🔢WEB · Numbers 20:19
What does Numbers 20:19 mean?
"The children of Israel said to him, “We will go up by the highway; and if we drink your water, I and my livestock, then I will give its price. Only let me, without doing anything else, pass through on my feet.”"
— Numbers 20:19 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
When we cried to Yahweh, he heard our voice, sent an angel, and brought us out of Egypt. Behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the edge of your border.
“Please let us pass through your land. We will not pass through field or through vineyard, neither will we drink from the water of the wells. We will go along the king’s highway. We will not turn away to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed your border.”
Edom said to him, “You shall not pass through me, lest I come out with the sword against you.”
The children of Israel said to him, “We will go up by the highway; and if we drink your water, I and my livestock, then I will give its price. Only let me, without doing anything else, pass through on my feet.”
He said, “You shall not pass through.” Edom came out against him with many people, and with a strong hand.
Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his border, so Israel turned away from him.
They traveled from Kadesh: and the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came to Mount Hor.
Explanation
Numbers 20:19 comes from Israel's second appeal to the king of Edom for permission to pass through his territory on their way toward the Promised Land. In plain language, the Israelites are saying: "We will stick to the main road. If we or our animals drink any of your water, we will pay for it. We only want to walk through your land — nothing more." It's a humble, practical offer meant to reassure a wary neighbor that Israel poses no threat and seeks no free resources, only safe passage.
The context is Numbers 20, during the fortieth year of Israel's wilderness wanderings, as the nation travels from Kadesh toward Canaan. Edom, descended from Esau (Jacob's brother), occupied land that Israel needed to cross. Moses first sent a respectful request (verses 14-17), reminding Edom of their shared ancestry and promising to stay on the King's Highway without touching crops, vineyards, or wells. The king of Edom refused and even sent an army to block them (verse 18, 20). This verse is Israel's follow-up, a second attempt at diplomacy, sweetening the offer by promising payment for any water used. Despite this generous concession
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