Numbers 12

Dissension of Aaron and Miriam

12Then ^aMiriam and Aaron ¹spoke ^bagainst Moses because of the ²Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for ^che had married an Ethiopian woman. ²So they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through ^dMoses? ^eHas He not spoken through us also?” And the Lord ^fheard it. ³(Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.)

^4gSuddenly the Lord said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tabernacle of meeting!” So the three came out. ^5hThen the Lord came down in the pillar of cloud and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam. And they both went forward. ⁶Then He said,

“Hear now My words:

If there is a prophet among you,

I, the Lord, make Myself known to him ⁱin a vision;

I speak to him ^jin a dream.

⁷Not so with ^kMy servant Moses;

^lHe is faithful in all ^mMy house.

⁸I speak with him ⁿface to face,

Even ^oplainly, ³and not in ⁴dark sayings;

And he sees ^pthe form of the Lord.

Why then ^qwere you not afraid

To speak against My servant Moses?”

⁹So the anger of the Lord was aroused against them, and He departed. ¹⁰And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, ^rsuddenly Miriam became ^sleprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper. ¹¹So Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord! Please ^tdo not lay ⁵this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned. ¹²Please ^udo not let her be as one dead, whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb!”

¹³So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “Please ^vheal her, O God, I pray!”

¹⁴Then the Lord said to Moses, “If her father had but ^wspit in her face, would she not be shamed seven days? Let her be ^xshut ⁶out of the camp seven days, and afterward she may be received again.” ^15ySo Miriam was shut out of the camp seven days, and the people did not journey till Miriam was brought in again. ¹⁶And afterward the people moved from ^zHazeroth and camped in the Wilderness of Paran.