Numbers 12:8

Verse

I speak with him face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the LORD. Why then were you unafraid to speak against My servant Moses?”

American Standard Version (1901)

with him will I speak mouth to mouth, even manifestly, and not in dark speeches; and the form of Jehovah shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses?

Bible in Basic English

With him I will have talk mouth to mouth, openly and not in dark sayings; and with his eyes he will see the form of the Lord: why then had you no fear of saying evil against my servant Moses?

Free Bible Version

I talk to him personally, face to face. I speak plainly, not in riddles. He sees the likeness of the Lord. So why weren't you afraid when you criticized my servant Moses?”

King James (Authorized) Version

With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?

One Unity Resource Bible

With him, I will speak mouth to mouth, even plainly, and not in riddles; and he shall see Adonai ’s form. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses [Drawn out]?”

Translation for Translators

So I talk to him face-to-face. I speak to him ◄clearly/using words that he will understand easily►, not using parables. He has even seen what I look like. So you should be afraid to criticize my servant Moses!”

Unlocked Literal Bible

I speak to Moses directly, not with visions or riddles. He sees my form. So why are you unafraid to speak against my servant, against Moses?”

Noah Webster Bible

With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: why then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?

World English Bible

With him, I will speak mouth to mouth, even plainly, and not in riddles; and he shall see Yahweh’s form. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses?”

Young's Literal Translation

mouth unto mouth I speak with him, and [by] an appearance, and not in riddles; and the form of Jehovah he beholdeth attentively; and wherefore have ye not been afraid to speak against My servant — against Moses?'

Context

The Complaint of Miriam and Aaron

⁷But this is not so with My servant Moses; he is faithful in all My house. ⁸I speak with him face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the LORD. Why then were you unafraid to speak against My servant Moses?”⁹So the anger of the LORD burned against them, and He departed.

Sermons

Manifest Presence of God - Part 4

Walter Beuttler

Summary

In Numbers 12:8, God affirms that He speaks to prophets in visions and dreams, but with Moses, He speaks face to face, clearly and not in riddles. This verse highlights the unique relationship Moses had with God, characterized by direct communication and intimacy. It distinguishes Moses as a faithful servant whom God trusts and through whom He reveals His will to the people of Israel. The verse underscores the special role and authority given to Moses as the leader of God's chosen people.

Commentary

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
John Gill

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

with him will I speak mouth to mouth--immediately, not by an interpreter, nor by visionary symbols presented to his fancy. apparently--plainly and surely. not in dark speeches--parables or similitudes. the similitude of the Lord shall he behold--not the face or essence of God, who is invisible (Exo 33:20; Col 1:15; Joh 1:18); but some unmistakable evidence of His glorious presence (Exo 33:2; Exo 34:5). The latter clause should have been conjoined with the preceding one, thus: "not in dark speeches, and in a figure shall he behold the Lord." The slight change in the punctuation removes all appearance of contradiction to Deu 4:15.

John Gill Bible Commentary

With him will I speak mouth to mouth,.... And face to face, as he had done, Exo 33:11; in a free, friendly, and familiar manner, as one friend speaks to another, without injecting any fear or dread, and consternation of mind, which was sometimes the case of the prophets; or without a middle person, a mediator, as Aben Ezra, not by means of an angel, as in some cases, but the Lord himself spake to him: even apparently, and not in dark speeches; the word "apparently", or "vision", being opposed to "dark speeches", shows that this is not to be understood of the appearance or vision of an object presented to the sight, or to the mind, which is denied of Moses, though usual with other prophets; but of the vision, or plain sense and meaning of words, which are so plainly expressed, that the sense is easily seen and understood; it was not under figures and allegories, and parables and dark representations of things, that the law of the decalogue, and other laws, statutes, and ordinances, and the proclamation the Lord made of himself, as the Lord gracious, merciful, &c. were delivered unto Moses, but in plain words and clear expressions; not in such enigmatical, parabolical, and allegorical terms as many of the visions and prophecies of Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Amos, and Zechariah, were exhibited to them; See Gill on Num 12:6, and the similitude of the Lord shall he behold: as he had at the burning bush, and at Mount Sinai, with the elders of Israel, and when the Lord proclaimed his name before him; at which several times it is highly probable he beheld the Lord, even the Lord Christ, in an human form, as a presage of his future incarnation, and as he might also after this: the Targum of Jonathan is,"the similitude which is after my Shechinah (or divine Majesty) he saw;''that is, his back parts, as Jarchi, and other Jewish writers, interpret it; but Bishop Patrick thinks the word not should be repeated from the preceding clause, and that the sense is, that he did not behold him in similitudes, nor did the Lord speak to him by them, as to other prophets, see Hos 12:10, wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses? or against my servant, against Moses; against any servant of mine, but especially against Moses, so faithful in my house, so much approved of and honoured by me, and so superior to all other prophets.