But as for you, your carcasses ,.... Which way of speaking seems to be used to distinguish them from their children: they shall fall in this wilderness : which is repeated for the confirmation and certainty it, and an emphasis is laid on the words, this which are pronounced with an accent, to put them in mind of their wish, Numbers 14:2 . read more
And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years ,.... Or "feed" F2 יהיו רעים "erunt pascentes", Pagninus, Montanus, Drusius, Junius & Tremellius; "pascent", Tigurine version, Piscator. , as shepherds, who go from place to place, and seek fresh pasture for their sheep; it being the custom of a shepherd, as Aben Ezra observes, not to stand or rest in a place; and so like sheep grazing in a wilderness, where they have short commons, and wander about in search, of... read more
After the number of days in which ye searched the land , even forty days ,.... For so long they were searching it, Numbers 13:25 , each day for a year ; reckoning each day for a year, forty days for forty years, as in Ezekiel 4:6 , shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years : which number is given, being a round one, otherwise it was but thirty eight years and a half ere they were all cut off, and their children entered the land: and ye shall know my breach of... read more
I the Lord have said ,.... Determined, resolved on doing what I have declared, and again repeat it; the decree is absolute and peremptory, and will never be revoked: I will surely do it to all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me ; against his ministers, Moses the chief magistrate, and Aaron the high priest; and this is interpreted gathering, conspiring, and rebelling against the Lord himself, on account of which they might be truly called an evil congregation,... read more
After the number of the days - The spies were forty days in searching the land, and the people who rebelled on their evil report are condemned to wander forty years in the wilderness! Now let them make them a captain and go back to Egypt if they can. God had so hedged them about with his power and providence that they could neither go back to Egypt nor get forward to the promised land! God has provided innumerable spiritual blessings for mankind, but in the pursuit of earthly good they lose... read more
Verse 33 33.And your children shall wander in the wilderness. (67) He here pronounces that their children shall be in some measure partakers of their punishment, inasmuch as they shall wander in the desert until the time prescribed: for by the word shepherds, He means sojourners, (68) who have no certain or settled residence. To this effect is the similitude in the song of Hezekiah: “My lodging is departed as a shepherd’s tent.” (69) (Isaiah 38:12.) In short, He declares that they shall be... read more
1 . Brought very nigh to the promised rest, almost within sight, and actually within taste. 2 . Refusing to enter that rest through disbelief. 3 . Sentenced to exile from the rest they would not enter. 4 . Attempting ( vainly ) to eater that rest in their own unbidden and unblessed ways. And subordinately to this great and striking lesson, we have other lessons and examples both of good and evil. I. CONSIDER , THEREFORE , IN RESPECT OF THIS ... read more
I. WHERE THIS PROPOSAL TO SEND FORWARD SPIES ORIGINATED . Thirty-eight years later, Moses laid the blame of it on the people ( Deuteronomy 1:22 ). He adds, however, that "the saying pleased him well," and that it was agreed to without difficulty, so that the statement in the text which represents the Lord as directing the spies to be sent is quite consistent with the one in Deuteronomy. There was nothing in itself sinful in the people's proposal, and it received the... read more
II. THE MEN WHO WERE SENT . Whether by choice of Moses or the people we are not told, but probably there was much careful consultation on the matter, according to human wisdom. Doubtless they seemed the best men for the purpose; chosen for physical endurance, quickness of eye, tact in emergencies, and good judgment of the land and people. Yet some very important requisites were evidently not considered. Out of the twelve, only two were men of faith in God and deep convictions ... read more
Get Bible verse every day in your inbox
Read on Mobile
Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Numbers 14:20-35
We have here God's answer to the prayer of Moses, which sings both of mercy and judgment. It is given privately to Moses (Num. 14:20-25), and then directed to be made public to the people, Num. 14:26-35. The frequent repetitions of the same things in it speak these resolves to be unalterable. Let us see the particulars. I. The extremity of the sentence is receded from (Num. 14:20): ?I have pardoned, so as not to cut them all off at once, and disinherit them.? See the power of prayer, and the... read more