The Command to Leave Horeb (Exodus 33:1–6)
1 DBY These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel on this side the Jordan, in the wilderness, in the plain, opposite to Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab. BSB BSB: These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel in the wilderness east of the Jordan—in the Arabah opposite Suph—between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab.
2 DBY There are eleven days' journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir to Kadesh-barnea. BSB BSB: It is an eleven-day journey from Horeb to Kadesh-barnea by way of Mount Seir.
3 DBY And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first of the month, that Moses spoke to the children of Israel, according to all that Jehovah had given him in command to them; BSB BSB: In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses proclaimed to the Israelites all that the LORD had commanded him concerning them.
4 DBY after he had smitten Sihon the king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, who dwelt at Ashtaroth and at Edrei. BSB BSB: This was after he had defeated Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and then at Edrei had defeated Og king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth.
5 DBY On this side the Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moses to unfold this law, saying, BSB BSB: On the east side of the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law, saying:
6 DBY Jehovah our God spoke unto us in Horeb, saying, Ye have stayed long enough in this mountain. BSB BSB: The LORD our God said to us at Horeb: “You have stayed at this mountain long enough.
7 DBY Turn and take your journey, and go to the hill-country of the Amorites, and unto all the neighbouring places in the plain, in the mountain, and in the lowland, and in the south, and by the seaside, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates. BSB BSB: Resume your journey and go to the hill country of the Amorites; go to all the neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the hill country, in the foothills, in the Negev, and along the seacoast to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great River Euphrates.
8 DBY Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which Jehovah swore unto your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them. BSB BSB: See, I have placed the land before you. Enter and possess the land that the LORD swore He would give to your fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to their descendants after them.”
Moses Appoints Leaders (Exodus 18:13–27)
9 DBY And I spoke unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone. BSB BSB: At that time I said to you, “I cannot carry the burden for you alone.
10 DBY Jehovah your God hath multiplied you, and behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude. BSB BSB: The LORD your God has multiplied you, so that today you are as numerous as the stars in the sky.
11 DBY Jehovah, the God of your fathers, make you a thousand times so many more as ye are, and bless you as he hath said unto you! BSB BSB: May the LORD, the God of your fathers, increase you a thousand times over and bless you as He has promised.
12 DBY How can I myself alone sustain your wear, and your burden, and your strife? BSB BSB: But how can I bear your troubles, burdens, and disputes all by myself?
13 DBY Provide you wise and understanding and known men, according to your tribes, that I may make them your chiefs. BSB BSB: Choose for yourselves wise, understanding, and respected men from each of your tribes, and I will appoint them as your leaders.”
14 DBY And ye answered me, and said, The thing that thou hast spoken is good for us to do. BSB BSB: And you answered me and said, “What you propose to do is good.”
15 DBY So I took the chiefs of your tribes, wise men and known, and made them chiefs over you, captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds, and captains of fifties, and captains of tens, and officers for your tribes. BSB BSB: So I took the leaders of your tribes, wise and respected men, and appointed them as leaders over you—as commanders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens, and as officers for your tribes.
16 DBY And I commanded your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between a man and his brother, and him also that sojourneth with him. BSB BSB: At that time I charged your judges: “Hear the disputes between your brothers, and judge fairly between a man and his brother or a foreign resident.
17 DBY Ye shall not respect persons in judgment: ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the judgment is God's; and the matter that is too hard for you shall ye bring to me, that I may hear it. BSB BSB: Show no partiality in judging; hear both small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. And bring to me any case too difficult for you, and I will hear it.”
18 DBY And I commanded you at that time all the things that ye should do. BSB BSB: And at that time I commanded you all the things you were to do.
Twelve Spies Sent Out (Numbers 13:1–33)
19 DBY And we departed from Horeb and went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which ye saw, on the way to the mountain of the Amorites, as Jehovah our God had commanded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea. BSB BSB: And just as the LORD our God had commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went toward the hill country of the Amorites, through all the vast and terrifying wilderness you have seen. When we reached Kadesh-barnea,
20 DBY And I said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which Jehovah our God giveth us. BSB BSB: I said: “You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us.
21 DBY Behold, Jehovah thy God hath set the land before thee: go up, take possession, as Jehovah the God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be dismayed. BSB BSB: See, the LORD your God has placed the land before you. Go up and take possession of it as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has told you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.”
22 DBY And ye came near to me all of you, and said, We will send men before us, who shall examine the land for us, and bring us word again of the way by which we must go up, and of the cities to which we shall come. BSB BSB: Then all of you approached me and said, “Let us send men ahead of us to search out the land and bring us word of what route to follow and which cities to enter.”
23 DBY And the matter was good in mine eyes; and I took twelve men of you, one man for a tribe. BSB BSB: The plan seemed good to me, so I selected twelve men from among you, one from each tribe.
