Numbers 13:25
New International Version
At the end of forty days they returned from exploring the land.

New Living Translation
After exploring the land for forty days, the men returned

English Standard Version
At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land.

Berean Standard Bible
After forty days the men returned from spying out the land,

King James Bible
And they returned from searching of the land after forty days.

New King James Version
And they returned from spying out the land after forty days.

New American Standard Bible
When they returned from spying out the land, at the end of forty days,

NASB 1995
When they returned from spying out the land, at the end of forty days,

NASB 1977
When they returned from spying out the land, at the end of forty days,

Legacy Standard Bible
Then they returned from spying out the land, at the end of forty days,

Amplified Bible
When they returned from spying out the land, at the end of forty days,

Christian Standard Bible
At the end of forty days they returned from scouting out the land.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
At the end of 40 days they returned from scouting out the land.

American Standard Version
And they returned from spying out the land at the end of forty days.

Contemporary English Version
After exploring the land of Canaan for 40 days,

English Revised Version
And they returned from spying out the land at the end of forty days.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Forty days later, they came back from exploring the land.

Good News Translation
After exploring the land for forty days, the spies returned

International Standard Version
At the end of 40 days, they all returned from exploring the land,

Majority Standard Bible
After forty days the men returned from spying out the land,

NET Bible
They returned from investigating the land after forty days.

New Heart English Bible
They returned from spying out the land at the end of forty days.

Webster's Bible Translation
And they returned from exploring the land after forty days.

World English Bible
They returned from spying out the land at the end of forty days.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And they return from spying out the land at the end of forty days.

Young's Literal Translation
And they turn back from spying the land at the end of forty days.

Smith's Literal Translation
And they will turn back from searching out the land at the end of forty days.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And they that went to spy out the land returned after forty days, having gone round all the country,

Catholic Public Domain Version
And those exploring the land returned after forty days, having circulated through the entire region.

New American Bible
They returned from reconnoitering the land forty days later.

New Revised Standard Version
At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And they returned from spying out the land after forty days.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And they returned from the exploring of the land after forty days.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And they returned from spying out the land at the end of forty days.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And they returned from thence, having surveyed the land, after forty days.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Reports of the Spies
25After forty days the men returned from spying out the land, 26and they went back to Moses, Aaron, and the whole congregation of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. They brought back a report for the whole congregation and showed them the fruit of the land.…

Cross References
Deuteronomy 1:22-25
Then all of you approached me and said, “Let us send men ahead of us to search out the land and bring us word of what route to follow and which cities to enter.” / The plan seemed good to me, so I selected twelve men from among you, one from each tribe. / They left and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied out the land. ...

Joshua 2:1-24
Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim, saying, “Go, inspect the land, especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. / And it was reported to the king of Jericho: “Behold, some men of Israel have come here tonight to spy out the land.” / So the king of Jericho sent to Rahab and said, “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, for they have come to spy out the whole land.” ...

Hebrews 3:16-19
For who were the ones who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? / And with whom was God angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? / And to whom did He swear that they would never enter His rest? Was it not to those who disobeyed? ...

Deuteronomy 9:23
And when the LORD sent you out from Kadesh-barnea, He said, “Go up and possess the land that I have given you.” But you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God. You neither believed Him nor obeyed Him.

Joshua 14:7-8
I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought back to him an honest report. / Although my brothers who went with me made the hearts of the people melt with fear, I remained loyal to the LORD my God.

Nehemiah 9:13-15
You came down on Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven. You gave them just ordinances, true laws, and good statutes and commandments. / You revealed to them Your holy Sabbath and gave them commandments and statutes and laws through Your servant Moses. / In their hunger You gave them bread from heaven; in their thirst You brought them water from the rock. You told them to go in and possess the land that You had sworn to give them.

Psalm 106:24-25
They despised the pleasant land; they did not believe His promise. / They grumbled in their tents and did not listen to the voice of the LORD.

1 Corinthians 10:5-11
Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them, for they were struck down in the wilderness. / These things took place as examples to keep us from craving evil things as they did. / Do not be idolaters, as some of them were. As it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.” ...

Deuteronomy 8:7-9
For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks and fountains and springs that flow through the valleys and hills; / a land of wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of olive oil and honey; / a land where you will eat food without scarcity, where you will lack nothing; a land whose rocks are iron and whose hills are ready to be mined for copper.

Joshua 5:6
For the Israelites had wandered in the wilderness forty years, until all the nation’s men of war who had come out of Egypt had died, since they did not obey the LORD. So the LORD vowed never to let them see the land He had sworn to their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey.

