Numbers 14:20-38

Numbers 14:20-38

[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  [24] But my servant  Caleb,  because  he had another  spirit  with him, and hath followed  me fully,  him will I bring  into the land  whereinto he went;  and his seed  shall possess  [25] (Now the Amalekites  and the Canaanites  dwelt  in the valley.)  To morrow  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  [28] Say  unto them, As truly as  I live,  saith  the LORD,  as ye have spoken  in mine ears,  so will I do  to you: [29] Your carcases  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  [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 carcases,  they shall fall  in this wilderness.  [33] And your children  shall wander  in the wilderness  forty  years,  and bear  your whoredoms,  until your carcases  be wasted  in the wilderness.  [34] After the number  of the days  in which ye searched  the land,  even forty  days,  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] 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  that did bring up  the evil  report  upon the land,  died  by the plague  before  [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 

What does Numbers 14:20-38 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

The fact that God granted the people pardon in response to Moses" intercession is another indication of His grace ( Numbers 14:20-21). The failure of the Israelites would not frustrate God"s purpose to manifest His glory throughout the earth through the seed of Abraham ( Numbers 14:21). Even though the present generation would die in the wilderness, Caleb (and Joshua , not mentioned here, cf. Numbers 14:30) would enter the Promised Land.
The ten times the Israelites tested God ( Numbers 14:22) by complaining were probably these.
1.At the Red Sea ( Exodus 14:11-12)2.At Marah ( Exodus 15:23)3.In the wilderness of Sin ( Exodus 16:2)4.In the wilderness of Sin ( Exodus 16:20)5.In the wilderness of Sin ( Exodus 16:27)6.At Rephidim ( Exodus 17:1-2)7.At Horeb ( Exodus 32)8.At Taberah ( Numbers 11:1-3)9.At Kibroth-hattaavah ( Numbers 11:4-34)10.At Kadesh ( Numbers 14:1-3)
It is noteworthy that in Egypt God sent10 plagues to build the faith of His people, but in the wilderness they complained against Him in unbelief10 times. Evidently the measure of their iniquity had reached its capacity from God"s viewpoint with this tenth rebellion (cf. Genesis 15:16).
Because the adult generation had failed to trust God He would not defeat their enemies. Therefore He instructed them to march southeast toward the Gulf of Aqabah and away from the Amalekites and Canaanites ( Numbers 14:25). Since they wanted to return to Egypt, God sent them back toward where they had been. Since they feared their children would die in Canaan, God would preserve those very children in the wilderness and give them a home in Canaan ( Numbers 14:31). Since the adults had rejected Canaan, God would give it to their children ( Numbers 14:31). Since they feared dying in Canaan, God would let them die in the wilderness ( Numbers 14:2).
"Typical of the irony in this story, their punishment is made to fit their crime." [1]
"When the Lord asked "How long?" [2] he meant this was the end. The oath formula "As I live" [3] was the strongest denial conceivable. The things he said next were irrevocably going to happen. That is what lies behind Numbers 14:28; Numbers 14:30; Numbers 14:35." [2]
The Bible nowhere specifies a particular age of accountability for children. However the fact that God judged all the Israelites who were20 years old and older for this sin seems significant. He evidently regarded those who had lived20 years as responsible adults ( Numbers 14:29). Jewish boys became "sons of the covenant" on their thirteenth birthdays in later Judaism. This is what the bar mitzvah (lit. son of duty) celebrates.
The40-year duration of the punishment was based on the40-day duration of the expedition by the spies ( Numbers 14:34). These40 years included the two years already spent in the wilderness, since complaining characterized the people from the time they first departed from Egypt.
"The round number forty ( Numbers 14:34) may refer to a human lifetime: generally speaking, everyone above the age of twenty would die in the wilderness in a period of forty years, because very few people lived beyond the age of sixty. There is a curious connection between the forty days of preparation for an entry that did not take place and forty years of awesome preparation for an entry that would take place-but only for a new generation." [3]
The10 spies who brought the majority opinion seem to have died shortly after God pronounced their sentence as a result of a plague He sent ( Numbers 14:37).
"As an unmistakable evidence that God"s word of judgment would be literally fulfilled, the spies, except Joshua and Caleb, at this moment were struck dead with a plague from the Lord." [6]