Numbers 14:11–25

Introduction

Numbers 14:11–25: The people’s lack of trust in God angers him. The Lord threatens to punish them, but Moses pleads with God to save them.

Today’s Key Verse: Numbers 14:19 GNT

[Moses prayed:] “And now, LORD, according to the greatness of your unchanging love, forgive, I pray, the sin of these people, just as you have forgiven them ever since they left Egypt.”

Read

¹¹ The Lord said to Moses, “How much longer will these people reject me? How much longer will they refuse to trust in me, even though I have performed so many miracles among them? ¹² I will send an epidemic and destroy them, but I will make you the father of a nation that is larger and more powerful than they are!”

¹³ But Moses said to the Lord, “You brought these people out of Egypt by your power. When the Egyptians hear what you have done to your people, ¹⁴ they will tell it to the people who live in this land. These people have already heard that you, Lord, are with us, that you appear in plain sight when your cloud stops over us, and that you go before us in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. ¹⁵ Now if you kill all your people, the nations who have heard of your fame will say ¹⁶ that you killed your people in the wilderness because you were not able to bring them into the land you promised to give them. ¹⁷ So now, Lord, I pray, show us your power and do what you promised when you said, ¹⁸ ‘I, the Lord, am not easily angered, and I show great love and faithfulness and forgive sin and rebellion. Yet I will not fail to punish children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation for the sins of their parents.’ ¹⁹ And now, Lord, according to the greatness of your unchanging love, forgive, I pray, the sin of these people, just as you have forgiven them ever since they left Egypt.”

²⁰ The Lord answered, “I will forgive them, as you have asked. ²¹ But I promise that as surely as I live and as surely as my presence fills the earth, ²² none of these people will live to enter that land. They have seen the dazzling light of my presence and the miracles that I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, but they have tried my patience over and over again and have refused to obey me. ²³ They will never enter the land which I promised to their ancestors. None of those who have rejected me will ever enter it. ²⁴ But because my servant Caleb has a different attitude and has remained loyal to me, I will bring him into the land which he explored, and his descendants will possess the land ²⁵ in whose valleys the Amalekites and the Canaanites now live. Turn back tomorrow and go into the wilderness in the direction of the Gulf of Aqaba.”

Reflect

Because the people voiced a rejection of God, what does God say he will do to the people (verse 12)? How does Moses intercede (verses 13–19)? What is God’s response to Moses (verses 20–25? If you ever experienced a difficult time when you doubted God’s presence with you, what were your thoughts?

Pray

Merciful God, there are days when I experience doubt and fear. Reassure me and strengthen my faith, reminding me of your unchanging love and the many ways you have watched over and guided me. Amen.

And now, join us in praying for displaced families in Lebanon who are receiving hope from God’s Word. Loving God, we thank you that (in response to the ongoing displacement of over 1.5 million Syrian and Iraqi refugees in Lebanon) the Bible Society in Lebanon is distributing Arabic Refugee Bibles tailored to those facing crisis. What a blessing it is that these editions feature full Scripture, stories of biblical exiles, testimonies and prayers, and offer emotional and spiritual healing to refugees and vulnerable Lebanese families. We’re grateful that through your Word, your Spirit is restoring hope, dignity, and faith for those living in uncertainty and trauma. Amen.

Tomorrow’s Reading

Numbers 21:4–20: The Israelites complain yet again and are bitten by poisonous snakes.