And the space in which we came from Kadeshbarnea, until we were come over the brook Zered, was thirty and eight years; until all the generation of the men of war were wasted out from among the host, as the LORD sware unto them.
Parallel translations
- WEB The days in which we came from Kadesh Barnea, until we had come over the brook Zered, were thirty-eight years; until all the generation of the men of war were consumed from the middle of the camp, as Yahweh swore to them.
- BSB The time we spent traveling from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the Brook of Zered was thirty-eight years, until that entire generation of fighting men had perished from the camp, as the LORD had sworn to them.
- NKJV And the time we took to come from Kadesh Barnea until we crossed over the Valley of the Zered was thirty-eight years, until all the generation of the men of war was consumed from the midst of the camp, just as the Lord had sworn to them.
- NASB Now the time that it took for us to come from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the Wadi Zered was thirty-eight years, until all the generation of the men of war perished from within the camp, just as the Lord had sworn to them.
- NLT “Thirty-eight years passed from the time we first left Kadesh-barnea until we finally crossed the Zered Brook! By then, all the men old enough to fight in battle had died in the wilderness, as the Lord had vowed would happen.
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
Thirty-eight years passed from Kadesh to crossing the Zered, until the entire war generation had died as God had sworn. The judgment on unbelief was now complete.
Overview
This verse marks the solemn fulfillment of God's oath that the unbelieving generation would perish in the wilderness, a span of thirty-eight years. God's word of judgment proved exactly true, demonstrating His holiness and faithfulness to His warnings. The passing of that generation cleared the way for the new one to inherit the promise. It is a sober reminder that God's word, whether of judgment or grace, is always reliable, as the cross of Christ ultimately confirms.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Num 26:64–65But among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered, when they numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai.
- Num 14:28–35Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you:
- Ezek 20:15Yet also I lifted up my hand unto them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands;
- Deut 1:34–35And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying,
- Ps 95:11Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.
- Deut 1:19And when we departed from Horeb, we went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which ye saw by the way of the mountain of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us; and we came to Kadeshbarnea.
- Ps 106:26Therefore he lifted up his hand against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness:
- Num 13:26And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.
- Heb 3:8–19Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
- Deut 1:2(There are eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.)
- Ps 90:9For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told.
- 1 Cor 10:5But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.
- Jude 1:5I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.
- Deut 1:46So ye abode in Kadesh many days, according unto the days that ye abode there.
- Num 32:11Surely none of the men that came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob; because they have not wholly followed me:
- Ps 90:3Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 2:14 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.