NET Bible

New American Standard Bible 1995

1This is what Moses said to the assembly of Israel in the Transjordanian wastelands, the arid country opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Di Zahab

1These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel across the Jordan in the wilderness, in the Arabah opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel and Laban and Hazeroth and Dizahab.

2Now it is ordinarily an eleven-day journey from Horeb to Kadesh Barnea by way of Mount Seir.

2It is eleven days' journey from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to Kadesh-barnea.

3However, it was not until the first day of the eleventh month of the fortieth year that Moses addressed the Israelites just as the LORD had instructed him to do.

3In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses spoke to the children of Israel, according to all that the LORD had commanded him to give to them,

4This took place after the defeat of King Sihon of the Amorites, whose capital was in Heshbon, and King Og of Bashan, whose capital was in Ashtaroth, specifically in Edrei.

4after he had defeated Sihon the king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth and Edrei.

5So it was in the Transjordan, in Moab, that Moses began to deliver these words:

5Across the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses undertook to expound this law, saying,

6The LORD our God spoke to us at Horeb and said, "You have stayed in the area of this mountain long enough.

6"The LORD our God spoke to us at Horeb, saying, 'You have stayed long enough at this mountain.

7Get up now, resume your journey, heading for the Amorite hill country, to all its areas including the arid country, the highlands, the Shephelah, the Negev, and the coastal plain--all of Canaan and Lebanon as far as the Great River, that is, the Euphrates.

7'Turn and set your journey, and go to the hill country of the Amorites, and to all their neighbors in the Arabah, in the hill country and in the lowland and in the Negev and by the seacoast, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river Euphrates.

8Look! I have already given the land to you. Go, occupy the territory that I, the LORD, promised to give to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to their descendants."

8'See, I have placed the land before you; go in and possess the land which the LORD swore to give to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to them and their descendants after them.'

9I also said to you at that time, "I am no longer able to sustain you by myself.

9"I spoke to you at that time, saying, 'I am not able to bear the burden of you alone.

10The LORD your God has increased your population to the point that you are now as numerous as the very stars of the sky.

10'The LORD your God has multiplied you, and behold, you are this day like the stars of heaven in number.

11Indeed, may the LORD, the God of your ancestors, make you a thousand times more numerous than you are now, blessing you just as he said he would!

11'May the LORD, the God of your fathers, increase you a thousand-fold more than you are and bless you, just as He has promised you!

12But how can I alone bear up under the burden of your hardship and strife?

12'How can I alone bear the load and burden of you and your strife?

13Select wise and practical men, those known among your tribes, whom I may appoint as your leaders."

13'Choose wise and discerning and experienced men from your tribes, and I will appoint them as your heads.'

14You replied to me that what I had said to you was good.

14"You answered me and said, 'The thing which you have said to do is good.'

15So I chose as your tribal leaders wise and well-known men, placing them over you as administrators of groups of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, and also as other tribal officials.

15"So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and experienced men, and appointed them heads over you, leaders of thousands and of hundreds, of fifties and of tens, and officers for your tribes.

16I furthermore admonished your judges at that time that they should pay attention to issues among your fellow citizens and judge fairly, whether between one citizen and another or a citizen and a resident foreigner.

16"Then I charged your judges at that time, saying, 'Hear the cases between your fellow countrymen, and judge righteously between a man and his fellow countryman, or the alien who is with him.

17They must not discriminate in judgment, but hear the lowly and the great alike. Nor should they be intimidated by human beings, for judgment belongs to God. If the matter being adjudicated is too difficult for them, they should bring it before me for a hearing.

17'You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God's. The case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.'

18So I instructed you at that time regarding everything you should do.

18"I commanded you at that time all the things that you should do.

19Then we left Horeb and passed through all that immense, forbidding wilderness that you saw on the way to the Amorite hill country as the LORD our God had commanded us to do, finally arriving at Kadesh Barnea.

19"Then we set out from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, just as the LORD our God had commanded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea.

20Then I said to you, "You have come to the Amorite hill country which the LORD our God is about to give us.

20"I said to you, 'You have come to the hill country of the Amorites which the LORD our God is about to give us.

21Look, he has placed the land in front of you! Go up, take possession of it, just as the LORD, the God of your ancestors, said to do. Do not be afraid or discouraged!"

21'See, the LORD your God has placed the land before you; go up, take possession, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has spoken to you. Do not fear or be dismayed.'

22So all of you approached me and said, "Let's send some men ahead of us to scout out the land and bring us back word as to how we should attack it and what the cities are like there."

22"Then all of you approached me and said, 'Let us send men before us, that they may search out the land for us, and bring back to us word of the way by which we should go up and the cities which we shall enter.'

23I thought this was a good idea, so I sent twelve men from among you, one from each tribe.

23"The thing pleased me and I took twelve of your men, one man for each tribe.

