Numbers 14:38 kjv
But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.
Numbers 14:38 nkjv
But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive, of the men who went to spy out the land.
Numbers 14:38 niv
Of the men who went to explore the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh survived.
Numbers 14:38 esv
Of those men who went to spy out the land, only Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive.
Numbers 14:38 nlt
Of the twelve who had explored the land, only Joshua and Caleb remained alive.
Numbers 14 38 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Num 13:30 | But Caleb quieted the people... “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” | Caleb's initial faithful report and courage. |
| Num 14:6-9 | Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes and said to all the congregation... "Do not rebel against the LORD. And do not fear the people of the land..." | Joshua & Caleb's faithful counter-report and plea. |
| Num 14:28-30 | 'As I live, declares the LORD... not one of you shall come into the land... except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.' | God's decree of death in the wilderness, making the exceptions clear. |
| Num 14:31-35 | But your little ones... I will bring in... And your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness... you shall bear your punishment... | Consequences for the unbelieving generation. |
| Num 26:64-65 | Not one of them was left, except Caleb... and Joshua... | Reiteration of the decree and exceptions during the second census. |
| Num 32:11-12 | ‘Surely none of the men who came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land... except Caleb... and Joshua... for they have wholly followed the LORD.’ | Explicit reason for Joshua and Caleb's survival: wholehearted following. |
| Deut 1:35-36 | 'Not one of these men... shall see the good land... except Caleb... he shall see it, and to him and to his children I will give the land...' | Moses recounting God's promise to Caleb for his faith. |
| Josh 1:1-6 | After the death of Moses... the LORD said to Joshua... 'Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you...' | Joshua assuming leadership to enter the promised land. |
| Josh 14:6-15 | Caleb said to Joshua... 'As the LORD liveth... Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me... I have wholly followed the LORD my God... give me this hill country...' | Caleb's personal testimony and inheritance as a result of his faithfulness. |
| Psa 95:7-11 | 'Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness... Therefore I swore in My wrath, "They shall not enter My rest."' | Warning against unbelief, referencing Israel's wilderness rebellion. |
| Heb 3:7-19 | Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts... They failed to enter because of unbelief. | Direct New Testament parallel warning against repeating Israel's unbelief. |
| Heb 4:1-11 | A promise of entering His rest remains... For we who have believed enter that rest... Therefore let us strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same pattern of disobedience. | The spiritual fulfillment of entering God's rest through faith. |
| 1 Cor 10:1-12 | These things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did... let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. | Israel's wilderness experiences as examples and warnings for believers. |
| Jude 1:5 | Now I want to remind you... that the Lord, having saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. | A succinct reminder of God's judgment on unbelievers from the Exodus generation. |
| Lam 3:22-23 | The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. | God's enduring faithfulness, even amidst His judgments. |
| 2 Tim 2:13 | If we are faithless, He remains faithful—for He cannot deny Himself. | Reinforces God's unwavering character, even when His people fail Him. |
| Rom 9:6-8 | For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel... but the children of the promise are counted as offspring. | Spiritual distinction within the physical lineage, paralleling the faithful remnant. |
| Gal 3:6-9 | Just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”... those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. | Emphasizes salvation by faith, a principle seen in Joshua and Caleb. |
| Jas 2:21-24 | Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? ...you see that faith was active along with his works, and by works faith was perfected. | Highlights that genuine faith leads to obedience, seen in Caleb and Joshua's actions. |
| Mark 10:27 | Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” | Reinforces the power of God to accomplish what seems impossible, relevant to taking the land. |
| Isa 7:9 | If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all. | The necessity of steadfast faith for stability and success. |
| Jer 32:27 | Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me? | God's omnipotence and ability to fulfill His promises, despite human skepticism. |
Numbers 14 verses
Numbers 14 38 Meaning
Numbers 14:38 declares the distinct preservation of Joshua, son of Nun, and Caleb, son of Jephunneh, highlighting them as the sole survivors among the twelve spies initially sent to survey the land of Canaan. Their lives were spared by divine intervention, in stark contrast to the other ten spies who perished by a plague for their unfaithful report, and indeed to the entire generation over twenty years of age who were condemned to die in the wilderness due to their unbelief and rebellion against God's promise to give them the land. This verse serves as a powerful testament to God's justice, distinguishing between those who respond with faith and obedience, and those who yield to fear and rebellion, underscoring that genuine trust in Him yields His favor and the fulfillment of His promises.
Numbers 14 38 Context
Numbers 14:38 is the culminating point of God's direct judgment following Israel's great rebellion at Kadesh-Barnea. After God commanded Moses to send twelve leaders to scout the promised land (Num 13:1-2), they returned with their reports. Ten spies gave a fearful account, emphasizing the strength of the land's inhabitants and their fortified cities, sowing widespread panic and discouraging the people from entering (Num 13:28-29, 31-33). This negative report led the entire congregation to weep, murmur against Moses and Aaron, and even suggest appointing a new leader to return to Egypt, essentially rejecting God's promised deliverance and inheritance (Num 14:1-4).
