Numbers 33:16 kjv
And they removed from the desert of Sinai, and pitched at Kibrothhattaavah.
Numbers 33:16 nkjv
They moved from the Wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth Hattaavah.
Numbers 33:16 niv
They left the Desert of Sinai and camped at Kibroth Hattaavah.
Numbers 33:16 esv
And they set out from the wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth-hattaavah.
Numbers 33:16 nlt
They left the wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth-hattaavah.
Numbers 33 16 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Num 10:11-12 | On the twentieth day of the second month, in the second year, the cloud lifted... and the Israelites set out by stages... | Departure from Sinai marked by God's leading. |
| Num 11:4-6 | The rabble among them had a strong craving; and the Israelites also wept again... Our strength is dried up, and there is nothing... but this manna. | The craving and complaining at Kibroth-hattaavah. |
| Num 11:31-34 | A wind from the Lord sprang up... and brought quails from the sea... The place was called Kibroth-hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had craved. | Divine provision and judgment at Kibroth-hattaavah. |
| Deut 8:2 | And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness... | God's leading and testing throughout the journey. |
| Deut 29:5-6 | I have led you forty years in the wilderness. Your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn off your feet. You have not eaten bread, and you have not drunk wine or strong drink, that you may know that I am the Lord your God. | God's faithfulness in sustaining them. |
| Psa 77:19-20 | Your way was through the sea, your path through the great waters; yet your footprints were not seen. You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron. | God's guidance and leading His people. |
| Psa 78:17-20 | Yet they sinned still more against him... and they tested God in their heart by demanding food for their craving. They spoke against God... Can God prepare a table in the wilderness? | People's rebellion and craving in the wilderness. |
| Psa 105:39-41 | He spread a cloud for a covering and fire to give light by night. They asked, and he brought quail, and gave them bread from heaven... | God's provision and guidance for Israel. |
| 1 Cor 10:6-7 | Now these things took place as examples for us... We must not indulge in sexual immorality... We must not grumble... | Wilderness journey as examples for believers, specifically relating to idolatry and grumbling. |
| 1 Cor 10:11-12 | Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction... so let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. | Warning against succumbing to sin, drawing from Israel's history. |
| Heb 3:17-19 | And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? ...and we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief. | Disobedience and unbelief causing failures in the wilderness. |
| Heb 4:1-2 | Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands... For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith... | Importance of faith in receiving God's promises, learning from Israel's failures. |
| Jude 1:5 | Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. | God's judgment on disobedient Israel. |
| Exod 19:1 | On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. | Arrival at Sinai, prior to the events of Num 33:16. |
| Num 1:1 | The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting... | Activities and organization at Sinai. |
| Exod 40:34-38 | For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys. | God's guiding presence in their movements. |
| Ps 95:8-10 | Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness, where your fathers put me to the test... | The recurring theme of Israel testing God. |
| Num 14:28-30 | ...your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness... You shall not come into the land where I swore to make you dwell, except Caleb... and Joshua... | The consequence of Israel's disbelief leading to extended wandering. |
| Neh 9:18 | even when they had made for themselves a golden calf and said, 'This is your god who brought you up out of Egypt,' and had committed great blasphemies. | The severe apostasy at Sinai. |
| Psa 68:7 | O God, when you went out before your people, when you marched through the wilderness... | God's presence accompanying Israel's journey. |
| Isa 48:21 | They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts... | God's miraculous provision during the journey. |
Numbers 33 verses
Numbers 33 16 Meaning
Numbers 33:16 records a specific stage in the Israelites' forty-year journey through the wilderness. It states their departure from the wilderness of Sinai, a foundational location where they received the Law and established the tabernacle, and their subsequent encampment at Kibroth-hattaavah, a place significantly marked by divine judgment due to the people's intense craving for meat and subsequent complaining. This verse, therefore, acts as a concise logistical entry within the comprehensive itinerary of their wilderness wanderings, bridging two pivotal experiences in their national formation.
