Take wise men of understanding and well known according to your tribes, and I will make them heads over you.”
Parallel translations
- KJV Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you.
- BSB Choose for yourselves wise, understanding, and respected men from each of your tribes, and I will appoint them as your leaders.”
- NKJV Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them heads over you.’
- NASB Obtain for yourselves men who are wise, discerning, and informed from your tribes, and I will appoint them as your heads.’
- NLT Choose some well-respected men from each tribe who are known for their wisdom and understanding, and I will appoint them as your leaders.’
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Moses directed the people to choose wise, understanding, and respected men to be appointed as leaders. Godly leadership requires proven character and wisdom.
Overview
The qualifications, wise, understanding, and reputable, set a standard for those who lead God's people, emphasizing character and discernment over mere ability or popularity. The people share in selecting them, and Moses appoints them, blending congregational involvement with ordered authority. These criteria anticipate the New Testament's requirements for elders and point to the perfect wisdom embodied in Christ, in whom all the treasures of wisdom are hidden.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Exod 18:21Moreover you shall provide out of all the people able men which fear God: men of truth, hating unjust gain; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.
- Num 11:16–17Yahweh said to Moses, “Gather to me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them to the Tent of Meeting, that they may stand there with you.
- Acts 1:21–23“Of the men therefore who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,
- Acts 6:2–6The twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, “It is not appropriate for us to forsake the word of God and serve tables.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Moses promised a Prophet like himself to whom Israel must listen (18:15); Jesus is that Prophet, the one who keeps the covenant we broke and becomes the curse for us by hanging on a tree (Gal 3:13).
How Deuteronomy 1:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.