24 DBY And they turned and went up into the mountain, and came to the valley of Eshcol, and searched it out. BSB BSB: They left and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied out the land.
25 DBY And they took of the fruit of the land in their hand, and brought it down unto us, and brought us answer, and said, The land is good that Jehovah our God hath given us. BSB BSB: They took some of the fruit of the land in their hands, carried it down to us, and brought us word: “It is a good land that the LORD our God is giving us.”
Israel’s Rebellion (Numbers 14:1–12)
26 DBY But ye would not go up, and rebelled against the word of Jehovah your God; BSB BSB: But you were unwilling to go up; you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God.
27 DBY and ye murmured in your tents, and said, Because Jehovah hated us, he hath brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. BSB BSB: 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 be annihilated.
28 DBY Whither shall we go up? Our brethren have made our hearts melt, saying, They are a people greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakim there. BSB BSB: Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying: ‘The people are larger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the heavens. We even saw the descendants of the Anakim there.’”
29 DBY And I said unto you, Be not afraid, neither fear them; BSB BSB: So I said to you: “Do not be terrified or afraid of them!
30 DBY Jehovah your God who goeth before you, he will fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes; BSB BSB: The LORD your God, who goes before you, will fight for you, just as you saw Him do for you in Egypt
31 DBY and in the wilderness where thou hast seen that Jehovah thy God bore thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came to this place. BSB BSB: and in the wilderness, where the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way by which you traveled until you reached this place.”
32 DBY But In this thing ye did not believe Jehovah your God, BSB BSB: But in spite of all this, you did not trust the LORD your God,
33 DBY who went in the way before you, to search you out a place for your encamping, in fire by night, to shew you by what way ye should go, and in the cloud by day. BSB BSB: who went before you on the journey, in the fire by night and in the cloud by day, to seek out a place for you to camp and to show you the road to travel.
Israel’s Penalty (Numbers 14:20–35)
34 DBY And Jehovah heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and swore, saying, BSB BSB: When the LORD heard your words, He grew angry and swore an oath, saying,
35 DBY None among these men, this evil generation, shall in any wise see that good land, which I swore to give unto your fathers! BSB BSB: “Not one of the men of this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your fathers,
36 DBY Except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed Jehovah. BSB BSB: except Caleb 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 wholeheartedly.”
37 DBY Also Jehovah was angry with me on your account, saying, Thou also shalt not go in thither. BSB BSB: The LORD was also angry with me on your account, and He said, “Not even you shall enter the land.
38 DBY Joshua the son of Nun, who standeth before thee, he shall go in thither: strengthen him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it. BSB BSB: Joshua son of Nun, who stands before you, will enter it. Encourage him, for he will enable Israel to inherit the land.
39 DBY And your little ones, of whom ye said, They shall be a prey, and your children, who this day know neither good nor evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it. BSB BSB: And the little ones you said would become captives—your children who on that day did not know good from evil—will enter the land that I will give them, and they will possess it.
40 DBY But ye, turn, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea. BSB BSB: But you are to turn back and head for the wilderness along the route to the Red Sea.”
The Defeat at Hormah (Numbers 14:40–45)
41 DBY — And ye answered and said unto me, We have sinned against Jehovah, we will go up and fight, according to all that Jehovah our God hath commanded us. And ye girded on every man his weapons of war, and ye would go presumptuously up the hill. BSB BSB: “We have sinned against the LORD,” you replied. “We will go up and fight, as the LORD our God has commanded us.” Then each of you put on his weapons of war, thinking it easy to go up into the hill country.
42 DBY And Jehovah said to me, Say unto them, Go not up, neither fight; for I am not among you; lest ye be smitten before your enemies. BSB BSB: But the LORD said to me, “Tell them not to go up and fight, for I am not with you to keep you from defeat by your enemies.”
43 DBY And I spoke unto you, but ye would not hear, and ye rebelled against the word of Jehovah, and acted presumptuously, and went up the hill. BSB BSB: So I spoke to you, but you would not listen. You rebelled against the command of the LORD and presumptuously went up into the hill country.
44 DBY And the Amorite that dwelt on that hill came out against you, and chased you, like as bees do, and cut you in pieces in Seir, as far as Hormah. BSB BSB: Then the Amorites who lived in the hills came out against you and chased you like a swarm of bees. They routed you from Seir all the way to Hormah.
45 DBY And ye returned and wept before Jehovah, but Jehovah would not listen to your voice, nor give ear unto you. BSB BSB: And you returned and wept before the LORD, but He would not listen to your voice or give ear to you.
46 DBY And ye abode in Kadesh many days, according unto the days that ye abode there . BSB BSB: For this reason you stayed in Kadesh for a long time—a very long time.