Numbers 11 · Verse 25

Numbers 11:25

And the Lord came down in a cloud, and spake unto him, and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the seventy elders: and it came to pass, that, when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, and did not cease.
Numbers 11:25, King James Version

Numbers 11:25 in other translations

BSBThen the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and He took some of the Spirit that was on Moses and placed that Spirit on the seventy elders. As the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied—but they never did so again.
WEBThe LORD came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was on him, and put it on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but they did so no more.
ASVAnd Jehovah came down in the cloud, and spake unto him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and put it upon the seventy elders: and it came to pass, that, when the Spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, but they did so no more.
YLTand Jehovah cometh down in the cloud, and speaketh unto him, and keepeth back of the Spirit which is on him, and putteth on the seventy men of the elders; and it cometh to pass at the resting of the Spirit on them, that they prophesy, and do not cease.
DARBYAnd Jehovah came down in a cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and put it upon the seventy men, the elders; and it came to pass, that when the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but they did not repeat it.
BBEThen the Lord came down in the cloud and had talk with him, and put on the seventy men some of the spirit which was on him: now when the spirit came to rest on them, they were like prophets, but only at that time.
WebsterAnd the LORD came down in a cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it to the seventy elders: and it came to pass, that when the spirit rested upon them; they prophesied, and did not cease.

What does Numbers 11:25 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
25. when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, and did not cease--As those elders were constituted civil governors, their "prophesying" must be understood as meaning the performance of their civil and sacred duties by the help of those extraordinary endowments they had received; and by their not "ceasing" we understand, either that they continued to exercise their gifts uninterruptedly the first day (see 1Sa 19:24), or that these were permanent gifts, which qualified them in an eminent degree for discharging the duty of public magistrates.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 25 When the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied - By prophesying here we are to understand their performing those civil and sacred functions for which they were qualified; exhorting the people to quiet and peaceable submission, to trust and confidence in the goodness and providence of God, would make no small part of the duties of their new office. The ideal meaning of the word נבא naba is to pray, entreat, etc. The prophet is called נביא nabi, because he prays, supplicates, in reference to God; exhorts, entreats, in reference to man. See on Gen 20:7 (note).

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Numbers 11:24-30

We have here the fulfilment of God's word to Moses, that he should have help in the government of Israel. He gave of his Spirit to the seventy elders. They discoursed to the people of the things of God, so that all who heard them might say, that God was with them of a truth. Two of the elders, Eldad and Medad, went not out unto the tabernacle, as the rest, being sensible of their own weakness and unworthiness. But…

Read the full comment on Numbers 11:24-30 →

Numbers 11:25 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיֵּ֨רֶדvai.Ye.redand he came downH3381
יְהוָ֥ה\׀Yah.wehYahwehH3068
בֶּעָנָן֮be.'a.Nanin the cloudH6051
וַיְדַבֵּ֣רvay.da.Berand he spokeH1696
אֵלָיו֒'e.Lavto himH413
וַיָּ֗אצֶלvai.Ya.tzeland he sharedH680
מִן\־min-some ofH4480
הָר֙וּחַ֙ha.Ru.achthe spiritH7307
אֲשֶׁ֣ר'a.SherwhichH834
עָלָ֔יו'a.Lav[was] on himH5921
וַיִּתֵּ֕ןvai.yi.Tenand he put [it]H5414
עַל\־'al-onH5921
שִׁבְעִ֥יםshiv.'ImseventyH7657
אִ֖ישׁ'ishmanH376
הַזְּקֵנִ֑יםha.ze.ke.Nimthe eldersH2205
וַיְהִ֗יvay.Hiand it wasH1961
כְּנ֤וֹחַke.No.achwhen restedH5117
עֲלֵיהֶם֙'a.lei.Hemon themH5921
הָר֔וּחַha.Ru.achthe spiritH7307
וַיִּֽתְנַבְּא֖וּvai.yit.na.be.'Uand they prophesiedH5012
וְלֹ֥אve.Lo'and notH3808
יָסָֽפוּ\׃ya.Sa.futhey repeatedH3254

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Numbers 11:25

  • Numbers 11:17

    And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone.

