And when the LORD sent you out from Kadesh-barnea, He said, “Go up and possess the land that I have given you.” But you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God. You neither believed Him nor obeyed Him.
Parallel translations
- WEB When Yahweh sent you from Kadesh Barnea, saying, “Go up and possess the land which I have given you,” you rebelled against the commandment of Yahweh your God, and you didn’t believe him, nor listen to his voice.
- KJV Likewise when the LORD sent you from Kadeshbarnea, saying, Go up and possess the land which I have given you; then ye rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God, and ye believed him not, nor hearkened to his voice.
- NKJV Likewise, when the Lord sent you from Kadesh Barnea, saying, ‘Go up and possess the land which I have given you,’ then you rebelled against the commandment of the Lord your God, and you did not believe Him nor obey His voice.
- NASB And when the Lord sent you from Kadesh-barnea, saying, ‘Go up and take possession of the land which I have given you,’ you rebelled against the command of the Lord your God; you neither trusted Him nor listened to His voice.
- NLT And at Kadesh-barnea the Lord sent you out with this command: ‘Go up and take over the land I have given you.’ But you rebelled against the command of the Lord your God and refused to put your trust in him or obey him.
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
At Kadesh Barnea Israel refused God's command to enter the land, not believing or obeying His voice. Unbelief lay at the root of their rebellion.
Overview
When God commanded Israel to take possession of Canaan, they rebelled because they did not trust His promise, as the spies' report shows in Numbers. Moses identifies unbelief as the heart of their disobedience. Hebrews later cites this failure as a warning, calling believers to enter God's rest through the faith Israel lacked, a faith fulfilled in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Ps 106:24–25They despised the pleasant land; they did not believe His promise.
- Heb 4:2For we also received the good news just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, since they did not share the faith of those who comprehended it.
- Ps 78:22because they did not believe God or rely on His salvation.
- Isa 63:10But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit. So He turned and became their enemy, and He Himself fought against them.
- Heb 3:18–19And to whom did He swear that they would never enter His rest? Was it not to those who disobeyed?
- Num 14:10–41But the whole congregation threatened to stone Joshua and Caleb. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting.
- Num 13:1And the LORD said to Moses,
- Deut 1:19–33And just as the LORD our God had commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went toward the hill country of the Amorites, through all the vast and terrifying wilderness you have seen. When we reached Kadesh-barnea,
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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 9:23 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.