New King James Version
Numbers 17:10
10And the Lord said to Moses, “Bring Aaron’s rod back before the Testimony, to be kept as a sign against the rebels, that you may put their complaints away from Me, lest they die.”
Numbers 17:10 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the Lord said unto Moses, Bring Aaron’s rod again before the testimony, to be kept for a token against the rebels; and thou shalt quite take away their murmurings from me, that they die not.
- New International Version (NIV)The Lord said to Moses, “Put back Aaron’s staff in front of the ark of the covenant law, to be kept as a sign to the rebellious. This will put an end to their grumbling against me, so that they will not die.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And the Lord said to Moses, "Put back the staff of Aaron before the testimony, to be kept as a sign for the rebels, that you may make an end of their grumblings against me, lest they die."
- New Living Translation (NLT)And the Lord said to Moses: “Place Aaron’s staff permanently before the Ark of the Covenant to serve as a warning to rebels. This should put an end to their complaints against me and prevent any further deaths.”
Context of Numbers 17:10
8Now it came to pass on the next day that Moses went into the tabernacle of witness, and behold, the rod of Aaron, of the house of Levi, had sprouted and put forth buds, had produced blossoms and yielded ripe almonds. 9Then Moses brought out all the rods from before the Lord to all the children of Israel; and they looked, and each man took his rod. And the Lord said to Moses, “Bring Aaron’s rod back before the Testimony, to be kept as a sign against the rebels, that you may put their complaints away from Me, lest they die.” 11Thus did Moses; just as the Lord had commanded him, so he did. 12So the children of Israel spoke to Moses, saying, “Surely we die, we perish, we all perish!
Read all of Numbers 17Numbers 17:10 word by word
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהוָ֜ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֗ה הָשֵׁ֞ב אֶת־מַטֵּ֤ה אַהֲרֹן֙ לִפְנֵ֣י הָעֵד֔וּת לְמִשְׁמֶ֥רֶת לְא֖וֹת לִבְנֵי־מֶ֑רִי וּתְכַ֧ל תְּלוּנֹּתָ֛ם מֵעָלַ֖י וְלֹ֥א יָמֻֽתוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- unto Mosesמֹשֶׁהmôsheh · MosesH4872
- Bringשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
- Aaron’sאַהֲרֹן'ahărôn · AaronH175
- rodמַטֶּהmaţţeh maţţâh · tribe: rodH4294
- beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
- the testimonyעֵדוּת‛êdûth · testimonyH5715
- to be keptמִשְׁמֶ֫רֶתmishmereth · chargeH4931
- for a tokenאוֹת'ôth · sign: indicatorH226
- against the rebelsבֵּןbên · son: young animalH1121
- against the rebelsמְרִיmerîy · rebellionH4805
- and thou shalt quite take awayכָּלָהkâlâh · to end: finishH3615
- their murmuringsתְּלֻנָּהtelûnâh telûnnâh · murmuringH8519
- from me, that they dieמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
Cross-references for Numbers 17:10
- Hebrews 9:4which had the golden censer and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which were the golden pot that had the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant;
- Numbers 16:38The censers of these men who sinned against their own souls, let them be made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar. Because they presented them before the Lord, therefore they are holy; and they shall be a sign to the children of Israel.”
- Exodus 16:32Then Moses said, “This is the thing which the Lord has commanded: ‘Fill an omer with it, to be kept for your generations, that they may see the bread with which I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.’ ”
- Deuteronomy 31:19“Now therefore, write down this song for yourselves, and teach it to the children of Israel; put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for Me against the children of Israel.
- 1 Samuel 2:12Now the sons of Eli were corrupt; they did not know the Lord.
- 1 Samuel 30:22Then all the wicked and worthless men of those who went with David answered and said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered, except for every man’s wife and children, that they may lead them away and depart.”
- Psalms 57:4My soul is among lions; I lie among the sons of men Who are set on fire, Whose teeth are spears and arrows, And their tongue a sharp sword.
- Isaiah 1:2Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth! For the Lord has spoken: “I have nourished and brought up children, And they have rebelled against Me;
- Hosea 10:9“O Israel, you have sinned from the days of Gibeah; There they stood. The battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity Did not overtake them.
- Ephesians 2:2in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,
- Ephesians 5:6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.
- Numbers 17:5And it shall be that the rod of the man whom I choose will blossom; thus I will rid Myself of the complaints of the children of Israel, which they make against you.”
Commentaries on Numbers 17:10
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10The testimony - i. e. the two tables of the Law; compare Exodus 25:16 note. No doubt the rod lay in front of the tables within the ark. In the days of Solomon 1 Kings 8:9 there was nothing in the ark save the Two tables. Aaron‘s rod was probably lost when the ark was taken by the Philistines.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-13Verses 8-13 While all the other rods remained as they were. Aaron's rod became a living branch. In some places there were buds, in others blossoms, in others fruit, at the same time; all this was miraculous. Thus Aaron was manifested to be under the special blessing of Heaven. Fruitfulness is the best evidence of a Divine call; and the plants of God's setting, and the boughs cut off them, will flourish. This rod was preserved, to take away the murmurings…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9-11After each tribal leader claimed his staff, it was clear that Aaron’s deserved special treatment. They placed it permanently in front of the ark of the covenant to warn potential rebels. It would also warn Israelites who complained about the Lord and his appointed leaders. The ark of the covenant eventually contained this staff, a jar of manna, and the stone tablets of the law (compare Hebrews 9:4). This was to remind the Israelites of their time…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1010. Bring Aaron's rod again before the testimony, to be kept for a token against the rebels--For if, after all admonitions and judgments, seconded by miracles, the people should still rebel, they would certainly pay the penalty by death.Read the comment
Topics related to Numbers 17:10
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Numbers 17
- 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
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries