Numbers 32
New English Translation
The Petition of the Reubenites and Gadites
32 [a] Now the Reubenites and the Gadites possessed a very large number of cattle. When they saw that the lands of Jazer and Gilead were ideal for cattle,[b] 2 the Gadites and the Reubenites came and addressed Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the community. They said, 3 “Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam,[c] Nebo, and Beon,[d] 4 the land that the Lord subdued[e] before the community of Israel, is ideal for cattle, and your servants have cattle.” 5 So they said, “If we have found favor in your sight,[f] let this land be given to your servants for our inheritance. Do not have us cross[g] the Jordan River.”[h]
Moses’ Response
6 Moses said to the Gadites and the Reubenites, “Must your brothers go to war while you[i] remain here? 7 Why do you frustrate the intent[j] of the Israelites to cross over into the land that the Lord has given them? 8 Your fathers did the same thing when I sent them from Kadesh Barnea to see the land. 9 When[k] they went up to the Eshcol Valley and saw the land, they frustrated the intent of the Israelites so that they did not enter[l] the land that the Lord had given[m] them. 10 So the anger of the Lord was kindled that day, and he swore, 11 ‘Because they have not followed me wholeheartedly,[n] not[o] one of the men twenty years old and upward[p] who came from Egypt will see the land that I swore to give[q] to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, 12 except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua son of Nun, for they followed the Lord wholeheartedly.’ 13 So the Lord’s anger was kindled against the Israelites, and he made them wander in the wilderness for forty years, until all that generation that had done wickedly before[r] the Lord was finished.[s] 14 Now look, you are standing in your fathers’ place, a brood of sinners, to increase still further the fierce wrath of the Lord against the Israelites. 15 For if you turn away from following him, he will once again abandon[t] them in the wilderness, and you will be the reason for their destruction.”[u]
The Offer of the Reubenites and Gadites
16 Then they came very close to him and said, “We will build sheep folds here for our flocks and cities for our families,[v] 17 but we will maintain ourselves in armed readiness[w] and go before the Israelites until whenever we have brought them to their place. Our descendants will be living in fortified towns as a protection against[x] the inhabitants of the land. 18 We will not return to our homes until every Israelite has his inheritance. 19 For we will not accept any inheritance on the other side of the Jordan River[y] and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us on this eastern side of the Jordan.”
20 Then Moses replied,[z] “If you will do this thing, and if you will arm yourselves for battle before the Lord, 21 and if all your armed men cross the Jordan before the Lord until he drives out his enemies from his presence 22 and the land is subdued before the Lord, then afterward you may return and be free of your obligation to the Lord and to Israel. This land will then be your possession in the Lord’s sight.
23 “But if you do not do this, then look, you will have sinned[aa] against the Lord. And know that your sin will find you out. 24 So build cities for your descendants and pens for your sheep, but do what you have said[ab] you would do.”
25 So the Gadites and the Reubenites replied to Moses, “Your servants will do as my lord commands. 26 Our children, our wives, our flocks, and all our livestock will be there in the cities of Gilead, 27 but your servants will cross over, every man armed for war, to do battle in the Lord’s presence, just as my lord says.”
28 So Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the heads of the families of the Israelite tribes. 29 Moses said to them: “If the Gadites and the Reubenites cross the Jordan with you, each one equipped for battle in the Lord’s presence, and you conquer the land,[ac] then you must allot them the territory of Gilead as their possession. 30 But if they do not cross over with you armed, they must receive possessions among you in Canaan.” 31 Then the Gadites and the Reubenites answered, “Your servants will do what the Lord has spoken.[ad] 32 We will cross armed in the Lord’s presence into the land of Canaan, and then the possession of our inheritance that we inherit will be ours on this side of the Jordan River.”[ae]
Land Assignment
33 So Moses gave to the Gadites, the Reubenites, and to half the tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the realm of King Sihon of the Amorites, and the realm of King Og of Bashan, the entire land with its cities and the territory surrounding them.[af] 34 The Gadites rebuilt Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, 35 Atroth Shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, 36 Beth Nimrah, and Beth Haran as fortified cities, and constructed pens for their flocks. 37 The Reubenites rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim, 38 Nebo, Baal Meon (with a change of name), and Sibmah. They renamed[ag] the cities they built.
39 The descendants of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, took it, and dispossessed the Amorites who were in it. 40 So Moses gave Gilead to Machir, son of Manasseh, and he lived there.[ah] 41 Now Jair son of Manasseh went and captured their small towns and named them Havvoth Jair.[ai] 42 Then Nobah went and captured Kenath and its villages and called it Nobah after his own name.
