Israel’s Rebellion (Deuteronomy 1:26–33)
1 DBY And the whole assembly lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. BSB BSB: Then the whole congregation lifted up their voices and cried out, and that night the people wept.
2 DBY And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron; and the whole assembly said to them, Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! or in this wilderness would that we had died! BSB BSB: All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness!
3 DBY And why is Jehovah bringing us to this land that we may fall by the sword, that our wives and our little ones may become a prey? Is it not better for us to return to Egypt? BSB BSB: Why is the LORD bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and children will become plunder. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?”
4 DBY And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return to Egypt. BSB BSB: So they said to one another, “Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt.”
5 DBY Then Moses and Aaron fell upon their faces before the whole congregation of the assembly of the children of Israel. BSB BSB: Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown before the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel.
6 DBY And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, of them that searched out the land, rent their garments. BSB BSB: Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes
7 DBY And they spoke to the whole assembly of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it out, is a very, very good land. BSB BSB: and said to the whole congregation of Israel, “The land we passed through and explored is an exceedingly good land.
8 DBY If Jehovah delight in us, he will bring us into this land, and give it us, a land that flows with milk and honey; BSB BSB: If the LORD delights in us, He will bring us into this land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and He will give it to us.
9 DBY only rebel not against Jehovah; and fear not the people of the land; for they shall be our food. Their defence is departed from them, and Jehovah is with us: fear them not. BSB BSB: Only do not rebel against the LORD, and do not be afraid of the people of the land, for they will be like bread for us. Their protection has been removed, and the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them!”
10 DBY And the whole assembly said that they should be stoned with stones. And the glory of Jehovah appeared in the tent of meeting to all the children of Israel. BSB BSB: But the whole congregation threatened to stone Joshua and Caleb. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting.
11 DBY And Jehovah said to Moses, How long will this people despise me? and how long will they not believe me, for all the signs which I have done among them? BSB BSB: And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people treat Me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in Me, despite all the signs I have performed among them?
12 DBY I will smite them with the pestilence, and destroy them, and will make of thee a nation greater and mightier than they. BSB BSB: I will strike them with a plague and destroy them—and I will make you into a nation greater and mightier than they are.”
Moses Intercedes for Israel 13 DBY And Moses said to Jehovah, Then the Egyptians will hear it; for in thy might thou broughtest up this people from the midst of them; BSB BSB: But Moses said to the LORD, “The Egyptians will hear of it, for by Your strength You brought this people from among them.
14 DBY and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land, who have heard that thou, Jehovah, art in the midst of this people, that thou, Jehovah, lettest thyself be seen eye to eye, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, in a pillar of cloud by day, and in a pillar of fire by night; BSB BSB: And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have already heard that You, O LORD, are in the midst of this people, that You, O LORD, have been seen face to face, that Your cloud stands over them, and that You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.
15 DBY if thou now slayest this people as one man, then the nations that have heard thy fame will speak, saying, BSB BSB: If You kill this people as one man, the nations who have heard of Your fame will say,
16 DBY Because Jehovah was not able to bring this people into the land that he had sworn unto them, he has therefore slain them in the wilderness. BSB BSB: ‘Because the LORD was unable to bring this people into the land He swore to give them, He has slaughtered them in the wilderness.’
17 DBY And now, I beseech thee, let the power of the Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, BSB BSB: So now I pray, may the power of my Lord be magnified, just as You have declared:
18 DBY Jehovah is slow to anger, and abundant in goodness, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but by no means clearing the guilty , visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and fourth generation . BSB BSB: ‘The LORD is slow to anger and abounding in loving devotion, forgiving iniquity and transgression. Yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished; He will visit the iniquity of the fathers upon their children to the third and fourth generation.’
19 DBY Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of thy loving-kindness, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now. BSB BSB: Pardon, I pray, the iniquity of this people, in keeping with the greatness of Your loving devotion, just as You have forgiven them ever since they left Egypt.”
God’s Forgiveness and Judgment (Deuteronomy 1:34–40)
20 DBY And Jehovah said, I have pardoned according to thy word. BSB BSB: “I have pardoned them as you requested,” the LORD replied.
21 DBY But as surely as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of Jehovah! BSB BSB: “Yet as surely as I live and as surely as the whole earth is filled with the glory of the LORD,
22 DBY for all those men who have seen my glory, and my signs, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice, BSB BSB: not one of the men who have seen My glory and the signs I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness—yet have tested Me and disobeyed Me these ten times—
23 DBY shall in no wise see the land which I did swear unto their fathers: none of them that despised me shall see it. BSB BSB: not one will ever see the land that I swore to give their fathers. None of those who have treated Me with contempt will see it.
