9 Only, do not go against the Lord or go in fear of the people of the land, for they will be our food; their strength has been taken from them and the Lord is with us: have no fear of them.
The heads of the great snake were crushed by you; you gave them as food to the fishes of the sea.
And when the Lord sent you from Kadesh-barnea, saying, Go up and take the land which I have given you; you went against the orders of the Lord your God, and had no faith in him, and would not give ear to his voice. From the day when I first had knowledge of you, you have gone against the word of the Lord.
Keep well in mind how you made the Lord your God angry in the waste land; from the day when you went out of Egypt till you came to this place, you have gone against the orders of the Lord.
It is God who has taken him out of Egypt; his horns are like those of the mountain ox; the nations warring against him will be his food, their bones will be broken, they will be wounded with his arrows.
It is the Lord who goes before you; he will be with you, he will not take away his help from you or give you up: so have no fear.
While you are living, all will give way before you: as I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not take away my help from you or give you up.
There will be no need for you to take up arms in this fight; put yourselves in position, and keep where you are, and you will see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: have no fear and do not be troubled: go out against them tomorrow, for the Lord is with you.
Have all the workers of evil no knowledge? they take my people for food as they would take bread; they make no prayer to the Lord.
Have knowledge, O peoples, and be in fear; give ear, all you far-off parts of the earth: Let your designs be formed, and they will come to nothing; give your orders, and they will not be effected: for God is with us.
Have no fear, for I am with you; do not be looking about in trouble, for I am your God; I will give you strength, yes, I will be your helper; yes, my true right hand will be your support.
Only let your behaviour do credit to the good news of Christ, so that if I come and see you or if I am away from you, I may have news of you that you are strong in one spirit, working together with one soul for the faith of the good news;
With the Lord our God are mercies and forgiveness, for we have gone against him;
We are sinners, acting wrongly and doing evil; we have gone against you, turning away from your orders and from your laws:
But they went against him, causing grief to his holy spirit: so he was turned against them, and made war on them.
Have no fear, you worm Jacob, and you men of Israel; I will be your helper, says the Lord, even he who takes up your cause, the Holy One of Israel.
For is not the fact of your going with us the sign that I and this people have grace in your eyes, so that we, that is, I and your people, are separate from all other people on the face of the earth?
See now, the Lord your God has put the land into your hands: go up and take it, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has said to you; have no fear and do not be troubled.
When you go out to war against other nations, and come face to face with horses and war-carriages and armies greater in number than yourselves, have no fear of them: for the Lord your God is with you, who took you up out of the land of Egypt. And when you are on the point of attacking, let the priest come forward and say to the people, Give ear, O Israel: today you are going forward to the fight; let your heart be strong; do not let uncontrolled fear overcome you because of those who are against you; For the Lord your God goes with you, fighting for you to give you salvation from those who are against you.
Be strong and take heart, and have no fear of them: for it is the Lord your God who is going with you; he will not take away his help from you.
And the family of Joseph went up against Beth-el, and the Lord was with them.
And now God is with us at our head, and his priests with their loud horns sounding against you. O children of Israel, do not make war on the Lord, the God of your fathers, for it will not go well for you.
Then Israel said to Joseph, Now my death is near; but God will be with you, guiding you back to the land of your fathers.
<To the chief music-maker. Of the sons of Korah; put to Alamoth. A Song.> God is our harbour and our strength, a very present help in trouble. For this cause we will have no fear, even though the earth is changed, and though the mountains are moved in the heart of the sea;
The Lord of armies is with us; the God of Jacob is our high tower. (Selah.)
Happy is he whose resting-place is in the secret of the Lord, and under the shade of the wings of the Most High;
Give ear, O heavens, and you, O earth, to the word which the Lord has said: I have taken care of my children till they became men, but their hearts have been turned away from me.
Who make a move to go down into Egypt, without authority from me; who are looking to the strength of Pharaoh for help, and whose hope is in the shade of Egypt. And the strength of Pharaoh will be your shame, and your hope in the shade of Egypt will come to nothing.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Numbers 14
Commentary on Numbers 14 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 14
This chapter gives us an account of that fatal quarrel between God and Israel upon which, for their murmuring and unbelief, he swore in his wrath that they should not enter into his rest. Here is,
Num 14:1-4
Here we see what mischief the evil spies made by their unfair representation. We may suppose that these twelve that were impanelled to enquire concerning Canaan had talked it over among themselves before they brought in their report in public; and Caleb and Joshua, it is likely, had done their utmost to bring the rest over to be of their mind, and if they would but have agreed that Caleb, according to his pose, should have spoken for them all, as their foreman, all had been well; but the evil spies, it should seem, wilfully designed to raise this mutiny, purely in opposition to Moses and Aaron, though they could not propose any advantage to themselves by it, unless they hoped to be captains and commanders of the retreat into Egypt they were now meditating. But what came of it? Here in these verses we find those whom they studied to humour put into a vexation, and, before the end of the chapter, brought to ruin. Observe,
Num 14:5-10
The friends of Israel here interpose to save them if possible from ruining themselves, but in vain. The physicians of their state would have healed them, but they would not be healed; their watchmen gave them warning, but they would not take warning, and so their blood is upon their own heads.
Num 14:11-19
Here is,
Num 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 (v. 20-25), and then directed to be made public to the people, v. 26-35. The frequent repetitions of the same things in it speak these resolves to be unalterable. Let us see the particulars.
Num 14:36-45
Here is,