Numbers 14:19 (ASV)

Passage

Pardon, I pray thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy lovingkindness, and according as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.

Nearby Context

Numbers 14:17 And now, I pray thee, let the power of the Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying,

Numbers 14:18 Jehovah is slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression; and that will by no means clear [the guilty], visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation.

Numbers 14:19 Pardon, I pray thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy lovingkindness, and according as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.

Numbers 14:20 And Jehovah said, I have pardoned according to thy word:

Numbers 14:21 but in very deed, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of Jehovah;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "pardon", "pray", "thee", "iniquity", "people", "greatness", "lovingkindness", and "thou". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "pardon" and "pray", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 18's "Jehovah is slow to anger and abundant..." into verse 20's "And Jehovah said I have pardoned according...", so "pardon" and "pray" belong inside that flow. In Numbers context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "pardon" and "pray" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.