Numbers 14 1

Numbers 14:1 kjv

And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.

Numbers 14:1 nkjv

So all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that night.

Numbers 14:1 niv

That night all the members of the community raised their voices and wept aloud.

Numbers 14:1 esv

Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night.

Numbers 14:1 nlt

Then the whole community began weeping aloud, and they cried all night.

Numbers 14 verses

Numbers 14 1 Meaning

This verse describes the immediate and intense reaction of the entire Israelite community following the ten spies' negative report. They express profound fear, sorrow, and rebellion by wailing and lamenting collectively throughout the night, mourning their fate as if already destroyed, rather than trusting God's promise to bring them into the Promised Land. This lament signifies a complete collapse of faith and a decisive turning away from God's divinely appointed path.

Numbers 14 1 Context

This verse opens a pivotal chapter in the Israelites' wilderness journey, directly following the report of the twelve spies in Numbers chapter 13. God had led them from Sinai to Kadesh Barnea, on the cusp of entering the Promised Land. Moses sent a spy from each tribe to reconnoiter the land. Ten spies brought back an exaggeratedly fearful report, emphasizing the land's formidable inhabitants and fortified cities, describing them as giants compared to whom the Israelites felt like grasshoppers. Caleb, however, with Joshua, urged immediate conquest, asserting God's power. This verse captures the collective, intense, and faithless reaction of the Israelite congregation to the majority report, plunging them into widespread lamentation and setting the stage for divine judgment that would sentence them to forty years of wandering. This historical moment is a turning point, sealing the fate of the generation that left Egypt due to their unbelief and rebellion against God's direct command and promise.

Numbers 14 1 Word analysis

• And all the congregation:

  • And: Hebrew waw (ו), serving as a conjunction, connecting this immediate reaction to the preceding report of the spies. It implies a direct consequence.
  • all: Hebrew kol (כֹּל), meaning the entirety, every part. This emphasizes the unanimous and pervasive nature of the response, signifying a widespread and collective abandonment of faith. It was not a minority opinion but a dominant sentiment among the people.
  • the congregation: Hebrew ha-ʿēdâ (הָעֵדָה), referring to the entire community of Israel, often used to denote the organized assembly or official gathering, especially in relation to matters of God's covenant. This indicates a failure on a corporate level, not just individual grumbling, highlighting the severity of their collective disobedience and lack of trust in their divine leader and His promises.

• lifted up their voice,

  • lifted up: Hebrew nasaʾ (נָשָׂא), meaning to lift, bear, carry. Here, nasaʾ qôl (נָשָׂא קוֹל) forms an idiom "to lift up one's voice," indicating a loud, open, and unrestrained outburst of sound. It signifies the public and vehement nature of their distress.
  • their voice: Hebrew qôl (קוֹל), meaning sound, voice, thunder. It specifies that their lament was not silent grief but an audible outcry, making their collective despair known across the camp. This vocalization amplified the shared despair and fueled the atmosphere of panic and rebellion.

• and cried;

  • and: Another waw (ו), indicating a continuation or further development of the action.
  • cried: Hebrew ṣāʿaq (צָעַק), meaning to cry out, shriek, wail loudly, often in distress, anguish, or for help. It carries a connotation of a piercing, agonizing cry, indicating deep-seated fear and perceived doom, as if a great calamity had already befallen them. This suggests a more desperate and chaotic expression than just "lifting up the voice."

• and the people wept that night.

  • and the people: Hebrew wəhāʿām (וְהָעָם), reinforcing "the congregation." The repetition emphasizes the unified response of the entire populace, indicating the breadth and depth of the emotional contagion. "People" highlights their collective humanity and susceptibility to fear, in contrast to their calling as God's chosen "congregation."
  • wept: Hebrew bākāh (בָּכָה), meaning to weep, lament with tears. This term explicitly adds the dimension of visible tears to their emotional outburst. It's an outward manifestation of profound grief, not for sin or repentance, but for their self-pitying despair and perceived inescapable plight.
  • that night: Hebrew ballaylâ hahûʾ (בַּלַּיְלָה הַהוּא), specifically pinpointing the time. This detail is significant:
    • Immediacy: It implies their reaction was immediate, occurring shortly after the spies' report that evening.
    • Intensity: A whole night spent weeping indicates the depth and endurance of their despair; they allowed the fear to consume them fully.
    • Vulnerability: Nighttime can be a time of increased fear and hopelessness when darkness amplifies perceived threats and obscures hope. It reflects a time when fears often overwhelm rational thought, suggesting they surrendered entirely to their terror rather than seeking divine comfort.

• Words-group by words-group analysis:

  • "And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried;": This initial phrase describes a universal, vocal, and intense public outcry. It indicates a powerful surge of collective emotion that overwhelms any individual or minority dissenting voices (like Caleb and Joshua's). The crescendo from "lifting up voice" to "crying" highlights the escalation of their distress into a desperate, loud lament.
  • "and the people wept that night": This second part elaborates on the previous cry, adding the visual element of tears and extending the timeframe of their grief throughout the entire night. It underscores the utter despair and physical exhaustion caused by their protracted lamentation, demonstrating the full extent to which they succumbed to unbelief and allowed fear to dominate their communal experience. It seals the scene of a generation overcome by despair, incapable of faith.

Numbers 14 1 Bonus section

The type of "weeping" depicted in Num 14:1 is crucial: it is a "weeping of despair," not a "weeping of repentance." Unlike moments where Israel genuinely grieved their sin (e.g., Judg 2:4, Ezra 10:1), here their tears flowed from perceived doom and resentment against God and Moses, indicating a profound lack of faith in God's ability to fulfill His promises. This mass emotional breakdown contrasts sharply with the steadfast faith and encouragement offered by Caleb and Joshua (Num 14:6-9), whose voices were drowned out by the collective wail. The public and enduring nature of their lament, specifically "that night," suggests a dark, spiritual battle lost to fear. The incident foreshadows Israel's repeated spiritual blindness and failure to trust God's prophets and promises throughout their history, ultimately culminating in the rejection of their Messiah. It serves as a potent theological example, frequently cited in the New Testament (Heb 3-4, 1 Cor 10), of the devastating spiritual consequences of unbelief and a hardened heart.

Numbers 14 1 Commentary

Numbers 14:1 serves as a stark turning point in Israel's wilderness narrative, marking a climactic demonstration of profound unbelief and open rebellion. Following God's clear promise to lead them into the land, and despite numerous displays of His power, the people chose to credit the fearful report of the ten spies over divine assurance. Their "lifting up their voice," "crying," and "weeping that night" are not expressions of repentant sorrow or earnest prayer, but rather a lament born of fear, self-pity, and an overt rejection of God's capability and faithfulness. This collective outcry reveals the depth of their hardened hearts, demonstrating a pervasive spiritual blindness that prioritized immediate perceived threats over an eternal, unwavering covenant promise. This moment signifies the point of no return for that generation, directly leading to God's decree that they would perish in the wilderness, forever illustrating the grave consequences of unbelief and the power of fear to stifle divine destiny. Practically, it underscores how fear and doubt, if unaddressed by faith, can manifest as overwhelming despair and lead to corporate spiritual failure, impacting an entire community and future generations.