Numbers 14:36-39·~1 min
The Plague on the Ten Spies
The men whose bad report made the congregation grumble are struck down by plague before the LORD, and only Joshua and Caleb remain from the spying party. When Moses relays the judgment, the people mourn bitterly.
S36o the men Moses had sent to spy out the land, who had returned and made the whole congregation grumble against him by bringing out a bad report about the land— 37those men who had brought out the bad report about the land— were struck down by a plague before the LORD. 38Of those men who had gone to spy out the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh remained alive. 39And when Moses relayed these words to all the Israelites, the people mourned bitterly.
Section summaryThe sentence begins to take visible form in the men whose report stirred the rebellion. The ten spies die before the LORD, while Joshua and Caleb remain alive, and the people respond with bitter mourning.
Role in the chapterThis brief section confirms the LORD’s word at once. It singles out the agents of the false report and lets the congregation feel the weight of what has been spoken.