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Read the Bible
THE MESSAGE
Numbers 12:3
Bible Study Resources
Concordances:
- Nave'sDictionaries:
- AmericanEncyclopedias:
- CondensedDevotionals:
- DailyParallel Translations
Now the man Moshe was very humble, above all the men who were on the surface of the eretz.
(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)
Now the man, Moses, was more humble than any other person on the face of the earth,
(Now Moses was very humble. He was the least proud person on earth.)
(Now the man Moses was very humble, more so than any man on the face of the earth.)
(Now the man Moses was very humble (gentle, kind, devoid of self-righteousness), more than any man who was on the face of the earth.)
(Now the man Moses was very humble, more than any person who was on the face of the earth.)
(But Moses was a verie meeke man, aboue all the men that were vpon the earth)
(Now the man Moses was very humble, more than any man who was on the face of the earth.)
Now this man Moshe was very humble, more so than anyone on earth.
But the man Moses was very meek, above all men that were upon the face of the earth.
(Moses was a very humble man. He was more humble than any other man on earth.)
Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.
(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men that were upon the face of the earth.)
(Moses was a humble man, more humble than anyone else on earth.)
Moses was a very humble man, more so than anyone on the face of the earth.
And the man Moses was very meek, more than any man who was on the face of the earth.
But Moses was a very meke man, aboue all men vpon earth.
Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men that were upon the face of the earth.
Now the man Moses was more gentle than any other man on earth.
(But Moyses was a very meeke man, aboue all the men of the earth.)
Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men that were upon the face of the earth.--
(Now the man Moses was very meeke, aboue all the men which were vpon the face of the earth.)
And the man Moses was very meek beyond all the men that were upon the earth.
Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.
Now Moses was a very humble man, more so than any man on the face of the earth.
for Moises was the myldest man, ouer alle men that dwelliden in erthe.
And the man Moses [is] very humble, more than any of the men who [are] on the face of the ground.
Now the man Moses was very meek, above all among man that were on the face of the earth.
(Now the man Moses [was] very meek, above all the men who [were] upon the face of the earth.)
Now the man Moses was very humble, above all the men who were on the surface of the earth.
(Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.)
(Now Moses was very humble—more humble than any other person on earth.)
Now Moses was a man with no pride, more so than any man on the earth.
Now the man Moses was very humble, more so than anyone else on the face of the earth.
Now, the man Moses, was patient, exceedingly, - above all the sons of earth, who were on the face of the ground.
(For Moses was a man exceeding meek above all men that dwelt upon earth)
Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all men that were on the face of the earth.
(Now the man Moses was very humble, more than any man who was on the face of the earth.)
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
very: Psalms 147:6, Psalms 149:4, Matthew 5:5, Matthew 11:29, Matthew 21:5, 2 Corinthians 10:1, 1 Thessalonians 2:7, James 3:13, 1 Peter 3:4
above: Numbers 11:10-15, Numbers 20:10-12, Psalms 106:32, Psalms 106:33, 2 Corinthians 11:5, 2 Corinthians 12:11, James 3:2, James 3:3
Reciprocal: Exodus 11:8 - a great anger Exodus 16:20 - and Moses Exodus 32:19 - anger Leviticus 10:16 - angry Numbers 16:15 - very wroth Numbers 31:14 - wroth 1 Samuel 11:6 - his anger Job 1:8 - none Psalms 131:1 - my heart Proverbs 14:29 - slow Isaiah 1:26 - And I will John 8:14 - yet 1 Corinthians 13:5 - is not Ephesians 4:2 - lowliness
Cross-References
Laban said, "If you please, I have learned through divine inquiry that God has blessed me because of you." He went on, "So name your wages. I'll pay you."
By now Balaam realized that God wanted to bless Israel. So he didn't work in any sorcery as he had done earlier. He turned and looked out over the wilderness. As Balaam looked, he saw Israel camped tribe by tribe. The Spirit of God came on him, and he spoke his oracle-message: Decree of Balaam son of Beor, yes, decree of a man with 20/20 vision; Decree of a man who hears God speak, who sees what The Strong God shows him, Who falls on his face in worship, who sees what's really going on. What beautiful tents, Jacob, oh, your homes, Israel! Like valleys stretching out in the distance, like gardens planted by rivers, Like sweet herbs planted by the gardener God , like red cedars by pools and springs, Their buckets will brim with water, their seed will spread life everywhere. Their king will tower over Agag and his ilk, their kingdom surpassingly majestic. God brought them out of Egypt, rampaging like a wild ox, Gulping enemies like morsels of meat, crushing their bones, snapping their arrows. Israel crouches like a lion and naps, king-of-the-beasts—who dares disturb him? Whoever blesses you is blessed, whoever curses you is cursed.
"He will answer them, ‘I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you failed to do one of these things to someone who was being overlooked or ignored, that was me—you failed to do it to me.'
In Christ's family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, since you are Christ's family, then you are Abraham's famous "descendant," heirs according to the covenant promises.
How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is! He's the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in him. Long before he laid down earth's foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!) He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son.
I looked again. I saw a huge crowd, too huge to count. Everyone was there—all nations and tribes, all races and languages. And they were standing, dressed in white robes and waving palm branches, standing before the Throne and the Lamb and heartily singing: Salvation to our God on his Throne! Salvation to the Lamb! All who were standing around the Throne—Angels, Elders, Animals—fell on their faces before the Throne and worshiped God, singing: Oh, Yes! The blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving, The honor and power and strength, To our God forever and ever and ever! Oh, Yes!
