Numbers 14:39 (WEB)

Passage

Moses told these words to all the children of Israel, and the people mourned greatly.

Nearby Context

Numbers 14:37 even those men who brought up an evil report of the land, died by the plague before Yahweh.

Numbers 14:38 But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, remained alive of those men who went to spy out the land.

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

Numbers 14:40 They rose up early in the morning, and went up to the top of the mountain, saying, “Behold, we are here, and will go up to the place which Yahweh has promised: for we have sinned.”

Numbers 14:41 Moses said, “Why now do you disobey the commandment of Yahweh, since it shall not prosper?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "moses", "told", "words", "children", "israel", "people", "mourned", and "greatly". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "moses" and "told", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 38's "But Joshua the son of Nun and..." into verse 40's "They rose up early in the morning...", so "moses" and "told" 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 "told" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.