Hebrews 4:1-2
Therefore, while the promise of entering His rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be deemed to have fallen short of it. / For we also received the good news just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, since they did not share the faith of those who comprehended it.

Deuteronomy 6:10-12
And when the LORD your God brings you into the land He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that He would give you—a land with great and splendid cities that you did not build, / with houses full of every good thing with which you did not fill them, with wells that you did not dig, and with vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant—and when you eat and are satisfied, / be careful not to forget the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

Acts 7:36-39
He led them out and performed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, at the Red Sea, and for forty years in the wilderness. / This is the same Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers.’ / He was in the assembly in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. And he received living words to pass on to us. ...

Deuteronomy 11:10-12
For the land that you are entering to possess is not like the land of Egypt, from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and irrigated on foot, like a vegetable garden. / But the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess is a land of mountains and valleys that drinks in the rain from heaven. / It is a land for which the LORD your God cares; the eyes of the LORD your God are always on it, from the beginning to the end of the year.

Psalm 95:8-11
do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, in the day at Massah in the wilderness, / where your fathers tested and tried Me, though they had seen My work. / For forty years I was angry with that generation, and I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they have not known My ways.” ...


Treasury of Scripture

And they returned from searching of the land after forty days.

forty days

Numbers 14:33,34
And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness…

Exodus 24:18
And Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and gat him up into the mount: and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights.

Exodus 34:28
And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten commandments.

Jump to Previous
End Searching Spying Turn Viewing
Jump to Next
End Searching Spying Turn Viewing
Numbers 13
1. The names of the men who were sent to search the land
17. Their instructions
21. Their acts
26. Their relation














After forty days
The phrase "after forty days" is significant in biblical numerology, where the number forty often symbolizes a period of testing, trial, or probation. In Hebrew, the word for forty is "ארבעים" (arba'im). This period of forty days mirrors other significant biblical events, such as the forty days and nights of rain during the flood (Genesis 7:12), Moses' forty days on Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:18), and Jesus' forty days of fasting in the wilderness (Matthew 4:2). Each instance represents a time of preparation and transformation. Here, the forty days of exploration in Canaan were meant to test the faith and obedience of the Israelites, preparing them for the challenges ahead.

the men returned
The phrase "the men returned" indicates the completion of the reconnaissance mission by the twelve spies sent by Moses. In Hebrew, "returned" is "וישבו" (vayashuvu), which implies a coming back to the starting point. This return is not just physical but also symbolic of bringing back knowledge and insight. The men were tasked with gathering intelligence about the land of Canaan, its inhabitants, and its resources. Their return marks a pivotal moment where the gathered information would influence the future decisions and faith of the Israelite community.

from spying out the land
The act of "spying out the land" was a strategic mission to assess the Promised Land's potential and challenges. The Hebrew word for "spying" is "לתור" (latur), which means to explore or scout. This exploration was not merely for military purposes but also to understand the land's fertility, the strength of its cities, and the nature of its inhabitants. Historically, this was a common practice among ancient civilizations to ensure successful conquests and settlements. The land of Canaan, promised to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, was a land flowing with milk and honey, symbolizing abundance and divine blessing. The spies' report would test the Israelites' trust in God's promise and their willingness to follow His lead despite apparent obstacles.

(25) After forty days.--This time allowed a full and careful exploration of the land.

Verse 25. - They returned... after forty days. This is a period of time which constantly recurs in the sacred books (see on Exodus 24:18). It points to the fact that their work was completely done, and the land thoroughly explored.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
After
מִקֵּ֖ץ (miq·qêṣ)
Preposition-m | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 7093: An extremity, after

forty
אַרְבָּעִ֥ים (’ar·bā·‘îm)
Number - common plural
Strong's 705: Forty

days
יֽוֹם׃ (yō·wm)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3117: A day

[the men] returned
וַיָּשֻׁ֖בוּ (way·yā·šu·ḇū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 7725: To turn back, in, to retreat, again

from spying out
מִתּ֣וּר (mit·tūr)
Preposition-m | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 8446: To meander, about, for, trade, reconnoitring

the land,
הָאָ֑רֶץ (hā·’ā·reṣ)
Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 776: Earth, land


Links
Numbers 13:25 NIV
Numbers 13:25 NLT
Numbers 13:25 ESV
Numbers 13:25 NASB
Numbers 13:25 KJV

Numbers 13:25 BibleApps.com
Numbers 13:25 Biblia Paralela
Numbers 13:25 Chinese Bible
Numbers 13:25 French Bible
Numbers 13:25 Catholic Bible

OT Law: Numbers 13:25 They returned from spying out the land (Nu Num.)
Numbers 13:24
Top of Page
Top of Page