Numbers 33:55-56
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The "pricks in your eyes" and "thorns in your sides" aren't just about annoyance; they represent deeply personal, intimate sources of pain and distress. This language vividly describes how these remaining people will constantly agitate, undermine, and corrupt the Israelites from within their very homes and families, hindering their ability to truly live in the land God gave them.
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. And I will do to you as I thought to do to them.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
This verse appears at the end of a long list detailing the Israelites' journey through the wilderness, just as they are about to enter the Promised Land. It's a final, stark warning from God, building on the commands in Joshua 23:12-13, about the consequences of failing to fully drive out the Canaanite peoples. If they allow these nations to remain, they will become a constant, painful irritancy, causing immense trouble and likely drawing God’s judgment upon Israel, just as had been threatened to the Canaanites themselves.
Imagine a tiny splinter in your eye or a thorn digging into your side. How long before it drives you crazy? Numbers 33:55 paints a vivid picture of the consequences of not fully obeying God.
A Persistent Irritation
God's command to the Israelites was clear: drive out all the inhabitants of Canaan. Why such a harsh directive?
This verse reveals the reason: any remnant left behind would become a source of constant torment. The imagery of "barbs in your eyes" and "thorns in your sides" isn't just about physical discomfort. It speaks to a deep, persistent spiritual affliction.
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Why does God seem so severe in His commands? Numbers 33:55 is a stark warning, but it's balanced by God's profound desire for His people's well-being.
The Severity of Sin, The Depth of God's Love
This verse isn't just about the Israelites' failure; it's a window into God's character and His passionate desire for His people's holiness.
This isn't a God who delights in destruction, but a God who demands purity to preserve His people and His covenant relationship with them.
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.
chasab · Hebrew Verb
In this context, it refers to the divine intention or purposeful decree of God. Biblically, it signifies the settled determination or plan of the Almighty, which remains sovereign and inevitably leads to the execution of His will.
This verse serves as a stark warning issued just as the Israelites are poised to enter the Promised Land. It's a prophetic declaration that incomplete obedience in expelling the existing inhabitants will lead to ongoing internal strife and spiritual corruption, a consequence tragically borne out in the subsequent history of Israel, particularly during the era of the Judges.
c. 1406 BC— this verse
Conquest of Canaan Begins
Following God's command, Joshua leads the Israelites across the Jordan River to begin the military conquest of Canaan.
c. 1405-1380 BC
Partial Conquest of Canaan
The Israelites achieve significant military victories, dividing the land among the tribes. However, they fail to completely drive out all inhabitants as commanded.
c. 1380 BC
Judges Era Begins
With the conquest incomplete, the remaining Canaanites become a persistent source of conflict and oppression for the Israelites, leading to the period of the Judges.
c. 1000 BC
Davidic Monarchy Established
King David finally brings many of the Canaanite strongholds under Israelite control, but full eradication remains elusive.
This passage directly echoes the warning in Numbers 33:55, stating that if Israel fails to drive out the remaining inhabitants, they will become scourges and thorns in their sides, confirming the dire consequences of disobedience.
Judges 2:3This verse recounts how the Israelites' failure to drive out the Canaanites led to them becoming 'barbs' in their sides, directly fulfilling the prophecy given in Numbers 33:55 and illustrating the practical outcome of this unheeded warning.
Ezekiel 28:24This prophetic oracle uses similar imagery of 'prickly plants' and 'piercing thorns' to describe the nations surrounding Israel that cause them grief, paralleling the persistent trouble the Canaanites would bring if left among them.
Romans 11:21Paul uses the analogy of wild olive branches grafted into a cultivated tree to warn the Gentiles not to boast over the natural branches (Israel), implying that if God did not spare them, He may not spare the grafted ones either, reflecting the idea that corrupted elements can harm the whole.
1 Corinthians 15:33This verse cautions against bad company, stating that 'bad company ruins good morals,' which strongly resonates with the warning in Numbers that allowing the ungodly Canaanites to remain would corrupt Israel's spiritual 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 "pricks in your eyes" and "thorns in your sides" aren't just about annoyance; they represent deeply personal, intimate sources of pain and distress. This language vividly describes how these remaining people will constantly agitate, undermine, and corrupt the Israelites from within their very homes and families, hindering their ability to truly live in the land God gave them.
This verse appears at the end of a long list detailing the Israelites' journey through the wilderness, just as they are about to enter the Promised Land. It's a final, stark warning from God, building on the commands in Joshua 23:12-13, about the consequences of failing to fully drive out the Canaanite peoples. If they allow these nations to remain, they will become a constant, painful irritancy, causing immense trouble and likely drawing God’s judgment upon Israel, just as had been threatened to the Canaanites themselves.
This verse appears at the end of a long list detailing the Israelites' journey through the wilderness, just as they are about to enter the Promised Land. It's a final, stark warning from God, building on the commands in Joshua 23:12-13, about the consequences of failing to fully drive out the Canaanite peoples. If they allow these nations to remain, they will become a constant, painful irritancy, causing immense trouble and likely drawing God’s judgment upon Israel, just as had been threatened to the Canaanites themselves.
"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. And I will do…" — The "pricks in your eyes" and "thorns in your sides" aren't just about annoyance; they represent deeply personal, intimate sources of pain and distress. This language vividly describes how these rema…
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Last reviewed October 2026