Footnotes
- Numbers 32:1 sn While the tribes are on the other side of Jordan, the matter of which tribes would settle there has to be discussed. This chapter begins the settlement of Israel into the tribal territories, something to be continued in Joshua. The chapter has the petitions (vv. 1-5), the response by Moses (vv. 6-15), the proposal (vv. 16-27), and the conclusion of the matter (vv. 28-42). For literature on this subject, both critical and conservative, see S. E. Loewenstein, “The Relation of the Settlement of Gad and Reuben in Numbers 32:1-38, Its Background and Its Composition,” Tarbiz 42 (1972): 12-26; J. Mauchline, “Gilead and Gilgal, Some Reflections on the Israelite Occupation of Palestine,” VT 6 (1956): 19-33; and A. Bergmann, “The Israelite Tribe of Half-Manasseh,” JPOS 16 (1936): 224-54.
- Numbers 32:1 tn Heb “the place was a place of/for cattle.”
- Numbers 32:3 tc Smr and the LXX have Sibmah. Cf. v. 38.
- Numbers 32:3 tn Cf. Baal Meon in v. 38.
- Numbers 32:4 tn The verb is the Hiphil perfect of נָכָה (nakhah), a term that can mean “smite, strike, attack, destroy.”
- Numbers 32:5 tn Heb “eyes.”
- Numbers 32:5 tn The verb is the Hiphil jussive from עָבַר (ʿavar, “to cross over”). The idea of “cause to cross” or “make us cross” might be too harsh, but “take across” with the rest of the nation is what they are trying to avoid.
- Numbers 32:5 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Numbers 32:6 tn The vav (ו) is a vav disjunctive prefixed to the pronoun; it fits best here as a circumstantial clause, “while you stay here.”
- Numbers 32:7 tn Heb “heart.” So also in v. 9.
- Numbers 32:9 tn The preterite with vav (ו) consecutive is here subordinated to the parallel yet chronologically later verb in the next clause.
- Numbers 32:9 tn The infinitive construct here with ל (lamed) is functioning as a result clause.
- Numbers 32:9 tn The Lord had not given it yet, but was going to give it. Hence, the perfect should be classified as a perfect of resolve.
- Numbers 32:11 tn The clause is difficult; it means essentially that “they have not made full [their coming] after” the Lord.
- Numbers 32:11 tn The sentence begins with “if they see….” This is the normal way for Hebrew to express a negative oath—“they will by no means see….” The sentence is elliptical; it is saying something like “[May God do so to me] if they see,” meaning they won’t see. Of course here God is taking the oath, which is an anthropomorphic act. He does not need to take an oath, and certainly could not swear by anyone greater, but it communicates to people his resolve.
- Numbers 32:11 tc The LXX adds “those knowing bad and good.”
- Numbers 32:11 tn The words “to give” are not in the Hebrew text but have been supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Numbers 32:13 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
- Numbers 32:13 tn The verb is difficult to translate, since it has the idea of “complete, finish” (תָּמָם, tamam). It could be translated “consumed” in this passage (so KJV, ASV); NASB “was destroyed.”
- Numbers 32:15 tn The construction uses a verbal hendiadys with the verb “to add” serving to modify the main verb.
- Numbers 32:15 tn Heb “and you will destroy all this people.”
- Numbers 32:16 tn Heb “our little ones.”
- Numbers 32:17 tn The MT has חֻשִׁים (khushim); the verbal root is חוּשׁ (khush, “to make haste” or “hurry”). But in light of the Greek and Latin Vulgate the Hebrew should probably be emended to חֲמֻשִׁים (hamushim), a qal passive participle meaning “in battle array.” See further BDB 301 s.v. I חוּשׁ, BDB 332 s.v. חֲמֻשִׁים; HALOT 300 s.v. I חושׁ, חישׁ; HALOT 331 s.v. I חמשׁ.
- Numbers 32:17 tn Heb “from before.”
- Numbers 32:19 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Numbers 32:20 tn Heb “said to them.”
- Numbers 32:23 tn The nuance of the perfect tense here has to be the future perfect.
- Numbers 32:24 tn Heb “that which goes out/has gone out of your mouth.”
- Numbers 32:29 tn Heb “and the land is subdued before you.”
- Numbers 32:31 tn Heb “that which the Lord has spoken to your servants, thus we will do.”
- Numbers 32:32 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Numbers 32:33 tn Heb “the land with its cities in the borders of the cities of the land all around.”
- Numbers 32:38 tn Heb “called names.”
- Numbers 32:40 tn Heb “in it.”
- Numbers 32:41 sn Havvoth Jair. The Hebrew name means “villages of Jair.”