24 DBY But my servant Caleb, because he hath another spirit in him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he came; and his seed shall possess it. BSB BSB: But because My servant Caleb has a different spirit and has followed Me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he has entered, and his descendants will inherit it.
25 DBY (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valley.) To-morrow turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness, on the way to the Red sea. BSB BSB: Now since the Amalekites and Canaanites are living in the valleys, turn back tomorrow and head for the wilderness along the route to the Red Sea.”
26 DBY And Jehovah spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, BSB BSB: Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,
27 DBY How long shall I bear with this evil assembly, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. BSB BSB: “How long will this wicked congregation grumble against Me? I have heard the complaints that the Israelites are making against Me.
28 DBY Say unto them, As surely as I live, saith Jehovah, if I do not do unto you as ye have spoken in mine ears! BSB BSB: So tell them: As surely as I live, declares the LORD, I will do to you exactly as I heard you say.
29 DBY In this wilderness shall your carcases fall; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number from twenty years old and upwards, who have murmured against me, BSB BSB: Your bodies will fall in this wilderness—all who were numbered in the census, everyone twenty years of age or older—because you have grumbled against Me.
30 DBY shall in no wise come into the land, concerning which I have lifted up my hand to make you dwell in it; save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. BSB BSB: Surely none of you will enter the land in which I swore to settle you, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.
31 DBY But your little ones, of whom ye said they should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land that ye have despised. BSB BSB: But I will bring your children, whom you said would become plunder, into the land you have rejected—and they will enjoy it.
32 DBY And as to you, your carcases shall fall in this wilderness. BSB BSB: As for you, however, your bodies will fall in this wilderness.
33 DBY And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness. BSB BSB: Your children will be shepherds in the wilderness for forty years, and they will suffer for your unfaithfulness until the last of your bodies lies in the wilderness.
34 DBY After the number of the days in which ye have searched out the land, forty days, each day for a year shall ye bear your iniquities forty years, and ye shall know mine estrangement from you . BSB BSB: In keeping with the forty days you spied out the land, you shall bear your guilt forty years—a year for each day—and you will experience My alienation.
35 DBY I Jehovah have spoken; I will surely do it unto all this evil assembly which have gathered together against me! in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die. BSB BSB: I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this entire wicked congregation, which has conspired against Me. They will meet their end in the wilderness, and there they will die.”
The Plague on the Ten Spies 36 DBY And the men whom Moses had sent to search out the land, who returned, and made the whole assembly to murmur against him, by bringing up an evil report upon the land, BSB BSB: So the men Moses had sent to spy out the land, who had returned and made the whole congregation grumble against him by bringing out a bad report about the land—
37 DBY even those men who had brought up an evil report upon the land, died by a plague before Jehovah. BSB BSB: those men who had brought out the bad report about the land—were struck down by a plague before the LORD.
38 DBY But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, lived still of the men that had gone to search out the land. BSB BSB: Of those men who had gone to spy out the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh remained alive.
39 DBY And Moses told all these sayings to all the children of Israel; then the people mourned greatly. BSB BSB: And when Moses relayed these words to all the Israelites, the people mourned bitterly.
The Defeat at Hormah (Deuteronomy 1:41–46)
40 DBY And they rose up early in the morning, and went up to the hill-top, saying, Here are we, and we will go up to the place of which Jehovah has spoken; for we have sinned. BSB BSB: Early the next morning they got up and went up toward the ridge of the hill country. “We have indeed sinned,” they said, “but we will go to the place the LORD has promised.”
41 DBY And Moses said, Why now do ye transgress the commandment of Jehovah? but it shall not prosper! BSB BSB: But Moses said, “Why are you transgressing the commandment of the LORD? This will not succeed!
42 DBY Go not up, for Jehovah is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies; BSB BSB: Do not go up, lest you be struck down by your enemies, because the LORD is not among you.
43 DBY for the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword; for as ye have turned away from Jehovah, Jehovah will not be with you. BSB BSB: For there the Amalekites and Canaanites will face you, and you will fall by the sword. Because you have turned away from the LORD, He will not be with you.”
44 DBY Yet they presumed to go up to the hill-top; but the ark of the covenant of Jehovah, and Moses, did not depart from the midst of the camp. BSB BSB: But they dared to go up to the ridge of the hill country, though neither Moses nor the ark of the covenant of the LORD moved from the camp.
45 DBY And the Amalekites and the Canaanites who dwelt on that hill, came down and smote them, and cut them to pieces, as far as Hormah. BSB BSB: Then the Amalekites and Canaanites who lived in that part of the hill country came down, attacked them, and routed them all the way to Hormah.