. The kavod Yahweh ·weighty glory of He sustains breathing· appeared in the Tent of Meeting to all the children of Israel [God prevails].

11 And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people treat Me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in Me, despite all the signs I have performed among them?

Adonai said to Moses [Drawn out], “How long will this people despise me? and how long will they not trust in me, for all the signs which I have worked among them?

12 I will strike them with a plague and destroy them—and I will make you into a nation greater and mightier than they are.”

I will strike them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.”

13 But Moses said to the LORD, “The Egyptians will hear of it, for by Your strength You brought this people from among them.

Moses [Drawn out] said to Adonai, “Then the Egyptians [people from Abode of slavery] will sh'ma ·hear obey· it; for you brought up this people in your might from among them.

14 And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have already heard that You, O LORD, are in the midst of this people, that You, O LORD, have been seen face to face, that Your cloud stands over them, and that You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

They will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have sh'ma ·heard obeyed· that you Adonai are in the middle of this people; for you Adonai 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 If You kill this people as one man, the nations who have heard of Your fame will say,

Now if you killed this people as one man, then the nations which have sh'ma ·heard obeyed· the fame of you will speak, saying,

16 ‘Because the LORD was unable to bring this people into the land He swore to give them, He has slaughtered them in the wilderness.’

‘Because Adonai was not able to bring this people into the land which he swore to them, therefore he has slain them in the wilderness.’

17 So now I pray, may the power of my Lord be magnified, just as You have declared:

Now please let the power of 'Adonay [Lord] be great, according as you have spoken, saying,

18 ‘The LORD is slow to anger and abounding in loving devotion, forgiving iniquity and transgression. Yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished; He will visit the iniquity of the fathers upon their children to the third and fourth generation.’

‘Adonai is slow to anger, and abundant in chesed ·loving-kindness·, forgiving depravity (moral evil) and rebellious breach of relationship; and that will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the depravity (moral evil) of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation.’

19 Pardon, I pray, the iniquity of this people, in keeping with the greatness of Your loving devotion, just as You have forgiven them ever since they left Egypt.”

Please pardon the depravity (moral evil) of this people according to the greatness of your chesed ·loving-kindness·, and according as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt [Abode of slavery] even until now.”

20 “I have pardoned them as you requested,” the LORD replied.

Adonai said, “I have pardoned according to your word:

21 “Yet as surely as I live and as surely as the whole earth is filled with the glory of the LORD,

but in very deed, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the kavod Yahweh ·weighty glory of He sustains breathing·;

22 not one of the men who have seen My glory and the signs I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness—yet have tested Me and disobeyed Me these ten times—

because all those men who have seen my glory, and my signs, which I worked in Egypt [Abode of slavery] and in the wilderness, yet have tempted me these ten times, and have not sh'ma ·heard obeyed· my voice;

23 not one will ever see the land that I swore to give their fathers. None of those who have treated Me with contempt will see it.

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 because My servant Caleb has a different spirit and has followed Me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he has entered, and his descendants will inherit it.

But my servant Caleb [Dog], 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 Now since the Amalekites and Canaanites are living in the valleys, turn back tomorrow and head for the wilderness along the route to the Red Sea.”

Since the Amalekite [Descendant of Man who licks up] and the Canaanite [Descendant of Humbled] dwell in the valley, tomorrow turn, and go into the wilderness by the way to the Sea of Suf [Reed Sea].”

26 Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,

Adonai spoke to Moses [Drawn out] and to Aaron [Light-bringer], saying,

27 “How long will this wicked congregation grumble against Me? I have heard the complaints that the Israelites are making against Me.

“How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, that murmur against me? I have sh'ma ·heard obeyed· the murmurings of the children of Israel [God prevails], which they murmur against me.

28 So tell them: As surely as I live, declares the LORD, I will do to you exactly as I heard you say.

Tell them, ‘As I live, says Adonai, surely as you have spoken in my ears, so will I do to you.

29 Your bodies will fall in this wilderness—all who were numbered in the census, everyone twenty years of age or older—because you have grumbled against Me.

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 murmured against me,

30 Surely none of you will enter the land in which I swore to settle you, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.

surely you shall not come into the land, concerning which I swore that I would make you dwell therein, except Caleb [Dog] the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua [Yah Salvation] the son of Nun.

31 But I will bring your children, whom you said would become plunder, into the land you have rejected—and they will enjoy it.

But your little ones, that you said should be captured or killed, them I will bring in, and they shall know the land which you have rejected.

32 As for you, however, your bodies will fall in this wilderness.

But as for you, your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness.

33 Your children will be shepherds in the wilderness for forty years, and they will suffer for your unfaithfulness until the last of your bodies lies in the wilderness.

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 In keeping with the forty days you spied out the land, you shall bear your guilt forty years—a year for each day—and you will experience My alienation.

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 depravities (moral evils), even forty years, and you will know my alienation.’

35 I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this entire wicked congregation, which has conspired against Me. They will meet their end in the wilderness, and there they will die.”

I, Adonai, 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 So the men Moses had sent to spy out the land, who had returned and made the whole congregation grumble against him by bringing out a bad report about the land—

The men, whom Moses [Drawn out] sent to spy out the land, who teshuvah ·completely returned·, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up an evil report against the land,

37 those men who had brought out the bad report about the land—were struck down by a plague before the LORD.

even those men who brought up an evil report of the land, died by the plague before Adonai.

38 Of those men who had gone to spy out the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh remained alive.

But Joshua [Yah Salvation] the son of Nun, and Caleb [Dog] the son of Jephunneh, remained alive of those men who went to spy out the land.

39 And when Moses relayed these words to all the Israelites, the people mourned bitterly.

Moses [Drawn out] told these words to all the children of Israel [God prevails], and the people mourned greatly.

40 Early the next morning they got up and went up toward the ridge of the hill country. “We have indeed sinned,” they said, “but we will go to the place the LORD has promised.”

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 Adonai has promised: for we have sinned ·deviated (from the standard goal)·.”

41 But Moses said, “Why are you transgressing the commandment of the LORD? This will not succeed!

Moses [Drawn out] said, “Why are you disobeying the order of Adonai? You shall not succeed!

42 Do not go up, lest you be struck down by your enemies, because the LORD is not among you.

Don’t go up, for Adonai is not among you; that you not be struck down before your enemies.

43 For there the Amalekites and Canaanites will face you, and you will fall by the sword. Because you have turned away from the LORD, He will not be with you.”

For there the Amalekite [Descendant of Man who licks up] and the Canaanite [Descendant of Humbled] are before you, and you shall fall by the sword, because you turned back from following Adonai, therefore Adonai will not be with you.”

44 But they dared to go up to the ridge of the hill country, though neither Moses nor the ark of the covenant of the LORD moved from the camp.

But they presumed to go up to the top of the mountain. Nevertheless, the ark of Adonai’s covenant and Moses [Drawn out] didn’t depart out of the camp.

45 Then the Amalekites and Canaanites who lived in that part of the hill country came down, attacked them, and routed them all the way to Hormah.

Then the Amalekites [Descendants of Man who licks up] came down, and the Canaanites [Descendants of Humbled] who lived in that mountain, and struck them and beat them down, even to Hormah.