Numbers 21:18 (DBY)

Passage

Well which princes digged, which the nobles of the people hollowed out at [the word of] the lawgiver, with their staves. And from the wilderness [they went] to Mattanah;

Nearby Context

Numbers 21:16 And from thence to Beer: that is the well of which Jehovah spoke to Moses, Assemble the people, and I will give them water.

Numbers 21:17 Then Israel sang this song, Rise up, well! sing unto it:

Numbers 21:18 Well which princes digged, which the nobles of the people hollowed out at [the word of] the lawgiver, with their staves. And from the wilderness [they went] to Mattanah;

Numbers 21:19 and from Mattanah to Nahaliel; and from Nahaliel to Bamoth;

Numbers 21:20 and from Bamoth to the valley that is in the fields of Moab, to the top of Pisgah, which looks over the surface of the waste.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "well", "princes", "digged", "nobles", "people", "hollowed", "word", and "lawgiver". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "well" and "princes", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "Then Israel sang this song Rise up..." into verse 19's "and from Mattanah to Nahaliel and from...", so "well" and "princes" 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 "well" and "princes" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.