Numbers 14:29–45

²⁹In this wilderness your bodies will fall^o—every one of you twenty years old or more^p who was counted in the census^q and who has grumbled against me. ³⁰Not one of you will enter the land^r I swore with uplifted hand^s to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh^t and Joshua son of Nun.^{u 31}As for your children that you said would be taken as plunder, I will bring them in to enjoy the land you have rejected.^{v 32}But as for you, your bodies will fall^w in this wilderness. ³³Your children will be shepherds here for forty years,^x suffering for your unfaithfulness, until the last of your bodies lies in the wilderness. ³⁴For forty years^y—one year for each of the forty days you explored the land^z—you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have me against you.’ ³⁵I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will surely do these things^a to this whole wicked community, which has banded together against me. They will meet their end in this wilderness; here they will die.^b”

³⁶So the men Moses had sent^c to explore the land, who returned and made the whole community grumble^d against him by spreading a bad report^e about it—³⁷these men who were responsible for spreading the bad report^f about the land were struck down and died of a plague^g before the Lord. ³⁸Of the men who went to explore the land,^h only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh survived.ⁱ

³⁹When Moses reported this^j to all the Israelites, they mourned^k bitterly. ⁴⁰Early the next morning they set out for the highest point in the hill country,^l saying, “Now we are ready to go up to the land the Lord promised. Surely we have sinned!^m”

⁴¹But Moses said, “Why are you disobeying the Lord’s command? This will not succeed!^{n 42}Do not go up, because the Lord is not with you. You will be defeated by your enemies,^{o 43}for the Amalekites^p and the Canaanites^q will face you there. Because you have turned away from the Lord, he will not be with you^r and you will fall by the sword.”

⁴⁴Nevertheless, in their presumption they went up^s toward the highest point in the hill country, though neither Moses nor the ark of the Lord’s covenant moved from the camp.^{t 45}Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites^u who lived in that hill country^v came down and attacked them and beat them down all the way to Hormah.^w