| English Standard Version | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel beyond the Jordan in the wilderness, in the Arabah opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab. | 1These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel across the Jordan in the wilderness, in the Arabah opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Di-zahab. |
| 2It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to Kadesh-barnea. | 2It is an eleven-day journey from Horeb to Kadesh-barnea by way of Mount Seir. |
| 3In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses spoke to the people of Israel according to all that the LORD had given him in commandment to them, | 3In the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first of the month, Moses told the Israelites everything the LORD had commanded him to say to them. |
| 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 in Edrei. | 4This was after he had defeated Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth, at Edrei. |
| 5Beyond the Jordan, in the land of Moab, Moses undertook to explain this law, saying, | 5Across the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law, saying:" |
| 6“The LORD our God said to us in Horeb, ‘You have stayed long enough at this mountain. | 6The LORD our God spoke to us at Horeb: 'You have stayed at this mountain long enough. |
| 7Turn and take 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 Negeb and by the seacoast, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river Euphrates. | 7Resume your journey and go to the hill country of the Amorites and their neighbors in the Arabah, the hill country, the Judean foothills, the Negev and the sea coast--to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon as far as the Euphrates River. |
| 8See, I have set the land before you. Go in and take possession of the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their offspring after them.’ | 8See, I have set the land before you. Enter and take possession of the land the LORD swore to give to your fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and their future descendants.'" |
| 9“At that time I said to you, ‘I am not able to bear you by myself. | 9I said to you at that time: I can't bear the responsibility for you on my own. |
| 10The LORD your God has multiplied you, and behold, you are today as numerous as the stars of heaven. | 10The LORD your God has so multiplied you that today you are as numerous as the stars of the sky. |
| 11May the LORD, the God of your fathers, make you a thousand times as many as you are and bless you, as he has promised you! | 11May Yahweh, the God of your fathers, increase you a thousand times more, and bless you as He promised you. |
| 12How can I bear by myself the weight and burden of you and your strife? | 12But how can I bear your troubles, burdens, and disputes by myself? |
| 13Choose for your tribes wise, understanding, and experienced men, and I will appoint them as your heads.’ | 13Appoint for yourselves wise, understanding, and respected men from each of your tribes, and I will make them your leaders." |
| 14And you answered me, ‘The thing that you have spoken is good for us to do.’ | 14You replied to me, 'What you propose to do is good.'" |
| 15So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and experienced men, and set them as heads over you, commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, commanders of fifties, commanders of tens, and officers, throughout your tribes. | 15So I took the leaders of your tribes, wise and respected men, and set them over you as leaders: officials for thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, and officers for your tribes. |
| 16And I charged your judges at that time, ‘Hear the cases between your brothers, and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the alien who is with him. | 16I commanded your judges at that time: Hear the cases between your brothers, and judge rightly between a man and his brother or a foreign resident. |
| 17You shall not be partial in judgment. You shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be intimidated by anyone, for the judgment is God’s. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.’ | 17Do not show partiality when deciding a case; listen to small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. Bring me any case too difficult for you, and I will hear it. |
| 18And I commanded you at that time all the things that you should do. | 18At that time I commanded you about all the things you were to do." |
| 19“Then we set out from Horeb and went through all that great and terrifying wilderness that you saw, on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us. And we came to Kadesh-barnea. | 19We then set out from Horeb and went across all the great and terrible wilderness you saw on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, just as the LORD our God had commanded us. When we reached Kadesh-barnea, |
| 20And I said to you, ‘You have come to the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us. | 20I said to you: You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us. |
| 21See, the LORD your God has set the land before you. Go up, take possession, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has told you. Do not fear or be dismayed.’ | 21See, the LORD your God has set the land before you. Go up and take possession of it as Yahweh, the God of your fathers, has told you. Do not be afraid or discouraged." |
| 22Then all of you came near me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, that they may explore the land for us and bring us word again of the way by which we must go up and the cities into which we shall come.’ | 22Then all of you approached me and said, 'Let's send men ahead of us, so that they may explore the land for us and bring us back a report about the route we should go up and the cities we will come to.' |
