Numbers 14

1 And all the congregation lifts up, and they give forth their voice, and the people weep during that night;

And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried aloud; and the people wept that night.

2 and all the sons of Israel murmur against Moses and against Aaron, and all the congregation says to them, “O that we had died in the land of Egypt, or in this wilderness, O that we had died!

And all the people murmured against Moses and against Aaron; and the whole congregation said unto them, Oh who would grant that we had died in the land of Egypt! or that we might but die in this wilderness!

3 And why is YHWH bringing us to this land to fall by the sword, [that] our wives and our infants become a prey? Is it not good for us to return to Egypt?”

And wherefore doth the Lord bring us unto yonder land, to fall by the sword? that our wives and our children may become a prey? is it not better for us to return to Egypt?

4 And they say to one another, “Let us appoint a head and return to Egypt.”

And they said one to another, Let us appoint a chief, and let us return to Egypt.

5 And Moses falls—Aaron also—on their faces, before all the assembly of the congregation of the sons of Israel.

Then fell Moses and Aaron on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.

6 And Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, of those spying out the land, have torn their garments,

And Joshua, the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Yephunneh, of those that had spied out the land, rent their garments.

7 and they speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, saying, “The land into which we have passed over to spy it out [is] a very, very good land;

And they said unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, as followeth, The land, through which we have passed to spy it out, this land is exceedingly good.

8 if YHWH has delighted in us, then He has brought us into this land, and has given it to us, a land which is flowing with milk and honey;

If the Lord have delight in us, then will he bring us into this land, and give it to us: a land which is flowing with milk and honey.

9 only, do not rebel against YHWH: and you, do not fear the people of the land, for they [are] our bread; their defense has turned aside from off them, and YHWH [is] with us; do not fear them.”

Only against the Lord do ye not rebel; and then ye need not fear the people of the land; for they are our bread: their shadow is departed from them, while the Lord is with us; fear them not.

10 And all the congregation says to stone them with stones, and the glory of YHWH has appeared in the Tent of Meeting to all the sons of Israel.

But all the congregation said to stone them with stones: when the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation unto all the children of Israel.

11 And YHWH says to Moses, “Until when does this people despise Me? And until when do they not believe in Me, for all the signs which I have done in its midst?

And the Lord said unto Moses, How long yet shall this people provoke me? and how long yet will they not believe in me, with all the signs which I have shown in the midst of them?

12 I strike it with pestilence, and dispossess it, and make you become a nation greater and mightier than it.”

I will smite them with the pestilence, and root them out, and I will make of thee a nation greater and mightier than they.

13 And Moses says to YHWH, “Then the Egyptians have heard! For with Your power You have brought up this people out of their midst,

And Moses said unto the Lord, But when the Egyptian hear, from the midst of whom thou hast brought up in thy might this people; —

14 and they have said [it] to the inhabitant of this land, they have heard that You, YHWH, [are] in the midst of this people, that You are seen eye to eye—O YHWH, and Your cloud is standing over them—and in a pillar of cloud You are going before them by day, and in a pillar of fire by night.

And when they tell to the inhabitants of this land, who have heard that thou, Lord, art in the midst of this people, that face to face thou, Lord, art seen, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that in a pillar of cloud thou goest before them by day, and in a pillar of fire by night; —

15 And You have put to death this people as one man, and the nations who have heard Your fame have spoken, saying,

That thou hast killed this people as one man: then will the nations that have heard thy fame, say in this manner,

16 From YHWH’s want of ability to bring in this people to the land which He has sworn to them, He slaughters them in the wilderness.

That because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land which he had sworn unto them, hath he slain them in the wilderness.

17 And now, please let the power of my Lord be great, as You have spoken, saying,

And now, I beseech thee, let the greatness of the power of the Lord be made manifest, as thou hast spoken, saying,

18 YHWH [is] slow to anger and of great kindness, bearing away iniquity and transgression, and not entirely acquitting, charging iniquity of fathers on sons, on a third and on a fourth [generation]—

The Eternal is long-suffering, and abundant in beneficence, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation.

19 please forgive the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of Your kindness, and as You have borne with this people from Egypt, even until now.”

Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of thy beneficence, and as thou hast been indulgent to this people, from Egypt even until hitherto.

20 And YHWH says, “I have forgiven according to your word,

And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word.

21 but nevertheless, as I live, indeed, the whole earth is filled [with] the glory of YHWH,

But as truly as I live, and as all the earth is filled with the glory of the Lord: —

22 for all the men who are seeing My glory and My signs which I have done in Egypt and in the wilderness, and try Me these ten times, and have not listened to My voice—

That all the men who have seen my glory, and my signs, which I have displayed in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice,

23 they do not see the land which I have sworn to their fathers, indeed, none of those despising Me see it;

Shall surely not see the land which I have sworn unto their fathers, yea all those that have provoked me shall not see it.

