Numbers 14:13–20

¹³But Moses said to the Lord, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for thou didst bring up this people in thy might from among them, ¹⁴and they will tell the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that thou, O Lord, art in the midst of this people; for thou, O Lord, art seen face to face, and thy cloud stands over them and thou goest before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. ¹⁵Now if thou dost kill this people as one man, then the nations who have heard thy fame will say, ¹⁶‘Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land which he swore to give to them, therefore he has slain them in the wilderness.’ ¹⁷And now, I pray thee, let the power of the Lord be great as thou hast promised, saying, ¹⁸‘The Lord is slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of fathers upon children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation.’ ¹⁹Pardon the iniquity of this people, I pray thee, according to the greatness of thy steadfast love, and according as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”

²⁰Then the Lord said, “I have pardoned, according to your word;