Numbers 20:3

Numbers 20:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the people chode with Moses, and spake, saying, Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the Lord!
• New International Version (NIV)They quarreled with Moses and said, “If only we had died when our brothers fell dead before the Lord!
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the people quarreled with Moses and said, "Would that we had perished when our brothers perished before the Lord!
• New King James Version (NKJV)And the people contended with Moses and spoke, saying: “If only we had died when our brethren died before the Lord!

Context of Numbers 20:3

1In the first month the whole community of Israel came into the Desert of Zin, and they stayed at Kadesh. Miriam died and was buried there. 2Since the community was without water, they came together to confront Moses and Aaron. The people complained to Moses and said, “If only we had died when the other Israelites died in the Lord’s presence! 4Did you bring the Lord’s assembly into this desert just to have us and our animals die here? 5Why did you make us leave Egypt and bring us into this terrible place? This is no place to plant crops. Even figs, grapes, and pomegranates won’t grow here. And there’s no water to drink!”

Numbers 20:3 word by word

וַיָּ֥רֶב הָעָ֖ם עִם־מֹשֶׁ֑ה וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ לֵאמֹ֔ר וְל֥וּ גָוַ֛עְנוּ בִּגְוַ֥ע אַחֵ֖ינוּ לִפְנֵ֥י יְהוָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• chodeרִיבrîyb rûb · to contendH7378
• with Mosesמֹשֶׁהmôsheh · MosesH4872
• and spakeאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Would God thatלוּlû' lû' lû · ifH3863
• we had diedגָּוַעgâva‛ · to dieH1478
• when our brethrenאָח'âch · brother: compatriotH251
• beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068

Cross-references for Numbers 20:3

• Numbers 14:1Then all the people in the Israelite community raised their voices and cried out loud all that night.
• Exodus 16:2In the desert the whole community complained about Moses and Aaron.
• Exodus 17:2So they complained to Moses by saying, “Give us water to drink!” Moses said to them, “Why are you complaining to me? Why are you testing the Lord?”
• Job 3:10because it did not shut the doors of the womb ⌞from which I came⌟ or hide my eyes from trouble.
• Numbers 11:1The people began complaining out loud to the Lord about their troubles. When the Lord heard them, he became angry, and fire from the Lord began to burn among them. It destroyed some people on the outskirts of the camp.
• Numbers 14:36So the men Moses sent to explore the land died in front of the Lord from a plague.
• Numbers 16:31As soon as he had finished saying all this, the ground under them split,
• Lamentations 4:9Those who were killed with swords are better off than those who are dying from starvation. Those who were stabbed bled to death. The others are dying because there is nothing in the fields to eat.

Commentaries on Numbers 20:3

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2-6Verses 2-6 The language of the murmurers is noteworthy. It has the air of a traditional remonstrance handed down from the last generation. Compare marginal references.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3our brothers: This shows that the Israelites saw themselves as connected to those who had died: Nadab and Abihu (Leviticus 10:1–5), those who died during the first plague after craving meat (Numbers 11:33), the skeptics who died in the wilderness (14:29), the ten unfaithful spies (14:36–37), Korah, Abiram, and Dathan (16:32), the 250 leaders (16:35), and the 14,700 people who died in the second plague (16:49).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2-132-13. there was no water for the congregation--There was at Kadesh a fountain, En-Mishpat (Ge 14:7), and at the first encampment of the Israelites there was no want of water. It was then either partially dried up by the heat of the season, or had been exhausted by the demands of so vast a multitude.Read the comment

Topics related to Numbers 20:3

• Israel
• Moses
• Murmuring
• Trouble

In the dictionaries

• God
• Moses
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Exodus
• Meribah
• Refuse
• Aaron
• Agrapha
• Chronicles, Books of
• Chronology of the Old Testament

Commentaries on Numbers 20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings