Numbers 14:3 (KJV)

Passage

And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?

Nearby Context

Numbers 14:1 And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.

Numbers 14:2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!

Numbers 14:3 And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?

Numbers 14:4 And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.

Numbers 14:5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "wherefore", "hath", "lord", "brought", "land", "fall", "sword", and "wives". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "wherefore" and "hath", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "And all the children of Israel murmured..." into verse 4's "And they said one to another Let...", so "wherefore" and "hath" 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 "wherefore" and "hath" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.