| 23The thing seemed good to me, and I took twelve men from you, one man from each tribe. | 23The plan seemed good to me, so I selected 12 men from among you, one man for each tribe. |
| 24And they turned and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied it out. | 24They left and went up into the hill country and came to the Valley of Eshcol, scouting the land. |
| 25And they took in their hands some of the fruit of the land and brought it down to us, and brought us word again and said, ‘It is a good land that the LORD our God is giving us.’ | 25They took some of the fruit from the land in their hands, carried it down to us, and brought us back a report: 'The land the LORD our God is giving us is good.'" |
| 26“Yet you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the LORD your God. | 26But you were not willing to go up, rebelling against the command of the LORD your God. |
| 27And you murmured in your tents and said, ‘Because the LORD hated us he has brought us out of the land of Egypt, to give us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. | 27You grumbled in your tents and said, 'The LORD brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites so they would destroy us, because He hated us. |
| 28Where are we going up? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, “The people are greater and taller than we. The cities are great and fortified up to heaven. And besides, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there.”’ | 28Where can we go? Our brothers have discouraged us, saying: The people are larger and taller than we are; the cities are large, fortified to the heavens. We also saw the descendants of the Anakim there.'" |
| 29Then I said to you, ‘Do not be in dread or afraid of them. | 29So I said to you: Don't be terrified or afraid of them! |
| 30The LORD your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, | 30The LORD your God who goes before you will fight for you, just as you saw Him do for you in Egypt. |
| 31and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ | 31And you saw in the wilderness how the LORD your God carried you as a man carries his son all along the way you traveled until you reached this place. |
| 32Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the LORD your God, | 32But in spite of this you did not trust the LORD your God, |
| 33who went before you in the way to seek you out a place to pitch your tents, in fire by night and in the cloud by day, to show you by what way you should go. | 33who went before you on the journey to seek out a place for you to camp. He went in the fire by night and in the cloud by day to guide you on the road you were to travel." |
| 34“And the LORD heard your words and was angered, and he swore, | 34When the LORD heard your words, He grew angry and swore an oath: |
| 35‘Not one of these men of this evil generation shall see the good land that I swore to give to your fathers, | 35None of these men in this evil generation will see the good land I swore to give your fathers, |
| 36except Caleb the son of Jephunneh. He shall see it, and to him and to his children I will give the land on which he has trodden, because he has wholly followed the LORD!’ | 36except Caleb the son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land on which he has set foot, because he followed the LORD completely.'" |
| 37Even with me the LORD was angry on your account and said, ‘You also shall not go in there. | 37The LORD was angry with me also because of you and said: 'You will not enter there either. |
| 38Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall enter. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it. | 38Joshua son of Nun, who attends you, will enter it. Encourage him, for he will enable Israel to inherit it. |
| 39And as for your little ones, who you said would become a prey, and your children, who today have no knowledge of good or evil, they shall go in there. And to them I will give it, and they shall possess it. | 39Your little children, whom you said would be plunder, your sons who don't know good from evil, will enter there. I will give them the land, and they will take possession of it. |
| 40But as for you, turn, and journey into the wilderness in the direction of the Red Sea.’ | 40But you are to turn back and head for the wilderness by way of the Red Sea.'" |
| 41“Then you answered me, ‘We have sinned against the LORD. We ourselves will go up and fight, just as the LORD our God commanded us.’ And every one of you fastened on his weapons of war and thought it easy to go up into the hill country. | 41You answered me, 'We have sinned against the LORD. We will go up and fight just as the LORD our God commanded us.' Then each of you put on his weapons of war and thought it would be easy to go up into the hill country." |
| 42And the LORD said to me, ‘Say to them, Do not go up or fight, for I am not in your midst, lest you be defeated before your enemies.’ | 42But the LORD said to me, 'Tell them: Don't go up and fight, for I am not with you to keep you from being defeated by your enemies.' |
| 43So I spoke to you, and you would not listen; but you rebelled against the command of the LORD and presumptuously went up into the hill country. | 43So I spoke to you, but you didn't listen. You rebelled against the LORD's command and defiantly went up into the hill country. |
| 44Then the Amorites who lived in that hill country came out against you and chased you as bees do and beat you down in Seir as far as Hormah. | 44Then the Amorites who lived there came out against you and chased you like a swarm of bees. They routed you from Seir as far as Hormah. |
| 45And you returned and wept before the LORD, but the LORD did not listen to your voice or give ear to you. | 45When you returned, you wept before the LORD, but He didn't listen to your requests or pay attention to you. |
| 46So you remained at Kadesh many days, the days that you remained there. | 46For this reason you stayed in Kadesh as long as you did." |
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