Numbers 14:20-38

F. GENERAL PARDON;
SENTENCE UPON THE PROVOKERS, vv. 20-38
TEXT

Numbers 14:20. And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word: 21. But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. 22. Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; 23. Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it: 24. But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land where-into he went; and his seed shall possess it. 25. (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.) Tomorrow turn you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea.

26. And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 27. How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. 28. Say unto me, As truly as I live, saith the Lord, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you; 29. Your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness, and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me, 30. Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. 31, But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised. 32. But as for you, your carcasses, they shall fall in this wilderness. 33. And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness. 34. After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise. 35. I the Lord have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die. 36. And the men which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land, 37. Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before the Lord. 38. But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.

PARAPHRASE

Numbers 14:20. And the Lord said, I have pardoned them according to your word; 21. but certainly, as I live, and as all the earth is filled with the glory of the Lord, 22. all those men who have seen my glory and my miracles which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have tested me now these ten times, and have not heeded my voice, 23. certainly they shall not see the land I pledged to their fathers, nor shall any of those who provoked me see it. 24. But my servant Caleb, because he had a different attitude and followed me completely, I will bring into the land into which he went; and his descendants shall possess it. 25. Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites lived in the valleys. Turn tomorrow and set out into the wilderness by way of the Red Sea.

26. And the Lord spoke unto Moses and Aaron, saying, 27. How long shall I put up with this evil congregation who murmur against me? I have heard the complaints of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. 28. Say to them, -As I live,-' says the Lord, -just as you have spoken in my ears, so will I do to you: 29. your corpses shall fall in this wilderness, according to the total number, from twenty years of age and older, who have complained against me. You shall certainly not come into the land, in which I swore I would bring you to live, excepting Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua, the son of Nun. 31. However, your children, whom you said would become prey, these I shall bring in, and they shall know the land you have rejected. 32. But as for you, your corpses shall fall in this wilderness. 33. And your children shall be shepherds in this wilderness forty years, and suffer because of your unfaithfulness, until your corpses are consumed in the wilderness. 34. According to the number of days in which you spied out the land, that is, forty days, for every day you shall bear your sins one year: namely, forty years; and you shall know my displeasure.-' 35. I have spoken, I the Lord; surely I will do it to all this wicked generation which have gathered together against me. In this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there shall they die. 36. As for the men Moses sent to spy out the land, those who returned and caused all the congregation to complain against him by giving a bad report concerning the land, 37. those men who brought a bad report of the land died by a plague before the Lord. 38. But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, among the men who went to spy out the land, lived.

COMMENTARY

Whatever the intercessory prayer of Moses might have lacked in eloquence was more than supplied by his sincerity and selflessness. God immediately responds, adopting the course of the petitioner. So the course of an entire nation is determined by the fervent, effectual prayer of the righteous man, (James 5:16).

We do not have a record of ten instances when the nation of Israel tested God's patience; nor is it necessary to produce such a list. The language of God simply expresses the thought that their provocations have reached the ultimate. The same technique is used again and again in Amos (Numbers 1:3; Numbers 1:6, et passim), when the end of God's patience comes after three, and then four, transgressions.

God's sentence comes upon the people in two pronouncements: those men directly responsible for misdirecting Israel are to be struck down by the plague; and the people, who have been gullible, will not be permitted to enter the Promised Land at all. The punishments fit the crimes. Those who have attained the age of twenty are presumed to be responsible for their decisions. They have chosen to believe ten men rather than the Lord and His two faithful spies; hence, they are consigned to wandering about in the wilderness for the remainder of their lives. The ten unfaithful spies are especially culpable, since it is their word which has incited the disobedience. If they are allowed to remain alive and influential among the people, there is no way of guessing what seeds of discord and disruption they might have sown. Knowing their hearts, and that they will contribute nothing constructive to the morale of their audience, God deems them worthy of death. They are struck dead on the spot. The term plague is general rather than specific; making it a matter of speculation as to exactly how the Lord imposed His penalty upon them.
Sharply contrasting with the sentence of God upon the unfaithful spies and the doubting people, the commendation of the Lord with respect to Caleb particularly, and to Joshua as well, is refreshing. They alone, of all the Israelites above the age of twenty, would be permitted to enter and possess their portions in Canaan. It is safe to assume, at this point, that Moses and Aaron would have been included with the two faithful men. Moses may have omitted himself and his brother at this point when he wrote the record years later, and both of them had also been excluded from the Promised Land.
An ironic note is inserted into the pronouncement of God when He informs the murmuring people that their children, for whom they have expressed special concern about marching directly into the Promised Land, are to be spared through the wilderness ordeal. They, not their fearful parents, will know the full promise of life in a free land of their own. We must conclude that the expressed fears were only alibis; the people were afraid on their own account, not because of their children. Their carcasses, rotting in the desert, would provide stark evidence of this fact.

The words to the children, and their time in the wilderness, are properly, Your children shall pasture in the wilderness forty years, suggesting something quite different from aimless wandering, which is the common thought from earlier translations. The area of this pasturing was irregularly used for the same purposes by the Amalekites, the Midianites, and a few other nomadic tribes. At its best, however, the land is bleak and unsuited to permanent residence. It is hot, arid, mountainous, and inhospitable. For forty years the children of the rebels would endure its privations because of the sins of their fathers. Whoredoms, as used in this context, unquestionably refers to the idolatrous acts of the Jews, as in Exodus 34:16. Blame for these iniquitous deeds rests squarely upon the souls of the defectors: but the consequences of their idolatry come upon the children as well. Obvious spiritual overtones are to be found in these facts.

Little wonder that the people wept when Moses informed them of the decision of the Lord! They could find neither consolation nor hope in it. Before them lay a difficult life, and death would come upon them all without their having realized the one really wonderful promise which would have made all their trials bearable. Again, the punishment well fits the crime. At this point, Moses inserts the editorial comment which confirms the Lord's prophecies: death came upon these apostates in such a manner as to make it clear that they did not die natural deaths, and all within the time foretold.

QUESTIONS AND RESEARCH ITEMS

268.

The Lord pronounced two judgments and punishments upon various portions of the Israelites because of their faithlessness. What were these two pronouncements, and whom did each affect?

269.

Name the previous occasions on which the murmuring people tested God's patience.

270.

Why did God set the period of wilderness wandering at forty years?

271.

Of the total number of people in the tribes of Israel, how many adults eventually entered into the Promised Land?

272.

What alibi did the people give for not moving immediately into the Promised Land? How did God turn this very argument against them?

273.

How is the word whoredoms used with reference to the conduct of the people?

274.

Why did Moses not include himself and Aaron among those whom God promised entrance into the Promised Land?