Miriam and Aaron Rebel

12 Miriam^(A) and Aaron criticized Moses because of the Cushite^[a][b] woman he married (for he had married a Cushite woman). ² They said, “Does the Lord speak only through Moses? Does He not also speak through us?” And the Lord heard it. ³ Moses was a very humble man, more so than any man on the face of the earth.

⁴ Suddenly the Lord said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “You three come out to the tent of meeting.” So the three of them went out. ⁵ Then the Lord descended in a pillar of cloud,^(B) stood at the entrance to the tent, and summoned Aaron and Miriam. When the two of them came forward, ⁶ He said:

So why were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?” ⁹ The Lord’s anger burned against them,^(G) and He left.

¹⁰ As the cloud moved away from the tent, Miriam’s skin suddenly became diseased, as white as snow. When Aaron turned toward her, he saw that she was diseased ¹¹ and said to Moses, “My lord, please don’t hold against us this sin we have so foolishly committed. ¹² Please don’t let her be like a dead baby^[e] whose flesh is half eaten away when he comes out of his mother’s womb.”

¹³ Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “God, please heal her!”^(H)

¹⁴ The Lord answered Moses, “If her father had merely spit in her face, wouldn’t she remain in disgrace for seven days? Let her be confined outside the camp^(I) for seven days;^(J) after that she may be brought back in.” ¹⁵ So Miriam was confined outside the camp for seven days, and the people did not move on until Miriam was brought back in.^{(K) 16} After that, the people set out from Hazeroth and camped in the Wilderness of Paran.

Scouting Out Canaan

13 The Lord spoke to Moses: ² “Send men to scout out the land of Canaan^(L) I am giving to the Israelites. Send one man who is a leader among them from each of their ancestral tribes.” ³ Moses sent them from the Wilderness of Paran at the Lord’s command. All the men were leaders in Israel.^{(M) 4} These were their names:

¹⁶ These were the names of the men Moses sent to scout out the land, and Moses renamed Hoshea son of Nun, Joshua.

¹⁷ When Moses sent them to scout out the land of Canaan, he told them, “Go up this way to the Negev, then go up into the hill country. ¹⁸ See what the land is like, and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many. ¹⁹ Is the land they live in good^(P) or bad? Are the cities they live in encampments or fortifications?^{(Q) 20} Is the land fertile or unproductive?^(R) Are there trees in it or not? Be courageous. Bring back some fruit from the land.” It was the season for the first ripe grapes.^(S)

²¹ So they went up and scouted out the land from the Wilderness of Zin^[f] as far as Rehob^[g] near the entrance to Hamath.^{[h] 22} They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak,^(T) were living. Hebron was built seven years before Zoan^(U) in Egypt. ²³ When they came to the Valley of Eshcol,^(V) they cut down a branch with a single cluster of grapes, which was carried on a pole by two men. They also took some pomegranates and figs.^{(W) 24} That place was called the Valley of Eshcol^[i] because of the cluster of grapes the Israelites cut there. ²⁵ At the end of 40 days^(X) they returned from scouting out the land.

Report about Canaan

²⁶ The men went back to Moses, Aaron, and the entire Israelite community in the Wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. They brought back a report for them and the whole community, and they showed them the fruit of the land.^{(Y) 27} They reported to Moses: “We went into the land where you sent us. Indeed it is flowing with milk and honey,^(Z) and here is some of its fruit. ²⁸ However, the people living in the land are strong, and the cities are large and fortified.^(AA) We also saw the descendants of Anak^(AB) there. ²⁹ The Amalekites^(AC) are living in the land of the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the sea and along the Jordan.”

³⁰ Then Caleb^(AD) quieted the people in the presence of Moses and said, “We must go up and take possession of the land because we can certainly conquer it!”

³¹ But the men who had gone up with him responded, “We can’t go up against the people because they are stronger than we are!” ³² So they gave a negative report to the Israelites about the land they had scouted: “The land we passed through to explore is one that devours its inhabitants, and all the people we saw in it are men of great size. ³³ We even saw the Nephilim^[j](AE) there—the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim!^(AF) To ourselves we seemed like grasshoppers, and we must have seemed the same to them.”

The Greatness of Melchizedek

7 For this Melchizedek—

remains a priest forever.

⁴ Now consider how great this man was—even Abraham the patriarch^(B) gave a tenth of the plunder to him! ⁵ The sons of Levi who receive the priestly office have a command according to the law to collect a tenth from the people^(C)—that is, from their brothers—though they have also descended from Abraham.^{[a] 6} But one without this^[b] lineage collected tenths from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises.^{(D) 7} Without a doubt,^[c] the inferior is blessed by the superior. ⁸ In the one case, men who will die receive tenths, but in the other case, Scripture testifies that he lives.^{(E) 9} And in a sense Levi himself, who receives tenths, has paid tenths through Abraham, ¹⁰ for he was still within his ancestor^[d] when Melchizedek met him.

A Superior Priesthood

¹¹ If then, perfection came through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law^(F)), what further need was there for another priest to appear, said to be in the order of Melchizedek and not in the order of Aaron?^{(G) 12} For when there is a change of the priesthood, there must be a change of law as well. ¹³ For the One these things are spoken about belonged to a different tribe. No one from it has served at the altar. ¹⁴ Now it is evident that our Lord came from Judah,^(H) and Moses said nothing about that tribe concerning priests.

¹⁵ And this becomes clearer if another priest like Melchizedek appears, ¹⁶ who did not become a priest based on a legal command concerning physical^[e] descent but based on the power of an indestructible life. ¹⁷ For it has been testified:

¹⁸ So the previous command is annulled because it was weak and unprofitable^{(J) 19} (for the law perfected^(K) nothing), but a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God.^(L)

²⁰ None of this happened without an oath. For others became priests without an oath, ²¹ but He became a priest with an oath made by the One who said to Him:

²² So Jesus has also become the guarantee of a better covenant.^(N)

²³ Now many have become Levitical priests, since they are prevented by death from remaining in office. ²⁴ But because He remains forever, He holds His priesthood permanently. ²⁵ Therefore, He is always able to save^[h] those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede^(O) for them.

²⁶ For this is the kind of high priest we need: holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.^{(P) 27} He doesn’t need to offer sacrifices every day, as high priests do—first for their own sins, then for those of the people. He did this once for all when He offered Himself.^{(Q) 28} For the law appoints as high priests men who are weak, but the promise of the oath, which came after the law, appoints a Son,^(R) who has been perfected^(S) forever.