In stark contrast, Joshua and Caleb presented an encouraging report, urging the people to trust God and stating that the Lord would surely deliver the land into their hands (Num 14:6-9). However, the people, steeped in their fear and unbelief, sought to stone them (Num 14:10). This defiant act of rebellion ignited God's wrath, who, after Moses' fervent intercession, decided that the entire generation of Israelites aged twenty years and older who had disbelieved Him would die in the wilderness, forbidden from entering the promised land (Num 14:28-35). Verse 38 specifically and mercifully exempts Joshua and Caleb from this decreed death sentence, as a direct reward for their unwavering faith and wholehearted following of the LORD. This chapter is therefore a critical pivot point in the narrative of Numbers, shifting the focus from entering Canaan to forty years of wilderness wandering until the unfaithful generation had perished.
Numbers 14 38 Word analysis
- But Joshua the son of Nun: Yehoshua ben Nun. Yehoshua (יְהוֹשׁוּעַ) means "The LORD is salvation" or "The LORD saves," reflecting his divinely appointed role as the leader who would lead Israel into their promised salvation—the land. His name connects profoundly to Jesus (Iēsous in Greek), signifying the ultimate Deliverer. As Moses' devoted servant and aide, he was prepared for leadership, exhibiting unwavering loyalty to God and Moses.
- and Caleb the son of Jephunneh: Kalev ben Yephunneh. Kalev (כָּלֵב) possibly means "dog" (implying devotion, faithfulness, or perhaps tenacity) or "wholehearted." He belonged to the tribe of Judah, destined to be the royal tribe. His distinct spirit of "wholly following the LORD" (Num 14:24, Deut 1:36) set him apart, emphasizing a complete and unwavering devotion to God's will and promises.
- remained alive: Hebrew: wayyichyu (וַיִּחְיוּ), from the verb chayah (חָיָה), meaning "to live," "to preserve life," or "to remain alive." This term stands in stark and significant opposition to the fate of the other ten spies who were "struck down by a plague before the LORD" (Num 14:37) and the greater judgment on the rest of the rebellious generation, signifying God's direct act of preservation and life-giving blessing as a divine reward for faithfulness amidst universal judgment.
- of those men who went to search the land: Hebrew: min ha'anashim haholchim latûr et ha'arets (מִן הָאֲנָשִׁים הַהֹלְכִים לָתוּר אֶת הָאָרֶץ). This phrase explicitly identifies the group from whom Joshua and Caleb were separated by God's judgment: the twelve spies. The act of "searching/scouting" (latûr) was the catalyst for the entire episode of rebellion and judgment. It underscores that Joshua and Caleb's differing outcome stemmed directly from their differing spirit and report regarding this mission, making their survival a specific demonstration of God's favor for their faithfulness concerning His promises for the land.
Numbers 14 38 Bonus section
- The very limited number of survivors (only two from a massive generation) profoundly accentuates the severity of God's judgment against widespread unbelief, emphasizing that divine justice is both sweeping and precise.
- Joshua and Caleb effectively serve as the symbolic and literal bridge between the condemned Exodus generation and the new generation prepared by God to fulfill His covenant promise of inhabiting the land. Their continued existence signifies continuity for God's redemptive plan despite human failure.
- Their entry into and inheritance within the Promised Land functions as a vivid earthly type of the ultimate "rest" and "inheritance" believers are promised through faith in Christ, as explicitly drawn out in the New Testament book of Hebrews (Heb 3-4).
- The narrative consistently highlights their unique "spirit" and "wholehearted" devotion to the Lord, indicating that their survival was rooted not merely in actions, but in a profound inward disposition of trust and commitment to God's revealed will.
Numbers 14 38 Commentary
Numbers 14:38 delivers a stark yet hope-filled pronouncement, serving as the dramatic culmination of the Kadesh-Barnea crisis. In the midst of universal divine judgment on the unfaithful Israelite generation—whose lives were condemned to perish in the wilderness for their unbelief and rebellion against God’s clear promise—Joshua and Caleb emerge as conspicuous exceptions. Their preservation was not coincidental but a precise and purposeful act of God, a direct testament to their unwavering faith and obedience when confronted with formidable obstacles.
While the other ten spies, influenced by fear and a lack of trust in God’s power, spread dismay and disloyalty among the people, Joshua and Caleb stood firm, bravely declaring that God was able to fulfill His word, despite the presence of "giants." This verse underscores a fundamental biblical principle: God rewards faithfulness and punishes unbelief. Their continued life signifies God's honor for those who 'wholly follow' Him (Num 32:12), highlighting that trust in God’s character and capabilities is paramount, particularly when circumstances appear overwhelming. Their survival not only ensured they would enter the promised land but also became a foundational promise of leadership for the new generation, bridging the old covenant's failings with the future inheritance. It teaches that even within a collective failure, individual righteousness finds distinct favor and divine protection, demonstrating that God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek and trust Him.
Example: In challenging times, when the majority succumbs to doubt or fear, like Joshua and Caleb, believers are called to maintain their trust in God's promises, knowing that their faithfulness will be honored, and they will ultimately inherit what God has promised.