Wanderings in the Wilderness 1 WBS Then we turned, and took our journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea, as the LORD spoke to me: and we compassed mount Seir many days. BSB BSB: Then we turned back and headed for the wilderness by way of the Red Sea, as the LORD had instructed me, and for many days we wandered around Mount Seir.
2 WBS And the LORD spoke to me, saying, BSB BSB: At this time the LORD said to me,
3 WBS Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward. BSB BSB: “You have been wandering around this hill country long enough; turn to the north
4 WBS And command thou the people, saying, Ye are to pass through the border of your brethren the children of Esau, who dwell in Seir; and they will be afraid of you: therefore take ye good heed to yourselves: BSB BSB: and command the people: ‘You will pass through the territory of your brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. They will be afraid of you, so you must be very careful.
5 WBS Meddle not with them; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as a foot-breadth; because I have given mount Seir to Esau for a possession. BSB BSB: Do not provoke them, for I will not give you any of their land, not even a footprint, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as his possession.
6 WBS Ye shall buy food of them for money, that ye may eat; and ye shall also buy water of them for money, that ye may drink. BSB BSB: You are to pay them in silver for the food you eat and the water you drink.’”
7 WBS For the LORD thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand: he knoweth thy walking through this great wilderness: these forty years the LORD thy God hath been with thee: thou hast lacked nothing. BSB BSB: Indeed, the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast wilderness. The LORD your God has been with you these forty years, and you have lacked nothing.
8 WBS And when we passed by from our brethren the children of Esau, who dwelt in Seir, through the way of the plain from Elath, and from Ezion-gaber, we turned and passed by the way of the wilderness of Moab. BSB BSB: So we passed by our brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned away from the Arabah road, which comes up from Elath and Ezion-geber, and traveled along the road of the Wilderness of Moab.
10 WBS (The Emims dwelt in it in times past, a people great, and many, and tall as the Anakims; BSB BSB: (The Emites used to live there, a people great and many, as tall as the Anakites.
11 WBS Who also were accounted giants, as the Anakims; but the Moabites call them Emims. BSB BSB: Like the Anakites, they were also regarded as Rephaim, though the Moabites called them Emites.
12 WBS The Horims also dwelt formerly in Seir, but the children of Esau succeeded them, when they had destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their stead; as Israel did to the land of his possession, which the LORD gave to them.) BSB BSB: The Horites used to live in Seir, but the descendants of Esau drove them out. They destroyed the Horites from before them and settled in their place, just as Israel did in the land that the LORD gave them as their possession.)
13 WBS Now rise, said I , and pass over the brook Zered: and we went over the brook Zered. BSB BSB: “Now arise and cross over the Brook of Zered.” So we crossed over the Brook of Zered.
14 WBS And the space in which we came from Kadesh-barnea, until we passed the brook Zered, was thirty and eight years; until all the generation of the men of war were wasted from among the host, as the LORD swore to them. BSB BSB: The time we spent traveling from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the Brook of Zered was thirty-eight years, until that entire generation of fighting men had perished from the camp, as the LORD had sworn to them.
15 WBS For indeed the hand of the LORD was against them, to destroy them from among the host, until they were consumed. BSB BSB: Indeed, the LORD’s hand was against them, to eliminate them from the camp, until they had all perished.
16 WBS So it came to pass, when all the men of war were consumed and dead from among the people, BSB BSB: Now when all the fighting men among the people had died,
17 WBS That the LORD spoke to me, saying, BSB BSB: the LORD said to me,
18 WBS Thou art to pass over through Ar, the coast of Moab, this day: BSB BSB: “Today you are going to cross the border of Moab at Ar.
20 WBS (That also was accounted a land of giants: giants dwelt in it in old time; and the Ammonites call them Zamzummims; BSB BSB: (That too was regarded as the land of the Rephaim, who used to live there, though the Ammonites called them Zamzummites.
21 WBS A people great, and many, and tall as the Anakims; but the LORD destroyed them before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead: BSB BSB: They were a people great and many, as tall as the Anakites. But the LORD destroyed them from before the Ammonites, who drove them out and settled in their place,
22 WBS As he did to the children of Esau, who dwelt in Seir, when he destroyed the Horims from before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead even to this day: BSB BSB: just as He had done for the descendants of Esau who lived in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them. They drove them out and have lived in their place to this day.
The Defeat of Sihon (Numbers 21:21–30)
24 WBS Arise ye, take your journey, and pass over the river Arnon: behold, I have given into thy hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land: begin to possess it , and contend with him in battle. BSB BSB: “Arise, set out, and cross the Arnon Valley. See, I have delivered into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to take possession of it and engage him in battle.
25 WBS This day will I begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and shall tremble, and be in anguish because of thee. BSB BSB: This very day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you upon all the nations under heaven. They will hear the reports of you and tremble in anguish because of you.”
26 WBS And I sent messengers from the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon king of Heshbon with words of peace, saying, BSB BSB: So from the Wilderness of Kedemoth I sent messengers with an offer of peace to Sihon king of Heshbon, saying,
27 WBS Let me pass through thy land: I will go along by the highway, I will neither turn to the right hand nor to the left. BSB BSB: “Let us pass through your land; we will stay on the main road. We will not turn to the right or to the left.
28 WBS Thou shalt sell me food for money, that I may eat; and give me water for money, that I may drink: only I will pass through on my feet; BSB BSB: You can sell us food to eat and water to drink in exchange for silver. Only let us pass through on foot,
29 WBS (As the children of Esau who dwell in Seir, and the Moabites who dwell in Ar, did to me;) until I shall pass over Jordan into the land which the LORD our God giveth us. BSB BSB: just as the descendants of Esau who live in Seir and the Moabites who live in Ar did for us, until we cross the Jordan into the land that the LORD our God is giving us.”
30 WBS But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him: for the LORD thy God hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into thy hand, as appeareth this day. BSB BSB: But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for the LORD your God had made his spirit stubborn and his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as is the case this day.
31 WBS And the LORD said to me, Behold, I have begun to give Sihon and his land before thee: begin to possess, that thou mayest inherit his land. BSB BSB: Then the LORD said to me, “See, I have begun to deliver Sihon and his land over to you. Now begin to conquer and possess his land.”
32 WBS Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, to fight at Jahaz. BSB BSB: So Sihon and his whole army came out for battle against us at Jahaz.
33 WBS And the LORD our God delivered him before us; and we smote him, and his sons, and all his people. BSB BSB: And the LORD our God delivered him over to us, and we defeated him and his sons and his whole army.
34 WBS And we took all his cities at that time, and utterly destroyed the men, and the women, and the little ones of every city, we left none to remain. BSB BSB: At that time we captured all his cities and devoted to destruction the people of every city, including women and children. We left no survivors.
35 WBS Only the cattle we took for a prey to ourselves, and the spoil of the cities which we took. BSB BSB: We carried off for ourselves only the livestock and the plunder from the cities we captured.
36 WBS From Aroer, which is by the brink of the river of Arnon, and from the city that is by the river, even to Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us: the LORD our God delivered all to us: BSB BSB: From Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the valley, even as far as Gilead, not one city had walls too high for us. The LORD our God gave us all of them.
37 WBS Only to the land of the children of Ammon thou camest not, nor to any place of the river Jabbok, nor to the cities on the mountains, nor to whatever the LORD our God forbad us. BSB BSB: But you did not go near the land of the Ammonites, or the land along the banks of the Jabbok River, or the cities of the hill country, or any place that the LORD our God had forbidden.