Numbers 32
32
Request of Gad and Reuben. 1Now the Reubenites and Gadites had a very large number of livestock. Noticing that the land of Jazer and of Gilead#Gilead: the name of the western part of the plateau east of the Jordan, sometimes signifying the whole region from the Yarmuk to the Jordan, sometimes only the northern part of this region, and sometimes, as here, only its southern part. Jazer lay to the east of southern Gilead. was a place suited to livestock, 2the Gadites and Reubenites came to Moses and Eleazar the priest and to the leaders of the community and said, 3#The places named in this verse, as well as the additional ones given in vv. 34–38, were all in the former kingdom of Sihon, that is, in the region between the Jabbok and the Arnon. Cf. 21:23–24; Jos 13:19–21, 24–27. “The region of Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Baal-meon— 4the land which the Lord has laid low before the community of Israel, is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock.” 5They continued, “If we find favor with you, let this land be given to your servants as their possession. Do not make us cross the Jordan.”
Moses’ Rebuke. 6But Moses answered the Gadites and Reubenites: “Are your kindred, then, to go to war, while you remain here? 7Why do you wish to discourage the Israelites from crossing to the land the Lord has given them? 8That is just what your ancestors did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to reconnoiter the land.#Nm 13:31–33; Dt 1:22. 9They went up to the Wadi Eshcol and reconnoitered the land, then so discouraged the Israelites that they would not enter the land the Lord had given them. 10#Dt 1:34–35. At that time the anger of the Lord flared up, and he swore: 11None of the men twenty years old or more who have come up from Egypt will see the land I promised under oath to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, because they have not followed me unreservedly— 12#Nm 14:24; Dt 1:36. except the Kenizzite#Kenizzite: a member of the clan of Kenaz, which, according to Gn 36:11, 15, 42, was Edomite; but, according to Nm 13:6; 34:19, Caleb belonged to the tribe of Judah; cf. also Jos 14:6, 14. Caleb, son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite, and Joshua, son of Nun, since they have followed the Lord unreservedly. 13So the anger of the Lord flared up against the Israelites and he made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until the whole generation that had done evil in the sight of the Lord had disappeared. 14And now here you are, offspring of sinful stock, rising up in your ancestors’ place to add still more to the Lord’s blazing anger against the Israelites. 15If you turn away from following him, he will again abandon them in the wilderness, and you will bring about the ruin of this entire people.”
Counter Proposal. 16But they approached him and said: “We will only build sheepfolds here for our flocks and towns for our families; 17but we ourselves will march as troops in the vanguard before the Israelites,#Jos 4:12–13. until we have led them to their destination. Meanwhile our families will remain in the fortified towns because of the land’s inhabitants. 18We will not return to our homes until all the Israelites have taken possession of their heritage. 19#Jos 13:8. But we will not claim any heritage with them across the Jordan and beyond, because we have received a heritage for ourselves on the eastern side of the Jordan.”
Agreement Reached. 20#Since the ark of the Lord was carried into battle with the Israelite army, the vanguard was said to march before the Lord (see Jos 6:6–9). Moses said to them in reply: “If you do this—if you march as troops before the Lord into battle 21and cross the Jordan in full force before the Lord until he has driven his enemies out of his way 22and the land is subdued before the Lord, then you may return here, free from every obligation to the Lord and to Israel, and this land will be your possession before the Lord.#Jos 1:15. 23But if you do not do this, you will have sinned against the Lord, and you can be sure that the consequences of your sin will overtake you. 24Build the towns, then, for your families, and the folds for your flocks, but fulfill what you have promised.”
25The Gadites and Reubenites answered Moses, “Your servants will do as my lord commands. 26#Jos 1:14. While our wives and children, our livestock and other animals remain there in the towns of Gilead, 27all your servants will go across as armed troops before the Lord to battle, just as my lord says.”
28So Moses gave this command in their regard to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua, son of Nun, and to the heads of the ancestral houses of the Israelite tribes: 29He said to them, “If all the Gadites and Reubenites cross the Jordan with you in full force before the Lord into battle, the land will be subdued before you, and you will give them Gilead as a possession. 30But if they will not go across in force with you before the Lord, you will bring their wives and children and livestock across before you into Canaan, and they will possess a holding among you in the land of Canaan.”
31To this the Gadites and Reubenites replied, “We will do what the Lord has ordered your servants. 32We ourselves will go across in force before the Lord into the land of Canaan, but we will retain our hereditary property on this side of the Jordan.”#This side of the Jordan: lit., “beyond the Jordan”; the perspective in Hebrew is from the west bank looking toward the east bank where the Reubenites and Gadites finally settled. 33So Moses gave them—#The preceding is concerned solely with the two tribes of Gad and Reuben and with the land of the former kingdom of Sihon; it seems probable that the sudden reference here to the half-tribe of Manasseh and to their territory in Bashan, the former kingdom of Og, is a later addition to the text.the Gadites and Reubenites, as well as half the tribe of Manasseh, son of Joseph—the kingdom of Sihon, king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og, king of Bashan, the land with its towns, and the districts of the surrounding towns.#Dt 3:12; 29:7; Jos 12:6; 13:8.