24 but My servant Caleb, because there has been another spirit with him, and he is fully after Me—I have brought him into the land to where he has entered, and his seed possesses it.

But my servant Caleb, as a reward that he had another spirit with him, and followed me fully, —therefore will I bring him into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.

25 And the Amalekite and the Canaanite are dwelling in the valley; tomorrow turn and journey for yourselves into the wilderness—the way of the Red Sea.”

And the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valley: tomorrow turn you, and set forward into the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.

26 And YHWH speaks to Moses and to Aaron, saying,

And the Lord spoke unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

27 “Until when [do I bear] with this evil congregation—they who are murmuring against Me? The murmurings of the sons of Israel, which they are murmuring against Me, I have heard;

How long [shall indulgence be given] to this evil congregation, that murmur against me? the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me, have I heard.

28 say to them: As I live—a declaration of YHWH—if, as you have spoken in My ears, do I not do so to you?

Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the Lord, as ye have spoken in my ears, so will I do to you:

29 Your carcasses fall in this wilderness, even all your numbered ones, to all your number, from a son of twenty years and upward, who have murmured against Me;

In this wilderness shall your carcasses fall, and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward; ye who have murmured against me;

30 you do not come into the land [for] which I have lifted up My hand to cause you to dwell in it, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.

Truly ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I have lifted up my hand to let you dwell therein; save Caleb the son of Yephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.

31 As for your infants—of whom you have said, They become a spoil—I have even brought them in, and they have known the land which you have kicked against;

But your little ones of which ye said, They would become a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.

32 as for you—your carcasses fall in this wilderness,

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

33 and your sons are shepherding in the wilderness [for] forty years, and have borne your whoredoms until your carcasses are consumed in the wilderness;

And your children shall wander about in the wilderness forty years, and bear your backslidings, until your carcasses be spent in the wilderness.

34 by the number of the days [in] which you spied out the land, forty days—a day for a year, a day for a year—you bear your iniquities [for] forty years, and you have known My opposition;

After the number of the days in which ye spied out the land, forty days, yea, each one day for a year, shall ye bear for your iniquities, forty years; and ye shall experience my withdrawal [of protection].

35 I, YHWH, have spoken; if, nonetheless, I do this to all this evil congregation who are meeting against Me—they are consumed in this wilderness, and there they die.”

I the Lord have spoken it, surely, this will I do unto all this evil congregation that have assembled against me: in this wilderness shall they be spent, and therein shall they die.

36 Then the men whom Moses has sent to spy out the land, [who] then return and cause all the congregation to murmur against him by bringing out an evil account concerning the land,

And the men whom Moses had sent to spy out the land, and who returned, and caused all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up an evil report against the land,

37 even the men bringing out an evil account of the land, they die by the plague before YHWH;

Even these men, that had brought up the evil report of the land, died by the plague before the Lord.

38 and Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh have lived, of those men who go to spy out the land.

But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Yephunneh, remained alive of those men, who had gone to spy out the land.

39 And Moses speaks these words to all the sons of Israel, and the people mourn exceedingly,

And Moses spoke these words unto all the children of Israel; and the people mourned greatly.

40 and they rise early in the morning, and go up to the top of the mountain, saying, “Here we [are], and we have come up to the place which YHWH has spoken of, for we have sinned.”

And they rose up early in the morning, and went up to the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, here we are, and we will go up unto the place of which the Lord hath spoken; for we have sinned.

41 And Moses says, “Why [is] this [that] you are transgressing the command of YHWH? For it does not prosper;

And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the order of the Lord? and it will not prosper.

42 do not go up, for YHWH is not in your midst, and you are not struck before your enemies;

Do not go up, for the Lord is not among you; that ye may not be smitten before your enemies.

43 for the Amalekite and the Canaanite [are] there before you, and you have fallen by the sword, because that you have turned back from after YHWH, and YHWH is not with you.”

For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye will fall by the sword; since, because ye are turned away from the Lord, the Lord also will not be with you.

44 And they presume to go up to the top of the mountain, but the Ark of the Covenant of YHWH, and Moses, have not departed out of the midst of the camp.

Yet they persisted to go up unto the top of the mountain; but the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and Moses, did not move out of the camp.

45 And the Amalekite and the Canaanite who are dwelling in that mountain come down and strike them, and beat them down to Hormah.

Then came down the Amalekites, and the Canaanites that dwelt on that mountain, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto Chormah.