1 And the sons of Israel, all the congregation, come [into] the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people abide in Kadesh; and Miriam dies there and is buried there. 2 And there has been no water for the congregation, and they are assembled against Moses and against Aaron, 3 and the people strive with Moses and speak, saying, “And oh that we had expired when our brothers expired before YHWH! 4 And why have you brought in the assembly of YHWH to this wilderness to die there, we and our beasts? 5 And why have you brought us up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? [It is] not a place of seed, and fig, and vine, and pomegranate; and there is no water to drink.” 6 And Moses and Aaron go in from the presence of the assembly to the opening of the Tent of Meeting and fall on their faces, and the glory of YHWH is seen by them. 7 And YHWH speaks to Moses, saying, 8 “Take the rod and assemble the congregation—you and your brother Aaron—and you have spoken to the rock before their eyes, and it has given its water, and you have brought out water to them from the rock, and have watered the congregation and their beasts.” 9 And Moses takes the rod from before YHWH as He has commanded him, 10 and Moses and Aaron assemble the assembly to the front of the rock, and he says to them, “Now hear, O rebels, do we bring out water to you from this rock?” 11 And Moses lifts up his hand and strikes the rock with his rod twice; and much water comes out, and the congregation drinks, and their beasts [drink]. 12 And YHWH says to Moses and to Aaron, “Because you have not believed in Me to sanctify Me before the eyes of the sons of Israel, therefore you do not bring in this assembly to the land which I have given to them.” 13 These [are] the waters of Meribah, because the sons of Israel have “striven” with YHWH, and He is sanctified among them. 14 And Moses sends messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, “Thus said your brother Israel: You have known all the travail which has found us, 15 that our fathers go down to Egypt, and we dwell in Egypt [for] many days, and the Egyptians do evil to us and to our fathers; 16 then we cry to YHWH, and He hears our voice, and sends a Messenger, and is bringing us out of Egypt; and behold, we [are] in Kadesh, a city [in] the extremity of your border. 17 Please let us pass over through your land; we do not pass over through a field or through a vineyard, nor do we drink waters of a well; we go the way of the king, we do not turn aside [to] the right or left until we pass over your border.” 18 And Edom says to him, “You do not pass over through me, lest I come out to meet you with the sword.” 19 And the sons of Israel say to him, “We go in the highway, and if we drink of your waters—I and my livestock—then I have given their price; only, let me pass over on my feet, nothing [more].” 20 And he says, “You do not pass over”; and Edom comes out to meet him with many people and with a strong hand; 21 and Edom refuses to permit Israel to pass over through his border, and Israel turns aside from off him. 22 And the sons of Israel, all the congregation, journey from Kadesh and come to Mount Hor, 23 and YHWH speaks to Moses and to Aaron in Mount Hor, on the border of the land of Edom, saying, 24 “Aaron is gathered to his people, for he does not go into the land which I have given to the sons of Israel, because that you provoked My mouth at the waters of Meribah. 25 Take Aaron and his son Eleazar, and cause them to go up Mount Hor, 26 and strip Aaron of his garments, and you have clothed his son Eleazar [with] them, and Aaron is gathered, and dies there.” 27 And Moses does as YHWH has commanded, and they go up to Mount Hor before the eyes of all the congregation, 28 and Moses strips Aaron of his garments, and clothes his son Eleazar with them, and Aaron dies there on the top of the mountain; and Moses comes down—Eleazar also—from the mountain, 29 and all the congregation sees that Aaron has expired, and all the house of Israel laments Aaron [for] thirty days.
Numbers · Literal Standard Version
Numbers 20 Literal Standard Version
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Eleazar
Aaron's son who succeeded him as high priest and served alongside Joshua.
Cited in the guide: Exodus 6:23; Numbers 20:25-28
Moses
Drawn from the Nile, he led Israel out of Egypt and received God's Law.
Cited in the guide: Exodus 2–Deuteronomy 34
Cross references (26)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Numbers 13:21; Exodus 15:20; Numbers 33:36; Numbers 26:59; Numbers 27:14
- 2 Numbers 16:19; Numbers 16:42; Exodus 15:23–24; Exodus 16:12; Numbers 16:3
- 3 Exodus 17:2; Numbers 16:31–35; Numbers 14:1–2; Exodus 16:2–3; Numbers 11:33–34
- 4 Exodus 17:3; Psalm 106:21; Exodus 14:11–12; Numbers 16:41; Numbers 11:5
- 5 Numbers 16:14; Jeremiah 2:6; Ezekiel 20:36; Jeremiah 2:2; Nehemiah 9:21
- 6 Numbers 14:5; Numbers 16:22; Numbers 16:19; Numbers 16:4; Numbers 16:45
- 8 Exodus 4:17; Isaiah 43:20; Exodus 17:5–6; Revelation 22:17; John 16:24
- 9 Numbers 17:10
- 10 Psalm 106:32–33; James 3:2; Matthew 5:22; Genesis 41:16; Luke 9:54–55
- 11 1 Corinthians 10:4; Exodus 17:6; Deuteronomy 8:15; Numbers 20:8; Psalm 78:16
- 12 Deuteronomy 1:37; Numbers 27:14; Ezekiel 36:23; Numbers 20:24; Deuteronomy 3:23–27
- 13 Psalm 95:8; Exodus 17:7; Deuteronomy 33:8; Deuteronomy 32:51; Psalm 106:32–48
- 14 Judges 11:16–17; Deuteronomy 23:7; Genesis 32:3–4; Deuteronomy 2:4–25; Obadiah 10–12
- 15 Genesis 46:6; Deuteronomy 26:6; Exodus 12:40; Acts 7:15; Genesis 15:13
- 16 Exodus 14:19; Exodus 33:2; Exodus 23:20; Exodus 3:2–9; Exodus 2:23–24
- 17 Deuteronomy 2:27; Deuteronomy 2:1–4; Numbers 21:1; Numbers 21:22–24; Deuteronomy 2:29
- 19 Deuteronomy 2:28; Deuteronomy 2:6; Exodus 12:38
- 20 Amos 1:11; Judges 11:17; Numbers 20:18; Genesis 32:6; Ezekiel 35:5–11
- 21 Judges 11:18; Deuteronomy 2:29; Judges 11:24; Deuteronomy 2:27; Deuteronomy 23:7
- 22 Numbers 20:14; Numbers 21:4; Numbers 20:1; Numbers 13:26; Numbers 34:7
- 23 Numbers 33:37
- 24 Genesis 25:8; Deuteronomy 32:50; Numbers 27:13; Numbers 20:10–12; Numbers 31:2
- 25 Numbers 33:38–39
- 26 Numbers 20:24; Isaiah 22:21–22; Exodus 29:29–30; Hebrews 7:11; Hebrews 7:23–24
- 28 Deuteronomy 10:6; Exodus 29:29–30; Deuteronomy 32:49–50; 1 Chronicles 22:11–12; Deuteronomy 34:9
- 29 Deuteronomy 34:8; Genesis 1:10; 2 Chronicles 35:24–25; Acts 8:2
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences