Numbers 33:55
But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then those of them whom you let remain shall be as barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they shall trouble you in the land where you dwell.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
The stark imagery of "barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides" highlights that incomplete obedience isn't a minor oversight; it’s an ongoing, agonizing source of distress that actively works against your well-being in the place God has given you.
This verse comes at the end of a long list of the Israelites' journeyings through the wilderness, just before they are about to enter the Promised Land. God is giving Moses final instructions for the people, emphasizing the critical command to completely drive out the Canaanite inhabitants. Failure to obey this, God warns, will result in those remaining people becoming a persistent source of trouble and affliction for Israel.
Ever found that one small, unresolved issue can become a huge distraction? God’s warning to Israel about the Canaanites left in the land speaks directly to this.
A God-Ordained Cleansing
God's command to Israel was clear: drive out all the inhabitants of Canaan. This wasn't about ethnic cleansing for its own sake, but about protecting Israel from the corrupting influence of Canaanite idolatry and practices.
The Consequences of Compromise
Verse 55 lays out the severe consequences of not fully obeying this command. Those left behind would become like 'barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides' – constant sources of pain, irritation, and distress. This imagery highlights how unaddressed sin or unremoved negative influences can:
Sometimes, the biggest threats aren't external enemies, but the ones we allow to linger within. This verse paints a vivid picture of how that plays out.
More Than Just Physical Threats
The 'inhabitants' left behind weren't just a physical threat; they represented a spiritual danger. They would seduce Israel into idolatry, sexual immorality, and other practices that would incur God's wrath.
The Internalization of Trouble
The imagery of 'barbs' and 'thorns' suggests that the trouble wouldn't just come from external interactions. It would become an internal struggle, a constant source of vexation and distress. Allowing these influences to remain meant inviting ongoing conflict and hindering the promised peace and possession of the land.
Understand the original words
sakkik · Hebrew Noun
Sharp, piercing obstacles; metaphorically used to describe people who cause persistent spiritual irritation, temptation, and affliction to those who fail to follow God’s commands.
This verse serves as a crucial divine warning given just as the Israelites are poised to enter and possess the promised land. It highlights that incomplete obedience, specifically failing to completely remove the land's inhabitants, would lead to continuous internal strife and spiritual corruption, a prophecy fulfilled throughout Israel's history.
c. 1406 BC— this verse
Israel enters Canaan
Following the death of Moses, Joshua leads the Israelites across the Jordan River into the promised land of Canaan, beginning the conquest.
c. 1405-1380 BC
Partial Conquest of Canaan
The Israelites, under Joshua's leadership, conquer significant portions of Canaan but fail to drive out all the inhabitants as commanded by God.
c. 1380 BC
Joshua's Farewell and Warning
As Joshua ages, he gathers the elders of Israel and delivers a final address, reiterating God's commands and warning against intermingling with the remaining Canaanites.
c. 1380 BC onwards
The Period of the Judges
After Joshua's death, Israel enters a period where they are repeatedly oppressed by the very Canaanite peoples they failed to drive out, serving as a stark fulfillment of God's warning.
This passage directly quotes the warning given in Numbers 33:55, showing how the Israelites' failure to drive out the inhabitants led to them becoming 'barbs' and 'thorns' in their sides.
Joshua 23:13Joshua echoes this warning to the Israelites, reminding them that if they allow the Canaanites to remain, they will become scourges and thorns, hindering their peace and relationship with God.
Ezekiel 28:24This prophetic passage uses similar imagery of 'thorns' and 'briars' to describe how surrounding nations that vex Israel will face God's judgment, highlighting the destructive consequences of unaddressed opposition.
Romans 7:23-24Paul describes an inner struggle with sin using the metaphor of a 'law of sin' that enslaves him, akin to the constant harassment described in Numbers 33:55. This shows how unexpelled 'inhabitants' can represent unyielded sin in a believer's life.
clarkeNumbers 33:55: "But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell."
Shall be pricks in your eyes - Under these metaphors, the continual mischief that should be done to them, both in soul and body, by these idolaters, is set forth in a very expressive manner. What can be more vexatious than a continual go…
gillNumbers 33:55: "But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell."
But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land before you,.... Should be remiss and careless about it, and indifferent to it, and not make use of the proper means to get rid of them, but, on the contrary, make covenants with th…
The stark imagery of "barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides" highlights that incomplete obedience isn't a minor oversight; it’s an ongoing, agonizing source of distress that actively works against your well-being in the place God has given you.
This verse comes at the end of a long list of the Israelites' journeyings through the wilderness, just before they are about to enter the Promised Land. God is giving Moses final instructions for the people, emphasizing the critical command to completely drive out the Canaanite inhabitants. Failure to obey this, God warns, will result in those remaining people becoming a persistent source of trouble and affliction for Israel.
This verse comes at the end of a long list of the Israelites' journeyings through the wilderness, just before they are about to enter the Promised Land. God is giving Moses final instructions for the people, emphasizing the critical command to completely drive out the Canaanite inhabitants. Failure to obey this, God warns, will result in those remaining people becoming a persistent source of trouble and affliction for Israel.
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Ask a follow-up
Ask Sola things like:
Live chat about Numbers 33:55 is available in the Sola app.
c. 1000 BC
United Monarchy established
The establishment of the monarchy under Saul, David, and Solomon, represents a high point of Israelite power, yet the underlying issue of unexpelled Canaanites continued to pose threats.
"But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then those of them whom you let remain shall be as barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they shall trouble you in the land where you dwell." — The stark imagery of "barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides" highlights that incomplete obedience isn't a minor oversight; it’s an ongoing, agonizing source of distress that actively works agai…
