The Tribes East of the Jordan
(Deuteronomy 3:12–22; Joshua 13:8–14)

1The childre of Ruben & the chidren of Gad had an exeeding great multitude of cattell: And when they sawe the lande of Iazer, & the lande of Gilead, that it was an apt place for cattell, 2The children of Ruben, and the children of Gad, came & spake vnto Moyses and Eleazar the priest, and vnto the lordes of the congregation, saying: 3The lande of Ataroth & Dibon, Iazer and Nenrah, Hesbon and Elealeh, Sabam, and Nebo, and Beon: 4Which countrey the Lorde smote before the congregation of Israel, is a lande meete for cattell, and we thy seruauntes haue cattell. 5Wherfore said they: If we haue found grace in thy sight, let this lande be geue vnto thy seruauntes to possesse, & bryng vs not ouer Iordane.

6And Moyses sayde vnto the children of Gad and of Ruben: Shall your brethren go to warre, and ye shall sit here? 7Wherfore discourage ye the heart of the children of Israel, that they shoulde not go ouer into the lande which the Lorde hath geuen them? 8Thus dyd your fathers when I sent them from Cades Brnea to see ye lande. 9For when they went vp euen vnto the riuer of Eschol, and sawe the lande, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel, that they should not go into the lande which the Lord hath geue them. 10And the Lordes wrath was kindled the same tyme, and he sware, saying: 11None of the men that came out of Egypt, fro twentie yeres olde & aboue, shall see the lande which I sware vnto Abraham, Isaac, and Iacob, because they haue not wholly folowed me: 12Saue Caleb the sonne of Iephune the Kenesite, and Iosuah the sonne of Nun: for they haue constantly folowed the Lorde. 13And the Lorde was verie angry with Israel, and made them wander in the wildernesse fourtie yeres, vntyll all the generation that had done euyll in the sight of the Lorde, were consumed. 14And beholde, ye are rysen vp in your fathers steade, as an increase of sinfull men, to augment the fierce wrath of the Lorde towarde Israel: 15For if ye turne away from after hym, he wyll yet agayne leaue the people in the wildernesse, and ye shall destroy all this folke.

16And they went neare hym, and sayde: We wyll builde sheepe foldes here for our sheepe & for our cattell, and walled cities for our children: 17But we our selues wyl go redy armed before the children of Israel, vntyll we haue brought them vnto their place: And our children shall dwell in the fensed cities, because of the inhabiters of the lande. 18We wyll not returne vnto our houses, vntyll the children of Israel haue inherited, euery man his inheritaunce: 19Neither wyll we inherite with them on yonder side Iordane forwarde, because our inheritaunce is fallen to vs on this side Iordane eastwarde.

20And Moyses sayde vnto them: If ye wyll do this thyng, and go harnessed before the Lorde to warre, 21And will go all of you in harnesse ouer Iordane before the Lord, vntil he haue cast out his enemies from his sight, 22And vntyll the lande be subdued before the Lorde: then ye shall returne, and be without sinne before the Lorde and before Israel, and this lande shalbe your possession before the Lorde. 23But and if ye wyll not do so, beholde, ye haue sinned agaynst the Lorde: and be sure your sinne wyll finde you out. 24Nowe therfore, builde cities for your children, and foldes for your sheepe, and do that ye haue spoken.

25The children of Gad, and the children of Ruben, spake vnto Moyses, saying: Thy seruauntes wyll do as my Lorde commaundeth. 26Our children, our wyues, our sheepe, and our cattell, shall remayne here in the cities of Gilead: 27But thy seruauntes wyll go all harnessed for the warre, and vnto battayle before the Lorde, as my Lorde sayth.

28And for their sakes, Moyses commaunded Eleazar the priest, & Iosuah the sonne of Nun, and the chiefe fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, 29And Moyses sayde vnto them: If the children of Gad, and the children of Ruben wyl go with you ouer Iordane, all armed, to fyght before the Lorde, then when the lande is subdued before you, ye shall geue them the lande of Gilead to possesse: 30But and if they wyll not go ouer with you in harnesse, they shall haue their possessions among you in the lande of Chanaan. 31And the children of Gad, and the children of Ruben, aunswered, saying: As the Lorde hath sayde vnto thy seruauntes, so wyll we do: 32We wyll go harnessed before ye Lorde into the lande of Chanaan, that the possession of our inheritaunce may be geuen vs on this side Iordane.

33And Moyses gaue vnto the children of Gad, and to the children of Ruben, and vnto halfe the tribe of Manasse the sonne of Ioseph, the kyngdome of Sehon kyng of the Amorites, and the kyngdome of Og kyng of Basan, the lande with the cities therof, in ye coastes and cities of the countrey rounde about. 34And the children of Gad built Dibon, and Ataroth, and Aroer, 35And Atoth, Sophan, Iaaser, and Iogbea, 36Bethnimra, and Betharan, fensed cities: & they built foldes for the sheepe. 37And the children of Ruben built Hesbon, Eleale, Kiriathaim, 38Nebo, Baalmeon, and turned their names, and Sibama also: and gaue other names vnto the cities which they builded. 39And the children of Machir the sonne of Manasse went to Gilead and toke it, and put out the Amorites that dwelt therin. 40And Moyses gaue Gilead vnto Mathir the sonne of Manasse, and he dwelt therin. 41And Iair the sonne of Manasse went and toke the smal townes therof, and called them Hauoth Iair. 42And Nobah went and toke Kenath, and the townes longyng therto, and called it Nobah, after his owne name.