Numbers 33 16 Context
Numbers chapter 33 serves as a precise, detailed itinerary of all the places the Israelites encamped during their forty years of wandering from their departure out of Egypt to their arrival on the plains of Moab. It systematically lists forty-two stopping points, ordered chronologically. This chapter acts as a historical and theological anchor, confirming the factual accuracy of their journey and God's consistent leadership throughout it. Verse 16 specifically marks the movement from Sinai, where Israel had dwelt for nearly a year (Exod 19:1, Num 10:11), receiving the Law and tabernacle instructions, to Kibroth-hattaavah, the site of a severe moral failure involving lust for food and God's resultant punitive plague (Num 11). Historically, this was a post-Exodus generation's journey under divine command, transitioning from a place of revelation and organization to a place of human failure and divine judgment, thereby highlighting both God's faithful presence and His holy expectations.
Numbers 33 16 Word analysis
- They set out (נָסְעוּ, nas'u): The verb implies movement and breaking camp. This signifies obedience to the divine cloud's guidance (Num 9:17). The collective "they" emphasizes the entire Israelite community's participation in this stage of the journey. This journey was not haphazard but directed by God.
- from the wilderness of Sinai (מִדְבַּר סִינַי, midbar Sinai): "Midbar" refers to an uncultivated, sparsely populated region, often used for pasturage, not necessarily a desolate desert. "Sinai" (סִינַי, Sinai) is a highly significant theological location. It's the mountain of God, the place of the covenant, the giving of the Law, the construction of the Tabernacle, and the organization of the twelve tribes. Their extended stay here (about a year, from Exod 19:1 to Num 10:11) signifies a foundational period of receiving divine instruction and formation as God's chosen nation.
- and camped (וַיַּחֲנוּ, vayyachanu): This verb means "to pitch tents" or "to settle down temporarily." It denotes the establishment of a new, though transient, encampment. Every camping place was part of God's leading.
- at Kibroth-hattaavah (קִבְרֹת הַתַּאֲוָה, Kibrot ha-Ta'avah): This name is deeply symbolic and derived from a historical event. It literally means "Graves of Craving" or "Graves of Lust." It memorializes the incident recorded in Numbers 11 where the people "craved a craving" for meat beyond what God had provided (manna) and were then struck by a severe plague after God sent them an abundance of quails. This name serves as a constant reminder of the dangers of discontent, gluttony, and rebellion against God's provision. It stands in stark contrast to the divine order and law received at Sinai, highlighting the persistent struggle with human sin despite God's presence.
- They set out from the wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth-hattaavah: This phrase emphasizes the progression and transition in their journey. It juxtaposes two contrasting phases or spiritual experiences. Leaving Sinai, the place of discipline and covenant, and arriving at Kibroth-hattaavah, the place of human failure and divine judgment, underscores a key aspect of their pilgrimage – a constant tension between God's perfect plan and human disobedience. This immediate move after the structured and holy environment of Sinai reveals the quick descent into complaint and craving.
Numbers 33 16 Bonus section
The precise naming of the places in Numbers 33 like Kibroth-hattaavah acts as a divine mnemonic device, ensuring that the critical events of Israel's journey are perpetually recalled. This chapter's itinerary serves not just as a historical record, but as a theological framework to demonstrate God's precise and deliberate leading of His people. The inclusion of the exact location where their craving was punished underscores God's justice and the gravity of their sin, a narrative counter-point to the blessing and revelation at Sinai. This meticulous geographical and chronological tracking contrasts the Israelites' physical movements with their spiritual backsliding, highlighting that even under the direct guidance of God (the pillar of cloud and fire), human hearts could stray from faithfulness. The entire chapter, with verses like 33:16, provides tangible proof that the forty years were not random wanderings but a controlled and purpose-driven journey under the direct, disciplined, and sometimes disciplinary, hand of God.
Numbers 33 16 Commentary
Numbers 33:16, while a mere entry in a historical itinerary, is laden with theological weight. It marks the movement from Sinai, a place of profound divine revelation, law, and national formation, to Kibroth-hattaavah, a place emblematic of human craving, discontent, and subsequent divine judgment. This transition reveals the stark reality that even after receiving God's laws and experiencing His presence at Sinai, the human heart remained prone to sin and rebellion. The simplicity of the travel record belies the immense spiritual lessons: God's people, though divinely led, were still susceptible to failing God's test, yearning for worldly comforts over His holy provision (manna). The "graves of craving" served as a solemn reminder that sin, left unaddressed, leads to spiritual and physical death, even amidst miraculous divine care. The meticulous recording of these journeys underscores God's faithful guidance and omniscient awareness of their every step, and simultaneously serves as a timeless warning against the perils of ingratitude and fleshly desire for subsequent generations of believers.