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Friday, July 18th, 2025
the Week of Proper 10 / Ordinary 15
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Read the Bible

Good News Translation

Numbers 20:2

There was no water where they camped, so the people gathered around Moses and Aaron

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Aaron;   Israel;   Moses;   Murmuring;   Trouble;   Thompson Chain Reference - Dry Places;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Desert, Journey of Israel through the;   Rocks;   Water;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Kadesh or Kadesh-Barnea;   Zin;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Aaron;   Kadesh-barnea;   Zin;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Mourning;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Meribah;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Aaron;   Beer;   Kadesh Barnea;   Levi;   Meribah;   Numbers, the Book of;   Wilderness of the Wanderings;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Kadesh-Meribah;   Prophecy, Prophets;   Provocation;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Aaron;   Jephthah;   Kadesh;   Massah and Meribah;   Moses;   Numbers, Book of;   Zin;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Rock ;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Kadesh, Kadeshbarnea ;   Wanderings of the Israelites;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Balaam;   Kadesh-barnea;   Levi;   Rebels;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Journeyings of israel from egypt to canaan;   Kadesh;   Meribali;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Moses;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - On to Canaan;   Moses, the Man of God;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Criticism (the Graf-Wellhausen Hypothesis);   Kadesh-Barnea;   Massah and Meribah;   Moses;   Pentateuch;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Balak;   Exodus, Book of;   Kadesh;   Midrashim, Smaller;   Water;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
There was no water for the congregation: and they assembled themselves together against Moshe and against Aharon.
King James Version
And there was no water for the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
Lexham English Bible
There was no water for the community, and they were gathered before Moses and Aaron.
English Standard Version
Now there was no water for the congregation. And they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
New Century Version
There was no water for the people, so they came together against Moses and Aaron.
New English Translation
And there was no water for the community, and so they gathered themselves together against Moses and Aaron.
Amplified Bible
Now there was no water for the congregation, and they gathered together against Moses and Aaron.
New American Standard Bible
There was no water for the congregation, and they assembled against Moses and Aaron.
Geneva Bible (1587)
But there was no water for the Congregation, and they assembled them selues against Moses and against Aaron.
Legacy Standard Bible
Now there was no water for the congregation, and they assembled themselves against Moses and Aaron.
Contemporary English Version
The Israelites had no water, so they went to Moses and Aaron
Complete Jewish Bible
Because the community had no water, they assembled themselves against Moshe and Aharon.
Darby Translation
And there was no water for the assembly, and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
Easy-to-Read Version
There was not enough water for the people at that place. So the people met together to complain against Moses and Aaron.
George Lamsa Translation
And there was no water for the people to drink; and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
Christian Standard Bible®
There was no water for the community, so they assembled against Moses and Aaron.
Literal Translation
And there was no water for the congregation, and they were gathered against Moses, and against Aaron.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And the congregacion had no water, & they gathered them selues together agaynst Moses & Aaron,
American Standard Version
And there was no water for the congregation: and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
Bible in Basic English
And there was no water for the people: and they came together against Moses and against Aaron.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
But there was no water for the multitude: and they gathered them selues together agaynst Moyses and Aaron.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And there was no water for the congregation; and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
King James Version (1611)
And there was no water for the Congregation: and they gathered themselues together against Moses and against Aaron.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And there was no water for the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses and Aaron.
English Revised Version
And there was no water for the congregation: and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
Berean Standard Bible
Now there was no water for the congregation, so they gathered against Moses and Aaron.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And whanne the puple hadde nede to watir, thei yeden togidere ayens Moises and Aaron; and thei weren turned in to dissensioun,
Young's Literal Translation
And there hath been no water for the company, and they are assembled against Moses, and against Aaron,
Update Bible Version
And there was no water for the congregation: and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
Webster's Bible Translation
And there was no water for the congregation: and they assembled themselves against Moses and against Aaron.
World English Bible
There was no water for the congregation: and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
New King James Version
Now there was no water for the congregation; so they gathered together against Moses and Aaron.
New Living Translation
There was no water for the people to drink at that place, so they rebelled against Moses and Aaron.
New Life Bible
Now there was no water for the people, and they gathered together against Moses and Aaron.
New Revised Standard
Now there was no water for the congregation; so they gathered together against Moses and against Aaron.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And there was no water for the assembly, - so they gathered together against Moses and against Aaron.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And the people wanting water, came together against Moses and Aaron:
Revised Standard Version
Now there was no water for the congregation; and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
THE MESSAGE
There was no water there for the community, so they ganged up on Moses and Aaron. They attacked Moses: "We wish we'd died when the rest of our brothers died before God . Why did you haul this congregation of God out here into this wilderness to die, people and cattle alike? And why did you take us out of Egypt in the first place, dragging us into this miserable country? No grain, no figs, no grapevines, no pomegranates—and now not even any water!"
New American Standard Bible (1995)
There was no water for the congregation, and they assembled themselves against Moses and Aaron.