Gill's Notes on the Bible
Now the man Moses [was] very meek,.... So that they might say anything against him, and he not be affronted, nor resent any injury; and this therefore is introduced as a reason why the Lord undertook the cause, and vindicated him, resenting the obloquies of Miriam and Aaron against him; because he knew he was so exceeding meek, that he himself would pass it by without taking notice of it, though he might hear it: hence the Targum of Jonathan
"and he cared not for their words;''
they gave him no concern or uneasiness, so meek, mild, and gentle was he: and this is to be considered; not as a self-commendation of Moses, but as a testimony of his character by God himself, by whom he was inspired in writing it; though it is possible this might be added by another hand, Joshua or Ezra, under the same direction and inspiration of the Spirit of God; who chose that such a character of Moses should stand here, in opposition to the calumnies cast upon him, and as giving a reason why not he himself, but the Lord, appeared in his vindication, he being so meek and lowly, as is said of his antitype, and by himself,
Matthew 11:29;
above all the men which [were] upon the face of the earth; being seldom angry, and when he was, it was generally, if not always, when the honour of God was concerned, and not on account of his own person and character; though it must not be said of him that he was perfect in this respect, or free from passion, or from blame at any time on account of it, but, when compared with others, he was the meekest man that ever lived; whereby he became the fittest person to have to do with such a peevish, perverse, and rebellious people as the Israelites were, whom no other man could well have bore with.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
Miriam, as a prophetess (compare Exodus 15:20-21) no less than as the sister of Moses and Aaron, took the first rank among the women of Israel; and Aaron may be regarded as the ecclesiastical head of the whole nation. But instead of being grateful for these high dignities they challenged the special vocation of Moses and the exclusive authority which God had assigned to him. Miriam was the instigator, from the fact that her name stands conspicuously first Numbers 12:1, and that the punishment Numbers 12:10 fell on her alone. She probably considered herself as supplanted, and that too by a foreigner. Aaron was misled this time by the urgency of his sister, as once before Exodus 32:0 by that of the people.
Numbers 12:1
The Ethiopian woman whom he had married - (Hebrew, “Cushite,” compare Genesis 2:13; Genesis 10:6) It is likely that Zipporah Exodus 2:21 was dead, and that Miriam in consequence expected to have greater influence than ever with Moses. Her disappointment at his second marriage would consequently be very great.
The marriage of Moses with a woman descended from Ham was not prohibited, so long as she was not of the stock of Canaan (compare Exodus 34:11-16); but it would at any time have been offensive to that intense nationality which characterized the Jews. The Christian fathers note in the successive marriage of Moses with a Midianite and an Ethiopian a foreshadowing of the future extension to the Gentiles of God’s covenant and its promises (compare Psalms 45:9 ff; Song of Solomon 1:4 ff); and in the complaining of Miriam and Aaron a type of the discontent of the Jews because of such extension: compare Luke 15:29-30.
Numbers 12:2
Hath the Lord ... - i. e. Is it merely, after all, by Moses that the Lord hath spoken?
Numbers 12:3
The man Moses was very meek - In this and in other passages in which Moses no less unequivocally records his own faults (compare Numbers 20:12 ff; Exodus 4:24 ff; Deuteronomy 1:37), there is the simplicity of one who bare witness of himself, but not to himself (compare Matthew 11:28-29). The words are inserted to explain how it was that Moses took no steps to vindicate himself, and why consequently the Lord so promptly intervened.
Numbers 12:8
Mouth to mouth - i. e. without the intervention of any third person or thing: compare the marginal references.
Even apparently - Moses received the word of God direct from Him and plainly, not through the medium of dream, vision, parable, dark saying, or such like; compare the marginal references.
The similitude of the Lord shall he behold - But, “No man hath seen God at any time,” says John (John 1:18 : compare 1 Timothy 6:16, and especially Exodus 33:20 ff). It was not therefore the Beatific Vision, the unveiled essence of the Deity, which Moses saw on the one hand. Nor was it, on the other hand, a mere emblematic representation (as in Ezekiel 1:26 ff, Daniel 7:9), or an Angel sent as a messenger. It was the Deity Himself manifesting Himself so as to be cognizable to mortal eye. The special footing on which Moses stood as regards God is here laid down in detail, because it at once demonstrates that the supremacy of Moses rested on the distinct appointment of God, and also that Miriam in contravening that supremacy had incurred the penalty proper to sins against the theocracy.
Numbers 12:12
As one dead - leprosy was nothing short of a living death, a poisoning of the springs, a corrupting of all the humors, of life; a dissolution little by little of the whole body, so that one limb after another actually decayed and fell away. Compare the notes at Leviticus 13:0.
Numbers 12:13
Heal her now, O God, I beseech thee - Others render these words: “Oh not so; heal her now, I beseech Thee.”
Numbers 12:14
If her father ... - i. e. If her earthly parent had treated her with contumely (compare Deuteronomy 25:9) she would feel for a time humiliated, how much more when God has visited her thus?
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Numbers 12:3. Now the man Moses was very meek — How could Moses, who certainly was as humble and modest as he was meek, write this encomium upon himself? I think the word is not rightly understood; ענו anav, which we translate meek, comes from ענה anah, to act upon, to humble, depress, afflict, and is translated so in many places in the Old Testament; and in this sense it should be understood here: "Now this man Moses was depressed or afflicted more than any man האדמה haadamah, of that land." And why was he so? Because of the great burden he had to bear in the care and government of this people, and because of their ingratitude and rebellion both against God and himself: of this depression and affliction, see the fullest proof in the Numbers 11:0. The very power they envied was oppressive to its possessor, and was more than either of their shoulders could sustain.
