Numbers 14:41 (ASV)

Passage

And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of Jehovah, seeing it shall not prosper?

Nearby Context

Numbers 14:39 And Moses told these words unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly.

Numbers 14:40 And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up to the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we are here, and will go up unto the place which Jehovah hath promised: for we have sinned.

Numbers 14:41 And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of Jehovah, seeing it shall not prosper?

Numbers 14:42 Go not up, for Jehovah is not among you; that ye be not smitten down before your enemies.

Numbers 14:43 For there the Amalekite and the Canaanite are before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned back from following Jehovah, therefore Jehovah will not be with you.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "moses", "said", "wherefore", "transgress", "commandment", "jehovah", "seeing", and "shall". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "moses" and "said", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 40's "And they rose up early in the..." into verse 42's "Go not up for Jehovah is not...", so "moses" and "said" 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 "moses" and "said" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.