Contextual Overview

1 In the first month the whole community of Israel came to the wilderness of Zin and camped at Kadesh. There Miriam died and was buried. 2 There was no water where they camped, so the people gathered around Moses and Aaron 3 and complained: "It would have been better if we had died in front of the Lord 's Tent along with the other Israelites. 4 Why have you brought us out into this wilderness? Just so that we can die here with our animals? 5 Why did you bring us out of Egypt into this miserable place where nothing will grow? There's no grain, no figs, no grapes, no pomegranates. There is not even any water to drink!" 6 Moses and Aaron moved away from the people and stood at the entrance of the Tent. They bowed down with their faces to the ground, and the dazzling light of the Lord 's presence appeared to them. 7 The Lord said to Moses, 8 "Take the stick that is in front of the Covenant Box, and then you and Aaron assemble the whole community. There in front of them all speak to that rock over there, and water will gush out of it. In this way you will bring water out of the rock for the people, for them and their animals to drink." 9 Moses went and got the stick, as the Lord had commanded. 10 He and Aaron assembled the whole community in front of the rock, and Moses said, "Listen, you rebels! Do we have to get water out of this rock for you?"

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

no: Exodus 15:23, Exodus 15:24, Exodus 17:1-4

gathered: Numbers 11:1-6, Numbers 16:3, Numbers 16:19, Numbers 16:42, Numbers 21:5, Exodus 16:2, Exodus 16:7, Exodus 16:12, 1 Corinthians 10:10, 1 Corinthians 10:11

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 9:7 - from the day 2 Kings 3:9 - no water Psalms 106:32 - angered

Cross-References

Genesis 12:15
Some of the court officials saw her and told the king how beautiful she was; so she was taken to his palace.
Genesis 20:11
Abraham answered, "I thought that there would be no one here who has reverence for God and that they would kill me to get my wife.
Genesis 20:12
She really is my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not of my mother, and I married her.
Genesis 20:13
So when God sent me from my father's house into foreign lands, I said to her, ‘You can show how loyal you are to me by telling everyone that I am your brother.'"
Genesis 26:1
There was another famine in the land besides the earlier one during the time of Abraham. Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, at Gerar.
Genesis 26:7
When the men there asked about his wife, he said that she was his sister. He would not admit that she was his wife, because he was afraid that the men there would kill him to get Rebecca, who was very beautiful.
Genesis 26:16
Then Abimelech said to Isaac, "Leave our country. You have become more powerful than we are."
2 Chronicles 19:2
A prophet, Jehu son of Hanani, went to meet the king and said to him, "Do you think it is right to help those who are wicked and to take the side of those who hate the Lord ? What you have done has brought the Lord 's anger on you.
2 Chronicles 20:37
But Eliezer son of Dodavahu, from the town of Mareshah, warned Jehoshaphat, "Because you have made an alliance with Ahaziah, the Lord will destroy what you have built." And the ships were wrecked and never sailed.
2 Chronicles 32:31
and even when the Babylonian ambassadors came to inquire about the unusual event that had happened in the land, God let Hezekiah go his own way only in order to test his character.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And there was no water for the congregation,.... Which was so ordered, for the trial of this new generation, to see whether they would behave any better than their fathers had done in a like circumstance, the first year they came out of Egypt, Exodus 17:1

and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron; just as their fathers had done before them, being of the like temper and disposition.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The language of the murmurers is noteworthy. It has the air of a traditional remonstrance handed down from the last generation. Compare marginal references.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Numbers 20:2. And there was no water for the congregation — The same occurrence took place to the children of Israel at Kadesh, as did formerly to their fathers at Rephidim, see Exodus 17:1; and as the fathers murmured, so also did the children.


 
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