Commentaries:
Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown
their defence is departed—Hebrew, "their shadow." The Sultan of Turkey and the Shah of Persia are called "the shadow of God," "the refuge of the world." So that the meaning of the clause, "their defence is departed from them," is, that the favor of God was now lost to those whose iniquities were full (Genesis 15:16), and transferred to the Israelites.
Other Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown entries containing Numbers 14:9:
Isaiah 8:10
Isaiah 9:12
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