34The Gadites rebuilt the cities of Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, 35Atroth-shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, 36Beth-nimrah and Beth-haran—fortified cities—and sheepfolds. 37The Reubenites rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim, 38Nebo, Baal-meon (names to be changed!),#The phrase in parentheses is probably a gloss, warning the reader perhaps to substitute some other word for Nebo and Baal, the names of foreign deities mentioned in the last two city names. They called by their old names: lit., “they called by their names”; however, some understand the current Hebrew text to mean, “they called by new names,” or “their own names.” and Sibmah. These towns, which they rebuilt, they called by their old names.
Other Conquests. 39The descendants of Machir, son of Manasseh, went to Gilead and captured it, dispossessing the Amorites who were there. 40(Moses gave Gilead to Machir,#Dt 3:15. son of Manasseh, and he settled there.) 41Jair,#Dt 3:14. a descendant of Manasseh, went and captured their tent villages, and called them Havvoth-jair.#Havvoth-jair: that is, “villages of Jair.” 42Nobah went and captured Kenath with its dependencies and called it Nobah after his own name.
Currently Selected:
Numbers 32: NABRE
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Numbers 32
32
The Transjordan tribes
1The Reubenites and Gadites, who had very large herds and flocks, saw that the lands of Jazer and Gilead were suitable for livestock. 2So they came to Moses and Eleazar the priest and to the leaders of the community, and said, 3‘Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Beon – 4the land the Lord subdued before the people of Israel – are suitable for livestock, and your servants have livestock. 5If we have found favour in your eyes,’ they said, ‘let this land be given to your servants as our possession. Do not make us cross the Jordan.’
6Moses said to the Gadites and Reubenites, ‘Should your fellow Israelites go to war while you sit here? 7Why do you discourage the Israelites from crossing over into the land the Lord has given them? 8This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh Barnea to look over the land. 9After they went up to the Valley of Eshkol and viewed the land, they discouraged the Israelites from entering the land the Lord had given them. 10The Lord’s anger was aroused that day and he swore this oath: 11“Because they have not followed me wholeheartedly, not one of those who were twenty years old or more when they came up out of Egypt will see the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – 12not one except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua son of Nun, for they followed the Lord wholeheartedly.” 13The Lord’s anger burned against Israel and he made them wander in the wilderness for forty years, until the whole generation of those who had done evil in his sight was gone.
14‘And here you are, a brood of sinners, standing in the place of your fathers and making the Lord even more angry with Israel. 15If you turn away from following him, he will again leave all this people in the wilderness, and you will be the cause of their destruction.’
16Then they came up to him and said, ‘We would like to build pens here for our livestock and cities for our women and children. 17But we will arm ourselves for battle#32:17 Septuagint; Hebrew will be quick to arm ourselves and go ahead of the Israelites until we have brought them to their place. Meanwhile our women and children will live in fortified cities, for protection from the inhabitants of the land. 18We will not return to our homes until each of the Israelites has received their inheritance. 19We will not receive any inheritance with them on the other side of the Jordan, because our inheritance has come to us on the east side of the Jordan.’
20Then Moses said to them, ‘If you will do this – if you will arm yourselves before the Lord for battle 21and if all of you who are armed cross over the Jordan before the Lord until he has driven his enemies out before him – 22then when the land is subdued before the Lord, you may return and be free from your obligation to the Lord and to Israel. And this land will be your possession before the Lord.
23‘But if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the Lord; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out. 24Build cities for your women and children, and pens for your flocks, but do what you have promised.’
25The Gadites and Reubenites said to Moses, ‘We your servants will do as our lord commands. 26Our children and wives, our flocks and herds will remain here in the cities of Gilead. 27But your servants, every man who is armed for battle, will cross over to fight before the Lord, just as our lord says.’
28Then Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun and to the family heads of the Israelite tribes. 29He said to them, ‘If the Gadites and Reubenites, every man armed for battle, cross over the Jordan with you before the Lord, then when the land is subdued before you, you must give them the land of Gilead as their possession. 30But if they do not cross over with you armed, they must accept their possession with you in Canaan.’
31The Gadites and Reubenites answered, ‘Your servants will do what the Lord has said. 32We will cross over before the Lord into Canaan armed, but the property we inherit will be on this side of the Jordan.’
33Then Moses gave to the Gadites, the Reubenites and the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan – the whole land with its cities and the territory around them.
34The Gadites built up Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, 35Atroth Shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, 36Beth Nimrah and Beth Haran as fortified cities, and built pens for their flocks. 37And the Reubenites rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh and Kiriathaim, 38as well as Nebo and Baal Meon (these names were changed) and Sibmah. They gave names to the cities they rebuilt.
39The descendants of Makir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, captured it and drove out the Amorites who were there. 40So Moses gave Gilead to the Makirites, the descendants of Manasseh, and they settled there. 41Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, captured their settlements and called them Havvoth Jair.#32:41 Or them the settlements of Jair 42And Nobah captured Kenath and its surrounding settlements and called it Nobah after himself.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
The Holy Bible, New International Version® (Anglicised), NIV®
Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission of Biblica, Inc.® All rights reserved worldwide.