Numbers 32
EasyEnglish Bible
Land on the east side of the Jordan River
32 The people in the tribes of Reuben and Gad had very many animals. They saw that the land in Jazer and Gilead was good for their animals. 2 They went to speak to Moses, Eleazar and the other leaders of the Israelites. 3 They said, ‘The land at Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Beon 4 is good for animals. The Lord has given all this land to us Israelites. We have very many animals, 5 so please let us have this land for our animals. Let us have this land to live on, instead of land on the other side of the Jordan River.’[a]
6 Moses said to the men of Reuben and Gad, ‘The other Israelite tribes will go across the river to fight against the people who live there. It is not fair that you should stay here! 7 If you stay here, the rest of the Israelites may not want to cross the river. Do not stop them going into the land that the Lord has given to them! 8 Your fathers did the same thing when I sent them from Kadesh-Barnea to look at the land of Canaan. 9 They went to Eshcol valley and they saw the land. But they told the Israelites that it was not a good idea to go into Canaan. So the people did not go into the land that the Lord had given to them. 10 As a result, the Lord was very angry with them. 11 He promised, “None of the men that I brought out from Egypt will go into the land. It is the land that I promised to give to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But they have not trusted me completely. So any man who is 20 years old or older will not go into this land. 12 Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun are the only men who will go into the land. They are the only men who trusted me completely.”
13 At that time, the Lord was angry with all the Israelites. He caused them to travel in the desert for 40 years. After that, all the men who had turned against him were dead.’
14 Moses continued to say, ‘Now you are turning against God, as your fathers did. You are as bad as them! You will cause the Lord to be even more angry with the Israelites. 15 If you turn against him, he will leave them here in the desert. If all the Israelite people die, it will be because of you!’
16 The men of Reuben and Gad said to Moses, ‘Let us build strong houses here for our women and our children. We will also build places to keep our animals safe. 17 Then we will be ready to join the other tribes and we will lead them to the battle. While we are fighting, our families will be safe here. The people who live in this land will not be able to hurt them. 18 We will not return to our homes here until all the Israelite tribes receive their own part of the land. 19 We will not receive any of the land on the other side of the Jordan River. Our part of the land will be here, on the east side of the river.’
20 Moses said to the men, ‘You must really do as you have said. You must take your weapons and go to fight for the Lord. 21 Your men must cross over the Jordan River with the other tribes. You must continue to fight until we have won against all our enemies. 22 When the Lord has power over the whole land, then you can return here. You will have done everything that the Lord wants you to do. You will have helped the whole Israelite nation in the way that you should. The Lord will give to you this land on the east side of the Jordan River.
23 But if you do not do what you have promised, that will be a sin against the Lord. And be sure that God will punish you for your sin. 24 So build towns for your families, and build safe places for your animals. But then do everything that you have promised to do.’
25 The men in the tribes of Gad and Reuben said to Moses, ‘Yes sir, we will do what you have said. 26 Our women, children and our animals will stay here in Gilead's towns. 27 But all our men who are able to fight will cross over the river. We will fight on behalf of the Lord, as you have said that we should do.’
28 Moses gave this message to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua the son of Nun and to the leaders of the family clans. 29 He said to them, ‘The men in Reuben's tribe and in Gad's tribe must cross over the Jordan River to fight with you on behalf of the Lord. If they do that, you must give to them the land here in Gilead. When you have won power over the whole land, then this land will belong to them. 30 If they refuse to fight together with the other tribes, they will have no land here. They must have part of the land in Canaan, like the other tribes.’
31 The men in the tribes of Reuben and Gad said, ‘We will do what the Lord has told us to do. 32 We will take our weapons and we will cross over the Jordan River to fight on behalf of the Lord in Canaan. But then we will live in our land here on this side of the river.’
33 So Moses gave to them all the kingdom of Sihon, king of the Amorites and Og, the king of Bashan. He gave to them the land with its towns and all the land round the towns. He gave it to the descendants of Gad and of Reuben and half of the tribe of Joseph's son Manasseh.
34 The men in the tribe of Gad built up again Dibon, Ataroth and Aroer. 35 They also built up again Atroth-Shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, 36 Beth-Nimrah and Beth-Haran. They built houses for their families and their animals. 37 The men in the tribe of Reuben built up again Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim. 38 Nebo, Baal-Meon and Sibmah. They gave new names to the cities that they built up again.
39 The descendants of Makir, the son of Manasseh, attacked Gilead. They sent away the people who lived there. 40 So Moses gave Gilead to the descendants of Makir who was the son of Manasseh. And they lived there. 41 Jair, who was a descendant of Manasseh, attacked some villages. He got power over them and he called them Havvoth-Jair. 42 Nobah attacked Kenath and the villages round it. He called it Nobah, like his own name.
Footnotes
- 32:5 The Israelites were getting near to Canaan from the south-east. They already had power over much of the land east of the Jordan River.
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