English Standard Version

International Standard Version

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 that Moses spoke to the assembly of Israel east of the Jordan River, in the Arabah desert, opposite Suph between Paran, Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Di-zahab.

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

2It takes eleven days to travel from Horeb to Kadesh-barnea via 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,

3On the first day of the eleventh month, in the fortieth year, Moses spoke to the Israelis about everything that the LORD had commanded him concerning 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 took place after he 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,

5East of the Jordan River, in the land of Moab, Moses began to expound this Law:

6“The LORD our God said to us in Horeb, ‘You have stayed long enough at this mountain.

6"The LORD our God spoke to us in Horeb. He said, 'You have been 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.

7Break camp, get going, and proceed to the hill country of the Amorites and all the nearby places in the Arabah desert, the highlands, the foothills, the Negev, the coastal plains, all of the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon as far as the great river, the Euphrates.

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.’

8Look! I've given you the land that lies ahead. Go in and possess the land that I, the LORD, promised to give to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as well as to their descendants.'"

9“At that time I said to you, ‘I am not able to bear you by myself.

9"I also told you at that time that I won't be able to sustain 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 greatly multiplied your numbers, and today you are like the stars in 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 the LORD, the God of your ancestors, increase your numbers a thousand times more, and may he bless you, as he promised you.

12How can I bear by myself the weight and burden of you and your strife?

12How can I bear the burden of you and your bickering all by myself?

13Choose for your tribes wise, understanding, and experienced men, and I will appoint them as your heads.’

13Choose for yourselves wise and discerning men, known to your tribes, and appoint them as your leaders.

14And you answered me, ‘The thing that you have spoken is good for us to do.’

14You answered by saying that this plan is a good thing.

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 chose leaders from your tribes, wise and respected men, and I appointed them over you—commanders of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens.

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 charged your judges at that time, 'When you hold a hearing between brothers, judge fairly between a man and his brother or between foreigners.

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.’

17When you hold a hearing, don't be partial in judgment toward the least important or toward the great. Never fear men, because judgment belongs to God. If the matter is difficult for you, bring it to me for a hearing.'

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

18I charged you at that time that you must do all of these things."

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.

19"Then we set out from Horeb and walked through that vast and dreadful desert, where you observed the road to the Amorite hill country. Just as the LORD our God ordained for us, we finally arrived at 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 told you at that time, 'You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is about to give 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.’

21Look! The LORD your God has given the land that lies before you. Go and possess it, just as the LORD God of your ancestors commanded you. Don't 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.’

22"Then all of you approached me and said: 'Let's send out men in advance of us so they can survey the land and bring back a report to us on how we'll go up to their cities.'

23The thing seemed good to me, and I took twelve men from you, one man from each tribe.

23Because this suggestion seemed good to me, I chose twelve men from among you, one from each tribe.

24And they turned and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied it out.

24Then these men set out, went up to the hill county, reached the Eshcol Valley, and surveyed it.

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 hand-picked some of the fruit of the land, brought it down to us, and gave a report that said, 'The land which the LORD is about to give us is good.'"

26“Yet you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the LORD your God.

26"However, your ancestors didn't go up. Instead, they rebelled 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 murmured in your tents, 'The LORD hates us. He brought us out of the land of Egypt in order to deliver us to the Amorites so he could destroy 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 discouraged us when they said that the people are bigger and taller than we are. Their cities are tall and fortified to the sky, and we also saw the Anakim there.'

29Then I said to you, ‘Do not be in dread or afraid of them.

29"Then I told 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 is the One who will be going ahead of you. He'll fight for you just as he did in Egypt before your eyes.

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.’

31In the desert you saw that the LORD carried you like a man carries his son, on every road you traveled until you reached this place.'

32Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the LORD your God,

32But despite this, you didn't trust in 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 walked ahead of you along the way to scout a place for you to pitch camp—by fire at night and cloud by day—to lead you on the way you should go."

34“And the LORD heard your words and was angered, and he swore,

34"When the LORD heard your complaints, he became angry and declared,

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

35I swear that not one man of this evil generation will see the good land that I promised to give to your ancestors,

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 Jephunneh's son Caleb. He will see it and I will give to him and to his descendants the land on which he has walked because he wholeheartedly followed the LORD.'

37Even with me the LORD was angry on your account and said, ‘You also shall not go in there.

37"The LORD was also furious with me because of you. He said: 'You will not enter the land.

38Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall enter. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.

38However, Nun's son Joshua, your assistant, will go there. Encourage him, for he will cause Israel to take possession of 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 ones—whom you said would be taken captive—and your children who do not yet know right from wrong will enter the land. I will give it to them and they themselves will possess it.

40But as for you, turn, and journey into the wilderness in the direction of the Red Sea.’

40But as for you, prepare to set out for the desert on the way to the Reed 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.

41"You responded to me and said, 'We have sinned against the LORD. We will now go up and fight according to what the LORD our God commanded.' So each man put on his weapon for battle and recklessly started out for 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.’

42"Then the LORD told me: 'Tell them not to go up and fight because I will not be in their midst, or else you will be defeated before 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.

43"I spoke to you but you didn't listen. Instead you rebelled against the command of the LORD and went up to 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.

44The Amorites who lived in the hill country came out to engage you in battle. They pursued you like bees do and crushed you from Seir to Hormah.

45And you returned and wept before the LORD, but the LORD did not listen to your voice or give ear to you.

45You returned and cried out in the LORD's presence, but the LORD didn't hear your voice or listen to you.

46So you remained at Kadesh many days, the days that you remained there.

46You remained in Kadesh for many days. It was a long time, indeed."

ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved.

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