Numbers 16 · Verse 3

Numbers 16:3

And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the Lord?
Numbers 16:3, King James Version

Numbers 16:3 in other translations

BSBThey came together against Moses and Aaron and told them, “You have taken too much upon yourselves! For everyone in the entire congregation is holy, and the LORD is in their midst. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?”
WEBThey assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, “You take too much on yourself, since all the congregation are holy, everyone of them, and the LORD is among them! Why do you lift yourselves up above the LORD’s assembly?”
ASVand they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and Jehovah is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the assembly of Jehovah?
YLTand they are assembled against Moses and against Aaron, and say unto them, ‘Enough of you! for all the company--all of them are holy, and in their midst is Jehovah; and wherefore do ye lift yourselves up above the assembly of Jehovah?'
DARBYand they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, It is enough; for all the assembly, all of them are holy, and Jehovah is among them; and why do ye lift up yourselves above the congregation of Jehovah?
BBEThey came together against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, You take overmuch on yourselves, seeing that all the people are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them; why then have you put yourselves in authority over the people of the Lord?
WebsterAnd they assembled themselves against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: why then do ye raise yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?

What does Numbers 16:3 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
3. they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron--The assemblage seems to have been composed of the whole band of conspirators; and they grounded their complaint on the fact that the whole people, being separated to the divine service (Ex 19:6), were equally qualified to present offerings on the altar, and that God, being graciously, present among them by the tabernacle and the cloud, evinced His readiness to receive sacrifices from the hand of any others as well as from theirs.

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 3 Ye take too much upon you - The original is simply רב לכם rab lachem, too much for you. The spirit of this saying appears to me to be the following: - "Holy offices are not equally distributed: you arrogate to yourselves the most important ones, as if your superior holiness entitled you alone to them; whereas all the congregation are holy, and have an equal right with you to be employed in the most holy services." Moses retorts this saying Num 16:7 : Ye take too much upon you, רב לכם rab lachem; Ye have too much already, ye sons of Levi; i.e., by your present spirit and disposition you prove yourselves to be wholly unworthy of any spiritual employment.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Numbers 16:1-11

Pride and ambition occasion a great deal of mischief both in churches and states. The rebels quarrel with the settlement of the priesthood upon Aaron and his family. Small reason they had to boast of the people's purity, or of God's favour, as the people had been so often and so lately polluted with sin, and were now under the marks of God's displeasure. They unjustly charge Moses and Aaron with taking honour to…

Read the full comment on Numbers 16:1-11 →

Numbers 16:3 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.

וַיִּֽקָּהֲל֞וּvai.yi.ka.ha.Luand they assembledH6950
עַל\־'al-onH5921
מֹשֶׁ֣הmo.ShehMosesH4872
וְעַֽל\־ve.'al-and onH5921
אַהֲרֹ֗ן'a.ha.RonAaronH175
וַיֹּאמְר֣וּvai.yo.me.Ruand they saidH559
אֲלֵהֶם֮'a.le.Hemto themH413
רַב\־rav-enoughH7227
לָכֶם֒la.Khemfor <the> you
כִּ֤יkithatH3588
כָל\־khol-allH3605
הָֽעֵדָה֙ha.'e.Dahthe congregationH5712
כֻּלָּ֣םku.Lamall of themH3605
קְדֹשִׁ֔יםke.do.Shim[are] holyH6918
וּבְתוֹכָ֖םu.ve.to.Khamand [is] among midst of themH8432
יְהוָ֑הYah.wehYahwehH3068
וּמַדּ֥וּעַu.ma.Du.a'and why?H4069
תִּֽתְנַשְּׂא֖וּtit.na.se.'Udo you exalt yourselvesH5375
עַל\־'al-overH5921
קְהַ֥לke.Hal[the] assembly ofH6951
יְהוָֽה\׃Yah.wehYahwehH3068

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

Cross references for Numbers 16:3

  • Psalms 106:16

    They envied Moses also in the camp, and Aaron the saint of the Lord.

  • Numbers 14:14

    And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou Lord art among this people, that thou Lord art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night.

  • Exodus 19:6

    And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

  • Acts 7:51

    Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.

  • Numbers 16:7

    And put fire therein, and put incense in them before the Lord to morrow: and it shall be that the man whom the Lord doth choose, he shall be holy: ye take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi.

  • Jeremiah 7:3-12

    Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place. Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the Lord, The temple of the Lord, The temple of the Lord, are these. For if ye throughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye throughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbour; If ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt: …

  • Numbers 12:1-2

    And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman. And they said, Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the Lord heard it.

  • Numbers 14:1-4

    And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.

  • Acts 7:39

    To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt,

  • Numbers 16:11

    For which cause both thou and all thy company are gathered together against the Lord: and what is Aaron, that ye murmur against him?

  • Romans 2:28-29

    For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

  • Numbers 35:34

    Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit, wherein I dwell: for I the Lord dwell among the children of Israel.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
gathered.
11; 12:1,2; 14:1-4; Ps 106:16; Ac 7:39,51
Ye take too much upon you. Heb. It is much for you. allthe.
Ex 19:6; Ezr 9:2; Isa 1:11-16; Jer 7:3-12; Mt 3:9,10; Ro 2:28,29
the Lord.
14:14; 35:34; Ex 29:45,46; Ps 68:17

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

Context

  • Numbers 16:2

    And they rose up before Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown:

  • Numbers 16:3

    And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the Lord?

  • Numbers 16:4

    And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face:

Read all of Numbers 16

Numbers 16:3 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y se juntaron contra Moisés y Aarón, y les dijeron: Básteos, porque toda la congregación, todos ellos son santos, y en medio de ellos está Jehová: ¿por qué, pues, os levantáis vosotros sobre la congregación de Jehová?
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et ils s’attroupèrent contre Moïse et contre Aaron, et leur dirent: C’en est assez! car toute l’assemblée, eux tous sont saints, et l’ Éternel est au milieu d’eux; et pourquoi vous élevez-vous au-dessus de la congrégation de l’ Éternel?
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und sie versammelten sich wider Mose und wider Aaron und sprachen zu ihnen: Laßt es genug sein! Denn die ganze Gemeinde, sie allesamt, sind heilig, und Jehova ist in ihrer Mitte! Und warum erhebet ihr euch über die Versammlung Jehovas?
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Cumque stetissent adversum Moysen et Aaron, dixerunt: Sufficiat vobis, quia omnis multitudo sanctorum est, et in ipsis est Dominus: cur elevamini super populum Domini?