the well, which the princes dug, which the nobles of the people dug, with the scepter, and with their poles.” From the wilderness they traveled to Mattanah;
Parallel translations
- KJV The princes digged the well, the nobles of the people digged it, by the direction of the lawgiver, with their staves. And from the wilderness they went to Mattanah:
- BSB The princes dug the well; the nobles of the people hollowed it out with their scepters and with their staffs.” From the wilderness the Israelites went on to Mattanah,
- NKJV The well the leaders sank, Dug by the nation’s nobles, By the lawgiver, with their staves.” And from the wilderness they went to Mattanah,
- NASB “The well, which the leaders dug, Which the nobles of the people hollowed out, With the scepter and with their staffs.” And from the wilderness they continued to Mattanah,
- NLT Sing of this well, which princes dug, which great leaders hollowed out with their scepters and staffs.” Then the Israelites left the wilderness and proceeded on through Mattanah,
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
The song honored the well dug by Israel's princes and nobles with their staffs, then the journey continued to Mattanah. Leaders and people shared in receiving God's gift.
Overview
The song poetically credits the leaders' digging while the water itself is God's promised provision, blending human action and divine gift. The mention of scepters and staffs honors the dignity of those who led. The renewed itinerary shows Israel pressing on with gratitude toward the land.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Isa 33:22For Yahweh is our judge. Yahweh is our lawgiver. Yahweh is our king. He will save us.
- 2 Chr 17:7–9Also in the third year of his reign he sent his princes, even Ben Hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah;
- Deut 33:4Moses commanded us a law, an inheritance for the assembly of Jacob.
- 1 Tim 6:17–18Charge those who are rich in this present world that they not be haughty, nor have their hope set on the uncertainty of riches, but on the living God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy;
- Deut 5:31But as for you, stand here by me, and I will tell you all the commandment, and the statutes, and the ordinances, which you shall teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them to possess it.”
- Jas 4:12Only one is the lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge another?
- John 1:17For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.
- Neh 3:5Next to them, the Tekoites made repairs; but their nobles didn’t put their necks to the Lord’s work.
- Neh 3:1Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brothers the priests, and they built the sheep gate. They sanctified it, and set up its doors. They sanctified it even to the tower of Hammeah, to the tower of Hananel.
- Num 33:45–47They traveled from Iyim, and encamped in Dibon Gad.
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
In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.
How Numbers 21:18 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.