Numbers 14:33 Meaning and Explanation
“And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →The children will spend forty years wandering while bearing the consequences of their parents' unfaithfulness.
The Context of Numbers 14:33
The wilderness wandering will last forty years while the rebellion's consequences work themselves out.
What Does Numbers 14:33 Mean?
The next generation will spend forty years in the wilderness—one year for each day the spies were in the land. During this entire period, they will bear the consequences of their parents' rebellion. The word 'whoredoms' (unfaithfulness, infidelity to God) is harsh, capturing the severity of turning away from God's covenant.
The children are not punished in the sense of eternal loss, but they must live with and suffer the practical consequences of their parents' choices. They grow up in the wilderness, and only when the adult generation passes away—when the rebels' carcases have wasted—will the children enter the land.
Numbers 14:33 in the Original Language
tanutim (תַּנוּעִים), 'whoredoms'—unfaithfulness or infidelity; used here to describe the people's spiritual betrayal of their covenant.
Frequently Asked Questions About Numbers 14:33
What does Numbers 14:33 mean?
The children will spend forty years wandering while bearing the consequences of their parents' unfaithfulness.
What is the context of Numbers 14:33?
The wilderness wandering will last forty years while the rebellion's consequences work themselves out.