Numbers 14:5

14:5 Then Moses and Aaron fell down with their faces to the ground ¹  before the whole assembled community ²  of the Israelites.

Numbers 16:4

16:4 When Moses heard it he fell down with his face to the ground. ³ 

Numbers 16:21-22

16:21 “Separate yourselves ⁴  from among this community, ⁵  that I may consume them in an instant.” 16:22 Then they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground ⁶  and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all people, ⁷  will you be angry with the whole community when only one man sins?” ⁸ 

Numbers 16:45

16:45 “Get away from this community, so that I can consume them in an instant!” But they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground. ⁹ 

Deuteronomy 9:18

9:18 Then I again fell down before the Lord for forty days and nights; I ate and drank nothing because of all the sin you had committed, doing such evil before the Lord as to enrage him.

Joshua 7:6

7:6 Joshua tore his clothes; ¹⁰  he and the leaders ¹¹  of Israel lay face down on the ground before the ark of the Lord until evening ¹²  and threw dirt on their heads. ¹³ 

Joshua 7:1

Achan Sins and is Punished

7:1 But the Israelites disobeyed the command about the city’s riches. ¹⁴  Achan son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, ¹⁵  son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, stole some of the riches. ¹⁶  The Lord was furious with the Israelites. ¹⁷ 

Joshua 21:16

21:16 Ain, Juttah, and Beth Shemesh, along with the grazing areas of each – a total of nine cities taken from these two tribes.

Ezra 9:5

9:5 At the time of the evening offering I got up from my self-abasement, ¹⁸  with my tunic and robe torn, and then dropped to my knees and spread my hands to the Lord my God.

[14:5]  ¹ sn This action of Moses and Aaron is typical of them in the wilderness with the Israelites. The act shows self-abasement and deference before the sovereign Lord. They are not bowing before the people here, but in front of the people they bow before God. According to Num 17:6-15 this prostration is for the purpose of intercessory prayer. Here it prevents immediate wrath from God.

[14:5]  ² tn Heb “before all the assembly of the congregation.”

[16:4]  ³ tn Heb “fell on his face.”

[16:21]  ⁴ tn The verb is הִבָּדְלוּ (hibbadÿlu), the Niphal imperative of בָּדַל (badal). This is the same word that was just used when Moses reminded the Levites that they had been separated from the community to serve the Lord.

[16:21]  ⁵ sn The group of people siding with Korah is meant, and not the entire community of the people of Israel. They are an assembly of rebels, their “community” consisting in their common plot.

[16:22]  ⁶ sn It is Moses and Aaron who prostrate themselves; they have the good of the people at heart.

[16:22]  ⁷ tn The expression “the God of the spirits of all humanity [flesh]” is somewhat difficult. The Hebrew text says אֱלֹהֵי הָרוּחֹת לְכָל־בָּשָׂר (’elohey harukhot lÿkhol-basar). This expression occurs in Num 27:16 again. It also occurs in some postbiblical texts, a fact which has prompted some scholars to conclude that it is a late addition. The words clearly show that Moses is interceding for the congregation. The appeal in the verse is that it is better for one man to die for the whole nation than the whole nation for one man (see also John 11:50).

[16:22]  ⁸ tn The verb is the Qal imperfect יֶחֱטָא (yekheta’); it refers to the sinful rebellion of Korah, but Moses is stating something of a principle: “One man sins, and will you be angry….” A past tense translation would assume that this is a preterite use of the imperfect (without vav [ו] consecutive).

[16:45]  ⁹ tn Heb “they fell on their faces.”

[7:6]  ¹⁰ sn Tearing one’s clothes was an outward expression of extreme sorrow (see Gen 37:34; 44:13).

[7:6]  ¹¹ tn Or “elders.”

[7:6]  ¹² tn Heb “and fell on his face to the ground before the ark of the Lord until evening, he and the elders of Israel.”

[7:6]  ¹³ sn Throwing dirt on one’s head was an outward expression of extreme sorrow (see Lam 2:10; Ezek 27:30).

[7:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “But the sons of Israel were unfaithful with unfaithfulness concerning what was set apart [to the Lord].”

[7:1]  ¹⁵ tn 1 Chr 2:6 lists a “Zimri” (but no Zabdi) as one of the five sons of Zerah (cf. also 1 Chr 7:17, 18).

[7:1]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “took from what was set apart [to the Lord].”

[7:1]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel.”

[9:5]  ¹⁸ tn The Hebrew word used here is a hapax legomenon. It refers to the self-abasement that accompanies religious sorrow and fasting.