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For they rebelled against His Spirit, and Moses spoke rashly with his lips.
Psalms 106:33 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB because they were rebellious against his spirit, he spoke rashly with his lips.
  • KJV Because they provoked his spirit, so that he spake unadvisedly with his lips.
  • NKJV Because they rebelled against His Spirit, So that he spoke rashly with his lips.
  • NASB Because they were rebellious against His Spirit, He spoke rashly with his lips.
  • NLT They made Moses angry, and he spoke foolishly.

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

Because they rebelled against God's Spirit, Moses spoke rashly. It matters because even Moses faltered under the people's provocation.

Overview

Provoked by Israel's contention, Moses spoke and acted rashly at Meribah, for which he was barred from the land (Numbers 20:10-12). The verse attributes the occasion to the people's rebellion while still acknowledging Moses's fault. It reminds us that even the best leaders are sinners needing grace, and points to the need for a flawless Mediator.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 12

  • Num 20:10–11Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly in front of the rock, and Moses said to them, “Listen now, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?”
  • Ps 107:11because they rebelled against the words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High.
  • Ps 78:40How often they disobeyed Him in the wilderness and grieved Him in the desert!
  • Jas 3:2We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to control his whole body.
  • Ps 39:1For the choirmaster. For Jeduthun. A Psalm of David. I said, “I will watch my ways so that I will not sin with my tongue; I will guard my mouth with a muzzle as long as the wicked are present.”
  • Job 2:10“You speak as a foolish woman speaks,” he told her. “Should we accept from God only good and not adversity?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.
  • Ps 141:3Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips.
  • Job 40:4–5“Behold, I am insignificant. How can I reply to You? I place my hand over my mouth.
  • Gen 30:1When Rachel saw that she was not bearing any children for Jacob, she envied her sister. “Give me children, or I will die!” she said to Jacob.
  • Job 38:2“Who is this who obscures My counsel by words without knowledge?
  • Job 42:7–8After the LORD had spoken these words to Job, He said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you and your two friends. For you have not spoken about Me accurately, as My servant Job has.
  • Gen 35:16–18Later, they set out from Bethel, and while they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth, and her labor was difficult.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Psalms videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Psalms 106:33YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on PsalmsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.

How Psalms 106:33 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.