Numbers 16:4
in Numbers 16When Moses heard this, he fell facedown.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face:
KJV
And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face:
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This verse in Numbers 16
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
When Moses heard this
on Numbers 16:4-5
Moses answers a public argument by falling facedown, as he does at verses 4, 22 and 45. His reply sets the question as who belongs to Him and who is holy, which moves the case from qualification to choice.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And when Moses heard it,....
Thus he showed how willing he would have been to yield to them, and how gladly he would have resigned his government, if it would have consisted with his duty to God and his fidelity to the trust reposed in him. Thus also he applied to God, by prayer, for direction what to say and to do upon this sad occasion.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Whatever feelings may be entertained respecting Aaron, who had formerly headed a sedition himself [Nu 12:1], it is impossible not to sympathize with Moses in this difficult emergency. But he was a devout man, and the prudential course he adopted was probably the dictate of that heavenly wisdom with which, in answer to his prayers, he was endowed.
The words behind it
5 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּשְׁמַ֣ע | vaiyishma' | and he heard | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| מֹשֶׁ֔ה | mosheh | Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
| וַיִּפֹּ֖ל | vaiyipol | and he fell | H5307 → | 435 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| פָּנָֽיו׃ | panav | face his | H6440 → | 2123 times |
וַיִּשְׁמַ֣עand he heard
vaiyishma'H8085 →1159 times
מֹשֶׁ֔הMoses
moshehH4872 →765 times
וַיִּפֹּ֖לand he fell
vaiyipolH5307 →435 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
פָּנָֽיו׃face his
panavH6440 →2123 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Numbers 14:5Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown before the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel.
it leads to
- Numbers 16:22
But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, when one man sins, will You be angry with the whole congregation?”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Numbers 16:45
“Get away from this congregation so that I may consume them in an instant.” And Moses and Aaron fell facedown.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Chronicles 21:16
When David lifted up his eyes and saw the angel of the LORD standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem, David and the elders, clothed…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Leviticus 9:24
Fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell…
- Numbers 16:22
Through
Joshua 7:6Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown before the ark of the LORD until evening, as did the elders of Israel; and they all sprinkled dust on their heads.
it leads to
- Genesis 37:29
When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes,
- Genesis 37:34
Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days.
- Genesis 37:29
Through
Numbers 20:6Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. They fell facedown, and the glory of the LORD appeared to them.
it leads to
- Numbers 14:5
Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown before the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel.
- Numbers 14:5
Through
Numbers 16:45“Get away from this congregation so that I may consume them in an instant.” And Moses and Aaron fell facedown.
it leads to
- Numbers 16:21–22
“Separate yourselves from this congregation so that I may consume them in an instant.”
- Numbers 16:21–22
Where this verse is studied
On this page
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Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.