  • Joel 2:28-29

    And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.

  • 1 Samuel 10:10

    And when they came thither to the hill, behold, a company of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them.

  • Numbers 12:5

    And the Lord came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth.

  • 1 Corinthians 14:1-3

    Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy. For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries. But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort.

  • 1 Samuel 10:5-6

    After that thou shalt come to the hill of God, where is the garrison of the Philistines: and it shall come to pass, when thou art come thither to the city, that thou shalt meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place with a psaltery, and a tabret, and a pipe, and a harp, before them; and they shall prophesy: And the Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them, and shalt be turned into another man.

  • 2 Peter 1:21

    For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

  • 2 Kings 2:15

    And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

  • Acts 2:17-18

    And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

  • 1 Samuel 19:20-24

    And Saul sent messengers to take David: and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as appointed over them, the Spirit of God was upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied. And when it was told Saul, he sent other messengers, and they prophesied likewise. And Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they prophesied also. Then went he also to Ramah, and came to a great well that is in Sechu: and he asked and said, Where are Samuel and David? And one said, Behold, they be at Naioth in Ramah. And he went thither to Naioth in Ramah: and the Spirit of God was upon him also, and he went on, and prophesied, until he came to Naioth in Ramah. …

  • Acts 11:28

    And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Cesar.

  • Luke 9:34-35

    While he thus spake, there came a cloud, and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud. And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
came down.
17; 12:5; Ex 34:5; 40:38; Ps 99:7; Lu 9:34,35
took.
17; 2Ki 2:15; Jas 1:17
gave it.From this place, Origen and Theodoret take occasion to compare Moses to a lamp, at which seventy others were lighted, without any diminution of its lustre.
they prophesied.By prophesying here we are to understand, their performing those civil and sacred functions for which they were qualified; exhorting the people to quiet and peaceable submission, and to trust and confidence in the providence of God.
1Sa 10:5,6,10; 19:20-24; Jer 36:5,6; Joe 2:28,29; Ac 2:17,18
Ac 11:28; 21:9-11; 1Co 11:4,5; 14:1-3,32; 2Pe 1:21

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Numbers 11:24

    And Moses went out, and told the people the words of the Lord, and gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people, and set them round about the tabernacle.

  • Numbers 11:25

    And the Lord came down in a cloud, and spake unto him, and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the seventy elders: and it came to pass, that, when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, and did not cease.

  • Numbers 11:26

    But there remained two of the men in the camp, the name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad: and the spirit rested upon them; and they were of them that were written, but went not out unto the tabernacle: and they prophesied in the camp.

Read all of Numbers 11

Numbers 11:25 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Entonces Jehová descendió en la nube, y hablóle; y tomó del espíritu que estaba en él, y púsolo en los setenta varones ancianos; y fué que, cuando posó sobre ellos el espíritu, profetizaron, y no cesaron.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et l’ Éternel descendit dans la nuée, et lui parla; et il ôta de l’Esprit qui était sur lui, et le mit sur les 70 anciens. Et il arriva qu’aussitôt que l’Esprit reposa sur eux, ils prophétisèrent, mais ils ne continuèrent pas.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und Jehova kam in der Wolke hernieder und redete zu ihm und nahm von dem Geiste, der auf ihm war, und legte ihn auf die siebzig Männer, die Ältesten. Und es geschah, sobald der Geist auf sie kam, weissagten sie; aber sie fuhren nicht fort.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Descenditque Dominus per nubem, et locutus est ad eum, auferens de spiritu qui erat in Moyse, et dans septuaginta viris. Cumque requievisset in eis spiritus, prophetaverunt, nec ultra cessaverunt.