24They left and went up to the hill country, coming to the Eshcol Valley, which they scouted out.

24"They turned and went up into the hill country, and came to the valley of Eshcol and spied it out.

25Then they took some of the produce of the land and carried it back down to us. They also brought a report to us, saying, "The land that the LORD our God is about to give us is good."

25"Then they took some of the fruit of the land in their hands and brought it down to us; and they brought us back a report and said, 'It is a good land which the LORD our God is about to give us.'

26You were not willing to go up, however, but instead rebelled against the LORD your God.

26"Yet you were not willing to go up, but rebelled against the command of the LORD your God;

27You complained among yourselves privately and said, "Because the LORD hates us he brought us from Egypt to deliver us over to the Amorites so they could destroy us!

27and you grumbled in your tents and said, 'Because the LORD hates us, He has brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites to destroy us.

28What is going to happen to us? Our brothers have drained away our courage by describing people who are more numerous and taller than we are, and great cities whose defenses appear to be as high as heaven itself! Moreover, they said they saw Anakites there."

28'Where can we go up? Our brethren have made our hearts melt, saying, "The people are bigger and taller than we; the cities are large and fortified to heaven. And besides, we saw the sons of the Anakim there."'

29So I responded to you, "Do not be terrified of them!

29"Then I said to you, 'Do not be shocked, nor fear them.

30The LORD your God is about to go ahead of you; he will fight for you, just as you saw him do in Egypt

30'The LORD your God who goes before you will Himself fight on your behalf, just as He did for you in Egypt before your eyes,

31and in the desert, where you saw him carrying you along like a man carries his son. This he did everywhere you went until you came to this very place."

31and in the wilderness where you saw how the LORD your God carried you, just as a man carries his son, in all the way which you have walked until you came to this place.'

32However, through all this you did not have confidence in the LORD your God,

32"But for all this, you did not trust the LORD your God,

33the one who was constantly going before you to find places for you to set up camp. He appeared by fire at night and cloud by day, to show you the way you ought to go.

33who goes before you on your way, to seek out a place for you to encamp, in fire by night and cloud by day, to show you the way in which you should go.

34When the LORD heard you, he became angry and made this vow:

34"Then the LORD heard the sound of your words, and He was angry and took an oath, saying,

35"Not a single person of this evil generation will see the good land that I promised to give to your ancestors!

35'Not one of these men, this evil generation, shall see the good land which I swore to give your fathers,

36The exception is Caleb son of Jephunneh; he will see it and I will give him and his descendants the territory on which he has walked, because he has wholeheartedly followed me."

36except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him and to his sons I will give the land on which he has set foot, because he has followed the LORD fully.'

37As for me, the LORD was also angry with me on your account. He said, "You also will not be able to go there.

37"The LORD was angry with me also on your account, saying, 'Not even you shall enter there.

38However, Joshua son of Nun, your assistant, will go. Encourage him, because he will enable Israel to inherit the land.

38'Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall enter there; encourage him, for he will cause Israel to inherit it.

39Also, your infants, who you thought would die on the way, and your children, who as yet do not know good from bad, will go there; I will give them the land and they will possess it.

39'Moreover, your little ones who you said would become a prey, and your sons, who this day have no knowledge of good or evil, shall enter there, and I will give it to them and they shall possess it.

40But as for you, turn back and head for the desert by the way to the Red Sea."

40'But as for you, turn around and set out for the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.'

41Then you responded to me and admitted, "We have sinned against the LORD. We will now go up and fight as the LORD our God has told us to do." So you each put on your battle gear and prepared to go up to the hill country.

41"Then you said to me, 'We have sinned against the LORD; we will indeed go up and fight, just as the LORD our God commanded us.' And every man of you girded on his weapons of war, and regarded it as easy to go up into the hill country.

42But the LORD told me: "Tell them this: 'Do not go up and fight, because I will not be with you and you will be defeated by your enemies.'"

42"And the LORD said to me, 'Say to them, "Do not go up nor fight, for I am not among you; otherwise you will be defeated before your enemies."'

43I spoke to you, but you did not listen. Instead you rebelled against the LORD and recklessly went up to the hill country.

43"So I spoke to you, but you would not listen. Instead you rebelled against the command of the LORD, and acted presumptuously and went up into the hill country.

44The Amorite inhabitants of that area confronted you and chased you like a swarm of bees, striking you down from Seir as far as Hormah.

44"The Amorites who lived in that hill country came out against you and chased you as bees do, and crushed you from Seir to Hormah.

45Then you came back and wept before the LORD, but he paid no attention to you whatsoever.

45"Then you returned and wept before the LORD; but the LORD did not listen to your voice nor give ear to you.

46Therefore, you remained at Kadesh for a long time--indeed, for the full time.

46"So you remained in Kadesh many days, the days that you spent there.

NET Bible copyright © 1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. //netbible.com. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org