Psalms 106:16
in Psalms 106In the camp they envied Moses, as well as Aaron, the holy one of the LORD.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
They envied Moses also in the camp, And Aaron the saint of Jehovah.
KJV
They envied Moses also in the camp, and Aaron the saint of the Lord.
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This verse in Psalms 106
Commentary
10 notes on this verseA commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
All the congregation took part with Dathan, Korah, &c., and their accomplices (Nu 16:41). Aaron the saint--literally, "the holy one," as consecrated priest; not a moral attribute, but one designating his office as holy to the Lord. The rebellion was followed by a double punishment: (1) of the non-Levitical rebels, the Reubenites, Dathan and Abiram, &c.
This site's exposition
In the camp they envied Moses
on Psalms 106:16-18
In the camp they envied Moses and Aaron. The psalm names the sin, envy of the men God had appointed, and leaves Korah unnamed. Numbers 16 gives the two judgments this psalm keeps, the earth swallowing Dathan and Abiram's company and fire consuming the men who offered incense.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"And they angered Moses in the tents, and Aaron the saint of the Lord" [Psalm 106:16]. What angering, or, as some have more literally rendered it, what provocation, he speaks of, the following words sufficiently show.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
And justly will contempt be poured upon those who put contempt upon any of the saints of the Lord. How did God show his displeasure for this? We are told how, and it is enough to make us tremble (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
The saint - So called, because he was consecrated by God for that sacred office of the priesthood, in which respect all the priests are said to be holy, Lev. xxi, 6-8. Hereby he intimates, that their envy and rebellion was not only against Aaron, but against God himself.
They envied Moses also in the camp,.... That he should be generalissimo there, have the sole command of the people, and be their leader and chief magistrate.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
They envied Moses also in the camp. Though to him as the Lord's chosen instrument they owed everything, they grudged him the authority which it was needful that he should exercise for their good. Some were more openly rebellious than others, and became leaders of the mutiny, but a spirit of dissatisfaction was general, and therefore the whole nation is charged with it. Who can hope to escape envy when the meekest of men was subject to it?
3 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
They envied Moses also in the camp. Though to him as the Lord's chosen instrument they owed everything, they grudged him the authority which it was needful that he should exercise for their good. Some were more openly rebellious than others, and became leaders of the mutiny, but a spirit of dissatisfaction was general, and therefore the whole nation is charged with it. Who can hope to escape envy when the meekest of men was subject to it? How unreasonable was this envy, for Moses was the one man in all the camp who laboured hardest and had most to bear. They should have sympathised with him; to envy him was ridiculous. And Aaron the saint of the Lord. By divine choice Aaron was set apart to be holiness unto the Lord, and instead of thanking God that he had favoured them with a high priest by whose intercession their prayers would be presented, they cavilled at the divine election, and quarrelled with the man who was to offer sacrifice for them. Thus neither church nor state was ordered aright for them; they would snatch from Moses his sceptre, and from Aaron his mitre. It is the mark of bad men that they are envious of the good, and spiteful against their best benefactors.
They envied Moses - A reference to the case of Korah and his company. Aaron the saint - The anointed, the high priest of the Lord.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
They envied Moses also in the camp - They were envious of him, or rebelled against him, as assuming too much authority. See Num 16:1-2. The reference here is rather to the “result” of that envy in producing rebellion than to the envy itself. It is true, however, that the foundation of their opposition to him “was” envy. And Aaron the saint of the Lord - That is, as set apart to the service of the Lord; or, as employed in holy things. The reference is to his “office,” not to his personal character.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
but He sent emaciation into their soul (Num.:33) “and the Lord’s wrath was kindled against the people.”
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
The earth opened up, etc. It appears that [the Psalmist] bestowed honor upon the sons of Korah [by refraining] from mentioning their father. He attributed the sin to Dathan and Abiram.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 6 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיְקַנְא֣וּ | vaykanu | and they were envious | H7065 → | 34 times |
| לְ֭מֹשֶׁה | lemosheh | of Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
| בַּֽמַּחֲנֶ֑ה | bamachaneh | in the camp | H4264 → | 215 times |
| לְ֝אַהֲרֹ֗ן | leaharon | of Aaron | H175 → | 347 times |
| קְד֣וֹשׁ | kedoosh | [the] holy [one] of | H6918 → | 116 times |
| יְהוָֽה׃ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
וַיְקַנְא֣וּand they were envious
vaykanuH7065 →34 times
לְ֭מֹשֶׁהof Moses
lemoshehH4872 →765 times
בַּֽמַּחֲנֶ֑הin the camp
bamachanehH4264 →215 times
לְ֝אַהֲרֹ֗ןof Aaron
leaharonH175 →347 times
קְד֣וֹשׁ[the] holy [one] of
kedooshH6918 →116 times
יְהוָֽה׃Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 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
Exodus 28:36You are to make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it as on a seal: HOLY TO THE LORD.
it leads to
- Leviticus 8:9
Moses also put the turban on Aaron’s head and set the gold plate, the holy diadem, on the front of the turban, as the LORD had commanded him.
- Zechariah 14:20
On that day, HOLY TO THE LORD will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, and the cooking pots in the house of the LORD will be like the sprinkling bowls before the…
- Exodus 39:30
They also made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and they engraved on it, like an inscription on a seal: HOLY TO THE LORD.
- 1 Peter 1:15–16
But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do,
- 1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.
- Leviticus 8:9
Where this verse is studied
About Psalms
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 106; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 5; 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); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.