Numbers 12

Modern

Literal

The Complaint of Miriam and Aaron

¹Then Miriam and Aaron criticized Moses because of the Cushite woman he had married, for he had taken a Cushite wife.

¹And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses, upon occasion of the Cushite the woman whom he had taken; for he had taken a Cushite woman.

²“Does the LORD speak only through Moses?” they said. “Does He not also speak through us?” And the LORD heard this.

²And they said, “Is it only indeed through Moses that YHWH has spoken? Is it not also through us that He has spoken?” And YHWH heard it.

³Now Moses was a very humble man, more so than any man on the face of the earth.

³And the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.

⁴And suddenly the LORD said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “You three, come out to the Tent of Meeting.” So the three went out,

⁴And YHWH said suddenly to Moses and Aaron and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the Tent of Meeting.” And the three came out.

⁵and the LORD came down in a pillar of cloud, stood at the entrance to the Tent, and summoned Aaron and Miriam. When both of them had stepped forward,

⁵And YHWH came down in the pillar of cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam; and both of them went forward.

⁶He said, “Hear now My words:

If there is a prophet among you,

I, the LORD, will reveal Myself to him in a vision;

I will speak to him in a dream.

⁶And He said, “Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, YHWH, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream.

⁷But this is not so with My servant Moses;

he is faithful in all My house.^a

⁷Not so My servant Moses; in all My house He is faithful.

⁸I speak with him face to face,

clearly and not in riddles;

he sees the form of the LORD.

Why then were you unafraid to speak against My servant Moses?”

⁸I speak with him mouth to mouth, and even plainly and not in riddles; and the form of YHWH he sees. And why were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?”

⁹So the anger of the LORD burned against them, and He departed.

⁹And the anger of YHWH was kindled against them, and He departed.

¹⁰As the cloud lifted from above the Tent, suddenly Miriam became leprous,^a white as snow. Aaron turned toward her, saw that she was leprous,

¹⁰And the cloud departed from above the Tent, and behold, Miriam was leprous as snow. And Aaron turned toward Miriam, and behold, she was leprous.

¹¹and said to Moses, “My lord, please do not hold against us this sin we have so foolishly committed.

¹¹And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, please do not lay on us this sin, which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned.

¹²Please do not let her be like a stillborn infant whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb.”

¹²Please do not let her be as one dead, who in his coming out from the womb of his mother, half of his flesh is consumed.”

¹³So Moses cried out to the LORD, “O God, please heal her!”

¹³And Moses cried out to YHWH, saying, “O God, please, please, heal her.”

¹⁴But the LORD answered Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face, would she not have been in disgrace for seven days? Let her be confined outside the camp for seven days; after that she may be brought back in.”

¹⁴And YHWH said to Moses, “And if her father surely had spit in her face, would not she be shamed seven days? Let her be shut seven days outside of the camp, and afterward she may be received.”

¹⁵So Miriam was confined outside the camp for seven days, and the people did not move on until she was brought in again.

¹⁵And Miriam was shut outside of the camp seven days, and the people did not journey until the bringing in of Miriam.

¹⁶After that, the people set out from Hazeroth and camped in the Wilderness of Paran.

¹⁶And afterward the people set out from Hazeroth, and they camped in the Wilderness of Paran.